Cycles...

In the life of a mother, there are many never-ending cycles. Laundry for instance, is one of those cycles. I've learned to cope with situations like your husband bringing you a shirt that he needs washed right after you've already started the last load of colors. In these situations, I try to do my best to just smile and go on with life, usually by taking the shirt and shoving it into the washing machine while it's going. (Same with dishes, it always seems like I find one forgotten dish right after I start the dishwasher... Just open the dang thing and throw the dish in mid-wash. IT'S FINE!)



Babies grow so fast that it seems like as soon as I learn to cope with one of their current challenges (drinking all the tub water during baths, wiping poop all over their cribs during naptime, puking as soon as their dressed...) another challenge creeps up. The never-ending child-challenge-cycle, so to speak.



One of my latest challenges is the "portable microwave". Remember the kitchen Holynd was given a few weeks ago??? Well, for some reason, she thinks it's awesome to take the microwave off the top and carry it around the house. Normally I wouldn't mind... but she can't get the thing back on! And, she insists on throwing a tiny fit everytime she fails on snapping the microwave back on the kitchen.

I really don't mind fixing it for her, but she always seems to want it on while I'm in the middle of changing, feeding or bathing little Sloanie. So, I've been asking myself, coincidence or cry for attention? I'm going to go with the third option: MAKE HUSBAND SCREW THE MICROWAVE TO THE KITCHEN SO IT DOESN'T COME OFF AT ALL.

Sometimes in motherhood, we give ourselves our own challenges. I had been on the hunt for alphabet letters for my fridge. Holynd loves stickers and I thought this would be an easy way to keep a "sticker-like" object on hand. Sunday morning, Holynd awoke to find the magnets stuck all over the fridge. She then proceeded to throw them all over the floor and at her dad... Awesome. Matt came into the bedroom where, I was still trying to get myself out of bed.

Matt: Holynd likes the alphabet letters.

Me: She does?!

Matt: Yeah, she's been throwing them at me. They're everywhere.

Me: So what are you saying?

Matt: I'm saying you probably just bought yourself a $2.00 headache.

Me: Awesome...

Sometimes the child fixes the problem for you by just eliminating the object of annoyance all together... Here on my hopechest sits a candleholder that my mom gave me at my bridal shower. Holynd is obsessed with the red candles that usually occupy the little glass holders. I've picked up these candles THOUSANDS of times. Being the stubborn person that I am, I was determined to keep my candleholder where I wanted it. Well, Holynd finally decided I needed some help getting over the candle issue. The other day, Matt and I settled down in our bed for the night. I rolled over to see a candleholder, vacant of it's little red candles.

Me: Matt, where are my candles?

Matt: No idea.

Me: Oh well, they'll turn up.

Never did.

:)

I do, however, believe that some challenges just deserve some good 'ole childproofing.

Dearest Husband,

While you secure the microwave to the kitchen, could you give some thought to childproofing the bowl cupboard and the doorknob for me?? (Maybe also the oven and fridge, just to be on the safe side?)

Lots of love,

Wife.

Mr Clean, Thank you for existing.

We've been trying to come up with fun things to do now that the weather is cold. One of Holynd's favorite things to do is color, but coloring in a tiny coloring book gets old really fast! Sometimes coloring is a lot more fun when you can color on the wall.



Holynd spent a good hour coloring on the "wall". I'm pretty sure I'll have to wait for bedtime to come around before I can take this down.


Since little hands have a hard time staying on the "wall" paper, I'm making sure that this Thanksgiving I give thanks for Mr Clean and his magic erasers. I'm also thankful for my husband who makes sure to have extra paint handy just in case some things can't be cleaned off.

I've been reading more lately now that we can't venture outside as much. My dad gave me a book to read which I've really been enjoying, "Broken Things to Mend" by Jeffrey R. Holland. I wanted to quote a few passages that I need to remember. Maybe it will give someone the lift they need today, or maybe it will be something I need to have record of for the future.

"The first words Jesus spoke in His majestic Sermon on the Mount were to the troubled, the discouraged and downhearted. 'Blessed are the poor in spirit... for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:3). Many people are facing personal trials and family struggles, enduring conflicts fought in the lonely foxholes of the heart, trying to hold back floodwaters of despair that sometimes wash over us like a tsunami of the soul.... To all such I offer the surest and sweetest remedy that I know. It is found in clarison call the Savior of the world Himself gave. He said it in the beginning of His ministry, and He said it in the end. He said it to believers, and He said it to those who were not so sure. He said to everyone, whatever their personal problems might be: 'Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls' (Matthew 11:28-29)."

"In speaking of mothers generally, I especially wish to praise and encourage young mothers. The work of a mother is hard, too often unheralded work. The young years are often those when either husband or wife -or both- may still be in school or in those earliest and leanest stages of developing the husband's breadwinning capacities. Finances fluctuate daily between low and nonexistent.... Through these years, mothers go longer on less sleep and give more to others with less personal renewal for themselves than any other group I know at any other times in life. It is not surprising when the shadows under their eyes vaguely resemble the state of Rhode Island... Do the best you can through these years, but whatever else you do, cherish that role that is so uniquely yours and for which heaven itself sends angels to watch over you and your little ones. "

Happy fall everyone! It seems to be coming to a close. We are starting to see signs of winter almost everyday now.

Season of Joy

My little Sloane-Izzie is very healthy. I'm so thankful for her and her developing personality. I knew when I was pregnant with her that she was different. She seemed so mellow. She has proven to be completely opposite from her sister. They may look similar, but they are completely different in many ways. Holynd was always barely on the charts at the doctor. Sloane is still hanging on to the 95th percentile in height, 70th in weight and 60th in head circumference.

She my little chubby-chubs.

Holynd would always take a bottle when needed. Sloane will hate you for a week if you try and stick a bottle in her mouth. Holynd slept in a bouncey chair for the first 7 months of her life. Sloane has preferred her crib from the beginning. Holynd HATES the car. Sloane loves to go on drives. Holynd never drooled. Sloane... well, she's a drooler. Holynd is dramatic, loud, excited, crazy, social and talkative. Sloane is quiet, reserved, content, shy and loves to be cuddled.

Sloane also has this weird long hair and likes to stick straight up. Not sure what to do about that.

Life at the Peterson household has fallen into a pretty consistent pattern. We are definitely loving our little season of joy. Matt's new job is going really well. He's loving school and is finding it easier to study now that work is consistent and successful. Sloane is completely over her nightly colic. Holynd is, well, hilarious.

We're trying hard to find time to do the "little things", scripture study, FHE, family prayer and even dates for just mom and dad. ;) Now that a lot of stresses are taken care of, we're trying to keep ourselves in-check and plan for the future. I don't think any babies are in our near future... but maybe a house or a yard would be nice :). (Not too soon though. I'm not ready to have a driveway that I (By "I" I mean "Matt") would have to shovel or a lawn to mow. HEHE! I'm also not very ready to have to leave neighbors and friends.)

I'm trying hard to not forget what we learned from our recent trials. I'm definitely more grateful for everything I have. A year ago, if you had asked, I would've told you that I would never be grateful for the things I had to go through to get to where we are today. Now, I'm overly thankful for those trials that we were given.

a cow jumping over the moon...

...and three little bears sitting on chairs, and three little kittens and a pair of mittens....



Goodnight Moon is a favorite in our household. We read it probably 3 or 4 times a week. I have it and "Do You See a Monster?" memorized. I finally caught Holynd on video "reading" Goodnight Moon. If you happen to not notice, the balloon is her favorite item in the book.







Dad surprised us this week by bringing home Toy Story 3. In honor of this event, Holynd had to wear her Buzz jammies three nights in a row. It was probably the most exciting thing to happen. Maybe even more exciting than Halloween.






Yes, I bought my little girl "boy" pajamas. Sue me.



While I was watching Toy Story 3 with Holynd, I kept thinking, who would actually consider taking their old toys with them when they left home? Then it hit me. I did. I still have the teddy bear I got when I had my tonsils taken out. (Did I just blog that?!) His name is Squeaky. He doesn't actually squeak, he's just a regular old (really old!) teddy bear. His head has been sewn back on several different times, but Holynd now carries him everywhere. :) As I type, Holynd is snuggled in her bed with that teddy bear. I'm now glad that I kept Squeaky tucked away in my hope chest all these years.



I also realized this week that poor Sloanie has a terrible mother. I always made sure Holynd made it to her doctors appointments on the early possible day she could go. She religiously received her immunizations on the 28th every two months from the day she was born. Poor Sloanie turned 4 months old on the 18th of Oct and has yet to go to her four month check-up. (Terrible! Terrible me!) I've rescheduled twice. But! She has an appointment this Tuesday and I will take her and I will immediately update on her growth afterwards. She was in the 95th percentiles for both height and weight last appointment. I have an inkling that she's slimmed down a little, but not too much. Sloanie is wearing the clothes her older sister wore last fall... Weird! I bet you can guess which parent she takes after and which parent Holynd takes after. (Sorry Holynd, you'll still be shopping out of the little girls section when you're in Junior High).

I finally ventured back to Walmart with the kids by myself. It was pretty bad. Holynd refused to ride in the cart and Sloane decided she wanted to cry uncontrollably through the whole trip. Holynd kept grabbing things off of shelves and then would tell me "NO! NO! NO!" when I would put them back. (Go figure.) I was a little discouraged because I was not one of those super-moms who could calm their kids down with one quiet phrase, but I found quote someone had posted and it made me really happy.

"I'd rather have my hands full than empty".

(I'm thinking I need to write this on my arm every Sunday before church. My kids don't love church very much. If the truth be known, I have to sing the Dora, "We did it!" song every Sunday after we come home-just a little celebration for us surviving another Sunday.)

Mmmewwwwwwww!

Before I had kids, my favorite season was summer. Now that I have my babies, I love this time of year. Fall. To be even more exact, I love the time from the first of September until Christmas. I'm so excited to have Sloane around this year. I'm also excited to see how Holynd responds to Thanksgiving and Santa. (Too keep the list going, I'm really excited to NOT be pregnant during the holidays... I need a break from getting sick after Thanksgiving. I'd also like to do my Christmas shopping without 100 potty breaks per hour!)

I had a blast shopping for Halloween costumes. It was fun to be able to buy from the infant costumes and toddler costumes. Partyland has been my favorite costume store so far. (Maybe I shouldn't have told!)

I couldn't decide if I wanted Sloane and Holynd to be dressed alike, or be dressed completely different. Holynd kept telling me that she wanted to be something "scare-ney!", but I figured I would use my mom-power one more year and dress her the way I wanted her to dress. ;)

Sloane was our little lamb.




Holynd was our moo-cow. She loved walking around the house saying, "MMMMmmmeeeewww!" If the truth be told, I've had to hide the costume because it was being worn almost everyday.

Now I am busy trying to decide what the girls will get for Christmas this year. I know a lot of people love to have their shopping done early, (which is awesome!!) but I'm a sucker for the Christmas shopping experience. Yes, I love the crowds; I love the long lines; I love the Christmas music.... the list goes on. So, in the Peterson household, Christmas shopping does not start until after Thanksgiving. However, I have tried in previous years to put my Christmas decorations up before Thanksgiving and Matt always stops me. Matt loves Thanksgiving and hates that Christmas is taking over the month of November. :) (I'm also debating as to whether or not I want new Christmas decor.... I think I've been pretty good about not spending money on Christmas decorations for the last two years, I may deserve some new Christmas decorations. I'm thinking purple and silver....)

I'll hold off putting up the Christmas decorations just for my husband. I'm pretty sure he's worth a few extra days of waiting.

(Husband, new Christmas decorations... Hint Hint!)