a few of my favorite things...

Blakely Turns #3!

2015-07-11T19:59:00.000-05:00

Blakely had her 3rd Birthday Party today! Thank you to everyone who came and made the day extra special!

Lots of Neat Presents!!!!!

Birthday Surprise!

A JUMPING CIRCLE!!! (aka a trampoline!)

Minnie's Bow-tique!

Pin the Bow on Minnie!

FASHION SHOW!

Tate's Last Day of Preschool!

2015-05-13T12:36:00.001-05:00

Today was Tate's last day of preschool! Next year he will attend PreK at the same school. He will go everyday in the morning. Tate never did well at homeschooling, which is why we enrolled him preschool, and I wasn't sure if he would even do well with a "real" teacher...but he has excelled and grown so much in the last 10 months!

At the beginning of the year he didn't' know (or acted like he didn't) alphabet letters and he wore 3T clothes

Now he can say his whole alphabet, recognizes most letters and wears 5T clothes

At the beginning of the year Tate didn't really count...maybe to 10 if he felt like it

Now he counts to 29

These 2 stinkers are so close!

It's amazing how much he has improved!

A Day in the Life...

2015-05-12T13:11:00.001-05:00

It has been about 18 months since I last did this...

click on the links to see the past 2

http://thelafrenzfamily.blogspot.com/2012/10/a-day-in-life.html
http://thelafrenzfamily.blogspot.com/2013/09/a-day-in-life-2013.html

I have done this 3 times in 3 years and every time I learn something about my life.

The first time I learned...my God my life is hectic!
The second time I learned...my God my kids have fun!
This third time I learned...my God I am blessed!

This process of taking pictures of everything throughout the day makes me stop and see the little moments I would have missed...it makes me appreciate my life and everyone and everything in it.

Last time I did this, I was making about 20 scarves a day and editing 2 photos sessions...I was stressed, tired and missing out!

This year I made a decision to stop the scarves and be a mom during the week and a photographer on the weekends. It gives me time to make cookies with the kids...play A&W restaurant with Tate...have tea with Blakely...read adventure books and explore maps with Riley...of coarse I did miss that Tate wore way to small ugly sweatpants to pre school, and didn't notice until I went back through the photos while we were playing in his room after lunch! oops!

I get a little housework done, make a scarf or two and edit some photos each day and some days are better than others, but at least the majority of those days don't drive me bonkers!

This was a pretty normal day, I wake up to Tate playing the leap pad and the dog and cat following me around. Ryan and Riley went to CJ's softball game at night, so they missed normal dinner and ate when they got home. Riley also got an adventure series package in the mail, which included a map, which was obsessed over for the rest of the day..that and the cheese burger calling his name when he got home!

At the end you see Blakely awake from night terrors (which she has about 1-2 times a week)...and then ending up in our room.

Wake up to tate and hungry animals

Hello Oatmeal...Goodbye Dad

Wake up the sleepy heads

Make and Pack Riley's lunch

Tate gets ready all by himself!

escape before mom makes us pick up dishes!

Send kids out to van while I grab my coffee

Riley says" I did not do whatever tate says I did!" Tate Says "WILEY won't let me in the van!"

Peace!

Wait 20 minutes for Tate's school

Finally! Just the girls!

Unload and Load..."my tummy heeeet..."

Sew and fold

Blakely entertaining herself for a while

Switch from coffee to tea

"I hungy!"

Mommy's lunch...that blakely almost ate all of until I distracted her with the leap pad!

pick up tate

Being a stay at home dog is exhausting...

lunch

Again with the dishes!

fold clothes

legos and snakes everywhere!

I finally noticed! and had a pretty good laugh!

Nap Time! Tate hiding from me...

work out

Somebody didn't nap!

Blakely gets ready

Mommy gets ready

Wake tate up

Let animals out and distribute treats

Pick up Riley and Riley eats his lunch (cuz he talks to much during lunch time)

oh...walmart

snack while I unload the groceries

making supper and learning about Brazil

Making laundry and dishwasher soap

"MA! can you bring me a book!"

reading

Playing A&W(call in your order)...I ordered a burger with no mustard and I got a burger with a snake!

clean rooms

brush teeth... read a book (Blakely NOT happy about the book selection) Pray and Hugs!

Miraculously, NOW their tummies hurt...

If it's not the kids it's the animals, "I gotta go potty, I'm hungry, where are you going?"

Home late and hungry

Brush teeth, check the map and pray

relax and apparently someone thought we needed extra security for the night

Night terror, had a hard time calming down

Did not want to go back into her room

Happy Birthday!

2015-03-16T11:31:00.002-05:00

Happy Birthday Tate Richard Lafrenz...and as the nurse at the hospital pointed out, we doomed Tate to be called TateR his whole life, not realizing his middle name completed the infamous nickname! He only allows certain people to call him Tater...that's because when he is in trouble mom hollers "TAT-ER!" I think only grandparents are allowed to address him as Tater...if someone else calls him that he gets mad.

Tate has his moments of madness, but over all he is such a kind and sweet little boy. We call him the master manipulator and has impeccable timing...right after Riley gets done getting yelled at, Tate will come hug me and say "I love you Mom!" I didn't catch on right away, but now I see right through Tate's large-scale systematic plan for attaining the favorite child ranking.

Here are some character traits of Tate:

-doesn't like to be the center of attention

-very caring and gentle with Blakely

-likes to disagree just for the sheer enjoyment of disagreeing

-absolutely the most ticklish feet in the world, I can't even wash them

-he is 42 inches tall & 35 pounds, only 4 pounds heavier than Blakely and 30 pounds lighter than Riley

-he loves ninja turtles, his favorite is Leonardo (the blue one)

-he can count to 50

-knows his letters and sounds

-when he grows up he wants to be a ninja turtle

-favorite color is blue

-favorite animal is a tiger

-favorite food is chicken nuggets

-He gets along with everyone

-He tries really hard to enunciate his words

-he loves babies, wants to creepily hug and kiss them all the time

-tells mom he loves her 100 times a day

Saturday we had Tate's Ninja Turtle Party! We started the day opening some presents, so he could wear them to the party! He really became a Ninja Turtle when he put the mask on!

Ryan found a 4 foot Leo balloon at Party City...needless to say the kids thought it was awesome

Showing off his ninja moves

Make your own pizza cookies, Riley probably had 10 cookies

Casey's Pizza was a hit!

Tate about set his lips on fire blowing out the candles!

Lots of cool presents!

Thank you to everyone who took time from their Saturday to come celebrate Tate's birthday!

After all the guests left we got one more surprise! In the mail was a mystery gift, a ninja turtle back pack with weapons and masks! So whoever sent that...Thank You!

baby names…do not publish

2015-01-22T13:10:00.000-06:00

3 years ago Today I made a list of possible Baby names...

Girls
Blakely
Kambrie
Brynlee
Braylen
Micah
Kaesyn
Campbell

Boys
Jackson
Kasen

Oh Christmas Tree...

2014-12-18T13:08:00.002-06:00

We decided this year to continue the "real tree" tradition but raise the bar a little bit and cut it down ourselves! I knew the kids would love it and I wanted to sneak in a family photo, since we didn't have time this fall. When we got to the farm, I explained we were looking for the "best tree here" and of coarse Riley was like "challenge accepted!" ...the children scattered in a vast field of christmas trees...only to be noticed by their yells

"THIS ONE HERE! THIS IS IT! THE BEST TREE!"

Ryan and I said, that tree is literally 30 feet tall...keep it as tall as Daddy.

We walked around for about 20 minutes and slowly Riley was getting more and more pissed at us for not picking any of the trees he liked...

Tate was starting to complain about being cold (frozen from the waist down)

and Blakely was technically lost

So we found a good row of trees and told the kids to pick one.

This picture really shows the excitement...

~~Clark~~ Ryan cut down the tree while the kids watched

Riley helped pull the tree

The kids were really hoping some chipmunks were tenets in our tree

We decorated while watching Charlie Brown Christmas

When I bought our ornaments a couple years ago, I specifically got 3 of everything so each kid would have an ornament to put up.

The kids had a lot of fun....

and according to them we did indeed get...

THE BEST CHRISTMAS TREE EVER!

And the award goes to....

2014-10-31T00:01:00.000-05:00

Another Halloween under our belts and I finally did what I have wanted to do for years...make all the kids' costumes! It took a little creativity and a lot of mommy manipulation...but we eventually got 3 finished costumes.

Riley told me months ago he wanted to be a ghost...and I refused to just put a white sheet with 2 holes over his head...he didn't like this at first but it grew on him through the night.

for Blakely's costume I found a cabbage patch doll on ebay that look like her (light brown hair and blue eyes) I made the doll's dress and dress for B to match. I tied yarn to a crochet hat to make the wig. EVERYONE loved her costume.

Tate was toothless from "how to train your dragon" and I painted fire on his cheeks. He has sweat pants and a hoodies with felt and a stuffed tail sewn to his back.

The boys had a lot of fun trick or treating and this was Blakely's first year really involved in the festivities! Like I said earlier, everyone loved Blakely's costume, she was even getting 2-3 pieces of candy because of her cuteness aaaannnndddd Riley started to get really annoyed with it. At one point he said..."WHY DID SHE GET AN EXTRA PIECE!" and then someone said..."OK! She gets best costume award!" and that was the last straw for Riley..."What!? Why does Blakely get an AWARD!"
From then on....Riley ran ahead to each house and said...."I'm a GHOST SKELETON and MY MOM made this costume...here comes my sister (laughs a little) she's just a doll..."

Then FINALLY Riley's sinister door to door manipulation pays off when someone told him "you are the BEST ghost I've seen all night!"

Riley turned around and said to himself "YES!"

When we got home...in true halloween fashion and true american fashion...we skipped dinner and ate candy.

Tate's 1st Day of Preschool

2014-08-27T14:46:00.002-05:00

Since Riley started school 2 weeks ago, Tate has asked everyday if it was going to be his turn for school.

every.single.day.

Well FINALLY his day arrived…we dropped Riley off at school, came back home, cuz today was only 1 hour for tate to help kids transition, so Tate goes in the second group which is 10-11:15am

8:10am
"hey! I wanna go to pre school!"
-not yet buddy

8:20am
we took a bath…

"now can we go to preschool…"
-not yet buddy

8:45am
we got dressed...

"NOW we can go to preschool!?"
-not yet buddy

9am
had a snack
"i wanna go to pre school…"
-not yet buddy

9:30am
took pictures, tate fell 4 times out of excitement

"OK! Now we go!!!!!!?????"
-ok…but we will be sitting and waiting awhile

9:40am
sit and wait in the van

Tate scouted the preschool doors, waiting as patient as a 3 year can…

9:55am
got out of the van and took more pictures

10am
teacher opens door…tate sprints away from me…into the school…

ok? That little shit just abandoned me and I got NO pictures, I peeked in the window and he didn't even take his back pack off.

Other parents walked their children up to the door, gave hugs and kisses, explained they would be back to pick them up…
have fun…
love you…
Not Tate…
PEACE OUT!
FREEDOM!!!!!

Blakely and I did the mom walk of shame…and I felt a little confused…but at least he didn't freak out!

When we picked Tate up an hour later, he came charging out the door saying

"MOM! I had fun! I don't want to pick Riley up."
He had so much fun…he didn't want Riley to ruin his pre school high.

gelled hair (he did not like that)

new dragons back pack

Glak-a-wee is going to miss having someone to slap on the head…watch out bear!

Sprinting away, making sure I can't catch up

After (he's a big boy now, according to him)

Gonna Go Wild-Wild Kratts!

2014-08-17T20:06:00.000-05:00

We had Riley's Wild Kratt's Birthday this weekend and he had a blast. He invited some friends over and they enjoyed cupcakes and the slip and slide.

We had worms in dirt-which the kids LOVED-

hot dogs and brats

shark teeth (bugles, almond bark and powdered sugar)

chips

and punch, which ended up looking like mud...but tasted like punch :)

I tried to make different animal habitats and the creature power discs to go with each.

Riley had some pretty great reactions to presents

Ca$H from Grandma and Grandpa Brown (Cha CHing!) he said "A WHOLE DOLLAR!"

Lego Movie, Legos, Camo Coat from Grandma Deb and Grandpa Phil

(and Blakley sat very patiently)

Sam (Riley's friend) held up every present for a photos op and then stacked everything nicely

Animals, Drawing paper and ninja fighting gear from Jesse and Jen

Animal Movie from Grandma Pam

Gift receipt and back of card. (nicely done sam)

Birtanica for Kids, 1001 questions from Aaron and Brandi (thanks for that)

Captain America Shield from Kayla and Phil

(riley did a double take on this and they mouth gaped open!)

Iowa Football with Game ticket attached from Grandpa Nile

Red Cardinal from Grandpa Phil

We just love that our families can all be together, over the years we gotten comfortable around each other and we are so glad everyone comes to celebrate these parties with us! Both these glowing mama are due a week apart! So excited for them both!

SLIP AND SLIDE

and not just any slip and slide...a greased up slide with soap and baby oil!

Sack Lunches and Ponytails

2014-08-06T10:58:00.002-05:00

We have been anticipating the FIRST DAY of KINDERGARTEN for weeks now...talking it up and day dreaming about how EXCITING it will be. Round up was so much fun and Riley found out several of his friends would be in his class.

So Monday we went back to school shopping, we got school supplies and a new outfit. We also decided to pack sack lunches...for 2 reasons

1. school lunch is expensive
2. I could see Riley wanting seconds, even thirds and several milks...which he wouldn't get. the kid eats.

So we got him a lunch pack and he got to help pick the foods he got:
Menu
Ham sandwichs
Peanut butter sandwiches
Turkey wraps
Chocolate pudding
Cheetos
Apple Sauce
Grapes
Apples
Cheese Sticks
Fruit Snacks
And a fancy water bottle

Let's hope it works out...

We started our day with finding Riley outside our bedroom door...sleeping...I nudged him and he popped up, ran down the stairs and said "I GOTTA GET READY FOR MY FIRST DAY OF PRESCHOOL.....I MEAN KINDERGARTEN!!!!!!!"

We attempted to eat breakfast, but he wouldn't shut-up long enough to eat..."I'm just sooo excited!" he said.

We got dressed in our fancy duds and gelled his freshly cut hair and then frantically tired to find his other shoe!

We attempted breakfast for a second time, this time a nutra-grain bar, something he could eat quickly.

All along he is still talking...talking...talking..."I'm just so excited!" he kept saying

We took his picture...he picked out the american bald eagle shirt

Then, it was time to go...Ryan gave him a hug (ryan stayed home with Tate and Blakely, so I could figure out the "drop-off" situation) Riley got in the van, buckled his seat belt and took a deep breath.

I looked back at him and asked..."still excited bud?"

He was looking down and said..."well, now I think, I'm a little nervous."

"It will be a lot of fun!" I reassured him

"yes, but...it's all day...I don't want to be away from you all day" he said as tears filled his eyes

"just till 2pm today bud...that's not long after lunch" I assured him again

He made sure to take mental notes of which way I turned

I heard him saying from the back "Left...Right...Another Left..."

We parked about a block away and walked...the school yard was filled with other parents and excited kids. And Riley spotted some neighborhood kids he knew.

We got to our area of the school yard and stood in a long line of kids and parents...and of coarse Riley looks like he's the kid who is repeating kindergarten for the 2nd time...towering over his classmates.

{4 feet tall and 62 pounds}

We stood for about 15 minutes and during that time, Riley started to fall apart, saying:

"it's really muddy out here, not a good way to start school..."

"I think my bag is too heavy..."

"I'm not sure the playground is done, we should come back another day..."

"oh no, I think the line is moving..."

And it's only inevitable that when you stand in one place with Riley he will start noticing and calling out all the weirdos in the crowd

"Hey mom, do you see that man...he has a girls hair cut...that man, right there with a PONYTAIL!"

"That girl is not wearing any socks with her shoes!?"

"why is that grandma here?"

And then he starts noticing the parents leaving...

"Did you see that! That dad just left, he just left his kid...right there he just left! Why would he just leave!?"

I leaned down and said...

"Riley, the parents don't stay...I am going to leave too."

and he looked at me with disbelief...

He took his bag off and rubbed the gel out of his hair

I gave him a hug and the line started moving...for real this time

We made our way into the school and into the hallway.

We were instructed to find Riley's locker, which would be labeled with his name. He was frozen, I had to nudged him through this crowded hallway, when we found his locker he just stood there and stared. I tried to invoke excitement..."Look! your name! Your very own school Locker COOL!"

His response..."yeah, but I don't think I like frogs very much..."

I did manage to get him to smile for a pic though

Next was into the classroom...Classroom 93...he noted to himself

Again there was a seat labeled for him with a bucket full of toys and a name tag

By this time...he was refusing all still photography and flat out said..."I'm not doing this...I don't want to sit here...this is not a good idea...It's not going to be a good day..."

I leaned down and hugged him..."you will have a lot of fun! you sit down and look in your bucket...I'm going to go now."

And then the tears came...he tried to hold them in...so he sat down, crossed his arms and just hung his head.

I knew there was nothing I could do, besides make it worse...so I just gave him a kiss on the cheek and left...and of coarse, I did the first-day-of-school-parent-walk-of-shame...and cried the whole walk to the van and the whole car ride home.

We'll see how the day went when I pick him up at 2...

Blakely Turned ONE...

2014-07-14T15:19:00.001-05:00

I mean she turned TWO...oh man how time flies! I feel like I was just in the hospital demanding more pitocin in my IV.
But like I said...time flies and it flies when you're having fun and Blakely is FUN!
We call her sugar, honey, sweetie pie, baby girl, GLAKE_A_LEE, and so much more!

She is TWO feet ELEVEN inches tall (95%)
She is TWENTY-NINE pounds (90%)

She is nothing but spunk and skippity hops! Which is why she has scrapes and bruises all over her knees...but she gets right back up and keeps on skippity hopping.

She sleeps great (8pm-8/9am) with an afternoon nap (1pm-4/5pm)
She eats great...pretty much anything will go in her mouth except lima beans
She likes to be fancy even if she is planning on digging in the dirt
She is trying very hard to talk, repeating words the best she can, so far we understand: thank you, love you, go go go, RILEY! (always yelled), DA! (always yelled), I need help, night, car, please
For a 2 year old, she is very patient...she lets me put her hair up or brush her hair...she isn't spastic like most toddlers.
She eats very well with a fork and a spoon and can drink from a cup
She is potty trained...so I don't have to carry a diaper bag anymore!
She is very picky when it comes to men...only a select few can hold her and that may even depend on the day. But she is ok with women.
She waves to everyone
She dislikes Tate very much (they do play nice together, but if he gets too close or tries to hug and kiss her, she beats him down)
She is just a joy to have in our lives...which now that she is 2...she may become a pain...but here's hoping she skips that stage!

This weekend we celebrated her birthday with friends and family. It was a FROZEN party and it was great!

We had 10 different flavors of ice cream from the local Ice Cream Shop The Outside Scoop

Made tissue poms and glued snowflakes to pearl garland

Made a 3 tier cake, with almond bark snowflakes (printed out snowflakes on paper, put wax paper over it and traced with a piping bag)

Then I stuck Elsa right in the middle :) (top tier was baked in a pirex bowl)

The cake table is made up of Blakely's curtains from her room, an old studio backdrop, our icicle christmas lights, sparkly ribbon and more snowflakes

The "B" is from her 1st birthday (from hobby lobby and painted) I just put new ribbon on it. More Icicle lights, silver and white balloons, paper snow flakes (strips of paper hot glued) and birthday banner (discount scrap booking paper and more pearl garland)

I made Blakely a "frozen" tutu and head band made with sparkly tulle and her shirt is an iron on I designed on the computer and cheap hair bow that I hot glued on the shoulders.

Present time...she did much better than the boys did at their 2 year parties...she actually sat and opened every present and tired to read the cards.

here she is waiting patiently while everyone tirelessly unravels and untwists her new toys.

She made sure to wear every single pretty she got!

She blew out her candle on the first try...

this is the face of a little girl in birthday coma!

Such a fun day!

Thank you to everyone who came and celebrated with us! My kids love you all to pieces and thoroughly enjoy spending time with all of you! Watch your mail for the next party invite!

NaNa NaNa Boo Boo…Stick Your Head in Doo Doo…We Went to Cancun…

2014-05-18T23:54:00.000-05:00

I think we can all agree…we all need a vaca once in a while! Well, last week, we ditched the kids and hopped a plane for 7 days in MEXICO! We went with 3 other couples (8 of us total) and it was a blast.

We got sloppy drunk everyday…stayed up till 3 in the morning…worked out in the gym…did zumba on the beach...bungee jumped…and didn't get sick ONCE!

(right about now Sam Langfald is saying to herself…"uhhh, we did nothing of those sorts!"

When I day dreamed of Mexico, those were the things I was doing…and then I got to Mexico and realized, I didn't magically have any more energy than I did in Iowa…in fact I had less energy because I was sweating it all out!

I WATCHED others
-get sloppy drunk-I think I had a couple drinks the whole time I was there
-stay up till 3 am- we all crashed by 10pm (but were yawning by 8:30pm)
-work out in the gym- we intended to…but you had to walk past the buffet and all the good machines were taken
-do Zumba on the beach…HA! yeah right, not in a swim suit my friends…not in a swim suit! Ah who am I kidding, I wouldn't do it in a winter coat!
-Bungee Jump- didn't see anyone actually so this, but a random man on the beach offered it to me and I had to pass…
-get sick…it seemed as thought we were the ONLY ones who got SICK! everyone had at least one day, and we were on a don't ask…don't tell agreement.

here are somethings I learned in Mexico
Phrases:
"NO MAS ESPANIOL!"
"NO MAS"
"BANO?"
"AQUA?"

Culture:
they are obsessed with "coochie coochie" or at least they think Americans are
they are obsessed with TEQUILA! or at least the think Americans are
Mexican's love Queen and Michael Jackson…?
Don't get the skirt steak…just don't do it!

Around the world:
Britain's can fly to Cancun for half the price we can and they have 10 hour flight…
It does not matter what you wear on the beach as long as the twig and berries are covered and secure…
Not everything can be translated
Ryan is still big in Mexico (they called him MR. Muscles and MR. Wiskers!)
Michael Langfald has many clones around the world…not just Mexico

Here are some pictures of our resort, group shots and our trip to Chichen Itza

the beach was FANTASTIC and the view from our room was nice.

We were standing on a sand barge, which was easy for Ryan's hobbit feet but I was gripping with my toes to beat the waves.

Our tour guides to Chichen Itza were a little crazy! Handing out shots and beer the whole tour!

(and do you notice Michael Langfald's doppelganger?)

This was the stairs down to one of the mayan sink holes…we were met by two mayan men…painted…and with a tip basket (of coarse)

We were the first in the sink whole, so we stripped and got it…SO. COLD. and full of cat fish. But it was a once in a life time opportunity and we breathtakingly beautiful. There a boy in the sink hole, who you could rent life vests from, he had a strange creature on a leash. He didn't speak any English, so I couldn't get out of him what kind of animal it was. All he could say it "NO! BITE!" that's all I needed to stay the hell away. Ryan told me to take a picture, because Riley would know. Sure enough, when we got home, I showed Riley the picture and he said "Oh! Sure! that's and American Badger…no wait! That's a Coati!" I was seriously doubting his knowledge, so I asked "is that with a "QU" or a "C"?" and he responded "C"
He was right. He even pronounce it right. Coati…otherwise known as the Mexican Raccoon.

Then we taste tested tequilia…which was nice.

then onto Chichen Itza…which was hot!

Then onto a Spanish village made from Chichen Itza Ruins

We had a lot of fun spending time with each other, with friends and making new friends!

Now we are back to reality and peeling.

Ninja-Like Baseball Moves

2014-05-08T12:53:00.002-05:00

This year Riley is in a tee wee baseball. It's a little more organized than last year and we have games. Ryan also gets the privilege of helping coach…which, I'll admit, I wasn't sure how he would handle ten 4 and 5 year olds…but he does great. Although the first practice the children looked at him like he was frankenstein.

When this whole baseball thing came into our life…I really thought that Ryan would be the angry parent, yelling and pacing on the sidelines, turns out I'm the idiot. I will refer you to the link below:

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/7e583517e5/will-ferrell-get-on-the-bag

It's like torture watching from the side…while your kid is drawing in the sand or doing some sort of unexplainable karate moves??? (see below) So this year instead of yelling like will ferrell did, I found a more creative way to direct Riley…

"HERE COMES THE BALL…RIGHT TO YOU RILEY!!!!"
"RILEY! WAY TO GET ON THE BASE!"
"KEEP WATCHING THAT BALL!"

I tried to keep the urgency out of my voice and sound pleasant, calm and understanding…

To be quite honest, it was chaotic and hilarious, but the kids had a lot of fun, except for the few who decided they were done at the end and either sat down or walk around the bases.

Riley hit the ball every time, ran as fast as he could (bift it one time) and had some good grounding stops.

Parental Advice

2014-05-08T11:36:00.003-05:00

Warning: This is an ~~Unnecessary~~ RANT

Maybe it's because my husband is rubbing off on me or maybe it's my age catching up with me…but I just have to rant about this. I by no means, claim to be a perfect parent…(I have a 5 year old in solitary confinement as we speak)…I mess up and frequently my kids are naughty, but my husband and I assess the situation and come up with a solution…which is normally a really evil genius punishment (muhahaha!) I don't google "how do I get my boys to stop fighting" or "my toddler picks her nose, is that normal?" or "5 ways to make your child feel more loved" I just do what I think is right and what I think will work, sometimes it's trial and error…but eventually we figure it out.

I recently came across an article for the huffington post titled "Stop saying "you're so smart" 3 ways to better praise your kids" here's the link

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/renee-jain/praising-kids_b_5272483.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000037

I did not click on this article to find out "how I can praise my kids better" or because I thought I needed help in this matter, I simply clicked to see what idiotic parenting advice people are handing out now!

I see parents on facebook asking for advice or simply venting their current issues with parenting, and like flies to a light, us other parents offer up THE solution to their problems! I admit, I do it too…I sometimes feel like I found THE solution…but I am quick to remind myself, my solution worked for MY kids and probably will only work for MY kids.

Just like smart phones are making us dumber, the BEST parenting advice is making us the WORST parents. Why are we taking advice from books or from people who we don't even know, are we so lazy (or sleep deprived) that we can't come up with a solution ourselves or better yet, why are we searching for a solution…to a problem that probably doesn't even exist!

Like this article about how to properly praise your kids!
…the first 2 paragraphs alone made me want to quit reading this…her whole point is not to praise your kids too much, yet she let a 1 year old control the "shoe situation" and they were late for class, music class by the way (really? we're putting 1 year olds in music class, give them a pot and a spoon…bam! music class and you just saved $50) Anyways…She blames the fact that they were late on her parental habit of praising her child whenever she does something. Then she maps out exactly when and how she thinks you should praise your child...

Ya know, I have enough to think about…like if I can make the last couple sheets of paper towels last the rest of the week or what that wet spot on the carpet is and if I want to even risk smelling it, I don't want to methodically think about when and how to praise my kids.

So here's the BEST advice you will EVER get!

Ready?

Don't take any parental advice ever!!!!

Praise your kids when you think they need praised and don't when they don't deserve it! Spank-Don't Spank…Gluten Free/Organic or Hot Dogs and Mac n Cheese…Co Parent or good old fashioned Child Neglect…who cares, it doesn't matter. You and only you control how your kids are raised and if they are little monsters, that is your fault and your fault alone. No book, Medication, Doctor, Teacher or Blogger can fix parents...

MUD

2014-04-25T18:33:00.003-05:00

In the past my children have proven to like mud...

Blakely is no exception...

Easter

2014-04-22T14:26:00.002-05:00

Easter weekend was a busy one…Ryan almost didn't make it to the actually easter day…luckily we had plenty of candy to keep us on a sugar high!

Saturday we went to Eldora to visit my grandparents. My grandma used to always have easter egg hunts for us as kids, so we had a hunt for the kids to render up good memories! Grandma Pam brought easter goodies, including swim attire, socks and stickers (which explains why there are random stickers on people)

Once Blakely figured out what this whole easter egg hunt was about, she started opening ALL the eggs and opening the candy…which was melted…so much for a white dress on Easter. Lesson Learned.

Saturday night we went to Grandma Deb's house…the kids opened easter baskets, which included FROZEN! We have now watched it 4 times since then and we all sing "LET IT GO!"

Sunday we woke up to Casey's donuts "thanks to dad!" and we gave the kids their Easter gift from us: BIKES!

Just getting Riley to sit on a bike is an Easter miracle…and the fact that he did not once complain that is didn't have a dinosaur, wild kratt or super hero on the bike made it all the better! My expectations stopped and were fulfilled when he sat on the bike but he RODE IT! Not impressive, I know…but strides for our little sheldon.

Tate jumped right on his spiderman bike! I know, "why did tate get a super hero bike and riley didn't?" We couldn't find a "cool" bike for older kids…so we had to really talk up riley's bike.

Blakely sat on hers and pushed it around…she liked the bonus storage in the back, which is where she put her pacifier when she rode it.

Yup…thats our Easter picture

(notice the dogs in the window, that is bear licking the window)

we tried 3 more times on the side of the house before I convinced myself I no longer gave a crap!

We went to church (a new church) with Grandpa Nile…and I knew that by the end of the service, the congregation would be throwing holy water on us as we left! We have all the intent of going to church other than on major religious holidays…but then reality sets in that our kids suck. But Ryan assured me he would take care of everything if and when Blakely lost it…well that was assuming she would be the only one who lost it. ALL 3 had major fits at one point and it was only by the grace of GOD that I didn't lose it! And God Bless Nile for staying in the same pew with us for the entire service. Ryan and I were both out in the halls calming, chasing and lecturing children at some point. Blakely cried so loud, Ryan took her out to the van to chillax! (she fell the day before and skinned her knee)

When church was done, Ryan looked at me and said "well…we tried!"

After Church we went to Grandpa Niles for lunch and an Easter egg hunt.

Since Blakley is now an egg hunter connoisseur, she didn't bother with hunting all the eggs, she found her first egg, dumped it out and started eating.

And then proceeded to shove all the candy in her mouth…white.dress.ugh

She needed a bath…cadbury eggs don't come off with just baby wipes

Then we colored eggs, which the boys had a lot of fun with.

Good Easter.

This Little Girl...

2014-04-17T20:15:00.003-05:00

This little girl...

What can I say...

Ketchup face and all...

We just love her to death!

She keeps us on our toes…

She keeps us entertained…

and we keep her in our hearts!

Tate: 3 Years

2014-03-24T13:39:00.000-05:00

I have not been as good about keeping a log of developmental milestones…maybe cuz I'm too busy or maybe cuz I just don't care or obsess over it…but I know when these kids are in high school I'll wish I had all this info, so here is what Tate has done in the last year.

He went pant-less for the first half of his 2nd year…he was very good at potty training but became accustomed to the freedom of a pant-less life.

At the beginning of the year Tate liked lightning mc queen

wore 2T clothes

size 7 shoe

could count to 10

letters a-e

slept in a crib

wore a diaper at night

spoke in 3-4 word sentences

3/16/2013

Wore a diaper at night until July and now he is diaper free and never has accidents

Started cup training and now drinks from cups

July- discovered that worms taste good

and so does corn on the cob

Takes beth with sister

Brave, and like to try new things

Emergency Pit Stop

Loves Blakely

Loves super heroes

the love shirt

Granch

Manly Makeover:

Before

After

-He doesn't like to look handsome…don't even suggest that he is

-He pretends to sleep or goes limp when we try to learn…preschool should be interesting

-He doesn't like big crowds or too much commotion, would rather sit back and watch

-Is Riley's shadow and it drives Riley nuts and entertains us

-Eats anything healthy and turns down sweets sometimes…not sure why?

-doesn't like to be cold or hot…likes to stay indoors in the winter

-insists on doing things himself…very much wants to be a big boy

-still follows me everywhere, it's a fight between him and blakely who sits on my lap

-counts to 20

-knows the alphabet, but pretends not too

-can play the leap pad and play games on the computer

-speaks in full sentences

-makes his bed

-brushes his teeth

-has one chore, take recycle out to bin

-dresses himself and put socks on…working on velcro shoes and he sometimes puts his pants on backwards. (see above pic)

-wears 4T clothes

-size 10 shoes

-Sleeps in the bottom bunk

-brushes his teeth

-buckles his own car seat

-favorite food is peanut butter, carrots and "granch"

-Listens and is calm (for a 3 year old) doesn't throw that many fits

-Takes a 2 hour afternoon nap

-causes trouble at bedtime

-is very lovey with everyone

and manipulates me with those blue eyes, that million dollar smile and a big hug

Tate's 3rd Birthday: Neverland

2014-03-24T12:42:00.001-05:00

Last weekend we had Tate's 3rd birthday Party…he wanted a Peter Pan Theme…

The week of the party, I was in Colorado…so it was a rush to decorate and make all the food and cupcakes the day before the party (I normally do it all in a couple days)

I decided to try and turn our house into neverland, following this map.

Indian Camp

Crocodile Creek

Tinkerbell

Blakely is kind of a show stealer...

There he is... the birthday boy! Who remained quiet and to himself most of the party

Mermaid Lagoon

Peg leg point and Cannibal Cove are doing double duty here

Hangman's Tree

wreck it ralph

2014-03-03T13:17:00.001-06:00

Sugar and Spice...

2014-02-20T17:00:00.001-06:00

I call her sugar and she is certainly full of it…that and spice and spunk and anything else that sparkles. Blakely has certainly blossomed from our little baby girl into just our little girl…she holds her own in the pack of boys, frequently pounding Tate on the head and screaming at Riley to give her a toy she wants…in any case, the boys look stunned and give her whatever she wants…they really seem confused by this little girls antics.

She is independent, demanding she feed herself
She is adventurous, climbing up high on anything she can reach
She is vivacious, dancing and prancing around the house
She is silly, poking her own belly button and making a farting noise
She is sneaky, quietly disappearing to places she isn't allowed and making a mess
She is hungry, when the mood strikes…FEED ME!

But most of all she is infectiously lovable…

This impromptu photo shoot was inspired simply by her, she dresses in jewels, bows and wings on most days per her request…I walked into find her (after she had disappeared) in her room looking out the window, she had all her clothes out of the drawers and all her diapers scattered, but I couldn't get past how wonderful and innocent she looked and had to snap a picture (or two)

"I Look Down On Young Women With Husbands And Kids And I’m Not Sorry" -HA!

2014-01-26T16:34:00.001-06:00

Thanks to my husband, I read a very interesting and uninformed article today...A Blogger named Amy Glass has had some recent blog posts downing the american woman who decides to marry and have kids.

Here is the link to her blog post that has gone viral...

http://thoughtcatalog.com/amy-glass/2014/01/i-look-down-on-young-women-with-husbands-and-kids-and-im-not-sorry/

My husband and I are pretty opinionated when it comes to morals and politics (him more on the politics) We are both people who know what we believe and know what want out of life. I knew from a very young age…maybe 16/17 years old…I wanted to be a wife and a mom and stay home with my kids. I wanted this, because my mom stayed with us until I was old enough for school and that choice stayed with my siblings and me. My sister is also a stay at home mom. My husband and I have 3 kids…very close in age…I had our first 6 days after I turned 24 and our last a month before I turned 28. In our almost 7 year marriage I have never known anything outside being a wife and a mom. But I truly feel like it is the most rewarding and selfless job I could ever do and I wouldn't trade it for the world…

Really…I wouldn't

Not even for a million dollars…

and a massage…

or a chance to poop without someone asking what I am doing or trying to pick the lock…

nope…not even for that!

Ok…you got me, I hate my life some days

Every night I am awakened up by someone or something…the toddler teething, the 5 year old sleep-peeing, my husband snoring or our puppy with rancid flatulence that could gag a maggot or literally wake the dead! Every micro second of my day is filled with something that NEEDS to be done…

I start my day by being poked in the head…"mommy, blitz peed on the floor!" or "mommy, tate peed on the floor" or my favorite "mommy, I peed on the floor!" As I crawl out of bed, I wash my face as the toddler cries over the monitor, the 3 year old poops on the toilet 2 feet from me and the 5 year old asks a list of questions, including "if girls don't have weiners…where do they pee from???" my response…"GET OUT!"

On to downstairs, where I am praying the coffee magically is made for me…nope. Instead a pile of dishes from last nights dinner that I didn't have time {don't mistake that for didn't want to or was too lazy to wash} I literally ran out of time and sorry dishes, you are at the bottom of my priority list.

As I make my coffee and unload and load the dishwasher I am soothed by the sounds of rude and demanding children
"I WANT EGGS!"
"I WANT OATMEAL!"
"YOU'LL GET NOTHING UNTIL YOU ASK NICELY!"
...so they got toast
And of coarse I forgot about the toddler in her crib, who has now pooped in her already heepingly full diaper of pee…I guess you get a bath!
{my hot coffee is now warm and untouched}

before I know it, it's 9:30 and I still haven't had my goddamn coffee and it's not because I didn't want to have it, or that my kids are more important…I just simply forgot amongst the chaos.

You have heard all of this before…this sob story from all moms and on tv and from comedians…"it's the hardest job ever!" "I never have any time to myself!" and even husbands are coming out and saying "I don't know how my wife does it…she is just amazing!" - Double BARF!

Let me clarify, for those of who aren't stay at home moms or moms and for those of you are buying into this
#feelsorryforthatpoormomwith3kidsshehasnolife
#beingamommyissohard

Being a stay at home mom IS NOT HARD!

It's NOT...

Like anything in life, the tasks, the choices, the roles we do are only as hard as you make them. I don't like, what my husband would call "EURO-TRASH" or "YUPPIES" or "MODERN FEMINISTS" putting a spot light on women who choose to live the "Joan Cleaver Dream" and saying we settled and aren't as driven as career women or women who choose not to get married and have kids. I mean, when did it become unacceptable to be a MOM! And When did being a feminist or an activist for women's rights mean you throw away everything that a makes a woman unique and special…like child birth and a companion in marriage!?

I did not get married to avoid being alone nor did I get married to be a parasite to my husband…I got married because he has a fine ass and I fell in love with him. I also didn't have kids to fill a void…although after you have kids you realize they were the one thing missing in your life. And then choosing to be a stay at home mom wasn't because I was lazy or unambitious…it was a conscious decision and a way of life that we {my husband and I} both wanted. (it was either me or daycare…somebody has got to watch them!) I have a life outside my kids and one day…I will have all the time in the world and be bored to death! I like being "Joan Cleaver" it's not a role for everyone…but it's the one for me.

In the opposite side, people are saying that a stay at home mom is a saint and has the hardest and most rewarding job in the world. Why would one say a stay at home mom is a saint or has the hardest job…?
is it because she managed to keep the kids alive during the day…?
or because she managed to find clean yoga pants…?
or the fact that she hasn't showered in two days and still looks pretty good…?

There are a lot of people making moms out to be lonely and sad…yes we have bad days... but I'm sure mom's with jobs feel this same way. Us stay at home mom's don't think our job is hard…so you shouldn't either. Like a really good accountant…we know all the tricks to shut our kids up and keep them happy….and you don't, that's why it seems hard to you.

And being a stay at home mom is rewarding?

Rewarding???
Like, is it a cash reward??? Cuz I haven't seem one cent of that pot!
I guess we do get a pretty good tax return!
I don't know about rewarding…I guess like anything in life, teaching and seeing progress is rewarding. Leading and being a role model, providing and keeping safe…maybe the rewarding part is the payback when our kids have kids….{ooooo thats a good one!}

I think, if I could tell this Amy Glass anything, its this:

You have it all wrong. You and many other woman are over compensating by trying your hardest to avoid marriage and motherhood. God gave us this gift to share love with another and to give life…LIFE PEOPLE! YOU LITERALLY GROW A PERSON…I can get a babysitter and climb a friggin' mountain tomorrow, but to grow a person…thats pretty damn cool.

And whether you stay with that little person during their growing years or help your pocket book by working…
it doesn't matter…
it all sucks.
and that is rewarding... that we all do it... do our best... don't bitch and whine…and don't ask for a hand out…
Unlike you, Amy, we aren't self-serving and narcissistic, we are parents who constantly get told " DO THIS!" "DONT DO THAT!" " OH WAIT DO THIS NOW!" "YOU NEED THIS" "NO YOU DON'T!" "THAT'S ABUSIVE!" "THATS NOT HARSH ENOUGH!"

We don't have a hard life…and We aren't conformists…And we certainly aren't unambitious…
-I had 3 friggin' kids, thats pretty ambitious! and I know people who have had more than that…GASP!

And We DEFINITELY don't want your sympathy or your criticism.

BUT!

The ONE thing I do want from you…is your phone number.

So you can babysit Saturday night.

Kitchen Remodel

2014-01-22T12:06:00.000-06:00

Who doesn't like trying new things???? {ryan} Not because he fears the change…well ok he does fear the amount of change, as in coin…or MONEY, it will cost him. And even when we find a cost effective solution, he still is a cotton headed ninny muggins throughout the whole process, anticipating it all to fail and we will spend our life savings to fix it! You could say, in simpler terms, Ryan suffers from horrible buyers remorse.

So needless to say, when I brought up the idea of refinishing our cabinets, I assumed ryan would be against the idea…but to my surprise, he wasn't.

My sister had refinished her cabinets with the rustoleum kit and they looked great, so I decided to do some research. Jamie {my sister} posted her results on facebook, saying how easy and quick the process was…so I was on board.

We picked the kit that we thought would match our oak trim and white appliances the best. The kit cost $70 and said it would take about 2 days, with drying in between coats. EASY PEASY! right…

Wrong!

5 days later, I was ready to burn every last cabinet door. Ryan always says I get myself into situations that make my life harder than it should be and I normally disagree with him. Like when I re-paint a room at 11 o'clock at night…or when I decide to start a second busiess…or when I decide to homeschool…but this time he was right.

The process of refinishing these cabinets was way harder than they made it look in the instructional video {or what jamie said!!!}…I suppose the people in the video didn't have 2 dogs and 3 kids and jamie must have had we wine tapped throughout the process and forgot how hard it was!

1. We had to remove all the doors and hinges.
2. scrub and clean all the doors and cabinets, then let them dry over night
3. next was applying the base color coat to everything, working with the grain
4. after the first coat dried for 4 hours, paint a second coat
(steps 3 and 4 are deceiving, you can't paint the backs of the doors until the fronts are dry, so the door painting took twice as long, 2 days to be exact)
5. After everything had 2 coats of the base coat I applied the glaze, which basically brought out the wood grain, again after this we had to let dry for 4 hours (double the time for the backs)
6. After the glaze was dry, I applied the protective top coat…which was the hardest part. It dried really fast and was glue-like, so I had to be quick and precise working with the grain again.

The hard part was working with the grain and around the intricate details on the molding and door fronts. I seriously regretted starting this project half-way through…

Even after the dogs ran through the kitchen with their wet paws and left prints on the freshly painted doors...

I stayed positive, I refused to be a cotton-headed ninny muggins…like somebody else I know….

Before

After

We (yes Ryan too) are thrilled with the results…the before picture was taken almost 4 years ago, the kitchen walls were actually a dark red, so its a really dramatic difference. Plus I just really don't like orange oak. We have future plans to get new floors and a back splash. We got hardware…which I LOVE, and the kids act like handles on a cabinet door is the way of the future…since we have never had hardware before.

by the time this house looks the way we want…it will be time to move.

Riley

2014-01-21T13:44:00.000-06:00

As many of you know, we decided to try homeschooling Riley this year.

It had it's ups and downs, but mostly i'm glad I did it. I really had no idea how SMART Riley REALLY was until I actually started teaching him. And I realized the possibilities with Riley are endless. I just assumed that all children were like him, that is until Tate and Blakely came. Blakely is 18 months…Riley could count and say his alphabet…Blakley doesn't say ONE WORD! Tate is almost 3…Riley new 6 shapes, alphabet, numbers…Tate, not so much. In fact, when I try to work with Tate, he LITERALLY pretends to be asleep. hmmmmm.

As annoying as Riley's "Sheldon-ness" -as we like to call it- or OCD is…we are learning to embrace his strong personality and use it in a positive way.

Like preschool-he did not do well in organized preschool, he got honorably discharged his first year and his second year he made it the whole year, but was the kid with the least amount of stickers and we all know what that means!

I was convinced he was BORED…When a kid knows how to say the alphabet backwards, with all sounds and a word to go with…he is not going to sit for circle time singing the alphabet. Plus when you mix super smart with super immature…not a good combo. He is flat out impulsive and obsessive about his impulses. I knew he needed a year at home with me to teach him how to listen, even when he doesn't want to, even when it's boring, even with distractions.

And I can confidently say…he is STRIDES from where he was a year ago…even from 6 months ago.

We started the year off with review…I needed to know what he knew.

And he knew how to:
-count to 25
-9 shapes
-alphabet uppercase and some lowercase (write say sounds)
-spell his first name
-use scissors
-held a pencil ok

He needed to work on (according to the preschool)
-listening to the teacher
-had trouble with lowercase -pdbq-
-telling teacher when there was a problem

Our first semester goals were:
-Write first and last name
-Write Say Sounds lowercase letters (still wrote his name in all uppercase)
-tie shoes
-read a clock
-basic math
-recognize simple words
-Calendar (seasons, months, days of the week)
-dealing with frustration and not giving up
-count to and write to 50
-count by 5s and 10s to 50

We started in August and tried to do school everyday…somedays were harder than others…but whatever I taught him…he KNEW that day. I couldn't believe it. He could tie his shoes after a couple tries…he could read a clock and not only a clock…a roman numeral clock. I found myself looking at him like he was a freak of nature and he would just smile and shrug like "what!?" I found out…Riley is his own worst enemy…he fails, because of his impatience with himself and his fear of failing. But we worked on getting past that fear.

So by the end of September we had met most of our semester goals and I found myself trying to find new ways to challenge him. I thought I would just teach him greater than and less than or ordinal numbers…but we found ourselves doing addition and subtraction. He started off using visuals and now he can do simple equations in his head…like at snack I will say "Riley I am giving you 2 cookies…how many more do you need to make 5." and he will look up at the ceiling as if the answer is on top of his head, and say "5!!!!? I get 5 cookies!!!!"

He has exceded my expectations and today we took review tests, since we took a long break from school over the holidays. He didn't skip a beat…I thought we would just do 1 test a day, but he breezed right through them and got 3, he was swelling with pride! And to honest I almost cired…almost.

Now we start this second semester with a new foundation of knowledge:

Riley knows:

-counts and write to 100+ we have gotten up to 115 and it's really only common sense after that (remember our goal was only 50)

-ties his shoes

-recognizes a slew of words like: down, the, my, his, up, at, it , is and so on and so on

-can write his first and last name

-knows his address (and willingly gives it out to strangers at wal mart), city, state, country and planet

-knows the days of the week and months of the year

-rhyming words and word families (hit, hut, hat)

-basic math (<, >, =)

-math equations

-complex problem solving for example, connect the dots and solve each equation…then color in all the answers with 4 red, 5 blue, 3 green

-counts by 5 and 10 to 100

-ordinal counting and order of a story

-read a clock, analog and digital

-his penmanship is much better and his pencil grip is much better.

-his pictures are much more complex and he draws story pictures

An army man from Dec. 2013

A T-Rex from Sept. 2012 and a Red Dragon from Dec. 2013

Ordinal Numbers

Greater than and Less Than

Math equations

Word Recognition

Drawing Faces and Feelings

8/13 and 1/14

Can you tell he didn't want to do it the first time…he couldn't even bring himself to finish the last face or right his name. But now he does a much better job of doing something he is told to do.

Cutting a circle with scissors

Obsessed with Lincoln logs, helps him learn patience with himself. The Riley 6 months ago would have freaked out if tate came and knocked over his cabin…not any more (or not as bad) He takes a breath and says "that's ok Tate…I will just build it again!" as Tate runs away laughing

He always insists on a practice try before he writes a word…very particular and very precise.

At first I followed recommended pre-K lesson plans, but soon found out we were way beyond that. So I scratched the lesson plans and decided to just get work books to see what he knew. I wanted it to come naturally to see what he was capable of and I found out it was MUCH more than I thought. The books were a nice foundation to branch off of and they had the review tests in them, which was nice.

This second semester our new goals will be:

-50 states

-continue word recognition

-estimating and rulers

-more work on subtraction

-count to 200+

-read a simple book

-write a story

Now, I know everyone thinks their kids are smart…I am not so much thrilled by Riley's intelligence…what I am thrilled about is we are starting to figure him out ( I know... 5 1/2 years into his life) His first preschool teacher thought we had autism…that is how "special" Riley is. But from this experience we have learned he's not neurological impaired but rather too smart for his own good, and before he was too immature to communicate with us, now we know he is just FILLED to the brim with ideas and thoughts and has to write them down or draw them. And because we are embracing it, instead of fighting it…my house now looks like this:

Pictures EVERYWHERE

This week it is super bowl pictures

I will come down and there will be paper everywhere…sigh.

oh and if you're wondering…this is a sign for the dogs…no eating dog poop.

A Joy Ride

2013-11-01T19:37:00.002-05:00

In this house…we never use toys for their intended purpose. And I think the video speaks for itself.