project mom

Last weekend Carissa and I went to Project Mom.  Since it was in Allen, we were able to get away for the day but be back home for dinner with our boys!! We went to three different breakout sessions and they were all so informative: Growing Confident Children, Messy Mommyhood, and Creative Discipline for Every Child and Every Age. 

My favorite “take-away” was from the session taught by Rebecca Carrell titled “Messy Mommyhood”.  Social media makes us all feel like we have to be the perfect Mom or doing what the next Mom is doing but she really encouraged us to know that it’s okay to be a mess.  Messy Moms learn far more from their struggles than from their success.  It was encouraging to be reminded that I don’t have to try to be like any other Mom.  I am the only one that can be my kids Mom and I am exactly what they need!! 

I am already looking forward to next year’s Project Mom.  I can guarantee you that I’ll be there!  It was such a refreshing day to be surrounded by and encouraged by other Moms.  

terrible two's?

Oh boy, the last few days have been rough with my little man.  I'm thinking that we may be hitting the "Terrible Two's" a few months early.  

I guess I could just look at it as, "My child is advanced and is hitting this milestone early!" Ha!!

He's been more defiant than normal, he's been shaking his head NO at me and even telling me NO, and just overall been a little grumpy pants.   We even had to have our first official time-out in the corner for slapping Mommy after naptime.  Now, don't get me wrong, we've also had some sweet little moments these last few days. It hasn't all been bad.  We've been singing songs together, reading books, coloring, playing outside, going to the park, etc. but the hard moments are the ones that are sticking in my head right now.  And I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed if this is what my days are going to look like for the next year.  Disciplining is no fun, but I know it's the right thing to do. Bad behavior can't be ignored.

Obviously I would be thrilled if this was just his two year molars coming in so I could chalk his behavior up to teething.  Even if it is though, I'm pretty sure the "Terrible Twos" are going to come whether we like it or not. 

So, here we go........

"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6

Being a parent is so much fun, but nobody ever said it would be easy.  

Anyone else in the stage with me?  

If so, we need to stick together and encourage one another.  

lately.....

Thanks for sticking with me while a took a little blog break.  I just needed a little time away from the blog.  I've had a lot of responsibilities at church lately, been busy with my new little nanny job and of course chasing around and entertaining a toddler is a full time job!!  I know I never have to "apologize" for not blogging, but I like to keep my blog up to date because it's essentially my scrapbook!!

So, here's what we've been up to lately....

We had a Valentine's Day playdate with my childhood friend and her daughter Stella. 

We got to see my cousin, who lives in Tennessee, compete in a gymnastics meet here in Dallas.

 

We were all so incredibly proud of Ashton.  It was amazing to watch her in her element.  Plus it was great to see on of my other cousins and my uncle.

 We went to Splitsville with our ABF for some bowling.

I hate to brag, but in the first round I beat all the girls AND the guys.  I can thank my bowling class at A&M for my skills!!

I kept my niece and nephew so that Ashley could get her hair cut and colored.  

Sweet Olivia had to improvise with all the boy toys we have in our house.  Who knew that a dump truck could be a stroller, a rocking chair, and a crib.

 We also went and visited Nonnie.  They sure do loooooooove their Nonnie!!

And who wouldn't when she gives you cake for snack!!!

This past weekend, I had the amazing opportunity to go to DotMom for free.  I won a ticket from the Lifeway Women's blog.  My Mom kept Pearson all day Friday until Matt got home from work and then Matt kept him all day Saturday.  It was the longest that I have ever been away from Pearson.  I love him to pieces, but it was nice to get away for a little while.

I went with two of my sweet friends from Bible Study, Meredith & Mandy.  We had a blast Friday and Saturday together.  The speakers were great and the break-out sessions were amazing.  I really walked away with lots of great ideas, encouragement and motivation to be the best wife and mom that I can be.

Hopefully soon I can share with you some of the stuff I learned at DotMom.  I'm just such a terrible writer.  It's so hard for me to put into words what I want to say.......which is why I usually just stick to lots of pictures and a little bit of writing here on my blog.  But, the Lord really taught me some neat stuff and I would love to share it with you all. 

my baby love

In early December I had a little photo session with 

Sarah Huffman Photography of me and my baby love!

We had these pictures made especially for Daddy for Christmas!  

I wanted him to have some good pictures of his 

two favorite people to have in his office!!

I can't wait to share with you some the pictures of Carson, Olivia and Pearson that we had done for my parents.  They are absolutely precious! But you'll have to stay tuned for those because I'll be posting them later in January along with a fabulous giveaway from Sarah Huffman Photography!! 

laundry room drama

This morning as Pearson and I were about to walk out of the door to go to the gym and the grocery store, we had a little drama  While I was packing his diaper bag, he kept going in the laundry room.  I didn't really think anything of it because the back door to the garage was locked, so he couldn't get out.  Unfortunately, while he was in there (for no more than 10 seconds by himself), he closed the door to then opened these little plastic drawers that I have between the wall and the washer.  He opened the bottom two and happily started playing with the tools that were in there. Little did he know that he had locked himself in the laundry room. When I went to go get him, I couldn't open the door because the drawers were blocking it.   

I tried to stay calm and figure out a way to close the drawers so that I could open the door, but I just couldn't figure it out.  I couldn't even get my fingers through the crack.  I tried using just about every kind of kitchen utensil to close the drawers, but nothing worked.  At this point Pearson was still happily playing with the tools in the bottom drawer.  I was praying that he couldn't do anything to hurt himself.  I called my Mom to see what she thought I should do.  While I was talking to her I started to cry and that's when Pearson lost it.  I think he realized that he was stuck and got scared.  Since I was trying to calm Pearson down, my Mom called my Dad to see if he could come over and help.  He didn't answer so she called my brother.  While my brother was on his way, my Dad finally called back and he came as well. Pearson screamed bloody murder for a good 5-10 minutes because I just couldn't calm him down.  I finally thought to put on a Baby Einstein video on my phone and slip it through the crack.  Once he had the iPhone with the video on, he was happy.  He would cry ever now and then but for the most part he was fine.  I could see his little feet under the door crack.  He was just standing in the corner.  He never would sit down.

 After he had been in there a good 20-25 my brother finally got him out.  He got some sort of tool that had a sharp-pokey end and he kind of stabbed the plastic drawers so he could push them in.  

Poor guy has tears coming down his face and big puffy eyes once we rescued him!!

 Thanks to my Dad and brother for coming to the rescue.  They even moved my washer so that I could put the drawers in between the washer and dryer where it wouldn't block the door if Pearson ever decides to pull them out again. 

Whew! What a morning!!

I'll have to blog tomorrow about the little trick I know about that "kid-proofs" your iPhone.

jackpot

This weekend was our neighborhood semi-annual garage sale.  I really hit the jackpot this weekend.  Actually Pearson hit the jackpot!! I got him so much great stuff at all of the sales.

1.  Feety PJ's- $1

2. Fleece Feety PJ's- $1.50 a piece

3. Big Board Books- $.25 a piece

4.  Little Books (set of 11)- $1

5. Life Jacket (30-50lbs)- $4

6. Reversible Winter Coat- $5

7. Carter's Romper- $1

8. Fleece Sweatshirt- $1.50

(not pictured- Red Carter's Polo-$1)

9. Puzzles- $1 a piece

10. Sticky Placemats (set of 10)- $.25

11. Sippy Cups- $1 a piece

12. LeapFrog Fridge Phonics Set- $2

13. Sign Language DVD's- $.25 a piece

14. Elmo Phone- $.50

15. Matchbox Cars (set of 6)- $1

16. Play Swiffer Sweeper- $1

**Sidenote: At a party last week Pearson found a kid sized broom and walked all the house "sweeping".  When I saw this, I knew I had to get it for him.  You can actually put a real swiffer rag on the bottom of it!! I put him to work this afternoon and he "cleaned" my floors.  There really was a little dust on the bottom of the rag when he was finished. He loves this toy!! And I love having a little helper!!

 17.  Lunch Trays (set of 4)- $1

18. Muffin Tin- $.50

Total: $34.00

I'd say I got quite a lot for $34.   Jackpot!!

today.....

......I had cereal for breakfast for the first time in forever. 

......I bought Pearson a book for a quarter at a garage sale.

......I went to the gym for the first time in a week.

......Pearson only took a 45 minute nap.

......We had a reeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaally long afternoon/evening.

And this happened......

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! 

Enjoy the fall weather that has finally decided to join us!!

shopping w/ a busy boy

Today was supposed to be a fun shopping day, but sadly it was far from that.  

I'm a tad bit smaller than I was before pregnancy so I was excited to get some new Spring clothes with some gift cards that I have been holding onto since my birthday in September.  

Pearson is always so good when we are out and about, and he even loves to go grocery shopping with me.  Today, though, was a totally different story.  He did not want to be in the stroller and he would just cry and cry while we were in the dressing room. I felt so bad for all the other people trying on clothes.  When I would take him out of his stroller he would do everything he could to get out of my arms.  Needless to say we didn't shop very long and walked away with 3 things I'm not even sure I'm going to keep because I felt so rushed to get out of the store.  

Any tips for shopping with busy toddlers? 

in the club

So I joined the club today....

.....the "I locked my baby in the car" Club.  

Ughh....major Mom fail.  

Looks like I won't be getting Mom of the Year this Year.  

So here's the story......

I was out running errands.  I opened one side of the car and realized I would have more room to get Pearson out on the other side.  Apparently I had already locked my car and when I went to go get him out on the other side the door was locked. I had just locked my baby in the car with my phone in there as well.  

I seriously didn't know what to do.  I just stood there panicking for a minute because I didn't know if I should just ask a stranger for their phone or run in to Michael's or DSW to use their phone.  I mean I didn't want to leave Pearson all alone, but my car was locked.  Nobody could get him.  Thankfully before I had to make a decision a sweet little lady saw me and asked if everything was okay.  I told her what had happened and she gladly offered me her cell phone and told me she was in no hurry at all.  

Praise the Lord that there are still nice people in this world.  

I called Matt and asked him what I should do.  Thankfully Pearson was asleep in the car and it wasn't too hot or too cold outside so he was fine.  Matt called my Mom and explained the situation to her.  She was about 10 minutes from my house so she went and got my spare key.  

After I knew that my Mom was on her way, I gave the lady back her phone and thanked her for saving me!!  She started to pull out and then stopped and handed me her umbrella.  She said, "Honey, it might start pouring down rain so you just keep my umbrella."  Seriously.....sweetest little lady ever.   It didn't rain, but it did drizzle a little while I was waiting.  I'm definitely thankful she gave me her umbrella though.  

My Mom said she was on her way at 12:45, and she finally got to me 1:20.  Pearson woke up at 12:50 and was just as happy as could be for about 10 minutes. He was talking to himself in the mirror, chewing on his shoes and just looking around.  He finally spotted me outside the car at 1:00 and just lost it.  He cried/screamed for a solid 20 minutes until my Mom got there.  I felt terrible that I couldn't do anything.  

After my Mom got there with my spare key, I quickly got in the car and got Pearson out.  Poor guy, he was so sweaty.  It's hard to believe how hot he got from being in there for only 35 minutes on a mild day.  I think he was mainly so sweaty from getting all worked up and crying.  He calmed down very quickly though.  I still felt so bad.  We all went into Michael's and shopped around for a while.  I wasn't about to make Pearson stay in his car seat right after I locked him in there for 35 minutes.  It was so sad while we were shopping around, every now and then Pearson would just start to whimper and cry.  It was like he was remembering being left.  

So there you have it......My official "I locked my baby in the car" Club Membership story.

But it looks likes I'm not the only one in the club.  I posted about this on facebook and 11 other Moms said they were in the club too!  It happens to the best of us I guess!!

Anyone else out there in the club?