Trials & Tribulations

In efforts to avoid becoming too "heavy", I'll make every attempt at trying to bring in comic relief which is often times provided by the notorious 2 year old named - Skylar! Let's dive in! Ah, trials and tribulations - we all have them and at times we feel we're at our breaking point, right?! Well this week has been that kind of week for me! Somehow I'm being put through the ringer emotionally, physically, and spiritually! My life at times seems so out of control and I just can't seem to grab hold of it! Every day life introduces new stresses and each week provides more emptiness! Did I just say emptiness? Yes, I did. Even with the hectic life of raising two kids, planning meals, scheduling appointments, cleaning diapers - emptiness can still creep inside! Life suddenly is no longer full of surprises but rather "planned" or "rigid" and every day passes kind of like a blur! Aye! It's getting heavy - I apologize! I guess I'm writing this because today I became aware of something very interesting...that in my everyday planning and cleaning and mothering - God is always with me! And though my trials and tribulations may seem GINORMOUS, God is right there leading me through my "fiery furnace." If only I would call out to him, He is ready and willing to take my burdens for me and calm the raging sea! Today, as I rushed to get out of the house on my way to my bible study - I felt overwhelmed and frustrated! I had convinced myself that this study was not worth all of the hardships of just trying to make it there on time but alas, I found myself in the car - heading to church. I was still flustered as we pulled in the parking lot. Skylar excitedly yelled out that we're at church and I didn't even realize the importance of that! My sweet girl, who also had to go through all the craziness of the morning with mommy running around and Brycen crying the whole time - still had this joyful look on her face about getting to go to church! If we could all have a child's heart! We finally made it in and I found my seat next to my mom! It really wasn't until we split into our small groups that I realized I was right where I needed to be! I was with other women, going through the exact same circumstances as me and here we are asking God for help and direction! I'm having to learn within myself that I can plan and make to-do lists and schedules but how much time am I setting aside for God? After all, he's cleared his schedule for me! And my trials and tribulations are nothing compared to those in the Bible! But finding out that even the most Godly of women have found themselves curled up in the corner of the playroom, crying out "God help me" was eye-opening! My new commitment is to turn over the "ugly stuff" to God while enjoying moments like early this morning when Skylar climbed into bed and whispered softly "I love you mama." Or my husband thanking me for everything I do! I have a great life that God has provided and I need to start learning how to enjoy it and at it's fullest! So, as I'm in my "molding" process (from my study which I'll touch on more in a later post), I pray that God will open up my eyes to the joys around me! One more Skylar moment to leave with: before the craziness ensued, Skylar told me that she "hixed the hash light" (aka - fixed the flashlight)! I said "wow, you did huh?" (knowing full well that her daddy fixed it) and she responded "yes, I'm the best EVER!!!!!" You see, how can I complain when I have the best daughter EVER!!! ;-)

A Little Bit of Brycie Belly!

So mentioning "the belly" in the last post got me thinking that maybe it'd be fun to put all the pics together to see the belly progression while I was pregnant with Bryce!

So here ya go:

2 months:

3 months:
4 months:

5 months:

6 months:
7 months: 8 months:9 months and ready to pop:

Skylar Turns 2!!

As promised, this is one of those "catch-up" posts!

Well, because there was so much going on during the Summer - we had a really tough time picking the perfect date for her party! We didn't want to do it too early because in conflicted with other family members birthday parties and we didn't want to do it too late because Brycen was due July 1st! Oh...and let's not forget that Father's Day was right in the middle of planning too!

So after much stress, we settled on June 24th! Sound familiar?! Yep - Bubba made his entrance into the world on that date so the party was cancelled! Thankfully however, we celebrated a "small" party for her on her actual birthday of June 12th just in case mommy couldn't be there for her big party! So here's some pics of the fun...and the enormous belly! ;)

She had so much fun and I'm so glad we managed to get it done!! Matthew and I intend on making her party extra special this year since she didn't really have one last year!

I'll try and make a short list (of what I can remember) of things that she was into it at that time:

Woo - her favorite cuddly toy

Gee - her paci that would soon be taken away

Swimming - she loved spending ALL her time in Papa's pool

School - she had a mothers day out program that she enjoyed going to during the Summer

Babies - anything that was small...baby or teddy bear...she enjoyed "mothering"

Max and Ruby - one of her favorite shows on Nick Jr (she used to call it "Nuts n Ruby")

Chicken Nuggets - this became a HUGE favorite and for a while it was all she'd eat

Hide and Seek - she played this with Daddy ALL the time and would say (daddy...et's go hide!!)

...so I'll update more as I think of them but that's what I've got for now....

My Precious Skylar,

As I write this, I'm already filled with so much emotion about reminiscing over the wonderful 2 1/2 years that have flown by too quickly! Right now is, I think, my favorite time with you because you are discovering and learning so much every day! I love having conversations with you and the silly way you giggle when you tell a story! You are so full of life that sometimes it's hard to keep up! You are my little energizer bunny that just keeps on going but I'm thankful for that because you really keep me going just by being you!

I think I often times forget, now that I have little Bryce here, about the miracle of you and I'm sorry for that! But I want and NEED you to know how much you have, and continue to, bless my life! As I said in my first letter to you and will say it over and over again, you are my miracle! You came at a time in my life when I needed you most and reaffirmed how mighty and majestic our God truly is! I prayed many of nights for a sweet little baby to nurture and take care of and God far exceeded my expectations when he sent me you! You have the biggest heart and every day you teach me something new. Not just about things you're discovering but things I'm discovering about myself! For instance, I never considered myself to be a very patient person and you've taught me that! Granted, you have a way of making mommy crazy at times but it one instant of your sweet grace, all my bad days or crazy moods are wiped away!

I love that you have a heart for learning! You are fascinated with being challenged and like a sponge, you absorb everything! Your Papa often says that you're as quick as a whip and Skylar, you really are! My prayer is that God can use your gifts and talents in a mighty way!!! You also have such a tender and loving heart - even if you sometimes have to get through the strong-willed barrier first!! So far you've been an amazing big sister and you help mommy with so much! You love to do what I do and that even includes changing bubba's diaper! I know there will come a day that you two will bicker like cats and dogs but I pray you remember how much God has blessed the both of you with each other! I know and believe in my heart that Brycen will always protect you and love you unconditionally!!!

I guess all that's really left to say is that I love you! I love everything about you and I praise God for each day I can spend with you! Thank you my sweet girl for everything you do for me and for all the ways you enrich my life! You are my precious joy!!

With all my love,

Mama

Potty-Training: It's A PRIVATE MATTER!

Aye! Potty-training is the hardest thing about parenting I've experienced so far! It takes loads of patience and understanding which I shamefully admit I suffer with at times! However, we continue to try and try and what I've discovered is that Skylar likes to handle her business on her own! I'll take her into the restroom, set her on the potty and then she tells me "okay mama, you go!" Oh and let's not forget the "hey! Cose da door!!" I'll come back to check on her and sure enough, she's succeeded in going!

We are now on day 5 of potty-training success! But SHHHH! don't tell anyone!!! :)

Dress-up Junk!!!

I was reading this article the other day about friendly tips to keep the playroom organized and your toddler interested! I came across one suggestion to keep an open trunk full of their dress-up clothes enabling them "hours of fun" (so says the article)! What mom wouldn't want there child to have hours of fun, right? Okay - so a hint of sarcasm there but either way I decided to do it because her current dress up clothes have been (no laughing) hanging neatly on hangers in her closet getting absolutely NO use!!!

So, I decide to grab an old box and told Skylar I had a surprise for her which she of course thought was candy and went hauling off to the kitchen! When she saw me walk the other direction she said "mama, what you doin?" I told her that I was going to get her dress up clothes and place them in a special box for her! She seemed amused and continued following me as I collected all her things! Once in her playroom I explained to her that this is now her very own dress-up trunk especially for her!!! Her little eyebrows went up and with wide eyes said "my own dress-up junk?!! Hurray!!!" She is her fathers daughter for he too would consider anything "girly" to be junk! Here she is modeling her "dress up junk!"

It's a BIG CASTLE!!!!

On our way to school this morning, I decided to stop off for some breakfast at McDonald's! Skylar is in one of these stages where she is very picky on what she eats and if it even looks like it might contain a vegetable - you can forget it!!! Normally she'll eat one thing and one thing only - muckins (muffins)! However, here recently she's started taking an interest in the biscuits at McDonald's! She doesn't want anything on it - just the biscuit! So, since we were running early I decided I'd stop of and get her one along with her normal OJ! We drove around through a nearby neighborhood while eating and she was admiring all the houses!

We went through one neighborhood that was very fancy and from the backseat I hear "oh my mama...look! It's a BIG CASTLE!" Before I could really get anything out she said "oh no! It's a big, BIG house!!!" She's so darn cute and smart! I loved that she seemed to correct herself...as if to say...oh, I was mistaken. It's not a castle but rather a very large home!!! She's precious!

Minivans & Mom-Jeans!

I can still remember dreaming about the day I'd be able to drive and what kind of car my parents would purchase for me! Was I going to be a cute civic kind of girl? A "wind blowing through your hair" convertible kind of girl? Or maybe even a "sporty - truck driving" kind of girl? Little did I know that I'd be driving a teal Geo Storm that seemed to be a magnet drawn to curbs, parking garages, or other vehicles! Ha!

I say all of this because throughout my driving life, I always dreamed of my next car and what it would be and how cute or cool I'd look! Never once, not once, did I ever dream of driving a minivan! That is, until I was about 6 months pregnant with Brycen! Even with Skylar, I wanted a Tahoe or Sequoia...or any nice SUV but NOT a minivan! Try as he may, Matthew was never going to convince me to get one! So here I was, enormous belly, trying to get Skylar in and out of my Explorer while the car next to me is parked so close I can only manage to open her door just a smidge! It was at that moment, squeezed into a small space with her, my belly and the door that I realized - I can't do this anymore! This is nuts! So I agreed to go LOOK (emphasis on look-only) at the new Sienna's that just came out! My dad joined us because he too was interested in what they looked like and he was also team Matthew on this one! Thanks dad!

So we went to take a look and Matthew insisted on me driving one! To keep peace, I consented but not without a few growls and eye-rolls! We hop in, listen to the guy in the backseat talk about all the "amazing features" and I slowly begin to merge onto the freeway! Suddenly, I fell head over heels in love! The comfort, the space, the heated seats...it all won me over! Matthew smiled proudly as we cruised around and a few weeks later - I got my own!

I find myself giggling at times at all the "mom things" that I've been suckered into! The things that 20 year old Sarah would NEVER do! I mean, a minivan for crying out loud?!!! And that's just a small sliver of it! I traded in designer shoes for sneakers, name brand makeup for cover girl (not a bad choice, either), 100 different styles of jeans for 100 different styles of sweats or "workout" pants....the list goes on! I even cloth diaper!! That's right, I get down and dirty (literally) to try and save a couple bucks and the toxic waste on the environment! And you know the best part of all of it, I'd do it all again in a second! I wouldn't give up one part of my life as it is today for even 2 seconds of my life before kids! My world is my kids!!! So bring on the boogies, the boo-boo's, the dirty "cloth" diapers, the colored walls, the spaghetti painted tables, and the 100 loads of laundry because when Skylar looks at me and says "I yuv u mama", or when Brycen snuggles deep in my chest and lets out an "I love you" sigh - it's ALL worth it!

More Christmas!

Since I didn't really explain a whole lot on Christmas, I thought I should add a few more things - such as SANTA! So, mom and I decided to venture out to the Mall to get the kids photos done with Mr. Claus and it was so much harder then I expected! It's almost as if I forgot I have 2 kids now which means S-T-R-E-S-S!!!! To top it off, silly me decided to have family pics the SAME day! Thank God for my mom though, she was such a trooper!

So after getting the kids "dolled" up...one of which, we dressed at the mall on a bench so he wouldn't puke all over his new outfit, we waited to see Santa! Skylar seemed okay with the idea right up until we walked towards him and then she quickly changed her mind! I have to say though, Santa was looking a little creepy this year and I would've been scared too! Our one saving grace was my chipper little boy who sat there on Santa's lap, happy as can be! Once Skylar saw that her "bubba" was safe, she too joined in! They quickly snapped the photo for fear she might change her mind and this is what we got:

I'm pretty proud of it and of them!!! Once they snapped the photo, Skylar was just talking away with him telling him about the school bus and the tiger (she mentions this every time we're at the mall because of the little rides placed near Sears)!! So despite Santa not looking his best this year, my kids did pretty good!!!

After this we headed to the food court to grab a quick bite to eat and then off to our family pictures! Now to explain why Matthew's absent in these pics is merely because me being the last minute person that I am, literally decided THAT day to have them done while he was at work! I called to tell him I was planning on it, too which he consented! I know a lot of people were kind of curious but that's the reason for it! This was a nightmare! Both of my kids were extremely tired and uncooperative and once again, thank God for my mom because she kind of held it together for me as I felt like throwing a temper tantrum of my own a couple of times! Either way, they got some good ones and here they are:

Skylar learned to sing "Frosty the Snowman", "Jingle Bells", and "Jesus Loves Me" all courtesy of her Papa Hart! I love to hear her sing each of them because she has her own little words and way of doing it that makes it so precious! "Fossy tha Snooooman", "Tinker Bell, Tinker Bell, Jingle all the way - hey." And then of course who wouldn't love to hear their little one sing "Jesus Loves Me"! I have an audio clip of her saying her night time prayer that I'll have to try and attach because it too, is heart warming!!! She also loves to say the prayer at dinner time to which she starts out with "dear Jesus," then rambles her own language and then says "in Jesus name, Amen. LET'S EAT!!!"

Skylar-ism's, Skylar-nese, and more!

From the time Skylar began forming words and attempting conversations, her Granny Lou (Matthew's mom) called it Skylar-nese! She would get so excited that everything would come out super fast and sounded as if she was speaking her own language! Well, it kind of just stuck and even now at 2 years old, she still gets so excited that she cant get out what she wants to say fast enough so she reverts back to speaking her own language, Skylar-nese!

As for Skylar-ism's, I'm sure everyone as a list some where of the cute mispronunciations your kids say! This list is just a few and I'll update it as I think of more or as she continues to amuse us with her own way of saying things!

- who'd (food)
- hoggy (froggy)
- heet (feet)
- pag (flag)
- doxy (Roxy -the dog)
- a...wish...us (delicious)
- go...geous (gorgeous)
- cheese hi's (french fries)
- hur (hair)
- chicken nuts (chicken nuggets)
- Bunny hoo-hoo (bunny foo-foo)
- Shmellows (marshmallows)
- cannnny (candy)
- banks (blanket)

She brings such joy to my life!!! She also loves to play "mommy" especially when it comes to enforcing discipline! Matthew and I are going to try and catch her own video one of these days because it's just the cutest! For example, she'll come by with a blanket and a pillow and tell you to lay down because it's time for nap! If I consent, she'll tuck me in, say my night time prayer, tell me sweet dreams and goodnight! But as she walks away she makes sure to include "now mama, if you get up I'm gunna spank you wiff pop spoon!" I'll tell her okay and lay down for a moment but as soon as I get up, she furrows her little eyebrows and yells "mama!!! you lay down RIGHT NOOOOW!!!!" Nothing quite like getting chewed out by a 2 year old!

Like Mother, Like Daughter!

As I was doing laundry the other day, I noticed that it was unusually quiet! In fact, too quiet! Panic immediately sank in as I went in search of my very nosey, getting into everything lately - 2 year old!

I walked around the corner towards the playroom and caught her in the act of trying to change Brycen's diaper! There he lay, with no pajama pants, socks or diaper - just naked!! She was at the point of trying to put a diaper back on him when I caught her! I asked what she was doing...to which she responded "I'm helpin. Bubba's pee-pee'd!" What could I say except thank you?! I mean, she was trying to help!!

I giggled and gave her a hug while trying to explain why it's mommy's job to change Bubba's diaper! I could tell she was only half listening and I'm sure this won't be the first time she attempts to "help" me! Fun!! ;)