Sappy Mom Post

Last night I was extremely sappy... It started with my phone running slow due to the insane amount of pictures I had on it. So Matt was saving the pictures to my computer and dropbox. I wanted to have some pictures on my phone still, so I was going through each one I took and picking the ones I had to have. This goes back to when Matt got home from his last deployment. A majority of those pictures were of Mj..baby Mj..my sweet sweet little baby who isnt so much a tiny baby anymore. There were so many pictures of him so tiny. He was seriously no bigger then my four arm..sooo tiny!! Now he is double that size. All I could think about is how much I want my little baby back. Dont get me wrong I am in love with this stage, besides the teething and fit throwing in the commissary of course, but he is growing too fast. I know in a year from now I will look back at this year and think OMG he was so tiny....

 My son is seriously my world, as each child is their parents. MJ will be our only child. We havent made the final decision where I will go get 'fixed' yet but we know that this is what we want. We just want to wait a few years before we go to drastic measures to make this true... just in case. Thats so me, going and getting surgery to insure I dont have any more babies and then so sad because I wont have any more. Not because I wanted them, but because Im almost 25 and dont have that option anymore. Just the option.

I have been reading this book How do you Tuck In A Superhero? By Rachel Balducci GREAT BOOK about a mom raising 5 boys and a baby on the way. 5 boys can you imagine!! I cant, but I can imagine 2. Two little boys, mommas boys, a house of 3 boys.. that sounds nice doesnt it?? Her stories are horrifyingly sweet... I would love to have to two sweet boys wouldnt that be fun? Im thinking this as I look over at MJ as he gives me an evil smile, a 'you didnt see me grab that dog food smile' as he slowly puts it in his mouth..where does he learn this stuff??? Yea two boys that would be sooo fun.. but seriously the idea is nice..sweet. But thats just not for us.. Not the cuddling with two sweet boys part. The traveling and dealing with Matt not being home because of his crazy new schedule and going from basketball practice to soccer or whatever activities they do. I stress..thats just me. Yup I know it. Then I think about how much I love MJ and although I know I could love a second child just as much, I dont ever want MJ to doubt that. I know he will grow up and love his brother so much but what about that first year when he doesnt get whats going on?? Ugh too sad for me. Mothers do it all the time.. 1,2,3,4,5 more children. Bless your heart.. but for us thats just not in our future.. AND what if it was not a boy... oh please do not get me started on if we had a girl. Grey..grey hair instantly..before she was even born. Grey doesnt look good on me.

 So for now I am just going to sappy over my precious toddler and hope these years dont go by too fast because this is it. Its our first and our last of each of these things. Please dont go by too fast! Except the parts where I find my stuff in the trash can, or toilet, or buried in the dirt outside..those things I can do without...

I was that mom in the commissary..you know the one!

Have you ever walked through the commissary and stared at those moms with the food piled high in their carts with a baby wrapped to their chest and 2 OR MORE kids hanging from the cart...screaming... As you quietly walked the aisle and quickly try to escape that awful noise and awkwardness of not wanting to make eye contact because you are afraid you will say something mean. But its not over!! Its like they are following you , or maybe they just going down each aisle like you do so it seems as though they are stalking you on purpose. You finally have everything on your list and you head to the cashier and sure enough they come behind you shortly after. After checking out, and listening to her kids scream about wanting that piece of candy you are so happy to be able to step outside in the fresh air, away from the screaming children. You are so relieved it is quite you dont even mind the little bagger that wants you money after she took your groceries  to your car. IT WAS THAT BAD INSIDE. At guess what..thats not even on a pay day. You can only imagine what it is like on a military installation on a pay day. Now this is why I chose a commissary. For you non military families out there I know you have stores and moms just like this, but picture it ten times worse at a commissary.

Anyways...that was me today. I was that woman..that mom!! That one I just spoke so terribly about. The one I always said to my husband as we left " I dont get why she cant handle her kids."  Yes today was a sad day. MJ used to be so good in the stores. I always got compliments on how calm and happy he was. Seriously every time was so pleasant. Im not sure who took my child in the middle of the night and replaced it with this toddler that throws tantrums in the middle of the store. Just kidding it wasnt that bad. No tantrums yet but he cried and fussed the entire time. Every aisle I had someone staring at me. A few elderly men actually stopped and dared to talk to me about his fussiness...asking if he was teething and so forth. MJ just gave them the dirtiest look and resumed his crying. I wanted to cry. I wanted to leave my cart, that was overflowing so much that I had to take him out and hold him so I could have a place for Ice Cream, and just get in my car and cry. I tried everything. I gave him his car, that lasted about one aisle until he threw it down. I gave him a teether I keep in my purse, that he never likes anyways so IDK why I thought it would work today. I let him hold boxes of pasta..EVERYTHING. I pretty much ran through the rest of the store because I was so embarrassed. Can you imagine me, holding a crying child while pushing a cart that was extremely full and heavy, with one arm to the check out line. Quite amusing Im sure. At one point I even saw people from Matts squadron, who I refused to make eye contact and act like I didnt see them in hopes they wouldnt recognize me which I know was a bust.

It gets worse. He was pretty calm as I was standing in line only because I was holding him. There were barely any people in line. In fact I was the last one. I have him in one arm and Im trying to pile my food up on the table for them to ring up. I am doing this with one hand. You can imagine how long it takes to unload a incredibly full cart with one hand, one by one, one by one. Then a man walks up behind me. a man with 2 things...come on can you not go to the self check out!!!! He just watches me. I think to myself he is gonna help me. I will be embarrassed but it would be nice if he helped me. I was only half way done and still had two cases of water, a case of sprite, two cases of yohoos, and two frozen pizzas on the bottom of the cart. He watches me. As I start to unload the pizzas he decides to help..thanks..really.. no really I was pretty thankful because I had absolutely no idea how I was going to get those cases of water on the table with one arm. My child refused to be put down.

Walking to my ar was seriously a breath of fresh air. I needed to get out of that commissary and fast. I was suffocating. Horrible horrible. The second we get in the car, he falls asleep...

Nice.

I am that mom everyone. So laugh and stare at me. Ask your husbands why its so hard to take care of one kid go ahead. I have a whole new respect for those moms with the screaming kids.

Sippy cup redo-and rating

A few post back I talked about all the information on sippy cups and then gave you my recommendation, based on reviews, of a good straw cup to use. Well I change my mind..can I do that??

We read amazing reviews on the llola cup and we just had to have it. We ordered 3.at $14.00 a piece... When I first received the package I was excited, what cute packaging!! Then I held it. It felt cheap to me. Cheap plastic. Also I wasn't fond of the look but I knew that and moved past it. I used it immediately. Within minutes MJ had milk all over himself. hmmmm It must just be MJ. Is he using it right?? Sometimes he likes to let the milk fall out of his mouth because apparently making mommy crazy is funny. I watched him as he drank it and he would tip it some, which is fine that IS the reason for the weighted straw right??? Milk was pouring out. I didnt know why or where from. I was seriously out the door and the cleaning lady walking in as this was all going down. I had to apologize for the milk trailed all over the kitchen and dining room. The next time he used it I had to hold it straight down so it would not spill. When Matt got home he kinda looked at it and shrugged. The next day we tried again with the green one. It quickly failed as well. Seriously???  We realized, after comparing that one with then new $4 ( for a pack of ) two new ones we bought, that they placed a hole in the straw, to vent air. The liquid was leaking from that. The location was all wrong. Also the straw did not fit the entire straw hole causing liquid to leak from there as well. UGH how annoying is this. $50 and a lot of mess later we decided to stop using them. Matt of course wrote the company to explain the problem and give suggestions.

For the last few days we have been using the Nuby no leak straw cup and find it amazing...until I realized it did not say BPA free on the packaging.. I panicked. Noooo we fell in love with these. They are the perfect size, no spill, and sturdy. Great. Now we start from scratch. Well I did a little researched and since the company is foreign it is not mandatory to add BPA free to the label and as of recently all of the products are BPA free..ahhh sigh... I was not excited to start all over on the search for a good cup.

So after months of researching and reading reviews I am deciding to give you my own review on every cup we have tried, sippy, straw, whatever so you can see what I think, ad decide for yourself.



 Nuby 2 Count 2 Handle Cup with No spill Super spout

10 oz

BPA free

6.99 for two cups!!!

These were ones we bought when we first bought sippy cups and were changing him from bottle to sippy. At first we could not use them. They come out a tad fast causing him to cough. Within a month we started using them as his water cup throughout the day. We are in love with this cup. It is still only a water cup for him since we are trying to not use sippy cups often. Great material, great handles. 

This is a must have for our house

Nuby 2 pack no spill cup with flex straw

 10 oz

BPA free

$6.99 for two cups

 These were the cups we ran out and bought real fast at the BX when the lola cup did not work for us. These seriously are amazing. No leak unless MJ throws it and whatever was left in the top of the straw flies out..teach kid not to throw. The liquid only comes out when you are making a sucking motion because it puts light pressure on the straw and 'opens' the valve. Some reviews said that it was impossible to get out...um really? adults my 1 year old can do this and you cant?? Maybe not the best cup for someone learning the straw but its still easy to use. Also I read reviews saying its not sturdy and it shatters easy... this seems to be great material to me. Its made out of the same as the ones above and Mj has been throwing those on our hardwood floor for months. It was a bit annoying to clean the straw part because water gets stuck in the straw but if to tilt the top part at just the right angle you get a good flow of water through it.

 

This is another must have for us. We will be buying more right away

 

 

 Playtex baby First lil' gripper twist and click straw trainer cup

7 oz

Did not read on amazon it was BPA free but its playtex so I assume so.

$7.92 for one

 

This was the first straw cup we got for MJ. It works by you, the adult, pressing where the grips are on the cup so the water goes up the straw and into the childs mouth so they learn to suck. This one was a bit tough at first. It was really hard to squeeze so trying to teach a child to suck on a straw while having to press with both hands was not fun. It seemed to get a tad easier as we went along. once MJ knew how to use it on his own, it was great. Good material and no major leaking problems. We still use it for water since it is too small for milk now.

 Decent for beginners but look somewhere else first. Not bad once you know how to use it on your own.

 

 

 NUK Learner cup with silicone spout

5 oz

BPA free

$9.40 each

 

This was Mjs first sippy cup. We really liked them. So much we had 5 or 6 of them. Great size for an infant moving from bottle to sippy. Soft spout great removable handles. I wouldnt say spill proof but pretty good still. If you press hard enough on the silicone top it will all come out but it didnt happen very often for us. 

 

I for sure would buy these again if I had another child. Definitely recommend 

  

 

 

The first years 2 pack Insulated sippy cup

9 oz

BPA Free

$7.98 for two 

I bought these when I wanted him to go from soft spout to hard. He used them for a week and we really liked them. They changed colors when they had liquid in them. Then I read about the speech problems that sippy cups cause. We use them still but rotate with the straw cups. I still really like them. We have not had a problem with them spilling at all.

 

Recommend these if you want a sippy. 

 

Lollaland Lollacup Infant and toddler straw cup

anywhere from $15-$24

BPA Free

 

This is the cup I started talking about in this blog. I really wanted to like it I really did. But it was so cheaply made. Non sturdy plastic, way flimsy lid and leaked a ton..like the entire thing. The weighted straw idea, where the kid can tilt it and the straw still works, is an amazing idea...if the whole beverage didnt leak out at the slightest tilt.

 Wont ever buy this and dont recommend it until they fix some issues. maybe I will try them again when my child is 5 and knows not to tip it...then again he will have cups by then. 

 

  

   

 Philips AVENT Natural drinking cup

9 oz

BPA Free

$5.00 

 

This is a trainer 'cup'. Not a sippy of course. It works by the child drinking like you would from a normal cup. When in the drinking position the middle presses down slightly releasing water, enough to drink but not to spill everywhere. We just started using this with MJ. When we are out Mj always wants our drink and so we give it to him. Matt doesnt use a straw so MJ has learned to drink from a cup, if someone is pouring it for him. I dont even want to imagine if I gave him a cup on his own. He is learning how to use this on his own. He still either gets none, because he doesnt press hard enough, or gets too much because he sticks his whole face in it. So its a work in progress. But It seems to be good for now. It actually only leaks a few drops if tipped upside down which is nice and it comes with a lid. 

We have found no problems yet. Good invention.

 

Well there it is. All of the cups we have tried thus far and what I think about them. I am sure there will be more as he grows so I will add them to the list or to a new blog. I really hope for those of you researching cups found this helpful. I know if you are so OCD like I am you want the best and wont stop looking till you find it!! 

 

The week of Epsom Salt

Who would have thought that Epsom salt had SO MANY uses.. Before I married Matt If you would hace said that word I would have looked at you with a blank stare.. WTF is that??? But Quickly it became a must have in our home. If you know Matt, you know that 99.9% of the time he is hurt.. torn this pulled that dislocated something else. I didnt know I was signing up to be a nurse mommy and a wife... but all this is besides the point.. So we have Epsom salt in our house 24/7. As the years have passed I have found more uses for it. If something is wrong this can cure it. If your grass is brown this will change it!! This is insane!! How can one simple thing do so much.. Now besides curing Matts broken everything it is starting to have another major use in this house. I read on a toddler blog, or maybe more then one, that epsom salt is fun to play with..who would have thought??? So this week is the week of Epsom salt. We started out with just the Salt in a bucket with some measuring spoons and cups. It kept MJ busy for about 15 minutes ( Come on my kid has an attention span of.. his dad). His favorite thing to do was take a handful squeeze it in his hand, and by this I mean so hard his face turned red, then drop it.. not back in the bucket or on the table..on the floor. How fun is that!! NOT So I spent the next 15 min trying to keep the dogs away from it and cleaning it up. Why is it that my kid has to throw everything on the floor! I think this has potential though. He could learn to love it. Sometime this week I will get it back out and add some food coloring to it.. we will see how interested he is in it then. I Am determined to find an activity, other then playing with the basketballs, cars, and books, that will last longer then 10-15 minutes.

Sippy Cup

I have done research on sippy cups for quite some time. MJ started using one before he was six months old. I had always heard that if you used bottles and then sippy cups for too long it can case major teeth problems. So that is why I chose to switch from bottle to sippy so early on. I wanted him to learn to use a sippy so hey would then use a straw cup and regular cup sooner rather then later..before he got lots of teeth and it could do damage. Well we have been using sippy cups ever since for milk and water. He does use a straw when we are out of the house but sippys while we are home. He only has 4 teeth so I figured it wasnt a huge deal. I recently was researching what is the best sippy cups for toddlers before they are able to use a cup. Up until recently he only used soft spout sippy cups and I wanted him to switch to hard ones. So here I was online yesterday looking up the one that was less likely do do harm to the teeth. We got him a few from walmart this past week that he really liked and did well with and it happen to be that those were on the top ten best ones. Well as I did more research because one website is never enough for me, I came across a few articles that say that sippy cups should be used ONLY to transition from bottle to cup, not using them longer then a month or two. This is because, not only can it cause 'bottle teeth' or make the placement of the teeth off but it can actually cause speech problems such as delayed talking and lisps. This is because the placement of the tongue on the bottle and sippy cups. Watch next time your little one drinks. See how the tongue is slightly sticking out under the nipple or spout??? If they transition to a cup or straw cup it works the mouth and tongue muscles which is good for them of course!! I never knew this!!!!! Of course I doubt MJ is damaged being so young but this is something I would not have thought about at all. So of course, again, being the person I am I researched the best straw cup. I remembered seeing one on Shark tank that made total since to us and we really liked but had not seen in stores.It just so happened to be that this straw cup is not only on the top ten best straw cups but it is rated by moms as number one!!! Seriously check this thing out Lollacup So of course we immediately bought three of them. I am a person that doesnt mind spending the money on what is best for MJ.

So if you are transitioning to a bottle remember to only use the sippy cup for a short period of time, moving to a straw cup or regular cup asap. Also when searching for a sippy cup to use during that time look for one that is not spill proof. Spill proof cups have a piece inside that is much like a bottle and again doesnt work their mouth muscles right nor does it teach to drink from an actual cup. Research all this its true!!!

I just wanted to let all my mommies know about this BORING but IMPORTANT fact I learned

Overly Protective Mama

When I think of a babysitter I think of how the movies portray them. Cute and polite to the parents and then once they are gone they sit on the couch watching tv eating your food, calling or having their boyfriends over, and making your child go to bed at 6pm. I know that this is just TV but it makes you think doesnt it??? I honestly never though I would hire a sitter this early on..yes its been  year and that is still early to me. By hire I mean really research one and do background checks and interviews to insure that this sitter is the perfect one for our family and that I can trust them. A sitter that is our sitter for the long run not one just for the night. Being a military wife I knew that there would be times when Matt was working long ours or on TDYS or deployed and I would need a break during the day. So I have a plan for that!! MJ will be in preschool a few times a week, he will be part of a drop in 'daycare' if needed. What I didnt think about is what do I do if I cant take him to those places?? What if its not a preschool day or drop in is full and I NEED him to be taken care of. Then what??  What do I do if I have a night event to attend while Matt is away or when he is home and we want those rare date nights. That my friends is where this babysitter comes in. We all think we can have our friends watch our children when needed but in all honestly, that doesnt work out 99% of the time. I can tell you about countless times we have missed out on events because our friends just werent available. I want a babysitter. One that I 'hire' as MJS babysitter. One that he can get used to and be familiar and comfortable with.. do you get where Im coming from here??? Well back to the needing one so soon part. Matt leaves this year. Not for a deployment and not for long but 7 weeks. In that 7 weeks I can imagine I will have an event to attend or need a break. So being the planner I am I start looking now.

I was reading Military Spouses Magazine and in an advertisement for sittercity, a site for you to find a sitter and do background checks and all that jazz, it informed me that Military members get to register FOR FREE Now free is amazing!! Not that I wouldnt have gone to this extreme if it cost because when it comes to my son you cant put a price on that, but free is nice. So I registered. I entered in my location and four pages of babysitters popped up. 4 pages of women that I could look at, check reference, background checks, interview.. See them before they see me kinda thing. This is the most wonderful invention ever. Well maybe not ever but its pretty cool. So I have two women in mind here at this base. Two women that I have already requested references for. Checked their background checks. Two that I will decide to meet outside the home and depending on if I like them, bring them into my home to see how they are. Well I am behyond excited for this. Maybe because it means more date nights before Matt leaves??

Now we have about 8 months left at this base. Then I will have to start this whole process over when we move. This process that becomes 10x more important BECAUSE we wont be on base. So these people around us can be crazy. Well miltary men and women can be as well but I am not AS NERVOUS hiring a military wife then I am a civilian when we live no where near a base. So this website is a GODSEND!!!

Now to look at buying a Nanny Cam...lol Just playing

Moving Forward

Matt FINALLY got the email saying he was released from his PAFSC. That means there will be no TDYS OR Deployments from this squadron again!! So glad to not have to worry about this one coming up. Those of you who dont know Matt was accepted into Recruiting school. So we have being waiting and waiting  patiently for each step to get approved. Today, after 60 days of waiting, he received the email saying he was released from his job so he is able to be a recruiter. He was given a form that both of must review and sign. There are questions like "Do I know he will be working crazy long hours"? CHECK " Do I know we most likely wont be living by a base"? CHECK " Do I know we will have civilian doctors"? Excitedly CHECK " Do I know this job is very stressful"? CHECK I am fully aware of the requirements of being a recruiters wife, I mean come on now I am a wife of a man who is part of a squadron who deploys every year!! Long hours or Deployments? Stress from a job at home or Stress from him being Deployed? They are two very different jobs and come with two very different requirements and struggles but I am ready for them. I am ready for CHANGE! Plus possibly living by family could help make that stress a little easier on both of us.
   
They had to schedule a phone call that both Matt and myself will be on. A phone interview. To go over the job and to insure that I am aware of the requirements and make sure I am ok with this. I am so good at voicing my feelings and speeches to anyone.. friends.. facebook.. this blog!!! But Im nervous about this phone interview. What if I say the wrong thing? What if Im not patriotic enough? Do I need to be captain Americas wife? Wear red white and blue and proud AF wife shirts daily? Bake cookies for the recruits and tell them how amazing this life is? Insure the parents, girlfriends, wives that this is great?? I doubt it but I sure feel like thats the pressure Im under hahahaha Just messing.

Well wish me luck on this phone interview and pray that this step goes by quickly and we get the list of office locations open and his lass date so we know what this next year, and the next four years has to hold for us!! We are both so extreamly excited for this next step in our lives!!!

The week of finger paint

I was asked by someone I went to school with what it is that I do with MJ all day. I have to admit, I have a pretty wise child. He has learned stuff quickly. Although most is just his own personality and will to get somewhere or do something on his own, I would like to take credit for some stuff. I like to be a hands on mom. I try to be a hands on mom. I know we all have a busy schedule, trust me I know! With school ( yay for being done) and Bible study and suadron events and Matts games I really have to sit down and make the time to teach MJ stuff that a good mommy/teacher should do. Since he was small I took him to the Zoo and parks and walks talking to him and showing him everything I possibly could. Although he probably never understood it, at people thought I was silly taking my two month old to see animals I loved it. I loved spending the time with him and showing him things and of course lets be honest, having a reason to do all the childish things an adult cant until they have children. I teach, that is my degree, that is my job before I had MJ. I teach children. I watch them learn and explore and see their face light up when they just get something or are introduced to something new and fun. So as a mom I spent countless hours on the internet looking for activities ( other then the zoo and park) to do with MJ at home that will help him learn. So many sites out there have wonderful activities for children..who are above the age of 2... Ok my kid is smart but not THAT smart, at least not yet! I then came across a blog http://www.playcreateexplore.com. This blog had some great activities for all ages. Of course there are limited options for one year olds but I then read in her post that , young children can do just about any activity an older toddler can with adult supervision and maybe a little tweaking. I also read in her blog that in order to keep a child's interest for long you must stick to one activity with small changes here and there to keep it interesting. So that is what I am going to do. Each week ( of course not counting the extreamly busy weeks where it would be no fun) I will decide on one activity.. just one. That one activity will be done those days we are home. During those days I will add to it or change it in some way to keep MJs interest. Now as a first time mom I am learning so I imagine some activities will be a bust while others will be ones he will love for years to come *hopefully*. So here we go!!


Although I usually wont start on a Sunday today we started finger paint!!!

I made homemade finger paint because MJ has not yet moved past the stage of everything going in his mouth. So therefor it must be edible.

Flour
Water
Food coloring

I just added the amount of flower I wanted ( depending on how much paint you want to make) and then added water until it was the consistency I desired. Start with small amounts as it can get watery quickly. Then add the food coloring and you have green paint!!! Or whatever color you desire. Today we started with just the paint on his high chair. Dont want to overwhelm him the first day do I? As excited as I was he was fascinated for about 5 minutes before getting fussy, why I started so close to nap time is besides me. He was a bit confused what was going on. He really was more interested at looking at what was on his hands then on the table. I can imagine as we do this more often he will learn to love it. He is a bit of a texture freak so anything gooey is out of his comfort zone.

I have not decided what I will add to the paint throughout this week to help him learn and have fun but I will figure it out as the days go on.

Here is too a new turn on mommy hood!!!

See what I mean about the hands

Good thing its edible

there are those hands again!

Welcome back..and big changes!

Well after a very long leave of absence from blogging, about a year, I am finally back. This past year has been one wonderfully crazy one raising this wonderful little man and now that he is about to be 1 ( this month!) I am able to come back and find a little time to blog! Those of you who have followed before you might notice some changes! The title the theme and other small things..thats right I am not only a military wife but Im a mommy now. Times have changed when I use to post about the military and deployments and my life as a military wife. Now this blog will be filled up of experiences and memories of being a mom of a little boy! I will come here to share with you, my fellow military wives, moms, especially moms of boys, all the joy of raising a child. I am extreamly excited for this new beginning of this blog as well as this next year of raising a toddler boy.. well maybe a little nervous!! So please Join me while we laugh, cry, and are just overwhelmed with this crazy wonderful life!

HERE WE GO!!!