Day off and Daycare

I have to get this off my chest because I am so sick of hearing this! When one works full-time and is away from their child/children all day- all week, why every time they have a day off do they drop their kids off at daycare? I have never understood this from the time I worked at a daycare in college to when I did work full time and had Landon in daycare... what, I am sorry, did you say you needed "mommy time?" Poor thing, being at work around friends all day and going out to lunch isn't enough mommy time for you? Please people, try using your time off with YOUR CHILD! As far as I am concerned, those that drop their kids off at daycare every free chance they have should seriously consider not having anymore kids, as it seems there is no point! I feel that parents these days are more concerned about their own happiness then their child's... and I really wish that parents would stop saying their child LOVES daycare and LOVES being there because the truth is, they are there for 8+ hours a day and have no other choice but to be there. Here is another thought... you say you need a break, what about your kid?? Do you not think they also need a break from daycare and maybe have a special day with mommy or daddy??

I have to be 100% honest, when I worked full-time I NEVER once took a day off in 3 1/2 years without having Landon with me... neither did Brady. If either one of us had the day off, Landon was there with us running errands, going out for lunch and loving him up every chance we got. Maybe that is the difference between us as parents and other parents, we ENJOY our children and we ENJOY being with them... we would never have it any other way.

Of course we all need a break once in awhile to get things done, but why every day off? I wish that parents these days would be REAL parents and stop relying on everyone else to take care of their child so they can live without the nuisance of doing it themselves. It truly killed me inside dropping Landon off at daycare, to the point where I gave up my career for the time being so I wouldn't have to endure it anymore, and to see parents drop off on their day off disgust me and I wonder what type of parents they really are... I know I am not the only one who feels this way.

“As A Mom…A Sisterhood of Mommy Patriots.”

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The Nine Principles
1. America is good.
2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.
3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.
4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.
7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.
8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.
9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.

Nap Time & 3 Years Apart

Nap time should be the highlight of my day. The time where I can have some quiet time and do something for me... but I do not have that. Landon has not taken a "nap" for almost six months. I have him do an hour of quiet time in my bedroom and for the most part, he does an awesome job at staying quiet while Brock takes his nap. The only problem I am having is, as soon as his hour is up, he runs down stairs like a crazy man and is bouncing off the walls until Brock wakes up. It drives me NUTS! I am so paranoid for the whole second hour of Brock's nap that he is going to wake up from his crazy brother downstairs. I know it is not Landon's fault, he is like a large outdoor animal that can not be caged up in one place. Sometimes, I will take him outside if it is nice and bring the baby monitor with, but that is not always an option. I would say that this is the BIGGEST drawback of having your kids 3 years apart... they are at totally different stages of their life and sometimes I feel like they both suffer in some way because of it. Landon is into doing more active stuff outside, while Brock can barely sit up on his own... Landon wants to head out on the town for the day, but Brock is on a strict schedule... Landon wants to stay up late and watch movies and Brock can not stay up a minute pass 8:30 PM.

As there are many things that make it hard sometimes having your kids 3 years apart, there are also so many good things. Like Landon being a HUGE helper, completely potty trained and independent little guy who is able to get his own snacks and dress himself. I honestly do not know how parents do it with having their kids 1 year apart... it would be like having two babies at the same time. That is the reason that we waited to have Brock until Landon was older, we wanted him to be out of the toddler stage and to the point where he was not so needy. I know the older they get the easier it will be and they will have much more in common, but right now I feel like I am torn between two different worlds!

Pre-school... I am not ready!!

I am not, but Landon is! I have known that Landon was going to go to pre-school since last year, but when it came time to drop him off on his first day, I was an internal mess :( My first baby, on to bigger better things. I am happy that he loves it so much, but I can not help feeling like it is just going way too fast. It feels kind of weird being the "parent" dropping off. Most of the parents are about 5-10 years older than me and are experienced with their kids in school... I am not and I am trying really hard to act like I know what I am doing and know how to deal with my sadness. All I know is that I want the world for Landon and what matters most is him being happy. So, I have to get over feeling sad and realize that he is a happy, healthy little man that has a wonderful future ahead of him :)

Hovering Parents

Yes, the hovering parent... why oh, why? I just do not understand why when I go to the park with my children I see these poor 3,4,5 and even 6 year old kids with parents that follow a foot behind. Let them be, let them play, let them make friends, don't HOVER!

These parents need to stop using their own insecurities with their child, it is just not fair. It is okay to watch them from the ground... or, play with them if there are no other kids at the park, but don't take them away from playing with children their own age! I just can not stand the hovering parent!

There has been so many times that Landon and another child start to play with each other and a mom or dad comes and is like "Billy, come and go down the slide with me, lets play on the swings!" Really? Get a life and let your child go... it is okay to talk to the other parents and even take a seat on the bench and relax while your child plays with someone besides you. UHG!

20 Things I've Come to Realize

1.) I've Come to Realize: That my body will never be the same after having 2 kids, no matter how much I workout

2.) I've Come to Realize: It is not worth debating a democrat because they never have correct information to back up their point of view

3.) I've Come to Realize: I love my husband as much as I did the day I met him 13 years ago in 9th grade

4.) I've Come to Realize: The older I get, the more my family becomes my best friend

5.) I've Come to Realize: Brady will probably never have another soda in his life

6.) I've Come to Realize: Like any other job, being a stay at home mom can be taken away at any moment

6.) I've Come to Realize: Some people fill their unhappiness by trying to put you down

7.) I've Come to Realize: I will probably only have two children

8.) I've Come to Realize: I still need my parents

9.) I've Come to Realize: I don't need to spend a lot of money to be happy

10.) I've Come to Realize: I can pretty much do anything with my Political Science degree, so don't worry about what you have your major in

11.) I've Come to Realize: Some parents don't like to spend time with their children as much as I do

12.) I've Come to Realize: That I love my life right now more then ever before

13.) I've Come to Realize: That I am much more organized and a clean freak since I have had kids

14.) I've Come to Realize: Landon will probably be sleeping in our bed until he graduates from High School :)

15.) I've Come to Realize: Boys have taken over my girly-girl life

16.) I've Come to Realize: I am blessed to still have 3 of my grandparents alive and actively apart of my life

17.) I've Come to Realize: I will not have a "career" while my kids are growing up... I do not want to miss a thing

18.) I've Come to Realize: I like being home during the day and I never get stir crazy like I thought I would

19.) I've Come to Realize: Speaking my mind has made me who I am

20.) I've Come to Realize: I have the most beautiful family and I am thankful for them everyday, especially my husband who works hard to make sure we are happy :)

Working Out and Pregnancy Weight

Okay, so now I am back on my workout routine... I am going T-TH-SU for now in the morning before Brady leaves for work. My legs, back, abs, arms and everywhere in between hurt so bad. It truly makes me wonder why I stop in the first place because getting back into shape is PAINFUL... like HS volleyball try outs painful. Plus, I am getting older and it is not as easy to loose a quick 10lbs like before, so I am having to work twice as hard. Not to mention that having two babies in three years has not been kind to my body.

Pre children, I looked good... I mean, still in the same size I was when I was in 10th grade... then comes baby number one and an extra 50lbs... Yes, I said 50lbs!!! Of course I lost 25 of it within 6 months of having him, but I still have a lovely 25 hanging around. Second baby, I was smart! I only gained 23lbs and with Brady's high protein meals, I was back in my old jeans 3 weeks post-partum. So, I really, really want to get rid of this nastiness for good. That is my goal and I hope to say goodbye to it forever :) Please think of me at around 7AM on the Tread climber and lifting weights, and pray to give me strength to make it through the whole hour and that I will eventually have a rock'n body again (as rock'n as it can be after two kids)!!

Out for Lunch...

We went out for lunch today at Solos Pizza, me and the boys that is, and I realized that things are getting easier! For the first time, Landon and I ate our entire meal w/ conversation and everything was in control. He is getting so much more mature and he wants to be treated like a big boy now. So, he is not running around the restaurant like a crazy man and I am not shoving food down my throat trying to hurry out because a tantrum is in the midst! Of all the things that I have been sad about him getting older, this is definitely not one of them. I love that he is getting older and wants to be independent.

We have come so far in the last 3.5 years! He has always been a very intense child and to put it bluntly, a handful at times. He is very loving, smart and a blast to be around, but he has never been that great at going out to eat and shopping. Anything that has made him be quiet and sit still has been a danger zone, until now.

I think a lot of it is my maturity as a parent too... I think I wanted him to always be perfect (like my mom was with me) and then I realized, let him have his tantrum, don't go to places that take forever to eat, it is not about me, it is about him. Being at home full time has really let my parenting skills be exercised and I am (in my opinion) becoming a much better mother!

Cause I'm a Blond, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

My hair is now back to blond!!! I had it colored brown/copper after I had little pumpkin and today I did it back to the "old" Jen blond... I know, brown looks better with my complexion, but I DO NOT CARE :P Brady seemed happy that it was back to blond too. I feel like every month that goes by I am getting closer to being back to good old Jen :) It is funny how after you have a baby your looks are not as important as they were before and then you wake up one morning, look in the mirror and say "who the heck are you funky looking lady?" That is the point I am at right now. Even though I am at home all day, I still want to look good... hey, my boys don't want to be around a frumpy mama, they want to be around a hot mama :)

Do you ever have one of those days??

When you just do not feel like doing anything? I feel bad when I have those days now that I am home full time. There is so much to do, and most of it you HAVE to do... but, for all of those things that I technically can get away with not doing for a day, I just do not want to do them.

I am having one of those days today. I feel burned out, tired and not interested in cleaning the whole house before we leave for the cabin tomorrow morning. I feel like we are always off somewhere for the weekend, or we have a million places and party's to be at. I guess that I am lucky that I have somewhere to go, but sometimes I just need a lazy day at home where I do not get the guilt's that I am not running around the whole house cleaning.

Bully at the Park

So I had my first experience yesterday at the park where Landon was somewhat bullied. I always knew there would be a day that Landon would have to deal with kids being mean to him, but I did not know that it would be when he was 3.5 years old. Landon is very comfortable around older kids, being he always plays with his aunts and uncles who are very close in age to him. He definitely prefers to play with older children.

There was a group of 8-9 year old at the park and they were playing Indiana Jones, which Landon loves and he wanted to get in on the action. So, he was kind of following them around trying to play and the older boy turns to him and said "go away kid!" I did not say anything, as I believe that kids need to learn to handle these situations on their own. Well, Landon only being 3 years old did not understand... so, he still followed them around trying to play. Then the boy yells at him and says, "GET OUT OF HERE KID, WE DO NOT WANT YOU HERE AND YOU ARE NOT PLAYING WITH US, NOW GO AWAY!" Landon's face fell and my heart sank.

There is nothing that can prepare you for witnessing rejection of your child, boy does it hurt. I got up and walked over to Landon as the boy started to shake in his pants, and I told him that I do not want him playing with mean boys and that he was too good to play with boys that hurt other peoples feelings. A glow of confidence ran through Landon as the biggest smile beamed over his face.

I do not know if I handled the situation right. All I know is, I want my kids to be aware of other children's feelings and hopefully he will remember how it feels to have someone treat him badly. I also want him to grow up confident enough not to let mean kids get him down... I feel like this is just the beginning in a new chapter of parenthood...

Not afraid to get older

My 28th birthday is coming up on Friday. I was thinking how excited I am to have another birthday... just like when I was a little girl. It seems as though most people I know dread getting one year older, as if they want to hold on to their youth just a little longer. I do not want to go through my life fearing another year, what is the point? You are getting older every day whether you like it or not. In my opinion, there is nothing more alluring then to be around someone who is confident in themselves and their age. I hope I go through my life being proud of my age and all that I have accomplished and not obsess over a silly number...

My name is Jen and I am going to be 28 years old :) LOL

Whoops! Another kid in the bed...

Okay, so now Brock won't sleep through the night unless he is in our bed... he will literally scream until I lay him in his co-sleeper in our bed! Then, he will sleep until 8-8:30AM!!! We went through this with Landon. He slept in our bed from birth to... well, up until we had Brock. We had a whole month where both boys slept in their own beds and we were so happy to have our bed back! Now, there are times where Landon wanders to our bed in the middle of the night and there are FOUR of us in one queen bed.

We do not mind for the most part, but sometimes I just want to have my own time and watch T.V. or read a book in my room and it is taken over by a sleeping baby. I told myself when we moved Brock to his crib when he was 3 months old that he was not ever coming back to our room. I was not going to go through this again... guess what? We are going to go through this again!

The truth is, I will sacrifice my bed for a sleeping child and that is why we have a "child in our bed" problem.

Leaving the boys... for the weekend!

I am going to go up north for the weekend with my mother-in-law, two sister-in-laws and Brady's two aunts! I am very excited to get away... no diapers, no bottles, no tantrums, no preparing 6 meals a day and maybe a good night sleep! On the other hand, I will miss all of those things, I need all of those things... I think I have let myself get to the point where I am totally absorbed in my boy's lives. I mean, that is normal when you are with them 24/7 right? I do not feel like I am losing myself or anything, but I should be able to get away for a couple of days without anxiety or guilt. When I worked full time, I was at least used to being away from Landon for most of the day and could handle over nights... I have never left Brock for more than an hour. I know they will be fine with Brady, but Brady does not have much "experience" with Brock. I take care of him 99.9% of the time.

I know this will be good for me... it will be good for Brady. It might be better than I think. Maybe they won't even miss me. Maybe I should be thankful for having this opportunity to get away, there are a lot of stay at home mom's that pray to even have an hour of peace and quiet.

Maybe I just need to get out more often!! Hehehe

Mom was right, this isn't easy!

We decided that I would become a stay at home mom before I was even pregnant with Brock. I had enough of dropping Landon off at daycare and feeling like I was missing out on his life. I was determined to be home with my children, to raise them with our morals and rules and to be able to witness their discoveries everyday. I knew it would be a lot work, but I did not realize how tiring and stressful it would be... there are no lunch breaks or casual conversations at the coping machine when you are home... it is feeding children, changing diapers, cleaning the house, cooking, dealing with tantrums and crying and you know what? There are NO breaks! You are having a good day "if" both children happen to take a nap at the same time and then you have to decide if I should clean or take that long awaited nap...

My mom stayed home with my sister and I when we were little and I know that she loved it. When I told her I wanted to stay at home, she warned me that it was a lot of work and people do not understand or respect moms at home. She told me about how people were rude towards her when they found out that she was a home-maker. I did not get it, I did not understand... now I do. People perceive woman who stay at home to be lazy and are not career minded. They think their days are full of luncheons, shopping and play-dates. Yes, there are days I go out to lunch, but it is at the local McDonald's. Yes, I do go shopping, for our groceries. Yes, I have gone a a couple play-dates, but it is really difficult to schedule anything when you have a 3 year old and an infant with feeding and nap times. Since I have worked in an office with deadlines and horrible managers, I can positively say, being at home is by far the hardest job I have ever had. I work 24/7.

Though it is the hardest job I have ever had, it is easily the BEST job too! I am truly the happiest I have ever been in my adult life and I am proud to take care of the kids and maintain the house during the day. The kids and I have already shared many wonderful memories together and have been to so many fun places. These are years I will never get back and I am glad that I made the choice to be there for my children everyday, all day! Though it can be wearing at times, I love my new "career!"

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My New Blog!!

I finally have my own blog!! We still have our family blog, but I wanted a place that I can share what my day to day life is like as a stay at home mom. I am hoping to be able to look back one day at this and use it as some sort of journal of what I did at home with the boys.

Enjoy!!