I can finally start to see!

June 24, 2007 | Leave a Comment

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Almost a full week after I caught pink eye from my youngest, my eyes are returning to normal color, the swelling has gone down and I am getting close to normal vision. My memories of pink eye from opening my eyes at camp during childhood were no where near as bad as this past week. Maybe it’s the mommy factor- no matter how bad you feel or in my case, unable to see it was still the first week of summer vacation and having all three kids home with the “I want, I need” beckoning every few minutes meant no time to sit or just close my eyes and let them rest. And of course, the fact that it was one of the most severe cases my doctor had seen didn’t help! So now that I can start to read my computer screen again, the next child has started with symptoms that I can only hope will pass as first as Dylans did and not have my type of reaction to the virus.

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Posted by Kristen | Filed Under Chaos of Life

2nd Day of Summer Vacation

June 19, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Here we are on only the second day of summer vacation from school and the kids are already fighting non-stop. I need to develop my structured day quicker then antipated. I thought I would have at least this week of “down time” not needing to have everyone packed and out of the house by a certain time, just hanging outside and playing and laughing and enjoying each other… YEAH RIGHT!! That lasted until 8:30 a.m. yesterday then the battle lines were drawn.

Knowing that they do great when we go somewhere or have a specific project I decided to get out and about today. OK , so it’s easier and more enjoyable for me to actually leave the house for at least a few hours a day then try to referee all day non-stop. NOW, going strawberry picking on an 80+ degree day in the middle of a field was really not the smartest idea for this 31 week pregnant mommy but the kids were great and I didn’t have to nag or yell or even raise my voice. We made it into the fields and picked 6.5 pounds of fresh strawberries without one potty emergency. Then we enjoyed cold drinks on the playground and watched the goats until it was time to pack it in to come home. Now… for tomorrows plan.?????

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Posted by Kristen | Filed Under Chaos of Life

The car seat battle

June 19, 2007 | Leave a Comment

With the weeks quickly flying by I decided it was time to start looking for a new infant car seat. I’m not crazy about needing to buy a new car seat but since I threw out the Graco car seat that worked great for all three of the other babies I don’t have much of a choice. Besides this would have been the 8th year and I know that using a car seat older then 6 years old is a no-no (although my husband thinks this statistic is still a racket). I’m still astounded by how overwhelming it is to select an infant car seat even after using one for years!

A few of my challenges: the cost, I don’t get a full year out of my infant seats because my babies are big (all in the 9 lb range) so they become to big and heavy to lug in the infant seat after 6-7 months and I switch them into our rear-facing convertable. For this reason, I really don’t want to be spending a large sum of money on a seat although I know how important it is for the seat to have some cushion and comfort and of course the safety. Fitting in to my Graco stroller is also a must. It would be great to find a site that lists each one and let’s you compare the features side by side.

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Posted by Kristen | Filed Under Reviews

EASY Summer Salad Recipe

June 18, 2007 | 1 Comment

I found this great recipe and made it for a family gathering- what better place to try out a new recipe?? There was not one person who did not like it, in fact, they all raved about it so give it a try. It only takes 10 minutes and a few simple ingredients.

Chedder Broccoli Salad

Ingredients:

6 cups fresh broccoli florets
1 1/2 cups shredded chedder cheese
1/3 cup chopped onion (I used videla)
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
3/4 cups sugar
3 tbs red wine vinegar or cider vinegar
12 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled

In a large bowl, combine the broccoli, cheese and onion. Combine the mayonnaise, sugar and vinegar; pour over broccoli mixture and toss to coat. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Just before serving, stir in the bacon. ENJOY!

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Posted by Kristen | Filed Under Recipes

Mulit-Generational Toy makes debut for Fathers Day

June 18, 2007 | 1 Comment

For this years Fathers Day we took the family party to the city to visit my 84 year old grandfather. I’ll be honest, I was a bit anxious about having four full families and six great-grandchildren running chaos in his house full of breakables. So we packed a couple of my son’s birthday presents to bring with us since we were having the family sing happy birthday and a cake. I found this big bucket of small building toys that I thought my lego boys would enjoy AND they were small manipulatives that I hoped would help my 6 year olds fine motor skills.

HEXABITS- my latest find that proved to be the hit of our large family gathering. The dad’s were competing to see who could make the best drink cozy, my 12 year old niece made an outstanding firetruck (flat picture), my 6 year old made an army of little robots while the girls made flowers and various creations including colorful bracelets. My 3 year (whos present it really was) loved making colorful snakes. The part I loved is that unlike legos or other building toys that once you get them together if you move it they fall apart these little flexible hexabits stay together and you can fold, move, wiggle your creation and they stay together! And they are far better in the fine motor department that I was hoping for.

To think I almost didn’t buy them because they were on the expensive side for a large bucket of 900 pieces it was almost $30.00 but it kept the entire family busy for a full 3 hours! They also come in smaller packets that have specific designs. This bucket of toys earned an A+ in my book check them out here HEXABITS.com- OH and for anyone that wants more detail; They are constructed of recycled plastic, latex free, non-toxic and play safe that are molded in Malaysia and packed in the U.S..

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Posted by Kristen | Filed Under Cool Finds, Reviews

Baby Number Four- what does he/she hold in store for us?

June 7, 2007 | Leave a Comment

I just returned from the school where my older two were busy buzzing around and putting on their end of school year performances. Of course, the video camera that I was so diligent about making sure battery is charged and new tape ready quite just as the curtains open! Anyway…

Back at the computer to catch up on morning emails and listening to my father in law who lives next door whistling old show tunes while he weeds his garden in jean overalls and feeling a busy little bee inside me doing flips I can’t help but wonder who will this little one be?? Having three kids that all have such distinct personalities and likes/dislikes that only a mother can fully track and memorize I can’t wait to see who this one will be. Majority of the time I’m so busy I don’t event think about being pregnant unlike the first baby where you obsess over every movement you make. But now, as the time nears I can’t help but daydream for a few minutes and wonder what color hair/eyes, disposition will complete this family. The countdown continues….

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Posted by Kristen | Filed Under Uncategorized

Potty Training at it’s finest

June 5, 2007 | Leave a Comment

My youngest has been a breeze to potty train, for the most part. He started gang busters at 2.9 months and was determined to pack up his diapers and claim his own BiG BoY undies. I used the same routine I did with the others, I did not push him I simply took out the little potty when he started showing signs and rewarded him with a few little candies when he went. He didn’t even need that for more than a week.

Well there is always one of “those” stories during the process and I think tonight was it. As I was cleaning up after dinner tonight and speaking with my father in law who stopped by - My older two appeared at the bottom of the stairs with wide eyes and in unison stated “Mom, we have a MAJOR emergency upstairs” and of course they know by now my next question is “who’s hurt” and they just turned and motioned for me to follow.

Upon entering their bathroom I see the youngest standing at the sink trying to wash out his own potty. The problem was, he forgot to deposit his own “deposit” into the big potty first. Yes there you have it poop all over the sink, vanity, stool, floor, big toiletand toilet paper still sticking to his little bare bum. He gave a big smile and proudly claimed “I do myself!!” Ughh where to start? First ushering the gaging older two out then cleaning up the “try to do good culprit” and sending him along. Close the door and head for the cleaning supplies.

This sort of thing doesn’t normally phase me, maybe I can blame it on being pregnant but WHEW. I had the bathroom stripped and sanitized in 15 minutes while trying to decide if I praise for trying to help or leave it with no comment- after all he is 2 and worse things could happen. So I decided to move along the process by thanking him for trying to help with cleaning the potty but next time to let mommy know and I can help- that’s pretty neutral right? In return I got the “Okay Mommy” as we continued the bed time routines.

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Posted by Kristen | Filed Under Chaos of Life