Good Day...

Today has been a great day.  I really want to write a whole blog post about it, but I told myself that I wasn't telling too many people for fear that I would jinx myself.  Yes, I'm superstitious like that.  So, HOPEFULLY, later this week I will have good news for you all.  If not, well then that's because God has decided he has a better plan for me.  Until next time...toodles!

Random 5...and This Time I actually Got to 5!

Man...I stink at this updating thing!  I really need to stay on it more.  For reals.

Anyhow, here is my random 5 updates to bring you up to speed...

1.  Still no job.  However several districts had many openings posted today and I applied like crazy.  I'm really trying hard not to let it get me down, but no lie, its hard not to shed a few tears.  So prayers would be greatly appreciated.  At this point, I'd take anything.

2.  My little baby turns a year old on Sunday!  We have been going crazy getting ready for his party and I'm so excited!  We are having a hot diggity dog party (Mickey Mouse Clubhouse style) complete with a hot dog bar and everything.  I plan to dedicate a whole post to the party.  My crafty decor is too awesome not to share!

3.  I fell off the "weight loss" wagaon.  It's frustrating.  You just want to live life and not be hindered by "should I eat this?" or "Do I have enough calories left?".  But then I think about how nice it would be to healthy for my child and husband so that I can spend many more years with them.  If anything, I just need to be healthy!  The actual size is not what matters in the end.  So today, I got back on the wagon.  The good news, I didn't gain back the five pounds I lose before falling off the wagon!

4.  I rejoined facebook. I decided I missed interacting with my friends.  But I will warn you, if you cause drama for me, I'll delete you.  If you go crazy posting your political/moral/humorous photos, I will delete you.  If you use it as a way to bully others, I will delete you.  My facebook is MINE and I refuse to put up with such crap anymore.

5.  My latest read is The Girl Who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson.  After three tries, I finally started getting into the story line.  But it is still a hard read at times.  The author is brilliant and has a great plot, characters, and what not, but boy, I can't take the horror of the situations at times or deal with the graphic scenes all the times.  I've been reading it here and there to keep myself sane.  You're probably thinking, then why would I want to read this?  Because it's still a damn good book.  Trust me on that.

Okay, that does it for my updates.  Someone please make sure I update more often!

Time flies...

I haven't posted in two weeks.  I kept thinking, "I really need to update my blog" and then life happened and here I am two weeks later.  The baby is entertained with his toys currently so I'm going to attempt to write this post in the time it takes for him to lose interest in his current toy and seek Mommy out.

Well let's see what has happened in the last two weeks...

Weight - I haven't weighed in a few days, but after I was sure that I had gained from eating out and being on the run, I apparently have maintained.  Like I said, I haven't weighed in a few days so that may have changed.  I'm really just trying to be conscious of what goes in my mouth and eating in moderation.  Where I mess it all up is in the pop.  Gawd....I love Pepsi!!!  Asking me to rid myself of pop is like asking me to cut my leg off.  Not ready for that just yet.

Cade - It's been a whirlwind of party planning here.  The invitations have gone out.  Slowly but surely the party supplies are being purchased.  And I'm getting excited!  Then part of me goes...but my baby is turning one!  Where has time gone??

Job hunt - UGH! UGH! UGH!  I just want to scream and yell "do you know what you are missing out on????" to all of the districts that are failing to even consider me for an interview.  Seriously.  I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but I am a damn good teacher and you are missing out.  I can't really thinking of a good, valid reasons why I can't find a job other than the economy sucks and the budget cuts have finally began to affect me.  *Sigh*  I should of never left my job, but here we thought we were making a good decision by moving to Kansas City to eliminate Kyle's commute.  I mean, we were paying the equivalent of our rent payment in gas and toll!  So I guess if nothing pans out come the start of school in a few weeks, I am subbing.  Not what I want to do, but I guess that's life.

In other news, Cade and I are sitting here watching the "The 15 Most Awesomest Boy Bands" and yes, the Backstreet Boys are number 1!  I was a diehard fan and I still can sing every song when I hear it.  So what did I do?  I pulled up the video to "I Want It That Way" on YouTube and my precious baby loved it!  And when the video stopped and began buffering, he threw himself down in a mini fit because the music stopped.  Yes, he is so my child.  Here is a picture of him enjoying BSB.

No Job...Yet

Happy Friday the 13th!  I didn't even realize it was Friday the 13th until just now and its nearly 3PM in the afternoon.  Oh well.  I don't believe in such silly superstitions anyway.

Well, I'm still jobless.  I've decided that if no job prospect is offered to me by the end of this month, I will start putting in apps to be a substitute teacher.  That will help me get my name out there, right?  Not gonna lie, it sucks.  I don't want to just be a substitute teacher.  I didn't go to school for five years to be a sub, but at this point in life, that is what I have to do.  I can't afford not to work (gotta pay those dang student loans!).  I just keep reminding myself that I quit my recent job for a good reason.  We were financially strapped with my husband commuting up to two hours a day and paying toll.  He essentially was spending one entire paycheck a month on just commuting.  That's a huge chunk.  And I'll be honest, I just really didn't think it would be this hard to find a new job.  But there is something I always keep in mind, no matter how bad the "storm" gets, God will guide me to calmer waters.  I must simply be patient and put my trust in him.  He WILL provide.

Things are a changing...

First, I am 5 pounds lighter!  Since I started my journey of watching my calorie intake almost two and a half weeks ago, I'm seeing results.  It feels so good! 

In other news, I am sticking to Cade's new bedtime routine and for three nights now, he has gone to bed semi-awake without a bottle (I feed and rock him prior to putting him in his crib) and he has gone to sleep on his own!  Tonight, I didn't even have him cry and fuss for me to pick him back up! YES!  Now, if I could just figure out why he wants to wake up in the middle of the night...

I'm super happy with the way things are going.  I only need to find a job, but I'd rather not be a Debbie Downer and ruin my happy post with that.

The Happiest Baby

This story starts with a prayer I said last night.  I was, yet again, attempting to get Cade to sleep and was fighting a battle with him.  I was feeling frustrated because I knew that I had created bad habits months ago when he was just a few months old that involve him being rocked until he is asleep or taking a bottle to bed to help him fall asleep.  Both I had been warned not to do, but the mother in me couldn't bear to let her child "cry it out".  Last night, I sent up a prayer to God that sounded something like this, "God, help my baby find peace so that he may sleep.  Help me figure out how to help him sleep."  Then today as Cade and I were waiting for our library class to start, we were perusing the "New Books" shelf and a book caught my eye, The Happiest Baby Guide to Great Sleep by Harvey Karp, M.D.  I had heard of the book and had read some great reviews about Dr. Karp and at this point, I was desperate.  I pulled the book off the shelf and stuck it in my bag to check it out.  Upon arriving home and as soon as Cade was down for a nap, I found myself reading the book, absorbing its every word.  While I am still not currently done with the book, I was excited for bedtime because I had learned some new tools to try and I wanted to see if it would work!

Here is a brief rundown of what I've learned so far:

• "Crying it out" is ineffective.  If your baby wants to be comforted, pick them up and comfort them.  Just make sure you put them back to bed while they are still awake.
• Putting them to bed with a bottle is a "no-no".  It is not teaching your child how to self-soothe themselves back to sleep.
• White noise is needed!  This can be lullabies or a comforting sound.
• A bedtime routine is NEEDED!  This involves many things:
• Reducing lights and sounds (No TV!) an hour before bed.
• Your child should be dressed and diaper changed a half hour prior to bed.
• Spend time with your child doing quiet activities such as quiet play or reading books.  It is okay to rock your child and give them a bottle before bed!  Just don't put them to bed after they fall asleep and do not let them take a bottle to bed! 

This is what Cade's bedtime routine looked like tonight:

1. At 7:00PM, we took a bath.
2. By 7:25PM, he was bathed, lotioned up, and dressed.   I lotioned him up with Johnson's Vanilla Oatmeal lotion using a bit of massaging touches to help calm him.
3. We played together with blocks (quiet play) until about 7:35PM.
4. After quiet play, we sat together in the rocking chair and read our library books.
5. At 7:45PM, I made his nightly bottle, bundled him up in his quilt, and gave him is lovey, a small tag blanket.  I rocked him, sang lullabies, and talked quietly to him as he ate his bottle.
6. Following his bottle, I put him in his bed.  He was still awake and did not take to this too well at first.  Using Dr. Karp's suggestion, when he became upset, I picked him up and rocked him until he calmed down and was close to falling asleep again.  Then I put him back in his bed awake.  It took about four tries of putting him to bed and then having to pick him back up to comfort him until he finally laid in his bed and fell asleep without being in my arms.

It is now nearly two hours later and he has yet to wake up!  This is an accomplishment so far since he has woken up these past few nights about an hour after he was put to bed screaming because Mommy was no where to be found.  AND we went to sleep in the crib with no bottle!

I feel like I am selling the book and maybe I am, but I'm already impressed with how well Cade did after one night after trying a new bedtime routine.  I admit, I was that mom guilty of having the TV on while getting him ready for bed before tonight.  I was guilty of putting him to bed overtired at times in hopes he would sleep longer at night.  I was guilty of rocking him to sleep and them putting him in his crib.  I was guilty of giving him a bottle in his crib and letting that put him to sleep.  Dr. Karp's book inspired to me to try harder at helping my child find peace at bedtime.  And honestly, I didn't just happen upon that book today at the library.  God put it there for me to find.

I'll keep you posted on how our new routine goes over the next few weeks and I hope that I continue to sing the praises of this book.

Random five...or three

Wow. Time got away from me. I haven't updated in almost a week. So I'm going to do a random 5 to update you!

1. Money is the root of all evil. I've been feeling pretty stressed about money here lately. Mostly because we are moving in a few months and I fear we are not ready financially. I sometimes feel like its a struggle to get anything done with my husband because he is gone all the time working nights and then he is a typical man. Talking to him about money is like pulling teeth! But the reality is, we are moving in a few months and I'm still currently jobless so we need to prepare.

2. I'm still working on my weight loss. As of tonight, I am down 2.8 lbs. It was more but I gave in way too much this past weekend. Anyone notice how dang expensive it is to eat healthy??? Insane. Really.

3. Cade has started grinding his teeth. Any suggestions?? I've been trying to distract him by giving him things to chew on and that seems to help a bit. I think it's a result of his front teeth working their way in and this might be his way of dealing with the pain. Hopefully it is just a phase!

 4. .... Okay maybe it's just a random three tonight. I am updating from my phone tonight and I'm not enjoying the small keyboard so I'm going to end it here. Night!

A Quick Update

Keeping it short and sweet as I just want to get to bed and read.  My current reading is "The Kane Chronicles: The Red Pyramid" by Rick Riordan.  If you loved Percy Jackson and the Olympians, give this series a try!

In other news...I have lost weight!  It's most likely from the drastic cut in calories as well as my Pepsi drinking that has done the job, but I will take it!

First Haircut

Bubba got his first hair cut at 10 1/2 months!  He simply just had too much hair and was starting to look a bit like Bozo the Clown with his curly hair coming out over his ears!  Here are some photos of the occasion:

 Sitting still like a big boy!  Sorry for the blurry photo, Daddy took this one!

Showing off my new haircut!

Motherhood

I'm sleep deprived.  Yet, here I am posting on my blog rather than using this time when the baby is asleep to get some sleep too.

Today was rough.  And that's an understatement.  After two days of Cade having non-stop low grade fevers, teething, being clingy, not eating...the list goes on and on.  I finally had a breakdown today. Cade woke up after only 20 minutes of napping (and he usually naps at least an hour to two hours at a time) and it went all down hill from there.  After nearly 30 minutes of inconsolable crying, I was at my wits end.  My husband, a day sleeper, woke up to all the crying and came out of the bedroom and Cade immediately went to him and all was fine.  I broke down crying and I remember saying "I can't do this anymore!" as I handed him over.  At the time, I really thought I couldn't do this anymore.  I couldn't find a way to make my baby feel at peace.  I couldn't find a way to help stop the tears.  He didn't want me to comfort him.  It was an awful feeling.  And I was just done.  Done.

Kyle took him into the bedroom with him and from my curled up position on the couch with tears on my face, I could hear them laughing and giggling.  I started feeling remorse and felt like a bad mom for giving up, for getting so frustrated so easily.  It took awhile, but I got back into the swing of things.  And Kyle took it in stride.  He never once became angry that his sleep was interrupted.  He didn't look at me as if I was ridiculous for crying over something like this.  Instead, he took Cade and gave me time to regain my composure and when I was ready to join them again, he kissed my forehead as if to say "it's okay babe.  You're allowed to have bad moments." and all was forgotten.

Part of me still feels guilty, but I now understand, what happened today is normal, if not expected.  I am a "single mom" during the week.  I don't get the luxury of passing Cade off to his father when I need a breather and after several days, my pent up frustration, despair, and anger all came to the surface.  In the end, I thank God that I do have Kyle to save me when it finally becomes too much.  He truly is an amazing man.

Random 5

Nothing spectacular happened today so to keep it interesting, I will sum my day up in five happenings of the day.

1.  Cade has maintained a temperature of anywhere from 99.5 to 100.5 for 2 days now.  Tylenol will bring it down, but it goes right back up after it wears off.  I'm guessing teething is the root of this problem, but is it normal to maintain a low grade fever this long??

2.  I have made it through Day 2 of watching what I eat and "journaling" it in the MyFitnessPal app on my iPhone.  Call me crazy, but I almost feel like my clothes just fit better already.  I think it's just my mind really getting used to the fact that I am being healthy and it feels good!

3.  I need exercise.  But two things are hindering it.  The first is this cute adorable thing named Cade who is seriously hell on wheels, but in a good way.  If I turn my back for two seconds, he climbs or does something that would give any good mother a heart failure.  The second hindrance is the heat!  I don't live in town, so to go to the gym would require more than just a drive around the block.  So I prefer to walk around here.  Yeah, I don't think I should pack up Cade in a stroller and go walking with 105+ temperatures.  That equals bad parenting choices.  Tomorrow, I plan to go to the FREE rec center while I am already in town to get in a good walk.

4.  While out and about today, Cade was identified as a girl.  Not once, but twice!  And he was wearing a very "boyish" sports outfit.  I know he has adorable curly hair, but come on!  Result:  We now have a haircut appointment on Saturday afternoon.  I've been meaning to do it so we can take birthday photos so this just pushed me into setting the appointment up.  However, I am SUPER SAD about getting rid of his adorable baby curls.

5.  I watched 6 episodes of Roseanne.  Best show ever.  Seriously.  Hands down.

To end, here is my cute photo of the day!  I thought a dip in the pool might make him feel better.

Losing the Pounds

I've been thinking about this for awhile and giving it a half-hearted attempt, but then I finally decided enough is enough.  I need to lose this baby weight plus some.  Cade is almost 11 months old and I have not lost any of the weight I have gained with him.  And to lose just the extra baby weight is not enough.  For my height, I need to lose more than just the added pounds that came along with Cade.  So with that, my ultimate goal is to lose 60 pounds...yikes.  That number scares me!  To make it more bearable, I think I'll break it up into chunks.  You know, just like they do on Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition.  In 90 days, I hope WILL lose 15 lbs.  That is approximately 5 pounds a month or a little over a pound a week.  I know that number seems low, but I have always bought into the whole "slow and steady wins the race."  That and research shows it is best to lose about 1 to 2 pounds a week.

So here goes my weight loss journey.  I even took a photo of myself to show where I am today and remind myself why I am doing this.  Ugh...I'm not a fan of this photo AT ALL, but then again, I need this reminder as to why I am sticking to it!

After that awful picture, I have to end this post with a much better photo!  Here is my precious baby...he was not feeling well all day due to teething and I couldn't resist taking advantage of it and sneaking in all kinds of cuddle time today.

He's Reading!

Another lazy day.  This summer heat is driving me crazy and makes me want to hide out in the house and never leave!  But being the good Momma I am, I took Cade into town to his library class.  It's so great to see him interacting with new people, learning to love books, and I get the chance to be the parent I always dreamed of being.  Involved.  Now, don't go reading into that and thinking my parents were not involved because they were the opposite of that!  I have just seen too many kids in the education field whose parents are not involved in their lives and it saddens me.  Anyhow, library class must be having a positive affect on Cade.  I found him over in his book basket reading books this afternoon and making the cutest babbling sounds that sounded like he was reading!  My heart seriously melted!  The book nerd in me was so proud!  Here are a few pictures I captured, but of course, pictures never do justice.

Starting Fresh

Well here we go!  A new blog!  Lately, I've been so inspired by other blogs that I have been reading and I want to try a few things out professionally at Teachers Pay Teachers so I'm giving this a shot!  I hope to keep you updated on my family, my career, and my many other projects I have going.  And in return, I hope this blog will give me a chance to meet some great people, become more inspired, and keep me motivated to be the best I can be!