carseat chronicles.

since the birth of baby boy we really haven't traveled much. well, G has for work but me...not so much. shoot, the last time i even flew on an airplane was when i went to BRAZIL for spring break of 2009!

however, the travel miles we have logged with a newborn/toddler is certainly no small feat. it's exhausting enough just packing up to go to the grocery store, so preparing or even envisioning a trip that requires hours of travel time (carseat time) and packing to sufficiently accomodate baby needs at either a hotel or guest home is quite intimidating (prepared mom's must always pack for worst-case scenario!).

here is a sample list i'd make for just a weekend get-away:
(with something neccesary inevitably missing!)

• bottles (several), formula, baby food (jars AND fresh in a cool-pack), quick (clean) snacks for the drive, sippy cup, bibs
• several changes of clothes because crawling babies get dirty and ALL babies have diaper blow-outs!
• bath stuff (baby shampoo, lotion, wash cloth, towel)
• diapers, diapers and more diapers. wipes, diaper rash cream
• pack-n-play AND several blankets
• stroller
• travel toys (just a few)
• and something i FORGOT but will never forget again when staying in a hotel: dish soap to wash bottles!!!!

....and then I have to think about packing for myself, and by that time i'm so flustered and tired i forget things like my hair straightner, socks, a jacket, etc.

i think the actual travel time is actually easier the more newborn the babe is, because once they are independently mobile and becoming increasingly vocal it takes more effort to keep them entertained/quiet. AND newborns sleep WAYYYY more, which is ideal for travel. kai takes naps, but is definitely awake for the majority of the travel time.

but we've done it. mostly weekend trips over our beautiful native northwest region (boise, portland, wenatchee, etc.), nothing major.

it's undoubtedly tiring, but always a fun adventure.  

this most recent adventure was the most fun yet. i attest this to 10 months of "packing practice" trial and error AND the fact that, well, Kai is just starting to really enjoy new experiences!

G is working in Vancouver (WA), possibly for a month or longer. we had tenatively planned to spend the long weekend in seattle, but with the condition of my allergies/sinuses and the on-call nature of the job he's on, we both decided the best bet was for us to stay close to his job site....AND the fact that we had parents heading that direction for the weekend was even more of a deciding factor because that meant i didn't have to drive and would be free to keep the little stinker happy and occupied QUIET! (woo hoo!)

kickin' back and sippin'...

i'm happy to report that Kai did not have one SINGLE carseat tantrum/melt-down. he got close, though. twice. both towards the tail ends of the destination (enoughs enough!) but he never reached his breaking point.

why, you ask?

#1

 #2

 SUCKERS!!!!!!!

see, Kai really hasn't been introduced to any kind of non-fruit based sugars and, well, desperate times called for desperate measures. it was definitely an enjoyable experience watching him enjoy his sticky, sugary treats. he kept shoving it toward me, wanting to "share." so cute. he literally sucked them both down until i was forced to finish them off due to jagged edges. some parents may frown upon this, but ya know what? I'D I WILL DO IT AGAIN!

{almost} meltdown #2 began at the LONGEST stretch of the drive home from Portland. you know, that dreadful stretch of dry desert highway that extends from Arlington to Boardman to the Hermiston exit. bleh. i DESPISE that part of the drive! and, ofcourse Kai did too. I'd kind of hoped that he would fall asleep after we stopped and ate in Hood River, but, no. he fought and fought and fought sleep, but was quite content until the barren stretch. then i broke out the sucker, hoping that would get us home.

 the little stinker fell asleep literally right when we pulled into the Hermiston city limits.

You can learn many things from children. 

How much patience you have, for instance. 

~Franklin P. Jones

sick day for mommy, play day for baby...

 $1 marble green bouncy ball from walmart = hours of entertainment for lil' mr.

bleh. i HATE being sick. the last two days have been a blur as my world has been clouded by a killer combo of allergies and sinus infection. super duper sucky. especially because GARY IS WORKING IN VANCOUVER and i'm single mommy status. make that SICK single mommy status. yeah, not very much fun. i think i caught it from Kai. he's just getting over it so we're both snotty messes. i'm trying my best to pull it together and nurse myself back to health so i can ENJOY the long weekend, instead of sleep off this death virus in bed....

pending G's work schedule and my immune system, we plan to spend the weekend in SEATTLE!!! it's long overdue that i give Kai a taste (ha! read on...) of my favorite US city. yeah, i'm praying, poppin' vitamin C's and slingin' back alkaselzers like nobodys business.

ANYWAY, the world does not stand still (unfortunately) when mommy's feeling under the weather. and Kai can only entertain himself in the the house for so long. so i thought today would be a good day to move his little play junglegym from his room into the backyard so he could expend some energy on that in the wide open spaces opposed to the cramped quarters of his room.

we spent almost two hours outside. i'm SO happy that Kai has decided he can handle the feel of grass on his hands, because for awhile there, he refused to crawl in the grass. well, that's now a thing of the past. he's all over the place out there. i just wish he'd stop putting everything of interest to him in his darn MOUTH. seriously, here is the shortlist of what i extracted from his chompers just in the short while we were out: rocks, dirt, bark, mushrooms, flowers, leaves, honey's toys/bones....and i don't want to know what i missed.

but on the brightside, we had lots of laughs and it felt good to absorb some vitamin d and get some fresh air (thanks, Kai!). here's some snippets of the highlight of my sick-day:

 hoping the worst of this bug/allergy attack is OVER.

here's Kai trying to get me to drink some fluids...

Question of the day:

when do babies STOP putting everything into their mouth?

oh, and any tried and true remedies for head colds? cause' i'm totally game....

cousins & cars: a day in the life of kai

we got to babysit this morning! it was fun...and tiring (for Mommy!). props to all those moms out there who have less than a year between kiddos. sheesh.

anyway, crazy to think that these two will be in the same grade in school.

he's already lookin' out for her....

pretty lil' Parker Jo

Kai LOVES baby PJ.

he is SO gentle with her. her little tiny foot was poking out of her little sleep sack and Kai bent down and gave it a kiss! melted my heart...

here's Kai driving his car around Parker. he has a major obsession with anything with wheels right now. this particular car, however, is his favorite (this week). the wheels make a clicking noise when they turn, which he seems to really like. he's also started making "vroom-vroom" car-like noises when he's driving his trains, planes and automobiles across the floor.

he's growing up too fast (tear).

for your viewing pleasure i've included a short clip of his newfound love of driving (turn up the volume when he gets close to the fridge and you can hear his cute car noises!):

outnumbered.

spending too much time with Aunt Abbey and those girl cousins...

i received this via text message tonight at work with the caption:

what a pretty little girl!

G would have a FIT if he saw this!

...thank goodness he has 3 boy cousins on his Dad's side.

(i'm sure my sisters and i are guilty of doing similar to our poor little brother, too. sorry mikey.)

no words. just joy...

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two-fer-one's.

we all like to get two things for the price of one, right?

think of time as money. we want to make the MOST out of our moments, hours, afternoons, days, weeks....
and time is precious. we often are forced to sacrifice one thing for another due to lack of time, which is a drag. but let's face it, there just aren't enough hours in the day.

unless, of course, you master the art of the 2-for-1.

yeah, you little multi-taskers, that's doing two things at one time. many of us do this all day, and yes, we often may do three, four, or heaven forbid FIVE things at one time.

but to REALLY achieve the 2-for-1 status you have to think outside of the box. (yeah, so cooking dinner while watching the news or eating breakfast on the road doesn't really count, sorry.)

................................................

here is a morning hygeine time-saver that i began doing when i was late for morning class back in college.
brushing my teeth in the shower. some of you may do this, it's genius if you ask me. you clean your teeth and your bod simultaneously! brilliant:

once crowned with the wonderful title of "mommy," i gleaned a handful of additional two-for-one's that just may be useful for you, dear bloggie. who knows?

like this one! feed Kai snack, AND clean the floor! (a chore that i HATE):

OR working on my core strength doing planks and other various abdominal exercises while waiting for Kai to fall asleep (i usually wait for him to finish his bottle before i leave because if i don't then it leaks all over the place!). i'm sure G would die laughing if he walked in to Kai's room thinking that i was rocking him but instead found Kai in his crib and me diligently holding plank position on his floor! he has asked me a few times why i was breathing so hard when i crawled back into bed after "putting Kai back down." haha! that's a 2-for-1 at it's best, my friends.

...then there are the more practical, everyday kind of 2-for-1's like me (or honey! j/k) taking a bath with Kai. that's a time-saver. even if i don't get all the way into the bathtub with Kai, every night i put my feet in with him AND wash my face...that's a lil' two-for-one.

we also eat breakfast together. out of the same bowl and everything. i've had to alter my daily oatmeal recipes a bit to be more conducive to a 9-month old stomach (1/2 c. old fashioned oats w/1/2 a sliced bananer, blueberries, sometimes strawberries and always raisens) but he LOVES to share breakfast with mom. i'm not sure when this all started, but that little stinker will eat every meal BUT breakfast in his high chair. it's like he knows that once mom cleans up his mess and put the high chair away she's breaks out the "good stuff" and thats just what he wants. mommy's oatmeal. at least it's healthy. then, (here's another 2-for-1) when we are finished with our oatmeal honey licks out the bowl and once it's shiny and clean (er, sort of) Kai pushes it around the floor for usually a solid 30 minutes AND bangs on it with our spoon. seriously. just about every day.

another 2/1...or actually 3/1: walking (exercise) with Kai, and Honey (dog walked!) TO the library (or any other destination of an errand we need to run!). we do this quite often. one of the benefits of our home being wonderfully centrally located  in this grand metropolis.

...and then there is the little game i play with Kai's naptime. i like to see HOW MUCH i can get accomplished in any one period of blessed nap time. more often than not, this is at least 2 hours. but sometimes it barely eclipses an hour and it's those naps that keep me movin' fast! during Kai's morning nap i usually have my daily quiet time outside after feeding Honey, picking up the house and either folding or starting laundry. then i either work in the yard or get a bit of a workout in.

(this is an unfinished project!!)

this is a very random blog topic, but making the most out of your day is great, dontcha think?!

do YOU have any tried and true 2-for-1's you'd like to share (silly or not...)??

a little of what you fancy does you good...

[goin' for it]

Seize the moment.

Remember all the women on The Titanic

who waved off the dessert cart.

Erma Bombeck

p e a c e...

nothing quite defines "peace" like the image of a soundly sleeping baby.

among the hustle and bustle of life, amidst noise and chaos, tired babies always embrace peace.

they may fight sleep in a loud and busy place, but wrapped in a soft, sweet smelling blanket or

skin-on-familiar skin, they eventually give in...

and sleep.

we all go through times when peace seems to elude us.

it's loud, it's busy and we're drowning in the noise of alarms, reminders and deadlines barring us from that deep, freeing exhale that seems to shift the heavy load we bear off of our backs so we can at last receive...

peace.

sometimes we just need to give in.

we need to let go.

maybe cry, maybe apologize, maybe forgive, maybe laugh....

we need to silence the noise of the world and breathe...

and allow ourselves to be covered and tucked tightly into the warm, renewing comfort

of God's perfect peace.

Philippians 4:6-7 (The Message)

 ^6-7Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

Uncle Mikey & Kai

two of my favorite boys.

being a big sister, believe it or not, taught me a lot about being a mommy.

mikey and i have always had a different kind of relationship.

i attest this in part to me being older when he was born AND the fact that my mom went back to school during his elementary school years and i was next in line for things like taking him to school, getting him breakfast, helping him get dressed, etc. those things were never a burden to me. i enjoyed stepping in and getting to be a sister-mom. i can remember dropping him off at elementary school (usually late)my senior year in high school and making him give me a kiss on the cheek before he got out of the car.

i often have deja vu moments when i catch myself doing something with Kai that I did with Mikey years ago. such as:

tucking him in under the "floating blanket," reading books with over-the-top animation, making him "fly" on my feet while laying on my back and belting made up-silly-random songs at the top of my lungs to make him laugh and probably scare/weird him out a little bit...

and...yeah, Mikey turned out a little like his big sister, with a wild imagination and an over-active verbal response system (which is both a blessing and a curse).

i can only hope that Kai will be lucky enough to inherit our ability to smile our way through life's storms and make a joke out of just about anything.

I'd say the odds are in his favor.

9 month update!

Kai Quincy

at

9 months

Now that he's pulling up on EVERYTHING, he often enjoys looking out the window while standing bouncing on the back of the couch.

And yes, like I said pulling himself up on EVERYTHING...

and trying to climb on everything.

His favorite climing posts thus far: the couch, any door or window, any coffee table, the dishwasher, the pantry, MOMMY and honey (and those are JUST the faves!).

Favorite toy: ANYTHING with wheels....

or anything that easily slides around on the ground while being pushed. This boy LOVES wheels!

He also loves to MOVE. He's crawling in super speed now...

He has recently mastered the art of clapping!

I have been taking him to baby/toddler story hour at the local public library

(every Wednesday at 10, it's fun!) and we sing lots of songs that have motions and he mirrors the bigger children (and Mommy, of course!)

He's also started crossing his little ankles when he's in a sitting position (seen above and at right below).

My little man....

Yes that's a BlackBerry on the floor next to him.

It was my DEAD BlackBerry that he so kindly decided to give a bath to early last week. He literally dropped it in his full bathtub. I turned my head for ONE second...

He is also eating peas (and cereal and old pieces of breakfast lunch and dinner...and dirt and leaves...).

Off the floor.

Yep, please note the bowl that was intented to hold the peas. Nope, he dumps his snacks on the floor and sometimes doesn't even bother to pick them up, he just eats em' straight off of the floor like Honey. It's hilarious and great for building up the immune system...or something like that ;)

Yum! Sticks!

...also any cup. Or bowl. Really, anything with an opening he LOVES to pretend like he's drinking like a big boy. G and I let him drink water out of our cups and he enjoys it so much he tests every cup/bowl out to see if it contains any refreshing cold water. But in the photo located above-right he was really just toasting to the marriage of Mommy's buddy Veronica!

Eating LOTS of fun new foods.

Some of the newer favorites include kiwi, grapes, egg yolk (boiled/microwaved) and raisins!

Loves, loves, loves to be OUTSIDE.

Here he has walked (in his walker) to the door (more like RAMMED the door) and is shrieking to get my attention to take him outside. He does this at the back and front door several times a day.

If it's decent out we are outside a LOT working in the yard, watering the garden and flowers and weeding...

Still lovin' bathtime, especially if it's with cousins!

Bathtime has changed quite a bit, however. He crawls all over the place and pulls himself up on the sides.

He also enjoys splashing. A lot. It's getting more interesting with every day

 (not to mention more WORK for the usually WET and TIRED bath-giver!)

Favorite mode of transportation: Mommy's old blue backpack

 (My Dad used to carry me and my siblings in this thing!)

My little red...

getting more personality with every single smile-filled day!

 (Think they're related?!)

Such a fun age.

SUCH a fun boy.