on weaning

It's been happening for a while now - this weaning thing.

It's not something either of us want, but more something that my body has decided to do on its own. My milk supply is very low - Wyatt nurses and pulls off and looks at me with a frustrated expression and says - Milk! Milk! Milk!

I'm sure it has to do with hormone fluctuations - and really the downward spiral started when my cycles resumed at 16 months. Now when I hit that ovulation time my supply dives and then again as the cycle restarts. 

He's frustrated and I'm frustrated almost to tears. I'm sad when someone asks if he's getting anything, because really the answer is probably not much. 

It's not baby-led weaning because he's just not ready - and it's not mommy led weaning because I'm not ready either - but my body sure seems to think so. 

I know we'll keep nursing for a while longer - even if it's just once a day - until it's gone.

Today in exasperation on both our parts - I gave him a bottle of cow's milk - warmed. He drank almost 8 ounces and I instantly felt terrible because I KNOW that I don't have that much milk left in one nursing anymore. 

It's not supposed to be like this  - I saw it just ending gradually - mutually.

Tonight he didn't nurse at all - I gave him the bottle again (he won't drink milk from a sippy...). 

I know he'll wake up in the middle of the night like always, and I'll nurse him then - it's just thinking about it all that has me almost in tears.

We still haven't decided if he's the last baby for us. I've been feeling very strongly lately that maybe God wants us to have another, but the financial obligation to pay cash for care and delivery is something out of our means at this point. Wyatt's pregnancy and birth were very expensive and with all the complications we paid out a good $13K in cash - not credit. 

Mike did say the other day that he wouldn't mind having another little boy...

It's really in God's hands at this point.

I'd like to write more, but we're planning our weekly trip to the local waterpark in the morning and I have diapers to wash, lunches to pack and all the other little things that need to be done before bed.

Stop and love your children

"Mommy, can you cuddle up with me?" Maddie asked as she crawled into my bed for naptime. We'd already gone down for naps once, but since they share a room, Wyatt likes to torture her and I constantly hear "MOMMY, Wyatt is bothering me!" So separate napping places are best.

A million things to do rushed through my mind as she waited for my response. I needed to finish some emails, start the washer, unload the dishwasher and countless other little things that needed tending. I haven't done any picture blogging for days and I start to get antsy as the stories and pictures I put together in my head start to back up and clog my clarity of thinking. 

But I pushed all those thoughts aside for a few moments and snuggled up with her in my bed - thinking how nice it would be to just stay there for the rest of the afternoon.

She wrapped her arms around me - offered her special flamingo pillow for me to put my head on and even offered her sacred Blueberry for me to hold onto and cuddle.

"Are you my baby, Mommy?" she asked. 

I always tell her that no matter how big she gets she's still my baby, even though she's really such a big girl now.

"Of course I am, " I replied. 

She put her little hand on my face and started stroking my cheek, "I love you, mommy," she said. "You're my best friend."

By this point I've melted into a puddle- overcome with such intense love and adoration for this little girl who has made my life so wonderful.

She then went on to chat with me - telling me that she grew out of love in my tummy and that when she was a little baby she drank mommy milk and now she doesn't need it anymore because she's big. 

I love that she remembers these things and that she loves me so fiercely and that she knows there is nothing that can separate her from my love. 

She's finally napping now and the house is quiet. 

I'll go peek at her soon, just because she complained that I never peeked at her yesterday when she was asleep - and she's right I didn't. 

She looks so peaceful when she's sleeping - and it just makes my heart swell with the love only a mommy can know. 

So even though I had a million things to do, I'm thankful I took that precious moment to cuddle up and snuggle with her. The dishes might not have gotten done, but she knows that she's a priority in my life and I love her.

Train up a child...

The Message translation of the Bible has an interesting take on Proverbs 22:6 - you know the whole "train your child" verse...

"Point your kids in the right direction—
when they're old they won't be lost."

For us, that means grounding them solidly in a relationship with Jesus Christ. It's not just about going to church and Sunday school - but more than that - it's about a love for Jesus and wanting to live their lives for Him.

We do scriptures every night - and pray every night. Since starting Accountable Kids with Madeleine 2 weeks ago we're doing them with no excuses and no whining even...

We try to always kneel during prayer time - it doesn't matter if your hands are folded or arms crossed in our household - as long as you're being reverent. 

Tonight as Maddie and I were kneeling to say prayers after reading the scripture (or blessing is really what she calls it) I peeked at Wyatt who is always watching us - he kneeled down and put his head on the bed as we were praying and popped back up as soon as Maddie said Amen - and then added his own AMEN! It was cute and encouraging - that maybe all this hard work I've done to put these practices in place is starting to pay off and become routine.

I think of the future and the challenges that await for them as they venture out into the world and I want to hold them tight and keep them close. It's the daily scriptures and prayer - and the life lessons of accountability, honesty, integrity and all those other Christian morals and values we're trying to teach out kids - that I hope stay with them as they experience the world.

For now, it's a start that I hope stays with them a long time.

No Time for Flash Cards

My family blog was recently listed in the blog roll at No Time For Flash Cards - one of the niftiest kid craft sites I've ever seen! I just wanted to say thanks and welcome to all of you who are reading my blog because of this - I'm happy to see you at my site! Please feel free to post a comment and let me know you stopped by! (anonymous posting is allowed.)

Pictures from dinner tonight

My parents are great about coming over to spend the evenings with us when Mike is gone. It's a much needed break in the monotony of just mommyness - for the kids and for me.

Tonight they came over and we had from scratch chicken and dumplings with homemade wheat dinner rolls. It was oh so yummy!



While I was finishing up dinner Papa and Wyatt played with his trains. He loves Thomas (although has no thomas engine that works on this track...yet) He has some generic trains that work just fine, but he has shown a preference for Tommy - as he calls him :) It's so cute.. He has Thomas plates and cups and books and seeks these out over anything else. He has a little Thomas engine that you pull back on the floor and it goes by itself. He also has a thomas blanket that he sleeps with everynight (thanks grandmomma!)






Wyatt also loves his Mimi :)

Wyatt and the potty

He's starting to show interest in the potty and tonight when I took off his diaper he went right over to the little, green potty and sat on it. He was quite amused with himself as you can plainly see - he kept giggling - silly boy!

Since I am not going to be stuck on bedrest like I was when Maddie was first really ready to potty learn - I'm hoping that we can find ourselves potty learned earlier than 3 years old.

I remain hopeful :)

I'm dyeing...

No, I'm not dying (well we're all dying!) but I've been dyeing fabric for someone. I recently met a local mom who is also on my Granola Chicks forum and discovered that she crochets wool shorties (diaper covers) and we made a deal that she would make a pair for Wyatt and I would in turn do a custom dyeing for her.

It has been a while since I have done any tie dying - about a month or so, and I forgot what a pain it really is! For one thing it's so darn hot outside and this is so messy it must be done outside. I was also dodging thunderstorms and crazy rain showers, so it's a miracle I even got to do it all.

This was my first time mixing my own dye - I used Procion dyes and the turquoise is made by a company called Dharma. I love that color blue - it's so vibrant!

I ended up finishing the rinsing in my washer and bathtub because it was still yucky last night.

I did 10 gerber birdseye prefold diapers that she uses mainly as burp cloths. I really really wish these were good quality diapers because they really turned out great.



Also included in the mix were three shirts. Two of them are the same color scheme - one for her little girl and one for her little boy. (3 and 10 months old). The middle blue is for maddie, but it's getting kind of small (it was a white shirt with a tea stain on it... imagine that!).


I also did one of Wyatt's pillowcases that was stained. This is my favorite out of all of them - with the little boy shirt being a close second. Maddie calls this the fireboom pillowcase.

front:


back:


It was a good trade, though - look what I got in return! (the pictures aren't that great because I took them with my Mac.

Pajama Party

It's almost 4 p.m. and I'm still in my pajamas. Wyatt is finally napping and Madeleine came into the living room a few minutes ago and was wearing her own pajamas. And I just figured out that she had to go into the room where wyatt was sleeping to get her nightgown out of the drawer...

Anyways she had prepared a pretend feast for us at the little table - healthy choices of carrot, broccoli, peas, tomato and a hamburger patty. 

Each place setting had a spoon, plate and bowl and it was all sitting on one of the handmade cloth napkins I finished a few weeks ago. 

After a prayer by the princess herself I settled down to eat my pile of peas - only to be reminded to use my spoon. 

It was a dainty feast- interrupted a few times by the bread machine's loud noises as it was kneading the dough for our dinner rolls.

She told me her name is Zelia today and she's singing a silly little song about Katie and a-Julia her babysitters and how they love to sing and jump.

I love having a little girl :)

Aunt R-

aunt rachel- you're stalking my blog again - I love it when you read it all the time :) I was going to make some other snarky comment about blog stalking, but we'll chat about that later - I did get your hoolia email though...

sorry I haven't updated it as much as I normally do. 

What can I say? Wyatt is finally napping, Maddie is refusing her quiet time and is currently cutting up paper in the kitchen and I'm trying to make homemade chicken and dumplings, but I've lost my motivation for some reason. 

Gotta go start some dough for dinner rolls... and take a shower, finish some laundry, memorize some songs and unload the dishwasher.

Wyatt also appears to have an upset tummy today. He's gone through 5 diapers already and usually that's all we go through in a day. Good thing I just washed diapers yesterday and have a full stash.

Love you :)

random updates

The summer is winding down and while it seems I should feel relaxed in the dog days of summer - instead I feel crazy!

There is so much to do... 

This is what is going on in our life right now:

I am planning the annual Ladies Tea for the Women's Ministry at FUMC Niceville. We typically have anywhere from 120-150 women attend. I've hired the caterer, gathered door prizes and hostesses and am hoping the rest will fall into place...by God's grace no doubt!

My voice will be heard! I'm singing in the contemporary praise band at church - a lot! This Sunday, followed by all but 2 Sundays in August. I'll be a busy girl between practices on Tuesday nights and early rehearsals on Sunday morning.

Mike is fishing like a mad man and I'm not sure when we'll cross paths again other than to put my cold feet on him in bed at night.

Maddie starts preschool Aug. 19 and I have no clue what she needs or anything. Some communication would be appreciated. I hear there's a parent's night/open house soon...

My application to be come an accredited leader with La Leche League International has been submitted and I'm waiting for the process to start. 

I've had a few breastfeeding consults lately and this is great - I love helping mommies and babies.

Wyatt has a temper worse than Maddie has ever had!

We're on week 2 of Accountable Kids and I can't tell you how awesome it is!

I am tired, Mike is tired and the kids are mostly sleeping well so at least they're rested!

WOW- women of the word - starts up the last Thursday in August and I'm so ready to be back in a weekly bible study! I've missed the fellowship of all the women at my church. 

In september we're planning to attend the simulcast training for The Truth Project so we can lead a small group either at the church or in our home. IT was amazing and eye opening and incredible for gaining a biblical worldview. If you have access to this group - please consider attending. It will change your life. 

I'm making chicken and dumplings for dinner. :) YUM

I picked a red pepper, a yellow tomato and discovered a cantaloup growing that I had previously overlooked! It's the size of my fist!

Today is my sister's 25th birthday! Happy Birthday Natalie!

Girl's Night Out

I don't get to go out on my own much these days - with Mike gone so much and little time together as a family my "escapes" have become few and far between.

A few days ago I got an email inviting me to a Girl's Night Out here in Niceville - it came from my friend Amy Simpson who has Lollypop Embroidery and Gifts. The idea was for several local artists and work at home moms to get together in one place to showcase their wares with food and fun.

Let me tell you it was a hit! There were at least 40 women that came and that is probably on the low end. 

Vendors included: 

Lollypop Embroidery and Gifts, Silpada Jewelry, Posh Purses, Southern Living at Home, Tastefully Simple, Lia Sophia Jewelry, Modern day Mermaid Art, Getchasum and Cutz on the Go.

There was tasty food provided by Tastefully Simple - I love their bountiful beer bread, I think I could eat a whole loaf!

Ladies had the choice of different wines, water and iced tea (i think that is what it was!). 

It was just so nice to get out of the house and chat with other women - I've missed that this summer. There have been plenty of playgroups and the like, but it's hard to have a conversation when you're interrupted every thirty seconds by a toddler.

Ever since Maddie had enough hair for a bow I've been buying bows from Amy - in fact I was just saying to her today that she really should have some kind of trade in program for loyal customers! I think I bought a bow in every color and pattern when we first started using bows. Maddie has since outgrown those bows and they're just sitting on her bow holder... I'm going to have to box them up to make room for the 6 big girl bows I bought tonight, though!

These bows were on sale for 50% off their regular price so I couldn't pass them up!

My other big purchase for the night was an original purse design by Posh Purses. It was meant to be - this purse was already embroidered with my initial "A!" I was just about to order one and saw that she actually had a sample of it on her table, along with the one I decided to go with and I think that purse was just meant for me tonight. I've been seriously trying to talk myself out of a new Vera Bradley and this purse did it. I actually could have bought 2 Posh Purses, that were personalized (nice alliteration, huh?) for the price of one VB purse... :) I'll try to explain that to Mike later once he realizes I bought a new purse, but he might not truly appreciate the value of the money I saved!

The letter is reversed because I took it with my Mac laptop camera instead of digging out the digital. It's a little dark, too, but I really don't feel like playing with it this late at night!

I had a great time out tonight and am looking forward to the next one already. I even won a doorprize! I won a free tan from Glow on the Go - the person comes to my house to give me a nice, spray tan! So if I look amazingly golden sometime in the next month, you know it's because I cashed in on my free tan (gotta use it in the next month...).

I also made an appointment for the owner of Cutz on the Go to come over on Monday and trim Maddie's hair! Can't beat a hairstylist who comes to your house and cuts hair for kids and adults. I didn't get the fees from her personally, but my friend Annie said it's $10 for kids and $15 for adults. It's a great idea for moms with young kids - it's so hard to get out to do it on your own and a nightmare taking your kids with you to get your own hair cut (when they're as young as mine!).

The purse is calling me, so I'm going to get it nice and organized so I can show it off this weekend! 

In case you're wondering

If you wanted to know what prompted that lovely face on my son - he wanted the digital camera and I said NO!

Family Love

This past Sunday we all got together to celebrate my mom's 30th birthday. I won't tell you how old or rather young - she really is - because she might shoot me.

It took a while for everyone to show up at the Destin Olive Garden - my father mistakenly drove to the one in Fort Walton Beach, claiming he wasn't aware there even was an Olive Garden in Destin... Where has he been??

I'm not sure who was looking out for us that night, but we ended up with a semi-private room and it was perfect for Mr. Wyatt who will not sit still for very long - but all in all he did wonderfully that night and we were there for a LONG time...

So here are some shots from the night along with some necessary commentary...

I'm not sure what Wyatt was doing, but I thought this picture was cute!


My dad arrived and checked out the bottle of wine that my sister Natalie had ordered.


I asked Mike to take some pictures of me and Wyatt because let's be honest - I'm always behind the camera! He was using a funky angle and this was the only one that even halfway turned out...


I like this one, because it encourages me that my hair is finally getting some length to it and actually looks nice!


Maddie and her Mimi - they are inseparable and have this bond that amazes me - it's profound


My father - does not "believe" in blogs and refuses to look at mine - which offends me greatly. Therefore I feel justified in posting these dorky pictures of him - because since he doesn't believe in blogs, they must not exist and therefore these pictures are just a figment of his imagination :) He's so silly - you should have heard Wyatt cracking up when Papa was doing this!





Just as Maddie and my mom share a special bond, Wyatt is all about his Papa. He asked to get up on his lap and stayed just like this for about 5 minutes - holding tightly onto my daddy and patting him on the back at times. It was so sweet. I love those kind of hugs!



After the sweet moment, they had quite the conversation and Wyatt is very expressive with his hands - you can almost hear what he's saying:



kisses for papa



Caught him mid-sentence


Papa, you're too funny!


Maddie lounging with Mimi


Mike getting some love from his little buddy

My kind of breakfast

I really have to tell you - my friend Becca has inspired me to make hearty breakfasts for my kids. For her, breakfast is a huge meal and she's always making something yummy - from scratch for her and the boys. She says sometimes it's not so much for them, but for her because she likes breakfast - it's her favorite meal.

She writes two blogs - a bit of an overachiever! Her recipe blog is full of great meal ideas, but especially yummy breakfasts.

Our current favorite is the apple puffed pancake - everyone in the family - even my picky madeleine loves it. This morning is the third time I've made it in a week! It's quick and easy and impressive when it's baking. 

The first time I made it - I opened the oven and had a small heart attack because it was huge!

A daily blessing

I'm not sure when or why we got out of the habit of doing daily devotions, but tonight I saw our devotion book, Blessings Every Day, on the bookshelf and picked it up to read to Maddie and Wyatt before bed.

The entries are short and meaningful - just enough of a lesson to stick in their minds and hopefully in their hearts. Sometimes this little devotion is the only scripture I read during the day and I was reminded how much I need to be in the Word and that as a family we need to be covering ourselves in God's word and protection.

It never ceases to amaze me that I can open to a random day (the entries are dated for the days of the year) and feel that the little snippet is speaking directly to me. They are always timely and I know right now that I get much more out of them than Maddie and Wyatt do.

If you're looking for an easy devotional to do with your kids - I whole heartedly recommend this one. It was recommended to me by a mom in one of my online forums (several years ago) and I've shared it with my nieces and nephews as a Christmas present last year. My dear friend Becca also uses it with her boys for morning devotions and prayer time. 

I thought I would share the devotion from tonight - something that I really needed to be reminded of as I'm involved in so much at our church right now and feeling a little bogged down...

July 23

Do it for Jesus

I tell you the truth. Anything you did for any of my people here, you also did for me. Matthew 25:40 ICB

Jesus is God's Son. When he lived on earth, he showed people how to follow God. One of the things he taught is that we need to treat everyone the way we would treat him. If you saw Jesus sitting alone at a playground, you'd go talk to him. If you saw that Jesus was sad or scared or hurt, you'd try to help him. Jesus said we need to do the same for the people around us. Whenever we show love to one of God's people, we're showing love to God, too.

When I help a person who's scared or feels blue, 

It's just like I'm helping Jesus, too.

And one more that is really important to our family, not just because it happens to be Daddy's birthday!

December 18

A New Family

Beloved, now we are children of God. 1 John 3:2 NKJV

Something amazing happens when you love God and trust him. You become one of God's children. You also become part of a great big family of people all over the world. And members of God's family love each other no matter what. They stand up for each other, encourage each other, and help each other. How can you help another of God's children today?

The world is filled with sisters and brothers.

Since we're all God's children, we should help each other.

I'm going to make a point to do our devotions each night before bed - in fact I'm adding a "scriptures" card to Maddie's Accountable Kids chore board tonight to remind her and me. I'm going to write about AK soon - it's amazing and is already changing our little girl into an accountable kid!

Who are you?

I have a broad readership and personally know a lot of the people who read my blog. I've noticed a lot of random people lately - from Malaysia, Australia, UK, all over Florida and many of the US states.

I'm glad you found us and love that you're reading about our family - so why don't you leave a comment and introduce yourself sometime? Just click on comments to leave one - I'll even allow anonymous posting for those of you without blogger or google accounts!

Looking forward to getting to know you!

Happy Birthday Mimi!

We love you so very much and hope you have a splendid day!

To the best and greatest Mimi in the world - we think you're awesome.

Love, 

Mike, Anne, Madeleine and Wyatt

Breastfeeding and Nursing

Warning - there are no pictures, but I will repeatedly use the word breasts - if this offends you - or if you tend to have negative comments about breastfeeding or "extended nursing" please don't read this entry.

I actually wrote this at the end of November 2007. I've been going through my private blog lately and re-reading. Things that I really like I'm moving over and this one is still very timely to me.

Wyatt is 18 months old and still nursing, but I fear that my body is going to give up before he does. I know we'll still make it to my goal of 2 years, but it might be cutting it close. My milk rarely "lets down" now when he nurses and often times he pulls off, looks at me and says, "milk milk milk" in frustration. I've tried taking fenugreek with little response - so I know that I am definitely in the involution/weaning stage even though we are not actively weaning. He still nurses in the morning and mid-day and before bed, but it's those moments of insecurity when he wants to nurse and gets frustrated that cause me sadness.

It will be a bittersweet day when it comes for sure.

But on a happier note - I'm adding something I wrote about the difference between breastfeeding and nursing....

Nov. 29, 2007 - or somewhere around then!

I read something recently that there is a profound difference between breastfeeding and nursing.

Breastfeeding is something you do that nourishes the child while nursing is something that nurtures him.

I've pondered that a lot recently. Wyatt is 11 months old on Sunday and most women would be thinking of weaning at this point. They might be looking forward to it, or facing it with some apprehension.

We're not anywhere close to being done breastfeeding or nursing. I decided that he'd self wean when he's ready, hoping to meet and or exceed the World Health Organization's recommendation of a minimum of two years.

But that's not what is really on my mind as I'm just finished nursing him again tonight.

I'm thinking of all the bumps and bruises he's gotten lately - falling face first into the table or floor, pulling out drawers and smashing his little fingers. Those are all situations where he's definitely not hungry, but the breast brings him comfort - immediate comfort. It's not even something I think about anymore. He gets hurt and I nurse him. He's come to expect it - it's what he's looking for the minute I scoop him up to kiss his owie.

I've always enjoyed the sweetness of a newborn turning their head and rooting for a breast, but an older baby is even more of a beautiful thing. Sometimes it's subtle - a sweet patting on my chest. "Mom, do you think you could feed me?"

Other times it's a little more direct - as he tries to bury his head next to my breast. He's not trying to lift my shirt or anything (although I'm sure that's coming eventually) but he makes it clear as he nuzzles close to what he desires.

Yes, there are moments when it can be inconvenient, but honestly I don't mind. My friends and family are used to seeing me nurse my babies. They don't ask me to cover up or go in a different room. I've even gotten comfortable with my mom peeking her head closer to say, "Aww, that is just so beautiful!"

There are always curious toddlers wondering what Wyatt is doing. It's certainly not my place to explain why mommies have milk, but if they ask I'll say he's drinking mommy milk or that he's eating. I remember nursing wyatt on the hay ride and a preschooler asked me what I was doing. I explained that I was feeding my baby with mommy milk. His mother looked a little displeased with my answer, but I'm not going to lie and say he's sleeping!

I guess that's the difference with my children. To them, breastfeeding has always been and will always be the normal thing. We don't have many bottles in our house as Wyatt only gets one once a week and sometimes he won't even take it. Maddie routinely nurses her stuffed animals and if she does give them a bottle, she specifically says that it's mommy milk that she's pumped!

I love this about being a breastfeeding mommy. I love seeing pictures of my kids at the breast - and any baby at the breast actually. It's a truly beautiful thing symbolizing the perfect bond between mom and child. My little girl wants to see pictures of me breastfeeding her, and talks about pictures of her brother breastfeeding. It's not an exhibition of my breasts, but a visual memory of a sacred time between me and my child.

Writer's Blah

It's frustrating - I need to write and have things to write about - but I just don't want to do it. For me, writing is therapy. I started the family blog so I could try and focus on my kids and family life instead of hashing out all the other stuff that often coagulates in my mind. 

Part of my malaise is that Mike has been working 6-7 days a week. He leaves early in the morning and often gets home either just before or just after the kids are in bed. This makes for long days for both of us. He's tired and I'm quickly getting burned out. I keep telling myself that it's only a few more weeks and then things will start to slow down with fishing - maybe. It's a blessing that he's fishing so much. He's in steady demand as a captain and he turns people down all the time. I'm dreading the next 2-3 weeks because it's going to be rough. Right now, weather permitting he will fish 9 days straight, with a possible overnight trip in there - starting this coming Thursday.

Nine days is nothing compared to when he was charter fishing, and my kudos to my fellow moms who are facing toddlers and missing husbands - and to all the military wives as well.

But it's still hard. When he finishes that stretch he's leaving for a week to fish in Lousiana, too. And then it will be time for school to start.

Ugh. 

Does life ever slow down? I know the answer to that question - NO.

When I'm not writing I'm pent up and have a short fuse - couple that with cranky toddlers and an absent husband and I'm not the happiest person to be around right now.

I know part of the problem is pictures. I feel this intense obligation to include pictures with my posts about the kids - because so often I take pictures as the day goes on - intending to write blog entries about it.

I'm behind in my storytelling.

I need to blog about the wedding of Lizzie Long Ears and Blueberry (it was a beautiful ceremony). 

There was something else I wanted to write about that happened today, but I can't remember now...

You see I write entries in my head as the day goes by - Man I wish I could hook up a USB cable to my brain and just download all that stuff. I'd probably sleep a whole lot better at night!

Speaking of sleep - I should probably get some. Wyatt has already woken up once tonight - I had to cut my relaxing bathtime short... 

We've got church in the morning and Mike finally has a day off so there will be something fun to do - after he mows the yard, which is about 5 foot tall now it seems. Some random man, looking for work - stopped by and offered to mow it for me. I was caught off-guard in my pajamas, messy hair and no bra - so I quickly turned him down. I almost instantly regretted it though - he probably needed the money and my yard definitely needed mowing. That was three days ago and it's still just as high. I did look down the road for him that morning, but he was gone. I felt so guilty - that compassionate heart of mine - always wanting to help people out. 

anyways - I digress - sleep is calling me - kind of .

Mommy's Little Helper

Due to circumstances beyond my control - Wyatt took a very early nap today and hence the reason he was awake during my normally scheduled "quiet time."

I usually water my front flower garden during their naptime and took Wyatt out with me just now.

He was very interested in helping me - in fact - he insisted in bringing the flowers TO the water. That's right - as I was watering sections of the flower bed he would grab flowers by the handfuls and rip them from their stems and bring them to the water. He'd hold them under the water and look up me with a look of pride on his little face.

What's a few flowers sacrificed in the name of a sweet, little boy trying to help his mamma?

A Wedding

We're planning a wedding at the Hinze household.

Lizzie Long Ears and Blueberry the Cat are getting married. It's going to be quite the event. There will be flowers and cake and Maddie has informed me that Lizzie will have a baby sometime after the wedding (thank goodness!).

Stay tuned for details and pictures

Wyatt's dinnertime song

I will not eat the food you make
the homemade rolls and lasagna
I'll turn my head at grapes and pears
I'd rather eat some cake.

Yes, chocolate cake is much more fun
it's sweet and tasty and good on the run
So no thanks mom for wholesome food

I'd rather be a chocolate cake dude

Wyatt shrieks and other randomness from the moment

Wyatt's newest way to annoy his older sister is to stand in front of her and scream at the top of his lungs.

She, of course, starts yelling at him to stop - telling him it's hurting her ears - and he laughs at her and screams louder.

Seriously - he follows her around the house this afternoon and goes up to her and starts screaming with a wicked grin on his face.

At the moment they are planning a trip - Maddie has her backpack all packed up and Wyatt is at the front door knocking on the window part of it. He keeps saying, "bye bye!"

There he goes again - screaming at his sister.

"Wyatt, what is that crying about?" Maddie asks him.

"Oh, you want to dance." she says as he starts stomping and dancing.

And then the screaming starts again. She tries to explain to him that she really doesn't like the screaming.

"Ball starts with J," she tells her brother.

I quickly correct her and tell her that Ball starts with B - bbbb bbbbuh B.

And I'm looking at my little girl in her favorite Kate Mack pink tulle dress from her grandmomma - with cheap little fairy wings I had to clip together in the front. She has one white sock on her foot - because that's her style. She's also sporting a crown and various other elements of jewelry.

All her own dressing.

Ball, ball, ball - Wyatt says over and over - looking for the new little Spiderman ball his Mimi and Aunt Nat Nat brought him this morning.

Ah- a moment in motherhood - to relax for a minute - the rolls are rising nicely and the lasagna I made with some garden grown veggies and a leftover ribeye steak - is baking in the oven.

My kids are playing so nicely together and every few minutes Maddie comes to ask me to add something to her backpack. So far I've put play keys, a microphone, a toothbrush and a headband - all important items to take when you're going on a trip no doubt.

Wyatt - with his ball in hand is running out from under the curtains - they make such a great hiding spot.

Maddie is asking me to write a story about her favorite animal - a giraffe named Bailey. And she's also proclaiming to Wyatt that there are no balls in her city - they are not allowed.

And the shrieking begins again - quickly followed by that insane giggling only two sibling toddlers can create.

tea and milk

At 18 months, Wyatt still nurses a few times a day. He's dropped a lot of the anxiety feedings as I call them - you know when I sit on the floor and he runs over demanding "mak mak mak."

This morning he and Maddie and I were all cuddling in bed (my favorite time of the day really!) and I'd already nursed him when he woke up. We were playing around - Wyatt was taking the paci out of Maddie's baby doll's mouth to make it cry - what a bully! 

He moved over to a different part of the bed and turned around and looked at me and said his usual, "mak mak mak."

"But you've already nursed this morning, " I told him.

"Mommy, he needs some mommy milk," Maddie chimed in. 

"Wyatt, do you want some mommy milk?" I asked him.

"No, No, No - TEA!" he responded.

"Tea, Tea, TEA!"

and his "tea" isn't hot with milk - it's sweet and iced - just like his daddy.

However I had to deny his request since it was 8 o'clock in the morning. His daddy might drink it for his morning beverage, but my kids are either getting milk or orange juice!

Letters and a Milestone

After horseback riding, Chinese take-out and all the other stuff we did this evening you probably think I'm crazy for this impromptu craft project, but let me tell you it was worth it!

I splurged on these dot paints the other day - I say splurge because they were $15 for 6 of them. I know I could probably find the BINGO markers a lot cheaper, but I never can seem to find them and was looking for something that Wyatt could participate with and not make that big of a mess.

I've been really impressed with this blog called No Time for Flash Cards. It's a mom who posts all her art projects with her little guy. I think she must have been or currently be a teacher of some sort, because she often ties everything to a book or song (and videos herself singing the song even!).

So tonight - borrowing one of her ideas - we did the letter "M" and "W" because - hey - they're the same letter just upside down!

Wyatt didn't really get into it, but he made a few dots and then I gave him a crayon, which he colored with and then ate the tip. Remind me to not be freaked out by purple in his diaper in the morning!

Maddie really got into it!

I think she might have been pushing a little too hard when I snapped this picture!

Daddy came in to inspect their artwork.

I didn't take any pictures while she was cutting because I had to let her use my sharp scissors because for some reason the little ones I have for her have gone missing... She did an ok job - but we need to work on scissor skills some.

THIS is what I'm so excited about - she wrote her name! I helped her with where the letters go and I wrote examples of what they looked like, but she did this all by herself! She's been working on her M's and A's for a while now, but we have never tried just writing her whole name.

And let's cheer for her, because 9 letters is a long name to write!

Daddy came over and showed Maddie how to write his name - she called out each letter as he was writing it down, too!

A girl and her horse

We're in trouble.

Ballet lessons were a bust for Miss Madeleine. We went to one lesson and she wanted to leave after 5 minutes. We never went back to lessons after that first one - not because I'm letting my child be a quitter, but because she very clearly did not desire to go back.

But I think I know what Maddie will be investing her time and our money in as far as lessons go...

Horses.


Her first pony ride was before she was two years old and you should have seen my dad and sister shelling out $5 bills so she could keep riding. She had them wrapped around her little finger!

A few weeks ago we drove by the house of a couple who go to our church. Joe and Mary Sirico are an amazing couple and God has called them to be missionaries in Italy. They live in Seminole - which is just east of Niceville. They happen to own my dream house - not because it's anything huge and spectacular, but because it's quaint and country and has land - something hard to find these days in our area.

I'm seriously dreaming of having chickens...


They also have horses - three in fact.

When we first drove past their house Maddie saw the horses and went nuts. She cried and cried as we drove away - but I promised her I would ask Mary if we could come visit the horses soon.

Late this afternoon - with daddy and Wyatt in tow - Maddie and I got up close and personal with the horses.




Using a bareback saddle and a rope lead - Maddie rode by herself and was in heaven. After a few turns around the ring Mary told us she needed to get back to working on the garage sale and Maddie went from happy to crushed in 2 seconds. Mary's comment was that she could probably tell Maddie that she could ride Jesse for a hundred years and it would never be enough!

Maddie agreed!

Even though I'd never ridden on a bareback saddle before (only western and English) I made quick friends with Jesse and Mary lifted Madeleine up in front of me and we rode around the ring for a good 30 minutes.

After riding, Maddie helped feed the horses her dinner and Mary said we could come back another day to help exercise Jesse some more.

So I can see where our money is going to go one day - for a horse - or at least riding lessons.

Maddie says that next time she wants to ride it all by herself and say "Giddyup Horsie" and she'll hold onto the handle (reins).

She'd also like to say thank you to Jesse the horse for letting her ride him - she can't wait for their next time together!

pictures:

daddy and Wyatt saying hello to Sandy:


Maddie and the cat - waiting to ride the horse


Maddie getting her instructions from Mary:


Giving Jesse a hug:


Starting out by herself - I walked next to her, but she needed no assistance from me! Anytime Jesse felt like Maddie wasn't balanced perfectly he stopped all by himself until she righted herself - One smart and sensitive horse!


Mommy, Wyatt and Madeleine giving Sandy some love. Sandy was very interested in Wyatt and his shoes. He gave Wyatt lots of nudges and kisses!





I've got a good video to add later, but you'll have to disregard Wyatt screaming in the background. He was either very upset that he wasn't invited to ride the horse (although we did bring his helmet and next time we'll let him ride with me to see how he likes it) or he's just very much a mama's boy and can't stand me to be more than 10 feet away from him!

Here it is!


So this is wyatt hanging out in his car seat at some point - must have been after we were done riding because he's playing with Maddie's helmet!



Thanks so much Joe and Mary - I know we were probably more of an inconvenience with all you have going on, but you made a little girl's day and planted a seed for horse love!