The Poopie Patrol

A New Beginning and a Fond Farewell

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:15:00 +0000

First things first... as promised, we finally had our baby :) he was born Monday, June 29th at 6:36pm. He weighed in at 6lbs 13oz and 19" long.

I started this blog almost 2 years ago, a few months after coming home with baby B. I started it out of a need to meet and converse with other mothers. And I have met and emailed and "conversed" with some really wonderful people out there. It has meant a lot to me to be able to read about all of your adventures and share my own with you. I'm certain that I will drop in and see what's going on with many of you, but unfortunately it's time for me to let this blog go.

So this is it: a fond farewell to The Poopie Patrol.

On Baby Countdown!

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 02:43:00 +0000

Just less than two weeks to go! My mom was here for the past couple of weeks as my husband was out of town with work... All of my last minute preps have been done...now we're just waiting for baby to arrive.

Of course I have stubborn babies. My first was born on his due date (I was induced due to high blood pressure)... Second babies are suppose to come early ;) or so I've heard... but my second was actually 3 days late!

I guess we shall see about baby #3... stubborn or anxious? ;)

Got it all Together

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Fri, 29 May 2009 15:59:00 +0000

Well, spent last weekend and this week getting everything ready for my mom's visit and for the arrival of new baby :) About the only thing I haven't finished yet is crocheting new baby's blanket. I've just been too busy and have had little idle time to sit and crochet. I'll get it done eventually and he will have his own handmade blankie, but it may not get done before he's born. I generally don't make too many blankets - they are one of the most time consuming crochet projects. Unlike booties and hats for babys, which take a mere hour or two... and I have crocheted 4 hat and bootie sets ;) 2 are for new baby and the other sets are for my sister-in-law and neice who are both also expecting boys. Funny that until now our families have been overwhlemed with girls - looks like things are starting to even out!

Anyway, I will probably be taking a bloggy break for a while. For many reasons... but I will try to post when new baby arrives for those few of you who are still following me ;)

The Home Stretch

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Sat, 23 May 2009 02:49:00 +0000

A little less than 5 weeks to go. It still seems to have gone by so fast. But I've hit that part of pregnancy where I am just ready. That part where you just feel uncomfortable regardless of where you're sitting or what position you're sitting/sleeping in. That part where your back sends those tingly feelings down your legs and you just can't sit in one spot for longer than about 2 minutes...

Kind of funny how things go. With my first pregnancy, I was so convinced I was going to go early that I made my husband get everything put together (crib, playpen, bassinette etc...) and set up about 2 months ahead of time. I had everything washed, put away and waiting. And I had my bag packed and ready to dash to the hospital. I had nothing to do but sit and wait. Which proved to produce more anxiety! :) I ended up being induced on my due date.

The second time around was very similar. Except I waited until I had about a month and a half to go. Then I just had everything set up and had all the clothes ready. I didn't bother packing my bag until about a month to go. At which point I figured that I would go early... but nope - ended up going 3 days late!

This time? I realized that I had just about nothing done and 5 weeks to go! So I finally started getting things ready. I washed all the receiving blankets and new clothes I bought. I still have to go through all of D's baby clothes and get them washed and ready. Of course I'm starting to convince myself that I'm going to go early... one sure way to make that happen is to hold off on getting everything ready ;) But in all reality, I sure don't want to get caught having nothing done!! So I will be getting the rest of what I need to get done really soon here! :)

Random Fantabulous Things Said Around the House

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Fri, 15 May 2009 13:51:00 +0000

I am just really loving the developmental stage D is in with his language and thinking! ;) Of course at times it can range from annoying to inappropriate, but for the most part it's pretty fascinating to see how he is thinking about things.

With the warmer weather we have been driving around with the windows down. He likes it for a little while, but as most of our driving is highway driving - he doesn't quite like it when his hair is blowing around...

"Mom, roll my window! My hair is messing up!"

And sometimes the cute little guy is thinking about me.

"Mom roll up your window! Your hair is messing up!"

Yesterday at breakfast he informs me that he is NOT picking his nose..."My finger is hiding!"

This morning: "Mom the sun is on!"

Or the other day "Mom, the sun just beat my window."

Each day brings some new little insight into the way he thinks. I just think it is so fascinating to witness! :)

Wordless Wednesday: Hugs for the Doggie

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 13 May 2009 12:34:00 +0000

Little beasts and monsters...

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Thu, 07 May 2009 15:53:00 +0000

Let's just say I have been unbelievably busy lately. It's sometimes completely amazing how many things get thrown at us at a time. Of course, I am realistic enough to know that things could get a lot worse, and that there are probably lots of people that have things going on that are much worse than around here...

Anyway, we have all been sick for about 2 weeks now. The two little ones were finally getting over it this past weekend and then D ended up getting an ear infection! Ear infections are ugly little beasts.

Last week I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Which is also quite an ugly beast. I really had no clue how much was involved with diabetes. I thought it was just all about sugar consumption. I was so wrong! It's a huge complicated monster!! It has to do mainly with carbs. I have to measure everything out, or weigh it out and count the carbs... and follow guidelines about how many veggie (non-starchy and starchy)/fruit/meat/grain servings... Ugh. It can be horribly confusing and complicated.

And the testing... you have to test in the morning before you eat anything, then 2 hours after each meal... you can have snacks in between and at bedtime, but not until after you wait 2 hours after Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner to test... And seriously, I have been absolutely STARVING!! The first hour after eating is not bad, but after that... it is really hard to wait out those 2 hours to test my blood sugar before getting to eat that snack. It would probably be a little easier to handle if I wasn't pregnant and starving all the time!

The most unbelievable thing I have found so far is that one *small* order of french fries constitutes one *entire* meal of carbs!!

I can't imagine how hard it must be for people who have to do this every day for the rest of their lives. Let alone parents who are trying to control diabetes in their children. It's almost an overwhelming task to do it for myself... It requires a lot of willpower and a lot of diligence. I have a newfound respect and empathy for those who have to deal with this ugly monster!

Wordless Wednesday: Couch Capers

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 12:06:00 +0000

Wordless Wednesday: Lost Sucker Edition

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:04:00 +0000

Oops. She'll be looking for it when she wakes up!

Time Swooshes By!

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:07:00 +0000

I can't believe how fast time is just flying by. The weeks are whizzing by. But seriously, it feels like just yesterday that I was finding out I was pregnant! And here I am 30 weeks along! Only 2 months to go!

What is crazy about it is that with your first pregnancy time seems like its at a standstill. Everything takes forever! Especially if you have been waiting and wishing and trying to get pregnant for a while. You are so excited that you just can't wait to start showing so you can go buy some cute maternity clothes and show off your baby bump!

And then it takes absolutely forever to feel the baby move! And at first you just really aren't sure if its the baby moving or gas. And then when the movements become more pronounced and you know its the baby, you spend your days marvelling at the kicks and hiccups... and anxiously awaiting the arrival. Which takes absolutely forever! And its all such an unknown, all so new and exciting.

Then the last few weeks are the worst! You spend every day listening and feeling for every little thing your body does/is doing and wondering if its the onset of labor. Hoping its the onset of labor. Thinking you might somehow miss the signs (as if you really could!). Thinking that at each weekly dr's visit she's going to proclaim "you're in labor!" Or at least tell you when it might happen! Because you are so anxious you want to see and hold that little kicker right NOW! :)

My first pregnancy I was so overanxious. Everyone said that I was going to go early. So of course I was set on going early. And towards the end when I asked the Dr if she could guess how much the baby might weigh, she said she thought he might be about 9lbs if I went to term. That freaked me out. After she said that, I was bound and determined to go early!! I couldn't have a 9lb baby! I had just bought a lot of "newborn" clothes that only went up to 8lbs! (you later learn that lbs don't really mean a whole lot, and neither do the months when it comes to sizing clothes).

So, the closer I got to my due date the more overly-anxious I became. I ended up having issues with high blood pressure at the end (probably because I had worked myself up so!). I was induced the day before my due date. I had the choice. They had given me something to help dilate my cervix, which didn't really work very well and she said I could either stay and be induced or go home and wait. I was so done waiting by that point!

If I ever am given that choice again, I will totally wait and go on my own! I was in labor for about 23 hours. He was born on his due date and weighed 6lbs and 8oz!

The second time, I was much more relaxed. I knew exactly what I was waiting for my body to do, and I knew there was no way I would miss such a thing. And I didn't care how big the baby was going to be. And I really didn't care if I went past my due date. I was willing to wait.

The funny thing about the second time around was that everything happened so much sooner. I was in maternity clothes by 6 weeks. I felt the baby move around 10-12 weeks. Again, everyone said that I was going to go early. But I didn't let that affect me. Then at 36 weeks I thought my water broke. Turned out that I had just tinkled myself a little bit ;) which is pretty normal with your second one at the end.

I did go past my due date. And honestly, I slept through all the beginning stages of labor if you can believe that. I vaguely remember looking at the clock and trying to time the contractions, but being too tired. Until I was woken up with an especially strong one. We barely made it to the hospital (which is a 30min drive). By the time they finished with all the crap they have to do with admitting and IVs and all that bit, I was ready to push. Baby B was born about 30mins after we got to the hospital.

One of the biggest differences between the first and second was that I had constant access to the internet the second time around. Due to lack of foresight, with my first pregnancy I didn't take any notes about the very end... and it was all so full of anxiety that I just didn't remember all the details very well. So the second time around, with every passing thing (Mucus plug, dilation, stripping of the membranes, etc...) I went to the internet. Here's what I learned: do yourself a favor and don't google these things unless you want tons of conflicting info, humorous info and just plain bad info. Every pregnancy is differnt, and it just happens in its own time. There is nothing but labor that is an indication of when it will happen. Some women lose their mucus plug and go into labor right away, others can lose it weeks or even months before. You can be dialted up to 3 or so and still go weeks. You can have your membranes stripped and go that night or have them stripped 2 or 3 times and still go another week or two. I'm just glad I didn't have the opportunity to google all this stuff the first time around, because I probably would have taken it all much more seriously.

And this 3rd time around? Got bigger quicker, felt movement about the same time as the second, and the best thing is that I started wetting myself around 20 weeks instead of 36 :) At least this time I didn't mistake it for my water breaking ;) This pregnancy is going by unbelievably fast! And this time, I'm just hoping that we make it to the hospital on time. It would really help if I could start the labor process before I'm asleep ;) When I'm tired, I just don't want to wake up for anything!

Goodbye Winter!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 21:59:00 +0000

It was an unbelievable 74 degrees out on Friday! It was nice (upper 50s through upper 60s) the entire week after Easter weekend! I just went and dug out some of my short sleeve maternity shirts on Friday. Then guess what? Saturday was still decent, in the 60s I think. But Sunday? Below 30 and snowing!!!! It was still in the lower thirties and flurrying today. Grrrrr. We've spent half the year in winter. I'm so ready for the weather to change for good. The poor kids begged to go outside all Sunday and all day today :(
Old man winter just had to have one last laugh. I hope he's done now until at least October.

The Outside Monsters

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 14:26:00 +0000

I am so glad the weather is finally turning around! This past weekend was just gorgeous! Of course it was still a little chilly, but not cold enough to keep us inside! I think we spent the entire weekend outside, and have taken trips outside every day and early evening since!

I would have to say that Spring is my favorite season. After being cooped up indoors all Winter long, its so nice to be able to go outside!! A long Winter full of stale air... the fresh air is just so wonderful! I can't wait to be able to open the windows! (We're not quite there yet).

The kids are absolutely having the greatest time playing outside! All Winter, when my son would spy one of his outside toys he would ask to go out and play. They have been just beside themselves with the joy of the outdoors. The only bad thing is having to bring them inside. Every single time I have to drag them both kicking and screaming inside! I'm hoping that the novelty will wear off soon and we can have less drama coming inside. From the time they get up in the morning they are asking to go out and play :) Its great to have something fun for them to do! They were starting to get stir crazy.

Anyway, until next time, you will find us outside swinging, sliding, pulling wagons and drawing on the cement! :)

Wordless Wednesday: More Awkward Sleeping

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:05:00 +0000

Stinky Dog??

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 15:44:00 +0000

Yes, we have a stinky dog :) We've tried bathing her. We even resorted to doggie cologne. Don't try that last one. It doesn't as much mask the odor as combine with it and make it worse. Once someone told her she smelled like a rotten pineapple! ;)

Of course she's a little miniature dachshund, and knows she is a lapdog. And she spends her days snoozing away on the couch. We've tried keeping her off the couch, and it will work as long as we are around 24/7. As soon as we leave and she's all alone, she's back on the couch.
Needless to say, our couch doesn't smell so great! When I was contacted to see if I wanted an opportunity to sample the new Febreze Fabric Refresher, I jumped at the chance.

I had used the Febreze Pet Odor Eliminator before, but I just really did not like the scent. And also, did not like the way the bottle leaked all over my hands. But I would use it on the stinky dog couch when we were having company.

Guess what? They have improved the bottle design, and now: it doesn't leak! Their new bottle trigger is ergonomic to "reduce hand fatigue, leakage and that unnecessary 'quacking' noise." (Febreze website).

The new Febreze Fabric Refresher smells quite a bit better than the Pet Odor Eliminator line. It comes in: Lavender Vanilla and Comfort, Linen and Sky, Spring and Renewal and Meadows and Rain. I was given a sample in Lavender Vanilla and Comfort, and really enjoyed the scent!

I'm hooked! :) Bye bye stinky dog couch! I'll use this Febreze at least weekly!

Wordless Wednesday: Stroller Sleep

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:59:00 +0000

Travelling...

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 17:16:00 +0000

We really haven't travelled since we moved back to Wisconsin. We've done a few 4 hour trips to pick up my step-daughter at the halfway point... and those short trips generally turned out to be pretty crazy with the two little ones. It seemed like they were either having simultaneous breakdowns or they were taking turns, neither was more appealing really... so I have not been anxious to do any travelling back to visit family in Iowa. I feel bad of course, but travelling with two little children can be a slightly traumatic experience (never mind the hassle of getting ready to travel with two small children: all the diapers, bottles, extra clothes, and all that goes along with the children, and then the boarding of the dogs, or travelling with dogs and children... etc).

We just took a 9 1/2 hour road trip. And guess what? No breakdowns. Well, I think I may have had one or two ;) but none from the two little kids!

Wanna know the secret? We purchased the best thing in the world for road trips: a portable DVD player!!! Seriously, if you travel with small children, it is completely worth the investment. And I think we got ours for under $100. I'll never go on a road trip longer than an hour without it! Its my hero :)

The only travelling issue we had was around dinner time... we ended up getting into Illinois around Rockford right around 5pm - decided that we would get past Rockford before getting dinner... guess what? Not a damn restaurant for 2 hours!! Nope. All through the suburbs of Chicago on 290: no restaurants, no gas stations... we had to wait until we got onto I80! That was about the most miserable 2 hours ever. The kids were hungry around 5. Luckily they didn't get anywhere near full meltdown mode, but they were out of sorts and a little fussy until they got some food. So there's a hint for you, if you are about to get onto 290 around dinner time, stop before you get there and get something to eat!

Wordless Wednesday: Hats are OK

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 12:18:00 +0000

As long as the hat is my idea!

Fudge Colored Towels??

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 18:20:00 +0000

David Sedaris is one of my favorite authors. His autobiographical work is hilarious! My favorites are Me Talk Pretty One Day and Naked. I have the audiobook for Naked and we used to listen to it a lot while travelling. My step-daughter got a big kick out of the story "The Drama Bug." Of course there were several sections that really were not appropriate for children, so we always skipped those...

One of our other big favorites is "True Detective." Sedaris talks about how his mother and sister really got into this detective show and would attempt to solve all the neighborhood crimes. But when there was a mystery going on in their house they were incapable of solving it... The mystery was that one of the kids (I think there were 5?) were wiping themselves with towelsin the bathroom, which happened to be fudge colored, and then putting them back as if they were unused. Yuck! :) But all sorts of hilarity ensues in the story.

What always bothered me about the story was that I just couldn't grasp the fact that someone would actually have fudge colored towels in their bathroom. What an awful color! Most bathrooms are decorated in light colors and the towels are generally in a matching light color.

Of course this was before I had any children full time. We had our step-daughter on the weekends and holidays. But once we had 2 girls washing their hands after using the bathroom and before meals and bedtime... I very soon realized exactly why someone would have fudge colored towels in their bathroom! Especially someone with 5 children!

Within a couple of weeks all of my light colored hand towels had very dark gray stains on them. And I'm just not good with stain removal... So I went right out and bought a bunch of dark colored hand towels for the bathroom. Not fudge colored though... I just couldn't bring myself to go there ;)

So there's a hint for all of you who may soon have little hand washers... put the pretty and light colored "guest" hand towels in a place too high for the kids, and use dark colored hand towels for the children :)

Wordless Wednesday: Naptime :)

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:26:00 +0000

Wordless Wednesday: Curlicue

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 11:41:00 +0000

A Perfect Circle

Opposites?

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 15:10:00 +0000

I routinely use an essay by Richard Lederer called "English is a Crazy Language" in my composition classes. It's one of my all time favorite essays, and students love it, because it talks about all the paradoxes and inconsistencies in the English language. (There is another, longer excerpt here and it's really a fantastic and humorous read!).

I've always viewed this essay with the idea of how difficult it must be for some of my students for which English is not their first language, to learn English. (When I taught in the "bigger" cities, I always had at least one student to which English was a foreign language).

But these days, I'm looking at this essay in a whole different light. Through the eyes of a child learning his mother tongue...

Lederer explains, "Language is like the air we breathe. It's invisible, inescapable, indispensable, and we take it for granted. But, when we take the time to step back and listen to the sounds that escape from the holes in people's faces and to explore the paradoxes and vagaries of English, we find that hot dogs can be cold, darkrooms can be lit, homework can be done in school, nightmares can take place in broad daylight while morning sickness and daydreaming can take place at night, tomboys are girls and midwives can be men, hours -- especially happy hours and rush hours -- often last longer than sixty minutes, quicksand works very slowly, boxing rings are square, silverware and glasses can be made of plastic and tablecloths of paper, most telephones are dialed by being punched (or pushed?), and most bathrooms don't have any baths in them. In fact, a dog can go to the bathroom under a tree -- no bath, no room; it's still going to the bathroom. And doesn't it seem a little bizarre that we go to the bathroom in order to go to the bathroom?"

Of course when children are learning their language, they generalize. They apply the rules that they are learning about the language across the board. This explains why, when they are learning their plurals, they put an "s" at the end. Most plurals are that way. They haven't yet comprehended the exceptions to the rules; such as the plural of foot is feet. They may understand the feet part, but most of the time they will add the "s" and say "feets," because, for them, that seems to be the rule for plurals; you add an "s." (As a side note, you can correct them all you want, but they will continue to say "feets" until they really comprehend the exceptions to the rules, which may not be for a few years.)

It's one thing to look at these issues linguistically and theoretically. But it's an entirely different thing to watch these issues in action.

I was reminded of this essay this week. We were in the car and D was wanting his car seat unbuckled. He told his sister: "Buckle me up!" She said "You're already buckled." So of course he applied what he knows about the rules of opposites and said "Buckle me down!" It makes perfect sense. But of course, buckling something up and buckling something down are pretty much exactly the same idea! Although used in slightly different ways. You wouldn't really say that you were buckling your child down in his car seat or high chair (while it may be just as accurate?). But if you were towing a snowmobile or something on a trailer behind your car and using ratchet straps or something similar, you might say you were buckling down the snowmobile.

We are just in the fascinating stage of language learning, and I'm getting such a thrill out of seeing these linguistic theories in action :)

Wordless Wednesday: Best Buddies

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 13:05:00 +0000

Never Stand Between a Pregnant Lady and...

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 16:50:00 +0000

...the bathroom! That's just asking for big trouble.

...the last caramel brownie. There will be a brownie brawl.

...any of her other offspring. You'll find its a lot like standing between a mama bear and her cubs, but worse because there's a bunch of additional hormones involved ;)

...any food she has her eye on. See #'s 1-3.

Really, I think we all know this entire list could be food related ;)

Wordless Wednesday: Babywearing at its finest

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 12:15:00 +0000

And We Have Ourselves a Singer!

noreply@blogger.com (Kmommy) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 15:09:00 +0000

D has started singing! And it is one of the most precious things in the world!

I've sung songs with him for a very long time, but he never showed much interest in wanting to sing them. He would do some of the actions with "If You're Happy and You Know it" or "Itsy bitsy spider," but would rarely even utter any of the words.

Since Christmas he has been constantly asking me to sing Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the "shiney" nose. Last week when I wouldn't sing them for him at lunch, he started singing "frosty the snowman was a jolly sew... bummpity bump bump bummptiy bump bump..." I was totally surprised when he started in with the bummpity part :) and so impressed that he remembered that part.

Today when I told him to drink his juice he started singing "drink your juice, drink your juice."

Last night out of nowhere he started singing "with a great big hug and a kiss from me to you, won't you say you love me too" and he was so serious about it! The funny thing is that we really don't watch Barney all that often. We have a couple of VHS tapes leftover from his big sister, and he will only ask to watch them every couple of weeks or so. I couldn't believe how many of the words he knew! It was the sweetest thing!!

Of course my favorite song that he sings, I have no clue where it came from... "I want to go to Doo Doo." The first time he sang that one at the dinner table I just about lost it. Tears were streaming down my face and I was trying so hard not to laugh. What are you going to think when your son starts singing about doo doo? But of course we don't call it that, so I should have known it was not #2 he was referring to. Since then he has continued to sing that song and when we are in the car he will ask to go to Doo Doo. I am seriously wracking my brain trying to figure out where he got that from and what could sound similar? It has to be from one of the cartoons he watches, but which one??