Doo Doo Duty

Caleb's diapers went bye bye for good after Sunday night. It hasn't been easy. In the past two days he's only used the potty twice. But, there is no going back. We have to do this. I want him to be potty trained before he goes back to school next year.

On Monday night, we went out to eat. He did great. No accidents. But, as soon as we came home he peed on my computer chair and pooped in his pants. Fabulous. I've done so many loads of laundry these past two days and have changed so many pairs of underwear that I may as well be changing diapers. I'll be so glad when he's done.

I'm actually doing much better this time around. I'm more committed to make sure he gets trained. Plus, he looks like such a big boy in his underpants! He's very much into airplanes and he has some airplane underwear. It hasn't been a big enough motivator to keep them clean but it has helped when I'm trying to put them on him.

So, that's the big news around here. I'm up to my eyeballs in doo doo and there's nothing I can doo doo about it.

Doo Doo Duty

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/06/doo-doo-duty.html

Another Book Review

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon is told from the perspective of a 15 yr. old boy with Asperger's syndrome (part of the autism spectrum disorder). I actually listened to this book on the way back and forth from my girl's weekend and then I had Carl listen to it as well. Aside from my obvious interest in this book as a parent of a child with autism, this book was really wonderfully written. It starts out as a murder mystery. Christopher (the main character) is trying to find out who murdered a dog in his neighborhood. The plot twists and turns with Christopher's whims as he is writing the story. We do ultimately find out who killed the dog but the main focus of the story is how Christopher lives with his autism on a daily basis and how he finds out more and more about his family. I think our extended family would gain some valuable insights by reading this book. While Caleb is still very young and does not exhibit many of the characteristics of Christopher, Carl and I found it a very good description of what it must be like to live with autism.

Word of warning: This book has a lot of "f" words. Carl and I were discussing this last night. However, the main character is really just narrating word for word what people say to him and for him, these words really have no meaning. They are just so matter of fact. I didn't find it as offensive as I do when reading books where there really is no good reason for the characters to be dropping f bombs every few lines. Other than that, the book is PG (he does talk about an affair--but again, from a perspective that doesn't really understand the details and very matter of fact).

Grade: A. I would give it an A+ if it had less swearing. It might have been different if I had read the book instead of listened to it, though. I can skim over those words in text but on a cd, they just kind of jump out at you.

In conclusion, the other pictures of Eva eating lemons and one of sweet Caleb.

Another Book Review

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/06/another-book-review.html

Busy Weekend

Our weekend started on Friday since Caleb was finally out of school. I spent most of the day trying to keep them occupied. I bought some play-do the other day and decided to break it out. It was a big hit. In the afternoon, we needed an outing. Once Eva woke up from her nap, we went to the Children's Museum. I usually avoid going there by myself because Caleb and Eva like to run in different directions and I'm only one person. But, they actually did really well and it was promising that I'll be able to do this more often.

Caleb and Eva love the water tables. Caleb played with most of the toys appropriately. Eva, is more concerned with eating and drinking at this stage in her life.

They also had a really good time at the piano. They really could have just done this at home, but we don't have the cool sunglasses to put on.
After the museum, we met Carl at Chipotle for dinner. Most of you know how Caleb loves lemons. He can eat them down to the rind without even a pucker. Eva tries.
After Chipotle, we walked over to the Lied Center for their Free at 6pm series. It was a steel drum band. It didn't hold their interest so we left after 3 songs.

The next day we went to the 150th anniversary of the handcart trek in Kearney, NE (about 2 hours away). It was quite boring. Carl sang in a choir (they sounded great). I was glad to come home.

I hope I can make it through this next week. Should be exciting. We're getting rid of Caleb's diapers today. No more! In PFA news, I lost all of my Breckenridge weight so now I'm back to pre-girl's weekend form. This week should be better. I think that's about it for today (I did have a longer post written and just before I uploaded the pictures, Eva pushed the power button---the auto recovery had only saved half--bummer!).

Busy Weekend

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/06/busy-weekend.html

LMNOP

We're watching the Scripps National Spelling Bee tonight. In my family, I was the speller (aka the biggest nerd in the Charlton family). I remember my grandma calling me once to spell something for her. I wasn't very old and I'm pretty sure she wasn't doing that just to make me feel good. Most of you know that Carl is pretty smart (and not just because he married me). He's a freakin' genius. It's been really fun watching the spelling bee with him. He gets so proud of himself when he can spell the words correctly. I've been teasing him a little bit by reminding him that middle schoolers are spelling these words and he has a little bit of an advantage by having a PhD and being more than twice their age. I remind him of the same things when he is incorrect and they get them right. Just a little family fun...Nelson style.

Giocoso. Just one of the words I got right and Carl missed. Ha ha sucker. Who's the genius now, Dr. Nelson????

LMNOP

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/06/lmnop.html

Last Day of School

Is it already June? Holy moly. Caleb went to his last day of preschool (for this school year, at least) today. Last night they had a little picnic at the park and gave certificates to the kids that were moving on to kindergarten. Caleb has two more years to go at this preschool and I can only imagine what kind of progress he is going to make. It was only 7 weeks ago that he started at this school and I can already see a big difference.

Caleb had a hard time sitting still during the graduation portion of the picnic. Eva just wanted to be a part of it all and kept walking right into the middle of everything. She's such a cutie that I think everyone was okay with it. It was a pretty low-key event.
The teachers told me how Caleb has a best friend at school. It's Spencer. He wasn't at the party. But, that's okay because Spencer goes to our church. They don't see each other much at church (Spencer is already out of Nursery) but I had a good idea they hit it off. I can see a bunch of playdates in my future for this summer. He lives about 5 blocks away from us and I like his mom (so that's a plus).

I've got another sample conversation from Caleb using his ever expanding preschool skills.

Caleb: Juice?
Me: Can you ask me nicely?
Caleb: Can I have some juice please?
Me: Yes!
Caleb: Thank you for asking so nicely. Thank you for asking so nicely. Thank you for asking so nicely. (repeat until he gets his juice) Thank you Mommy. Say, "You're welcome, Mommy".
Me: You're welcome.

He is also very much into: 1-2-3 Pass It! He'll take a toy and say "1-2-3 Pass it" and then give it to either myself, Carl, or Eva. Then, he'll quickly say it again as many times as he needs to get it back to himself. Then, he's done playing 1-2-3 pass it.

Caleb also sings a bunch of songs from school. After they're done playing they sing a song to talk about what everyone did during play time. They sing, "_____,_____ Where'd you play?"
Caleb sings that for every single kid in his class and then adds all of us at home. Mommy, mommy, where'd you play?

They also sing a song about what kids are wearing that day. Example: Spencer wore his Spiderman shoes, his spiderman shoes, his spiderman shoes, Spencer wore his spiderman shoes to school today.

Now that we don't have school to keep us occupied in the morning...I see a lot of this in our future. The kids not dressed, Caleb and Eva rocking themselves in the recliner, and me wondering how the heck I'm going to entertain these two wild ones all summer. Any suggestions?

Last Day of School

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/06/last-day-of-school.html

The Historian

I recently finished the book The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. It is about Vlad Tepes (aka Dracula) and some historians that are drawn into his life by researching him. They find that Dracula is alive and well (not a spoiler---you find this out in the first couple of pages) and then you go on a fantastic journey throughout Europe to find him.

I'm a big fan of historical fiction. It always makes me want to learn more about subjects that I had never really thought of before. I've never been interested in Dracula but I thought this book would be a good read. Plus, it's long and I enjoy books that are a bit meaty. I learned a lot about history and now I'm keenly interested in finding out more about the man behind the myth.

This book is rated PG for a lot of death and vampire attacks (although they are not described in gruesome detail). There is very little cussing (if any) and sex (come to think of it...I don't think there is any).

I give this book an A- only because it did get a little slow in some parts. However, it did not cause me to lose my interest in the book.

The Historian

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/historian.html

1st Annual Girl's Weekend

The girl's weekend was a huge success. We left Thursday morning to drive 8 1/2 hours to Breckenridge, CO. This was the view from our room.Kellie and Shelley came up from Colorado later so they didn't have a chance to eat with us that first night at Bubba Gump's. In this picture is Megan (Mary's sister), Hollie, and Mary. The food was pretty darn good and was a good way to start our weekend.The next day, most of us went to a salon to get pampered. I got a haircut and highlights. Here is my before picture. You'll have to see the after shot later in the post at the crepe stand (however...I must tell you that the "after" picture was taken the next day and I didn't have any product there to style my hair with).
I didn't get ANY knitting done on this trip like I had planned. I had an unexpected sports injury. All that competitive knitting and computer game playing has put a strain on my arm. I have it in a brace right now and it's been hurting like a bugger. Hollie massaged it for me (she's a professional) a couple of times but I don't know if it's going to get better anytime soon.

Megan and Mary left a night before the rest of us and missed out on our crepe extravaganza. I did manage to get some pictures of them before they left. So, back to the crepes. Yummy! Here's the stand where they make them. The guys there were really funny.
Hollie, Shelley, and I were chowing down. Kellie took the pictures because she finished hers in two bites. Kellie took some time out to smile in front of the sign. Here are some of the other highlights of girl's weekend: Go Goddess, Upwords, Laguna Beach marathon, Megan's lasagna, hot tub. Am I missing anything else?

By the time Sunday rolled around, we were ready to get back to our families. I think they were glad to see us back, too.

1st Annual Girl's Weekend

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/1st-annual-girls-weekend.html

Last Minute Idol Post

I decided to post this morning before I leave because I can't help but blog about the American Idol finale. It was by far the BEST one ever!

I think it helps that I absolutely love Taylor. He's been my favorite Idol since Clay Aiken. Wait...Clay didn't win. Oops. Speaking of Clay...how about that guest appearance with his freaky little look a like? I didn't delete this episode just so I can watch Clay again (among other things...).

Other things? Like this surprise performance by PRINCE! What the heck? How did they get Prince to do AI? Probably because they let him just come out and sing and didn't make him talk to Ryan Seacrest or do a duet w/ an Idol.
Those were my favorite parts of the show. Let's just gloss over the lowlights (Meatloaf, Katherine trying to dance all goofy in a gown, Rhonetta---don't give that girl MORE airtime!).

Well folks, I'm outta here. I'll be back on Monday for more blogging! Have a great weekend because you know I will!

Last Minute Idol Post

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/last-minute-idol-post.html

Hasta la vista

Tomorrow I leave for my girl's weekend in Colorado. I've been looking forward to this for months and I can't believe it is finally here! I'm a little nervous for my family. I'm pretty sure they will survive without me for four days. I will try not to think about that too much so I can enjoy my time "alone".

I've been busy getting things ready around here so I haven't been able to blog as much as usual. I've done loads of laundry, made a double batch of mac & cheese, started packing, and did a lot of things for my Relief Society calling that needed to be done by the end of the month. I'm also trying to get a couple of knitting projects ready for the road.

So, it's hasta la vista from here. I'll post pics and a travel report when I get home.

Hasta la vista

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/hasta-la-vista.html

PFA Update

It's time for the ever popular weekly installment of Project Fat Arse. Folks, not my finest hour. One day was so bad that I shared a pizza with my kids (Eva eats the crust and Caleb can eat as much as I can). I also decided that one day I would try to make Haystacks. These are refrigerator cookies made from Fiber One, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips. One cookie=one point. Eating twelve cookies in one day...not smart. Can't make those again! I got myself back on the wagon in time to lose 2 lbs. this week (a miracle, in my opinion). So, I'm back to the 4 lbs. down total since starting. I have a feeling I'm going to gain back those two lbs. this week. Here's what I have coming up:
1. Tonight I am going out w/ Carl for a business dinner. He's got some big presentation today to some railroad people so they'll give him research money and tonight they are going to Misty's (a steak house that I LOVE!).
2. Wednesday night I am going visiting teaching. That means only one thing. Ice Cream!
3. Thursday I leave (FINALLY) for my girls weekend in Breckenridge, CO. I have been looking forward to this for months and it is finally here! Don't expect me to be counting points while I'm there (although, Hollie and Mary can "try" to keep me in line a little bit). I think there is a refrigerator in our room so I might not do too horribly there.
Let's just say that you all shouldn't expect to see a lot of progress from me next Monday.

*coming soon* I've been unpacking my "craft heaven" and I'm going to be showing it off in my blog in the next couple of days. Just something to look forward to, Eric. :)

PFA Update

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/pfa-update_22.html

Daily Adventures

Yesterday was a really fun day around here. Nothing too exciting happened, but for the most part we were happy. We were all downstairs and I was working on this new sock. It's Trekking XXL yarn (my Wiggle yarn---bought right before the Wiggle's concert) in colorway 107. It's absolutely gorgeous and I know I'll be buying more of this yarn in the future. Gradually the kids started to head upstairs. When this happens, I can guarantee that Caleb heads for the computer and Eva goes straight for the telephone. I can usually tell when they start to get into things that they're not supposed to so I'd give them a few minutes before I went up there to "police" them. I finished a couple of more rows on my sock (3X1 ribbing, btw) and then I started to hear the speakerphone. Yep, that's Eva. So predictable. Or so I thought. Here's what I found.
If Caleb is on the phone, where is Eva?

Those crazy kids. Caleb is starting to really like the camera. He starts posing whenever I bring it out. Here are a few of his closeups. The last one is especially for Uncle Eric.

Daily Adventures

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/daily-adventures.html

The Line Up

Caleb has been really good lately. Preschool is helping him out immensely and I've been getting some good skills (bo staff and numchuk, mainly). To reward his good behaviors, Caleb gets to play on the computer. His favorite sites are nickjr.com and pbskids.org. He can navigate those sites like a pro and find his favorite things to do on there (counting w/ the count, shapes w/ Zoe, Lazy Town songs). The other day, Caleb was done with the computer and came downstairs to play with me. The next time I came to use the computer, this is what I found. He had lined up all of the desktop icons. You will find all sorts of lines around this house. Teletubbies lying all in a row (he turns them over when they are taking naps), blocks, pretzels, etc... His therapist said that we should try and disrupt his line making sometimes to make him understand that things can be in different places and he doesn't have control over everything. She said that it's probably a good thing he has Eva to help him with that as long as she can handle what Caleb will do once she messes with his lines. (Note to self: get Eva bo staff lessons)

The Line Up

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/line-up.html

Survivor Socks

My May socks are done for the Sock-A-Month knit along. They were made with a toe-up pattern (that I wasn't good at...need to practice) and Lorna's Laces yarn in the colorway Flames. The yarn is really nice to work with and it feels great on my feet. I named these my Survivor Socks (and I'll probably wear them for every Survivor episode from now on---unfortunately I have to wait a while for that!). I was working on them during this season's finale and it just seemed so appropriate with them being Flames.

I don't have a lot of time to blog today. I've been busy baking like Martha. I got her baking cookbook and I've wanted to try a lot of the recipes. But, I didn't want to do them unless I had other people to share them with. I can't be eating 6 point cookies all day! Anyway, book group is at my house tonight so those of you that are coming...you better be hungry! Sugar Cookies, Cheesecake Thumbprints, homemade cinnamon chips and Apple Berry Salsa (Pampered Chef recipes) await you! Oh yeah, raspberry lemonade to drink.

Survivor Socks

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/survivor-socks.html

Post #400

Can you all believe it? It's my 400th post. I'd like to celebrate by posting more pictures of the kids and telling you all how much I LOVE my new digital camera. It's the Canon PowerShot A620. I love how it works, sounds, looks, etc... I'm pretty excited about it.

So, for what most of you really want...pics of Caleb and Eva.

Caleb was taking a nap (I know, I can't believe it either!) yesterday and Eva and I started making dinner. We had the sister missionaries over and I was making the kids' favorite food...spaghetti. Eva likes to "help" around the kitchen. By help, I mean get in my way in as many ways as possible. I finally decided to empty out a cabinet and let her play in there. She loved it! Once Carl got home (he found her in the cabinet), he took Eva upstairs to get her out of my way. This girl has so many hobbies already! But, on to her most favorite thing to do of all... eat!When Caleb woke up, he decided he wanted to help out too. He likes to put on my oven mitts and give people hi-fives. What great kids!

Post #400

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/post-400.html

Happy Mother's Day (belated)

I got my first "real" Mother's Day present this year. Caleb made it for me at preschool. I absolutely love it!


Eva had a good time yesterday eating some dang quesadillas (Mary you should get this, now that you've seen Napolean Dynamite). They are her new favorite food.



PFA Update: kind of lame. I had a horrible week. Let's just say Fuddruckers+Skeeter Barnes+Tostitos+Ice cream. I didn't gain back all that I lost last week so that's good. But, I definitely have to kick it up a notch this week.

Happy Mother's Day (belated)

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/happy-mothers-day-belated.html

Knitting Projects Galore

I've been playing with my camera and knitting a lot. Carl's been busy tinkering with computers (so much so that he stayed home from work again today...my computer is about to die and the new one isn't ready yet so we'll see how much blogging I can get in the next few days).

I got the book, Inspired Cable Knits by Fiona Ellis. Cables are one of my favorite things to do with knitting and the sweaters in this book are absolutely gorgeous. This picture was taken on the deck off of our master bedroom. It gives you a good view of our swing set. The sweater I immediately cast on for is called "Gathering Intentions".

I absolutely love how those i-cords are used to gather up the sides. The cables are interesting enough and not boring to knit. That's a plus. I'd like to have this done in time to enter it into the Lancaster County Fair (along with my Snowdrop Shawl).

This is my progress on the right hand sleeve (since Monday). I threw caution to the wind and used this as my swatch. I'm using my recycled Plymouth Encore yarn from a hoodie that I knit last year and never really liked. I had to go down 2 needle sizes to get my gauge right. Depending on how my days go, I can usually knit 10-20 rows a day on this. It's not really something I can knit on when the kids are up and around. For that, I'm knitting on the scarf for Hollie.

The color is really off in this picture. It's a light lime green. I took this one inside and used the flash so I think it must have flashed out all of the color! I'm almost done with the second skein and have one more to use. It's almost as tall as I am (not very...5'1") but the recipient is really tall so I want it to be at least as tall as her. I'm also working on my Lorna's Laces Flames socks (toe up) but I didn't get around to taking a picture of those. I'll probably be working on those a lot this weekend while Carl and Caleb are at the Father/Son campout (they leave tonight and come back tomorrow around lunch time).

Knitting Projects Galore

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/knitting-projects-galore.html

Sick Day

Carl stayed home from work today. He hasn't been feeling well this week and he doesn't have too much to do at work right now since the semester just ended. So, we've had a good day here at the house. We got a new motor for our furnace, closed some old bank accounts, got new car insurance, and tonight we are going to go out to eat. Good times.

Our digital camera arrived this afternoon and I should be getting a "new" computer (one that Carl built--he assures me it will be awesome) tonight so expect an excellent post w/ pictures tomorrow (or days of silence because of computer problems).

Sick Day

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/sick-day.html

Lights, Camera, Action, WIGGLES!

The better part of yesterday was spent going to the Wiggles concert. We left Lincoln around 2pm (after having to go back to the house to get the tickets...I didn't get far before I remembered) and drove to Omaha to pick up Carl from work. We had some time to spare so I drove them all to a yarn shop. I bought some sock yarn (Trekking XXL). After the yarn store, it seemed like everyone was hungry. We went to Fuddruckers (Carl's favorite). I used up 28 weight watchers points there (not really worth it, but oh well). After eating, we drove around Council Bluffs, Iowa trying to find a good place to buy roses for Dorothy the Dinosaur. No luck. It ended up being okay because it was just a Wiggly Dancer that came to our section to pick up the roses (no luck on it being Murray---my favorite!). We got to the Mid America Center and we were one of the first people there. We had to wait about 10 minutes before they opened the doors. The kids played on the grass and Caleb had a good time playing with another boy's Wiggle dolls. He didn't have such a great time when it was time to give them back. Once inside, we kept the kids semi-contained. We ran right past the merchandise table. There were all sorts of things for sale but all very pricey. Sorry Caleb, but mommy and daddy are too cheap to buy you a $15 hat.

Our seats were really close to the stage (8 rows up on the side). But, we did realize that there were really no bad seats in that place. It's not that big. We were the first row in the "cheap" section so we had a little fence between our seats and the row in front of us. This turned out to be a great blessing. It kept Caleb and Eva from jumping into the rows in front of us (most of the time). They had 2 big screens playing a video (Wiggle Sailing Around the World--the theme of this tour). That helped keep them a little occupied.

At 6:30pm sharp the show started. Caleb was having a hard time with the noise and the lights. I had to cover his ears for most of the show, but he was watching. He was so excited when he saw the Wiggles drive out in their big red car. He said, "LOOK! It's the WIGGLES! Hi Greg! Hi Murray! Hi Anthony! Hi Jeff!". It was pretty awesome to see them come in. They were so close. Right away Murray and Jeff jumped off the stage and started running around the arena. We were sitting right by the aisle but Murray was just one aisle away from us. Bummer. So close.

I was worried that most of the songs were going to be from their Sailing Around the World dvd (which I don't like very much). But, I was wrong. As Carl said, "they know their bread and butter". They sang all of the favorites like "Fruit Salad", "Do the Monkey", "Quack Quack Cock-a-doodle doo", "Rock-a-bye Your Bear", and "Hot Potato". Caleb lightened up towards the end and started singing and dancing. I still had to cover his ears a lot and the last song had some wacky lighting so he kind of freaked out for that, but I think he had a great time! Eva danced, too, but I think she was most interested in trying to eat the food that the people behind us had. Tiffany is going to see the Wiggles with some of her kids next week so here are some tips:
Bring a camera. I didn't because I was thinking they wouldn't be allowed. They are.
If you're sitting in the floor section, bring a sign and/or something for the Wiggles. All of the kids that brought stuff took it to the stage and they Wiggles took it and said their names. N would love that! Jeff was the only Wiggle to collect roses so unless you have some sitting around, I wouldn't bother. On one of the songs they turn down all the lights and ask for you to turn on your cell phones or other lights. So, bring some kind of light. You're going to have a blast!

Lights, Camera, Action, WIGGLES!

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/lights-camera-action-wiggles.html

Belated Birthday Wishes

Enrique Iglesias turned 31 yesterday. When I was a Spanish teacher, I used to make a huge deal out of his birthday. This year it kind of snuck by. My students loved to tease me about him. I would pretend to be madly in love with him. I even had a framed picture of him on my desk. Good times.

I've loved Enrique since he first came on the scene in the 90's. A couple of years ago, I was even able to see him in concert in Chicago. Do I think he is the greatest artist ever? No way José. That would have to be Neil Diamond. But, Enrique definitely has some good music for working out and driving. Miente is also an excellent song to teach kids commands. Props to my man, Enrique for that one. Feliz cumpleaños.

Belated Birthday Wishes

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/belated-birthday-wishes.html

PFA Update

My new and improved PFA update *Now with Weight Watchers!* is here! I lost 4 lbs. last week. I'm pretty happy with the results. It's even better because I didn't feel deprived in the slightest. I ate whatever I wanted at my Cinco de mayo party (not entirely true...I did skip the ice cream) and I feel confident that I'll do well at whatever restaurant we go to tomorrow night. I don't care when I make it to my target weight...my main goal right now is to not have to wear Lane Bryant clothes anymore. I don't want to be able to shop there. I'm almost to their smallest size and it is getting better because they don't even carry a lot of their clothes in those "small" sizes.

I only got to the Y once or twice (I'm thinking once because I can't exactly remember what I did if I went twice) last week. We spent most of the time preparing the house for the fiesta (which was a blast and I'll post the only pics we took later this week). This week I anticipate going to the Y more. There is a water aerobics class that I want to take on Tue/Thur mornings while Caleb is in school. I think this is why I thought I might have gone twice last week...I packed my bag for Tuesday's class and then couldn't go because Eva didn't wake up in time (she didn't sleep well during the night and now she has 2 molars to show for it). Anyway, I'm looking forward to kicking it up a notch this week and seeing how I do. I'd like to be down another size before I go on my spa retreat to Breckenridge (May 25-28).

In other news, we bought a digital camera. It was time to upgrade. Ours only had 1.3 megapixels and we couldn't leave the batteries in it for any extended amount of time. This one has 7.1 megapixels and a 4X zoom (and probably cost the same amount as our 1.3 did when we bought it). I'm looking forward to getting it in the mail and then I'll be a picture posting fool!

PFA Update

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/pfa-update.html

I'm a Good Mom

All of the Relief Society presidencies in the stake were invited to a special temple session this morning. I was able to attend. I haven't been to the temple in a while and it was a great excuse to go. I had a ride. They fed us lunch afterwards (Brown Baggers---YUMMY!). It was also going to give me a chance to work through some things that have been weighing heavily on my mind. While I know this blog (or any forum) isn't the place to share intimate spiritual details of my life, there were a few things that I thought I would share.

Let me start off by saying I feel a tremendous amount of guilt as a mother. For as long as I can remember that's all I ever wanted to do with my life. Now, as I am living my dream...it is feeling to me more like a crazy dream with too many ups and downs and I want to throw up. I don't want to say that I think my life is horrible. Are you kidding me? I know I have a great life. My husband is the best (you might think yours is, but I assure you, he's not). I have two gorgeous kids. One is the funniest kid you'll ever meet and the other is the most beautiful (believe it). We just bought the perfect house for us. We are leading a pretty charmed life. So, why am I so depressed?

There are some challenges. While Caleb hasn't been officially diagnosed with anything beyond language delays, we are pretty sure he falls somewhere under the umbrella of Autism Spectrum Disorder. I have a really hard time coping with this. Not so much the diagnosis...but there is a steep learning curve on how to deal with his behaviors and help him with his communication.

But, here's the bottom line. This morning I started crying like a baby because in my head all I could hear was "You're a good mom" over and over. People have said this to me before. Today I believed it for probably the first time.

I'm over myself. While I was wasting time feeling sorry about how much work it is for me to take care of Caleb and Eva and our family, I should have been focused on how grateful I am to have them and of all of the things I am doing right.

Some of my finer moments:

1. Getting Caleb the early intervention he needs.
2. Being just selfish enough to know that I need some "me" time every once in a while.
3. Using the time that Caleb is in pre-school to really bond and play with Eva.
4. I'm getting much more patient in dealing with Caleb's outbursts.
5. Praising the kids comes easily to me...so much so that Caleb mimics me by saying, "GOOD JOB, CALEB!!" whenever he does something he knows is good.

I'm a good mom. I'm not perfect. But, I'm good. I'm doing the best that I can---I finally realized that today. That's really all I could ever ask.

I'm a Good Mom

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/im-good-mom.html

Funny Story

This is a conversation I had with Carl last night.

Carl: So, aren't we going to see the Wiggles sometime soon?

Me: This Tuesday!

Carl: Have you arranged a babysitter?

Me: Uh, it's the Wiggles. We're taking the kids.

Carl: Oh, yeah.

Me: I'm SO going to blog about this.

Funny Story

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/funny-story.html

I Love Jell-O

After weeks of not seeing any progress on the scale, I joined Weight Watchers online. I'm still in my free trial week but I know I've been dropping some pounds. I'm doing the points system--which I've had success with in the past. There are some notable changes that are making me believe that I'll actually be able to stick with this program for the long haul. You get 35 extra points to spread out over the week however you see fit. Before you had a range to hit (say 24-27 points a day) and now you just have a set number (24). In the previous system you could "bank" those points you didn't use and use them when you needed them during the week. The way they do it now makes more sense to me. If I'm good during the week, it won't matter that one day I spend 19 out of my 24 points on one Chipotle burrito or 24 points on a Cold Stone ice cream. In fact, those things aren't really so tempting right now when I know that they would deprive me of using my points other ways (like on bread!). This also makes it easy for me to eat my awesome tacos at my Cinco de mayo fiesta tomorrow (only 3-5 points each, FYI).

The first couple of days are always a struggle for me to eat enough points. You would probably think the opposite. But, here is what happens. If I eat the crap I want to, I could burn through all my points in one meal. So, I have to think about my day and plan it out. What I find is that the food I normally like is either really high in points or really low. I can eat two cups of jello and it's only 1/2 point. Yogurt (3-4). My favorite Smart Ones meal has only 2 points (Grilled Chicken Santa Fe). Arby's Chicken, Bacon & Swiss (11). I'll miss you Arby's.

Project Fat Arse is back and being kicked into high gear. You can expect regular progress reports on Mondays. I know...you can't wait!

I Love Jell-O

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/i-love-jell-o.html

Freecycle

I'm still finding things around the house that we don't really want. Lucky for me, I joined Freecycle. They have groups all over the nation so I'm sure if you're interested, you can find one in your neighborhood. Here's how it works (at least our Lincoln group):
1. You post an email with the things you want to give away.
2. In minutes (depending on how good your stuff is), people start responding with offers to come and pick it up.
3. You choose which person you want to receive your items and arrange for them to pick it up.
4. Your stuff is miraculously GONE!

In the past few days I have gifted a computer desk, a dresser, a box of old books, and a laundry hamper. All were spoken for within minutes of posting. It's awesome.

I told Carl about the site but I'm not going to let him join because I have great fears that he will go and pick up almost anything that is offered, whether we need it or not. He is finally admitting he has a problem but he's just not quite ready to do anything about it yet. We did have some minor victories--I was able to throw out old tithing settlement sheets from 1999 and a lease to a house we lived in a couple of years ago.

Freecycle

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/freecycle.html

Every Day is Laundry Day

Our laundry room is in our bathroom on the top floor. This bathroom is connected to our walk in closet. Our closet is big enough to fit all of Carl's t-shirts, musical instruments, all our clothes, shoes, and even our dresser. I can put my clothes directly into the hamper, jump into the shower, get out and walk a few steps to where I have all of my clothes. I can't tell you how much joy this is bringing me. Not only that, I'm able to do laundry all of the time! Before, I had the washer/dryer downstairs in the basement. I rarely went down there unless I had to. I have lots of reasons to go into our bathroom and while I'm there I try and do a little laundry. I'm able to do so much laundry that I'm even tempted to get rid of MORE clothes because I just wear the same things over and over again anyway. It's also great because I can put our clothes away right as they come out of the dryer. The kids clothes still have to go downstairs, but I have to go down there all of the time anyway so it isn't any big deal.

I love this house.

Every Day is Laundry Day

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/every-day-is-laundry-day.html

Happy Birthday, Melessa!

Melessa's birthday is today. I've known Melessa for many years now. How many? Tweleve (read her blog, you'll get the joke)?** Actually, I think it's more like 14 isn't it?

One of the benefits of moving has been finding little treasures around the house. I found a drawer full of old pictures just waiting to be organized. Here are some of the memories I uncovered.

1. Remember when I came over to your apartment on Lindsey street not long after you came home from your mission? We ate ice cream from the container and you let me "play" with your name tag since I was getting ready to leave myself. Fun times.

2. We were dressed alike at Erin Blamire's baby shower...that had to be documented, of course! Know what we were wearing? It was the 90's OU staple of jean shirt, white t-shirt, and khaki pants.

3. You were there with me the first time I went to the temple. You felt like you hadn't been enough but you had to tell my mom and her friend what to do next.

Melessa, you've always been a great friend and even though we don't live near each other anymore, I still feel like I get to talk to you everyday through your blog.

**You are an awesome writer and don't forget that even best selling novels have typos. Your pearl necklace story has stayed with me as well as the O. Henry short stories I love.

Happy Birthday, Melessa!

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/happy-birthday-melessa.html

All Night Long

We got to bed at a reasonable hour last night but for some reason the kids decided it would be "fun" to wake up at 3:30am. Not only did they wake up, they were WIDE AWAKE for 2 hours. Not fun. Especially since we get up at 6:30am around here so we can get Caleb off to pre-school. I had no guilt waking him up this morning. I told him that I'm the boss around here that decides when people go to sleep and wake up. That showed him! :) I'm so going to be paying the price for his crankiness this afternoon. Eva's still asleep and Carl is taking a little nap right now. Luckily, his classes are over for the semester so he doesn't have to be there right at 8am this morning. If I could go back to sleep, I would. Instead I'm busy browsing the internet and trying to forget that I still have A LOT of unpacking to do around here. At least we are done done done with the other house!

Speaking of the other house...I love my Hoover Agility SteamVac. It was so awesome! The carpets looked great. It was nice to sit on them and have them not feel crunchy (the joy of toddlers). We'll be able to keep the carpet in our new house looking nice!

Another aside...I've been knitting! It hasn't been a lot so I didn't think it was really worth mentioning. But, I'm making a scarf of my own design for Hollie. We bought the yarn at the end of last year so she could learn to knit. She did a great garter stitch scarf for a while and then she decided knitting wasn't for her. Too bad because that garter stitch looked SWEET for a beginner (and I'm not just saying that because she reads this blog). At the garage sale last weekend she gave me the yarn and I decided it still needed to be a scarf for her. Anyway, the yarn is this great wool/cotton blend from JoAnn in a light green. As soon as I find my camera, I'll post a picture.

All Night Long

http://craftyconservative.blogspot.com/2006/05/all-night-long.html