Sharing....

I have decided my children are great at sharing already, they don't really share toys so much as Brylee takes whatever Madden is playing with and he just lets her at this point.  What they share are germs! Oh how great they are at that.  Madden started us all off on a wonderful journey of runny noses, fevers, aches and pains and the almost complete loss of sleep!  Brylee still manages to sleep with her stuffy nose but Madden and I are now sleeping in the living room in the hopes that we don't "share" our sleepless nights with the other two.  Thankfully my wonderful parents were staying for the first part of the week with us and helped imeasurably with all the cleaning and packing that was supposed to get done.  Without them I wonder what would have been accomplished this week besides using a couple boxes of tissues and making more of a mess in the living room and kitchen.  I only  hope that the sharing stopped with me and that Nan and Papa don't end up getting sick before they go on their vacation.   What a time for us to all be sick!

We Got It!

It has been absolutely crazy around here for the past week!  We came back from the long weekend and put an offer in on a house which we got, Yay! However it meant a ton of work had to be and still has to be done, we cleaned up as best we could and showed our townhouse yesterday to find a subletter.  It was a very successful turnout! I had no idea our place was that great! haha the phone is still ringing with inquiry's even though the unit is now taken.  The family who is going to be moving in is great.  Brylee really enjoyed playing with their 5 year old daughter and the little boy loved Brylee's toys.  It was great to see all the kids having such a good time while we toured the house.  The couple is fantastic too, they seem to be very much like Randy and I.  We are exchanging numbers so we can arrange for playdates after the move, no need to exchange addresses, I know where they live! Now it is on to packing....going to take a long time I'm sure!  With all the kids stuff and our stuff and the things we've aquired we definitely have our work cut out for us.  I am so excited that we'll have our OWN space to do with what we want, both kids will have their own rooms and we will have to do minimal work to move in.  I just can't believe that we'll be moving in just over 3 weeks!

Paying the Sitter....

For the first time last night we paid for a babysitter.  She is the niece of a friend of mine and Brylee really likes her so we said why not try it out and see.  It felt so strange to be the one at the end of the night driving her home and paying her!  I am so used to being the payee, setting my rate and taking care of someone else's babies.  For the first time the shoe was on the other foot, I drove her home and made sure to ask what kind of snacks and drinks she'd like for next time and waited til she was in the door before driving away.  I almost forgot to do that too! Again I'm a newbie when it comes to these things, but I remembered as I was pulling away LOL  When I got home I asked Brylee did you like Monika? She smiled and nodded.  I asked her did you like playing with her....she smiled and nodded.  I asked if Monika could come again and she smiled and nodded emphatically and told me a little story, which I didn't really understand.  She may only be 2 but she knows who she likes and doesn't like.  So we have a babysitter who isn't family that Brylee likes.  That is a great thing!  We'll have her babysit B some more and slowly add in Madden.  I would feel awful expecting her to take care of two little babes when one is as busy and demanding as Brylee and as young and high needs as Madden. But the day will come and I'm confident that Monika will do great and the kids will both enjoy being with her. 

Home Sweet Home????

House hunting has started and I have to admit what we've seen so far has been rather disappointing to say the least!  A house which would be easily affordable still comes with a ton of work that needs to be done, and the ones that are ready to live in are $75,000 more.  The age of the houses too is a concern, why is there so many houses that are close to 100 years old, don't the people living in the newer houses ever move? We will find something eventually I do know that but what will it be?
It was fun however watching Brylee race from room to room this weekend in a house with tons of space Hahaha she was sure having fun showing our realtor, Janet, the house from her point of view.  She would take Janets hand and walk her from room to room as if to point out its merits or issues.  So cute!  We will keep looking and cross our fingers that we fnd what we are looking for or something close to it!

" I Drink! "

" I drink!" declared Brylee proudly Saturday night at 11:30pm after snagging my Aunts rum and coke off the table and taking a face full.  This was after trying to have a sip of someones wine glass that was left on the table.  We left my aunt and uncles' anniversary celebration with a 2 year old who smelled like an 18 year old after their first night at the bar.  LOL  She was one of the highlights of the party I think, she visited everyone and even shared her crackers with people she didn't know.  She ran with the big kids and danced with the adults.  She partied harder than I did! Madden did great too although he didn't "drink" anything besides his milk.  He cuddled all the ladies, slept in tons of arms and generally charmed everyone he loved up.  It was so nice to see all my aunts and uncles, cousins and their families.  So many of them have kids now, there is definitely a new generation to run and beg to play outside in the dark.  I am sure that all the kids slept hard when they finally went to bed, hopefully sleeping in too so that the parents who were up just as late were able to recover too.  Good times!

Doctor Doctor give me the news!

Yesterday was Madden's 4 month appointment and it made me think of all the differences that there are between my two babies .  Madden weighs the same as Brylee did at 8 months, at 4 months Brylee was only 13lbs and Madden is currently 17.5lbs!  He actually wore a pair of Brylee's old jeans size 12-18 months, which amazes me.  He is such a healthy boy, full of rolls and dimples.  Its a whole new experience for me since Brylee was so tiny from the time she was born, she never really developed the chubby baby look.  Part of me longs for the ease of maintaining a small baby's wardrobe since they never seem to grow out of something.  However the constant growth allows me to indulge in one of my favorite pastimes.....shopping!  It seems like daily that I find Maddens clothes are no longer big enough, the pile continues to grow and some things he never got to wear at all.  There is a list a mile long of things he needs again, guess I'd better get the credit card ready!

Cherishing every moment....yes even the cranky ones!

Today I heard some very sad news about a mom whose little boy (2) drowned.  She was pregnant at the same time as me delivering in August.  I talked to her infrequently on the babyfit forum so I wouldn't say I KNEW her but we did share some of the most private and intimate changes one goes through during pregnancy.  I can only imagine the pain and anguish she and her family and friends are experiencing right now.  Her loss makes me realize how very lucky I am to have 2 healthy and beautiful children beside me right now, it makes me want to gather them in my arms and keep them safe.  Human life is so incredibly fragile and I don't think we always realize it.  We go out into everyday thinking nothing like that will happen to us.  I'm sure they thought that too!  So cherish every moment with you children, yes even the "you are driving me crazy with the whining" and the "pulling my hair out" moments; there are so many mothers out there that would happily trade places with you!  They long for the screaming, the crying, the fighting, the sleepless nights, the potty training, and everything in between.  So tonight when you put your kids to bed, squeeze them a little longer and remember all the Mom's and Dad's who have lost a child.