The Elf

Is anyone else having as much trouble as I am remembering to move this guy?

I tend to run around like a maniac in the morning, hiding him under my robe until I get him in a new spot before the kids see.

And when they find him first and realize he hasn't moved, I come up with the crap excuse that they must have not been very good yesterday and he didn't want to give a bad report to Santa so he stayed put.  

Because why not instill fear in your children at Christmas time?  

Completely makes sense.

New Lesson

I was extremely curious as to what the check out woman thought when I walked up to the register at CVS and put down four packages of Children's Motrin.

Am I a mom who makes drugs out of children's medicine in my spare time?

Am I a hypochondriac who over medicates my children?

Did I have a coupon and was piling up, only to get all bottles for free?

No, I was just a mom who's Oldest was diagnosed with migraines.  

One bottle for my purse.  One bottle for the school.  One bottle for home.  One bottle for the hubby's car.  I think we have got it covered.

After a few headaches that ended up with him getting physically sick to his stomach, it was concluded that the poor guy is going to suffer from migraines from time to time.  Hopefully with having this on hand, he will be able to let us know when he feels a headache coming on and we can stop it in its tracks.  We will also be taking a look at his diet and hydration to ensure we are doing all we can to try and avoid him getting anymore.  Even though he will have to deal with this, and it is not always going to feel good for him, I feel so fortunate that this is all that it is.  

If anyone has children that deal with migraines, I would love to hear what you have done to help avoid them getting one.  There is so much information out there and of course, I want to know it all.  I have read that diet is a major one, which would be a BIG deal for him considering he is a carb addict and of course loves processed foods because, well, he is a kid.  Like I said, suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Oh this parenting thing.  Just when I think I have got it, something gets thrown into the mix!  Typical!   

Where You At?

It has been a while since I have given an update on this thing we call "parenting" so I thought I would give it a whirl.

Yesterday the Oldest asked about A-Rod.  With all the Sports Center he watches, I was curious as to whether he would ever take notice of his suspension or look right past it.  It seems he takes it all in and wanted to ask some questions about the whole thing.  It was the first time we have been faced with someone our son looks up to falling from grace and him acknowledging that they did something wrong.    I do wish that we would have brought it up first and next time I will.  If he would not have asked, we would have never had the opportunity to talk about this and we should.  He is 9 in November and the world around is becoming more and more exposed to him.  Time for us to stop being naive about what he does and doesn't see and hear.    

The Middle Man is in one of my favorite stages.  He is in the "Mom, will you cuddle with me?" stage and I LOVE IT.  He loves to just sit with me on the couch and it is one of my most favorite things to do in the morning.  He continues to struggle with his anxiety but he has also come so far that I know it is going to simply be a continued effort for us all and probably always will be.  We have also entered the "every potty word is the funniest word ever and so I am going to say it all the time, no matter where we are..." stage.  Let me tell you.  There is nothing like your son yelling out "butts! boobs!" at a museum.  It is awesome.

The hubby saw a post on Facebook the other day that said, "The Terrible Twos are just a precursor to the Terrorist Threes".  When I spent 2am to 5am arguing with Baby Girl to go back to sleep on Saturday night as she screamed that she was not tired, I would now say WE ARE THERE!  The girl wants it her way and that is the only option right now.  It is pretty amazing how stubborn she actually is.  I will admit, she is a Mini-Me....for sure.  It just gets hard arguing with your three year old self.  On the flip side, when she is not pissed off, she is the sweetest little thing who loves to play dolls, brush my hair and dance like it is nobody's business.  

So there is a little glimpse of where we are.  I swear, no matter how many years I do this parenting thing, just when I think I have got it, I am thrown another curve ball.  That is what makes it so fun though isn't it?  Who wants same old, same old?  That would just be boring.

Princeville

For my first visit to Kauai and Princeville, I had no idea what to expect.  I had heard the island was beautiful and everything you imagine a tropical island to be, but I was still blown away.  It was beyond.   I no longer felt like I was in the United States but on an exotic tropical paradise in the middle of nowhere.  After eight days there, getting back to reality has been a tad bit hard.    This definitely tops the list as my favorite family vacation we have taken so far.

Self Conscious

photo via Savvy in San Francisco

On Saturday, my Oldest took a major spill off his razor, which led to scraping off his forehead, chin and entire nose, two fat lips and a chipped tooth (which was permanent I might add!).  It was a pretty nasty fall and when I heard the scream come from him, I knew it was not okay.  His face was all bloody and he couldn't stop screaming.  And yes, just because I know some might be wondering, he was wearing a helmet.

For all the anxiety I have about things that COULD happen, I have a weird sense of calm when things actually happen.  I was totally mellow when it came to getting him home, cleaning up his wounds, calling the Pediatrician and Dentist, and putting him back together.  I thought to myself, hey, this is boys!  We have escaped injury for a while so something was bound to happen.  And there were no stitches or broken bones so that was a huge plus.  Granted we are going to have to watch the sun to ensure there is no scarring and he is going to need to bond his tooth and take it easy for a bit but really, in the grand scheme of life, this was minor.

Little did I know my anxiety would come from something else.

The night of the fall my Oldest took a look at himself in the mirror and said, "Oh my gosh, my face.".  The next morning, he did not say a word as we headed out to church and kept his head down the entire mass.  Considering I usually have to break up the talking between him and his brother, this was definitely out of character.  Friends came up to him to see how he was doing and other children that we don't know asked if he was okay, simply out of kindness.  My Oldest ignored them all, dropped his head and didn't respond.  I was surprised by this behavior until it hit me.  He was self conscious about the way he looked and my heart instantly hurt.

Suddenly the injuries that I thought were "not the worst thing that could happen" became AWFUL and I wanted them gone so he wouldn't feel this way.

At some point in life, we are all going to be self conscious about something.  Unfortunately it is human nature to worry about what other people think.  I still do at times though I wish I didn't.  This was my first time really seeing one of my children feel self conscious over the way they look.  Once he was all cleaned up I never thought about the fact that he wouldn't want people to see him with his injuries.  It made me sad and anxious that he was feeling this way and there was nothing I could do.  

Who knew the self conscious stage would come.  I mean, I knew it would, I was just not ready for that part yet.  This is an entirely new stage of parenting that seems really hard.  I don't want my children to feel self conscious!  But they will, because like I said, I do.  Ugh.

Over the last couple of days, as his wounds begin to heal and he is becoming used to the injuries, my Oldest is returning to his old self.  But I know this is not going to be the last time he is self conscious about something and I know there are going to be times that I know about it and other times I don't.  I mean, isn't this the entire teenage years?!  I just hope that I am instilling in all three of my children self confidence so that as they get older, and these situations become more prevalent, they have the confidence not to care.  Crossing all my fingers....and all my toes....

Places

What have we been up to?  So far this summer, we have...

made a trip to the Los Angeles Natural History Museum...

spent a couple days at the pool...

watched the Angels beat the Mariners...

hiked and played at Crystal Cove state park...

toured the grounds and made adobe homes at Mission San Juan Capistrano...

and it has only been two weeks!  In years past I have tended to overbook our summer with camps and activities but this year I took a different approach. I wanted to share with the kids all the amazing places we have around Southern California.  We usually take these places for granted being right in our backyard and don't tend to actually visit.  So far it has made for the best summer yet and I am excited to keep going on our list.

Have a happy weekend.

Lazy

It started with Friday.  It was the last day of school.  I had been anticipating this day for so long that I couldn't contain my excitement.  Summer was officially beginning at 11am and we were all ready for a little fun.  I completely forgot about a post and was wrapped up in the celebration with the three kids and our friends.  

Then the weekend hit and it was filled with a soccer tournament, graduation parties, family reunion, dinner at a friends, and of course, Father's Day.  It was late nights, lots of friends and family, so much fun and ended with complete exhaustion.  I did have plans to write a post for today, I really did.  But then last night when I had the chance to do so, I choose to watch Million Dollar Listings New York (don't judge) instead with the hubby, embracing the fact that we were finally sitting down.

And then it all ends with this morning.  Again, I planned on waking up early before the kids woke up to write up a fabulous post for all of you.  Unfortunately I realized at 6:30am that this was the official first day of summer and I would be crazy to not take advantage.  It took only a second for me to roll over and go back to sleep.  It is not very often that I get to be lazy and it felt SO GOOD.

The laziness is now over though and I must get this house back in order (DISASTER) and prep for some fun plans we have this week.  Summer is here which means three little ones are going to be looking to me for fun and I need to be at the top of my game.  It also means that I will be posting regularly again.  I hope everyone is having a great start to the week!

Unexpected

This weekend took an unexpected turn when Baby Girl got sick Friday night.  Our plans of baseball in the morning and a trip to the beach in the afternoon were put to a halt and I spent all of Saturday sitting in our bedroom with Baby Girl.  This was her first "real" sickness and I had forgotten how sad it was to watch a really little one cope with being sick and not understanding why they feel the way that they do.  There was not an option of me leaving the room.  She would not stand for it.    

Baby Girl watched Monsters Inc, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Toy Story while I caught up on all the magazines that have been piling up, fell for this really cozy looking padded sweatshirt, finally found the perfect Bubble Ceramic Sidetable for our family room and perused the DVF Loves Gapkids collection.  I also took care of some Mother's Day shopping at the Tory Burch Friends and Family event.  Let's just say that I am not one who should be left in a room all day with a computer at my disposal.  

From left: Zara sweatshirt,  West Elm Sidetable, DVF Loves Gapkids Collection

Baby Girl is now on the mend and the household is returning to normal.  As always, I am just hoping no one else gets sick too.  Fingers crossed, toes crossed, hair crossed.....everything crossed!

How was everyone else's weekend?

A Blink

Yesterday I was at my Oldest's Baptism.

And then I blinked...

And this little man was standing in a suit, all ready for his First Communion.

The person that told me the phrase, "The days are long but the years are short" could not have been more right.

I got tears in my eyes for how handsome he looked, how old he looked, and how special of a day this was for him.  I also got tears in my eyes with the acknowledgement that life really seems to be going a bit fast for me.  My little boy is growing up and sometimes I seem to forget to take it all in.  

This was such an amazing day and I loved every moment of it.

The whole family was there, my Oldest was SO excited, and all we did was celebrate.  

I was also able to get a photo of the five of us, which rarely happens.

(Yes, Baby Girl is not cooperating but I will take what I can get)

How was your weekend?

Whales and Dolphins

Please note: this is not the boat we went on.  I just LOVE this photo.

Whale Watching.  I cannot even remember the last time I went whale watching.  I think it may have been a field trip in Elementary school.  Who knows how old I was.  Did we even see whales?  I cannot be sure.  Needless to say, it was a LOONG time ago. 

The sad thing is that experiences like these are right in our backyard and we sometimes fail to take advantage of them.  I can blame school, sports and schedules but really, I think sometimes it is just forgetting how awesome Orange County is and how beautiful it is to be out on the ocean.  For this reason, none of the children have been whale watching and it was about time we changed that.

We spent our Saturday afternoon down at Dana Wharf Sport Fishing and Whale Watching for their two-hour whale watching trip.  Because it had been so long, I had no idea what to expect and went into it telling the kids that there was a high probability that we may not see anything.  I was WAY OFF.

Through our 2 hour trip we not only learned a ton (our Captain was awesome) but we also saw three gray whales, sea lions, and the major highlight, HUNDREDS (it felt like THOUSANDS) of dolphins.  It was unreal.  Every where you looked, dolphins were jumping out of the water.  I wish I was faster with the camera but honestly, I forgot about taking pictures as I watched the kids take in everything they were seeing.  It was crazy.

If you have not experienced whale watching at Dana Wharf, it is an absolute MUST on your To Do list.  It is coming to the end of the season so there are only a few more weeks left to take advantage of the gray whales migrating north.  Dana Wharf Sport Fishing and Whale Watching offers a number of tours each day and you can click here to view times and purchase tickets.

* Juggling in Heels did receive complimentary tickets from Dana Wharf Sport Fishing and Whale Watching but the opinions stated are 100% my own.

Easter

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter holiday yesterday.

For the first time we attended the Easter Vigil mass Saturday night which allowed us to enjoy Sunday morning before heading over to my parents to indulge in family time, an Easter egg hunt and of course, SO. MUCH. FOOD.

I am still recovering from the coma I put myself in.

I swear every holiday is a free-for-fall for me.

Happy APRIL FOOl'S DAY!

Spring Break

The flowers are blooming, it is sunny outside, Easter is Sunday and Spring Break has arrived!

Oh Spring Break!

Why is it always so awesome?

Elementary School, High School, College, Now.

It doesn't matter the time in my life.

It is always awesome.

Tomorrow kicks off Spring Break for the kids and I cannot wait to let them sleep in, throw out the schedules, go swimming (crossing fingers the weather cooperates!) and recharge.

I am going to also step away for a little while and try to do a little relaxing myself.

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday weekend and I will be back in a bit!

Baskets

As mentioned on Wednesday, I invited friends and their children over for our second "Give Back" get together.  I have actually not titled it that but it works doesn't it?  Everyone had such a great time at the food drive that I thought we should keep it going.  This month, we put together Easter baskets for underprivileged children.  Each family was asked to pick up one basket per child and all the goodies to go inside.  We needed practical items such as toothbrushes, pajamas, and socks, but we also wanted to include fun items such as coloring books and crayons as well.  And of course, there MUST be candy!  

This month was much smaller due to everyone's schedules but we were still able to pull together some amazing baskets thanks to the creativity of our little ones.  Yes, some baskets ended up with three sets of toothbrushes (which is funny because it was my Middle Man and he HATES to brush his teeth) but with just a little swapping here and there by the moms, we ended up with baskets stocked with items these children both need but would also want.    

This is now my third month working with my little ones to give back to those less fortunate and I have to say, I am having so much fun getting them involved in this that I should have done it a long time ago.  I am documenting each month here in hopes that perhaps others want to try some of the things we have done.  Yes we are only three months in but by the end of the year there will hopefully be a number of fun suggestions!

Thank you C for being my partner in crime on this and for everyone who provided items, even if they could not attend.

Have a great weekend!

My Boys

On Sunday our school rented out Boomer's in Irvine for our annual Mother and Son event.  This is one of my most favorite events of the year and I look forward to spending the day with my little men.  Believe me, with sports, work, school and of course, having a little one, this does not happen as much as I would like.

The day was spent riding go karts, hitting in the batting cages, playing miniature golf and of course, endless video games.  To top it all off, Middle Man won a raffle prize that sent him over the moon and of course, by evidence of the photo above, he would not put down for a second.

I know there is going to come a day when this event is "lame" and the boys are not going to want to go so I am taking it all in.  For now, they are mine.

Outside of Reality

Yesterday I spent 12 hours in LA filled with lunch, cocktails, Robertson Blvd., makeup, a red carpet, a fashion show and the Redbury.

Not this lady's typical Tuesday!

It is nice to step outside of reality now and then, isn't it?

Big Bear

This past weekend Baby Girl, Middle Man and I headed up to Big Bear to spend a weekend on the lake with my parents and some of the siblings.  The last time we all went away together, everyone was able to make it, which led to a HUGE party all weekend (when there are 6 grown up kids, who have kids and two grandparents that can have fun like kids, it gets a little crazy) but this one was a little different.  With less of us there, I was able to relax, read, play in the snow with the kids and enjoy some quiet time.  It was also an eye opener.  Now that we are getting older and our kids are starting to grow up, it is getting harder and harder for the entire family to find a weekend when EVERYONE can make it.  I mean, my hubby and Oldest weren't even there!  As a family we are going to have to plan a little further out but also know that at least for the time being, life is going to make it a little harder than it has been.  

Thank you Mom and Dad for a fantastic weekend away and thank you to everyone for all your help with the kids.  They loved hanging on you guys all weekend and it DEFINITELY gave me a little bit of a breather.  You are welcome on vacation with us anytime!

So What Happened?

I mentioned a little over a week ago that I was FINALLY taking away Baby Girl's pacifier after allowing her to have it a bit too long.  Thank you to everyone who commented or emailed me regarding suggestions on how to make the process easier for her.  I decided to try the Pacifier Fairy since that seemed to work for a lot of people and Baby Girl is a sucker for Cinderella.  I threw out the pacifiers, placed a Cinderella doll in front of her bedroom door and hoped for the best.

I would love to say that it worked like a charm and she never asked for the pacifier again, but that wasn't the case.  It worked for a couple hours before she decided that she did not want the doll, she wants her pacifier back and the fairy was mean to take it.  I obviously could not have the pacifier reappear so we had to keep going with it.  

Over the next week she continued to ask for her pacifier but the amount of times she asked became few and far between.  FINALLY, this past weekend, I only heard her ask for it ONCE.  She is sleeping fine, doesn't mention the mean fairy anymore and I think, has finally given up.  

At the same time, I figured that if she was already working through losing the pacifier, we should rip the bandaid off and get her potty trained too.  If she was going to be crazy for a while I would rather have it all at once.  So, I also took the diaper away a week ago Sunday and we have not gone back.  The best surprise here is that it took only a day for Baby Girl to be potty trained.  I still have to remind her sometimes to go use the restroom but we are officially done with diapers too.  

Pacifiers and diapers, farewell.

And with that, my Baby Girl suddenly stopped being a baby and suddenly became a girl.  It is really strange to me that we have moved out of the baby stage for good in our family and I no longer need to run to Costco to pick up diapers or search through bags for the missing pacifier.  I have been doing this for 8 1/2 years!  

Am I sad about leaving this phase?  Nope.  Not at all.  I am actually excited about the next.  We spent the weekend in the mountains (photos will come soon) and it was strange how light the packing was.  And we did not have to race home for a nap while having fun.  And no changing diapers standing up in a dirty stall!  This is all incredibly new to me and though there are going to be moments that I miss the baby stage, I have to admit, this next step already seems pretty great.

Cans

A while back in this post, I mentioned that each month I was going to work with my little one's to give back to their community.  For January they each adopted a child and so for February, I thought a food drive would be fun.  Numerous friends commented on my previous post about also wanting to get involved so instead of my three simply purchasing some food to donate, I made it fun and invited over a bunch of friends to participate as well.  Twenty two boys and girls filled the house for pizza, cookies and wine for the moms to have a little party on a Tuesday night and give back to those less fortunate.  Some of the children bought the food with their own allowance while others went through their pantry to see what they could share.  We had such a great time and the kids really did a fabulous job of filling up my dining room table with a TON of canned and non-perishable food.  It was such an easy way to show children that even though they are young, they can still make a big impact when they work together.

 We all had so much fun and I am looking forward to putting together something else for March!

Thank you to all the friends that participated!