Thanksgiving Trip

Last Tuesday I started watching Julian.  It was definitely a challenge to have three little ones in the house under my care.  There were lots of diaper changes, feedings, naps and crying.  It will definitely make my days interesting!  Aric seemed to do well with the new addition, even giving Julian kisses during the day.

After Julian went home, we fed the kids and were on our way to El Paso to visit Ryan's family for Thanksgiving.  After much debate, Ryan and I decided it would be easier with two small children to drive overnight rather than during the day.  There were some tears shed, lots of caffeine ingested, the use of our laptop to view Baby Einstein videos and a need for earplugs, but all in all it seemed like it worked out well to travel overnight.

We had such a good time with Ryan's family over Thanksgiving.  We stayed just long enough to wish we could've stayed a little longer. (Hopefully they were thinking the same thing.)  With plenty of people around Ryan and I were able to get out and take a couple of breaks from the kids. Aric and Kellyn were able to bond (as much as a 1 year old and 1 month old can bond) with their Poppa, Nana, Uncle, Aunt and cousins.

Aric being inducted into the Polar Bear Club

Kellyn "Biker Baby" Peters with Nana

Downtime with Poppa

Sightseeing Waiting for Mommy and Nana with Poppa

Kellyn wearing her new "bling"

I did make some important discoveries on our trip:

-Having a tote bag containing: diapers for both kids, a large package of wipes, a changing pad, butt paste and hand sanitizer makes diaper changes easy while traveling with two small children.

-I like Luvs diapers.  I thought I liked Pampers and kept buying them for times when we used disposable diapers.  However, Ryan's mom picked up diapers for us and bought Luvs.  The first two days when I was using up the rest of our Pampers, I had to change Kellyns' outfit several times because of leaky diapers.  When we finally started using the Luvs, I didn't have to change her outfit once because of a leaky diaper.  I am a believer now and will be switching brands next time I'm at the store.

-Changing diapers for two kids (and three kids last week) destroyed my hands.  Ryan's mom has several types of lotion bottles sitting out around her house and I was able to try different brands.  I found one that I liked:

It immediately made my hands softer and kept them that way.  I have tried many different brands over the years and definitely liked the results after using the Gold Bond lotion.

And not a discovery, but I did get something that I've always wanted:

Ryan's mom gave that to me right before we left.  I've wanted a heart-shaped chili pepper wreath for a long time and now I have one. You can take the girl out of Texas...

Now we are back home and I'm thinking about Christmas cards, buying and mailing presents, setting up the tree, baking cookies and, sadly, the return to work in less than two weeks. 

Reality sets back in...

Mime

Aric has turned into a little mime lately.  Anything we do or say is likely to be repeated at any point in time.  Aric will cross and uncross his arms in front of his body matching me move for move.  He now says "Man" parroting Ryan, who happened to say "Oh, Man" the other night.  He has great fun attempting to walk around in our shoes. Literally...

It's fun to observe his newfound mime skills, but also a little disconcerting to have to watch everything we do or say or even allow on the radio or television when Aric is around.  Just one more little part of being a parent...

Helpful

Getting So Big

It's hard to believe she'll be six weeks old tomorrow!

Thongs and Photo Shoots

Yesterday morning we were in town and since it was cold I took the kids to the mall to walk around inside for awhile.  While in the mall we stopped at the GAP, one of my favorite stores.  I pushed the stroller into the back corner to check out the sales rack for any good deals they might have.  It was a tight fit and we were in between the rack of sales clothing and a table displaying underwear.  I turned my head away too long, because when I looked back Aric was reaching out and pulling a stack of thongs off of the table.  Not realizing the extent of the mess he was creating, I pushed the stroller forward to allow me to pick up the stack of thongs he had just dumped on the floor.  Apparently while my back was turned he had attacked two other piles of thongs and dumped those on the floor.  When I pushed the stroller forward I managed to wrap a thong around the wheel of the stroller.  What an embarrassing mess!  I picked up all of the thongs and put them back on the table, but was unable to stay and neatly stack them for the sales lady since Aric was already reaching out for more underwear.  Thankfully the sales girl was nice about it when I informed her of the situation and apologized for my son's grabby hands.

Last night we had an appointment to have Aric and Kellyn's pictures taken at Sears.  We dressed them up, took them to Sears and it was a disaster.  My normally photogenic son cried when we put him down in the middle of the drape.  We were sitting nearby, but he just couldn't handle the new surroundings.  When he wasn't crying, Kellyn was.  It was actually pretty comical to behold.  Thankfully we took them to a place that is used to crying children.  It made choosing photos at the end rather easy, though.  We just chose the photos where they were crying the least!

Quality Time

Yesterday was cold with a rain/sleet/snow combination.  It was not a good day to take Aric outside to play.  He only colors a little bit and is much more interested in putting the crayons in the box and then taking them out again, but it does keep him entertained.  At least it did keep him entertained until he tore the box apart.

Not To Be Trusted

Remember this post of Aric feeding himself with a spoon?  Well, he's not to be trusted:

Down

Ryan and I have been a little down the last few days.  We're both overwhelmed by parenting a newborn and a toddler on the verge in the midst of the terrible twos.  In addition we have so many decisions before us that we're going to have to make regarding Ryan's job, my job, moving, etc.  The stress levels are high at our house and sometimes it causes us to have senile moments.  Ryan swears it's the house, I think it's life.  Whatever it is we're both struggling.

I went to a daycare orientation class yesterday to see about the feasibility of opening an in-home daycare.  That is my greatest desire right now.  I would love to be able to stay home with our children and yet bring in an income.  I am not sure how that would work out, though.  We live in a very old farmhouse in the country.  While we have worked to ensure that our children are safe, I would have to go through an inspection by the fire marshal and the health department before they would allow me to obtain a license.  Then actually finding children to watch would be difficult since we live a little out of everyone's way.  I'm not completely throwing this option out of the window, but I'm not holding my breath that it is right for us at this point in time.

This week I've been in contact with Ms. Autumn, Aric's previous daycare provider.  I am waiting to find out if she's going to have any openings anytime in the near future.  Why would I need openings?  With Ryan's new job, working 6-4 probably isn't the best option for us.  Or I should clarify that by saying- finding childcare from 6pm-12pm is pretty impossible to find.  Ms. Autumn believes she'll have at least one opening by the end of the year, then it would be a matter of finding someone to watch Kellyn temporarily until there is another opening.

This will only be temporary because we believe we'll have to move closer to Ryan's job within the next year.  We live about 10 miles too far away from his new job.  A year will give us time to get our ducks in a row and figure out our next move.

And how is Ryan's new job going?  Frustrating.  Ryan was supposed to turn in a packet by yesterday to make it in time to attend two boards in December (all part of the hiring process in the military).  His recruiter told him yesterday that he (the recruiter) just didn't have time to get it all ready and turned in by the Monday deadline.  We were a little shocked and very frustrated.  Hopefully the recruiter will get the paperwork in time for the January boards at least.  There's a training class at the end of January that Ryan would like to make it in time for.  We shall see.

We know God is in complete control of everything and right now we're just waiting for Him to shed a little light onto everything and help us see the clear path through it all.

Affection

Additional Photos

After looking at Aric's hair for a day now, I've decided it's not all that bad.  Besides it will grow back and thankfully the curl is still there.  Now all  I have to do is schedule that photo appointment.

Hacked Off

Aric went in for a trim today and ended up with a haircut.

Before:

After:

I was planning on taking Aric and Kellyn in next week to have their pictures taken for Christmas, but now I am fighting a lack of desire to schedule that.  I know it's hair and it will grow back, but it makes me want to cry.  The shaggy curls were such a fun, unique part of Aric and it's hard not seeing them on him.  I guess we'll be growing his hair out for awhile.

Enough to Make Your Head Spin

We have definitely been busy lately and yet it doesn't seem that we've done anything or gone anywhere.  I think the business comes from these two:

 

It has been a huge adjustment to add a fourth member to our family.  While we are thrilled to have Kellyn in our family, it hasn't been easy by any means.  Grocery shopping, errands, trips to the doctor and going to church are huge excursions now better attempted with two parents rather than one.  At this time, calling us after 8pm is not encouraged.  If you do call, be warned that you'll probably reach a frazzled parent and hear a screaming infant in the background during the entire call.  I keep trying to remind myself that infants go through phases and hopefully in another couple of weeks the screaming will no longer be a part of our nightly routine.  That's easier to stomach now when the house is quiet rather than later when ear plugs are required.

Ryan has been busy with work and tying up loose ends for his new job.  I've been busy with children, recovering and spending time praying for wisdom in making decisions regarding my return to work.  We're looking at some different options that would better fit our family life and I am a little overwhelmed by them.  I know what I desire to do, but at the moment I don't know what God's will is and I don't want to make a poor choice.

It's all really enough to make your head spin!

Fall

We've had some warm days recently and what better way to spend them then outside playing in all of the leaves.  Aric sure enjoyed them.

Almost Grownup, But Not Quite

Except for the fact that he is still stubborn and refusing "normal" dinnertime meals, Aric is growing up and feeding himself: