Christmas Photo Dump

A few weeks ago my Mom and I went shopping to finish up gift shopping. Will and Lillian had both fallen asleep in the back and woke up just in time to go in and see Santa. It took a while to get Will warmed up to Santa but we got him to at least stand next to him.

The first snow came and is still hanging around. Will and I went out to try to build a snowman. Turns out, the first snow was powder and we were unable to build any kind of a snowman. We still dug through all the drifts and had a small snowball fight. I tried to get a picture of him but anymore he sees the camera and runs!!! So, here is my white legged little snowman!

CHEESE! I love this little scrunchy face she makes anymore.

To preasent time! Daddy had to get open all the preasents right away.

Oh a new block!

An auger!

A lap top for Lillian.

(Zulily shirt, don't you love it?!?!?)

Will got a skid loader for Christmas and so he had fun scooping up all the wrapping paper with his new one and Grandma and Grandpa's skid loader that they had at their house.

 

A few Deters cousins.

Lillian and one of her adorable barrettes.

A cattle semi!! Thanks Mimi and Papa!

Her first purse and cell phone! Thanks Aunt Shannon and Uncle Doug!

Aunt Tara made has for everyone. Will and Lillian have sock monkeys. Lillian's is pink and gray.

Will got a new puppy for Christmas. I'm not sure how he will choose what puppy to use as a pillow now that he has an actual pillow pet.

Just had to take a picture of how Dennis wrapped one of my preasents! He wrapped my coat around it and tossed a used bow/ribbon on it. Made me laugh. This was mail holder thing. Hopefully it will prevent our table from getting cluttered all the time! I also got ammo! The cost of that stuff, I'll take that as a gift any day!



Finally healthy!

When Will had his RSV, he had a cough that would get the best of him from time to time so I gave him a 'natrual' cough medicine. A spoon full of honey. Well, he liked this 'medicine' so well he now thinks he needs it on a daily basis. Maybe five times a day. Needless to say, I need to buy some more honey.

And little Miss has been through so much the last month! All this sickness started with pink eye, then double ear infection and sinus infection, then RSV, and now.... another ear infection. It's a good thing we love our doctor, we have seen her 10 times in the last month! (Okay, so four but still!!) This ear infection seems to be worse on her than the double was. She has been getting up at least once a night since the first ear infections but the last several nights it has been an all nighter. Hopefully she tonight will be better. Today she hasn't really drank much from a bottle as the sucking hurt her ears. Its a good thing she likes her sippy cup because she drank almost all her formula out of it at supper time. Sick or not, this girl still is all smiles!

Christmas cookies

In the struggle of weight loss and my sisters having other plans for baking/ gift giving, we didn't get together this year to bake a bunch of Christmas goodies like we usually do. I did however, make two batches of sugar cookies. I LOVE baking but I just can't have that stuff around right now. My ability to decline that sugar packed snack is close to non-existent it's ridiculous. So, I thought I'd bake just a few and make them oh so cute to give to others who don't have this issue with food as I do. I gotta say, I LOVE the Santa hat and the stalkings. I think I spent about 5-6 hours decorating them but it didn't even phase me until I was running out of frosting and didn't want to make more so I just dunked them in the frosting and called it good. These bad boys though, they make me happy.

RSV

Just a quick update since it's been a while and last time I promised pictures this time around but.... we've all been sick. I have had to use up so much sick time I am almost out again (okay I have 5 more days but I hate getting down that low!) There has been a huge RSV outbreak around here. As far as I know there have been twelve kids home sick from RSV out of my kid's daycare. Luckily my kids have handled it well but I know some have had to spend some time in the hospital.

In adults RSV is just a bad cold. Dennis and I both have a cold so assuming we are carring the virus we are just trying to stay home and keep it away from others. I am now just looking forward to getting out of the house! I have enjoyed spending extra time with my kiddos but if you know me, you know I am not meant to be a stay at home mom. My patients runs low after about two days of being home with them. They tend to get whinny after a few days too and right now I understand, they just feel crummy. Will just has a cold and is doing great. Lillian is doing very well and on breathing treatments just to help her along, it's not really going to get it gone any sooner, just help her deal with it while its here.

There you have it, still no new pictures. Just a sick household updating on our house arrest situation.

Bla day

I feel like I have neglected my blog here. In reality its only been a few weeks but I tend to stop all of my normal talking (blogging) and chatting with family no the phone and such when I get down. After loosing 11" in October and being so proud of myself I followed it by loosing only 1" and gaining a few pounds in November. To say I'm bummed about this is an understatement. I know I shouldnt look at the scales and the number shouldnt count but it does to me. No one will ever talk me out of this unless I looked like a body competitor and was the same weight as I am now. Then I'll listen. Not until then. So, naturally I am down on myself and yes, talking bad about myself over and over in my head. I feel fat, look fat and dammit I still can't squeeze into a size smaller pant. If another person says "You just had a baby!" I may deck them. She is almost nine months old and there is no reason other than I'm just plum fat that I can't fit into smaller jeans (and those would still be bigger than I was a year ago.)

Okay, so maybe today is just a bad day and I'm down on myself in general but its still the truth. I promise to have pictures of my babies here soon. Lillian has learned how to stand up. This makes me so happy because there is nothing I want more for her than to walk! (Okay lie, I want her to be as healthy as can be and to live a wonderful life and believe and trust in God, but besides that, I want her to walk!) Ya, ya, I know she's only 9 months old but if you know me, you know that I'm not a huge fan of the babies. Don't get me wrong, I love her and all that she is doing right now and I embrace it knowing I can't have this day ever again. But when babies become toddlers and they can walk and tell you more of what's going on and what they want, I LOVE that.

Will and his imagination is a hoot. I love it. He is so much fun to play with. He makes barns and fences out of his Lego's every day. He will come up to me and ask for his pliers, all I have to do is reach in my pocket and pull out a hand full of air and hand it to him. He then proceeds to go fix something with his imaginary pliers. The other night the alligator outside was going to get him. We even went to the window to see this HUGE alligator that was going to get us. So tucked into bed he was safe from this huge 2 year old little boy eating alligator. He is learning so much at his new daycare. Dennis and I both love it when he will say something out of the blue and we know neither one of us taught him that. Humpty Dumpty is one but a few months ago he saw a flag and started saying "I pledge allegiance..." WHAT? I don't even remember the whole thing from school. Of course now with all the stupid laws they dont say it in school but WHAT? Moving both kids to Teddy Bear was the best thing EVER. They both love it there and I sure hope they love them.

Sorry for the negativity earlier. It's just a bla day and sometimes it just feels good to put it out there. I'm pissed at myself. There you have it. I hope this didn't make you in a bad mood because I know its contagious! Until next time, smile and have a great day!

You Tube funnies

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPJJ-Yrhq4c&feature=youtu.be

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsvBSSRpk3I&feature=youtu.be

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4-Z7vF5nrQ&feature=youtu.be

What have I been up to?

Crocheting that is....

SANTA! I KNOW HIM!

 After ripping his face off 3 times, I was a little more than annoyed with him. With the help of my awesome sister, Tara, she gave me some great tips to make him look sooooo much better. I like him a lot now. I realized he doesn't have ears yet but then he will be done and he will be a gift to an awesome little boy. (No, not my awesome little boy, another one :))

Now that it is getting cold out, my searing wheel is chilly. I made a cover for it. It was really easy and I had left over yarn for another project so it didn't cost me anything. (Do you see a helper there who helped me?) 

I wear Daddy's jeans.

Finally you hear from me!

First off, who looks like who? Really I want to know what you think. Dennis says both kids look just like him.... NOOOOOOOOOOO I beg to differ.

Oh goodness, the things that are to be updated to all you great blog watchers of mine. Lillian is now on re-flux medicine for her spitting up. She was getting worse and worse so I finally took her in. I never thought of re-flux because I thought babies were cranky when they had re-flux. Guess not. Otherwise, she is doing great! She is gaining weight and up to almost 20 pounds, so we need to start looking for a new car-seat as she is reaching the weight limit. Plus, she hates it, arches her back and tries to jump out every time. 

Did I mention that Lillian LOVES mango's?

Will is into the repeating everything he hears. Some of his most resent, "Piss off" (thanks Dad) and "Give a shit" That was me. So, Dennis and I are both watching even more of what we are saying. It is funny though, the things he thinks up and says. You can carry on an entire conversations about monkeys that are flying in the living room that you shoot with Legos. Ya, that one was interesting. He still will give me to legos and tell me to shoot those monkeys. (eye roll)

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Pumpkin Patch was a blast! (Until we were going to leave and spent 30 minutes trying to find my keys)

His potty training has kinda gotten worse. He was doing really well and I thought he would be fully potty trained by Christmas but now it is a huge struggle to get him to go at home. Dennis and I have to get excited to "Make Bubbles!!!" and even then, that's only half the time he will go. If he goes outside, he takes his shirt off and finds a tire to pee on. Now that is funny to watch!

I bought them matching Mickey/ Miney Mouse pj's! I love these two!

I would love to say that Dennis is less busy and home more now. (Honestly, I'm not sure if I will ever get to wright that and truly mean it.) He needs to realize that when friends ask him for his help, he CAN do it during the day and get paid for it. To me, if he isnt farming or chopping, evening time means family time. When bed-time is at 7PM I know we don't have much of an evening to have but we need to make it worth it. 

I'm just working, trying to keep up with the house (nearly impossible if I work 10 hour shifts). I try to take as much overtime as I can but we now have a great relief girl who likes hours. It's okay Elizabeth, we still love you! ;) I am working out a lot more and in the month of October I lost 11"!!! I am quite proud of that. I just wish that I could compleatly kill my sweet tooth addiction. I was doing really well until Amy (boss) and I went to a dispatcher's conference mid-October and I got back to horrible eating. It's still quite bad. Any suggestions on how to work on that??  

You better feel honored to see this, I hate showing pictures of me like this but I am quite proud of the 11" that left me over the last month.

Other than all that, things are pretty much the same. I have been in quite the funk and not wanting to do much as far as blogging. That, and I ruined our computer at home by dumping an entire cup of coffee on it. So, no computer or any internet at the house until I buy the new kindle Fire 8.9"! So excited for that!

:) Love being goofy with my favorite son!

Happy Halloween!

It would have been a better picture but Lillian wanted to stand so she would not bed at the waist. Will and his puppy costume and Lillian and her milk bone costume!

My many addictions...

So, I joke about my addictions to cloth diapers and such that really is not an addiction. (But seriously, look at Lillian's new diapers! SOOOO Cute!

I do, on the other hand have a true addiction. One that I am really trying to kick and it is so hard. My addition to sugar and junk food is real. If you ask my other half, he will say it's all in my head. BLA BLA BLA... 

The first step to kicking an addiction is acknowledging the fact that you have an one. So, I guess step one is down, now I have to work on the other part of it. I am trying and doing really well during the day. Maybe I just need to go to bed at 7 with the kids to avoid crushing my good day. 

Big Girl and smiles!

"Look Mom, one handed!"

 "Okay, I'll smile, again...."

 "My turn!"

Thanks Pinterest!

Mom and I went to Hobby Lobby after Lillian's appointment last Wednesday and I kept piling my cart up with several different colors of tulle, and a bunch of different crafts. She said "I think someone has been on pinterest a lot." Well, she was right! This was a supper easy wreath to make and it's pretty darn cute! I like pumpkins if you didn't know that already.

My first BIG project

I made this afghan for my mother-in-law. I worked a long time on it but I did take about a month break from it and did no crocheting at all. Now that it is cooler in the evenings I can cover up and work on things now at home!

I'm posting this now because I went a head and gave it to her. I couldn't wait and Dennis said "You spent all that time on it, I'd just give it to her now." So, it didn't take to much twisting of the arm for me to do it. 

One more!

5. Forgot about this one. It's maybe my favorite. 

Lillian's 6 months!

Well, almost a week late but now that the kids are finally well and the weather was nice, we packed up and took a few outside today! It was beautiful and Will did a great job holding the cat so he wasn't licking Lillian in all the pictures!

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4.

 This picture isn't the best but I was taking to to show off her new tutu!!!! I made it today and plan on making one more. (Okay so I'm sure I'll make a bunch more but I only have the fabric for one more.

Grandmas and other family members: I numbered them so if you want one in particular, let me know and I'll make sure you get it.

My addiction

As I stand nervously behind the podium in front of 23 men and women I had not met until today I announce my reason for being here.

"Hi, my name is Natalie and I am an addict to pumpkin flavored anything."
"Hi Natalie." They all respond in unison.

In all seriousness though, I love this stuff. I can't get enough and going to Target the other day I found my fix!

Apparently, my son has my addiction too. (Minus the cream liquor!) Not pictured is my pumpkin spice coffee creamer.  This morning for breakfast, Will ate one yogurt and half the jar of pumpkin butter I made last summer. 

Cryptosporidium

It has been a shitty week at our house. Truly!

Crypto is most commonly known as the pool virus. When I called Dennis to tell him he said "I know exactly what that is! That's calf scowers" (I don't know how to spell that!)

We are not sure how Will caught crypto but he has it and so nicely passed it on to Lillian (waiting on tests to come back but I'm sure she has it!) Hopefully it will stop there but who knows. Will was plum worn out for several days. He even vomited a few times one day. Lillian did too but she also has had a fever with it. To top her feeling like poo is that she also has thrush. The thrush has been so bad she doesn't even want to drink her bottle. I was so tired of missing work. Lillian is still contagious since she hasn't gotten her test results back yet so she still does not have drugs! Below, I was taking a picture of Lillian's rash that she has obtained in this crypto and Will wanted in on the picture too so here are my adorable, sick children!

On another note: Lillian had her 6 month appointment last week and she is 17lbs and 7oz. I didn't get her height measurement or what percentage that is. Bad Mom!

I have decided to quit pumping. My goal was to make it to Christmas but the depression was getting to bad. When there was nothing that would make me happy all day and my temper was short with the kids, I needed to find something to change that. Once I made the decision to quit, I felt like a weight was lifted off my shoulders instantly. I am now just to every few days to relieve the pressure and that's about it. I met my first goal of making past 5 months and that is how long I pumped for Will. I am happy with that and going to buy myself a retirement gift of the Kindle Fire 2 for Christmas. (Dual Christmas/ retirement gift.)

Omaha Zoo

This is really just a photo dump of last weekend in Omaha. We went with a few friends and their kids and spent the night. It was a great time but the kids started getting sick... that's another post!

Lillian loved it! She really was into looking at everything.

Did you know the closest relative to a rhino is a horse?

Lillian's first night in a hotel! We were going to go swimming but we were a little afraid of the pool turning brown... another post.

On the way home we stopped by Cabela's just to play a little. Will was not a fan of the shooting range with all the animals so Dennis and he played the video game of the same thing.