NYE

The last few hours of 2014 are upon us. 

I am sneaking in a few minutes to blog because it is Thane's night to put P down. So lets be real...I have like 30-40 minutes to blog. 

A LOT has happened this year. Parker turned one. Tanya got married. We sold our duplex..that we have been trying to sell forever. I was able to live with my in-laws and get to know them better...and have my son spend more time with them. Bought a house. Katie got married. A few people I know got knocked up..and I'm ecstatic for them. Parker got a big boy bed, because you know..we need the crib.

For whenever the next kid comes along. HA! You thought for like 3 seconds I was going to say I'm pregnant didn't you? Heehee. Nope.

Thinking about getting pregnant for the second time is terrifying. Almost as scary as the first time around. It's amazing how many things change, and how quickly. I know people say you are never fully ready for the first one. Well, are you ever ready for the second one? 

Not that we don't want more. My second kid is going to read this blog in like 11 years and be bawling thinking we didn't want them. We do! We do! You are just really really scary hunny. Mommy loves you. 

So anyways. 2015 should be interesting. Already have some great things on the books. 

Parker turns 2. TWO. What? 

I have my first Pinterest Saturday coming up. Stoked.

A little thing called....SARA AND DOUG'S WEDDING!  Also stoked. 

You may be wondering how or why I am blogging at 10:03 on NYE. Well. Let me tell you. We have already had our excitement for the night. 

We went to US Bank Eve at the Terrace. My lovely coworker went to the one at KEVA but I was skeptical and said "no no..the one downtown will be WAY better Amanda."

Man I hate when she is right. (said with love.)

We should have gone to KEVA. While the one we were at was great, I feel like it was for older kids. 

We did try the bouncy house. P was pretty jacked up to go in. Jumping and laughing while we waited in line. He stepped foot inside...aaaaaaaaaaaaand lost it. Terrified. Screaming. Sobbing. 

So, that ruled out the other 5 bouncey houses they had. 

The train! They had a train. This kid loves trains. 

Ya. "Children Only." 

Oh ok....guess not. 

There was a Bubble Show. This is what I was excited for! In my head I pictured like 70 bubble makers in a room just blasting bubbles. Parker was going to LOOOOVE it. Hell, I was going to love it.

Sadly, it was nothing like my imagination. It was a man. With some bubbles. Who talked. A lot. 

There was a DJ..who I loved. He played "What Does the Fox Say?" and then "Shake it Off." right in a row! If I got married again...he'd be my guy. 

Parker? Not so much. This is where he hung out the whole time...

All about the water. I picture him being that kid at a school dance who spikes the punch. Sigh. 

We even had to have a picture with the water glass. 

So after we danced...I danced to a few songs we decided to go. 

but then Parker decided he need a few more rides and booked it for the escalators. 

and we rode them up and down about 10 times. At least.

Then we did a lot of this...

We figured, Hey..if he is happy riding the escalators and running down the empty hallways..shit. It's New Years Eve...let's go crazy!

So to recap. There is a lot of room to run at the terrace. The water coolers are fantastic. The escalators are thrilling. And bouncy houses are scary.

P's favorite parts:

Hope you all had/are having a fantastic night!!! 

Happy 2015 to you and yours. Hope this year is great too you!

The Adventures of the Big Boy Bed

We got P a big boy bed for Christmas. He is almost 2, we felt it was time. No we are not pregnant. Yes, we think he is ready for it. No, it's not too early.

I had talked to another mom at work and she wished me luck. She said the first 2 weeks were easy, and then they figure out they can get out..then it's downhill.

Great. I was banking on him getting out of bed right away, while I was off of work and could lose sleep, and us teaching him he has to stay in it. 

Christmas morning he opened some sheets for his bed on Christmas morning and I said, "They are for your big boy bed!!!!" Which I pointed to and apparently he hadn't seen it because he squealed and ran over to it.

Ya....I can see how he missed it.

So fast forward to the 26th at night. After 2 days of crazy Christmas time, and going to be at like midnight the night before, we decide its the perfect night for his first night in the big boy bed!

Well, first he had a nap in his bed and nailed it. Weird. He was exhausted. he barely made it to 2 before he passed out. High hopes for bedtime.

Well, he napped for like 4 hours.

Ya...that was dumb on our part. 

So we read a story in bed, kiss him goodnight, and walk out.

We walk to the couch and minutes tick by. Maybe we will make it! Maybe he will just be a natural!

All of a sudden he shows up in the living room. Obviously I knew he would get it, but it was still a shock to see him standing in front of us with a *gigantic* grin on his face.

Great.

So I walked him back. Tucked him in bed. Told him he had to stay. Gave him a kiss and walked out.

3 minutes later. He is standing in front of us...grinning.

So I walked him back. Tucked him in bed. Told him he had to stay. Gave him a kiss and walked out.

*repeat like 25 times*

Then I gave up. I laid next to him. Don't start. I know. I know.

I laid next to him for about 20 minutes. He was out. I slowly got out of bed and snuck out.

2 minutes later he is standing in the living room grinning.

He punked me.

Now when we went to get him, he dodged us and ran to the play room.

So I stayed with him longer this time.

Next night, repeat everything from the first night but now its a game. 

I would take him in, do all the stuff, walk to my room and watch part of netflix. When I heard him get up, I would go in right way and put him back in bed. Except for the time that he was in stealth mode.

I didn't hear him until he was standing in his doorway, poking his head in to see if I was looking. We locked eyes, he started to squeal and took off to his playroom. 

Which wouldn't be funny, but he runs so fast and then he tries to turn the corner. It's like watching a cartoon. He kind of bobbles on one leg on the corner but then catches and takes off...only to do it again in the kitchen. Which about 80% of the time, he wipes out in the kitchen. Oiy. 

He is also waking up at night. He has been for a while now. Just once, but he usually ends up in bed with us. So just to make sure that I don't miss him getting up I have created an obstacle outside out room in the form of a laundry basket. I figure if he runs into it I will hear it and wake up, or it will stop him and he will come in our room. 

Ya, I was awake last night to see him disprove my theory.

He ran out of his room...stopped just before he hit the basket..skirted around it and booked it for his playroom. At 1:30 in the morning. 

Sweet life. 

It is getting better. It only took me 20 minutes to get him to sleep for nap today. And bedtime last night only took 30 minutes vs 2 hours. Yes. 

2 hours. Thank god....well hopefully...that is over! 

20 Minutes in the Snow

that is all we made it.

It took us 30 to get ready.

Was it worth it? Sure..of course. P had a blast.

Was it insanely annoying to get him ready? Oh man.....

It all comes down to be me being unprepared to go. I should have had his boots ready, his gloves out of the package, the layers of clothes ready. Rookie mistake.

This is the first time we have really gone out to play in the snow. Last year, he still wasn't really walking so we couldn't go sit in the snow and get cold. Well, we probably could have, but no. We used the sled, but this time he got to walk in the snow. 

So let's start. 

First, 2 layers of pants and 2 layers of shirt. Easy right? No. I had to dodge stinkies and toy tractors that Parker somehow manifested on his changing pad and was throwing at me. Ya...we are in that stage of life. 

Step 2. Snowpants. Have you tried to put snowpants on a wiggling toddler? He won't sit still....makes it a little difficult to put snowpants on. But as soon as I got them up and the zipper up he was in awe. He loves zippers right now. 

Step 3. Boots. I HATE snowboots. I can't get them on him! We tried his boots on the other day and I can't get his heels down. (So if anyone has any tips please share) I swear, on our snow day, I tried everything...I worked up a sweat. 6  minutes later I think I have them on. 

Step 4. Mittens. Seriously...its so difficult to get stuff on a kid that he has never worn before. "Push your hand in there Parker....No.;..push. Parker..PUSH!" Oh wait....you have no idea what that means. Great. 

Get his mittens on......boots fall off because they weren't really on to start. Insert a mini tantrum on my part. 

Step 5. Find his old boots...I know I saw one in the playroom. I'm in the playroom looking for them when I hear Parker going "Oh!! SEE?!" I look. Ya. I see him throwing off his gloves that just took 2 minutes to put on and unzipping his snowpants that I wrestled him into. I say screw it to worrying about that and keep searching for the other boots. Found 1. Good enough

Step 6. Find where Parker has wondered off to and redress him. Find him in his room, snow pants around his ankles, reading a book. K. Start over. Put one old boot on...it worked. Crammed him in the other new boot..stood him up. He smelled like poop.

Really? Really????

So what did I do? What every mom of the year does.....ignores it. Which luckily I did because he had just farted....I would have been so mad if I tried to change him! 

So anyways, lesson finally learned. I threw him in his new awesome Packer coat, threw on his hat, shoved myself into my snowpants and boots (all while he is screaming) find a random coat and rush outside. 

Outside was awesome. I showed him how to push his hands into the snow. He thought that was the coolest thing ever. 

Our new neighbors dog was outside, Lobo the beagle. He hates Bernie. So we watched the dogs run back and forth for a while and watched while Bernie tried to pee on him. Parker thought that was funny, 

We lasted 20 minutes before his boots started to fall off and my hands were numb and mommy called it. 

Lesson learned. Get my shit together before I start. 

Day 2.

Today I am grateful for:

1. Having a job where I can still enjoy the magic of the First Day of School! I may not currently be using my degree, but I am doing a job that I love AND it gives me a chance to still have that First Day of School excitement because I get to hear about it from all the kids after school. I get to see a whole bunch of new kiddos moving up in the preschool world. I get to share in their excitement...and then I get to leave it and be home with my family....and my couch. That is the one thing I don't think I could do anymore when it comes to teaching: bring it home with me. I really enjoy my nights at home with Parker and Thane and Bernie. I barely have time (or energy) to clean my house at night, so I can't imagine having to grade papers or lesson plan. Kuddos to my friends who are doing it! I'm not that far removed that I don't remember how stressful and rewarding it is. You guys are amazing people and you are often not given enough credit for the things you do. I wish you all the best of luck tomorrow and the rest of the school year!

This is amazing. 

2. On that note, I am grateful for my job. For obvious reasons, we have bills, but for much more than that. I'm grateful that KJ gave me the chance to see what office work has in store for me. They had enough faith in me to let me try something new..and I love it. I still don't have it down, and that bothers me...I don't like making mistakes. I learn something new every day...and something new stresses me out everyday...but I'm good with that!

3. My coworkers...who I consider to be my friends. I love you guys! Without them I couldn't get through the stressful days...and there seem to be quite a few of those lately. I can talk to them about anything going on...and often cry to them. We all share in each other's excitement about life..the downsides of life..and all the sides of life in between. 

I tried to find a good Pinterest thing for coworkers...apparently everyone hates their coworkers. Guess I'm lucky!

Good luck at school tomorrow everyone...especially YOU Cassie!!!! Congrats on the new job. You're going to nail your first first day of school!

Thanks Kristy...Day One

I was nominated by my lovely sister Kristy to do the gratitude challenge. I need to list three things I'm grateful for each day... And nominate two people per day for five days. This is supposed to be done on Facebook, but I thought that if I am putting some thought into this I may as well blog about it. 

So here we go...( in no particular order)

1. I am thankful for my husband. We have been through a lot in the past 2 years and he has been my rock. The one person I can really just open up to and let it all out. He usually just nods and agrees with the words coming out of my mouth, because lets be real, half the stuff I'm complaining about or I'm upset about he is probably thinking "Thank God I'm not a woman." I'm glad he keeps that to himself. He may drive me nuts sometimes, I'm sure I have driven him crazy once or twice, but man do I love him. I know that with him by my side, I can accomplish anything. 

2. My son. He continues to amaze me every day. If you see me in public with him right now, I may not look super happy...but I promise I am. He is so full of life, energy, and love...and every day is a new adventure. Hearing his vocabulary grow is amazing. Belly Button...that's his newest one. He makes my day brighter when its gray. Watching him grow and learn new things is so fun, and its amazing to think that we created him. What a crazy concept. I m trying to slow down, not care what others think, and be a better mom. Parker deserves all of me...and I am learning to slow down and enjoy every minute we have together. 

3. My mom and dad. They are amazing people. They will do anything to help someone out and love to do it. I have no idea what Thane, I or Parker would do without them. I have had great role models for marriage from them and I thank them for that...as does Thane. I have a lot to learn from them yet, but if I can strive to be half as compassionate and helpful as they are then I think I'll be a pretty great person. 

Rain Storm or Hurricane?

I learned this morning that a torrential rain downpour is a lot more badass at the Sutter Farm. 

So here was the start to my day. 

6:50- look out window and think, "Shit, it looks really bad out. I hope it holds off."

6:52- Walk past patio door on the way to get Parker, "Hmm...those clouds appear to be death like...maybe I should bring in some toys." I open the door and walk into eeriness. Yes, walked into it. It was crazy outside. SO windy, so sticky, wet but no rain, thunder and lightning in the clouds. Scary shit. Of course I grab my phone. If I had more time I would have grabbed my real camera. I currently have no idea where I put it though.

6:57- Thane texts me, "It looks pretty bad out, be careful."

6:57:37- I am holding my sleeping angel, cause you can't throw a tantrum while sleeping..so he was being an angel, and I thought, "Sigh..who cares if I'm wasting valuable time against the storm. I'm pretty happy here."

7:07- I reluctantly wake P all the way up and start to get him dressed. We just may make it out the door before the rain. 

7:16- T-Minus 4 minutes to leave......downpour. Hurricane style. 

So here I am, with a toddler and an arm full of things to get in my car, and its a hurricane outside. I open the garage door and pray to God my father-in-law took his truck this morning. Open the door....empty spot!! Jackpot!!! 

Open the garage door......truck. Shit. 

So I decided if I could just get my car kinda close, that would be good enough...and do it fast enough that Parker wouldn't escape outside. I grabbed a towel, put Parker on his Lightning McQueen car, and ran out the door. Stepped into the rain...towel went flying off me and in 1 second I'm totally soaked. Make it to my car, jump in, turn on the wipers and still can't see. 

I pulled up the car and jump out, towel still didn't work, just in time to see Parker throw open the door and look at me. He was about to come running out when the loudest crack of thunder I have ever heard hit. We both jumped but only one of us screamed. I won't say which one. 

I scoop him up, look outside, and call work to say I'm going to be late. There is no way I'm taking my son out in that if I can help it. Not safe.

I then assess the car situation and decide I can squeeze it all the way in the garage. So I quickly shut P back inside and run back out into the raid. (This experience has made me really really happy we didn't buy the house with no garage.) Ok, now I get Parker in and we are off. 

Driving in the country with this kind of storm..insane. So many divots in the road you didn't realize were there until they are full of water. So many gravel driveways washed out. 

Fast-forward like 45 minutes into my normal 25 minute drive....we are at work and I find the most amazing parking spot ever. EVER.  Now I needed to formulate a plan on how to get us inside without ending up like drowned rats. 

I crawl in the backseat, get him unbuckled and standing next to me, turn and gather my bags and umbrella, turn back to grab P......aaaaaaaaaaaaand he is back in his carseat jumping around just loving life. 

Start over. Put down the bags, get him out and standing next to me so I could scoop him up, gather bags, turn to scoop and he is back in his carseat.

ok.....round 3. repeat everything. Everything......back in his seat. I then calmly said "GET OUT OF YOUR CARSEAT!!!!!!"  and scooped him with one arm.. and meltdown number one of the day ensued. He screamed like I just popped his balloon. (This kid loves balloons.) 

Then I just laughed. 

Really? What a great Monday. 

So then, I kept my arm around him, grabbed all my crap, threw a blanket on him, opened the door, put up my totally broken umbrella and we walked in the rain. 

He was so amazed by the water running off said broken umbrella I didn't even care I was getting wet, or that I stepped in a huge puddle with my flip flop and splashed so much water on my shorts that it appeared I peed myself.

 Nope, my kid was laughing...I was fine. 

The rest of my day? Well it sucked. 

Did I mention I pretty much dressed my kid in a dress today? Ugh..sorry buddy. Don't worry, your shirt tomorrow has a shark on it. Sharks are really manly. 

*ONE*

It's officially.

Parker is 1.

What a crazy year it has been.

I learned a few things today.

1.) I don't like having his party on his birthday.

I don't think I saw him more than 15 minutes today. Ok, thats a lie. We hung out while I opened his presents. But between people lovin on him, me doing stuff for the party, and mingling I pretty much caught glimpses of him. But...those glimpses showed me he was having an awesome time. He was laughing and playing the whole time. I call that a success.

I'm aware that this is mostly my fault. I let myself get caught up in hosting the party...but that is what I do. It's how I roll. Anyways, next time his birthday is on a Saturday...we are not having his party then. I'd like to spend some time with him.

2.) We need to deep clean our high chair more.

We took the padding off....ya. Eww. Don't act like you clean yours...but I suggest you do it tomorrow.

3.) My kid is amazing.

I already knew this, but today confirmed it. He didn't freak out once. He napped the perfect amount before the party. He needed his other nap after everything was done. and in between he was a ham. He's amazing.

4.) I have taught him to cheese it up to the camera.

FINALLY!! So many times today he would be looking the other way and as soon as he saw the flash of my camera, he would whip his head around and give me a cheeseball smile.

It's about time kid.

The party was perfect. Everything went really well.