HA!

Why Having a Toddler is Like Being At a Frat Party

Cross posting this here cause it's too funny not to share:

http://www.suburbansnapshots.com/2010/06/10-reasons-having-toddler-is-like-being.html

OMIGOSH!  Soooooo true!  Keep reading the comments as well, they include more gems people have added to the original list.

I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH THAT YOU SHOULD READ THE COMMENTS, soooo many are true!

Could men handle pregnancy?

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Re-posting

Leanna's been looking through old posts again........the ending for this one made me laugh!  So I thought I'd post it again:
Monday, February 13, 2006



comic relief


I sit, rocking the baby to sleep. Justin slumbers quietly on the couch. Tom watches tv. Leanna breaks the peace and relative silence, running over to me and yelling excitedly, "Mommy guess what! I was counting my toes....."


At this point I begin laughing hysterically and Tom begins grinning. I can't stop laughing, it just strikes me funny that she was sitting there, counting her toes. And she's so excited about it! She goes on to show me that she has seven toes-Tom prods for more information and she shows him how she counts them. (One, two three, four, seven!) and then she counts the other foot(one, two three, four, five!), the first foot just mysteriously has seven toes, I guess. This kid's been counting since 18 months, but the practical application still eludes her sometimes. Then Tom asks her what comes after two million. She gives him one of those, Oh Daddy! looks and says, "I don't know. You guess."

Sweetness, peace, and ELO

Sitting here, Lorelei's sleeping in my arms......I'm just a puddle of mush-she's smiling in her sleep.  So sweet and warm, all cuddled & curled up in my arms.  She smiles a  lot.  I'm on an ELO kick right now, they have a lot of mellow stuff that can help put a baby to sleep. (They also do the opposite, with stuff like Don't Bring me Down, Do Ya, Blue Sky, etc. that are very upbeat so that's good for when she's awake)  I figure the music can help drown out the background noise here. 


We're at a point now where she very clearly knows me and her Dad.  Not sure if she recognizes the kids yet, maybe Leanna.  The amount of love and adoration she was just born into-she's so lucky in that respect.  I can't buy her the latest toys or clothes, take her on great vacations, and yeah it makes life hard-but good lord, is she surrounded by love.  That has to count for something too.

Everything will be more expensive!

Just what we need!!
Food, gas, coffee, chocolate.......now diapers & wipes!    The price of everything is going up!

Men's Undies, etc.

First, a 2009 article:
Guys, if you want to know where the economy is headed next, look in your underwear drawer.


"By extension, pent-up demand means underwear sales should be among the early risers when growth returns and consumers feel confident enough to shrug off "frugal fatigue," says Marshal Cohen, the chief industry analyst with NPD Group, which tracks consumer behavior.....While economists now track sales, hemlines served as an oddball indicator for much of the previous century. In tough times, the experts muse, hemlines drop as an expression of conservatism, only to rise again as the markets hit go-go mode. During the late-1990s boom, the hemline indicator was supplanted by a midriff meter, as more women bared their stomachs as the popularity of tech stocks (and Britney Spears) peaked.. "

Now:

Shares of Hanesbrands, Warnaco, Limited and Maidenform are thriving, and two analysts see higher underwear sales as a sign the economy is recovering.

Although I heard somewhere that you should buy underwear now because the price of cotton is going up. 

Also, I just like this sentence:

Even during the 2008 downturn, "the underwear area was very strong," Eric Beder, retail analyst at Brean Murray Carret, told CNBC Thursday."
:  )

Comparison

Justin

Leanna and Justin

Timothy

Timothy

Jacob

Jacob

Me

Lorelei

Missing is Leanna's baby pictures-I don't have one on this computer.  I took Justin, Timothy, and Jacob's pictures off the blog (I wasn't blogging when Leanna was born). 

The Best Easter Egg Ever!!

Superman!

Superman class prank

Easter Eats

Very short list of tradditional Easter foods and why we eat them.

a few links....

A few links:

An article on Mythbusters being the best science show on tv precisely because it doesn't claim to be one. 

One on web photos revealing where you live, work, etc.....and there's an app for it too

One on the gov't asking why iphones are tracking you since June 2010.
"Apple's iOS 4 operating system is secretly compiling its customers' location data in a file stored on iPhones, 3G iPads and every computer that users use to "sync" their devices. According to the researchers, this file contains consumers' latitude and longitude for every day they used an iPhone or 3G iPad running the iOS 4 operating system — sometimes logging their precise geo-location up to 100 times a day. The researchers who discovered this file found that it contained up to a year's worth of data, starting from the day they installed the iOS4 operating system. What is even more worrisome is that this file is stored in an unencrypted format on customers' iPads, iPhones and every computer a customer has used to back up his or her information.".........Of course, all smartphones track users — anyone who's ever approved an app request to use his or her current location should have that figured out. The big reveal here is that Apple stores that information on devices, unencrypted and for an entire year."

Very True!

Monday-beautiful weather

They planted some seeds with Grammy since it was so nice outside.

Jacob enjoyed the feel of the dirt, he buried some cars and trucks in the backyard.

My Mom made some healthy soup-so I'll have something more nutrious to eat that I don't have to make myself.

I made 2 batches of lemon bars-gone as of yesterday!

Monday was such a nice day, perfect for being outside.  Today too really, but I'm behind on posting.  The kids ran around, I got some baking done, and it was just nice to feel warm!
Tonight was chocolate chip cookies, at Tom's request.

Drilling, reading, slinging!

Helping Daddy make a workbench



I couldn't resist a picture of this-she's got the baby, the dog, two stuffed animals and a book all snuggled together in the chair!



One of his favorite topics ever-garbage trucks! 



All curled up in the sling!  It's actually starting to fade now-we've had it since Leanna was nine months old.



Turkish Delight

For anyone familiar with C.S. Lewis' works, I found this:

Turkish Delight

Why not make your own Turkish delight this Christmas, maybe as an extra present from you to you!

Ingredients:
1 lb. (450g) granulated sugar
quarter pint (150ml) water
juice of one lemon
half an ounce (13g) powdered gelatine
1 level tbsp. cornflour
2 tbsps. icing sugar, sifted
pink food colouring
few drops of rose water
Cooking Instructions:

Soak the gelatine in half the water
Pour the remaining water into a saucepan, add the sugar and heat gently while stirring until the sugar is dissolved
Add softened gelatine and stir into the syrup
Simmer gently for 20 minutes then add the lemon juice
Pour half the mixture into one of 2 wetted, small square tins, tins should be small enough for Turkish delight to be one inch thick
Add 2 drops of pink colouring and a few drops of rose water to the remaining mixture, stir well and pour into the remaining tin
Leave for 24 hours in the fridge to set
Mix the icing sugar and cornflour together in a polythene bag
Dust hands with this mixture and pull Turkish delight from the tins
Cut into 1 inch (2.5cm) strips and then into cubes
Toss the cubes in icing sugar mixture

Just more recent pics.....

LOL

A new book How to Crack an Egg with One Hand by Francesca Beauman collects some unorthodox words of wisdom for parents.


In 1861, Mrs Beeton issued instructions that breastfeeding mums should knock back two pints of stout a day.

William Cobbette suggested that parents should sing loudly while they give their infants an ice cold bath for an hour every day.

Others might prefer the approach of the renowned philosopher John Locke. He said it was possible to increase the strength of a newborn by holding slices of steak next to its bottom and pouring wine over its head.

Bath

Before and after bath, just another cute baby moment.  She loves the water. 
Jacob's fascinated with his sister's big belly.  It's a normal newborn thing, but he's just amazed. 

What to do with dried cherries?

We were given two bags of dried cherries-I didn't find a whole lot of recipies, but I did try this one for Cherry muffins.  Jacob's been picking out the cherries, and I think the older boys do also about half the time.  But I do like the base recipie for muffins, so I've been using that one instead of the recipie from Joy of Cooking. 

Length of Gestation

Today I found anthropologist, scientist, & humanist Ashley Montague's theory which makes a lot of sense to me.  He said that Humans have an 18 month gestational period-9 months inside and 9 months outside.  This theory fits in with what I've read on human infant development and research on things like skin to skin contact.  I don't think it should be used as yet another way for Moms to feel guilty (if you have to work or have outside commitments the baby won't be held as much by the Mother) I hate when people do that.  It's not productive and it keeps people from even trying to use the information.  I think we should take from this the idea that humans need to gradually adjust to life outside the womb-and this adjustment period is meant to include as much touching and holding by (primarily) Mom and hopefully the father and other family/friends as is possible.  This is normal, and ideal.

Excerpt from the article:
"Us human moms also don't have nearly as many natural instincts as other mammals -- we kiss our newborns which is similar in instinct to grooming, but much of the stimulation to the nerves that animal grooming provides is actually done with our labor process. So the skin-on-skin bonding time, and breastfeeding, and closeness between the human mommy and the newborn is our way of mimicking a lot of mammalian reactions.

We're hardwired to instantly want to comfort our babies and our breasts even tell us right away when a baby cries that WE need to go to them and feed them and comfort them. We're not designed to be separated from our babies, ladies! In fact, there are some cultures where babies are literally never allowed to touch the ground until they're 8 months old, which is around the time babies can crawl around independently, and also become aware that they are a unique entity and not an extension of you.
That time, 9 months old or so, is when Montagu says human babies are considered full-term by all physiological standards. By the end of the first year, the baby's brain has more than doubled in size and is approximately 60 percent of it's full adult size, and baby humans are finally about as capable as newborns of other species. About the only other animals that have such "premature" babies are kangaroos and other primates, who if you remember, carry their infants non-stop for long periods of time. Many monkeys continue to breastfeed, even without solids, into their second year, some into 4-5 years."

This is what I'm shooting for........

Seriously, this is so sweet, I could cry (I'm also in a hormonal post-partum state though).  This is the kind of sibling behavior I'm hoping to establish!

Tips for being a Welcomed New Baby Visitor

I just saw this, and not surprisingly, could relate.  6 Tips for Being a Welcomed New Baby Visitor

It's mostly moot for me, I don't know people who make food and come over with offers to help,(except my Mom! she does help-this is not posted as criticism of anyone.  Just something I can relate to right now) but in theory these people exist, and this list is a good reminder.  I think I would add to the list that the new Mom has been waiting a very long time to meet and hold this baby, and so has the new Dad, so squabbles over who else gets to hold the baby and in what order, only add to her troubles during a very emotional and exhausting period.  Sometimes when you hand the baby to someone, it does not reflect your belief that that person is #1 on the list to hold the baby, it merely reflects the fact that they were standing next to you starting you down with an intensity that could melt plastic!  (Ok, so this part is actually something I've experienced). 
LOL. 

Another use for the Boppy Pillow

The boppy is so versatile!  It can be a seat, helps position the baby for feeding, can help hold them up for sitting, can help sibling to hold hte baby in their laps, and can be used as a pillow too! 

(Poor Jacob with the excema spots on his face, he keeps picking them open.  Lorelie had newborn rash and Jacob looked at her and said, She has excema too!  But it's not excema, although the doctor tells me they actually look the same under a microscope, there is no corelation with the rash and developing excema later.
Pink pimples ('neonatal acne') are often caused by exposure in the womb to maternal hormones. No treatment is needed, just time. They can last for weeks or even months on a baby's skin.

Erythema toxicum is another common newborn rash that looks like mosquito bites or hives. Its cause is unknown, and it resolves without treatment after a few days or weeks)

More substance!

From the useless knowledge widget on my sidebar:

The largest cell in the human body is the female ovum, or egg cell. It is about 1/180 inch in diameter. The smallest cell in the human body is the male sperm. It takes about 175,000 sperm cells to weigh as much as a single egg cell. Hence, even in the beginning, women have more substance than men.

He's done it again!

Hastily composed note to the Tooth Fairy.  I had trouble writing it down as fast as Justin told me what he wanted to say!  He had switched spots where he was sleeping so that may be why the tooth fairy forgot to come last night.  Or it could have had something to do with Lorelei having her first rough night and Mommy falling asleep with her contacts in she was so exhausted.  There's that too.    

I am amazed how much this picture looks like Timothy-but it's not-this is Justin showing his missing teeth. 

My favorite stage

Another old Parentdish article I found while looking for the one on having four kids by accident.  In this one, the blogger confesses that while she loves her own kids, she doesn't much like babies.  She reasones that it has to do with issues of control. 
She says, "I think it may have something to do with my need to control things. If there's one thing you can't control, it's a baby. When they say the only things you can be sure of in life are death and taxes, they should add that you can also be 100 percent sure that you can't make a baby do anything. Not nap. Not sleep through the night. Not eat baby food. NOT if they don't want to.

In fact, I found my babies were likely to do the opposite of whatever I wanted them to do. I didn't want my son to have a pacifier, so he was obsessed with it. I wanted my daughter to take a passie once in a while, so of course she always spit it out. Is it me? Do I send out baby radar that says "Don't trust me. Whatever I say, don't do it?"

I freely admitt I have my own issues with control, but I am the exact opposite.  I sometimes wonder if most people who want large famililies have the same affliction I do-babylove.  I adore babies.  Can't get enough of them.  My husband too.  Personally, I'm most at ease in this phase of parenting. I feel completely confident with a baby.  No doubts that I'm doing it wrong or could have done better.  As they get older a lot more doubt creeps in and can make you question your sanity.  But for me, babies are pure bliss.  Sure there's all the sleep deprivation and stuff......but it's outweighed by far with the adorableness and love.  Little baby dimples.  Newborn gestures.  Milky smiles.  The oh so soft skin.  The way a newborn's body is still all curled up.  The possibilities.  Just sheer joy.  Breastfed diapers don't even smell that bad til they start eating solids!
Don't get me wrong-each phase seems to have it's own challenges and rewards.  But so far there is no phase that I don't like-it's just that the baby stage is my favorite. 
Then again, I've yet to experience parenting a teenager, so I may eventually have to change that last sentence!

If it's meant to be, it'll happen......

I was looking for a Parentdish article I'd read a while back where the blogger posts about how she had four kids by accident.  It's really shockingly easy to do.  Technically the only "planned" child we've had was Justin!  And though it's hard to imagine now, I was not particularly thrilled to find I was pregnant with Jacob-I was not ready for another baby at that point!  We can't imagine life without him now, and I'm so glad that he came.  I like the article, we're not coming from the exact same place-she didn't even want one kid-but she makes some good points about how scheduled and planned we seem to feel life needs to be, and I like her conclusion:

"But if my kids weren't surprises, then I'm not sure I would have had them at all. Sometimes the universe knows better than we do.

Accidents happen. Condoms break.
And for that I'm thankful. Four times over."

EDIT: I like this from the comments on the article, very true: " it just wasn't a good time for another baby financially. When I called my mom in tears she told me this wasn't an accident, It was a surprise. She said "A surpise is something you didn't know you wanted until you get it and then you can't imagine not having it".

So loved!

She does that purring thing that Justin and Jacob did too, it's really cute.  We're all so in love with her, she has her siblings fighting over a chance to hold her. 
She's so cute that Tom made a request for Irish Twins! 

LOL

We were discussing the fertile crescent, and just to be sure, I asked Leanna what fertile meant, and she promptly replied, it means the dirt has fertilizer in it! 
(Not quite, though she has the general idea) 

Little stuff that makes me happy

Tiny cute little girl socks! 

little stuff

Even with child #5, it's still exciting to get stuff in the mail with your child's name on it.  Just neat to see the name you chose in print! 

Safety points

Just a general awareness posting, about car seat safety.  I know many people who think of car seat laws as designed to inconvenience them.  While I know that most of the time, you can take risks and get away with it, this seems to me one of those things that takes so little to prevent such an unthinkable event, so why not do it?  It's a minor inconvience for kids to not be able to sit up front, or in a booster seat (the seatbelt straps right over it?  How hard is that?  All you have to do is carry it to the car!).  I've taken some flak from people for my carseat stance-I feel regardless of what the laws say, if the child is small enough to fit comfortably in the carseat, then it's safer for them to be in the carseat!  Car accidents are so common and young children are so vulnerable! 
Here's a story of a six year old who died because his mother didn't use a booster seat for him.  An infant sibling survived because the carseat did it's job when both were ejected from the car.  And I'm posting these important points from the story:

So to clear up some confusion, these are the rules for boosters:


Your child has to be 8 years old. No matter how tall or heavy they are. This is due to the development of their hip bones and spine. Their bones have to be able to take the impact from a seatbelt, which distributes it less evenly than a 5-point harness, and in different locations.

Your child has to be 4'9" AND 8 years old. If they hit 4'9" at 6 or 7, they still need to be in a booster until they get to be 8. This is to help them at least be in the bare minimum range of the lowest average adults, since seatbelts are designed to fit adults, not children (and in Europe, according to a Safe Kids expert, smaller adults do use boosters).
If your kiddo hits their 8th birthday and is 4'9", congrats! Now all you have to do is the 5-Point Test to make sure they fit safely!

1.Can your child sit with their back flat against the back of the seat?

2.Do their legs bend comfortably past the edge of the seat?

3.Does the belt cross between the neck and shoulder?

4.Is the lap belt as low as possible, across the tops of thighs and hip bones?

5.Can the child stay seated like this the whole trip?

If the answer is no to ANY of those, your kiddo just isn't ready yet. If they won't leave the belt where it belongs, slouch, or fall asleep a lot, they are much safer AND likely to be way more comfortable in a booster. If the belt rides up on their belly, they risk damage to the internal organs, and if it ends up on their neck, it can crush their esophagus and trachea. Not good. Have you had the belt rub on your neck before? Ouch!

Shrewd calculations about cause/effect and probablities and outcomes!

Based on the title, I bet you didn't know this post is about babies and young children!  Scientist are studying the intellectual life of babies-and there's more going on than you'd think!!  Note the portion below that is bolded, it reinforces what I've been mentioning about kids needing more time to play when they're young, and less "educational experiences." 

Excerpt from the post:

"To illustrate how these little gamblers operate, Schulz and her colleagues built a complicated toy and presented it to small children at the Boston Children's Museum. The toy squeaked, lit up and played music. In some cases, adults showed children how it worked.
Other times, kids were left to figure it out on their own.
The kids who learned on their own actually played with the toy longer and discovered more functions than the kids who were "taught."
There's a moral to the story for parents and educators, Alison Gopnik, a professor of psychology at the University of California at Berkeley and the author of "The Philosophical Baby," tells the Globe.
"People on the front lines feel as if there's a tremendous pressure to make the environment for young children more and more academic -- less and less exploratory," Alison Gopnik tells the newspaper. "Even something that looks like random, exploratory play can help children to learn and, in some cases, help them to learn better."

Only here.

So if you start to wonder why the bathroom floor keeps getting wet even though you remind the kids to close all the curtains when they take a shower.......you might do well to check for umbrellas.  Because you know, there are some kids who might get the bright idea to take an umbrella in the shower. 

New Sibling Pictures

Note that Jacob's hands had to be held so he wouldn't poke at the baby!

He looks so proud!

To Lorelei, Love Justin

Justin made up a song for Lorelei.  It goes:

"One, two, three, four.  Stop, and we'll put it all together!"

The song refers to the fact that a baby's skull is not yet fused together, so he wants to put all the pieces together to kind of complete her. 

:  )

He thinks she is so beautiful.  Last night I took her with when I went out and when I walked in Justin told me that he'd missed her.  He gets mad at me for not letting him hold her more.

Just announcing that Lorelei's arrived!

March 19th, 2011 at 3:34 we were surprised with a second girl, weighing in at 8 lbs, 12 oz! and 19 1/2 inches!
So far all is well, I'm recovering, and her siblings all absolutely adore her! They couldn't be more thrilled that she's finally here, and will eagerly tell you how beautiful she is!

Her full name is Lorelei Elizabeth J******, middle name a decision made that day. We had two relatives with Elizabeth in their names , one from each side of our family, visiting at the hospital that day. We liked it, thought it fit, so that's the story of her middle name.

Since there was some confusion, Lorelei \l(o)-re-lei\ as a girl's name is pronounced LOR-a-lye. (the name is pronounced like it is in the song by Styx )



or if you've seen Gilmore Girls (she's not named after them, but that was where I became familiar with the name).
It means: Whispering/murmuring rock.

The origins: Lorelei is a mermaid name that belonged to the mermaid who lured unwary fisherman to their death by singing the most beautiful song they had ever heard.


It is of German origin. Place name: a rocky cliff on the Rhine river, dangerous to boat passage, has been poetically personified as the Lorelei, whose singing lures men to destruction. The name has an aura of risky allure. Writer Anita Loos used this when she created blonde bombshell Lorelei Lee in her novel "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes". Marilyn Monroe also added to its image with her portrayal of Lorelei in the 1953 film.

To me, it calls to mind a beautiful siren, and I just like the sound of the name.  And I think it fits her. 

More recent stuff

Showing off a flower tatoo from the Girl Scout Birthday Bash

And a badge from the party!

Silly boys who aren't at all tired

I'm not sure what kind of animal this is, running around in our yard.  It had such a lovely long pink tail though!