Friday, December 31, 2010

My final post of the year...

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Happy New Year!
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Just wanted to wish everyone a very happy, healthy, safe and wonderful new year!

RIP 2010
(January 1, 2010 - December 31, 2010)
You were a year of ups and downs.
Wonderful and yet sometimes troubled.
Maybe misunderstood.

Welcome 2011!!
May you bring many new and exciting adventures and opportunities to us.

Quick note...

POTTY TRAINING SUCKS!!

Why can't kids just be born knowing how to use the potty when they hit a certain age...you know, like chewing! Walking, crawling, talking, eating veggies...nothing was as hard as this!

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Potty training, take 1...

We are in full swing now!
We've gone all day with just big girl undies on, except for a quick trip to WalMart (which we had to use a diaper for).
So far, we had 1 pee accident and 1 almost poop accident that we caught in progress (TMI, i know)
I think she is starting to understand that in her big girl undies, she can't just pee whenever she wants to...that's what the accidents are teaching her.
Plus, we bought her some Dora and SpongeBob big girl undies, so hopefully that will help her not want to pee in them even more.
I'm not so much worried about the poop part, i know that will take a while. But if we can get the pee part down, i'll be thrilled.
We are going hard core right now, since i have 4 days off.
I've heard that if you go hard core for 4 days, you can potty train your kid.
We'll see!

An update...

I know it's been a few days since i've posted, but this house has been under quarantine.
As i said previously, Mady was sick over the holidays.
Well, she started feeling better, but only because she passed her germs on to Frank and I!
We have been sick all week, and we're finally feeling human again.
So needless to say, it's been a long week for the Stiffies.

On a different note, i think we had a break through last night.
Mady went to sleep without her binky!
No fighting, no crying, nothing!
I couldn't find where it was, so i simply said to her "Big girls sleep without binkies. Do you want to be a big girl?" and she said "Yea!", so i said "Ok, then you need to sleep without your binky. Cna you do that?" and she (amazingly) said "Yea!" and fell right asleep!! It was amazing, wonderful and just what i wanted.
We were going to try to make the switch tomorrow night anyways, so this makes it much easier.
Now hopefully we can keep this up...especially when the new baby gets here.

Now, today we're getting some more big girl pull ups instead of diapers, and i think we're going to work pretty hard on potty training. Hopefully we can master that before the new baby gets here, and that's ANOTHER thing i don't have to worry about. That would be too good.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Post Christmas sugar rush...

So Christmas is over.
It was so hectic getting here.
All the prep work, all the wrapping, all the stressing.
And it came and went, and i feel like it was quicker than any other day.
But we had a wonderful time.
We opened way too many gifts.
We spent time with family.
We celebrated the REAL reason for the season.
Everytime i look at Madylinn, or my quickly expanding belly, or my family in general, i am reminded that i am truly belssed with more than i deserve. I may not have everything, material possession wise, but i have my share PLUS many other peoples shares when it comes to love and happiness and real blessing that matter.

I hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas.
Pictures will follow soon.

Friday, December 24, 2010

Merry Christmas!

Just wanted to get on here quick and wish everyone and their families a very Merry Christmas!
According to NORAD, Santa just left Pennsylvania and is on his way to Ohio next.
It was good to see him again, hehehe.
I'll have to tell Madylinn that he loved the cookies and beer we left him, and the reindeer loved the oats and carrots.
Now it's off to midnight mass, and then home to try to get a little bit of sleep before the big day tomorrow.
Mady's very excited for Santa to come.
She actually had a great time opening presents at Aunt Marian's house tonight. She actually OPENED them this year! lol.
Oh, and i'm sure she would want me to tell all of you to wish Jesus a Happy Birthday too!
We intend to sing to him tomorrow.
I think that's a really good tradition to start.
Remember the reason for the season.

Thursday, December 23, 2010

A rough few days...

I know i haven't blogged since monday, but i've been a bit busy.
Monday night and Tuesday night i had basketball games, so i was working late.
I came home tuesday night to find that Mady was sick after dinner, but that she was fine after that, so i thought nothing of it. Sometimes she jams so much food into her mouth that she gags herself, so i thought that's what she did.
Well, yesterday morning Mady was very clingy and just wanted to snuggle and cuddle all morning. I should have known she wasn't feeling too well then, but not an hour after breakfast she was running around like a mad woman.
So i dropped her off at daycare while i went to work for a little bit, and i got a call at work that she was sick. So as soon as i could, i rushed out of work to go get her.
Well, to my surprise, when i got to daycare, she had eaten lunch and felt fine, and was in the middle of a loooonnnnngg nap.
So i took the opportunity to go home and bake some cookies without a pair of little hands reaching up and taking them off the counter.
When i went back to get her from daycare, she was fine. She was running and jumping all over the place. And she was fine all night too.
This morning, she is fine so far...but i made sure she only ate toast and a little bit of banana for breakfast, just in case.
Hopefully she won't be sick for the holidays...knocking on tons and tons of wood!

Monday, December 20, 2010

I wouldn't make a good elf...

There is no way that Santa would hire me to be an elf, so there goes my childhood dream!
Why, you may ask?
As many of you know, i'm pretty decent at wrapping gifts...at least the wrapping part.
But when it comes to using gift bags, i'm pretty much useless!
I'm not totally stupid, i know how to put things in bags. But it's the tissue paper i have an issue with.
I can never, never, NEVER get it to look right?!
Do you put some in the bottom of the bag?
Do you crinkle pieces on the top?
Do you fold it and try to spread it open nicely?
I just can't do it!
I always looks so messy.
And if it's not messy, there are big holes in the paper because i accidentally poked my fingers through it while trying to stuff it in the bag nicely and neatly.
Argh!
So for everyone that is getting a gift that requires a gift bag this year....I'm sorry in advance!

Saturday, December 18, 2010

Santa is very busy...

So this morning after breakfast, Santa stopped by our house to do a little wrapping, and i thought i would be nice and join him. Boy, did he work me to the bone!
Frank and Mady played nicely downstairs, and even ran a few errands for me!! She has no idea that Santa was actually in our house! hehehe.
After 3 long hours, we finished wrapping all the presents. Now all they need are bows and we're good to go...but Santa said i could handle that part by myself.
After lunch, we decided it was time to tie up the loose Christmas ends...and by that i mean buy MORE things for me...umm, Santa...to wrap in the next few days. But on the bright side, we are totally, and i mean TOTALLY, done shopping now!!
And to top the evening off, Madylinn and I are about to cuddle up on the couch and watch Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. She's never seen it before, so i'm not sure how it's going to go. There are really good kid parts, and some i think she's too young for...but there are no good Christmas movies on tv tonight!
C'mon CBS/ABC/NBC, get on that already. I mean, it IS less than a week till Christmas!!

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Starting early...

I'm getting a jump start on New Years resolutions.
I know, i know, nobody ever follows through on them. I know i usually don't.
But this year is going to be different.
At least with this one.
I'm going to try to become a frugal shopper.
You know, clipping coupons and shopping sales and trying to get the best deals.
This isn't very easy with my hubby around. He is a very spoiled person. He only wants to name brand stuff, even though the generic tastes the exact same.
I have to hide things from him so he doesn't see it and not want to eat it. Sad, i know.
He's just going to have to learn!
But i'm starting off really good. Today i saved $8.50 on my groceries. But i didn't shop any sales. I think that part i'll have to really work on. That involves a LOT of planning ahead and shopping around. Right now, i'm happy with just clipping coupons and getting generic. But hey, it's a start...and you have to start somewhere!

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Christmas traditions...

One of my favorite things to do with Mady at Christmas time is to track Santa with Norad. The past 2 years, she hasn't really gotten it since she was so little, but i think this year will be different. I think she will get it, as least a little bit.

Here is the address in case you want to track Santa too!
http://www.noradsanta.org/en/index.html

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Christmas updates...

Well, we finally got it done. We went this past weekend and got our Christmas tree. And i must say, this is one of our nicer trees...but definately not one of our smaller ones. But who wants a small tree anyways?!
The whole time we were at the tree farm, Madylinn was very excited and kept saying "Christmas tree?! Christmas tree?!" Apparently she wanted to bring them all home with us.

As for the shopping, thats a whole other story. I've been shopping quite a few times, and i never seem to get that much closer to being done! But i always manage to bring home a ton of stuff...weird. But we're very close to being done shopping. Hopefully this weekend will finish us off and we're not one of "those people" out on christmas eve, though i think that might be us. I also have to wrap everything. I think i'm just going to lock myself in the attic for 4 or 5 hours and do it all at once.

And our Christmas cards will *hopefully* be going out tomorrow, so keep your eyes open for them in the mail. I have to get to the post office for more stamps, but then they are off. They came out really cute, if i do say so myself.

Other than all of that, i think we are ready for the holidays. Mady keeps running around the house saying "Merry Kissmas" (it sounds just like that). She wants to eat off her Santa plate, she wants to track santa on the Norad Santa tracker, and of course she wants to eat "bossy" and birthday cake...1 out of 2 ain't bad, hehehe.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

*sob sob* I am good *sob sob*

Wondering what the heck i'm talking about?
It's that wonderful time of year again...Santa pictures!

We were all set.

We talked up Santa big time.

How he brings presents to good kids.

How he loves milk and cookies.

How he is so nice.

How all the other kids are sitting on his lap, behaving.

She was all ready to go.

She was smiling, laughing, ready to sit on his lap.

Then, we got to his lap.

No such luck, fat man!

She would talk to him, but she was glued to me.

With the bribe of a lollipop and juice, she gave him a hug.

She said she loved him.

She said she was good.

Then she wanted down.

The picture...not real good.

It's a mix of being terrified and trying to smile for mommy.

Oh well.

It's a good story!

Picture of the week...

Picture of the week...