I have now successfully transferred two kids from cribs to toddler beds. I transitioned Maverick when he was 20 months old because Madison was coming in 2 months and would need the crib.. I wanted to give him an adequate amount of time to adjust to sleeping in his "big boy bed" before his new sister came and took his crib away. His transition could not have gone any smoother. I read up on helpful tips for transitioning, and we used a few of them. We got him REALLY excited about the idea of getting a big boy bed, then we took him to the store and "let him pick out his bed" (Joe really wanted to buy him a race car bed, so we pushed for that one. Of course Maverick wanted it--what kid doesn't want a race car bed?!). We brought it home and put it together and Maverick was SO excited. I remember being so nervous and stressed out about the switch, yet Maverick seemed unphased and excited. We had gotten a video baby monitor a few months prior, and I think that helped us out immensely.
I had read that when you transition your child to a toddler bed, you have to be okay with the idea that they might end up sleeping on the floor. They get up and wander around a lot--so make sure their room is COMPLETELY child-proofed.. but sometimes they get tired and just fall asleep wherever they are. I thought the idea of that sounded cute, but I didn't want Maverick sleeping on the floor. As soon as I put him to bed, I would turn the monitor on and watch what he was doing. Luckily we lived in our tiny 850-square foot condo at the time, so if I saw him get out of bed, I'd just say "Maverick, get back in bed!" and he would--I wouldn't even have to get up. There were times that he would roll out of bed in the middle of the night--but his race car bed is so low that he wouldn't even wake up, so I'd go in there and put him back in bed. He was the easiest kid in the world to transition--and although I loved it at the time, it didn't even come close to preparing me for the nightmare Madison would be.
Transitioning Madison to a toddler bed was a completely different scenario. I had wanted to keep her in her crib for as long as I possibly could, but with having an older brother who would climb in and out of her bed to play with her in the morning, she very quickly caught on how to climb out--at the young age of 17 months. I was so sad! She's my baby--we've decided that we don't want to have any more kids, so I think I'm clinging onto things a little bit longer than I did with Maverick--and the crib is included. I wasn't sad at all when we transitioned Maverick to his bed--but as soon as we put Madison's new bed together, I couldn't help but cry. My little baby was growing up!
If you've read any of my other posts, you know stubborn Madison is (just like daddy!!). Transitioning her to her toddler bed was a nightmare. We had since moved into a big 2,200 square foot house, so I didn't have the luxury of yelling "Madison, get in bed!" like I had with Maverick. This time, if she got out of bed, I had to run upstairs and tell her to lay down. It was EXHAUSTING. Bedtime started taking about an hour for her to actually fall asleep--which meant an hour of me running up and down the stairs telling her to get in bed. This routine got old QUICK. Weeks and months went by--nothing was working. I couldn't keep her in her bed! I was at my wits end--I dreaded bedtime and usually ended up crying every night out of pure frustration.
And then a miracle happened. I asked for advise on my mommy forum, and some woman wrote back that I should use the Nanny: 911 technique. She explained how to do it and wished me luck. This lady was my answered prayer--I was SO thankful for her! For those of you who don't know the Nanny: 911 technique, here's what it is:
When its bedtime, go through your regular routine: bath, story, cuddles and kisses, then bed. Tell them that its time to go to sleep, then leave them be. The first time they get out of bed, go in their room, put them in bed, and say in a stern voice "its time for bed." Say only that--then leave the room. Any time after that, if they get out of bed, go in their room and lay them back down--don't say a thing. They're looking for a reaction from you, and with this they wont get one.
This technique saved my sanity. It took about a week or two for Madison to fully get it, but I started seeing a difference within days. If you're having trouble transitioning your toddler to a big kid bed, you have to try this technique.
Good luck! :)
Friday, June 7, 2013
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Prioritizing Your Time
Everyone seems to think that I'm some sort of robot because my life seems to be so "in order." I often get asked 'how do you do it?! You have two kids!' and my reply is just that I'm simply on auto pilot. I understand that I'm more organized that most people; even my email has to be cleaned out; I usually only have about 5 emails max on my homepage--its either deleted or saved into a folder. I cant stand being unorganized.. which is why I spent half of my Saturday two weekends ago going through thousands of pictures on my computer and organizing them into their appropriate folders.
So what's my key to being clean and organized? Schedules. I have a schedule for everything. Here's what my typical (cleaning) week looks like:
Monday: Vacuum the house, mop downstairs, do a load of colors and a load of whites.
Tuesday: Vacuum the house
Wednesday: Vacuum the house and clean the bathrooms
Thursday: Vacuum the house
Friday: Vacuum and mop the house, do a load of laundry
...obviously I love vacuuming. I feel like doing laundry is the top thing that people procrastinate on, and it ends up building up more and more until you have 8 loads of laundry and are extremely overwhelmed.. and that's why I set a schedule for it.
Having the schedule for it helps me to keep the workload down--I do 3 loads of laundry a week for my 4-person family: colors and whites on Monday, and just colors on Friday. Its nice having a set laundry schedule because the whole family knows when its laundry day; if Joe needs something washed, he knows to have it in the laundry basket by either Monday or Friday or else its just gonna have to wait. This also saves on money, as we aren't doing 8 small loads. Usually on laundry day, I wake up, toss the laundry in the washing machine, then get the kids changed and get them breakfast. By the time they're done eating, the laundry is ready for the dryer. Once I put that in, I head upstairs and take a shower and get ready for the day. Usually by the time I'm done getting ready, the laundry is ready to be folded. Boom, done with laundry, and I have the rest of the day to do whatever I need to do.
Now, for kitchens. My kitchen is never dirty (unless Joe just cooked a meal--then its a wreck until I clean it up). Having a clean kitchen is an ongoing thing; it never ends. You just have to stay on top of it. As soon as you're done using a dish, it immediately gets rinsed and put in the dishwasher--don't let it sit in the sink: that's how you get dishes to build up, and then the mess is just so big you get overwhelmed. I wipe my counters down probably 5 times a day (I understand that's a little excessive; that's my OCD. But there's nothing worse than having crumbs or mess on the counter and accidentally setting something in it).
As far as having kids and a clean house goes, I actually find that pretty easy. I've heard of moms who are too tired to clean up their kids' messes after they put them to bed, so it usually gets left overnight, and the mess just builds up. Don't even let that be an option! Us moms have enough on our plates--between changing diapers, feeding our kids 24/7 (because I know how kids are always eating), dealing with meltdowns, keeping the house clean, and trying to look like a Stepford Wives--I don't even deal with toys. My kids can play with whatever toys they want--but they are the ones who clean it all up. I don't clean up their messes--they do. If I make lunch, the toys have to be put away before they eat. If we're leaving the house, the toys have to be put away before we leave. Nap time, dinnertime, bedtime--the toys have to be put away. Some of your kids may not know this rule, but if you enforce it enough, they'll catch on. My kids know the drill; for the most part, I don't even have to tell them to clean up--they just do it.
If you take all of this information and apply it to your life, I'm sure your house will be "company ready" at all times, and you wont even feel like you're doing anything. Once you get into the routine, everything is just upkeep and easy.
I've seen the posts on Facebook and Instagram that say stuff like "my house is a mess because I'm a great mom and would rather spend time with my kids" and blah blah blah. I'm a great mom too--I'm just a great mom in a clean house. My kids are not missing out on anything from me keeping the house clean; they can make messes all they want--they just have to clean it up.
A lot of stuff I post on here is just a matter of opinion and past experiences.. but this, I believe, I am an expert on. Take my advise ;)
So what's my key to being clean and organized? Schedules. I have a schedule for everything. Here's what my typical (cleaning) week looks like:
Monday: Vacuum the house, mop downstairs, do a load of colors and a load of whites.
Tuesday: Vacuum the house
Wednesday: Vacuum the house and clean the bathrooms
Thursday: Vacuum the house
Friday: Vacuum and mop the house, do a load of laundry
...obviously I love vacuuming. I feel like doing laundry is the top thing that people procrastinate on, and it ends up building up more and more until you have 8 loads of laundry and are extremely overwhelmed.. and that's why I set a schedule for it.
Having the schedule for it helps me to keep the workload down--I do 3 loads of laundry a week for my 4-person family: colors and whites on Monday, and just colors on Friday. Its nice having a set laundry schedule because the whole family knows when its laundry day; if Joe needs something washed, he knows to have it in the laundry basket by either Monday or Friday or else its just gonna have to wait. This also saves on money, as we aren't doing 8 small loads. Usually on laundry day, I wake up, toss the laundry in the washing machine, then get the kids changed and get them breakfast. By the time they're done eating, the laundry is ready for the dryer. Once I put that in, I head upstairs and take a shower and get ready for the day. Usually by the time I'm done getting ready, the laundry is ready to be folded. Boom, done with laundry, and I have the rest of the day to do whatever I need to do.
Now, for kitchens. My kitchen is never dirty (unless Joe just cooked a meal--then its a wreck until I clean it up). Having a clean kitchen is an ongoing thing; it never ends. You just have to stay on top of it. As soon as you're done using a dish, it immediately gets rinsed and put in the dishwasher--don't let it sit in the sink: that's how you get dishes to build up, and then the mess is just so big you get overwhelmed. I wipe my counters down probably 5 times a day (I understand that's a little excessive; that's my OCD. But there's nothing worse than having crumbs or mess on the counter and accidentally setting something in it).
As far as having kids and a clean house goes, I actually find that pretty easy. I've heard of moms who are too tired to clean up their kids' messes after they put them to bed, so it usually gets left overnight, and the mess just builds up. Don't even let that be an option! Us moms have enough on our plates--between changing diapers, feeding our kids 24/7 (because I know how kids are always eating), dealing with meltdowns, keeping the house clean, and trying to look like a Stepford Wives--I don't even deal with toys. My kids can play with whatever toys they want--but they are the ones who clean it all up. I don't clean up their messes--they do. If I make lunch, the toys have to be put away before they eat. If we're leaving the house, the toys have to be put away before we leave. Nap time, dinnertime, bedtime--the toys have to be put away. Some of your kids may not know this rule, but if you enforce it enough, they'll catch on. My kids know the drill; for the most part, I don't even have to tell them to clean up--they just do it.
If you take all of this information and apply it to your life, I'm sure your house will be "company ready" at all times, and you wont even feel like you're doing anything. Once you get into the routine, everything is just upkeep and easy.
I've seen the posts on Facebook and Instagram that say stuff like "my house is a mess because I'm a great mom and would rather spend time with my kids" and blah blah blah. I'm a great mom too--I'm just a great mom in a clean house. My kids are not missing out on anything from me keeping the house clean; they can make messes all they want--they just have to clean it up.
A lot of stuff I post on here is just a matter of opinion and past experiences.. but this, I believe, I am an expert on. Take my advise ;)
 |
| Sparkly clean at all times! |
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Minions, assemble!
Last summer I was asked to make some cupcakes for my mother-in-law's birthday. I had found this cupcake idea through Pinterest, and I thought it would be a great idea to make them since there would be lots of kids at the party. What I didn't know was how time consuming these would end up being! Regardless of how much time they took, I think they turned out adorable and everyone loved them!
Here's how to make them:
Supplies:
12 cupcakes, any flavor (I did chocolate)
Frosting, any flavor (I did cream cheese)
1 package of Twinkies
Smarties candies
1. Bake your cupcakes according to the recipe. Once baked, set aside and let cool completely.
2. Take your Twinkies and cut them in half. Lay them down on a flat surface. Take your black frosting and pipe a dot on each smarties candy (this will make it stick to the Twinkie). Place on the Twinkie then pipe a "rim" around the smarties, then a "strap" around the head. Pipe two dots on the Smarties to make eyes. Pipe a smile or silly face for the mouth.
3. This is the time consuming part: the "hair." I dumped my bottle of sprinkles out and searched for the longest ones; a lot of them are broken, so look for the ones that aren't. I took a toothpick and poked 3 holes on top of the minion's head, then placed the sprinkles inside the holes (you might be able to skip this step; I poked the holes beforehand because I thought the sprinkles might break if I tried to push them in by themselves).
4. Pipe the icing onto your cupcakes, then place the Minion on top. If they don't stand up great, you could use a toothpick as a "post" and have it in between the cupcake and minion (just be sure to tell your guests to watch out for these!). I didn't have any issues getting the minions to stand up.
*I made the mistake of frosting the cupcakes first, then making the minions. Don't do this; the frosting sat for so long, it created that "crust-like texture" on the outside (which I actually like, but wasn't ideal for getting the minions to stand up by themselves).
**For whatever reason, the Twinkies go stale FAST on the cupcakes. I guess I'm picky cause I wouldn't eat the stale twinkie; however, the kids didn't seem to notice and they still loved them. The cupcakes aren't affected whatsoever by the minions ;)
These were so much fun to make. Like I said before, I spent a good half of my day making these, but I love doing this kind of stuff so I didn't mind at all. These definitely would not work for a last-minute dessert idea--you need to plan accordingly for these.
I can say that these are the cutest cupcakes I've ever made--until next week, that is, when my friend Megan and I are having our '3rd Cupcake War' --its the tiebreaker, and I'm totally bringing my A-game. Stay tuned ;)
Supplies:
12 cupcakes, any flavor (I did chocolate)
Frosting, any flavor (I did cream cheese)
1 package of Twinkies
Smarties candies
Chocolate sprinkles
Black icing1. Bake your cupcakes according to the recipe. Once baked, set aside and let cool completely.
2. Take your Twinkies and cut them in half. Lay them down on a flat surface. Take your black frosting and pipe a dot on each smarties candy (this will make it stick to the Twinkie). Place on the Twinkie then pipe a "rim" around the smarties, then a "strap" around the head. Pipe two dots on the Smarties to make eyes. Pipe a smile or silly face for the mouth.
3. This is the time consuming part: the "hair." I dumped my bottle of sprinkles out and searched for the longest ones; a lot of them are broken, so look for the ones that aren't. I took a toothpick and poked 3 holes on top of the minion's head, then placed the sprinkles inside the holes (you might be able to skip this step; I poked the holes beforehand because I thought the sprinkles might break if I tried to push them in by themselves).
4. Pipe the icing onto your cupcakes, then place the Minion on top. If they don't stand up great, you could use a toothpick as a "post" and have it in between the cupcake and minion (just be sure to tell your guests to watch out for these!). I didn't have any issues getting the minions to stand up.
*I made the mistake of frosting the cupcakes first, then making the minions. Don't do this; the frosting sat for so long, it created that "crust-like texture" on the outside (which I actually like, but wasn't ideal for getting the minions to stand up by themselves).
**For whatever reason, the Twinkies go stale FAST on the cupcakes. I guess I'm picky cause I wouldn't eat the stale twinkie; however, the kids didn't seem to notice and they still loved them. The cupcakes aren't affected whatsoever by the minions ;)
These were so much fun to make. Like I said before, I spent a good half of my day making these, but I love doing this kind of stuff so I didn't mind at all. These definitely would not work for a last-minute dessert idea--you need to plan accordingly for these.
I can say that these are the cutest cupcakes I've ever made--until next week, that is, when my friend Megan and I are having our '3rd Cupcake War' --its the tiebreaker, and I'm totally bringing my A-game. Stay tuned ;)
Monday, June 3, 2013
Hey baby, I think I wanna marry you!
I'll never forget that time Joe and I went to Vegas and got married--it was the best day of my life. It wasn't some drive-thru, spur of the moment thing--it was planned out for months ahead of time. We invited our family and some close friends, packed up, and headed to Vegas! Lets back up a little and start with the proposal. Most of you don't know this story..
It was Thursday, April 10th. Yes, I said Thursday (random day to get engaged, right?). I'd had a terrible day at work and I called Joe to vent. He suggested that we go out to dinner that night instead of cooking at home. I agreed, then asked him if he had any suggestions. "Edgewater Grill" (in Seaport Village, a 5 minute walk from our apartment). Whoa, that's kinda a fancy place to go on a Thursday night, I thought.
...lets back up one week prior. Since Joe and I were living in Downtown San Diego, we walked everywhere. We'd get off work, then decide to walk to a Padre game just spur of the moment. Living downtown was such a fun time in our lives :). Anyways, back to the story. We were walking to a baseball game, and Joe asked me "do you have to have that specific ring you sent me a picture of, or can it be something like that? 'Cause if it can be something like that, I could buy it soon. If it has to be that one, it might be a while." I told him that it could be something similar (I'm not picky whatsoever), and we left the conversation at that. Shortly after asking me this, he pulled out his phone and texted someone; I was very curious. Once the baseball game was over, we walked home and he went to bed (I was nosy and stayed up and snooped through his phone--I needed to know what was going on!). He had texted his friend who worked at the nearby jewelry store asking him when he was working next because he wanted to buy a ring. They agreed that Sunday would work because I would be working and "have no clue." You better believe that ALL day Sunday I was distracted at work, thinking "is he at the jewelry store now? Did he find a ring? Did he buy it? Does he get to take it home today, or do they order it?" ...I was going stir crazy. Knowing what I knew, you can imagine how anxious I was all week, wondering if today was going to be the day.
Fast forward a few days back to Thursday night, you can imagine my suspicion when he suggested a nice restaurant to eat at on a Thursday night. TONIGHT WAS GOING TO BE THE NIGHT!! Oh my god! As soon as I got off work, I went home and started getting ready. Of course I needed to look cute--I was getting engaged that night!! I'll never forget the look on Joe's face as he watched me get ready.. he sat on the couch with this sweet, sly smile on on his face, as if he knew something that I didn't know (but I actually did know). My heart was racing the entire night. We got to the restaurant and sat at a table outside overlooking the Coronado Bay--it was nighttime so all of the lights were reflecting off of the water--it was gorgeous. We ordered our food and neither of us talked much because we were both so nervous and excited. The entire time we were eating, I kept wondering "when is he gonna do it?!" Dinner came and went--no ring. Then he suggested dessert. He never orders dessert--MY RING WAS COMING IN THE DESSERT!! Almost immediately after we ordered our shared dessert, he got up to "use the restroom." Yeah, right. I watched him walk in the restaurant and stop to talk to a waiter. Oh my god, he must be giving him the ring and telling him to hide it in the dessert. I cant watch this! I immediately stopped looking inside and turned back around to look at the water. I felt like I was going to throw up; I was SO excited. A few minutes later, he came back outside and our dessert came. I know how weird this must sound, but I ate that dessert as fast as I could but also as slowly as I could--I didn't want to swallow my ring!! Every single bite I took, I made sure to swish it around in my mouth to make sure the ring wasn't in there. We finished our dessert and there was no ring. Are you kidding me?! Nothin? I was sure he was gonna do it! Turned out, when he went inside, he was actually asking the waiter where the restroom was. Once we finished up and paid our bill, Joe asked if I was ready to go home. My whole demeanor immediately shifted--I was more relaxed and at ease. Maybe he wasn't planning on proposing tonight; maybe he knew how bad of a day I had at work and just wanted to make me happy. What an awesome guy!
Before we walked home, he asked if I wanted to walk along the water. Sure, I thought. This was a great night, and it totally turned my day around. I wasn't expecting a proposal whatsoever at this point--and was completely caught off guard. He stopped, leaned up against the wall, and we stood there cuddling and talking. We had a 'saying' that we would say almost every day: he would say "will you marry me" and I would say "of course! Just get me a ring" ...so, following suit, as we were cuddling there on the water, he quietly asked "will you marry me?" ...and I followed with "of course, just buy me a ring." As soon as I said that, he slipped a ring on my finger. OH MY GOD! THIS WAS IT!! I was over the moon--we were both so excited and couldn't wait to get married!!
So lets fast forward 4 months to August. It was finally Saturday, August 16--the day we were going to get married. We drove into Vegas on Thursday with some of our friends, some other friends were going to meet us there, and our families were arriving on Friday. Friday evening, Treasure Island sent us off in a limo to the Las Vegas court house to get our marriage certificate. I was not prepared for this--as soon as we walked out of the court house with our license in hand, we were bombarded by Elvis' asking to marry us. Are you kidding me? Um, no thanks. Saturday morning arrived and it proved to be a very relaxing day. We hung out by the pool with our friends while our families did some sightseeing. Around 3:00 we decided that we should head up to the rooms to get ready. My sister-in-law did my hair and makeup for me (she's an amazing makeup artist; if you ever need your makeup done in the San Diego area, hit me up and I'll get you in touch with her). I put my wedding dress on, called Joe to make sure he wasn't lurking around in the hallways, then headed down to the wedding chapel.
We had spent weeks planning this wedding; I had picked out my bouquet and was going to walk down the aisle to Etta James' At Last. They put my family and I in a bridal suite while while our friends and rest of our family was arriving, and then it was time. Everyone left besides my dad, and I was so nervous to walk down that aisle. We stood behind closed doors, waiting for the song to cue up. Once the instrumental intro to the song finished, the opened the doors and I started to walk down the aisle. I felt like I was going to throw up. Getting married is nerve-wracking; not because I was nervous to get married, but because everyone's eyes are on you. Ahh! We started walking down the aisle listening to Etta James sing.. "At lasssssst... my love-----" the music cut out. THAT WAS THE SHORTEST FRIGGIN AISLE I HAD EVER SEEN. They didn't even fade the music out--just a blunt ending. Boom, done. I got to the front of the aisle and we all started hysterically laughing--it was hilarious. I'll never forget that. We said our vows and our "I do's," then sealed it with a kiss. We were married! After taking pictures with the photographer, we went back to our room for a quick change, then headed down to some Hawaiian-themed restaurant in the hotel. We had all of our family and close friends there with us, eating dinner, sharing toasts, and having a great time. August 16, 2008 is absolutely a day I will never forget.
It was Thursday, April 10th. Yes, I said Thursday (random day to get engaged, right?). I'd had a terrible day at work and I called Joe to vent. He suggested that we go out to dinner that night instead of cooking at home. I agreed, then asked him if he had any suggestions. "Edgewater Grill" (in Seaport Village, a 5 minute walk from our apartment). Whoa, that's kinda a fancy place to go on a Thursday night, I thought.
...lets back up one week prior. Since Joe and I were living in Downtown San Diego, we walked everywhere. We'd get off work, then decide to walk to a Padre game just spur of the moment. Living downtown was such a fun time in our lives :). Anyways, back to the story. We were walking to a baseball game, and Joe asked me "do you have to have that specific ring you sent me a picture of, or can it be something like that? 'Cause if it can be something like that, I could buy it soon. If it has to be that one, it might be a while." I told him that it could be something similar (I'm not picky whatsoever), and we left the conversation at that. Shortly after asking me this, he pulled out his phone and texted someone; I was very curious. Once the baseball game was over, we walked home and he went to bed (I was nosy and stayed up and snooped through his phone--I needed to know what was going on!). He had texted his friend who worked at the nearby jewelry store asking him when he was working next because he wanted to buy a ring. They agreed that Sunday would work because I would be working and "have no clue." You better believe that ALL day Sunday I was distracted at work, thinking "is he at the jewelry store now? Did he find a ring? Did he buy it? Does he get to take it home today, or do they order it?" ...I was going stir crazy. Knowing what I knew, you can imagine how anxious I was all week, wondering if today was going to be the day.
Fast forward a few days back to Thursday night, you can imagine my suspicion when he suggested a nice restaurant to eat at on a Thursday night. TONIGHT WAS GOING TO BE THE NIGHT!! Oh my god! As soon as I got off work, I went home and started getting ready. Of course I needed to look cute--I was getting engaged that night!! I'll never forget the look on Joe's face as he watched me get ready.. he sat on the couch with this sweet, sly smile on on his face, as if he knew something that I didn't know (but I actually did know). My heart was racing the entire night. We got to the restaurant and sat at a table outside overlooking the Coronado Bay--it was nighttime so all of the lights were reflecting off of the water--it was gorgeous. We ordered our food and neither of us talked much because we were both so nervous and excited. The entire time we were eating, I kept wondering "when is he gonna do it?!" Dinner came and went--no ring. Then he suggested dessert. He never orders dessert--MY RING WAS COMING IN THE DESSERT!! Almost immediately after we ordered our shared dessert, he got up to "use the restroom." Yeah, right. I watched him walk in the restaurant and stop to talk to a waiter. Oh my god, he must be giving him the ring and telling him to hide it in the dessert. I cant watch this! I immediately stopped looking inside and turned back around to look at the water. I felt like I was going to throw up; I was SO excited. A few minutes later, he came back outside and our dessert came. I know how weird this must sound, but I ate that dessert as fast as I could but also as slowly as I could--I didn't want to swallow my ring!! Every single bite I took, I made sure to swish it around in my mouth to make sure the ring wasn't in there. We finished our dessert and there was no ring. Are you kidding me?! Nothin? I was sure he was gonna do it! Turned out, when he went inside, he was actually asking the waiter where the restroom was. Once we finished up and paid our bill, Joe asked if I was ready to go home. My whole demeanor immediately shifted--I was more relaxed and at ease. Maybe he wasn't planning on proposing tonight; maybe he knew how bad of a day I had at work and just wanted to make me happy. What an awesome guy!
Before we walked home, he asked if I wanted to walk along the water. Sure, I thought. This was a great night, and it totally turned my day around. I wasn't expecting a proposal whatsoever at this point--and was completely caught off guard. He stopped, leaned up against the wall, and we stood there cuddling and talking. We had a 'saying' that we would say almost every day: he would say "will you marry me" and I would say "of course! Just get me a ring" ...so, following suit, as we were cuddling there on the water, he quietly asked "will you marry me?" ...and I followed with "of course, just buy me a ring." As soon as I said that, he slipped a ring on my finger. OH MY GOD! THIS WAS IT!! I was over the moon--we were both so excited and couldn't wait to get married!!
So lets fast forward 4 months to August. It was finally Saturday, August 16--the day we were going to get married. We drove into Vegas on Thursday with some of our friends, some other friends were going to meet us there, and our families were arriving on Friday. Friday evening, Treasure Island sent us off in a limo to the Las Vegas court house to get our marriage certificate. I was not prepared for this--as soon as we walked out of the court house with our license in hand, we were bombarded by Elvis' asking to marry us. Are you kidding me? Um, no thanks. Saturday morning arrived and it proved to be a very relaxing day. We hung out by the pool with our friends while our families did some sightseeing. Around 3:00 we decided that we should head up to the rooms to get ready. My sister-in-law did my hair and makeup for me (she's an amazing makeup artist; if you ever need your makeup done in the San Diego area, hit me up and I'll get you in touch with her). I put my wedding dress on, called Joe to make sure he wasn't lurking around in the hallways, then headed down to the wedding chapel.
We had spent weeks planning this wedding; I had picked out my bouquet and was going to walk down the aisle to Etta James' At Last. They put my family and I in a bridal suite while while our friends and rest of our family was arriving, and then it was time. Everyone left besides my dad, and I was so nervous to walk down that aisle. We stood behind closed doors, waiting for the song to cue up. Once the instrumental intro to the song finished, the opened the doors and I started to walk down the aisle. I felt like I was going to throw up. Getting married is nerve-wracking; not because I was nervous to get married, but because everyone's eyes are on you. Ahh! We started walking down the aisle listening to Etta James sing.. "At lasssssst... my love-----" the music cut out. THAT WAS THE SHORTEST FRIGGIN AISLE I HAD EVER SEEN. They didn't even fade the music out--just a blunt ending. Boom, done. I got to the front of the aisle and we all started hysterically laughing--it was hilarious. I'll never forget that. We said our vows and our "I do's," then sealed it with a kiss. We were married! After taking pictures with the photographer, we went back to our room for a quick change, then headed down to some Hawaiian-themed restaurant in the hotel. We had all of our family and close friends there with us, eating dinner, sharing toasts, and having a great time. August 16, 2008 is absolutely a day I will never forget.
 |
| ...see how small that aisle is?! |
Waking up in Vegas...
If there's one thing I love, its a little vacation away from the kids. Don't get me wrong--I absolutely love my kids and would do anything for them--but I'm with them 24/7: changing diapers, wiping noses, yelling at them to stop fighting--its exhausting. Joe and I usually take a few Vegas trips a year, and I am so thankful for them: they always come when I need them the most.
Lets go back in time a little bit. I left Maverick overnight with my parents for the first time when he was 3 months old--Joe took me on a cruise for my first Mother's Day present (the cruise was after Mother's Day--so yes, I of course spent Mother's Day with my son). The cruise he took me on was a 5-day cruise to Mexico and I was SO excited. From the get go, everyone always told me that I wasn't a "normal first time mom" --I didn't freak out about germs, I was never stressed out about whether he was doing this or that, and I had no problem leaving him with family when he was a week old so that Joe and I could grab lunch or go watch a movie (I wanted some sense of normalcy back in my life!). I trust the people in our lives and I know that they would do anything to keep my kids safe--just like I would. So when Joe surprised me with this cruise, I was thrilled! I had been on a cruise one time before that with my family and I had such a great time--I couldn't wait to go again! Over the course of this cruise, of course I missed Maverick--but it was great having some Joe and my time. I cherish every single minute alone with Joe that I get. I know people who have never left their child's side--their kid is always with them--and that's totally fine--but I could never do that. I look forward to these little vacations away from the kids, and they look forward to getting presents when we come home ;).
Joe and I started going to Vegas together after we decided to get married there (I'll save that story for another post--such a fun wedding!!)--and Treasure Island became "our hotel" (where we got married)--so we always stay there now. Our Vegas routine goes like this: we usually leave our house around 7am and get on the road early (we drive a hybrid so it costs about $40 to get to Vegas--way cheaper than flying). We usually get to Vegas around 11/11:30, and the day drinking begins! While one of us stands in the check-in line, the other one hits up the bar and gets drinks. We get to our room, do a quick change, then head straight to the pool. That's our heaven right there--as soon as we get down to the pool, we go rent a cabana (we rent cabanas every day we're there--and since we do this every year, multiple times a year, all of the cabana staff knows us and usually hooks us up with stuff). This pretty much sums up our Vegas trips--drinking, laying out by the pool, and sleeping. That's what you do when you don't have kids around! I rarely drink when I'm at home; I'm a lightweight and am always in mom-mode, so god forbid something happened after having a drink or two. On our most recent Vegas trip that we took, I couldn't believe how much we slept. I didn't even really drink while there--we were just sleeping so much! We were there a total of 3 nights: the first two nights we were there, we were in bed by 6pm because we were so tired! We slept through the night, woke up and got some breakfast, then hit up the pool. We did this our entire trip.. but on the third night I insisted that we didn't go to bed at 6--instead, we hit up some casinos. My gambling of choice? Blackjack and roulette. This past trip, while playing roulette, I hit the number it landed on and won $70 off of a $2 bet! I'm such a cheapskate that I cashed out and took Joe out to a nice sushi dinner. Quit while you're ahead, right? :)
I cherish these times alone that I get with Joe. We have such an amazing marriage--I couldn't imagine being with anyone else. I think every couple needs to take time to themselves and get away from the kids a little bit; whether its dinner, a movie, or a vacation--its nice to have a relationship not centered around the kids.
We don't have any more Vegas trips on the calendar for this year (at least not yet!), but I'm sure we'll get there ;)
Lets go back in time a little bit. I left Maverick overnight with my parents for the first time when he was 3 months old--Joe took me on a cruise for my first Mother's Day present (the cruise was after Mother's Day--so yes, I of course spent Mother's Day with my son). The cruise he took me on was a 5-day cruise to Mexico and I was SO excited. From the get go, everyone always told me that I wasn't a "normal first time mom" --I didn't freak out about germs, I was never stressed out about whether he was doing this or that, and I had no problem leaving him with family when he was a week old so that Joe and I could grab lunch or go watch a movie (I wanted some sense of normalcy back in my life!). I trust the people in our lives and I know that they would do anything to keep my kids safe--just like I would. So when Joe surprised me with this cruise, I was thrilled! I had been on a cruise one time before that with my family and I had such a great time--I couldn't wait to go again! Over the course of this cruise, of course I missed Maverick--but it was great having some Joe and my time. I cherish every single minute alone with Joe that I get. I know people who have never left their child's side--their kid is always with them--and that's totally fine--but I could never do that. I look forward to these little vacations away from the kids, and they look forward to getting presents when we come home ;).
Joe and I started going to Vegas together after we decided to get married there (I'll save that story for another post--such a fun wedding!!)--and Treasure Island became "our hotel" (where we got married)--so we always stay there now. Our Vegas routine goes like this: we usually leave our house around 7am and get on the road early (we drive a hybrid so it costs about $40 to get to Vegas--way cheaper than flying). We usually get to Vegas around 11/11:30, and the day drinking begins! While one of us stands in the check-in line, the other one hits up the bar and gets drinks. We get to our room, do a quick change, then head straight to the pool. That's our heaven right there--as soon as we get down to the pool, we go rent a cabana (we rent cabanas every day we're there--and since we do this every year, multiple times a year, all of the cabana staff knows us and usually hooks us up with stuff). This pretty much sums up our Vegas trips--drinking, laying out by the pool, and sleeping. That's what you do when you don't have kids around! I rarely drink when I'm at home; I'm a lightweight and am always in mom-mode, so god forbid something happened after having a drink or two. On our most recent Vegas trip that we took, I couldn't believe how much we slept. I didn't even really drink while there--we were just sleeping so much! We were there a total of 3 nights: the first two nights we were there, we were in bed by 6pm because we were so tired! We slept through the night, woke up and got some breakfast, then hit up the pool. We did this our entire trip.. but on the third night I insisted that we didn't go to bed at 6--instead, we hit up some casinos. My gambling of choice? Blackjack and roulette. This past trip, while playing roulette, I hit the number it landed on and won $70 off of a $2 bet! I'm such a cheapskate that I cashed out and took Joe out to a nice sushi dinner. Quit while you're ahead, right? :)
I cherish these times alone that I get with Joe. We have such an amazing marriage--I couldn't imagine being with anyone else. I think every couple needs to take time to themselves and get away from the kids a little bit; whether its dinner, a movie, or a vacation--its nice to have a relationship not centered around the kids.
We don't have any more Vegas trips on the calendar for this year (at least not yet!), but I'm sure we'll get there ;)
Here's a couple pictures from our Vegas trips over the past 5 years <3
This one was right after we got married! ^^
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Oh, the joys of potty training...
I started potty training Maverick when he was 28 months old, or 2 years, 4 months old. Everyone says that boys usually don't potty train till they're at least 3, and that they're difficult to potty train. I didn't find any of this to be true. I have this "mom app" on my phone where you can ask any sort of mom-question, and women from all over the world answer with their experiences and advise. A common question that I see asked on this forum is "how will I know when my son/daughter is ready to potty train?" ...and almost every time, they answer with the same answer: when they're waking up from naps/bedtime dry, they know how to pull their pants up and down, and are showing interest in wanting to not wear diapers anymore. I emphasized the "waking up dry" because they all say that's the main sign--and that just wasn't true for us. I'm not saying that it isn't a potty training sign--because it most certainly is--but its not the only indicator of being potty training ready. Maverick had never, not once, woken up from a nap or bedtime with a dry diaper. If I had waited for that sign, then he would probably still be wearing diapers now at 4 years old. I fully believe that you'll know when your kid is ready to potty train--so there's no point in stressing about it. Here's how we did it:
I remember I started his first day of potty training on July 11 (and I only remember that because it was 7/11, lol). We were going to use the 3-Day Potty Training technique I had read about in an article that Baby Center had emailed to me. Its a very simple and easy technique, your kid just has to be ready for it. On day one, you bring a potty training toilet into whatever room you and your child spend the most time in, then let them run around naked all day. You don't leave the house. Ask them every 15 minutes or so if they need to go pee, have them try, and if they get even the tiniest amount of pee/poop in the toilet, make a HUGE deal out of it. Dance around, jump and shout, give candy or stickers as rewards, and give lots of praise. They very quickly catch on that if they go in the toilet and not in a diaper, they are a big kid. On day two, you do everything exactly the same as day one, but you add in a 30-minute trip to a nearby park. Before you go to the park, you have your child try and go pee in the toilet, then explain to them that you are going to go to the park and can go to the bathroom again when you come home. Don't put them in tight pants; put them in very loose, flowy shorts (or a dress for a girl). If they make it the entire park trip with no accidents, they get LOTS of praise (but the most important thing to remember is: if they do have an accident any time throughout this process, never get mad--they're learning and trying their best). Day three is the same as the previous two days, except you do two-30 minute trips to the park; one in the morning and one in the evening. When these 3 days are over, your child should be potty trained.
Maverick learned this very quickly. We rewarded him with m&ms--1 m&m if he went pee in the toilet, and 2 m&ms if he went poop. He very quickly learned how to control his bladder, let a tiny bit of pee out into the toilet, collect his m&m, then do it again every 2 minutes. This kid was on sugar overload--he was running circles around the house! Once we figured out he was doing this, we switched from m&ms to stickers, and he was equally excited. Of course there were accidents along the way, and there were accidents after this 3-day training period, but he understood it. I had him daytime-potty trained in 3 days! Nighttime potty training was a whole other story though.
I decided to hold off on the nighttime potty training until he started waking up dry from naps. Weeks, months, and even a year went by and he had never woken up dry. I started to worry and think that I was doing something wrong and that it was my fault.. and in reality, it kinda was. He used his diaper as a crutch. I realized this two weeks before he turned 4.. There had been times where I was getting him ready for bed and would put him in his diaper, then for whatever reason need to take it off, and he would have already peed in it. He was awake, he knew how to pee in a toilet, yet he continued to pee in his diapers. Finally, one night, I decided to take away the diapers cold turkey. I just had a feeling he would be fine without them. Joe and I went to target, bought 2 protective plastic sheets, then headed home. I layered sheets on Maverick's bed: regular sheet, protective sheet, regular sheet, protective sheet, regular sheet. This way, if he had any accidents in the middle of the night, I could just take off the top layer of sheet/protective sheet and he would be all set. I wouldn't be changing sheets all night long. I set a pile of blankets in his room, next to a pile of pajamas (so that we wouldn't be fumbling around all night looking for these things.) We were set, and I was stressed out!! We woke up the next morning, and to my surprise, he hadnt had any accidents! I was over the moon; my hunch was right--he was using his diapers as a crutch because he knew he could pee in them! Of course there were some nights he would have accidents, but he hasn't had one in months and I can say that he is 100% done with diapers. I did it!
They say that potty training boys is a lot harder than potty training girls, but I'm not so sure about that. I'm getting ready to potty train Madison and she is very stubborn. I've tried to potty train her before, but she refuses to go on the toilet: she ended up pooping on the tile instead (thank god we have tile!). We went out the other night and let her pick out her very first pack of "big girl undies" and she picked out some Minnie Mouse ones. We've had a busy week and weekend so we haven't started the process yet, but I think that having her undies and being able to hold them is building up the anticipation for her--she cant wait to wear them.
Hopefully this process will go as smoothly as it did with Maverick--and then we'll be a completely diaper-free house!! We've been buying diapers for 4 years now--we're SO over it ;)
**If any of you are interested in reading up on the 3-day potty training technique, I still have the email from Baby Center and would be happy to forward it to you. Just leave me a comment with your email address!
I remember I started his first day of potty training on July 11 (and I only remember that because it was 7/11, lol). We were going to use the 3-Day Potty Training technique I had read about in an article that Baby Center had emailed to me. Its a very simple and easy technique, your kid just has to be ready for it. On day one, you bring a potty training toilet into whatever room you and your child spend the most time in, then let them run around naked all day. You don't leave the house. Ask them every 15 minutes or so if they need to go pee, have them try, and if they get even the tiniest amount of pee/poop in the toilet, make a HUGE deal out of it. Dance around, jump and shout, give candy or stickers as rewards, and give lots of praise. They very quickly catch on that if they go in the toilet and not in a diaper, they are a big kid. On day two, you do everything exactly the same as day one, but you add in a 30-minute trip to a nearby park. Before you go to the park, you have your child try and go pee in the toilet, then explain to them that you are going to go to the park and can go to the bathroom again when you come home. Don't put them in tight pants; put them in very loose, flowy shorts (or a dress for a girl). If they make it the entire park trip with no accidents, they get LOTS of praise (but the most important thing to remember is: if they do have an accident any time throughout this process, never get mad--they're learning and trying their best). Day three is the same as the previous two days, except you do two-30 minute trips to the park; one in the morning and one in the evening. When these 3 days are over, your child should be potty trained.
Maverick learned this very quickly. We rewarded him with m&ms--1 m&m if he went pee in the toilet, and 2 m&ms if he went poop. He very quickly learned how to control his bladder, let a tiny bit of pee out into the toilet, collect his m&m, then do it again every 2 minutes. This kid was on sugar overload--he was running circles around the house! Once we figured out he was doing this, we switched from m&ms to stickers, and he was equally excited. Of course there were accidents along the way, and there were accidents after this 3-day training period, but he understood it. I had him daytime-potty trained in 3 days! Nighttime potty training was a whole other story though.
I decided to hold off on the nighttime potty training until he started waking up dry from naps. Weeks, months, and even a year went by and he had never woken up dry. I started to worry and think that I was doing something wrong and that it was my fault.. and in reality, it kinda was. He used his diaper as a crutch. I realized this two weeks before he turned 4.. There had been times where I was getting him ready for bed and would put him in his diaper, then for whatever reason need to take it off, and he would have already peed in it. He was awake, he knew how to pee in a toilet, yet he continued to pee in his diapers. Finally, one night, I decided to take away the diapers cold turkey. I just had a feeling he would be fine without them. Joe and I went to target, bought 2 protective plastic sheets, then headed home. I layered sheets on Maverick's bed: regular sheet, protective sheet, regular sheet, protective sheet, regular sheet. This way, if he had any accidents in the middle of the night, I could just take off the top layer of sheet/protective sheet and he would be all set. I wouldn't be changing sheets all night long. I set a pile of blankets in his room, next to a pile of pajamas (so that we wouldn't be fumbling around all night looking for these things.) We were set, and I was stressed out!! We woke up the next morning, and to my surprise, he hadnt had any accidents! I was over the moon; my hunch was right--he was using his diapers as a crutch because he knew he could pee in them! Of course there were some nights he would have accidents, but he hasn't had one in months and I can say that he is 100% done with diapers. I did it!
They say that potty training boys is a lot harder than potty training girls, but I'm not so sure about that. I'm getting ready to potty train Madison and she is very stubborn. I've tried to potty train her before, but she refuses to go on the toilet: she ended up pooping on the tile instead (thank god we have tile!). We went out the other night and let her pick out her very first pack of "big girl undies" and she picked out some Minnie Mouse ones. We've had a busy week and weekend so we haven't started the process yet, but I think that having her undies and being able to hold them is building up the anticipation for her--she cant wait to wear them.
Hopefully this process will go as smoothly as it did with Maverick--and then we'll be a completely diaper-free house!! We've been buying diapers for 4 years now--we're SO over it ;)
**If any of you are interested in reading up on the 3-day potty training technique, I still have the email from Baby Center and would be happy to forward it to you. Just leave me a comment with your email address!
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Mint Oreo Truffles
Have you ever been asked last minute to bring a dessert to an event but don't want to just grab something from the store? No? You're fine buying something quick from the store?! Okay, then you're a normal person--I'm the weird one. However, homemade stuff usually tastes better than store bought, and this recipe is kinda foolproof: it only has 3 ingredients. This recipe is for mint Oreo truffles--my go-to recipe that is always a crowd pleaser. Lets get started!
Ingredients:
1 package of mint Oreos
1 block of cream cheese (you can use full or low fat--you wont be able to tell the difference)
1 package of Andes Mints
Take your Oreos and toss the entire package into a freezer bag--then take all of your frustrations from the week and go to town (or just use a food processor and pulsate until the Oreos are finely ground). Next, take your softened block of cream cheese and, using a hand mixer, mix it into the Oreos until its evenly distributed.
Once that's finished, scoop teaspoon-sized amounts and roll into balls; place on parchment paper and chill in fridge for 20 minutes.
Next, and most time consuming, you're gonna want to unwrap all of those Andes mints and melt them. You can use a double boiler (or in my case, a makeshift double boiler), or you can melt in the microwave (just be sure not to burn the chocolate; microwave in 30 second increments, stir, and repeat until all is melted).
Take the oreo balls out of the fridge and, using a spoon, dip them in the melted Andes mints. Place on parchment paper, then refrigerate when done to allow it to fully set.
Viola! They're ready to eat--and everyone is gonna love them. These are so easy to make and they taste like heaven.
*if you're not a mint person, there are a few different variations of this recipe (although I've never tried them). You could buy regular Oreos and dip them in melted milk chocolate or white chocolate--I'm sure those would taste amazing as well.
**Be sure to refrigerate any leftovers (as if there'll be any!) since there is cream cheese in them.
...man, thinking about these is making me want to eat some! Ahh! Try them out--you'll love them :)
Ingredients:
1 package of mint Oreos
1 block of cream cheese (you can use full or low fat--you wont be able to tell the difference)
1 package of Andes Mints
Take your Oreos and toss the entire package into a freezer bag--then take all of your frustrations from the week and go to town (or just use a food processor and pulsate until the Oreos are finely ground). Next, take your softened block of cream cheese and, using a hand mixer, mix it into the Oreos until its evenly distributed.
Once that's finished, scoop teaspoon-sized amounts and roll into balls; place on parchment paper and chill in fridge for 20 minutes.
Next, and most time consuming, you're gonna want to unwrap all of those Andes mints and melt them. You can use a double boiler (or in my case, a makeshift double boiler), or you can melt in the microwave (just be sure not to burn the chocolate; microwave in 30 second increments, stir, and repeat until all is melted).
Take the oreo balls out of the fridge and, using a spoon, dip them in the melted Andes mints. Place on parchment paper, then refrigerate when done to allow it to fully set.
Viola! They're ready to eat--and everyone is gonna love them. These are so easy to make and they taste like heaven.
*if you're not a mint person, there are a few different variations of this recipe (although I've never tried them). You could buy regular Oreos and dip them in melted milk chocolate or white chocolate--I'm sure those would taste amazing as well.
**Be sure to refrigerate any leftovers (as if there'll be any!) since there is cream cheese in them.
...man, thinking about these is making me want to eat some! Ahh! Try them out--you'll love them :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)