Happy 4th Birthday Jayne!!

Today my niece turned 4!! A has a special message for her cousin and P has a special dance. (He is very into breakdancing these days)!

The 3 Musketeers

The wishes... (Don't mind the cereal shoved in her mouth)!


The Dance....(Get the head-tilt going)!

Strollers and potty talk

A can't decide if she wants to lean toward her feminine side or let the Tom Boy in her flare. This weekend, she managed to find herself a healthy balance. She removed her doll from the stroller and pushed her bat around the neighborhood. You can tell by her face that this was a very serious walk. Pure concentration.



Mr. Potty Trainer has been rocking our world with regular trips to the potty and keeping dry - - for the most part! We have been very busy since Friday and out and about but it doesn't seem to slow him down. After a little 'dribble' on his undies while we were out, I simply took them off and put his pants back on. Mom's have to do what we have to do - right? Anyway, a couple hours later we were at a little bookstore buying a potty book and he told the lady that was helping us in his loudest voice, 'I don't have on any underwear. We left them at home.' While people sneaked a peek at the mom that makes her 2 1/2 year old go commando, I explained to the lady that we were on day 5 of training.

Dry all day!!

My good friend that has potty-trained two boys told me I had to stay home at least 2 days in a row and put big boy undies on my little man. Well, the bad news is that I managed to catch a very bad cold/flu at the end of the season!! FIGURES!! 10 weeks knocked up, sick, 2 kids, not a good mix.

Well anyway, I keep hearing people say to make lemonade out of lemons SO I decided this morning at 7am that since the kids and I were forced to stay inside, I would take my chances and put big boy undies on the little man. Well, as of 5pm, NO ACCIDENTS AT ALL!!! He has been going potty in the toilet all day long!! YIPPPEEE!!! I am sure it will be a long road ahead BUT today was fabulous!! We are so proud of him!!

By the way, he even fell asleep on the couch for an hour and stayed dry!!! Not bad for not turning 3 until the end of the summer!!

Some videos of A

A is almost 16 months and making us smile and laugh every day!! Here are a couple videos of A in action.

I happened to catch her chasing her shadow the other night. Forgive the dark footage but in order to keep the shadow going....you understand. At the very end she makes a run for it to hit the shadow away and like the beast she is, she comes back toward me grinning! (Please tilt your head to the side to view the video and please ignore the bathroom talk in the background)!



A has been talking more and more and I wanted to try and capture it on video to put it on the blog for my family and friends that don't get to see A on a regular basis. I confused her a bit with some new words like 'doggy breath' and 'cyber friends' but you get the point none-the-less!!

10 years from now...

Someone sent this to me and all I could picture was our dinner table in ten years and poor R carrying the food into the troops.

Clearing the air...

I want to write a quick post and clear the air. Some of you have read my blog and taken my reference for Baby Beau being a boy as my deep desire for having another boy. I could care less the sex of the baby. I LOVE being a mom to both P and A and having another one of either of them running around will be a blessing. I just ASSUME it is a boy. And just to clear the air for the future, when we have our forth, I still don't care the sex of the baby. He, she, him, her...just a pronoun - no underlying meaning and no secret decoder ring necessary.

I will continue to refer to Beau as a boy and if at my 20 week ultrasound I am corrected, I will refer to little Beau as a she BUT in the meantime, he is a he until he may be a she but keep in mind, him or her, we are beyond happy to be having another baby and are blessed to be watching our family grow!!

Until then....

3 is a crowd...

The kids usually stay in one spot on the bed but the other night there was a lot of tossing and turning. Whenever I looked over, Chino and P were in a new position and each time, it was too darn cute not to snap a shot!! A was out of the picture in a flash (no bun intended). Chino is the cuddlest dog I have ever had in my life!!!

Ba-Hum-Bug

I only have a moment so I wanted to post this picture. A was in a really cute mood but for some reason, when I took the picture she made this face. She looked so annoyed that I had to post it.

We have all had days like this....

Remember the pickles?

SAME GOES FOR THE STRING CHEESE!! This is another warning for all those that eat at our house, don't eat the string cheese either!!

I was starving and grabbed some string cheese out of the fridge. I opened it up only to find the telltale sign that there was a toddler in my fridge. This time his bite wasn't so productive because of the plastic wrap. Now that I am typing, I think P may know better than to bite plastic, this may have been the work of A. I will have to measure and look more closely at the picture and count teeth.

Now that I am looking at the picture, it looks more like a tampon but I assure you, it is string cheese!!

Beau has grown

P stuck his foot out on the inside of the car door when I was trying to shut it and the car door slammed into my stomach. I even have a dang bruise where the door hit. Anyway, I ran it by the gyno and I scored another ultrasound today.

Amazing in just 2 weeks, Beau has a head, strong heartbeat, a developing spine, 2 arms and 2 legs. The tech even caught him moving around. Despite the door mishap this morning, all was perfect with little Beau.

Please continue to keep Beau in your prayers and he develops and grows into a crying baby!!

(for reference, his head is on the top of the pic)

Out of the mouths of babes...

This morning P was playing with the Elmo Microphone toy. I could hear that the battery was running out but he didn't seem to care so I continued making breakfast. A few minutes later I heard him say, 'DAMN ELMO, why aren't you working?'

I guess I do say 'damn' too freely. Now the last bad word in my vocabulary has been taken away!! What can I say but Shucks or Golly Gee??

Splish Splash

Scrub a dub dub - two little kiddies in the tub!! I just thought I would share a couple pictures with you all!! They LOVE when we blow bubbles in the tub and they are starting to have lots of fun playing too!

P in the bath...

A in the bath...

This sums up our house...

This cartoon was in a magazine and made me laugh so hard. This is SO OUR HOUSE!! R always claims I treat the dogs better than him and when I saw this, I could not stop laughing.

Many of you have heard this story I am sure since it is R's favorite story to tell. A couple weeks before our wedding, R was upstairs getting ready for work and I was downstairs in the kitchen. He heard me yell, 'who wants a special breakfast??' He claims he got ready really fast and hurried downstairs to see what I was making. When he came downstairs, I was putting rice and oatmeal in the dog dishes. He should have ran then...

The Shower

Today I went to a wedding shower and to prepare P for my departure, I told him I was going to a shower, he asked me if I smelled.

R had the kids downstairs when I was getting ready. When P came upstairs and saw me in a skirt with my hair done (for once) he stopped in his tracks, looked me up and down and said, 'wow mommy you look really cute.' Then he looked at me again and said, 'mommy that looks like something a lady would wear!!'

Ramen Noodles

Nothing cures morning sickness (for me) better than a package of Ramen Noodles. I am almost 100% positive this will be a boy. When I was pregnant with P, all I ate for breakfast for 12 weeks was Ramen Noodles. Completely unscientific but works for me.

Anyway, this morning I was eating the Chicken Broth Ramen Noodles and of course P an A wanted some too. I was sharing despite the toes being curled under the kitchen table. When I got to the bottom of the bowl and there was just a little broth, my lovely son said, 'Mommy, is that pee?' I explained to him that it was chicken broth and he said, 'Oh, chicken breath!'

The kicker is, I told Aunt MaMa (Gifted Teacher) the story and she said (JOKING) that he was exhibiting high level thinking by making comparisons. Oh yes, my gifted son that thought I was eating pee for breakfast!!

Ms. Bossy Pants

This is a quick post that I have been meaning to write. This just sums up Ms. Bossy Pants!!

I was at a red light the other day and a little voice in the backseat said, "Mommy" and I said, "Yes A" and she said "GO!!!!"

Lost in the Moment

When my sister's (Shillary) daughter was a toddler she mentioned in passing one day that once you have kids you start to view things through their eyes and the magic of everything comes back to you. The magic of Santa, the Easter Bunny, haunted houses, a candy store, apple orchards, the toy store, etc. I agreed with her and thought I knew the exact feeling she was explaining.

I didn't really think about it again until P and A started getting a little older and a little more hip to the world around them. I have to say, she is so right. There is a shift in the brain after having kids and you truly see things through their eyes and somehow the world becomes a much more magical place. Unless you are at the toy store and spending way too much money.

I don't mean to make this a deep thinking blog. Actually I am at work today and I happened to look online (for three minutes) at swing set accessories. I started 'sending items to my cart' and toggling through different sites with an excitement that was almost unnecessary. We need a disc swing, and a spring swing and let's not forget the glider. Who knew there were so many different accessories for a swing set? Kettler is even in on the action with a Gondola swing for the mere asking price of $199.99. I was on a role and had to stop myself until I was home and the kids were asleep and I could lose myself on the Creative Swing Set website.

I am just amazed that instead of wanting to get a new cell phone, a high-tech camera (OKAY - WAIT- I still want that) or the latest i-pod, I want swing set accessories, new dolls and new hot wheel cars!

Moments over - Back to work I go....

Beautiful Weather...Beautiful Company

With the weather being beautiful this weekend, we made sure to spend lots of time outside. First stop was Nonie and Popi's new farm house in Wisconsin. P and A were very excited to go to their 'new' house. They love spending time with Noni and Popi - we do too. The kids had a blast running around and playing on the tireswing. Popi had a blast on the tireswing too...

EVERYONE WAS SICK OF ME TAKING PICS

SPIN SPIN SPIN

GO POPI - GO POPI

A had a little mishap with the concrete at the farm but all was well once the blood stopped!! (This is the day after so the wounds were healing).

Next stop was Great Gram's! We always love seeing R's Gram!! She is the most amazing woman and believe it or not, she is 95 years young!! She lives on her own, has millions of grandkids, great grandkids and a great great grandkid and she knows everyone by name without a second thought! If you ever have the honor of meeting her, you will think she is many many many years younger than 95! We went 'park hopping' with Great Gram and as always, we all loved spending time with her!

A WASN'T HAPPY ABOUT THE SWING STOPPING

Sometimes pictures speak louder than words...

I am not sure why I have not posted this yet but it dawned on me (while I am at work and can think clearly) that this blog is viewed by my family and closest friends so most of you have already heard weeks ago. However for those that have not, sometimes pictures speak louder than words!! But I just have to say YIPPEEE!!

(click twice to view larger)

After four tests and an ultrasound, I can believe that we are having another baby!!!! We are very excited and yes it was planned just like the other two!! The baby, that P affectionately named 'Beau' is only 8 weeks into his journey but keeping Mommy on the brink of throwing up the last couple weeks. Please keep Baby Beau in your prayers as he develops and grows and especially keep him in your prayers when he is born into confusion mid-November.

Water Anyone?

This is turning into a 'Rip on Husband' blog and not a 'Loving Confusion' blog however it is safe to say he is an integral part of the 'Loving' and the 'Confusion' so here I go.


We were at dinner last night with the kids and my parents. Everyone ordered a drink and I just ordered water. When the waitress came back, she put down one water and the drinks that were ordered. R looked at me and asked what I ordered. I told him I ordered water and he said, 'she must have forgotten.' I explained that my water was right in the middle of us and he said he ordered water and a drink. I looked at him to see if he was serious before asking him why he was so sure she forgot my water and not his!!

Who wants a car ride???

I am getting smarter with blogging. I am writing an email to myself from my cell phone in the car and I can copy and paste it later this evening on the blog. P is so used to me on the cell phone that he could care less what I am doing and A is sound asleep.

This morning I woke up and decided it was time to put new contacts in my eyes. I threw the old ones away that were in the case and got the bag with the new ones only to find two rights contacts and no left. I am very blind in my left eye. Anyway, thank goodness the eye place had a replacement b/c did I mention the kids broke my glasses? They snapped off both the arms so it is only the front of the frames.

Okay - this 'email from the car idea' is not so bright after all. I don't have a need for our cassette player that came with the truck but that is a good thing b/c P just put money in the slot!!! Damn kids!

ANYWAY, R had an appointment this afternoon and we all came along. As you all know, I have bright ideas sometimes. I decided that Mattie (our pup that sheds the most) would enjoy a car ride with us. After watching Oprah today about Puppy Mills and the huge number of dogs euthanized each day, I had a soft spot for our three dogs that all would have been euthanized. Okay - I always have a soft spot for my four-legged kids but that is beside the point.

After I already promised her, she was super excited and already had her big hairy bottom sitting shotgun, R (my super anal, metro-sexual husband that gets manicures more than me) came out and started freaking out that he was going to be covered in fur. I told him to just sit in the middle of the carseats in the back. 2 carseats and a 6'5 grown man don't fit very well in the back of a Durango. In case you don't believe me, check out the pictures below. I hope they make you laugh as hard as I was laughing when I took them. I also took a picture of Mattie in the front seat for good measure. Look how happy she looks!!!

Hand in the face...

Calming down after 30 minutes...

Smile Mattie...