Thanks to God

I'm thankful for at least a million and one things in my life, but these three are the tops! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

The Real Story of Jesus' Birth

Last night, Melia was playing with a little nativity set at our friend's house. Today she gave me her version of what happened. "The donkey sniffed baby Jesus and the fairy (angel) was on the roof and Mary was feeding baby Jesus some nummies."

Sugar, Sugar

My name is Laura and I'm a sugar addict. Yes, it's true. Sugar has become my drug of choice and it's starting to really bum me out. Not only is it totally bad for me health wise, it's keeping me from fitting into my pre-pregnancy clothes, which is not only depressing but it's getting cold up here and I can't fit into my pants. :(
So here's the thing--I eat pretty healthy all day long for all my meals and snacks. I don't have any sugar during the day. But night hits and I'm exhausted and I fall in front of the TV and the cookie dough starts calling my name. Actually, it calls my name throughout the day and I look forward to the night time when I can sit down with some sweet stuff and just take a break. That's the thing--it's like my treat, my reward, my break. And I don't know how to not do it. I mean, I've broken the cycle in the past, but I always fall back into it. I want it and I don't want it. You know what I mean? It's good in the moment, but then I regret it afterward. The whole weight thing is just getting to me lately. It's not like I think I'm huge or anything--I just want to get back to fitting in my clothes and be at my normal weight. Somewhere during pregnancy, an extra 15 pounds snuck onto my body and it's been 7 months now and none of it has gone away. I keep psyching myself up to do something about it, but I find my efforts are always thwarted by something. My latest thing is the P90X workout system. Yes, I saw it on an infomercial and yes, I always end up wanting to try almost everything I see on infomercials. I admit it. Only this time I didn't have to buy it because Bo's co-worker lent it to us. It's 12 different workout DVDs that are pretty extreme. I was all set to be buff in 90 days, but so far every week that I've started getting up early and doing it, something has happened and I've only done it like a handful of times. Anyway, bottom line is I need to break this sugar habit. Not really sure how to do it though. I'm sure some of you can relate to what I'm talking about. Others may think I'm complaining about nothing. Whatever your take is on it is fine. It's just been my struggle lately and I decided to blog about it because life isn't all just fun events to report on.

7 Months Already?!

Time is a weird thing. It seemed to go by so slowly sometimes during the first 6 months and now Naiya is already 7 months old and I can't believe it! Melia decided to play dress up with her on her 7 month birthday (even though I didn't realize it was her 7 month birthday until the day after. Luckily, Melia wanted to take a picture of Naiya dressed up in her tutu or else we would have no visual record of that day. :) ) Anyway, Naiya is growing fast--we already had to bust out the 12 month old clothes for her. She's having fun discovering her voice and is still my cute little smiley baby. Pooping is going better, which leads me into the fiasco that happened today. Luckily, it happened to Bo and not me. :)
Today, Bo was watching the girls while I went to a doctor's appointment. I actually got lost on the way there and called Bo so he could help me find it on mapquest. While he was helping me, I could hear Naiya crying in the background and Melia wanting stuff, so I told him to just call me back after he put Naiya down for her nap. Well, he took quite a while to call back. This is why, according to Bo: He started to put Naiya down for her nap when he remembered he hadn't changed her diaper. As he went to do so, he smelled something not so pleasant. He investigated further to find out that Naiya had had one of those explosive poops that went all the way up the back of her onesie. As she was screaming and he was trying to hold her legs up in the air so that the poop didn't get all over the bed, he dropped the poopy diaper on the floor and started throwing the wipes into it as he used them. Well, pretty soon Melia comes over to see what's going on and accidentally steps in the poopy diaper. Bo realizes this when she says, "Daddy, I got poopy on my toe!" Meanwhile, Bo is still trying to hold the crying, half covered in poop, baby's legs up to save the bed. He tells Melia to go wash off her foot in the shower and to try not to put her foot down on the carpet. She becomes distressed and adds to the chorus of crying. She makes it to the shower but can't turn it on, which causes more distress. Finally, Bo gets Naiya cleaned off and then comes over to help Melia as Naiya continues to cry. Bo turns on the shower for Melia who not only sticks her foot in to wash it, but her entire leg--pants and everything. Anyway, by the time I got home, Melia and Naiya were both clean and taking naps, so it all turned out in the end. I did find a little present left on my side of the bed--the poop covered onesie. So sweet of Bo to leave me that little momento so that, although I wasn't there to experience it firsthand, I could still feel (or smell) like I was. But I do totally appreciate Bo for his help with the girls and I have total empathy for him, having dealt with many similar situations in my stint at motherhood. It's all worth it though! Happy 7 months Naiya! We love you!

We Survived!

Ahh, the wonderful germy world of preschool. Melia came home with a cold about a week ago which I then came down with, promptly followed by Naiya and finishing up with Bo. Let's just say this week has been filled with more mucus coming from every direction than I ever care to see again. I haven't been sick since last Christmas, so I've never faced the challenge of taking care of two sick kids while being sick myself before. Not so much fun, to say the least. The good news is we are all feeling much better--well, Bo is still having a hard time, but 3 out of 4 ain't bad.

Beauty and Teen Wolf?

So this Halloween, Melia decided she wanted to be Belle and that Daddy should be the Beast. It was a cute idea, but it was only a few days until Halloween and I wasn't sure we could pull it off. But listening to Melia talk about it to everyone and hearing how excited she was motivated me to try to come up with a Beast costume. And vuala!....Here it is. Bo was totally a good sport to do this. He was not feeling very festive, but he did it--2 days in a row--itchy beard, make-up, fake teeth and everything! Proof that Melia really does have daddy's heart. I had fun being a farmer with my cute little chicken. :)