I never...

A few things this mommy NEVER does.

I never, ever--

...buy diapers without coupons

...give my kids pop

...buy things (from a store) that aren't on sale

...gave any of my kids juice in a bottle {something I see on Teen Mom, that always urks me!}

...have left my kids with a babysitter that wasn't family or a very close friend

...skip my kids' vaccinations(personal preference)

...sleep through the night

What do you NEVER do??????

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Phrases out of this Mama's mouth daily:

1.  "Uh, Oh! Tyler, do you need to go in your bed?"

2.  "You can go potty by yourself!"

3.  "Yell for me when you're done if you poop"

4.  "Tyler, Puh-lease!"

5.  "Ssshhhhhh!"

6.  "That's too loud, and it hurts my ears"

7.  "Please leave him alone"

8.  "Tyson John!"

9. "Kayden Michael!"

10.  "Tyler William!"

My "Little Surprise"

Today is baby Tyson's first birthday! 

It's hard to believe he's been in our lives for an entire year, while at the same time, it seems like he's always been here.  I don't really remember what our lives were like without him.  

*I'm working on his birth story, and will hopefully post it later this week*

Sooooo....for the next month, I will be the mother of TWO ONE-YEAR OLDS who are NOT TWINS.  

I don't believe there are a ton of people out there who can say that. 

Do you know of anyone?  

I'd LOVE to know them too!

Sooooo...hApPy bIrThDaY tYsOn JoHn!!!!!!!

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten....

Reasons this summer will be AWESOME

1.  I only have to work 3 (maybe 4) days a week, and I will almost always be off before 3:00

2.  We will have a new swingset for the boys to play on

3. We get to go camping

4.  We don't have a newborn

5.  We will take the boys to the zoo, and I KNOW they will LOVE it!

6. We will go to at least one of Auntie Mazih's basketball tournaments (maybe even stay in a hotel)

7.  We will spend family time at "The Pink House"

8. Thursday night volleyball

9.  Twins games

10. HOPEFULLY selling our house and starting our new one!!!!!

The beginning of Easter and shopping?

We had a busy, yet relaxed weekend.  Friday night we stayed at home, and everyone(including mommy and daddy) was in bed before 10:00.  

Saturday morning, Eric and Amy and Matt came over for breakfast, then we headed to my cousin Holli's for Easter on my dad's side.  It was a long drive, but we made it work.  We spent some extra time there so that we could put the kids in their pajamas before we headed home. They all fell asleep on the way home, so it worked out perfectly.  

It was a nice, relaxing day.  It was really fun to watch all the great-grandkids play together.  They don't get time together all that often, and they are fairly close in age, and almost all boys!

Sunday we hung out at home, getting a few things done.  Then, after nap time we headed into St. Cloud.  We wanted to get dog food, and planned on shopping for a swing set for the boys.  We walked into the first store, and realized that we would be just browsing, and the dog would have to go hungry until the next day because neither of us brought our wallets :)

So, we spent some time looking at bikes and swing sets, then headed home. 

*Oh yes, and Tyler insisted on looking at all of the "potties" at Mills Fleet Farm.  So, I obliged, in order to avoid a screaming fit.*

Time to put my foot down!

Does it seem like I write about sleep {or a lack thereof} a lot?  Hmm.  Weird.

Well---*NEWSFLASH*---my little kids(#'s 2 and 3) DON'T SLEEP!

Lately, it's been worse than ever:

Tyson will be a year old in just two days {*tear*}. So, naturally, we should be weaning him off of his bottle.  During the day, he does great.  Usually, he has just one, maybe two bottles.  At night, is a different story.  He has a bottle at bed time.  Then, he wakes up at least once, lately, twice, and has a bottle.  

I really need to buckle down, and get this job done. He needs to understand that he will not starve if he doesn't have a bottle at 2:00 a.m.  

So, I've been taking baby steps.  I have been shutting my bedroom door at night.  This way, I don't hear him cry until he's really crying.  Otherwise, I wake up at the first whimper, and I have to listen to him scream until A. I go get him up, or B. he goes back to sleep {insert sarcastic laugh here}

The next step is, to send my kids somewhere (one of their grandparents' houses) and take two nights to let him "cry it out". Yes, I have done this once already.  But then he got sick, and I caved.  So, the rest of this week will be spent working on this sleeping at night/no bottle thing.  By next week, if the problem isn't solved, I'll have to use more drastic measures--like sending my bigger kids to Grammies house.

At my wit's end!

I can't take it anymore. I have this handsome little boy.  Almost 2 years old. He's adorable. He's hilarious.  He's busy.  He's lovable. HE WHINES.  A LOT. 

It's partially mostly my own fault.  You see, he has this loud, obnoxious whine he uses to get what he wants.  I can not stand the sound of it, so I find myself (more often than not) giving him what he wants so that he'll shut the h-e-double hockey sticks up! I know, that sounds mean, and very un-motherly. But, I challenge you to spend a day with the boy.  See how you feel by the end of the day.  

He asks for fruit snacks and juice constantly. If you don't get it for him, he repeats his whiny request 5 bajillion times, until you give in.  

If I'm trying to make supper, or wash dishes, he will put his body between me and the counter and push on my legs or pull on my pants.  

He wakes up in the morning YELLING.  He might call for me quietly once, maybe twice, but then it's a full-on yell.  

It's bad enough that other parents notice when Tyler is missing from daycare, because it's so much quieter.  

Poor Kayden can't get a word in sometimes, because Tyler thinks that sitting in the backseat of my car and talking to me is some sort of competition.  Whenever Kayden is trying to tell me something or ask a question, Tyler feels the need to repeat, "Mommy!" 4,298 times.  It's ridiculous.  

Now, it sounds like I'm complaining, but I'm not.  Really.  I'm not.  It's more of a plea for help. 

So, I called my sister in law this morning. She's been to a class on Love and Logic Parenting.  I asked what I should do, and she gave me some ideas, and I've come up with a plan.  

In my head, I see it working perfectly: 

When the whining or yelling begins, I am going to give a short phrase like, "Yelling hurts my ears", or "Uh oh, no whining please".  Then, I'm going to put him in his crib, and tell him he can come out when he's ready to stop.  When he quits yelling/crying/whining, I will go get him, and give him a hug, and we'll move on with our day.  Hopefully this works. We'll see.  I'll keep you posted.  

By the way:  If you have other suggestions---please share!