Stations- table time

So B-man has mostly dropped his morning nap. And this mama still has to do school with big bro. I'm always needing small ways to keep B entertained, and this one worked like a charm... 10 minutes of quiet and it was so good for his motor skills. All you need is a colander and a couple of pipe cleaners.

Maybe it can keep your toddler busy too : )

Mama's busy training

So part of the reason that I have not been the best at blogging lately is that my time is being gobbled up in other arenas of life.  One of which is that I am training for a triathlon.   And before you go thinking that I am some fitness fanatic, let me assure you, that this is the shortest triathlon I was able to find!  Haha!  It is called a "super sprint" which might lead you to believe that it is longer than a sprint, not a chance... a "mini sprint" would be way more accurate. 

None the less this (Super/ Mini triathlon),  has gotten this mama into a regular workout routine, which I haven't had in 6.5 years.  Hmm, sounding remarkably similar to the age of my eldest!  Yep, since I had H, I have not consistently worked out for more than 2 weeks at a time.  But I have been going strong for 2 months now, working out 4-6 days a week!  And finally this week, I feel like it has actually made a difference, I can run further before getting winded, I can bike easier, swimming... well lets all pray I don't drown, because I struggle in the water... and if I struggle in the water, well there goes the rest of my race!

So what do I have to show for it...
Well I have GAINED 3 pounds... I know, I know, muscle weighs more than fat... still, NOT cool, what girl wants to gain weight?!?!
All my pants are too tight in the thighs... I might have thunder-thighs when this is done
Finally, I can say (for the first time since high school) that working out is a part of my regular routine!  Wooo Hooo

Just so you can get a realistic picture... and so I can remember where I was at at this stage of the game, this is what I am capable of right now...
1.  I can swim 2-3 laps, before I have to stop (big improvement, when I started training I had to stop each lap) and can go about 20 laps total (with many brakes)
2.  I can run 1.25 miles without wanting to walk.  Before I started training I could only do about .5 miles.
3.  My longest bike ride to date is about 8 miles, though, with lots of hills, so that has to count for something : )

I have a long way to go in my training.  But I am thankful to say that my body is healthy and I am getting stronger by the day!  Thank you Lord for that!!

1 Corinthians 9:24 "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it."
-my prize will be simply being able to finish the race!!  That is enough for me!

Valentines day 2012

I had high hopes for today, and for the 2 weeks leading up to Valentines day. I wanted to spend a day going through each characteristic of love found in 1 Corinthians 13. However, It didn't happen, in any capacity. Life has been crazy busy the last few weeks. I'm always struggling with how to stay on top of life, or even ahead... Is that possible?? Maybe next year... Hopefully next year! For now I will let go of my "mommy-guilt."

Despite all that we didn't do, we did have a little valentines day fun. Bug and I made some cookies for H's class.  And the kids and I did a few crafts too. Why don't I do that more often? Oh wait, because it is messy, takes time and a little unpredictable. Hmmm, sounds like life! I'm ready to embrace the mess, the time commitment and chaos for my 3 little peeps.

Man love these kiddos! I am one blessed mama!

 

Lamp on a timer

Forgive me if I have posted on this before, but honestly I can't remember if I have and it is a worthy topic to post or repost : )

At our house wake-up time is 7am.  It is fine if you sleep past then, but kiddos out of bed before that is not the best start to my day.  Call me selfish if you must, but I need that time to myself, to read my Bible or take a shower or if need be, sleep!

I fully recognize that it is hard for kids to want to jump out of bed as soon as they are awake, especially for little ones that can't tell time yet.  Here is an idea that was passed down to me from a fellow mama when H was little.

Put a light on a timmer in their room.  No need to set an alarm that could wake them if they might just happen to sleep in.  But a small lamp shouldn't wake someone up.

We bought these timers from Amazon.
I set it up in Bug's room to a lamp on her dresser.  Her lamp turns on at 7am, when it is okay for her to get out of bed.  She happily comes and finds us and our day starts out smoothly!

H-man can tell time so in his room we have a clock setup.  And B is too young to understand, but lucky for me he tends to sleep in!

teaching responsibility

I realized recently that I haven't done a great job of teaching H to be responsible for this things, messes, or his time. He was my only kiddo for 3 years so I had the time and ability to clean up after him, constantly remind him to stay on task, bus his plate, and to put things back where they belong. I don't have that ability or time anymore and I really do not have the desire to carry on like that. You see he is 6, and I find myself constantly saying "H, don't forget to do...." or "H, please pick up your room..." or "H, I asked you to get ready for bed, why are you sitting on your floor half dressed?"

Part of it is personality, and unfortunately part of it is training or lack there of. I thought I was on track during his little years, however I have started to see some area where I could have done so much better. For example, until H was 4 I never had him clear his plate from the dinner table because I was afraid of him spilling leftover food and crumbs along the way to the sink. With one kiddo it was easy to pick up that one extra plate. However now with 3 extra plates, 3 more sets of silverware, 3 half-full cups, I can't get it all in one load... and besides that the far grander motivation is that as a mom one of my main jobs is to train my kids to be responsible adults some day.

So how am I doing it differently with the little two.
1. B and Bug both bus their own plates... under these simple rules, hop down first from your chair, 1 thing at a time, 2 hands, careful walking, dump food in trash, then plate in sink or on counter.
2. Bug is making her own bed (most everyday)
3. All kids help dust-bust the floor under the table after meals
4. Even B-man at 18 months has chores he helps with... putting away shoes, wipping the floor, putting toys away.

We are working hard with H on being responsible, orderly, proactive, and tidy But it is not catching on as much as we have hoped. We are still far from having this perfected with any of our kids, there is so much room for growth... but I hope that you mama's of just one or two little kiddo(s)... spend your time teaching them to be responsible! Trust me re-training is SO much more work than training the first time!

The sayings of Bug

from the mouth of my 3 year old-

Mr. Steady came home with super glue, and Bug started asking about it, "daddy, what is this?"
"It is really sticky glue."
"What is it for daddy?"
"Well all kinds of stuff Bug."
"Like for your armpits?"

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For some reason when my kids are tired they get hick-ups.  Yesterday Bug asked me, "Mama, why do I keep getting these hicky-ups?"  Umm, Bug, they are called hick-ups!"

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Bug's platinum blond hair is starting to grow in darker.  Yesterday she asked me, "Mama, do you want to take a picture of my roots?"  I think she has heard me talk to Courtney too many times about needing to get my hair done : )

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At thanksgiving we were driving home from Utah and drove past a farm.  Bug said "it is so stinky!"
"Babe, it is just a farm."
"Why do they have skunks on the farm?"

Okay, so maybe these are only funny to us...

Prison Break

Last night when I was cooking dinner Bug asked if she could go wake up B-man from his nap. I told her "Sure Babe, I will be right up to get him."
H excitedly followed Bug up to B's room. I heard them giggling on the monitor as I quickly threw together dinner.
It got quiet for a minute, so I looked over on the video monitor... and what did I see... a jail break!
H had climbed into B's crib, picked up B under his arms and was lowering him down to Bug.  I was too late to do anything about it.  Within a minute all 3 happily came down the stairs, as if everything was totally normal.

I acted totally surprised when the 3 of them rounded the corner into the kitchen.  I asked, "How did B get out of his crib?" And they told me move by move how they did it.  Not realizing at all that they had done anything wrong, and actually quite proud of themselves for the successful jail break!

I thanked them for being careful with their baby bro, but told them to never do this again.  Getting kiddos out of cribs is Mama's job : )

I must say, I was encouraged by their teamwork and thankful for careful execution!  Oh, and I'm glad I have a video monitor... I wouldn't have wanted to miss out on seeing them in action... though I will make sure it never happens again!