Where To Begin

Brace yourself, you are in for a doozy of an update...enjoy!

I have become a terrible blogger! I can't believe my last post was about Twilight. Well, to update on that, I have read all of them and will hopefully get around to finishing the partial draft of Midnight Sun. I love Twilight, I am a huge fan of it, I'm team Edward but perhaps New Moon will change that. Did anyone know that Rob Pattinson is only 23?! How disappointing...lol. I don't care, I'm still in love with his vampire character. A girl can dream, right?

Hm...what's next.

Brief update on my little boy. Oh, he IS quite the character, I tell you what. My 2 year old baby is potty trained! Yes, he has done it all by himself and I am so proud of him. We are now working on staying dry at night, tonight is actually the first night without a diaper. He does well at naps so I am just testing the water here. Last night when we asked him to put on a diaper, he said, VERY convincingly, "No! I don't wike DIAPAS!" Jon and I cracked up, it was so funny how much passion he put into that statement. Truthfully, it caught us off guard. A week or so ago he told me he wasn't a baby anymore when I asked him to put on his diaper for bedtime. He said, "I not a baby."

Let me tell a story that relates to the baby statement I just mentioned. When we FIRST ventured out into this potty training world with him, I pointed out on the diaper box a baby that was wearing a diaper and said, "Kayden, are you a baby like this one here (as I pointed)?" He replied, "No." I continued, "Are you my big boy who wants to wear big boy undies?" And of course he answered, yes. So since then, he does NOT want to be a baby and wear diapers. My mom told me that Kayden proved her theory wrong as far as potty training little boys goes. I just think that he's more an exception to the rule of the average age a boy is potty trained is 3 years old. I'm pleased and have NO complaints. He has had VERY FEW accidents and does a great job holding it. Now he is starting to do it on his own without me reminding him. I'll be into what I am doing at the moment and next thing I know, Kayden is bringing me his undies saying, "I did it, Mommy. I did it." Even though he has been saying that for the past 3 weeks, it still makes me smile because he is so proud of himself.

A few other things about Kayden: He is getting all four of his 2 year molars. The bottom left broke through at some uknown point; I noticed the bottom right broke through 2 Saturdays ago (May 30th) and the top two are VERY swollen. Needless to say he's been a little cranky for 2 weeks and who wouldn't be?! He loves to eat bananas and has one EVERY morning and sometimes for a snack in the late afternoon. His favorite breakfast is regular oatmeal with a banana or applesauce added to it. He also enjoys peas, salads, crackers, grapes, and of course, cheese. He is an AWESOME sleeper. Kayden is getting into Spider Man aside from Cars, he isn't so sure about swimming in pools but enjoys water, and LOVES his new pack of special undies that he received for being potty trained. There were 7 in the pack: 2 Cars, 2 Buzz Lightyears, 1 Nemo, 1 Incredibles, and I can't think of the last one. He's extremely proud of them and wants to change them at least twice a day. Trying to break that habit.

Okay...if you've made it this far in the post, you are enduring and patient.

Next, I'll mention a few things about Lana. She is still a poor sleeper. She was doing good for a while but that spell didn't last long. The other day during nap time, she came to me with a concerned look on her face. I asked her what was wrong and she responded with, "It's too hard." "What's too hard?", I questioned. "Sleeping, it's too hard. I can't do it." I felt really bad for her, I know how much of a struggle it is for her to sleep. I've tried SO many different things to help her but it's just her biggest trial right now. I get frustrated with it. For example, today, she spent 2 hours of nap time rolling around, trying to find something to keep herself awake. Then she came into my room, where I was napping, and told me she didn't want to sleep. I had her get in my bed and lay next to me. I reminded her twice to be still and within 5 minutes she was out like a light. I CANNOT understand her refusal to sleep. I like sleep, Jon likes sleep, Kayden doesn't seem to mind it...she must get it from her Nanny (my mom). Other than that, my Lana is a great kid and I couldn't ask for any better.

Here are a few more things about Keilana. She's highly fond of swimming and was recently called a water baby. She loves cheese as well, and a HUGE fan of any type of cracker. She will ask me for crackers all day and would eat them morning, noon and night. She's like her Mama in that she could also eat cereal and milk for breakfast, lunch and dinner. She still prefers soy milk to cow milk but will endure cow milk if that's all that is available. She LOVES to play with baskets, bags, and containers, putting many of her girlie toys in them and carrying them around the house. On the floor right now, I see about 2 baskets, 2 felt bags, 1 metal container, and 1 backpack that she has carried around for the last several days. It has her knickknacks in it like bracelets, hello kitties, pez dispensers and baby doll stuff, etc. It's so cute and keeps her quite entertained. A second activity that still keeps her attention for an extended period of time is looking at books. She keeps a stack of about 15 books off to the side of her room and will go through EACH page of each book before calling it quites.

I have reconfirmed for the umpteenth time that sugar does nothing for her. Kayden doesn't seem to be altered by it to the extent she is. Keilana is NOT my little girl when she has sugar in her system. The difference is dramatic and amazingly huge when she is without sugar. What do I do then? I find snacks that have 6 grams of sugar or less that has a reasonable serving size. Yeah, try to do that next time you are at Wal-mart---it's ridiculous. Some things I do to ration her sugar intake is use natural fruits as a sweetner. Like I mentioned above, I use regular oatmeal and just add applesauce or bananas and will throw some raisins in it. Same for yogurt. I buy regular plain non-fat yogurt and will either sweeten it with agave or I'll use the fruit. We don't bake often anymore because it's expensive but when I do, I try to use wholewheat flour and the agave. I even make my own chocolate ice cream that is very good, rich and creamy. There aren't many cereals out there but some of their favorites are rice crispies, Corn/Rice Chex, cheerios, and Crispix. Fortunately, for me, the kids like soy milk which is half the amount of sugar found in one cup of non-fat cow milk. So that's just a few alternatives that I use to cut back on the sugar intake and the kids LOVE all the variances and don't really miss products on the market. For a treat, I hold off on special crackers or chips and that is typically their treat since they don't get it often and we'll occasionally bake cookies or brownies.

I have mentioned in the past that I use Agave to replace granulated sugar, however, that will be changing soon as well. I have done research on it and apparently it isn't all that it's cracked up to be, extremely expensive and has just gone up in price; though, a better alternative for diabetics still. My next route that I am going to try is actually a plant that is 200-300 times sweeter than granulated sugar and a tablespoon of it is equivalent to a cup of regular sugar. Yeah, a land slide of a difference. It is, however, expensive as well AND hard to find, but the amount it takes to sweeten something compensates for the price. The Chinese have been using it for over 30 years and I'm pretty confident in Asians--they seem to have their acts together. And no, not just because I am married to one. If you have a green thumb, you can grow it yourself and cut back on costs all together--it's called Stevia. I will attempt that, though the good Lord knows growing plants isn't a talent of mine. Here's an article on Agave that mentions stevia and other alternatives to sugar if anyone is interested.

Since the last time I got on to her for keeping her toys all over her room and not keep things picked up and put away properly she has been very good to clean her room. Last time we cleaned her room, I picked up everything and put it in a bag and told her that I was giving her toys to other boys and girls that would appreciate the toys and take care of them. Granted, she doesn't put EVERYTHING in it's place but instead, she'll put some stuff against her walls and on top of her dresser so that at least the floor is clean. I'm proud of her the same, she shows effort and willingness to try and I will not deprive her of that. The most recent thing we are working on is keeping her clothes nicely folded in her drawers since she likes to change at least twice a day. Today she was so proud of herself when she folded a shirt and shorts and put them away very neatly in her drawer. I have to say she did a GREAT job. Lana is very responsible, mature, and wise beyond her years. Perhaps first child syndrome? I hope to instill those same qualities in Kayden.

This past Sunday was Lana's first time participating in the opening exercises for Primary. Last week she was given the CTR bear and scripture. When a child receives the CTR bear he or she reports the next week of ways they chose the right. This was Lana's list they she came up with on her own: 1) Nice to her brother 2) Cleaned her room 3) Went to bed (she actually did) 4)Wore her CTR ring to help remind her to choose the right (I did help prompt her with this one.) Since she is a little shy and hesitant doing things for the first time, I took a few minutes before Primary and helped her practice, podium and all. She followed through, did well, but next time we'll work on her volume. She was very quiet and I'm sure few were able to hear her. Still, nonetheless, as her mother, it was another proud and shining moment for me.

Well, if you have made it to this point in my blog, congratulations, you are one of my avid readers that is truly interested in our family! Here is a picture as a reward.

On to Jon. Here's a frustrating topic. For the last month he has consistently had a headache everyday. He said that he woke up one morning with a headache and it just never went away. The severity would increase and decrease but that dull, annoying pain was always present. The turning point came after working out one day. When he got home, he quickly told me to get the kids out of the car for him (we have daycare there and it gave me a bit of free time to get dinner prepared). Next thing I know, I find him in the bathroom throwing up!!! Apparently it has intensified into a migraine.

After two weeks of the persistent headaches, we scheduled an appointment to see the doctor. To make things brief, he said his reflex and neurological signs were good, gave him a pain killer in the form of a shot in his butt to subside the pain (the most hilarious moment ever. Definitely a top 5), prescribed him pain killers just a step up from Ibuprofen, told him not to work out for 2 weeks and scheduled an MRI just in case and for peace of mind. I realized after about 2 1/2 weeks that he was keeping himself tense, his shoulders and jaw tight. His headaches would get worse when he got home and our evening got hectic. I showed him relaxing techniques that I learned in my yoga class and now he is more aware of his stress levels and will start to loosen up in tense moments. They seem to be getting better and lessening in severity, although, they haven't gone completely away. This is his first week back to the gym and I'm making sure he is taking baby steps. He did okay today with some fast paced walking and light weight lifting. He wanted to push himself more but I called it quits, reminding him that he needed to ease back into it even though he felt good.

He's going on his third year at coke and still enjoys what he does. Coke has been very good to us! He isn't traveling like he was his first year, or even last year. The company has really cut back on costs during these economic hardships. He will be taking the first part of the 4 part CIA (Certified Internal Auditor) Exam. He's been studying for months now, so, hopefully, he will be able to do well on that.

As far as myself, I'm getting back to the gym as well. I missed a lot this past month, trying to help Jon and ease the stress for him. Surprisingly, I haven't regressed too much. Today I ran 1 1/2 miles and benched 30 lbs. I've come a long way in 4 months and I'm very proud of myself. I still have a bit of a way to go, but I know I'll get there in time. My thyroid seems to be getting under control, I certainly have a lot more energy than I used to. I'm able to spend more time with the kids now and I am sad to say that the last 2 years I missed out on a lot of their lives. Without having energy to get out of bed most mornings, I did well to care for their needs, rarely finding the strength to do extracurricular activities with them. I have recently discovered that during the one wonderful week of the month for women, I get less patient, more easily frustrated and I'm just not a fun person to be around. I try to be as nice as I can but about 4-5 days I am just a beast but towards the end I come around and I'm tolerable to live with again. It really isn't easy, this thyroid thing sucks! At least I have the energy to do things though, I'm grateful for that!

So you have come to the end of our update and bless you if you read that entire entry. Bless you.



A cute candid of Keilana and Jon:

UPDATE: Kayden stayed dry through the night!! Woo!