My Experience with Kids Sleeping Through the Night

I've heard many, many times that kids will sleep through the night when they are ready.  I've been told that sometimes it happens gradually and that sometimes it happens all at once, but I've always had a hard time believing that it can really happen so suddenly. 

I believe it now.

Bryleigh has suddenly become a wonderful sleeper.  The day we moved into or new house, almost 2 weeks ago, she spent the entire night in our bed, which was normal and routine for her.  The 2nd night in our house, she stayed in her own crib all night long!  She has NEVER done this before in her 10.5 months of life.  I heard her make a few whines a couple of different times, but that was it.  This has become her new normal and I can't describe how happy it makes me!!!

Most nights, I nurse her to sleep and then lay her in her bed.  Almost every night that is the last I hear her until morning.  She was a baby who used to almost never sleep in her crib and I just can't explain the sudden transformation!

Brennan didn't sleep well through the night until he was over 2, either.  With him, good sleep has happened very gradually.  I'd say that he has become a good sleeper over the course of the last year.  With him, the key seemed to be getting a great bedtime routine that slowly worked him from being cuddled to sleep to being able to fall asleep in his bed on his own. 

My experiences have been so different with each child, but one thing is the same.  I do not miss getting up in the middle of the night!

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My Boy and his Stuff.... Yeah, that...

Well, it looks like I've entered a new stage with my sweet, precious son.  He is slowly but surely growing into a young man, and his natural curiosity about his body is blossoming.  To put it in a less fruity way, the kid can't stop playing with himself!

Now, he's only two, so it is of course very innocent, but still, it isn't something I care to watch all day long.  Brennan is in the midst of potty training, so when he wants to run around the house in only his underwear, I let him.  It simplifies the potty process.  On the downside, that also makes penis access much easier for him. I mean, there is a hole right there!  And in his mind, what else would a strategically placed underwear hole be for, but hanging himself out of?

I can't even tell you how many times I had to tell Brennan to quit messing with himself, only yesterday!  And if I didn't notice, then I'd hear his little voice say, "Mommy?  Can you put my penis back in?"  or "Mommy?  My penis is out again."  I'm not gonna lie- I can't help but laugh.  But still, after the 14th or 15th penis tuck, I was getting tired of it.

Finally, I'd had enough.  I brought Brennan to his room and put on his only underwear without a hole in the front!  Let's see you yank it out now, buddy!  After this, things settled down for the day.

Yesterday wasn't the first time we've had issues with this sort of thing.  Last week, I was in the bathroom cleaning one of Bryleigh's diapers when Brennan came in- "Mom?  I peed a little..."  Without looking up, I told him that accidents happen and I would get him some clean undies.  He says, "But they're dry."  Huh?  I looked up to see him standing there, undies up with the little guy poking out.  Sweet.  Now to find the puddle on the floor.

If there is a bright spot in all of this, my Dad found it.  "If there is ever a time in his life when Brennan can't keep it in his pants, now is the best!"

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Hyland's Homeopathic Products Review and Giveaway

Having a sick or uncomfortable baby is miserable!  When they aren't happy, YOU aren't happy.  That's just the nature of kids.  You want to help them feel better, but sometimes it seems like your options are limited.  Many of the medicines available aren't the safest, especially for little kids and if you are like me, you try to avoid giving them whenever possible.  That means your poor baby has to feel pretty bad before you use a medication.  Well, I've got great news for you!  You can get homeopathic products that are safe for your baby and will help them feel so much better!

Hyland's Homeopathic Products are 100% natural and are safe for your child (and you...  There is an entire line of products for adults, too).  There is a product available for a huge variety of ailments from sicknesses, to restlessness, to teething.  The remedies that come in tablet form quickly dissolve, making it easy to treat babies and kids.  Some remedies also come in liquid form.

I was sent a wonderful package of Hyland's products to review with my kids.  It included Allergy Relief, Calms Forte 4 Kids, Flu Care, Sniffles & Sneezes, Cold 'n Cough, Cough Syrup, Colic Tablets, and the popular Teething Tablets.  What a great variety of products!

I wasn't able to try all of these products as I typically have pretty healthy kids, but I did try some of them.

One of the products I was most excited about was the Calms Forte 4 Kids.  Sometimes Brennan has a hard time settling down at night and falling asleep.  It isn't every night, but just here and there.  Most of the time we can tell by evening whether or not it is going to be 'one of those nights'.  On those nights, we'll give him one does of Calms Forte 4 Kids- his 'calm down' medicine.  He really likes it and takes it happily.  He'll even say it is yummy.  Shortly after we give it to him, sure enough, we notice him beginning to settle down.  He'll typically choose a less crazy activity like blocks or books and begin to wind down.  Bedtime on his crazy nights has become so much easier.  Now he can fall asleep with ease.  I'm very satisfied with this product.

We tried the Cold 'n Cough liquid and the Sniffles 'n Sneezes on Brennan as well, when he came down with a cold.  I'm not quite as sure of the results with this one.  Brennan is extremely tough when it comes to getting sick.  Normally we don't even notice that he is sick until his nose starts running like crazy.  He rarely slows down or gets whiny because of sickness... just naughtier!  So, this time we tried using Hyland's cold remedies.  He was mostly congested.  His nose wasn't running much. He took the medicines easily (at different times, of course) and liked the taste.   We didn't notice a huge difference in his attitude or symptoms.  Though they may have made him feel better, it was hard to tell with his ridiculously high tolerance to discomfort.

Neither of my kids have Allergies or got the Flu (thank God!) so we haven't tried either of those yet.

Bryleigh was my test subject for the Colic Tablets and the Teething Tablets.  We gave her the Colic Tablets when she was really crying and upset, but we didn't know why.  We also tried them when she was gassy, since one of the ingredients is supposed to help with gas pain.  They did seem to help her settle down some.  The didn't cure the crying completely, but definitely helped.

The Teething Tablets were even better.  They really seem to help ease her pain.  They work the best in the daytime when she can naturally tolerate the pain better, and they help at night, but at night I do still occasionally give her acetaminophen. Overall, I am pleased with both the Colic and Teething Tablets.

The only thing that I could even come up with for Hyland's to improve upon is the actual appearance of the tablets.  They all look identical- small, round, and white.  It would be nice if they were different shapes or colors so that they could be easier to tell apart, in case of a mix up or something.  This is pretty minor, though, considering that you should be able to keep them straight in their own, clearly labeled bottles.

I've got to give Hyland's a big two thumbs up on their products.  What a great alternative to traditional medications!

Wanna win the same Hyland's gift package that I reviewed?   Hyland's is generously providing one winner the exact same package that I reviewed!  Just fill out the form to enter! (US only, please)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*I was given this product for review purposes. All of my opinions about this product are solely my own. Your opinions may differ. I was not compensated to write this post in any way.*

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Belated Wordless Wednesday (Christmas Angels) & Toddler Talk Tuesday- Milk in There & Get Back Here!

Wordless Wednesday- Christmas Angels!

Toddler Talk Tuesday

Milk in There- 

Yesterday, I noticed that Brennan was sweetly breastfeeding his baby.

Me: Oh, Brennan!  Are you feeding your baby?

Brennan: Yeah.

Me: That's so nice.

He continues to feed her while starting to rifle around with his stuffed Curious George.

Me: Oh, Honey!  Are you going to feed George, too?

He looks at me with a silly expression...

Brennan: Noooo!  George is a monkey!  He's not a baby!

Giggles and wraps up his baby's nursing session.  He then talks to his baby.

 

Brennnan: Baby, are you full?  (Looks into its mouth...)  Did you get some mook (milk) in there?

Get Back Here!

When Brennan was misbehaving the other night, Ryan brought Brennan to his time-out bench for a little time-out.  As Ryan walked away, we hear Brennan from the other room.

Brennan: Daddy!  I need a cuddle RIGHT NOW!  Get back here!

We made sure to laugh quietly enough that he wouldn't hear us.

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Toddler Talk Tuesday! Our "Baby" talk & Getting Bones

Our "Baby" Talk-

The other day, Brennan woke up from his nap a little too early and was crying and whining in his room.  I went in to calm him down and try to get him to go back to sleep.  I crawled into his little toddler bed and snuggled him close.  Our conversation went something like this-

Me: Oh, Brennan.  I love you so much.  You're such a nice guy.

Brennan: And you have a baby in your tummy.

Me: What??

Brennan: You have a baby in your tummy!

Me:  If you say so.  But I sure hope not!  You must really like Bryleigh if you want me to have another baby in my tummy.  Do you want another baby?

Brennan: Yes.

Later on, when Ryan got home, I told Brennan to tell him what he thinks is in my tummy.  Brennan excitedly told Ryan the story.

Ryan: What's in Mama's tummy?

Brennan: There's a baby in Mama's tummy!.... Actually, there's two babies!

Ryan: This just gets better and better!

FYI- THERE IS NO BABY IN MY TUMMY!  I AM ABOUT 99% SURE!

Getting Bones

Lately, we've been working hard on getting Brennan to drink milk from a cup.  He is still hooked on the bottle, but we have successfully taken it away at nap time and replaced it with a cup (which he reluctantly drinks from with lots of prodding) so that he only has morning and night bottles now.  Yesterday, before his nap, we talked about milk.

Me: Brennan, take another sip of your milk.  Remember, milk is good for your body and you need it!

Brennan: Yeah!  It makes me big and strong (shows his muscles) and then I'll get bones!

Cool.  I would have guess he already had a few of those.

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The Premiere of Toddler Talk Tuesday!

Lately, I've been thinking to myself that I wish I could remember all of the cute and hilarious things that Brennan says.  It seems that memories fade quickly and things that you think you'll never be able to forget fade and fade until eventually the memories are gone completely.

That's how my new post series, Toddler Talk Tuesday was born!  I know I'll never be able to record all of my kids' fantastic comments, but I hope that this way many of them won't be forgotten!  So to kick off Toddler Talk Tuesday, here are "Jesus and the Juice" and "Naptime".

Jesus and the Juice

It is lunch time.

Me: Brennan, what would you like to drink with lunch?

Brennan: Juice and water.

Me: Sounds good.

I go to the refrigerator and find that we are out of juice.

Me: Oh Brennan, I forgot!  We are out of juice.  You'll have to just have water until we get more.

Brennan: OK.  Just have water.

I sit down at the table and we say our prayers- the common table prayer.  After finishing, I begin to talk to Brennan about what our prayer means.

Me: You know- Jesus is so good to us.  That's why we say our prayers; to thank him.  When we say, "Let these gifts to us be blessed", we are talking about our food.  These (pointing to our meals) our our gifts.  It's important that we thank Jesus for our gifts.

Brennan: Yeah, but Jesus didn't have any juice.

Me: (Trying not to laugh...)  No, he didn't this time.

Brennan:  But... Jesus does have juice at the grocery store!

Naptime

After a mini-breakdown at the post office, I am putting the kids back into their stroller to head home.  Brennan is whining and carrying on.

Me:  Enough whining.  We're heading home.

Brennan: SOMEBODY NEEDS A NAP!

Me: Really?  Who would that be?

Brennan: BRENNAN!  I wanna cuddle with Mickey in my little bed and go night night!

So glad that my 2 year old actually asks for his naps now!  That's a change from 6 months ago!

I hope you enjoyed the first Toddler Talk Tuesday!  Hoping to continue this every week!

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My Hilarious Little Guy!

Everyday, Brennan is getting funnier and funnier.  I know that all little kids say cute and funny things, but this kid just knows how to get me laughing. 

Just yesterday, I got a text from Ryan that said, "What's for dinner?"  That's what started the funniest conversation with Brennan.  (This story needs a little bit of background information.  Brennan has a book called 'Roly Poly Pangolin'.  There is a line in the book that says, "What's for dinner?  Ants and slugs?  Roly Poly won't touch bugs!"  We haven't read this book in a week or two.)

Me: Daddy wants to know- What's for dinner?
Brennan: What's for dinner? Ants and slugs?  Mama won't touch bugs!

I couldn't believe that he quoted his book!  So funny.  He's been quoting movies lately, too.

A few days ago Brennan pointed out that we forgot to say our prayers before lunch.

Brennan: Say our prayers!
Me: You're right.  We forgot!  Do you remember how they start? Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest- can you say that?
Brennan: C'mon, Jesus!  Be our guest!
Me: (Trying not to laugh)  Well, that works, too.

And speaking of Jesus- the other day Brennan told me that he could hear Jesus outside!  I made sure to warn all of my Facebook friends to make sure they were on their best behavior.

He's also been trying to 'convince' us that we aren't upset with him when we really are by telling me, "Mommy, you're happy..." in the cutesiest voice he can muster.  Tricky little bugger!

This is such a short list, because I'm trying to think of all of his funniest moments off the top of my head.  It is hard to do!  I need to start blogging more things like this so I can share them with Brennan as he gets older.  I'm sure he'll only be funnier by then!

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Some More Favorite Books!

I did a post a long while back about some of our favorite books.  Now, thanks to Dolly Parton's
Imagination Library, our wonderful friends and family, and many of my old kids books, I have a few more to tell you about!

Brennan's Favorite Books-
Brennan loves to read, both alone and with us.  He has several books memorized so well that you would think he really can read!  I might just start working on that... :)

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do You See?-

Brennan loves this book because of its predictable pattern and bright pictures.  He has a very easy time 'reading' this book to himself or to me.  Like most Eric Carle books(Also authored 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'), I think most little kids would like this one. 




Llama Llama Red Pajama & Llama Llama Goes to School-

All of the llama llama books tell endearing stories with some kind of moral.  These books instill the ideas of patience and trust, important lessons for every child to learn.  The rhymes in these books are great and the pictures are just as sweet as little llama, himself.  Brennan even has his own stuffed llama to cuddle with at night!

Where's my T.R.U.C.K.-

This book is so cute and clever.  When Tommy loses his favorite truck, he will leave no stone unturned in an effort to find it!  The situation looks grim, but as luck would have it, his persistence pays off!  I love the fact that it is easy to be really enthusiastic with this book, which kids just L.O.V.E., too! 


Bryleigh's Favorite Books- 

Look at the Animals-
This book is absolutely perfect one of baby's first books.  Featuring animals doing what they are best at, the simple, highly contrasting pictures will grab baby's attention and keep it!  We have another book by the same author, Peter Linenthal, called Look, Look! It has the exact same features as the first and Bryleigh loves this black, white, and red book a lot, too.

Baby Faces-
Like most other babies, Bryleigh really likes looking at other babies, or even herself in the mirror.  This book plays into their love for checking out faces by showing clear baby faces conveying different feelings or emotions.




Mama's Favorite Books-

Sleep Baby, Sleep-

I love this book for how it encourages children to live up to their full potential.  It highlights personality traits such as strength, happiness, curiosity, and more.  The rhythmic verse and calming pictures make this perfect for bedtime.  As an example, "Soar, baby, soar.  The whole world you'll explore.  Fly like the goose who climbs and roams yet always knows his way back home.  Soar, baby, soar."  Each verse is sweet and inspirational- a great story to end story time with!

The Mine-o-saur-
Teach your little ones why it is a good idea to share with this adorable book!  The Mine-O-Saur learns to share the hard way, but it all turns out well in the end.  I love the flow and rhyme of this book and Brennan does, too.


Check out any of these books for your little ones and you'll be glad you did!

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Ch Ch Changes... to our sleeping habits

It seems with kids that just when you get used to something or something works well for you, something else goes to heck on you!  At least that is how it seems with us.

A couple of months ago I blogged about Brennan's new bed time routine.  I am happy to report that this routine is still working quite nicely for us.  He actually looks forward to bed time.  The catch, however, is that we never know just how long he'll stay asleep and/or in his own bed.  Since Brennan was several months old, he's been going through good sleeping streaks that last anywhere from a few days to a couple of months.  As soon as we start to think that, "This is it!- he's finally sleeping through the night!" He mixes it up again and becomes a terror after dark.

He's in one of those terror streaks now.

Every night we have been jolted from sleep just a couple hours into it by our crying and screaming two and a half year old.  One of us scurries into his room as quickly as possible to hopefully hush the screaming before he wakes his sister, who is happily sleeping only a few feet away.  We rarely are successful in preventing her from waking and needing comfort (AKA mommy feeding her... probably mostly for comfort).

Brennan usually begs for a bottle, which we rarely allow in the middle of  the night anymore,asks to come into our bed, and finally concedes if we will sit in his chair or cuddle in his toddler bed until he falls asleep.  This may happen once or several times.  Sometimes he is more demanding, though, and will demand to sleep in our bed.  We can try to fight him on this, but he is so stubborn that quite often it is best to just give in so that we can all get a little sleep.

I think part of the problem is that he is getting jealous that Bryleigh gets to sleep with us quite a bit.  You see, when she wakes up, I run in, grab her, and bring her back to our room.  She is very hard to feed and get laid back down in her crib right away without her waking up and freaking, so I normally just lay in bed and feed her so we can all sleep.  Typically some time later on in the night, I wake up enough and put her in her pack and play in our room until she needs feeding/comforting again.

Well, we are really getting sick of having all four of us in a queen size bed!  So we knew that things would have to change.  On Sunday night we tried something new.  I took a Mickey night light that we weren't already using (we don't use night besides the 'on' light on our music machine/projector) and plugged it into a timer.  I explained to Brennan that he needed to stay in his own bed and go back to sleep after waking and noticing that the light is off, but we he sees that Mickey is lit up and shining, he can come in with us.  It is set to come on and 5:15.  He very clearly understood what we wanted him to do.  Sometime between 12:00 and 1:00 on Sunday night (Monday morning) he woke up and came out into the hallway, calling for Daddy.  He didn't come up to our bedroom door, but instead stood in the bathroom dooorway and waited for him.  He obviously remembered that he wasn't supposed to come into our room.  Ryan brought him back to his room and cuddled with him in his toddler bed- a bit of a squeeze.  Needless to say, I fit better in a toddler bed at only 5 feet tall.  After that one wake up, he slept in his own bed until 6:40.  That is great and on the later side for him! 

We used the light again last night.  I asked him to tell me what the 'night light rules' were and he flawlessly explained them to me.  Last night he slept in his own bed until 4:45 before getting up and looking for Daddy (I am always tending to Bryleigh by the time Brennan wakes).  They repeated the routine of going back in his own bed until after the night light came on.  Then they came back into our bed, since Brennan wasn't quite asleep (it came on a few minutes early as these non-digital timers are hard to set perfectly...).

I know it isn't a miracle cure, but it does seem to encourage him to stay in his own bed.  We'll keep working at it and being consistent and maybe one of these days he'll sleep through the night on a regular basis.

Bryleigh's issues are different.  I don't expect her to sleep through the night at not quite 5 months old.  I am realistic.  However, I would like bedtime to get easier with her.  Many times I lay her down and she wakes back up crying within a minute.  We may repeat this 3 or 4 times before finally having success.  I can't let her fuss herself to sleep due to the shared room- ahh, the joys of a shared room.  She also normally wakes up the first time only 3 hours or so into sleep.  I would love to get a little bit longer stretch out of her.  And though it is unrelated to sleep, she still will not take a bottle.

Tackling her sleeping issues is much harder than reasoning with our two year old.  We're starting by stretching out the time between her daytime feedings.  Most days she wants to snack all the time rather than having good feedings.  Now, I'm making sure to wait at least 2.5 to 3 hours between feedings to ensure that she's getting really full at each feeding.  We're hoping that by learning to go longer between feedings during the day will translate to night, as well.  We're also thinking that by eating less often when fussy during the day, and walking or bouncing instead, we might be able to break some of the comfort feeding stuff, which would help immensely at night.  And we're trying the bottle some during the day- not every day, but sometimes.  We would love it if some day she magically just took it!

Well, that's about it.  Here's hoping our ideas will work well!  Wish us luck and if you have any amazing tips, please let me know!

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Poop 'n Pull Potty Training Device Review!

A couple of week ago, we started using our latest review product- the Poop 'n Pull from Joshheathmoffatt on Etsy.  Well, I suppose I should say that Brennan started using it... While the name may sound funny, the product itself is actually a pretty smart idea!

The Poop 'n Pull is a potty training device that delivers rewards to your child upon successful trips to the bathroom.  It consists of a main unit which has two sides- one storage compartment for your child's favorite treats, and the side you load the treats into, and a release string.  Using the device is easy and straightforward.  All you do is load the treat into the release area, wait for your child to successfully use the potty, and then let your child pull the string to release the reward.  The Poop 'n Pull also comes along with a sheet of tips for potty training success.

When the Poop 'n Pull came, I attached the included hook and placed it on the bathroom door.  I then told Brennan what it was and showed him how it works.  It wasn't too long and he wanted to give it a try.  He sat down and peed on his potty and then asked to use the Poop 'n Pull.  I happily obliged.  This has continued and has only gotten better.  He even made sure to tell me that his favorite treat is sour gummy worms! :)

Before the Poop 'n Pull, Brennan was interested in potty training in streaks.  He would do great using his potty for a week or so, then be completely uninterested again.  Since receiving the Poop 'n Pull, he has stayed interested an gotten much better at it!  Quite often he tells us when he has to go instead of us asking him if he needs to.  During the last few days he has been in underwear much more than in diapers, basically only wearing a diaper at nap time and at night.  He has had very few (or no) accidents during the last couple of days, too.  We're thrilled with how he is doing.  He still is uncomfortable with the idea of pooping on the potty for some reason, so we've had a couple accidents because of that, but I think he's getting much closer to trying it...

I absolutely believe that the Poop 'n Pull is the main reason behind his sudden and consistent interest in using the potty.  Yes, you could just hand your child a piece of candy, but there is really something more fun about letting your kiddo pull the string and get it themselves.  They like it better, too.  I'm very impressed!  What's even cooler is that Josh, the Poop 'n Pull creator, told me that the original Poop 'n Pull is more of a prototype and that they are working a new and improved model!

If you want a potty training incentive, head on over to Joshheathmoffatt and pick up a Poop 'n Pull for your child!

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Lorelai's Day at Chalk Beach!

This is best friend, Heather's, little girl, Lorelai.  She is such a cute little sweetie.  Anyway, I just wanted to share these two adorable pictures with you!  Here is Lorelai enjoying her day at Chalk Beach!  She's got a good Mama, huh?  :)

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My Little Chatterbox

Saying that Brennan is starting to talk pretty well is a complete understatement!  He is a chatterbox, talking about anything and everything ALL DAY LONG!  This is just a short video showcasing Brennan's language skills.  :)

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Our New Bed Time Routine

Let's start by saying this- I love my son SO much.  He is funny, sarcastic, remarkably witty for a 2 year old, sweet, and waaaay too smart for his own good, which leads me to our issue.

Brennan has always been a high maintenance sleeper.  Some aspects of his sleep are improving (not getting up as often at night), but some are getting even worse!  Bed time lately has become the most dreaded time of our day.  Brennan has been taking forever to fall asleep!  I'll admit, his bed time routine was really lacking.  It went sort of like this- get him to eat as much as possible, play for a while possibly with one of his shows on in the background, get on night diaper and pj's, maybe read a few books, and sit on the couch watching TV with either Mom or Dad, drinking a bottle then cuddling until he was totally asleep.  Yes.  I know.  It was bad.  But believe it or not, we used to have a bed time routine.  We used to read stories in his room and then listen to music until he fell asleep.  At one point, it even got good enough that he would let us lay him down and he would put himself to sleep with little or no crying!

Then the evil genius in Brennan reared his ugly head and he started rebelling against his routine.  We would sit in his room, rocking for the LONGEST time and he still would not go to sleep.  He would be almost asleep and then he would just sit up and ask to go out to the couch.  If we tried laying him down, he would cry forever, to the point of making himself sick.  Finally, one night I just gave in.  I brought him out to the living room to cuddle with me on the couch and he was asleep within minutes.  Now he had us.  Every night he would fight us until we were on the couch and pretty soon that just became the routine because it worked.  He was always asleep within a few minutes. 

Now, this 'routine' is backfiring, too!  He'll lay with me for a while, and then start freaking out until he gets to lay with Daddy.  So then Daddy holds him... before you know it he is screaming for Mama again.  This goes on and on until he finally exhausts himself, or until we lay him in his crib and let him holler for a while.  Sometimes after that he realizes that we really mean business and bed time is BED TIME! 

He was also drinking his bottle and then begging and crying for more.  This problem has luckily already been solved.  One bottle of milk is all he gets (and that is only 1st thing in the morning, before his nap, and before bed) and after that it's water.  We're working on getting rid of the bottle, but it is TOTALLY his one security item and he is addicted to it... one step at a time!

Anyway, three nights ago we told him that bed time was going to be different from now on.  We explained that he is a big boy, and he doesn't need to fall asleep in the living room watching TV every night (like a 60 year old man).  We told him that from now on, we would have supper and play quietly with blocks or puzzles for a little bit.  Then it would be time to put on PJ's and brush teeth.  After that he would get to pick out a few books and we would read them in his rocking chair.  Then we would cuddle and I would sing to him until he fell asleep (for now).  That first night he did surprisingly well with it, though it took him a long time to fall asleep.  The second night went better, with him falling asleep slightly quicker.  Last night wasn't very fun, though.

We did the whole routine and got to the cuddling part.  We cuddled, and cuddled, and cuddled, but he would not go to sleep!  Most of the problem is that trying to cuddle comfortably in the glider is nearly impossible.  He is much too long now, so it seems that his legs and arms are flailing everywhere.  Finally, last night I convinced him to lay in his crib and I laid on the floor next to him and held his hand.  Surprisingly, this was more comfortable than sitting in the chair.  We did this for a while, but he still wasn't asleep and I could hear Daddy trying his hardest to calm down a ticked-off Bryleigh in the living room.  She needed me.  So I quietly stood up.  Brennan did NOT approve, but he settled down when I told him that Ryan would come in and take my place.  Eventually, he did fall asleep this way. 

I guess I feel like this is one step closer to a real big kid bed time, but we still have a long way to go.  We're going to keep working on it and TRY not to get discouraged!  It is really frustrating when bed time takes THAT long!  And for anyone who wants to just tell me to let him cry- NO!  First off, it's mean.  Second, you don't know my kid.  He is the epitome of stubborn.  It really is his way or the highway and though he sometimes can be swayed, he wouldn't budge on something like this.  Hopefully his stubbornness is a trait that will serve him well later in life!

Any ideas or even encouragement are appreciated!!!

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Look What My Hubby Did! Our Awesome Backyard Sandbox!

We are the proud owners of this beautiful, brand new, home and hand-crafted sandbox!  We knew that our son was definitely outgrowing the little turtle sandbox and we wanted him to have an updated version!  I spent lots of time researching sandboxes, sand, and everything that goes along with them.  I finally found a blog that outlined a wonderful sandbox building plan and decided to go with that.  If you want to build this same sand box, check out these wonderful instructions: How to Build a Sandbox with Seats.

Now that the planning stage was over, it was Ryan's turn!  Together, we went and bought all of the wood and other materials (except the sand) and then Ryan got busy building.  I would have liked to help, but with a one week old baby at home, it wasn't very feasible.  After the frame was all built, 'planted' in the yard, and stained, it was time for sand!  My parents were nice enough to pick up the sand from Menards and bring it down to our place with their trailer.  We don't have a trailer and we didn't think that either of our vehicles would take very kindly to having over a ton of sand (LITERALLY) loaded into the trunk!  Anyway, after it was all said and done, here's how it turned out!

We love our new sandbox, especially Mr. Brennan!  Thanks, Daddy!

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Yum... Dog Food!

This is a good one.  Since my blog is supposed to be about a day in my life, I think this issue I face needs including!

I think that almost every kid has tried dog food at least once.  Most of the time it goes in the mouth and comes right back out.  Well... that's not really the case with my Brennan. 

The boy loves dog food.  I find it totally disgusting- the fact that he likes it, I mean.  I haven't tried my dog's food myself.  If I don't want him to eat it, I have to keep the bowl locked in the kitchen or back porch.

And it isn't like he gingerly nibbles one piece at a time.  No.  It's an entire handful!  He jams it right in and then scampers away to avoid me trying to make him spit it out. 

In fact, the other day I was trying my best to get him to spit some out.  We were outside on the deck and I was holding him so he couldn't run away.  I kept telling him, "Brennan!  Spit it out!  That's disgusting!  Spit it out, now!"  He looked me right in the eyes and shouts, "EAT IT!" as he crunches down the last bit.

So today I decided to try a new experiment- pretend that I really don't care that he's eating dog food and completely ignore it.  Maybe it's an attention stunt?  Turns out it isn't....  He took a handful, shoved it in, and then crawled out of the house through the dog door to enjoy his delicacy on the deck.  I was keeping an eye on him to make sure he wouldn't choke or anything.  Pretty soon I see his little hand poke back in through the dog door and right into Emmy's bowl for another bite.  And then again... So apparently my 'ignore it' plan wasn't working. 

He also enjoys dog treats.  He asks to give one to the puppy, but at least half of the time he's the one who ends up eating it.

This all probably makes me sound like a stellar mom, but besides only putting the food bowl on the floor when Emmy is eating, I don't know what to do!  I guess I feel that I have many more important battles that I need to fight with him than the dog food war, so I don't make too big of a deal out of it.  It isn't going to hurt him.  The main problem is that it disgusts me.  I assume that he will outgrow this phase.  If not, I've got bigger problems!  Today, I started telling him that there are chicken beaks and feathers in dog food.  He just happily repeats, "beaks and feathers!"  I think I just inadvertently made dog food even cooler...

So, any suggestions?  Or more importantly- does anyone else's kid do this?!?  Gross!

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Brennan's 2nd Birthday- Mickey Mouse Party!

Our little man just celebrated his 2nd birthday on February 24th!  Look how things have changed in exactly two years!  The first picture shows Brennan on 2/24/10 at 7:09am and the second shows Brennan on 2/24/12 at 7:09am.

Though I miss they 'tiny baby' days, it is so much fun seeing the new things that Brennan can do everyday and being able to watch him experience new things for the first time.  He got to experience something fun and new on his 2nd birthday when we took him bowling for the first time. He had a blast!  There were so many colored balls!  Brennan is the typical boy, so a room filled with so many balls to roll was pretty cool for him.  It turns out that Brennan is a natural when it comes to bowling.  His first roll ever resulted in a strike!  Here's the video:

Then on Saturday, we had Brennan's birthday party.  I was kind of hoping that I'd get two years of 'Mom chooses the theme' parties, but it was already pretty obvious this year that Brennan's favorite party theme idea was Mickey Mouse.  He's a huge fan of 'The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse' show and will spot any picture of Mickey, no matter how small.  It was definitely the right choice for him.  He was so excited to see the Mickey balloons, cake, and presents that people came with!

I'm grooming Brennan to be a great photographer!

There's ONE more thing in here!

A dustpan!  My favorite toy... (seriously)

Happy, Happy Birthday, Baby!

Isn't this balloon awesome!?!

After we finished opening up all of Brennan's wonderful presents, it was time for cake!  Gigi (Grammy Sue) made a delicious Mickey Mouse cake, which Brennan loved.  We took some pictures, lit the candle, and sang happy birthday to the birthday boy.  He really liked everyone singing to him and he blew out his candle like a pro!

The party was short and sweet- just perfect for a toddler.  It was wonderful that many of our family members and friends could be here.  Brennan had a wonderful time and really loves all of his gifts.  Thanks again, everybody!

Wonder what next year's theme will be?

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Brennan's New Toy!

Brennan was lucky enough to get a just-by-chance, early birthday present this week!  Brennan and I stopped to pick up a quilt at our local quilting shop on Monday.  He found a big bucket of toys in the back while I was picking out which quilt was the one we came for.  It only took me a moment to find it, but by the time I had, Brennan had already fallen in love with one of the toys.  It was a little tricycle/scooter- a Razor Scuttle Bug.  He had climbed onto it and figured it out immediately.  You should have seen the smile on his face... :) 

I was already dreading leaving the store since, like most kids, Brennan would be quite ticked off about having to leave the new treasure he had found behind.  The only difference with Brennan is that he can crank it up to a level a bit higher than the average child.  Wrestling my extremely strong almost-two-year old is hard under normal circumstances, but even harder while juggling a quilt and being 35 weeks pregnant!

I was just in the beginning stages of my bargaining/bribing (I know... I know...) routine- something along the lines of "Brennan, Emmy is at home waiting for us.  Do you want to go home and give her a treat?  And you know what!  If you walk like a nice boy to the car, Mommy will be so proud of you and give you a Tic Tac!"  All of a sudden the nice quilt shop lady interrupted me. 

"You know, I'd really love to just send that home with you.  My grand kids are way too big for it and it is just taking up space here."  I asked her if she was sure a couple of times and she insisted.  So we thanked her (a lot... more than she even knows...) and proceeded to have a nice, calm, and cooperative walk to the door.  So nice!

Brennan has been sitting on his new scooter a lot and 'Go Go Going', as B says, ever since we got it home.


Thank you very much, nice quilt shop lady!

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Life's Little Accomplishments

My little guy has been saying and doing things lately that have just been making me feel so proud!  Though we are still in the midst of the 'terrible twos' (his 2nd birthday is February 24th!), he has been making some wonderful accomplishments!  Here are a few of the ones I'm most proud of:

• His vocabulary is EXPLODING!  He knows how to say so much!  Even though many of his words sound similar and it takes some detective work to figure out what exactly he's talking about, he is absolutely able to 'explain' his wants and needs.  He's getting very good at stringing 2 to 3 words together to form mini-sentences, too!  I just love the conversations we're beginning to have.

• He is starting to learn his colors.  Yellow is definitely his favorite and his go-to color if he can't remember the name for another color (green or red, for instance).  Most of the time he identifies blue and yellow correctly and we are working on the other ones.  Just this morning I pulled open his drawer of diapers and asked him to pick one out.  He walked over saying 'yellow' and then grabbed the first yellow one he spotted.  Then he threw that one on the floor, said 'blue' and pulled out a blue one- another proud Mama moment.  Unfortunately, deciding which one he REALLY wanted on was a little harder!

• He is starting to say 'please' and 'thank you' without being prompted!  This is one of my very favorite things!  He sounds so polite when I bring him some water or pick up a toy that he dropped and he says a sweet little, "thank you."  Once again, it may not sound that much like 'thank you' but it is so cute and sweet.  I'm also loving that he's picked up saying 'Bless you' after someone sneezes, but only if it wasn't a very funny sneeze.  In the case of the latter, giggling is the normal response :).

• Now when I tell him 'I love you' he reciprocates every time!  Sure feels good...

• I'm starting to wonder if he is actually grasping the idea of another baby coming.  When we ask him where the baby is, he touches my tummy and says 'baby'.  We've set up a second crib in his nursery for when she arrives and he points or runs to it all the time and says 'baby night night', while letting out fake snoring sounds.  Anytime he sees newborn clothing, hats that I've made, new baby blankets, etc., he says 'baby'.  And he even says 'baby' when he sees an ultrasound picture, either a 2D profile or the 3D ones.  When he looks at the 3D ones, he often points out her mouth or nose, while saying 'baby nose' for example and then rubs my tummy.  I sure hope he is beginning to understand and that all of our explaining has been sinking in.  He knows that the baby will come out and live with us soon and that he can give her soft hugs and kisses and help me with things like getting diapers and reading her books.  And he's modest- when I ask him if he's going to be the best big brother, he simply says, "Da"... his version of 'yes'.

• This one might sound silly, but for the past few days Brennan has been eating all of his meals really well!  He used to be a great eater until shortly after his first birthday.  Since then, he's eaten like a bird.  I guess he just wanted to take a year or so off...  

Well, I guess that about covers it.  I just wanted to share how proud I am!  Brennan's dynamic personality is developing more and more and each day he does or achieves something new.  It is so fun to watch him evolve into the child he is becoming.  The only sad part is, the little baby that I had not quite 2 short years ago is no more- he is definitely a kid now!

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What does your morning smell like?

Anyone who regularly reads my blog knows that I like to post a lot of pictures and tell stories about my life, but most often, about my son.  Sometimes these stories are fairly detailed and lengthy, with a lot of pictures.  The post idea that hit me this morning was totally the opposite, but it fits perfectly with the title of my blog, "A Day in the Life of a Five Foot Mama".

As I was changing Brennan's diaper and getting him dressed for the day, here's what was running through my head- "Ahh.... the smell of rank diaper and fruit snacks in the morning."  Many of you are probably smelling freshly brewed coffee or maybe some muffins in the oven.  Well, enjoy your coffee and muffins while this Five Foot Mama basks in the residual odor of fruity poop!

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HE'S BAAAACK! FWA-ZEE-ZEE

Since mid-December, a cherished member of our household has been missing in action.  You're probably already feeling worried for us, thinking that our beloved dog or cat (we don't have a cat...) has run away.  Don't worry- this situation was just a tad different. 

You see, Brennan has this Little People block set that came with toy monkey and zebra figurines.  He carried them around like little buddies until one day, we could no longer find "Fwa-zee-zee" (A.K.A.- Zebra).  We scoured the house from top to bottom searching for Fwa-zee-zee, to no avail.  We assumed that he was still tucked away into some secret little hiding spot and that he would turn up soon.  We also assumed that if we didn't find him, Brennan would quickly move on and forget about Fwa-zee-zee.  NOT THE CASE!

Every night, and sometimes multiple times during the day, Brennan would grab either my or Ryan's hand and say, "Fwa-zee-zee!" while pulling us along on the hunt with him.  He would always start the search in his room, laying down flat on the floor to peer under his changing table, before moving onto other possible hiding spots.  We looked everywhere!  The only logical explanation was that he could have been thrown away (but I went through the garbage before bringing it out just in case...) or flushed down the toilet.  Of course, when I asked Brennan if he flushed Fwa-zee-zee, he just replied, "Flushed!" along with a matching hand gesture.  Where else could Fwa-zee-zee be?!?!  Finally we decided that Fwa-zee-zee was not going to be found, at least not anytime in the near future.  We figure that we'll probably find him on the day we move out of our house, sometime down the road...  Still, Brennan wanted to keep looking for him and we were getting quite sick of looking.

Lucky for us, there was one (and ONLY one) exact Fwa-zee-zee match on eBay, and I quickly decided that it was worth the $3.49 to just buy it and end the hunt.  Fwa-zee-zee just arrived in the mail yesterday, but instead of simply giving him to Brennan, I had a plan.  We were going to make all of the hunting worthwhile!

I secretly sneaked Fwa-zee-zee into the perfect location under Brennan's changing table when he wasn't looking and waited, camera in hand, for the hunt to begin!  The results were pretty darn cute.

Now, as I write this, Fwa-zee-zee lays on the couch next to me, waiting to be flushed played with.  He looks pretty happy to be home!  I know his tiny owner is glad to have him back.

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