A Post a Day Keeps the Therapist Away

Third day, third post-Is it possible? It can't be...oh but it is!

I thought I'd share my opinions on an article I read today on CaféMom.  The article was about high schools, coming up with this plan, which was qualified as ''brilliant'' by the author of the article. The plan, was to call teenage students, to wake them up in the morning... really?.. and this is considered brilliant? Really.

The author went on about how teens have it rough (?!?), on  the large amount of homework they have (!?!), on being ''chemically wired'' to being night-owls, yet not having any choice of going to bed late, considering the amount of homework they have...She also stated  that schools expect them to be in, and I quote ''at the crack of dawn" and how for all these reasons,  we couldn't blame them for wanting to sleep in come morning... and since schools are to blame, the least they could do, is help out...

Bull. That's it. That's all I've got to say. That's what I'm going with: Bull.

Okay, I do have a little more to say (really, are we surprised?). I did reply to the article, of course. I obviously stated that the author was entitled to her opinion, but clearly expressed that this is, in MY humble opionion, the.dumbest.idea......ever.

Teens don't have it rough, they have everything handed to them.

How is a wake-up call preparing these young-almost-adults, for real life... uhm gee, I wish my boss called me to wake me (oh wait, I've got kids for that). This practice, teaches teens anything, but responsibility.

I may have mentionned that perhaps, if kids are so hard to wake in the am, that perhaps, they are going to bed too late. I mentionned, that if they are going to bed late because of homework, perhaps they need to revamp their organisational/ study skills. I mentionned that behold-yes, even teens should have a reasonable curfew. I mentionned that if there's just not enought time after school to ''get it all done'', that perhaps, their schedules are over-filled (with band, and cheerleading, and soccer, and princess tiara-whatever) (side note, I'm not against extra-curricular activities, quite the opposite... I'm against kids having no un-organized time, where shedules are filled to the brim. I'm against ''everything else'' being more important than a child's well being, where it should be understood, that kids need rest, a decent bed time.... and that school should be a priority). If kids need to go to bed really late, it's not because of homework. It's not the school's fault. If this is the case in the author's kid's lives, and others in the same boat.... perhaps their parenting strategies should be re-assessed...just a thought

That is all.

Cheers.

Quick update

New posts coming shorthly! It's been a busy last couple of months! I'm back at work, the kids have changed daycares,  the house still isn't cleaning itself... busy.

Yesterday was Logan's 1st Birthday! Time flies. I wrote up a ''Dear Logan'' blog, using a blog application on my Ipod, but when I came to publish it... poof, vanished! And so, my ''Dear Logan'' blog will be late, but it's not forgotten!

Looking forward to getting back in the groove of writing regularly!

I Must be Doing Something Wrong

It was while I was nursing my almost-nine-month old baby back to sleep, for like, the 4th time sometime last week, that it hit me: I Must be Doing Something Wrong!!!

 Noah, my first son, didn't sleep for the first six months of his  life. He was exclusively nursed and slept in the playpen in our room. (ERROR!) He wouldn't nap on his own either, so we made a habit of napping together,(ERROR!) which truth be told, I more than welcomed.  After he turned 4 months (and had taken a total  of only five bottles, (ERROR!) he wouldn't have any). Being alone to handle nights, (ERROR!) since he would only nurse, I guess we can say  that I was somewhat sleep deprived. Noah would wake about ten times a night from the time he was four months old, and then when he turned six months, we moved him into the crib in his own room,  (FINALLY DID SOMETHING RIGHT!) I he finally slept through the night.

An Allowance Please?

My son Noah, randomly wanted to buy a toy car. When I told him that mommy didn't have the money right now, he then said he wanted to ''buy'' money. This had my hamster start running in his wheel, in other words, it got me thinking about the importance of teaching my kids a few lessons concerning money early on. While discussing this with my husband, we decided it was time to give our kids an allowance. Problem: We quickly realised that we have two different view points when it comes to what conditions should be considered in giving the said allowance. We could decide to give a fixed amount weekly so that the kids learn how to manage a steady ''income'', or, we could give them  ''compensation'' for the completion of chores or given tasks. Neither of us was convinced that our perspective was the correct one to have. What was the lesson we wanted to teach our millionaires-in-the making?

Aveeno Baby Soothing Bath Treatment Review (1)

My little guy, Noah, has quite the problem, eczema-ish skin. Everything makes it react in some way. Too much dairy and he's covered in itchy, red plaques; dry, cold weather, and his skin is reptile like... Thank goodness for Aveeno.

Aveeno Baby Soothing Bath Treatment comes in a box with 5 packets. It is found in most pharmacies, or basically anywhere you'll find diapers. The box sells anywhere between 5.99$ and 8.99$.

Instructions on how to use the product are fool-proof. 1) Open packet, 2) disperse in bath. 3) Soak baby in bath for a few minutes.

The content, quite simply is natural colloidal oatmeal, which has been finely milled into a powder, and this powder, once dispersed in water, becomes a milky bath.

After using this product a few times, Noah's skin was visibly softer to the touch, the irritation had certainly diminished and the itchiness was gone. Gone! We use it every two or three days seeing that using it everyday would turn out to be quite detrimental to my wallet. The product is said to relieve dry, itchy, irritated skin, and so far, it has done everything it claims, and has brought much relief for my son.

The product also claims to''temporarily protect and help relieve minor irritaion and itching due to: rashes, eczema, poison ivy, oak, sumac and insect bites.'' I can't confirm or infirm these claims as I have not been in a situation to prevent my son's skin condition beforehand, and I'm not too inclined to say ''Hey sweetheart, why don't you go run in the ivy to see if this works to prevent a rash,'' but I can confirm that once the skin is affected, the product certainly helps. Perhaps using it longterm will prevent the breakouts before they occur, or atleast diminish their occurances? I hope so.

Two thumbs up from this momma for Aveeno Baby Soothing Bath Treatment!

This is Epic!

Okay, so, there's nothing really epic... I may have exagerated a little to get you to read this post...but remember, these are MY everyday truths, and so it's all about MY version of things, and thus, I can't be held to a standard of complete accuracy. So there!

My 8 month old son won't eat. Logan is just so completely infatuated with my boobs, he's decided that he could live on nothing but love and mother's milk. Can you blame him though?

Actually, he does want to eat, he just has no clue whatsoever as how to swallow the darn food...I mean, it's not rocket science. He prefers to gag and choke...it's liquid cereal for crying out loud!

Wordless Wednesday (1)

Dear Noah,

My dearest Noah,

Today, you turned three. You've been my rascal for three wonderful years.  Sometimes I wish I could freeze time and keep you exactly how you are right now.   You've brought me more joy than you'll ever know. I've loved you more than any words could possibly describe.

You're my constant reminder to strive to be better in anything, and everything, for you. You make me want to be a model worthy of your admiration. I want to teach you everything you'll need to become a happy, little man.

It's been three years already, and yet only three years, but then again, I can't imagine a life without you. Even today, your smiles make me all buttery  inside. You  know exactly how to get to me.

We've have lots of firsts together. You're my first child, my first baby, my first son. I've been a mom for the first time with you. We'll have a lifetime of figuring things out together, for the first time...Thank you for choosing us as your parents, we're so blessed, so very blessed.

Noah Getting Into Trouble

Just last night I wrote about how I know that Noah will probably have a knack at getting into trouble once in school. Well... It's begun!

My daycare provider was  thrilled to inform me that today, during naptime, my dear Noah decided to get out of his play pen... Uhoh. But wait!

Noah joined his little friend, William, another rascal, and they decided to have a party in the bathroom.

 I heard a huge thump in the monitor, and then over and over again,  a noise ressembling the toillet shutter being smacked closed....

But it was too late, these two little kiddies had already emptied the water from the toillet bowl with little bowls. There was well over an inch of water on the floor in my babysitters`s bathroom! Noah was wet from head to toe! Let's hope the toillet was clean!

Oh Noah!

Third Birthday Milestone Mommy Anxiety

This week, I'm being faced with a dilema. I'm having to come to terms with a milestone: My little coconut is turning three next Monday and we're celebrating with immediate family this coming Saturday.  Three!  Yikes!

I've been a mom for three years. (!) My heart stopped being  my own three years ago. Worrying daily has become a daily way of life. I look at my baby, and realise that he is no longer that, a baby (although since Logan has arrived, he still insists that he's our little baby).... He'll always be my first baby.... although he's becoming such a cute big boy! 

Who has my little Noah bear become over the last three years? I remember looking at him when he was just a little bundle of a baby, and wondering who he'd be, how he'd be, what kind of character he'd have. Was I in for a surprise!

Nappers

Yay! My toddler is asleep… and.. Drumroll… so is my baby. Ok. I’m cheating. The Baby is sleeping in the swing (only way he stays alseep longer than 30 minutes for naps)…


Truth be told, I’m loving the down time. Truth be told even more?…. Today, I almost wish that nap time would extend  into the evening… where, both would get up, eat… and go right back to bed…

Oh don’t you judge me, if you’re a mom… you’ve secretly wished this as well!

But then again… when I see the horrors of Haiti on the tube, I’m so grateful for my rascals!… How I love em so…. but, not enough to wake em!

I should probably be doing some scrapbooking... hmmmm... I'll go "plan out'' my first page to come... yeah... that's what I'll do

Mouche Bebe

What in the blue.... is this!?!?! This my friends, is a God send. This makes nights so much more bearable. This makes my little Logi happy.... and mommy relieved! 

This little object is called a ''Mouche Bébé''. (http://hydrasense.com/fr/product/) I have no clue what it`s called in English, so mouche bébé it is.  This object is used when babies (or toddlers, or even kids who don`t know how to blow their noses) need to have that nose emptied. There`s nothing worse than a baby who can`t sleep, or nurse, or feed because he or she is so congested with the fluids of a bad cold or flu.

I miss my toddler... or do I?,,,

Okay, I have this little list of ideas I want to blog about. At the time I made the list, Logan was in a major growth spurt, and so I was basically spending ALL my time nursing him. Meanwhile, Dan was taking care of Noah in the basement, outside, running errands, you name it.

I was tired.... no, exhausted, hormonal and emotional and I was just looking forward to spending some time with Noah. As luck would have it, Logan always had his daily fit (meaning, once a day, he was hungry and he had to eat NOW!).. right when it was Noah's bed time ritual: bath or shower, teeth, stories, music, songs). Dan and I usually take turns with the stories and songs, but lately, I've had to forfeit my turn to feed my little Logi.

Dan started working again this week. He doesn't have what you'd call a regular 9-5 schedule being a cop. His shift this week however, was Wednesday to Friday, day shift. We decided that I would keep Noah (gulp) instead of bringing him to day care (seeing that I don't yet drive ((I have my learner's only))... and that it costs about 30$ a day to and fro the daycare in a cab).... Although it was the first time I was spending an entire day alone with both boys, I was a little nervous, but mostly anxious to spend some time with my rascal.

Halloween 2009

It all started with a book about Halloween... Noah met "Fripouille la citrouille"... and literally became obsessed with pumpkins...

It started with a small pumpkin... which had a tragic end... Noah didn't quite understand that pumpkins weren't balls he could just throw...

So we bought a bigger pumpkin, put it up higher... but again, Noah found a way to make it fall... and it cracked opened.

I'm back since Logan is Here!

Ok, so I haven't been very assidous posting on this blog lately... but things are about to change (hopefully)...




For starters, I'm no longer pregnant (Yay for me!), and so far (knock on wood), I've been blessed with a dream baby, Logan.


Logan arrived on October 9th, 2009. Of course being pregnant, and in pain, I had to go pass my due date That's how Murphy's Law goes)... My AMAZING doctor, Doctor Elsa Leblanc, scheduled me for an ultrasound and monitoring 5 days after my due date... Monitoring was normal, my baby was still pretty active. The ultrasound also indicated that there was nothing to worry about... other than the weight of the baby. Initially, I had been told that the baby should weigh no more than 8 pounds... suffice to say, the doctor who perfomed the last ultrasound predicted a 9 pound baby!!! OUCH... ! I was just thankful for my projected epidural....