Thanks Babies R Us

I read on a couple of blogs lately that Babies R Us was exchanging old Avent baby bottles that were not BPA free for the new ones that are. So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter had a post about it a few days ago and I remember thinking "man, if we were using bottles I'd have to check that out". But, I had vowed off bottles so I really didn't think much about it. Well, in the light of our new situation it was back to basics bottles. I had two glass bottles that we have used for Baby J because of the BPA stuff. We hadn't used them since before Christmas...and within 24 hours we knew two bottles wasn't going to cut it. After taking glass bottles with us yesterday I also realized that it was impractical because if they are dropped they will shatter.

I got on the phone and first called Toys R Us that is near here. This is not my favorite store and I don't go there unless I have to. I'm not sure how it has stayed open as long as it has. The gentleman I spoke with assured me that Toys R Us never did exchanges for things that didn't have a recall and not to bother calling the Babies R Us in Dayton either because they wouldn't consider doing an exchange either. Well, I am easily thrown off course, so I waited about 25 seconds and called Babies R Us.
Right away I was on the phone with a chipper young woman who informed me that not only could I do the exchange, I also wouldn't need any sort of receipt. I would not be getting a direct exchange as the new BPA free bottles are almost twice the price of the old ones, but that they would be happy to help me in any way they could. I was glad about the receipt because most of the bottles I received were from baby showers.
I had to sort through my conglomeration of bottles and pieces. I chose three 4oz and three 9oz bottles to take in. I took the remaining 10 bottles (what? I had 16 bottles??? Uh, yeah, and another one at my mom's house...Snug was in daycare so we had them divided between two houses) and put them in a bag to take to Once Upon A Child. They gave me $1.01/bottle. That gave me $10.10 towards the difference in my exchange. I was pretty excited!
The new bottles have a honey tinge to them, evidently the BPA is what was used to make the bottles super clear. I really am ok with the tinge because our dishwasher has a tendency to make things a little cloudy anyway. This has gotten MUCH better since we started using Melaleuca products, but there is still quite a bit of calcium in our water.

I don't have these super-cute sippy cups, I guess they have gotten an upgrade since Snug. Mine are very similar, just no little animals...and mine have handles too. I took them to Babies R Us with the bottles, but they told me they are made from polypropylene and contained no BPA. From what I can tell they are safe...if anyone knows any different, please let me know!

I would like to thank Babies R Us because this is not an Avent recall, they still say their bottles that contain BPA are safe and will not recall them (it is interesting though that 90% of their products are now BPA free and have LARGE stickers on the boxes stating as much). This is just Babies R Us/Toys R Us doing it for their customers. It is a store by store decision. Thanks guys!

*Here was a funny thing that happened while I was checking out at Babies R Us. The lady wanted to know if I wanted a Babies R Us credit card, and I told her I in fact did not. She kinda tried to ask me why and I told her that we do not use credit cards (Financial Peace University). Then she offered me some sort of store loyalty card. She explained that after I bought either 8 or 9 boxes of disposable diapers, I could get the next box free. I respectfully declined and told her I used cloth diapers. Blank stare...then "your total is....". I think she thought I was kidding.

8 Month Picture

Happy 8th month birthday Baby J...sorry it was such a stressful day...

You're pretty special little guy! We love you very much.

*Walked into the lactation specialists office area...got a consult today, but they were slammed ...nothing they can do...nothing they can see wrong from a breastfeeding angle...one down, several more to go.

Baby J Is 8 Months Today

I have no picture like I promised...today has been just too hectic. If I take Baby J to get his 8 month pictures today, I'll try to remember to take one myself. Have you ever gone to Wal-Mart for their $5.99 packages? We do it every month, plus we belong to their baby club, and it is a good deal!

I was at the doctor at 7:20 this morning with Baby J. He is 13#, 12 1/2 oz. Last weight check he was 14# 1 oz. He is still 26 inches...not sure you can go backwards on that unless you are Benjamin Button. He is 5 inches longer and 6# 11 1/2 oz bigger than the day he was born. In other words, he hasn't doubled his weight. At four months he was bigger than he is today. That is so scary to me. If they take Baby J back to his original due date (he was 3 weeks early) and put his length on a chart he is about the 4th percentile. He is well below 0 for weight.

He has cranky days, and is crankier than Snug ever was, but we still enjoy smiles and laughs and he is very cuddly with his daddy. Have you seen his beautiful eyes? Would you look at him and think something was wrong?

Our doctor is concerned about the developmental issues I brought up too. He said he would normally just keep a "close eye on them", but in light of the growth problems he isn't taking any risks and his language delays aren't good either. It is too many things wrong at once. He is sending us to Children's Hospital for a developmental screening and also to 4 Oaks, the county developmental and speech specialists. We have to wait for them to call us and get an apointment.

The doctor was surprised (not sure that is the word) at how many different foods Baby J is eating, and when I told him how often/how much/what it deepened his concern on the weight gain...with as much as he eats, as often as he eats, and what he is eating he should be gaining weight.

He was also very insistent that I go to MVH and see my lactation consultant today. He wants tests run on my milk to see if there is a protein missing. He is convinced that Baby J is getting enough to drink, and is a firm believer that breastmilk is best for babies. However, in light of the situation he wants us to also give Baby J a soy based formula along with breastmilk incase there is a protein deficiency in my milk. It doesn't happen aften because almost always breastmilk is the perfect food for babies. He wasn't even happy to recommend we give him formula, but he is very concerned for Baby J's health at this point. Getting out a bottle and giving him formula today (he took some ok, not his biggest thrill) was very hard for me. #1 said we are going to look at it as 'medicine' not food.

I haven't been to MVH today thought because I can't get ahold of anyone!!!!!
Oh this is getting rambly...I think I may just drive him to MVH and walk in. What is the worst they can say? I mean either they can tell me to my face they can't see me today or I can sit here and wait for a phone call that may or may not come saying they can't see me today.

I want to thank everyone for the e-mails, comments, and phone calls today. It is so good to know so many people care and are praying. There are so many other children out there with much more serious health issues, but you all are taking time to pray for my little (no pun intended) boy. Thank you.

Who Of You By Worrying...

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" Matthew 6:27

This post is for me. It is for me to vent my worry and remind myself of how great a God I serve. I guess it is also for my cousin Melissa who is also worried right now. Not that I have it all figured out, I don't. Remember, this post is for me. I just thought that I'd tell her how much I feel her pain...our kids are on our hearts. I don't think God wants us to be unconcerned about our children, families, situations...just to trust Him and not worry ourselves sick. My grandpa used to call me a worrywart...he was so right.

I am trying not to worry about Baby J's weight tomorrow. He feels thin again...like feel his ribs when I lift him thin.

I am trying not to worry about his motor development. It is so hard to watch other babies close to his age, within a day of his age, and younger than him to be doing oh so much more. He is content to lay on the floor with a paci and rub a blanket on his face...for long periods of time. He rolls from belly to back when he gets frustrated, but only has rolled from back to belly twice. He does not scooch, crawl, pull up, or sit up. I know I've posted some sitting up pics, but it is still only when we get him just so and only for a few seconds. I kid myself that he is getting better, but when I am objective I know he isn't.

I am trying not to worry about his speech. He laughs and screams (gets really angry) and cries...but no single syllable sounds. I tried to video record him one day when he was doing a "ba" sound but I don't think I ever got much of it on video, it was months ago, and it never happened again. At about 4 months we were concerned about him not making eye contact with us and our pediatrician said it was fine. He has been to the eye doctor through InfantSee and he has great vision. However, he refuses about 95% of the time to make eye contact with #1...only with me and for short periods. He loves to watch the kids, but doesn't like to look directly at them when they are in his face. At this age babies are supposed to love looking at faces. He does like his own in a mirror which makes me feel better.

I am trying not to worry about #1's appointment on Monday to see how they are going to treat his Grave's Disease. I am not able to go to his appointment so I won't be there to hear what is being said...he assures me he'll take notes. He shakes constantly, even with the heart medication that was making it better before. He had a hard time using a screwdriver today. I had to take over.

I serve a great God. He knew me before I was born...he knew my baby before he was born. He knew my husband before he was born. He will take care of us, but oh it is so hard to trust. I remember the words of a song I loved as a kid... (sorry mom and dad I know I wasn't always very obedient to you or the Lord growing up) "Trust and obey, for there's no other way, to be happy in Jesus, than to trust and obey."

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" Matthew 6:34
******
As a post script...I took our camera cards in faith today to Wal-Mart to be developed. I figured at least I could pay for the CD's and have them...then pay for the prints as I was able. #1 got a check today that will more than cover this extra expense. I have not printed pictures since the beginning of September...that was a LOT of pictures, I assure you. When I have them in my hot little hand and know they are not 'lost' as has happened so many times before I will clear my cards and start over (read: post more pictures on blog/flickr). Until then I will erase one I don't care so much about and post an 8 month picture of Baby J tomorrow.

Alphabitty Moments...A

A is for

asparagus

and

applesauce

(Ok, for those of you who are faithful readers you know that this is actually moringa and tofu superporridge...but you would also know that I can't take any new pictures right now. But asparagus and applesauce are pretty standard these days.)

Do you want to participate in this blog carnival? Head on over to Carrie's blog 4theLoveof Family and sign up. Record those itty bitty moments that slip right by with the alphabet every Thursday.

Like A Good Neighbor, We Are Not Here

Oh how I wish I was posting a Wordless Wednesday...but I have only been able to take one picture since Sunday with Snug's "photo shoot" because my camera cards are FULL. I have not budgeted the money to develop photos since October. I could, but there are other things that have been more important. Then I got a giftcard to Wal-Mart for Christmas that would have developed one card*. When I had the time to use it, I couldn't find it anywhere. I have searched the house over...it is gone. Soooo I budgeted enough in March that I could print 1/2 a card once we get paid. Stay tuned for pictures...

Did you do a double take with my title? It sounds a bit harsh, but I really feel that way. Back in September when we had our hurricane I promised myself that we would all be together more as neighbors. Well, it has partly happened. We have been over to our one neighbor's house at least once every two to three weeks for dinner, or a birthday, or the Superbowl. I go over and visit our other next door neighbor a couple of times a month and try to take some dinner to her weekly. But there is one thing I knew I needed to do more, and just have not. I need to have people HERE...at our house...in our space. I am not very neighborly in that way. Part of it is #1's work schedule, only being off on weeknights, no weekends. That doesn't make entertaining very easy. Another part of it is when the daycare kids walk out the door, sometimes as late as 5:00 I am so tired, and I don't want to clean for a new bunch of people right away. But when is it easy? Is it easy for our neighbors who both work full-time? No, but they are still faithful in inviting us over.

So as I planned dinner tonight (and had a Not Me! yeast style) and saw how much food we'd have and was so thankful our bathroom is (almost**) done I asked #1 if we should have our neighbors over for pizza. He readily agreed, seems how our 2 neighbor kids were already at our house*** and we had a ton of dough. I made a couple of quick phone calls and wah-la! Dinner party! And man was it fun. The only downside was I missed my mom's Bible study tonight at church and I love that group of women. Deb, I know you read and I am so sorry! I truly missed you guys!

It was so nice to sit around and talk and just enjoy our neighbors. And you know what? It wasn't that hard to get ready. No one cared what my house looked like (although for the record it was in pretty good shape ;o) and no one cared that we had pizza and carrot sticks and they had to bring their own drinks. So, I want us to be more "Like a good neighbor, the Drays will be here...not like a good neighbor, the Drays are not here."

*We have several camera cards because a generous friend gave us his camera and cards...that is partly why I am taking my photography class...I have a nice camera and no idea how to use it!
**I have to make a curtain for the window...other than that it is 100% done tonight!!!!!
***I tutor our neighbor's son and his sister comes over and plays with the boys

Hey There Handsome

Snug (would you believe I just typed his real name and had to erase it...how long have I had to use an alias?) got a haircut before church yesterday. I decided it was too uneven and messy. I have resisted putting it this short for quite awhile. He looks SO old to me *sniffle*. He posed for a few pictures, and then was more interested in his balloon. Here's to a new haircut...here's to being 2 1/2...

This one is a little blurry...I was messing with some settings after my photography class from Saturday...

Still trying to get it right...someone was very patient.

Here is his model pose...really I know nothing about modeling...I am just guessing this could be a pose...

Well, my settings are ready...but he is already distracted...

And with this I was pushing it so I decided to be done!

I have added two new blogs to my list in the last week. No, for those of you who have asked, I do not read them everyday. That would be crazy! They automatically (ok, sometimes this works, sometimes it doesn't) update when people put up a new post. Then I read them! Usually there are 10 or so updated a day...at naptime I read the first five, at bedtime whatever is left...unless it is a blog with something I've been praying for and then I will read it as soon as it is updated (like at naptime instead of bedtime...or even when I first get up in the morning) so I know how best to pray.

Anyway, So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter is written by a mom who I met her husband when I was doing camp recruitment at Cedarville University a few weeks ago. He noticed I was wearing a sling and came over to discuss it...and then cloth diapers...and then told me about his wife's blog...yep these people are right up my alley!

I added another blog today called Kaleigh's Story. My mom sent it to me, and I was tearing up the entire time I was reading. So, read with a tissue. This little girl is 4 days older than Baby J.

What, no Not Me! Monday? Nope. I honestly didn't go there this week because I wanted to show off Snug's new haircut and put a plug in for 2 great blog. Besides that, who wants to hear how dumb I was this week? Not me!

*I bet I'll post it next week though, it is SUCH great therapy :o)

Moringa!

I will place bets that 90% of you (Ok, I know about 10 people read my posts, and my mom knows what this is-so she will be the one who knows...) do not know what this plant is. Until I visited ECHO in Florida a few years ago, I didn't know either. My sister-in-law now works for ECHO and mailed me some dried leaves from her personal plant today. I was so excited to get them! WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT???? Oh yeah...what it is. It is a Moringa tree. The leaves on it are highly nutritious and used in third world countries to help nourish people in poverty.

I happen to know it is super good for babies, and asked my sister-in-law to mail me some. #1 thinks it looks like pot. Especially since I got it in a baggie :o) So I ground it all down...

Then it was reduced to just a powder...and not much of it! Oh well. Baby J will be getting 1/2 tsp. every morning in his superporridge. Tonight though, I had to try it out so I put it in his sweet potato/tofu meal.

Oh, and it was so well recieved by one small boy. Even if it did make for a green sweet potato meal. I have done a little research on it and found that it helps with weight gain (yeah!), and increases milk supply in animals by 42-55% (yeah!). I know I'm not an "animal" in a crude scientific term that dehumanizes humans, but I am a mammal and trust me, I can use all the help I can get! So I will be rationing it out between the two of us...and plotting how I can grow my own plant here at home. THANK YOU Danielle for the 'pot', we will use every last bit...even the little bit you could see that spilled onto my stove in the picture got used.

Bowling With Draycare...And Overdue Valentine's Pics

Thanks to all the moms who came out today, the kids who did a great job, and #1 who hung out with all the ladies! We had a great day!

Friday Funny Pages

Ah it is FRIDAY everyone! Yeah! Snug has said some pretty funny things this week...here are a few...

We are working on getting Snug to stay dry during naps right now. We'll work on overnight when the naps are better. He is a sound sleeper, so this is proving harder than it seems. However, he has been doing better. When his pull-up is dry (working on a cloth substitute...none working so far...) he gets a small prize from a bag. The other day he got up and when I got him on the potty he exclaimed "Oh boy! A present! A present from God-my pants dye!" I just cracked up so hard I had to quick get him off the potty so I could use it.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Tar, Passes Passes, and Pizza Pider are a few of Snug's favorite songs these days...any guesses what they really are called?*

This morning as I was making scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast #1 walked in to the dining room to discover that Snug had dumped half a shaker of salt onto his plate (Dora plate). When I confronted him about this, as we have discussed taking things off the table that do not belong to us he explained: "I saw you a-me. I a-salting on Dora" I think poor Dora feels violated after being a-salted.

And my last is my favorite for the week, also happened this morning. I asked Snug after breakfast if he needed to go potty. He said "no". I reminded him that he hadn't been on the potty all morning. He replied "Yeah. In the sower (shower) on daddy!" I thought #1 was going to die when he heard it.

Happy Friday

*Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Ring Around the Rosie, and Itsy Bitsy Spider

County Parks and Rec

For the past 3 years I have been a volunteer for our parks and rec. It is a lot of fun and a lot of work. We have a big event each year called the Doggie Dash N Splash. We had a meeting tonight and I am so excited for this year's event. We meet January through September each year getting ready. The first year Snug was only a couple of weeks old and attended for a few minutes via car seat. The second year he couldn't walk yet but attended in a baby backpack thanks to daddy. Last year he was running around with the dogs and new baby brother was in the stroller. They never come long, but my boys love to watch all the dogs.
What on earth is a Dash N Splash? Well, we open up the county pool a week after it closes to dogs! It is a hoot. The baby pool is the main attraction since it is only a few inches deep, but man when those labs and retrievers hit the main pool there is some major activity. We have contests in and out of the pool. Think Canine King and Queen contest complete with pre-online voting, swimsuit competitions (for dogs), dog-owner look-alike contest, etc. We also have over 70 vendors there promoting their wares and demonstrations from professional dog groups. Last year we had over 10,000 people and 5,000 dogs.
Why am I telling you all this? Because I am excited! This year there is a tiny glitch in that the county pools will not be opening this season to save money...but don't you worry canine crazies, this year's even will go on, and it will be better than ever!

What Are YOU Making For Supper?

Well, if you don't have any big plans...you SO want to make this. It is cheap, easy, healthy, and YUMMY! I think I got the recipe from Taste Of Home...I found it on a recipe card I had written and never tried and decided to try it this week. Oh my delicious.

Tex-Mex Chicken

30 oz drained canned corn (2 cans)
15 oz rinsed and drained organic black beans
16 oz chunky salsa-hotness depends on your tastes...we use medium
6 chicken breasts (we half the recipe except the beans and just use 3 breasts)
1 c. sharp shredded cheddar cheese

Combine the corn, beans, and 1/2 the salsa in your crockpot.
Top with chicken (I put mine in frozen)
Pour on remaining salsa.
Cover and cook on low for 8 hours if using 6 breasts, 3 hours if using 3.

Top with cheese and cover/cook 5 minutes before serving.

TRY this, you will LOVE it!

#1

#1 will be going to a specialist in early March to decide what action they will need to take. This is a game of hurry up and wait. He hurried to get blood tests, MRIs, scans, and ultrasounds. Now we wait. I got to talk to a girl I knew growing up while at my parent's church on Sunday, she had the same condition when she was in college. It was good to hear from someone who has actually been through it. We know he will be fine, especially since he is on heart medication now (his resting heart rate is the same as it used to be in the peak of his workouts). What we can't deal with as well right now is the fact that he is tired all the time, but can't sleep. The cycle that the heart medication takes so that he can still go to work has worn off by the time he goes to bed so he can't sleep. Personally I don't know what is worse...your heart rate being sky high at work or being DEAD tired. Being a patrol officer I can't think that either are good options!
Someone asked me the other day if he is still working out like a maniac. Of course! He will be doing sit-ups in his grave someday. Lets just hope the sit-ups don't lead him to it...
For those of you who don't know, he is the fitness/nutrition specialist for his department now. He does a Navy Seal workout everyday. It makes me tired to just watch him do it, so I don't participate. Or I don't participate because I have no desire...or time...or energy (clearly this is now not an acceptable excuse).
Anyway when I know more, so will you!

You Know You Grew Up In The 80's If...

My cousin Becky sent this as an e-mail...


You Know YouGrew Up In the 80's IF:


1. You've ever ended a sentence with the word SIKE. (yes I did)


2. You can sing the rap to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and can do the Carlton (the rap, yes, the dance, no way)


3. You know that 'WOAH' comes from Joey on Blossom (I wasn't allowed to watch this)


4. If you ever watched 'Fraggle Rock' (Not allowed to watch)


5. It was actually worth getting up early on a Saturday to watch cartoons. (Not allowed...)


6. You wore a ponytail on the side of your head. (of course I did!)


7. You got super-excited when it was Oregon Trail day in computer class at school. (we had our first classroom when I was in 5th grade and that was the ONLY game we had)


8. You made your mom buy one of those clips that would hold your shirt in a knot on the side. (mine was from my cousin Kristen, and was a circle thing)


9. You played the game 'MASH'(Mansion, Apartment, Shelter, House) (daily!!!)


10. You wore stonewashed Jordache jean jackets and were proud of it. (stonewashed, yes, Jordache, no)
11. You know the profound meaning of ' WAX ON , WAX OFF' (#1 JUST watched that this week)


12. You wanted to be a Goonie. (Oh, I SO saw that...at a friend's house)


13. You ever wore fluorescent clothing. (sure did!)


14. You can remember what Michael Jackson looked like before his nose fell off, his cheeks shifted and his nationality became questionable.


15. You have ever pondered why Smurfette was the only female smurf. (I only got to watch that at my Aunt Beth's house)


16. You took lunch boxes to school...and traded Garbage Pail Kids in the schoolyard.


17. You remember the CRAZE, then the BANNING of slap bracelets. (we were so sad when they were banned)


18. You still get the urge to say 'NOT' after every sentence. (not going to admit anything)


19. You thought your childhood friends would never leave because you exchanged handmade friendship bracelets. (of course!)


21. You ever owned a pair of Jelly-Shoes. (I didn't, but I wanted some)


22. After you saw Pee-Wee's Big Adventure you kept saying 'I know you are, but what am I?' (I saw this at my neighbor's house...it was so weird...why did people like him?)


23. You remember 'I've fallen and I can't get up' (right up there with clap on/clap off)


24. You remember going to the skating rink before there were inline skates. (YMCA anyone?)


25. You have ever played with a Skip-It. (I loved that and Chineese jump ropes)


26. You remember boom boxes and walking around with one on your shoulder like you were all that. (I never did that, but saw lots of people on the beaches in Florida doing it)


27. You remember watching both Gremlins movies. (those movies are scary)


28. You thought Doogie Howser/Samantha Micelli was hot. (Doogie is on ER now)


29. You remember Alf, the lil furry brown alien from Melmac. (again, not allowed to watch)


30. You remember New Kids on the Block when they were cool.. and don't even flinch when people refer to them as 'NKOTB' (Erin, this makes me think of you)


31. You knew all the characters names and their life stories on 'Saved By The Bell,' The ORIGINAL class. (I did watch this...)


32. You know all the words to Bon Jovi SHOT THROUGH THE HEART. (yep)


33. You just sang those words to yourself. (ha, I did and I bet you did too)


34. You still sing 'We are the World' (no)


35. You cuffed, tight rolled or french cuffed your jeans. And still debate on which is the right term! (yes I did...but not often because I attended a school where we wore all dresses/skirts)


36. You owned a bannana clip. (in many shades)


37. You remember 'Where's the Beef?'


38. You used to (and probably still do) say 'What you talkin' 'bout Willis?' (didn't watch that either)


39. You're still singing shot through the heart in your head, aren't you!


40. your hair looked like this for at least 1 school picture!

This is not me...I was not that old in the 80's.
*My mom limited/filtered our TV time like I do for my kids. Many of these shows/movies I saw as a teenager as re-runs or at friend's house.

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I just got back from my parent's house in Michigan, it was such a nice weekend, as always. Here are some of the things I did not do this week.

I did not feed Baby J dishsoap this week for dinner. He did not cry very hard and blow pearly rainbow colors out of his mouth. Oh I felt so terrible. I had defrosted and warmed some sweet potatoes for his supper in a small glass bowl. After I fed him I put the bowl in the sink and helped #1 get dinner for the rest of us on the table. Baby J was howling and I thought maybe he was still hungry so I grabbed the bowl back out of the sink (no one had set anything dirty on it) stuck some summer squash in it and threw it quick in the microwave. It had a funny consistency to it, but it didn't look bad, just a little thin. As I fed it to him he started to cry very hard. I checked the temperature and it was fine. He didn't want the squash at all-I gave him about 10 spoonfuls. Then as he began to cry really hard I noticed the bubbles he was producing. I quick smelled the bowl and it was very lemon fresh. Apparently I had put a squirt of dishsoap into the bowl when I put it in the sink. I do NOT remember doing that, but apparently I did. Of course it wasn't the Melaleuca soap that would have been perfectly harmless, it was what was left of the regular kind we used to use. Of course it says "do not ingest, if ingested drink plenty of water and call physician immediately". We gave him lots of water, but he calmed down and seems ok...no Dr. visit this time.

I did not leave my cell phone charger at my parent's house...the only one we have for both cell phones. That would not happen to me because I am so organized. Ha. (ok we have a car charger, but it doesn't work very well)

I'm sure I did more dumb things this week, but for now this is all I will admit. Happy Monday everyone!

Love From Michigan

If I weren't so lazy I'd go ask my dad (Pop Pop) to find the cord to hook to the computer from my camera...but everyone under the age of 3 is napping and I think someone over the age of 3, who is supposed to be getting ready to teach at church tonight, is also napping, so I will just blog and post pics later.

Happy Valentine's Day!  I know, better late than never.  Yesterday was very busy.  My dad and I left for the camp office about 7:30 and the normal 45 min. drive took 1 1/2 hours due to a snow storm.  All of the camp board members (Dad's meeting) and all of my CILTS* (my meeting) made it safely though, praise God!  Both meetings were really productive, and we met up as a large group for lunch.  I felt like the new kid  in school after missing this summer with the girls while I was having Baby J, but they are a nice group and we settled in easily.  My friend Claire let us use her apartment since the board was using the camp office.  I have to say were were very spoiled getting to be in a comfy living room instead of metal folding/green UGLY chairs and tables.  Baby J went with me, as I rarely leave him more than an hour due to me being his main source of food.  He and Claire and Toree were instant buddies, and my girls gave him quite a bit of attention.  At one time he was hearing 4 languages at the same time.  At least the trip was educational.  Anyway, it was a great time of lectures, eating, fellowship, and requirement signing off by all.

We didn't get back home until 7:30pm, where upon arriving, Snug announced that there was "Cake on the tabool dowsteers".  He and my mom kept my mom very busy all day and they made a Valentine's party for us.  The party was complete with balloons, a hot dog roast, a cake, and a rosebush #1 had mailed to me here!  That was a nice surprise.

So I hope your Valentine's Day was lovely, and I will post my Not Me's when I get back to Ohio sometimes tomorrow!

*Campers In Leadership Training

Friday Funny Pages

Before starting my post, I'd like to ask you to pray for Donna Harvey's family. You can read her blog by clicking the link "living for the line" on my blog list. "Miss O'Neal" as I knew her, was a teacher in my elementary school. I was in her class only a few days as we "practiced" for junior high, but she was always smiling and greeting us in the hallway, even if we were not her students. She has battled with cancer three times now, and God decided it was time to take her home on Wednesday. She leaves two daughters and a husband. Isn't it great to know a Savior who will not give us more than we can bear, and delivers us to his arms upon death? He saves us from our sin, forgives us of our blunders, loves us as we are, and assures us of his power. Donna knew that and today she is in heaven with him.

This post is part of "Laughter Lives! Tuesday" on the Riggs Family Blog. Check our their blog to read everyone else's "Laughter Lives!" posts.

We are currently in Michigan right now because I have a CILT meeting this weekend. I am the CILT (campers in leadership training) instructor for our camp. This new group of girls should be interesting for me because they started last summer when I was having Baby J...so I don't rally even know them! I got a ride to Michigan with Ptarmi, our camp's executive director because we are back down to one vehicle (thankfully it is the van that works). She and I spent the day yesterday at Cedarville University recruiting staff for this summer. Baby J was a big draw for the college age girls, but so far no definite "yesses" as to working with us this summer. Snug enjoyed a daddy day.

If you'd like to participate in Friday Funny Pages and record some of the goofy/adorable/funny/gross things your kids say and do, go to www.racecarsandrubyslippers.blogspot.com and join in the fun!

Mother Hen starts me off this week. We had almost 60 deg weather on Wednesday so I took the kids outside to burn off some energy. While playing with a ball in the front yard, she observed "Hey! The grass is almost here now!". Truth be told, it looks greener and nicer right now than it did most of the summer!

So Snug had a daddy day (still no more updates on his health, waiting...). On their way to Cedarville to drop him off so I could bring him with us to Michigan...

Snug-"Daddy where goin?"

#1-"to go see mommy"

Snug-"Is mommy this way?"

#1-"Yes"

Snug-"I hear her"

#1-"you have good ears!" (they are still in the car, I'm in a building)

Snug-"Huh??"

My parents are really great and they keep baby/kids stuff here so we don't have to drag so much back and forth. Baby J was sitting in a bouncy seat today and I was trying to get one of his belly laughs out of him. I do this by nuzzling his neck and tummy and saying "I get you!" Ok, so I'm dumb, but it works. Anyway, as we are doing that, the bouncy seat FALLS APART and Baby J almost rolls to the ground! As I lift him out, I notice that on the front of the seat in large letters it says "Safety 1st". Ha. Safety is NOT using your product. Oh well, as Snug pointed out "Pop Pop Fik it!"

Wordless Wednesday

Just Another Tuesday? Never.

I just wanted to post some pictures of the kids first. After those, I'll give the news from the Drays today. I love this one, and I think Mother Hen's mom will too...when I develop some. I haven't been able to develop since October. She looks like she could be his sister in this picture.

This is my FAVORITE new picture. Look how happy Snug is to be helping with Baby J.

Do you love our new tub? We do! You can see Baby J's tub in the big one...he isn't sitting unassisted in water. I let Snug hold him for a quick sec while I snapped a couple of pictures. I couldn't get Baby J to look at me for anything though.

I am sure I am violating every copyright law known to man by posting Baby J's 7 month pictures this way...but I had to share them. They turned out so cute. Seeing the one in his diaper remindes me...I got 11 Swaddlebees diaper covers/pocket diapers...depends on how you use them, and 3 bamboo liners for $24 today from Craigslist. That was such a good deal. The girl I bought them from was really nice and generous. The original deal was 8 diapers. She threw in the rest.

Ok, so it is never just Tuesday here. Between getting Craigslist things, preschool schedule, and a playdate we had a busy day.

We also found out some news about #1 that isn't great. He has Graves Disease. We're not sharing a whole lot at this point, but it explains so much about the last few weeks. Please be praying for him and some decisions we have to make. So is it just another Tuesday? Nope!

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

Wow...I twittered about taking stupid pills this week and I really think I did. Here is my not-so-short-list of things of course I did not do. Too bad I can't blame it on baby brain anymore.

I did not drink pop this week...twice. Oh how I wish I could give it up completely...it is seriously my vice.

I did not make a quadruple recipe of Draycare pancakes (scroll WAY down if you click that link to find the recipe) for 6 people-that would be enough pancakes for about 15 people. I was trying to double the recipe...ran out of room in my bowl so I split it up and continued to add ingredients...only I kept making a double recipe in both bowls.

My son did not wear a tiny blue turtle barrette to playgroup on Friday. In all fairness, he traded it with another girl and let her hold his precious blue bear...but still...

I did not at the same playgroup grab another person's daughter, plop her in my lap, and proceed to put E's socks on her. Her mother took it very well being a friend of mine, but wow, I was glad it was someone I knew!

Along the same child predator lines, I did not kiss a total stranger's baby I was holding at a Pampered Chef party over the weekend right in front of her. I think it is just a habit, I pick up small children all day long and kiss their little heads. Oh dear. (I did have her permission to be holding, just not smooching)

I did not drop Baby J out of the stroller and onto the floor. HE IS FINE NO PANICKING (because I know my mom and my Aunt Kim just had mini heart-attacks). He was securely fastened into his car seat which got tangled in a blanket and tipped off the stroller. He didn't cry, complain or anything. He just looked at me like "You're gonna blog this, huh?". I felt horrible.

I did not put Snug's blue kid toothpaste on my toothbrush and then try to brush his teeth with it. I did not then decide not to waste perfectly good toothpaste and use it myself. I must say it doesn't leave that minty fresh feeling I enjoy from Melaleuca.

I did not put an Imse Vimse liner into Snug's underwear at a basketball game because it was in double overtime with 45 seconds left and the game was tied. He said he needed to have a BM and I didn't want to clean that out of his pants. Nor did I want to miss the end of the game/walk in front of a ton of highly stressed parents watching their girls in districts! I had JUST taken him to the bathroom between overtimes and I was pretty sure he was just tired of watching the game. I was right, when we went to the bathroom less than 2 minutes later, he just laughed and said he was "all done" before we even got into the stall. They won by the way...go Warriors :o)

Random Picture Challenge

I saw this on It's Twinsanity today and thought it looked fun...then when I saw it again on 4 Love of Family I decided to investigate. Turns out this post is open to anyone, as long as they link back to 4 Little Men and Girly Twins. I can do that! This is my tenth folder of my picture folders, fifth from the end, as directed. I looked at my picture files under "My Computer" and found the picture...when I went into Blogger and went to open it, the files were arranged differently, and I got this picture. Interesting!

This picture brings back memories! Every year we take a family picture to put in a little Creative Memories scrapbook I update each fall. It is our Thanksgiving album and we put in the picture and write what we are most thankful for that year. This is one of the pictures, but not the one we chose because Meechie (RIP), Chester, and yours truly are not looking at the camera. We are sitting on our front porch, and apparently it had been raining. We had been married for 1 year 2 1/2 months at this point. No kids yet...but a year from then we had Snug, and 3 years from then Baby J. And yes, for those of you who are not my IRL (in real life) friends, my Lucy dog only has 3 legs...you are not seeing things.

BTW, never posted it yesterday, but Crystal, you win on the EYE SPY contest...the eight items are as follows:

1. Wooden Block set-generic
2. Carter's block set
3. Bob the Builder Scoop truck
4. Baby Einstein "Dogs" book
5. Small dinosaur from ????
6. Red die
7. Wooden airplane from Target dollar spot
8. Inside (can't think of library term) of Kevin Henke's "Kittens First Full Moon"

Deb, you were close...but it was indeed Scoop. We own Scoop and Rolly...and I wish I had more...they are favorites here. I priced them on E-Bay and they are pricey...we got these ones with some hand-me-downs. Crystal, I will contact you personally!

Mitt, This Is For You-And They ARE NOT Tights

71%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Mitt, you are always talking about your blog addiction...I found this when I was reading Carrie's blog today and thought of you...so I took it...and I bet you will too!

And now..they are NOT tights. BabyLegs are not tights...more...legwarmers. Ok, ok, they look like tights in the video...but I'll have to take some better pics. You can search babylegs or skidpants, they are on the market as both. We have this problem with Baby J's pants and socks not meeting up...look at the picture below. This is the ONLY pair of socks we have for him that can pull up like that. Now that he is 'moving' his pants ride up constantly...the same thing happened to Snug too (still does).

Usually there is a 6 inch gap between socks and pantleg. It is cold out people...and his legs are actually getting chaffed. So, after inquiring what I could do about this I discovered BabyLegs. They have no feet or 'crotch' to them...they are independent of each other. On Baby J they are actually kinda loose (I even can pull them over his feet if I want), but I tried them on Snug and they fit him too. We have striped ones too, not just jolly rogers. They also help once you are potty training. Snug ran around in underoos and no pants for quite a few days. Since these don't go more than thigh-high there is nothing to take off when you go to the bathroom, and the underoos slide off them easily...and then they have something on their legs! Remember...house set at 63...cold house...not pants=not comfortable.

They are not tights! I promise! These are a winter/potty training thing. *sigh*

Friday Funny Pages

If your kids (or dogs, or cats, lets be fair here) did something funny this week put up a post about it so others can giggle, laugh, snort, or wonder why on earth you thought it was funny. You need to then go to http://www.racecarsandrubyslippers.blogspot.com/ and leave a comment. Share the funnies this Friday.

Lots of goofy things happen here daily, that just is part and parcel to having a houseful of preschoolers and toddlers 8 hours a day. I usually write mostly about Snug because, well, he's mine :o) However, I'll include some Draycare funnies too.

First up is E. She is almost 2 and talks up a storm. She has this babydoll that she got for Christmas (#1 and her own mother think it looks like an alien, I think it is cute enough but I digress). Lately she keeps calling it "bebe yive". I don't really think much about it because frankly, I could care less what she calls it. Her mom though wanted to know what she was saying. She kept asking her to repeat it and E got frustrated and slammed (I can't think of another way or a nicer way to describe the action) the baby doll's head on the carpet and yelled "baby yive" again. I asked her mom if perhaps she was saying "Baby Alive" because I think there is a doll called that (Baby Alive apparently 'eats' and then 'poos', really people? Isn't that is a bit much?) and I've heard TV commercials for it. Her mom didn't know, but today when 'alien baby' returned indeed she has been saying "Baby Alive". She had seen the commercial. Ok, so the funny part is she is yelling Baby alive while smashing its head in the floor. We need to define alive for her. I just hope she doesn't get the eating/pooing doll because frankly I have enough of that around here already.

Snug has two this week. First, he has a nice collection of toy cars from the movie "Cars". He calls the red one (Lightning McQueen) his "queen car". Not terribly hilarious, but cute.

His second is funny, he kept talking about "Baby J's applesaucer". He kept telling me "Baby J wants applesaucer mama". I kept informing him that although Baby J indeed loves applesauce it wasn't time to feed him. Finally #1 figured out that he thought Baby J wanted to be in his exersaucer (a large round thing that he sits in and plays with toys for those of you who are still confused). I'm not sure Baby J indeed wanted the 'applesaucer' but I do know a certain 2 1/2 year old who likes to play with the toys around the edge as his baby brother looks on adoringly.

I leave you with a video of Baby J playing today that I am posting for my mom because I know she is missing her grandbabies (and we miss her too). Check out his cute BabyLegs that just came in the mail today :o) We aren't huge skull and cross bones people, but when buying your baby boy 'tights' you had better go with the most masculine ones on the market!

Blah Blah Blagging Blogging-One of Those Long Posts

Ahhh, the dinner dishes are done in the sink, the boys are bathed and in bed, the dogs are sniffing around eating things off the carpet, and my laundry is caught up 90% done. I can blog and not get that nagging feeling that there is something else I should be doing. As I rocked the boys in fuzzy footie pajamas tonight I kept thanking God for my little guys. I love to rock and smell their hair and sing. Just one of my favorite things about being a mom.
So far I only have 2 guesses on my EYE SPY contest post which means I either have a really lame contest (probably true) or no one else was really digging my EYE SPY posts either, which is part of the reason why I am discontinuing them. Or a combo deal of both. I will be ending the contest Friday evening.

We've been trying to stay busy and sane during this cold spell. After a week off last week because of snow days, the kids have been excited to see each other, but also testy with each other at the same time. I've been trying to invent some fun along with letting them work through problems themselves. One of their favorite activities is to spread a king size sheet between our four dining room chairs (we keep it on with #1's carpentry-type clamps). They like to read, play games, and relax.
No, they are not eating in their tent/fort/castle (depending on who you ask), they are playing with an Oreo cookie matching game my mom gave us. It doubles as a fake snack in case you were to get hungry for BPA.

I am putting the label "Baby J's growth" on this post...not because I actually know how much he weighs or anything, but because I am including pictures of some big milestones he met this week. A 'label' is a way to track similar posts. They (on my blog) are located on the right sidebar. So say you are reading my blog and you think "man, that is just so interesting...I would love to know more about how that lady feels about that topic" then you can go to the label, click on it, and read everything I've written about that topic. Or, more accurately, I put them on so I can track what I have written about and have some sort of a filing system when I go back to look things up. Yeah, that would my real reason for labeling things, but I can always pretend like you all are riveted and hanging on my every word. Not. Ok, so back to growth!

Look who is sitting up on his own! This started on Wednesday. We have to kinda arrange him, and he does fall over after awhile, but overall, we are pretty excited about this milestone :o) Mom, I know what you are thinking...this is going to be your new screen saver...but wait, there is more! There has also been some serious cat-baby bonding going on. Our cat is an outdoor cat, but it has been pretty cold so he gets to come inside and hang out in the afternoons after the Draycare kids are gone.
We are going to have to learn some kitty etiquette here soon though...pulling tails isn't nice or a good idea. To Baby J it is just something convenient to hang on to. Speaking of etiquette...one of the things we have been doing lately is discussing tub etiquette. There are things we have to set straight.
1. Thou shall not take thy brother's tub toys out of his hands.
2. Thou shall not dump cups of water over thy brother's head.
3. Thou shall not stand in thy tub for any reason.
4. Thou shall not go potty in the tub-ever.
5. Thou shall not pull the shower stop while the tub is filling (unless you want a BIG surprise)
6. Thou shall not drink the tub water.
7. Thou shall not get out of the tub while mama is drying your brother off
8. Thou shall not pour water out of the tub
Feel free to instate these commandments into thy your house.

Another milestone happened tonight. Baby J started eating teething biscuits. He loved it!

These biscuits...

Are really...

Serious.

Here is a little tidbit I will share with all you moms out there. We are giving Baby J "Earth's Best" teething biscuits instead of the Gerber Graduates that we gave Snug. We started really reading labels last summer.
I make almost all of Baby J's baby food, and we are saving quite a bit of money, but there are some things I can't/choose not to make. I'm on a tangent here, but hear me out. I have not discovered a great way to make peas or teething biscuits. I have a brand spankin new box of Graduates Zwieback Toast, but I really doubt Baby J will get it before he is a year old-or ever. The second ingredient is High Fructose Corn Syrup (which we are trying to get completely out of the house for the adults, let alone the 7 month old) and the fourth ingredient is sugar, and the sixth is corn syrup. Other than that it is completely wholesome full of refined flour, salt, and things I can't pronounce. Earth's Best isn't the best food Baby J will eat, but it is made with whole grains, and flavored with natural, unprocessed cane juice. It is still just a treat.
Two more things Snug got consistently that Baby J won't be were yogurt melts (FULL of sugar) and the little puff things (high fructose corn syrup city). I was so shocked when I started reading what was in that stuff. I figured if it was made by Gerber and labeled for babies it was good for them. One thing I was really happy about was that the dried fruit is actually freeze dried fruit! No additives or preservatives...just fruit! Yeah!

Goodbye Eye Spy...Here's A Contest To Remember You By

I am done with my EYE SPY posts...it takes quite a bit of time to find all the little things to put together and I am trying to put more energy into my active 2 year old and less into my blog (read: do more household things when he is sleeping instead of while he is awake...leaving less time to blog while he is sleeping)...so that being said, I am done! It was fun to do, I loved getting to use some of my pent up creativity, but all good things must come to an end. Thanks so much to Melissa for making my button and to those of you who posted it on your page. There are 8 different kinds of toys used to make my logo...does anyone know what they are? Some are very obvious, and some are not. The first person to name all 8 or get the closest/most I will mail another "Sippy Saver" to. I still need to post a picture of one in action...but sometimes the day to day mundane things just never hit my blog...and sometimes those of you reading wish not as much day to day mundane would get on my blog.
If you do not have a blogger account, simply sign in as 'anonymous' leave your name at the bottom of your comment, and a way for me to contact you...or just read back later to see if you won. As always, you can click on the image to make it bigger. Happy guessing!

Just Another Tuesday? Never.

This Post Is Depressing...

So you were warned, but you continue to read...do you like depressing things? Did you need someone to commiserate with because YOU are having "one of those days" too? Well, read on sister (or brother, I know there are a few of you out there too).

First of all I want to say I am ashamed to even be blogging about my problems when Abby is so young and struggling with Leukemia, Donna is struggling with her third bout with cancer and not doing very well, Heather has six children and her army husband is off on some assignment leaving her to raise them by herself for awhile, Shelby was burned on 11% of her little body, and Carrie's husband just lost his job.

However, now that I have acknowledged that there are other problems in the world and mine are minuscule I will continue with my post. Ahem.

I had all of the kids today, and we have two that...well...kinda drive us nuts. If I could think of a polite way to not have them at my house, I would. Don't worry, my babysitting families do not read my blog. But it is just me being mean that I don't enjoy their company, there is not serious problem. Ok, the gagging and throwing up of food, and the crying through every meal...that would drive anyone a bit batty.

Next it was grocery shopping day and we had to take 4 children 3 and under to the store...in the freezing cold. In and out and in and out of carseats. And they didn't especially behave this time.

As we arrived home #1 went to go work out and as I was tugging 4 children out of coats/hats/boots I realized it seemed a tiny bit cold in my house. If you follow me on Twitter then you saw that it was indeed cold...55 deg cold. I tried turning the heat up...it got colder. I tried turning the heat OFF (because no matter what #1 says I swear the air conditioning was on) and that didn't work either...the blowers kept blowing more and more and more cold air into our house.

Of course everyone was playing politely, no one was crying, and there were no major diapers during this time...and keep in mind I had 3 large bags of groceries to put away whilst worrying about the furnace.

I didn't post a "Not Me Monday" post yesterday because I chose to spend extra time playing with Snug and fold the laundry/vacuum/etc while he was sleeping last night instead of blogging. We had a nice time. *This is just a small oasis in the middle of my doomsday post*

So when #1 got home and I went to go pick up Mother Hen from preschool he turned the furnace completely off and then back on and our house got all the way up to...wait for it...58 deg! Wahoooo! Um, the cold air has now been blowing for 3 hours straight and our house is 58. So there is a nice man coming in a few minutes to 'fix' it. Of course I have 3 GRUMPY children sleeping just 10 feet from said furnace so it will be delightful to have them all woken up. We didn't even ask what the charge would be...

Ah, I just feel better writing all of this down. Now if I don't hit PUBLISH POST then none of you will know what happened to us today...but this is The Drays Today. And it isn't just another Tuesday...or is it?

Advertisement

Today I am advertising! Not Me Monday will be up later (nighttime)...but right now I want to do some advertising. This being my blog I will go ahead and do so. I hope you check some of these FREE* things out :o)
*Use your local library to get books before you decide to buy...ok so this is semi-free




First up today is serious.life MAGAZINE. I have Abby's button on the side of my blog as a reminder to pray for her and the Rigg's family. February's issue comes out today (if you are reading Monday...tomorrow if you are reading Sunday), and I hope you click over and read it. You can click on the "pray for Abby" button and then once on their site click on the magazine. It is free to read! It is worth your time!!!!
serious.life is a great read. I just finished up December's issue. I love that it is paperless (yeah environment!), chocked full of scriptures, and December had many articles that I was interested in. I loved the article on 100% down, not taking 'low monthly payment' routes, of course that goes right with Dave Ramsey and Financial Peace University! I also was interested in the article about parabens, one of the reasons we switched to Melaleuca. This magazine has a big emphasis on adoption (since their own family has adopted several children) and ministry. Check them out!
http://www.seriouslifemagazine.com/

My next advertisement is for Jellytelly. Jellytelly is a super kid-oriented, scripture based online show. We love it because it incorporates learning about the Bible (right now specific books in the old testament and how they came to be) along with humor and skits. Snug loves it because all the voices are the same as "Bob N Narry" (aka Veggie Tales), it has puppets, and music videos. You can watch it anytime of the day, and it only lasts 30 minutes. Weekends sport a family movie (more than 30 min.) that can be viewed anytime on Saturday or Sunday. Check them out! http://www.jellytelly.com/


My last advertisement of the day is "bringing up BOYS" by Dr. James Dobson.
I am so excited to have other people read it, and #1 is going to start it (hopefully) tonight at work...running traffic post will be boring seems how everyone else will be at Super Bowl parties. If you have a boy, a grandson, or are a teacher, PLEASE read this. Get it from your library if you want to see if it is for you (it is) and then go ahead and get yourself a copy if/when you love it. Get it on Amazon used for cheaper if you want!