My kids are different.  I mean, obviously I expected this.  I didn't expect Lyla to be a feminine clone of Jacob.  But it still surprises me.

 Jacob was a clingy, high maintenance baby who wanted constant attention (what can I say, he's a man).
Lyla is more relaxed.  She doesn't require that I hold her all the time.  In fact, sometimes she just does NOT want to be touched.

 Sleep is where the biggest difference is.  Jacob is not a fan of sleep.  Not as an infant, not now.  He didn't sleep more than 3-4 hours in a row until he was nearly 11 months old.  He has always been an early riser.  Now, he goes to bed at about 8:30 and wakes up anywhere from 6-7am.  He takes one short nap. 

Lyla loves sleep.  At almost 3 months, she still sleeps quite a bit.  And here's where the surprise comes in: she sleeps BY HERSELF.  She will fall asleep and stay asleep in her own bed.  Or during the day, in the swing.  And she sleeps late.  She takes a while to wake up.  She reminds me of her father in this way.

I wonder how much Lyla's personality is a reflection of her being the second child and having to be a little more independent since often her big brother requires my attention. 

A lot has happened since I last posted. Guess what? We had a baby girl. Guess what else? She's absolutely perfect. Jacob is a big brother. It's still hard for me to process that even though it's been twelve weeks now. He's really sweet to her. Too rough at time, but so sweet. Her name is Lyla Claire, and she and Jacob are polar opposites in most ways. To start with she SLEEPS. Jacob did not sleep more than 3-4 hours at a time until he was about 10 months old. The other night, Lyla slept SIX. Lyla is a lot more independent than Jake. I'm not sure if that is just her personality or if it is just her way of surviving in our family :) Things are good. It's the holidays and I have so much to be greatful for. I am in the middle of an overhaul in a few areas of my life. Hopefully I can restart this blog and it will help. Number one, I'm on a diet.I have never ever been on a diet before in my life. It's freakin hard. I just want sugar all the freakin time. Number two, budgeting. I am trying to get stricter with our budget and savings. Trying to save money on the things we do need to purchase. Number three, well there is no number three. Maybe number three should be to work on the blog again. To write again. Something, anything. It's almost bedtime now and since I'm a mom of two now I definitely need all the rest I can get. Thanks for reading!

New Year...

So my last post was a week before the new year.  I've had a lot to process since then.  Jan 2nd we found out we are expecting baby #2 in September.  Since then, things have been a whirlwind.  So many things have gone through my head.  Fears, excitement, and my complusive need to plan all battle for their own position.  Jacob grows so fast.  He is such a joy and is a neverending source of pride for his father and I.  Jonathan and I are doing well.  I think every day how lucky I am to have been blessed with these two amzing boys.  That's all for now.

Road Rage is nothing compared to my Walmart Rage

I went to Walmart today.  I know right now you are thinking "Is she effin' crazy?  Doesn't she know it is 2 days until Christmas, AKA all-hell-breaks-loose-in-Walmart?"

Yes, yes I am aware of that.  But the fact is, we are broke.  Except for a lone Walmart gift card lovingly sent to us by my husband's aunt.  And we needed groceries.  I had to risk it.

By the time I left, I was fuming.  Which isn't surprising.  But I thought I would recount my experience for you guys.

First, finding a parking spot is a joke.  After nearly hitting pedestrians, or rather, being hit by them, I retreated to the end of the lot furthest from where I needed to be: the garden center.  I sighed a sigh of relief as I found a decent spot over there despite knowing I would have to trek across the whole store to get to the groceries.

I grabbed a cart that someone had left on the sidewalk, loaded my kid into the seat, buckled him in and away we go. 

I have a question, why is it that elderly people refuse to come out of their house except at Christmas time?  There was an abundance of cart-pushing, slow-walking, dear, no-so-sweet, older people at Walmart.  And I was lucky enough to get behind all of them.  Yeah, congrats to me.

I headed for diapers first, the necessity of all necessities.  I will happily report that there were no incidents on the way to the diapers.  I did notice a group of people around a clearance rack of Texas Longhorn shirts - a great deal for $5, but not great enough to risk bodily injury.

Then I went for the butter.  I really feel sorry for Walmart employees as they struggle to restock shelves in the midst of such chaos.  Butter retrieval went fairly smoothly. 

Next on my list: sodas.  Not a necessity, but it makes for a much less grumpy husband.  I turn onto the aisle and am nearly hit by a woman with a cart so full it rivals the size of Mt Everest.  I make a mad dash for the soda, and head for the cheese. 

Cheese should not be so difficult to choose.  Really, it just shouldn't.  I mean, don't you go into the store with some idea of what type of cheese you want?  Apparently this wasn't the case for the older lady who stood staring at the cheese with her cart in the way of ALL of it, and her grown (and I mean like 40 y/o) son taking up way too much space as well.  I stood for 5 minutes, though it felt like an eternity, while they debated on what cheese to get, and a line started forming being me.  Then I gave up.  I grabbed the nearest cheese and took off.  It is seriously NOT that important.

I then grabbed some hot dog wieners.  This was accompanied by and evil glare from a woman who apparently thought I was going to grab the summer sausage that she was headed for.  It's okay lady, I am not gonna fight you for the damn summer sausage.

I headed to the front of the store for bread and potatoes.  It only took me 10 minutes to make my way up there.  Good job to me.  Not such a good job to the 256 people I had to wait behind, go around, or nearly run over because they suddenly stopped to chat with some long lost friend.  I wanted to offer them my pen so that they could just exchange numbers and go on their merry way.

Bread and potatoes?  Check.  I even did a drive-by and grabbed some donuts. 

Here comes another battle.  The check-out.  I just don't understand why on earth Walmart has 30 damn lanes, but never more than 12 open at once.  I was able to find a line with only three people ahead of me! Score!

Remember the dear, not-so-sweet older people I mentioned before?  The ones who would just as soon run you over with their scooter as look at you?  I was directly behind such a person (minus the scooter).  This lady unloaded her car onto the belt one.....item.....at.....a......time.  Very frustrating to me.  By then I am becoming a little winded and claustrophobic of the crowd.  I take off my jacket as a hot flash hits me.  I fan myself.  I wait.

And wait.

Finally her order has crept up enough that I can unload my cart.  Let me tell you, my checker was less-than-thrilling.  He barely looked up at me at all and he was pretty slow himself (I feel okay saying this because I have been a checker at multiple places and was always kick-ass AND friendly).  After what felt like another year I made my escape.

I decided to go straight outside and walk around the building rather than have to walk through to the garden center and fight the masses.

Getting out of the parking lot was just as challenging as getting in. 

This is the short version of my shopping experience.  I have blocked some out, I'm sure. 

I am appalled at how people forget all manners at this time of year when it is supposed to be about kindness and courtesy.  It may not have been my fault but at every near-collision in that store, I said 'excuse me'.  I did not hear it back from anyone else.  This infuriates me.

What is your worst Walmart experience?

Ho Ho Huh?

Here is a question I have been pondering and I would like some opinions.
 
Those of you with young children - in what way have you introduced your children to Christmas?  Do you tell them about Santa, or Jesus, or both?  Jacob is too young to have to explain things to but I am not entirely certain of what route I'd like to take with this...

I mean, sure I had fun believing in Santa, and I wasn't traumatized when I found out that he was a hoax, but do I want to go that route with my child?  What if it does hurt him to find out the truth?  How will he feel when he finds out that Mommy and Daddy, the beacons of truth in his life, lied to him so extravagantly?
In a way, I don't even want to get the Santa thing started.  I want him to treasure Christmas as the birth of Christ.  I want him to be giddy with the spirit of giving, not caught up in what gifts he will receive.

And then I wonder if not telling my child that Santa exists will cause problems with the parents of other children in the future.  This is in no way a deciding factor, just something I am curious about.  When Jacob reaches elementary school and the kids are discussing Christmas, when he expresses our traditions and views, will he send some innocent child crying home to his or her mother, demanding to know if Santa really does exist?

Oh the things that tax my mind.  Let me know your views/plans on this.

I am amazing.

I think that becoming a parent forces you to become amazing.  I thank God everyday for our son and the changes he has forced us to make. 

We are in the process of rebuilding our credit right now, in hopes of buying a house within the next 4 years.  We would not be at this point in our lives if not for Jacob.  We weren't irresponsible people before getting pregnant, we just weren't taking action.  I am proud to say that we are now taking action, and taking charge of our future instead of just "going with the flow".  Let me tell you, "going with the flow" will get you no where.  It is a never-ending cycle.  A whirlpool waiting to suck you in. 

I'm proud to no longer be in that whirlpool.  We are still at its edge, where the waters are choppy and the current could easily consume us, but we are fighting.  That's what it's about.  Fighting what you get stuck with in life. 

I am feeling amazingly blessed today.  And amazingly adult.  I never thought that at age 20 I would be thinking of credit, buying houses, and college funds that weren't mine.  But I love it.  I am a good mom.  Screw that.  I am a great mom.  I want everything for my son that I never had and more.  I want to raise him to be an asset to the world.  He is my greatest achievement.  No matter what I accomplish in the future, he will always be number one on the list of amazing things I have done.

Second on that list would be marrying my husband.  He also makes me a better person, and wows me everyday with his commitment and love for his family.

God is good.

My poor abandoned blog, friends, and curiousity.

I did it again.  Started something I couldn't finish.  Typical.
But I have recently been inspired to have another go at it by some of my mommy friends.

Speaking of mommy friends, I think I will tell you how my husband classifies my friends. 
To him there are three categories.
1. Friends - These are people I know from school or work. Most of them before I got pregnant.
2. BabyMamas -  These are the ladies that I know through my pregnancy/mommy forums and iphone app.  I have never met them, but feel very close to some of them and consider them true friends.
3. BoobieLadies - These are the ladies that I know from or through La Leche League.  Ladies that are breastfeeding or have previously breastfed their sweet babies. 

And that's it.  When he asks who I am on my phone typing to and I respond with one of those category names, he asks no further questions. 

Men are different from women in that aspect.  Personally, I would like to know who it is, how did you meet them, do they have kids, do they have pets, who is their grandma, who is their doctor, where do they work, what's their favorite food, what's their favorite color, and so on.  Not really.  But I do think women are are just naturally more curious.  I like to find out these things about people in our lives not because I care that he talks to people, but because I like to get the feeling that I know them to.
Now I'm rambling....