A Big Girl Now

It started off as one of those days. Princess woke up in her occasional funk. Nothing was right. She wanted milk, no she wanted juice. She didn't want a waffle, she didn't want eggs. Nothing would do. We attempted to go to church, when we arrived at the childcare room there was no Dick or Jane to be found. Babbette was busy greeting, Princess was not having it. I have never seen her lose it like that! Needless to say we had to go home. By the time we got home it was nap time. Finally a break from the screaming. Little did I know that two and a half hours later my life would change drastically.
Like any other day Hubby went in to Princess' room to get her up from her nap. However this day was unlike any days that had come before. He walked in to quite the spectacle. With a smile from ear to ear, our tiny little 24 pound two-year old was balanced over the side of her crib. She wasn't stuck, she could get back into her crib and do it again. The decision was made then and there, it was time for a big girl bed.
Gone are the days of knowing that I could just stick her in her crib when she was tired. She is now a big girl, free to get in and out of her bed as she pleases.
So far tonight she has fallen asleep without moving from the spot we laid her. We will see how it goes from here. I will keep you posted.

An Ode to The Slush Puppie

Dear Pina Colada Slushie Puppie,
Thank you for all that you represent. On Friday the average slush puppie took on a new meaning. It now stands for friendship, laughter, fellowship, and sunshine. It is amazing how one slightly used slushy puppie machine has the capabilities to bring out even the most secluded of people. (me) It was so nice to be around adults as well as toddlers, and the service was more than anyone could ask for. Thank you to the Andersons who brought the slushie puppie back into my life. The event brought back many fond memories of throwing fits in K-Mart until I got one of my own. (Hmmmm... so that is where Ava gets it!) It was so nice to see all of you thanks for the fun!

My Ears Are Open

Have you ever been trying to tell someone something that you know will help them in the long run but they just don't listen? Imagine how God feels. I picture Him yelling down to us trying to get our attention but we just don't listen sometimes.
I have come to the conclusion that while I am a great listener in the physical world, I have been a terrible listener in my spiritual world. Let me tell you though God has gotten through.
My ears are open Lord!
It all started with that dream I had about going up against the devil. I think that was the clincher that got my attention.
Recently we have been waiting to see if my hubby will be getting a promotion. This promotion is a well deserved, long time coming opportunity for us. The thing is that it all depends on a waiver because hubby has Scoliosis. In planning for this promotion we have been talking about moving into a bigger house, paying off debt with this money and that, etc. We have been going a million miles an hour for the past few months planning on a future that is not yet secured.
I am jumping around but bear with me.
A few months back we made a commitment to tithe 10% of our income to the church. We would be giving in a lump sum with our tax return. However, in order to move into a bigger house we would have to manipulate the payments a bit. Hmmm, bad idea ya think!
Well I don't think that God was too happy with us taking the wheel away from him in our lives. It does not look too good for the waiver to go through and hubby to get his promotion. Not to mention that I had a devastating dream about moving into a big house and having it blow up and all I had left was my dog.
Today hubby and I decided to live life in the now. We will not move regardless of getting the promotion or not. We will keep our commitment to the church, and for once in a long time we feel at peace with our decision. Our house is a bundle of unfinished projects and we have decided not to bail on it for something bigger and better, but to work on making what we have better. Hmmm, could that and my dream be a symbol or what!
We will find out within a week or so about the final decision for the promotion.
This is just one more step for us to lead our lives the way God intends, humbly.
Our ears and hearts are open Lord, please do what you wish and we will follow without question.

My Addiction

I have an addiction. Don't worry it isn't life threatening, just pathetic.
My Name is Hosmerita, and I am addicted to laundry.
It all began in December.
We got a new washer and dryer. We had to get one because our washer was dying and well our dryer smelled like cat pee .(see post, "Moses the Wonder Kitty")
Well my husband is all about the go big or go home attitude and they had a financing special so we got one of those front loading washers, and I love it.
I hated laundry before, I would let it pile and pile. In fact when I was in college I worked at Nordstrom in the lingerie department (grrrrr), so I had mass quantities of little underwears. Anyways, I went a whole summer without doing laundry once. Yes I had that many pairs of underwear! It's too bad they don't fit anymore (that was 12 sizes ago, oh the horror).
I am getting sidetracked. Anyways, I hated laundry until last December. Now I can't get enough of it. If I wouldn't have already been pregnant in December I might have considered getting pregnant just for the added laundry!
However, as many of you know every addiction has it's drawbacks. I was so fascinated with the fact that my new washer could spin so fast that the clothes were virtually dry that I didn't notice that my lovely washer was tearing tiny little holes in all my clothes. Oooops! Apparently there are different settings to the spin cycle and I was using the one for large blankets on my regular clothes. Oh well lesson learned.
The moral of this story? Well, let's see. Addictions come in all shapes and sizes. The sooner you admit to them, the sooner you can get help. Or Not.

Princess has a boo-boo

A two-year-old's point of view:

"A terrible thing happened this morning and Mommy, I think you need to know about it. I have a boo-boo. It is right here on my hand. I don't think I can make it through the day. When the wind hits it ever so slightly I feel as if I will die. I must hold it out delicately and heaven forbid you or the dog should touch it.
Mommy, kisses will not heal this. I have been wounded and can not go on. Just to make sure it is still there I must touch it ever few seconds. This hurts so I cry and run to you.
Mommy this is no time to feed the baby! I have a boo-boo. I am not sure when this life ending thing happened but I think I need fruit snacks to make it better. Perhaps it needs to be amputated. No I think I need my hand to play.
A Band-aid will not help it is too terrible. It is awful Mommy, see right here isn't it horrible. I lay here sad and hurting oh whatever can I do. I think I need some chocolate milk it is the only thing that will do.

Please turn on some Dora to distract me from the pain. Ok, Mommy I am feeling much better now, I think I can face the day."

A Good Friend: defined

Over the years I have been trying to figure out what a real friend is. I have had my share of bad friends and decent friends, but I have only had a handful of good friends.
This is what I have so far;
A good friend is one that takes time out of her Chemo ridden day to read your blog and tell you that you are loved.
A good friend gives you a swift kick in the heinie and tells you that your life is full of love.
A good friend brings you pants when you don't fit in any of your own.
A good friend will tell you that you look like crap today but you are still beautiful.
A good friend will cherish your stretch marks.
A good friend stops by on her way out of town and watches smut with you while the kids sleep.
A good friend knows how to make you laugh.
A good friend has a cozy shoulder to cry on.
A good friend can pick up the where you guys left off after not talking for a long time.
Thank you to all my "good friends" out there. Without you I would be a lonely person.

Dear Cancer,

Dear Cancer,
I am writing you this letter to inform you that you being evicted from dwelling in the sweetest woman I know. You made a mistake when you made yourself at home in her cells. She may appear to be weak because she is young and she has a sweet demeanor, but she is one of the strongest women I know.
She has made it through an incredibly lame boyfriend and made her way to a wonderful husband.
She was challenged with the task of college and she answered the call with flying colors.
No, I am sorry cancer but you are not going to stay with my dear friend. You are on notice. She is backed by the best General known to man. God's army will prevail. It is made up of family and friends that will support her through every battle you throw at her. We come at you 1 million times stronger than you can ever be.
At her weakest moments in this battle she will still be stronger than you.
You may take her hair, but you will not take her spirit.
You may make her too tired to get up, but she will still be stronger than you.
Cancer, this is a battle you cannot and will not win, you might as well hit the road now.
I will be here watching you fail.

Sincerely,
One of her angels.

Thank you Lord for Coffee

I know that there are many more important things that I could write about, but right now I am going to write about my love for coffee.
I know that God gives us the tools to be successful in life and one of the best tools he has given us is coffee. I would not make it through the day with a newborn and a 2 year old without what I call a Hosmocha (yes, I have a strange fascination for combining our last name with other words for amusement. For example Hosmerita and Hosmeritaville. There is also a thing called a Hosmerism. I am a sick puppy I tell you). Anyways it is a poor man's or woman's mocha, 3 scoops of hot cocoa, coffee, hazelnut creamer and if you have it cool whip. Mmmmmm I can now face the day.
Another tool God gives me is a the gift of daydreaming. When the baby wont sleep or Princess is throwing a royal fit I have the amazing ability to tune it out and continue on.
The third gift is the gift of prayer. For the longest time I thought, "What's the point, he doesn't answer me." but oh was I wrong. I look into all three sets of blue eyes in my family and know that my prayers are answered every day. I pray every day for the strength to make it through another hectic day, and guess what I am still here!
Could it be that God has now sent me the Blog? I think so. My sister Kelly referred to it as a billboard asking for help, and it truly is. In a few short minutes I can write down my needs and the love of friends flow into my inbox.
There is nothing like knowing that someone out there cares.
I hope that my future posts amuse you all. I don't know that my life is really that interesting but it does have it's entertainment value. I have a newborn son, that should tell you I will have many more entertaining stories to come!
My MOPS sisters will be happy to hear that instead of watching my smut TV show Passions during nap time I am now writing blogs. I couldn't even tell you what is going on in the town of Harmony.

The Dream

I want to thank all of you for your kind words. I feel like God was speaking to me through Erin's Blog. I tend to be the same way as Erin. I tend to look at the negatives and forget about all that I do have. My dear friend Julie reminded me that it is better to have 2 or three really good friends than to have none. I didn't want her, Christa, and Jessica to feel that they weren't enough for me.
I too have my ungrateful moments. I have a wonderful home, a wonderful husband, two perfect gifts from God and I have my health.
I am sure that my blues are caused by hormones, but it so easy to reflect on things when you put your thoughts down on paper.
Please if any of you notice a sadness that doesn't stop in my posts please let me know. I have a fear of not noticing depression.
Just to let you all know I have arranged a play date for this morning with Erin and Ryland. Thank you Erin. I am very excited. I do realise that I am the one at fault for not having more of them. To be honest when she e-mailed me I almost put her off to another week. Something or someone ( I know perfectly well who was talking to me) was shouting in my head to make a date! Don't put it off.
I am trying to make a point of listening to what God is saying to me more. He usually makes his appearances in dreams.

Let me tell you all about a dream I had a month or so ago, and please give me some feedback.
In my dream I was with my High School Friends and we were all around my deck at my childhood home. We were being held captive my the devil and he was trying to get us to join him by eating dirt or something like that.
I decided that all we needed to do was to pray for God's help and we would all be fine. So I lead the group in prayer and we all made it through fine.
As I was praying the devil flew up in front of me and said the following:
"I knew you were going to be a challenge, but I didn't think you would win."
Then I woke up.
What on Earth did that mean?
Any Suggestions?

Moses the Wonder Cat

For those of you who know me well, you know I have a cat named Moses. He is not the brightest of creatures but he is a member of our family and we don't judge him for his shortcomings. I think that he thinks he is human, no scratch that I think that he thinks he is a dog that thinks he is human.

He tries to drive the car, dry the clothes and do various other things that get him into trouble therefor costing us (and my mother-in-law) a pretty penny.

Let me take you to the beginning of our life long journey with Moses. Let me remind you that I am NOT a cat person.

It was 9pm and hubby and I wanted ice cream. I told him to go to Winco because it was much cheaper, however as usual he did not listen and went to Roth's (he has some strange fancy for that way over priced store, I think he is a grocery snob.....). Anyways, on his way to Roths he found a kitten in a pool of blood. He called me up and explained the situation, he had thoughts of putting him out of his misery, but he couldn't do it. He took him to the ER for animals (yes there is a 24 hour ER for animals!) and they gave him pain meds and told hubby not to expect him to live through the night. Hubby kept him in a box and slept next to him on the couch all night giving him medicine every 3 hours or so. Moses lived, purring the whole time. My MIN said that she would pay his expenses so we fixed him up. $1000, a pin in his hip, an amputation of his tail and a neutering later, we have Moses the Wonder Kitty.

You would think this story got boring from here but oh it doesn't. I truly think that something got knocked loose in Moe's head that fretful night, because he continues to get himself in interesting situations.

See Moses likes to jump off things that are high. Any other cat that would be fine, but Moses has a pin in his leg that doesn't flex very well. Needless to say he often injures himself.

But the best story of all is his ride in the dryer.

Yes my cat took a ride in the dryer. Thank God I noticed within two or three tumbles. The extension of the story that many of you have heard is that we had to buy a new dryer. Apparently Moses was a little scared in the dryer and permanently "marked" the dryer forever.

I thought I would give you the history of Moses the Wonder Cat as well as a picture so you all could have a face to the name and story.

Post Partum No Clothes Depression

I am suffering from Post Partum No Clothes Depression.
I am sure that is the scientific term for it. Someone out there has to have made it official. If there is no official term I think mine will do just fine. Let me explain it to you if you don't already know. (i.e. you are a man) I had a baby 7 weeks and 1 day ago. He is an adorable little addition to our family and I love him to pieces. However, I have nothing to wear. Last week I had the bright idea to switch out all my maternity clothes with regular clothes. BAD IDEA! Not only do I not fit in my pre pregnancy jeans, but I don't even fit in my fat jeans.
I know this is completely superficial but I am saving my husband the trouble of answering that lovely question in the back of my head "Honey, do you still think I am attractive?"
Anyways, Hollywood makes us believe that we can pop out babies and then be ready for the Victoria's Secret Runway in a month.
I am sorry but I am nowhere near runway shape. The road map scrawled out on my tummy points in the opposite direction of a runway.
I did sign up for a gym membership last night, so hopefully my clothes will fit soon!
I do need to gush a little bit about my hubby now though. I find myself complaining about my stretch marks often lately. The other night dear hubby got upset with me and told me not to complain about them anymore. He said he thought they were beautiful and they stood for something that meant more to him than any perfectly tan flawless tummy.
Talk about a tear jerker!
My ruff and tumble hubby had a mushy moment, and I loved it.
I dedicate this post to my love for the person who invented the cotton Lycra blend. Without them I would be naked.

Mother of a 2 year old

It just hit me this morning. I AM THE MOTHER OF A 2 YEAR OLD! Now you might be expecting a painful story of fits etc, but that is an everyday occurrence that doesn't really stand out in my life.

I was sitting on the couch with Ava this morning watching Barney (yes I was watching Barney) and she leaned over and planted a big kiss on me. This wasn't any ordinary kiss. It wasn't the usual mouth open slobber that I am used to. This was a big girl lips closed smack on the lips. My baby girl has become 2 without me really even noticing.

Yesterday she wanted to hold her baby brother for the first time and she has now started to kiss him all over. My little princess is growing up so fast!

This morning was a small vacation from the usual screaming DIVA behavior and it made me realise that I need to have patients with her because so much is going on in her little mind and body that she just isn't used to. I would probably throw a fit too if I had four big teeth coming in, a new baby brother, and my mom was trying to get me to sit on this potty thing all the time. Not to mention she can't get the words out so I understand how she is feeling.

I love you miss Ava, and I will try to be more understanding as to what you are going through.

Here I Go!

I am jumping into this blogging thing for a few reasons. One is because I hate hearing the same story over and over again so in that I hate hearing myself tell the same story over and over again. I figure if something good happens I can write about it and not have to tell everyone the same thing. The next reason is that my husband tends to be a Devil's Advocate when it comes to my stories when all I really want to hear is that I am right! This way I can vent here and y'all can give me feedback on my oh so exciting life!