and the Worst Mom award goes to....

ME.

Today was the day from Hell.

It began at the religious goods store. I needed to pick up a gift and Brooke thought that we were at the the coolest store ever-even better then Target. She couldn't help but want to touch everything-and I mean.everything. There are only so many times that one can say, "Brooke-stop touching Jesus"..."Brooke-Mary is not a toy"..."Seriously, I am not buying the WWJD bracelet-put it back.....ok-I'll buy you one" before you have to just laugh at how you must look to co-shoppers.

The biggest mistake of my day was forgetting my diaper bag. Did you all just gasp? Maybe this wouldn't be too bad if you didn't realize at your first errand stop that your 4.5 month old had a diaper that looked as if it had been submerged in water for five minutes. To top it off, she then moves on to having a huge blow out in soaking wet diaper. Wait...could that be all? No-not for this Worst Mom award winner!! Why not have your 2.5 year old inform you that she too had a dirty diaper!! Luckily, we were at my work when this all went down. Good thing I got a hold of Gary to drop off my bag before he headed into work.

I guess I should have been a little more specific when I asked him to bring my diaper bag to work. It was pretty empty. Those aforementioned dirty diapers...well have you ever used damp paper towels to clean off your kiddos? Don't. I guess he should have checked the wipe supply huh?

Onto Target-my favorite store. The girls were good, until it was time to leave. Caroline was mad...really mad...and when she is mad it only means one thing...chunky monkey wants to eat-Immediately.

Insert situation #3-no bottle in the diaper bag. Luckily the grocery store is nearby and I had just gotten formula at the store. Too bad the store only has cheapo bottles and you know Caroline is a diva. It took a good five minutes to get her to take the $2.00 bottle when she is used to her Dr. Browns! Oh, and did I mention that Brooke was screaming at the top of her lungs for Caroline to PLEASE STOP CRYING the entire time?? All I could do was laugh...I mean, at least she said please right?

Finally we get to our final destination-the bank. As I pull up to take my turn at the ATM I realize I am in our car that currently does not have a working drivers side window. I cannot convey to you how 'thrilled' the people behind me were when I had to get out of the car to use the ATM. You know that I couldn't hit the screen correctly at least seven times making the uncomfortable staring last way too long.

We are finally home and I just cannot wait to tackle the disaster that is my house. Anyone want to come over and help me pack? Anyone know of any wine delivery services?? I am willing to pay top dollar (for the wine)!!

Bachelorette Weekend

This past weekend, I relived my youth at my good friend Katie's bachelorette party. There are many reasons why mom's like me do not attend bachelorette parties anymore.

Let's go over a few shall we?

1. Compulsive need to inform anyone that will listen to you that you have two adorable children at home. When you start to sense that they may not be too interested, you move on to plan b-pictures on phone and in camera. (note to self: as cute as your kiddos are, not everyone wants to hear their entire life stories).

2. Loving the live band. Loving.The.Live.Band.
I should totally know better-I mean, Gary comes home with stories all the time about 'those girls' who totally 'love' his music. Yes people, I was that groupie. No matter the song, I was their biggest fan.

3. Dancing. I think that after you have a couple of kids under your belt, the rhythm starts to disappear. This is one occasion where you really wish that digital cameras, phones and videos were still not invented.

Oh well-everyone loves a good girls night out bachelorette party right??!!!
Now, lets just keep all those pictures to ourselves shall we?

The End of A Trend

So, today I made the fateful decision to end a long term relationship with a good friend. I had to make a clean break as this friend was a bad influence. There are some things that just cannot last forever and as much as I hate to say goodbye it was time.

Off to the Tan Company to cancel my $5.00 a month commitment. I mean, lets be honest, have you seen this girl? I haven't seen a tan since it was chemically sprayed on me maybe two years ago. While I may still be hitting up the spray for a few upcoming weddings, the financial commitment of $60 a year is a waste that I am willing to get rid of.

While I was thinking of making this 'oh so huge' decision in my life (sense the sarcasm please) I decided to take a trip down memory lane so see what other trends I have parted ways with...and for good reason.

This is a big one folks.
Purple lip stick, bebe shirts and intense highlights.
I am not going to lie...the purple lipstick was hard to part with-I think Brooke would totally love me to bring it back.

There is that proof of extreme tanning again..
I am dissapointed that my acrylic nails and favorite red pants (borrowed from a great friend) did not make this picture. However, my awesome Gamma Phi Beta engraved bracelet did-b/c I was one proud G-Phi.

And maybe the hardest of all....
Blonde curls, khaki pants and taking a senior portriate with your boyfriend
WHAT??!!
At least we got married right?

(if any of my sisters send this to awkward family photo they are disowned)

Mommy Questions

Ok moms-I need some advice here. As my previous post have demonstrated, Caroline is a big strong girl. Brooke didn't roll over until almost 5 months..Caroline? 3.5 months. Needless to say, it is her most favorite thing in the world to roll over on her tummy. The problem is, when she gets to her stomach...she freaks out. She may be ok for a few minutes of fun and then...face goes straight into the ground and she loses it. She does not turn her head to the side, but rather goes face down screaming for someone to save her-which we do without hesitation.

I started to think to myself that when I lay her down to sleep in her crib she was most likely going to flip to her tummy. I was feeling good about this scenario because I knew from play time that if she went face down into the mattress, she would cry out for me to save her-no worries. Wrong. Yesterday, must to my delight, Caroline went down for her morning nap in her crib (vs. in her car seat or on me/dad). We had an appointment with Parents as Teachers and after about 45 minutes later, I peeked in her room to check on her...face down...no screaming, no tears, nothing except EXTREME FEAR for mom. Of course she was a-0-k. I, on the other hand, was not. Why wouldn't she turn her head...or cry out like she does during playtime on her tummy? I tried to quietly turn her head to the side (for my own sanity). First to the right...as that is her preferred head turning direction..no go. Immediately back to face down (but still asleep which was a plus). Next try...to the left. We had a winner. She stayed in that position for maybe 30-45 minutes at which time she went back to face down.

On the plus side, she ended up napping (in her crib no less) for almost 3 hours!! The downside, I was about to head to Babies R Us to purchase a video monitor, breathing sensor (have you all heard of these? Are they just gimmicks to be people like me to spend hundreds of dollars??) and anything else on the market that would let me sleep at night. My other concern is that when Caroline is playing on her tummy and I do try to help her turn that little neck she gets so upset...real tears and all. We had been taking her to a PT but they gave her the all clear a week ago. Maybe I should go back? Besides thinking that I am overly paranoid and crazy...what do you moms/dads, aunts/uncles, babysitters or anyone with kiddo experience think? All ideas/advice is greatly appreciated.

Decision Day

Today is the day-a big day. By the end of the day we will know if we are moving to our new house or continuing to search for a place to live. After multiple negotiations and conversations and headaches we should officially have word today that we agree on the terms set...or we walk away. Both options make me nervous. Even though I have been packing and living amongst boxes for days and days the idea of actually buying a new home...and moving...and-scariest of all-having the girls sleep adjust is mentally exhausting. If we do get word today that the home is ours, I think I will finally post pictures of the new place. If you just cannot wait that long-feel free to email me for the link :) And the clock ticks....

The Stats...

Caroline did great at her check up today. She was all smiles for the doctor and was putting quite a show on for the nurse as well. The scale entered the room and Caroline confirmed that she is in fact our chunky monkey. She weighs 16.75 oz. Yeah-you read that right! The baby that we were so concerned wouldn't gain weight when we brought her home from the hospital is now in the 79% for weight and the 93% for height (25 1/4 inches). She also has a fairly large head which we expected after seeing her next to her cousin Caden last weekend. The good news is that she is completely proportional...and healthy too.

I am not sure who's daughter I brought home from the hospital! We certainly don't have tall genes on my end, but Gary's mom is tall so Caroline must have inherited her height from Grandma Mary Anne :) She is ahead of the curve when it comes to motor skills. As previously mentioned, I would not be surprised to see her crawling across the room weeks before Brooke did.

The doctor also let me know that we can start her (slowly) on solids. What?!?! Dr. J said that most of the time they wait until 6 months, however, in special circumstances where the baby is already the size of a 6 month old we can jump start at 4 months. While this may freak some parents out or make them sad that their baby is getting bigger so quickly-it is not the case in our household. I LOVE buying baby food. I actually have a good time picking out which new fruits and veggies our child will get to try out and sometimes I sneak a few bites in too (have you had baby food these days?? delicious). We picked up some rice cereal today and let her try it out at lunch. She wasn't the biggest fan, but she did think the spoon was pretty cool. Just wait until she gets pears, I have a feeling she is going to squeal with excitement!!

What fun it will be at her 6 month appointment-anyone want to place bets that Caroline and Brooke will weigh the same :)

4 Months

Caroline is 4 months old! It is crazy how fast these first four months have flown by and to think how fast the next four will go by as well. Caroline is such a good baby. She is learning so much and everyday she is doing something new.

Her current favorite activities include rolling over from back to tummy and (sometimes) tummy to back. She has grown very fond of her many 'lovey's' and is not really into the pacifier...more of a thumb/full hand sucker. She smiles ALL the time and loves to give us a HUGE grin first thing in the morning. She is obsessed with watching Brooke at all times and loves when big sis gives her attention. Yesterday she started to try and sit up on her own and did great! I think that she is super strong for only four months and wouldn't be surprised if she walked before Brooke (who started at 10 months...mom was a 9 month walker..but I digress).

Caroline will only sleep in her car seat or in dad's arms for extended periods of time, although today she has been snoozing in her bouncy seat so this could be a new sleeping location as well :). She is sleeping through the night from 9:30 - 7:00 a.m. She has her 'off' days of a 3 a.m. wake up but we cannot complain. I am not sure how much she weighs, but we have our four month check up tomorrow and I will be back to let you all in on her stats!

Just home from the hospital-this was her bird leg stage

2 months-still pretty small

Looks like someone up'd Caroline's formula!
What a difference a month makes!
3 months and the cheeks are in full force!!

The Fabulous Four Month Old