So Far, So Good

Today I implemented the new chore chart. All I can say is that I am AMAZED!!! And I actually feel a little guilty since I haven't had to lift a finger. I explained the "Uh Oh Basket" to the kids and how it works. and I explained their new chores to them. Let's just say that they zoomed through a majority of their chores in about 30 minutes. Also, the Uh Oh Basket is working out really well. Several toys have gone in the basket, and several toys have been rescued by completing chores.

In addition to their daily chores, they also decided today to make their own lunch AND K washed the dishes while A dried them. I only had to put them away.

I know this won't last forever, eventually these chores will seem like as much of a nuisance to them as my chores did (and still do) seem to me. But right now, I am basking in it!

Anyhow, here is the Uh Oh Basket and their chore charts, again, completely stolen from Just Another Day in Paradise.

If you're interested in this idea, let me know and I will give you a list of the chores I used for the   Uh Oh Basket...I had to get REALLY creative as they couldn't be any of the same chores that were also daily chores. It took a lot of thinking, but I think I came up with a pretty good list.

Enjoy!!

xoxo Rebekah

Ideas, Ideas, Ideas!

Ideas, Ideas, Ideas!!

My new favorite thing in the world is Pinterest. I am seriously addicted, not unlike many of my fellow Pinners. Anyhow, I am seriously stoked about this new idea I found for teaching my kids to pick up their own toys without my asking. ( found it on Pinterest, but will link directly to blog it came from here.) The reason that it's so amazing is that if it works, my kids will actually keep their toys picked up and get chores done at the same time. WOOHOO Mommy heaven!! Also, the original blogger has included free printables {squeal} She has some really cool chore chart ideas that I am going to use too.

But the main idea is when I find a toy abandoned in the middle of the living room for example, I pick it up and put it in a special "toy box". In order for either of the kids to reclaim their lost treasures, he/she must draw a chore out of a jar that he/she must complete before their toys will be returned (one chore rescues one toy). AND here's the kicker, if the toy box is full, and I find more toys that "dreadfully" haven't been put away, they're mine to keep for ever, i.e. sent to live at GoodWill.

We are starting this tomorrow and maybe I will post pictures, but they won't be as good as the photo's posted in the link above. So check hers out because I am lazy! haha

Also, here's another idea I want to share with you all!! Laundry, I hate it. Like, really really really hate it. So anything I can do to simplify the laundry process, I am game. So here is my super fantastic wonderful idea that I am sure someone else has thought of before me, but since I am unaware, I will claim it as my own. :)

Sorting...eliminating this step makes laundry a little more pleasant. Imagine this, you've gathered all of your baskets or mounds of laundry and sit down in the middle of your living room to sort. Then you realize how much it blows because everything is super stinky from sitting in a pile all week. GROSS!!

I took four laundry baskets and labeled them each: Hand Wash, Whites, Colors, and Darks. Then I explained to the offspring what is allowed in each basket. My 3 year old needs a little help with this since he can't read, so I let it slide when his clothes only end up on the floor next to the baskets. But aside from that, we are sorting clothes as we take them off. AND here's the best part. Since each basket has a designated load assigned to it, I just grab a basket when it reaches the point of being full and wash it right then rather than doing ALL the laundry in one day. Woohoo, less work and no sorting!! :)

Enjoy!
xoxo Rebekah

Bloggers new look...

So, it would seem that I have been MIA for quite awhile. Almost a year to be precise! I can't believe how much time flies. But now that I am back and seeing the new look of blogger, I am not sure I like it. What happened to the wonderful layout I spent HOURS creating. Where are my pictures of my beautiful babies!?!?!?

Maybe I just haven't figured out all of the bells and whistles (or lack thereof) yet, but so far I am not too crazy about it. I will give it a few weeks to see how it all works, but otherwise I will be taking my business elsewhere! haha


UPDATE:
Okay, I see that my layout is still there. So I am guessing most of the changes are just in how you post and edit??

Bad Mommy Moment

I had quite a scare yesterday and it was definitely a "bad mommy" moment...

I was visiting at a friend's house and she has a son that is almost 5 but is nearly the same size as my two year old so I guess they think they're the same age and LOVE to play together. Usually when we go over there the two of them hop in the power wheels and ride and ride and ride...I would like to say they ride until the battery is dead, but not sure this is true. Sometimes they ride to the front yard, but my friend's son always swings back around to the back yard straight away so I allow it, but I always tell him not to let Alex drive because I am afraid that he'll drive into the street. I was sitting at the patio table chatting with a couple of friends when I realized all of a sudden that it was entirely too quiet. I knew they had gone to the front yard but usually hear the little John Deer zooming back to the rear of the house within seconds... So I got up and bolted to the front yard (my friend's son was headed to the back yard to alert me Alex was driving away) And I found Alex happily driving nearly ONE BLOCK AWAY!!! I started running toward him and was screaming for him to stop. To my surprise he listened, but I think it's only because he's never heard me screaming frantically like that before...it probably startled him. He managed to cross the street, but thankfully it was at a stop sign and he was not hurt!!! I yelled at him not to ever take off like that again, and he is no longer allowed to drive OR ride in the power wheels EVER!

Aside from the frantic screaming, I wasn't too hard on him because he is only 2, and it was my fault, not his. But I wanted to share my "bad mommy" moment so that you all can learn from MY mistake. I am very thankful nothing bad happened, but will be more cautious and vigilant in keeping an eye on him at all times. I usually am VERY watchful over him, but it just goes to show that letting your guard down for even a moment can lead to potentially devastating situations with irreversible consequences.

growing up so fast!!

Today my daughter shared some VERY exciting news with me. When she got home from school, she pulled me close and whispered into my ear. Not sure why she was whispering into my ear because it wasn't a secret...maybe she was whispering because she was so excited?? Anyhow, she said, "Mommy, in a couple weeks I get to eat lunch at school to practice for first grade!!". At first I was amused by the joy she got from this. Clearly, she felt grown up and excited to be doing something the "big" kids get to do. That's when it hit me, my baby, my first born, my sweet little girl is going to be in first grade next year! It made me realize how quickly time has gone by and that I need to do a better job at savoring the moment. I spend a lot of time rushing from one moment to the next, and haven't really taken the time to enjoy the fact that in this last year alone Kaetlyn has learned to read, write in sentences, tie her shoes (learned this skill on her own), add and subtract, navigate her way through rocky friendships, lost her first two teeth (about to lose two more!), has gained so much confidence, and overall has become a much more independent young lady. And while I couldn't be more proud of her, I wish I could go back in time to be able to enjoy everything at a slower pace!!!

glasses

Somewhere between 2 and 2 1/2 years ago I went in for an eye exam (first in years) and was told I had astigmatism and would benefit from wearing glasses. So I bought my first ever specs, in fact, I purchased two pairs because I remember the luck my husband had with glasses. He would walk along and a lens would pop out, or as a baby, K would tug on them and rip them off his face and slobber all over them with her cute baby slobber. It turns out that I haven't needed to wear them hardly ever! Sure, there were times I could have used them, driving at night, for instance;however, I never had them with me, because they were always hanging on the lamp shade of the lamp that sits on the side table next to my bed....they sure did me a lot of good there, huh?? The problem with them is that I can't stand how they feel on my nose, and everytime my eyes itch, I forget that I have glasses on and end up punching the glasses into my face as I try to rub my eyes.

Well, suddenly tonight, I HAD to wear them. My eyes became very blurry, and I could hardly read the tv screen without them. Major bummer because I hate wearing them, and feel I look awfully dorky...like a total "four eyes"! ha ha

Anyhow, my first thought after putting them on was that since my eyes are officially "bad", my kids are screwed! Adam had glasses his whole life until he had lasik, and now I NEED them. Poor kids! I hate that as parents we pass on all of our bad genes to our unsuspecting children, and we have no control over it. It's like sneaking up behind them while they are innocently playing with their toys and scaring the pants off of them...THAT would probably causes less damage than the teasing glasses or braces would bring to the psyche. I suppose the glasses and braces, among other things, are what creates character...my kids sure seem to be destined to be blessed in that area! ha ha Good Luck K & A! <3

SO happy!

Alex's surgery went without a hitch today!

He did not want to wear the hospital jammies, in fact he threw a fit about it. I can't say I blame him, I wouldn't want to wear scratchy pajamas with PINK dinos, elephants, and whales! I mean, come on! You can't tell me they don't have blue for boys... Then his sedative started to kick in and he was able to relax....

Watching the nurse wheel him away was difficult, but I was so glad my mom was there with me. Whether she realizes it or not, she really helped me out a lot today. :) I couldn't have gotten through today without her. AND my sister who drove to our house at the butt crack of dawn with her 7 month old to watch K. :)

After he was finished in recovery, he was brought back to his room where he freaked out, mostly about the IV, but he quickly fell asleep and was in a great mood once he woke up! When we got home he was going full force the rest of the day, antagonizing and wrestling with his sister and....EATING!

He packed away a lot of food today! Aside from the hospital food, he ate: applesauce, banana, pasta salad, mandarin oranges, cookies, chips(against my best attempts to deter him to a different food), pasta salad again, and of course he was hungry for eggs. He BEGGED me to make eggs for him, and then he begged me to let him help(which I did under close supervision).

Another plus about today; Alex got a TON of new toys and activity type things from some of his favorite family members....toys that were purchased to keep him resting while he's recovering as he's not suppose to be up and running around. Hopefully tomorrow he lays around a bit more.

So glad today is over as it was a long and stressful day. And here's to hoping his recovery isn't as rough as I hear it's suppose to be, but time will tell.