My favorite products right now

Like any other mom, there are several products that are must-haves in our family. Here are a few of my favorites at this point in our life! 

Clorox Anywhere Spray - I use this stuff like water (which is sort of ironic since, you know, it basically is). It's flu season and I can think of no greater torture than toddlers with the flu, so we've been cleaning away with this or Clorox wipes as often as possible. I discovered a few years ago the recipe for it, so I haven't bought it since. The recipe is here. 

(source: clorox.com)

Olay Moisturizing Cream - So, this one's more for the mamma, but I figured I better start using some form of moisturizer while I'm a spring chicken or I'll age even faster. ;) I discovered this stuff at the pharmacy and it's like $6, so you can't beat it. 

(source: craffts.com)

Gummy Vitamins - If my dad were reading (which I suspect he is not), he would be saying "Told you so" I'm sure. I HATE taking vitamins. I'm sorry...for some reason swallowing horse pills every day makes me want to gag. I started taking the kids' dino gummies several months ago and discovered they were delicious. Silly me forgot they make gummies for weird people like me in adult form! Seth and I now take them every day and, for the most part, we've been healthy all winter, even when the kids are snotting and coughing all over us. WIN! 

(source: walmart.com)

LeapPad 2 - Carter got this for Christmas this year and I sometimes want to hug the person who invented it. It has the ability to quiet him down, calm him down, and help him learn--all at the same time. That's like the trifecta of toddler awesome. Shout out to my parents for getting it for him! 

(source: amazon.com)

Take and Toss Cups - Our kids are apparently sippy cup hoarders. At the end of a day, I can seriously find like six or eight all over the house. And they constantly need a drink in their hands, it seems. For $4 a pack, you can't beat these. They are toss-able--which we don't--but it's nice knowing that when we accidentally leave them somewhere--which we sometimes do--it doesn't really matter because we have 1,920 more at home. 

(source: bestgeekfriend.com)

Change of plans

After two vacations in 2013, we said we were going to take 2014 "off" and get some things done around the house. Well, while my desire to get things done around the house has not changed, we backtracked on our no-vacation in 2014 rule and booked a week trip to Ocean City, Maryland! We were there in 2011 and had a blast and friends of ours graciously offered us their condo for a STEAL, so we weren't about to pass it up! :) 

I love the beach and everything associated with it and can't wait to take the kids! 

Now to just focus on those house projects that need to get done! We teeter back and forth about doing the siding this year or waiting one more year. I'd love to do the kitchen counter tops and paint the cabinets. I need to finish sanding and staining the kids pallet bookshelves that Seth and his dad made and get those hung. And we really need a new grill and patio furniture. We'll see what projects we get done in 2014! 

(image source: google.com)

My 2014 Goals

I'm not calling them "resolutions" because when I "resolve" to do something like this, I don't. So, we'll call them goals. :) My time is limited so I'm keeping it realistic. 

1. Continue to focus on fitness and losing weight. Come on, this is on everyone's list. BUT, I think I'm finally to a point where working out is part of my life now, so I'd like to keep that going. I'm stalled at eleven pounds but with Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays in there (and me being out of the gym for three weeks), it was sort of to be expected. Back at it now though--and currently sore beyond explanation for Monday's Tabata class (OUCH!). Swimming suit season is a mere five months away and we may be taking a little beach trip after all thanks to a gracious friend who offered us their Ocean City condo for virtually nothing! 

2. Go on date nights with Seth. If mama and daddy ain't happy, ain't nobody happy. This one speaks for itself. 

3. Take the kids on more fun outings. I love to see their excitement at amusement parks, the pool, parks, etc. so I'd like to do more of that this summer. On my agenda would be Hersheypark, a zoo (other than the local one we've done), and camping, to name a few.

4. Be more intentional. This applies to many things--doing devotions at night, pleasure reading more, focusing on my hobbies and doing something I love for myself (photography, for example), and playing with the kids. I'm ready to make-believe the heck out of all their things like I did when I was a kid. Is it too soon to introduce Addison to the wonderful world of Barbie??? :) 

What's on your list for 2014? 

A long overdue Christmas re-cap

Well then. Turns out I didn't blog pretty much the whole month of December, which is precisely why this post will be a re-cap of the whole holiday season! HA! I can honestly say that this year, I think we succeeded in slowing down a bit. We skipped breakfast with Santa, a few day trips for Seth to hunt, and all other sorts of holiday "stuff." We did do Christmas Candylane at Hersheypark (which the kids loved, but it was FREEZING so we didn't last too long). The season was, all in all, really nice and memorable. 

We went to Bass Pro Shops for photos with Santa (the above is a photo of a photo). Carter LOVED it but Addison would have absolutely nothing of it. We do not have a photo to show for it because as soon as she got on Santa's lap, she lost it and sucker punched his glasses right off his face. He was thrilled. 

Seth's parents came to our house mid-December to celebrate Christmas since we would all be attending a wedding in north NJ when we were in right after Christmas. The kids loved the impromtu gifts when they woke up in the morning! Oma and Opa got each of them a toboggan as well, which worked  perfectly because it was snowing while they were here! 

Opa was a good sport and did crafts with the kids! 

I decided that while his parents were in, we'd have a bunch of people over to celebrate Seth's 31st birthday. My parents and brother were able to come as well, but due to the horrible weather, Michelle, Jason and the kids couldn't make it. Understandable, of course. We had dinner and yummy cake and ice cream! 

The next weekend, we headed up to Michelle and Jason's for a Christmas party and cookie exchange and then the next day for the Cook Christmas. Ironically enough, I have zero pictures of these events, so you'll have to trust me on that one! :) 

Then as we always do, we headed to my parents for Christmas eve day. The kids were WIRED--understandably so when they saw this in the basement! Let's just say five grandkids under age five is a lot of energy!

The "fab 5"

(I didn't take too many pictures this day either--TOO MUCH COMMOTION!) :) 

After lunch and presents, we visited Maw-Maw and Papa Ray's for more presents and dinner before the service at church. We PJ'd the kids up and headed home around 8:30. Thankfully, they fell asleep in the car and transferred beautifully inside so Santa was able to get to work. 

In the morning, Carter casually walked out into the living room, seemingly forgetting what day it was. I was, of course, waiting with the camera and it was cute. He dropped to his knees so excited and stated that he would just sit here and wait for Addison to get up. It was cute, but the patience only lasted about fifteen minutes. :) 

Sissy sees the presents. 

They were excited, but Addison really didn't even care about opening the presents. She preferred them unwrapped, so Carter was HAPPY to help with that. They were blessed little kids, that's for sure.

We had yummy egg casserole for breakfast and just hung out and relaxed. The kids took their normal naps and then we headed to Haucks for dinner and games. All in all, it was SUCH a fun holiday season this year. Life with two toddlers is chaotic for sure, but boy is it fun at Christmas! 

I LOVED having so much time off work with Seth and the kids and, unlike last year, they were SO good this year. Addison got her standard double ear infection (exact repeat of last year) but we dealt with it. And the kids even blessed us with sleeping in--most days, they slept til about 7:45, which is HUUUGE for them. It was so awesome!

I hope your Christmases were blessed as well! Ready to kick off 2014 and see what the year brings for us. Happy New Year! 

These are a few of their favorite things...

In the spirit of the (predictably awful) Sound of Music Live on TV a few nights ago, and in copying my brother-in-law's sister, I thought I'd do a little "our kids' favorite things." :) 

Favorite Book
Carter - Bang! Boom! Roar! (A super cute dinosaur, construction book)
Addison - Little Hands Love and Little Feet Love (a book with all different textures)

Favorite Food
Carter - right now, it's probably a tie between yogurt, french toast, and hot dogs. His all-time favorite food is french toast though. 
Addison - she is super, super picky right now and won't eat most meats, but she will eat basically any snack food as well as yogurt and corn. 

Favorite Movie
Carter - Planes or Cars (he talks about his "Planes" birthday party--in May, mind you, every single day)
Addison - she won't still for .2 seconds, so no movies yet! 

Favorite Toy
Carter- pretty much any matchbox cars, his matchbox car garage, and a snap together race track
Addison - the Melissa & Doug pegboard puzzle 

Favorite Word
Carter - Mommy (not kidding. All. Day. Long.)
Addison - Da-eeeee 

Favorite Song
Carter - Twinkle, Twinkle, The Doxology, Jesus Loves Me 
Addison - anything you sing her :) 

Favorite Show
Carter - Jake and the Neverland Pirates, Henry Hugglemonster, Handy Manny
Addison - none yet. 

Favorite Time to Wake Up
Carter - anywhere between 5:30 and 6:30
Addison - on school days, I have to wake her up; on other days, usually between 7 and 7:45

Favorite Snack
Carter - pretzels, "trail mix" (a homemade mix I make of raisins, cheerios, and mini marshmallows), or squeezie applesauce
Addison - literally loves all snacks, but especially loves goldfish, pretzels, trail mix, and squeezie applesauce

They are literally growing up SO stinkin' fast. The holiday season has been lively and fun. Carter talks about Santa quite often and has a hard time coming to grips with the fact that daddy's birthday actually comes first! I'm certain we're in for a lively Christmas morning--and a pretty early one, too! 

It's the holiday season...

Every year at this time, I find myself at a loss for words. Not that there's not a TON going on, because there is. Always. I think it's because I find myself wanting to save any "spare time" over the holidays and relish in them as much as I can. But, because I want to look back at my blog (which I have printed out in a hardcover book at the end of each year) and remember all the fun things we did as a family, I need to keep up! :) 

This was take one of the kids' photos for the Christmas card. Not a huge fan--the sun was too far set and they just didn't turn out the way that I wanted. Plus, it was FREEZING this day.

We had JUST arrived to Aunt Polly and Uncle Dirk's house for Thanksgiving and they were woken up when we arrived. I had them dressed in their finest, so we had to do it right then, and they just weren't really having it. I'm not sure if I have the energy to try for a third time, and am toying with the idea of not even doing a Christmas card this year (it sort of pains me to even say it!).

The kids had so much fun at Thanksgiving. They were the only kids so they soaked up the attention big time. And both were OUT COLD within minutes of being on the road to head home.

The night before Thanksgiving we went to see Santa at Bass Pro Shops. It was free and really pretty. We have a non-digital file of Carter with Santa that is just precious, but Addison freaked out (that's putting it mildly, if I'm being honest). She knocked his glasses right off his face! Hysterical. (Does it make me a bad mom if I think crying Santa pics are precious?) :)

Both kids are full-on hyper right now. The holidays have them in a buzz-like state at all times. It's cute yet tiring. Ha! Carter is into making messes for no reason and we're working with him on the concept of respect for other people's hard work. So, we've introduced a cleaning chart in which he can earn stickers for cleaning up his toys without complaining before he moves on to another activity. We'll see how that works. Twenty stickers earns him a small toy. Oh, and he's also into his birthday right now (not until May 6). He talks about his birthday ALL THE TIME and has already declared that he's having a "Dusty Crophopper" (Planes) themed party. He tells everyone he meets about this and that he'll be 4 on his birthday. Bless their hearts, everyone thinks it's coming up soon.

Addison is a teething machine and is, thankfully, still a sleeping machine as well. Carter is doing great too but went through a phase of getting up super early after daylight savings time. We are getting back to a more reasonable 6:30/7:00 a.m. and hoping we can continue to work later.

This is my favorite time of the year and the kids' holiday energy is palpable and super sweet. The innocence and excitement is so intense! :)

We're Alive!

Pretty much every day, I say I am going to jump on and blog and pretty much every day, I decide to just sit and chill when we finally get the kids to bed. Nice on one hand, not-so-nice on the other...mostly when I put my blog into a book for us as a keepsake and I have nothing to speak of our lives for weeks at a time! :)

We're alive--getting through the madness of work the days before a holiday and we are excited to relax (hopefully) and enjoy some downtime Wednesday through the weekend.

Our house is decorated for Christmas really early this year though we are still "respecting the turkey." But, when you find an ounce of spare time with two toddlers, you RUN WITH IT. :)

More to come (with some pics) soon on our trip to Christmas Candylane on Saturday with the kids. As a summary: FREEZING.

Thankfulness

They're everywhere, those "30 Days of Thankfulness." I like to read them and often agree that I, too, am thankful for many of the things people are writing.

But if I'm being frank, lately I'm stressed and low on patience. Therefore, I sometimes find it hard to "be thankful in all circumstances." I'm not the first mom to have two toddlers but parenting has been especially tough lately for some reason. Mostly on those days where they gang up on us, fight non-stop, and get up at o' dark thirty (in Ran terms, that translates to roughly 4:53 a.m. I wish I was kidding). I find myself short with Seth, yelling more than I should, getting annoyed at the hundredth "mommy?" in a 10-minute timespan...you get my drift.

We've been convicted lately to work on our patience with the kids. Some days, I literally have to grit my teeth to maintain composure, and we're not perfect. I still lose my ever-loving mind sometimes (though who doesn't with small kids, a full-time job, a marriage, and a house....at the holidays?!?). :)

I read something a few days ago about making your home a place of safety--where you, your spouse, and kids can always go to feel safe. No "attacking." No rudeness. No opinions that aren't building someone up. If your home isn't "safe," there isn't a reason to seek refuge there, and that's downright scary when you're married and raising children.

I want to take time this holiday season to--first and foremost--slow down. I find that most of our stress comes from booking our weekends solid, always doing something or going somewhere, and generally just not being together. I literally cannot imagine my life without my husband and kids (on days when they're annoying to me or not), so it's time to kick up the thankfulness factor a bit and create a safe place for our family.

Halloween Festivities

Phew! That was quite the busy Halloween season. This year, we had a little cowboy and a little ice cream cone....and then a cowboy who changed his mind and became Lightning McQueen's pit crew. ;)

 

We kicked off the "Halloween season" by trick-or-treating to Aunt Michelle and Uncle Jason's, Gramma and Pa's, and Maw-Maw and Papa Ray's two weeks ago. As you can see, Addison had a death-grip on that baby doll throughout the experience. Ha!

 

Knock knock! Trick-or-treat!



Then, their daycare had two parades! My mom and grandma went to the one on Wednesday and I attended the one on Friday. Here is Addison, strapped in the baby buggy. I couldn't stop laughing because she had such a bulky costume on already and then a huge winter coat. Looked like a little marshmallow. :)

 

Chaos in the lobby of the assisted living facility!

 

Last night was our town's trick-or-treat. Carter chose to be the pit crew again. They were dying to go and were gearing up WELL before the 6:00 p.m. start time.

 

They had SO MUCH fun and Carter would have gone door-to-door for HOURS if we let him. Every time someone opened the door, he proudly said "trick or treat" and was very polite too. Addison didn't say much but was at the candy basket at each house just like him!

Their pumpkins were overflowing by the end of the night, and next week will promptly begin the get-rid-of-this-so-it's-not-a-temptation plan. All in all, a lot of fun with two cute kids who love to dress up! Now, onto Thanksgiving...love this time of year! :)

Eight.

Well, if I'm being honest, I wish that number was more like twenty. Eight is the number of pounds I've lost since I began my quest to go to the gym regularly and track what I eat. I actually thought I would lose faster, but I have been meeting with a registered dietician/nutritionist through my health insurance and she says that this is just perfect. Slow and steady wins the race!

I am on a calorie-intake plan that should allow me to lose 1-1.5 pounds per week, and so far, it's been just about spot on. I began my healthier lifestyle approximately seven weeks ago. This is not a post to pat myself on the back, but I'm going to be frank with you. I generally HATE working out. I get wickedly jealous of the people who love it. BUT--for the first time in a long time--I can say that I am enjoying it. Joining the gym at my job has been the ticket. One, I do not go out for lunch or shop on my lunch break like I used to (and our credit card bill shows it, too!). I blocked my work calendar every day from noon-1:30 p.m. so that people cannot put meetings on my schedule. Two, and probably most importantly, I do not feel guilty when I sit down and watch TV after the kids go to bed because I've already worked out.

I literally feel an obsessive desire to go to the gym right now--just makes me feel so much better. Plus, I go with a friend so that helps. AND, I almost exclusively take classes. See, here's the thing. When left to my own devices, I don't push myself. I just don't. If my legs are tired, I stop. But the classes are intense, there are mirrored walls so everyone is watching you, and there's someone giving you encouragement/telling you what to do--and that's exactly what I need!
SO--there are nine weeks to the day until Christmas and, by then, I really hope to be reporting a 17 pound weight loss (at least).

Let's do this.