Compare to Sister’s Blog: Month 24: Happy Birthday Two
Picture From a Few Weeks Ago: Fun at the Magic Kingdom
1/22 Wednesday (23 Months) Day 698
Night EC: 1 catch, 1 miss.
Day: 1 miss.
Poop: Missed it.
I still haven’t unpacked our suitcases. To say that I have zero ambition to do it is being pretty generous. Feminine hormones have a small role to play in that, ugh. I just want to curl up an hibernate until menopause. Okay, just until winter is over.
On a more ambitious note, I’ve been making a lot of food from scratch in an effort to save as many pennies as possible while filling bellies. We’ve made tortillas from scratch, flat bread, dinner roll, quick breads, whole slow roast chicken, crock pot chili, beans, and soups. Itty Bitty is complaining less about the food offerings. She’s been letting herself get good and hungry though; apples and bananas only fill you up so long! I tell her that she doesn’t have to eat what is offfered, but truly hungry people don’t refuse to eat their non-favorites. I think she is getting the idea that there is nothing else to have. This is totally my fault, I was really slacking with meals and eating out a lot during our house move and we just fell into a nasty habit.
1/23 Thursday Day 699
Night EC: 1 catch.
Day: 2 miss.
Poop: Caught it!
First day of work tonight. It was nice to get out of the house, but it has been bitterly cold and there is snow. My tire was flat too and I had to put air in it before I left.
I think we are all getting cabin fever. Too cold to go out and I have no extra funds to go anywhere and gas is expensive. I am trying really hard to cut way back so that I can get the debt accrued from the jeep paid off by May. That means that there is no room for many extras. It kind of has me down in the dumps, but I tell myself that we are in good shape and it is only temporary. I only hope that I get work this summer!
1/24 Friday Day 700
Night EC: 1 catch. Under protest. Mini Moose gave me some attitude and it wasn’t a big pee.
Day: 5 misses. It was an off day. It happens.
Poop: Missed it twice.
It’s been pretty blah around here. We get up, eat, watch tv, and spend the day in the play room. I cook. The kids fight. We complain. Bah humbug. I don’t think any of us were made for the winter doldrums. Daddy Man’s car track hodge podge has been very popular with the littles. However, they do fight over the multitude of cars and Itty Bitty’s first and favorite red car has gone missing. I think perhaps when Daddy Man put out the recycling he failed to look to see if any toys were put in the bin and he just dumped it. So, that little red corvette might just be gone for good. I am holding out hope, but I haven’t seen it and I’ve looked everywhere I can think of.
1/25 Saturday Day 701
Night EC: Pee refusal.
Day: 1 miss in the evening.
Poop: Caught it because he signaled in time! Yay!
I was surprised last night when Mini Moose woke up at his usual 3:00 time and he refused to pee. In fact, he seemed to be so insulted that I suggested a potty break that he cured up in a butt-hurt ball and declined nay-nay (nursing)! I was flabbergasted. I gave a little huff and said, “fine be that way!” and I too rolled over with a little ‘tude and fell back asleep.
Itty Bitty sleeps like a rock so she is always unaware of this night ballet. She is too busy outgrowing things.
Daddy Man bought more Hot Wheels tracks today. He is giddy like a little boy when he watches the Little get all excited about the cars racing and jumping on the tracks.
1/26 Sunday Day 702
Night EC: No Pee; huge morning wake-up pee.
Day: 2 miss.
Poop: Missed it.
Well, that has never happened. The second night where he has not needed a wee hour pee or was awake enough for a night nurse. I’ve been encouraging the middle of the night nurse, but when he does or doesn’t has been pretty random. Sometimes we do, sometimes we don’t. I’m pretty flexible expecially since his first stretch of sleep has been hitting the 4-5 hour mark and it has been refreshing to have my sleep cycle finish and end without interruption. We do still gripe at each other on the nights we disagree, but we work it out. Especially, because he is teething nursing is a cranky time for us both right now.
We had to shovel before we left to go to GMa’s and Itty Bitty was not pleased that it was so cold out! I guess she won’t pester me tomorrow about playing outside! MIni Moose didn’t stay out nearly as long. An hour to get dressed for 30 minutes of outside time! I was so not made for winter.
Today was also the first day that Itty Bitty used the new 3-in-1 Graco harness to booster seat Daddy Man bought yesterday. She will be forward facing in his Durango now. She still falls asleep in the car so the 5 point harness is essential, but it does convert to a high back booster and a low back booster after that. She is excited to sit forward facing, but found it a little disorientating as far as speed. The cup holder was a big hit with her and she was playing with it when it was in the house. I can’t believe my baby has grown so much! She’ll still be rear facing in my car until she reaches the 40lb limit, but she is not too far off. We’ll likely make it to at least 4.5 years, though I was hoping we’d make it rear until her fifth birthday. Mini Moose has inherited Itty Bitty’s carseat in Daddy Man’s car now. He had outgrown Daddy Man’s seat more than two months ago, but since he usually rides in my car Daddy Man had put it off. He traded it in and got 25% off too. The seats in my car should last until Itty Bitty needs an upgrade. I had already switched her to Mini Moose’s Britax seat so she could rear face longer, and he is in her True Fit which should last another 3-4 years before it expires. I’m thinking that by the time he’s outgrown the rearface limit on it, I can switch him back to his original Britax and upgrade Itty Bitty.
Grandmama invited us over for Daddy Man’s belated birthday dinner. It was nice not to have to cook today and to have an extra pair of eyes and ambition to entertain the littles. We even all got to take a late afternoon nap! When we got home and I complained yet again about how much I hated the Laundry Hydra, Daddy Man helped fold! It is amazing how much a detested chore can change when you just have an extra hand and someone to do it with. I actually felt charged and didn’t mind doing it for a change. Sometimes it is just the little things that make the difference.
1/27 Monday Day 703
Night EC: No Pee! (but a huge morning wake up whizzer)
Day: 2 miss in the evening.
Poop: 1 caught by daddy, 1 missed by mommy.
Last night was the third night in the row Mini Moose hasn’t asked to nurse at a wake up, hasn’t peed in eight hours in the night, and had a steady long stretch of sleep before stirring (five to six hours). I still wake up of course, but it is kind of nice not to have to extricate my boobs for a feed. I’m not so sure how I feel about a toddler head resting on my neck cutting off the blood to my brain though.
1/28 Tuesday Day 704
Night EC: 1 night pee, then none till morning.
Day: Dry.
Poop: Caught half of it.
1/29 Wednesday Day 705
Night EC: No Pee at night; early morning pee.
Day: 3 miss in the morning
Poop: Missed
1/30 Thursday Day 706
Night EC: None till early morning.
Day: Dry.
Poop: Caught half of it.
1/31 Friday Day 707
Night EC: None. Just morning pee.
Day: Dry.
Poop: Caught half of it. Again.
2/1 Saturday Day 708
Night EC: No Pee! Wake up pee instead.
Day: Dry.
Poop: Missed part of it.
Wow. I can’t believe it is February. Mini Moose is growing so fast. His eye teeth (canines) are FINALLY almost all done. He’s got the upper left still working, but at least this phase of teething is over. He also has gone through some major mental shifting. It is like overnight he has remodeled his brains. Since we got back from our trip, he has been very into the cars and tracks that Daddy Man has been buing and building up. He had planned on doing so with Itty Bitty, but felt that with a crawling baby it would be more frustrating for Itty Bitty to always have a track smashed. Now they can both enjoy it together. We’ve always had cars, just not the tracks. Mini Moose is delighted and has been copying Itty Bitty’s double car runs and has leanred through constant experimentation that some cars work better than others. He also has begun to show distinct favorites among the toys picking out specific trains (Brewester and Wilson), cars (a white one and a purple one), stuffies (he likes a beanie panda and a big headed super man that Itty Bitty calls Super Why), and animals (horse and cow). If Itty Bitty tries to make an unfair trade he’ll have none of it because he knows the differences. As much as they argue, he copies her like a little shadow.
Oh, his hair is staring to grow in the back as when he wakes up now the back of his head is a curly little mess.
Mini Moose Words of Note:
BeeBee! : Broken! (unspoken request of Fix it!)
Tuck!: It’s stuck! (can be in reference to shirt or shoes he can’t get off, or a toy stuck)
Sheet Dow: Sit down! (a demand made often to Daddy Man to play cars or to me for nay-nays)
TeeTee: TV. Turn on the tv. Usually in the evening with Daddy Man (and if you don’t put on the one he wants he will shake his head, point and babble)
Aha!
Mine!
MeeMee: Give that to me!
MoeMoe: More. More.
Taytoo: Thank you.
SeeSoo: See you soon!
Nana: Banana
Apoo: Apple
He gives a lot more directions now with vocalizations and pointing. He is very good at screetching his displeasure at his sister. He can also follow multistep instructions. He has a pretty broad vocabulary even though it is in toddler-speak. He also can repeat several words he doesn’t usually say if you ask him too like colors, numbers, and random words.
Itty Bitty Wordisms (cut ways she still says things)
Beputer: Computer
Bemember: Remember
Imbisable: Invisable
Dista-peer: Disapear
Pooh Da Bear: Pooh Bear (Winnie the Pooh)
Free: Three
She still often sings songs (off key, poor girl got my lack of musicality), reinacts books and cartoons, andjust chatters narratives. She is getting better with simple addition and some basic fraction (3/3 4/4), has taught herself some rudimetnary writing and can write her name and her brother’s name from memory. She can also copy common words with concentration like exit, stop, and other words she can look at. She doesn’t always make the letters the way you are “supposed” to, but she makes it work.
2/2 Sunday Day 709
Night EC: 5:00Am Pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
Cabin fever, cabin fever! Sing it with me, now! Cabin fever, cabin fever! The crazy lives here!
I noticed that Mini Moose has learned how to do puzzles. He no longer just tries to bang and mash them into place. He looks at them, anyalyzes, and tries to place them in the matching slot — before he tries to smash them in if they don’t fit for some reason. He can do the chunk puzzles with simple shapes. He tries to do the complicated regular puzzles but just ends up looking confused in a pile of mixed up pieces.
Itty Bitty is big on vocabulary always asking what a word means or telling us something she’s learned or figured out. She tells stories, re-enacts cartoons, sings songs she knows, makes others up, and tries to give her brother check-ups. Oh, and calling me every ten seconds.
2/3 Monday Day 710
Night EC: 5:00Am Pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
I think the redundancy is going to do us in. I mean, first Daddy Man wakes up, then Mini Moose, then I peel open my heavy one eye. Mini Moose asks for Nana, if there is no Nana he wants Apoo. After that he wants nay nay. Then Itty Bitty gets up and the sibling bickery begins. I lose my marbles. We have fruit with an accompaniment of oatmeal, eggs, yogurt, or (if I’m ambitions) pancakes for breakfast. Itty Bitty turns her nose up at cream of wheat even if I make it delicious (no easy feat let me tell you but I’m trying to use up the little used pantry items I’ve got leftover from recipes). She just doesn’t like the texture if it starts to get cold…and Itty Bitty takes forever to eat. When I say “we”, I mean “they” get to eat that stuff. I, on the other hand, end up eating the dregs. The mostly eaten apple, the soft part of the banana (which I hate), the leftover cold, reheated oatmeal, and eggs in one bite or else I get none.
We do the same thing so often, that when Mini Moose comes into the kitchen now he sits down at Itty Bitty’s pink lapdesk and waits. Meh, I can’t remember the last time I bothered to use the high chair at the table. Easier to feed him at floor level where he can come and go as he pleases. He brings me his plate and says, “Ah dahn, Mama” or if he is having trouble with the last bit he says “hep” and opens his mouth after he brings me the bowl/plate and spoon.
2/4 Tuesday Day 711
Night EC: 5:00Am Pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
Wait. What? I’m getting more sleep! Five hours consistently at first stretch! We hardly even argue over the late hour nursing request. Most of the time he just shifts to lay on my face, throat, or chest. Itty Bitty just parks herself in my buttcrack.
2/5 Wednesday Day 712
Night EC: 1 miss, then morning pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
So much snow, it is so cold, and I am trying to save gas by not driving anywhere. Not that I want to drive in the cold and snow. Besides it takes half an hour just to get them dressed when it is bitter cold, and half an hour they go out and are done! I also hate the cold. Like Sally of Peanuts, I am not built for winter. Of course, this does not help our cabin fever.
I have, however, managed to cut our grocery expenses to 40-45 dollars a week. I do one stocking trip every six weeks, and every week I buy our most used essentials: eggs, yogurt, apples, bananas, lettuce/greens Everything needs to be cooked scratch so I dusted off my breadmaker and put the crock pot front and center. I still so miss my toaster oven! I make everything. Quick breads, muffins, cookies, taco wraps, flat breads, soups, and stews. We are eating less and less “didn’t turn out quite right” meals as I get back into the swing of things.
2/6 Thursday Day 713
Night EC: 1 catch, then morning pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
2/7 Friday Day 714
Night EC: 1 catch, then morning pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: caught it!
2/8 Saturday Day 715
Night EC: no pee, then very early morning pee catch (5:00 or so)
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
You know the drill people. Endless laundry, never ending chores, cooking again, messy house, hopelessness, despair and trying to keep your marbles in the bag.
2/9 Sunday Day 716
Night EC: no pee, then early morning pee catch 6:00am
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
Unpacked more boxes today that were sitting in the garage and organized a few things.
The sad part is, overall, it looks like I did nothing. Le sigh.
2/10 Monday Day 717
Night EC: 1 catch, then wake up pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
2/11 Tuesday Day 718
Night EC: No pee, then 5:00 morning pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
2/12 Wednesday Day 719
Night EC: No pee, then 5:00 morning pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: caught it!
2/13 Thursday Day 720
Night EC: No pee, then 5:00 morning pee catch
Day: Dry.
Poop: 1/2 catch 1/2 miss
Daddy Man brought me Valentine’s Day early because we are getting more snow. Awww! Itty Bitty has been itching for the chocolate covered strawberries he got her last year. She remembers so much now!
2/14 Friday Day 721
Night EC: No Pee at night, had a big wake up pee.
Day: Dry.
Poop: Missed it. Eww.
Happy Snow Day! I mean, Valentines Day. Too much snow!
I lost Daddy Man’s cards! Really? I probably won’t find them until next year. Instead, I had to have the kids make him cards and I thought today was Saturday and he went to work even with the storm coming.
Day 722
2/15 Saturday
Night EC: No Pee at night, had a big wake up pee.
Day: Dry.
Poop: caught by daddy
Had to miss my twin nieces first birthday party because of yet another snow storm. Stop it, Nature! Just stop! Oh, yeah and my computer went kaput.
2/16 Sunday Day 723
Night EC: No Pee at night, had a big wake up pee.
Day: Dry.
Poop: 50/50 catch/miss
2/17 Monday Day 724
Night EC: No Pee at night, had a big wake up pee.
Day: 1 miss afternoon.
Poop: Caught it!
2/18 Day 725
Night EC: No Pee at night; big wake up pee.
Day: Dry.
Poop: Caught most of it.
2/19 Wednesday Day 726
Night EC: No Pee at night, had a big wake up pee.
Day: Dry.
Poop: 50/50 catch/miss
Daddy Man did some research and thinks it is the power port on my computer so the cheapest option is to mail it out for repair to a place out of state that will do it for under a 100 dollars including shipping. Gah!
Day 727
2/20 Thursday
Night EC: No Pee at night, had a big wake up pee.
Day: Dry.
Poop: 50/50
2/21 Friday Day 728
Night EC: 1 night pee, then wakeup pee.
Day: Dry.
Poop: Catch.
Ain’t no sunshine when the computer is gone. You know, because you can Google sunrises and stuff.
Pottytunities for Two 