Before I Had Kids Chores Were Fun

You may think the title if this post is a joke but I'm actually so serious right now. Looking back what I wouldnt give to do chores like I used to. They weren't actually that bad, in fact they may have been slightly enjoyable and even a little bit fun. Let me tell you all about it.

Before I had kids...

I liked to clean the kitchen. Wiping off the counter and sweeping the floors was a pretty easy task, These days I feel like I need to take a scraper and shovel to the floor after every meal. Not to mention get down on my knees to scrub it all off.

Laundry was a pretty enjoyable activity. A nice low key way to spend the evening, sit at home in your pjs, turn on a good show/movie while the load washes and dries and then fold. Simple and done in just a couple hours. Now laundry seem like a never ending mass of forever dirty clothes. Is it even possible to get through a 1 day without doing a load? Doesn't seem so in my house. And the mountains just keep on growing.

Washing the dishes didn't bother me. There were seriously only about 10 dirty items at the end of day, including all the pots and pans used for cooking! Somehow we now manage to fill an entire dishwasher every day and then some. Thanks goodness we have that dishwasher, I'm sure I would have given up on dishes long ago.

I cleaned the bathroom every day. Not a serious clean but at least a good wipe down. Now I'm lucky to get to it once a week. I find it so gross, but there doesn't seem to be any other time to fit it in.

Grocery shopping was quick and painless. Now it's still as quick as I can make it but far from painless. It's pretty much a race in how fast I can get through the store pushing a gigantic heavy cart full of two highly irritated children and masses of food overflowing from the cart. Seriously who planned out the shopping cart? It is in no way big enough to hold all the kids and all the food for the week, especially if you throw a case of diapers and wipes in there. I don't know what I'll do in a few months when I have a baby car seat taking up half of my precious food room!

I used to love having a clean, tidy, well kept house. It's not that I have changed any. I still love me a clean house, but at the end of the day when the kids finally go to bed the least thing I want to do is spend my few free hours cleaning up. And so it goes that the chores get a quick half version of done, floors swept but counters messy, laundry washed but in baskets unfolded, dishwasher full but pots and pans stacked in the sink, bathroom neglected, groceries shopped but not properly put away. You get my drift. I try to get one day a week to clean my house as much as possible but with having two little monkeys running around the benefits of this day don't seem to last long. Sigh. Oh well it is what it is. I'm sure in 20 years when the house is in perfect order I'll be wishing I had little people to pick up after, so they say.

Jordan

Learning At Home: Colour Bags

I've been wanting to do more learning at home with the boys for a very long time. However I've also been a bit, "lazy," in getting projects together for them. I have some ideas and lots of great aids (thank you pinterest) I just haven't really buckled down to prepare things.

Last night I decided I should finally do something (perhaps so that I can feel like a better mom!) and put together some colour learning bags. I've seen a lot of people do colour drawers (and change the colour weekly) but as space in very limited in my house I decided to use large ziploc bags instead.

I labelled each bag with a colour, then filled the bag with toys I found in my basement that are that colour. It was actually really simple to do, and only took about half an hour.

Again this was seriously the easiest project ever, but had great success today. Marshal already knows most of his colours, but he still had fun taking each item out of the bag and playing with them while we talked about each colour. I'm hoping that these bags will help me to teach Cohen his colours too. After today I think that I will add large letters to the bag that spell out each colour to offer a greater challenge for Marshal. I think I'll be able to use them in a variety of different ways so I'm feeling like this is a win win!

Here are a few pictures of the bags, just to give you an idea of what I did.

The colours I used include Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple, Pink, White, Grey, Black and Brown.

A close up so you can see some of the toys I used in each bag. 

I have these bags stored in a basket on my storage shelf in the living room, so they are safely hidden out of sight and also neatly organized. Now hopefully I'll get my butt in gear and put together some other simple learning at home activities for my boys.

Jordan

Pregnancy Diary: 26 Weeks

How Far Along: 26 weeks
Weight Gain: 27lbs
Size of Baby: A Cucumber

Food Cravings: Fruit juices! I desperately need to drink a glass of orange juice every morning and generally want to drink a lot of juice as the day goes by. I know juice isn't that great for you (hello sugar) but I just can't help myself it tastes so sweet and yummy! I'm also always craving French Fries (hello fat) particularly McDonalds fries. I know it's so gross to admit but I've eaten way too much McDonald's during this pregnancy. I am going to have to completely cut it out of my life after I give birth. I don't know if I have the willpower to do it before. Though all my maternity pants are getting a little tight around the hips and derriere and I still have 3 months to go so maybe I'll be forced to stop eating copious amounts of fries each month!


Food Aversions: None, lucky me!

Baby Movement: This baby must be a gymnast or something because there is constant flipping and kicking and overall wiggling going on in my belly. All of my kids have been real movers in the womb and I'll confess I really don't like it. I don't know why but it super creeps me out when I can feel them pushing on me from the inside out! Its the worst when it feels like a hand or foot is being pressed again my belly and then running along from side to side. I really dislike that one a lot! It's ok when it's just some light tapping or bump type feelings but in general feeling baby move is super weird for me. I guess it's good to know she's healthy and alive and active.

Overall Mood/Feeling: Exhausted. I don't know if I have ever been this tired in my life. I'm guessing the late nights and chasing two kids around all day aren't helping. What I really need before this little lady makes her debut is a week to sleep with no interruptions. I'm dreaming of any vacation away from everyone in which I can be the laziest person in the world and literally not move out of my bed for days. Sigh. So unrealistic but a girl can dream right? I'm still a bit moody and grouchy and definitely more sensitive/irritable than normal, but now that I'm so darn tired I'm losing my will to fight and just instead giving in to Marshal's demands and behaviour etc. I'm sure it's not a great parenting technique but I'd rather just give the kid what he wants than fight him for what I want. Besides all I really want is as much peace as I can possibly get.

Symptoms: I just added this category because boy have I been feeling it. This pregnancy is by far the worst of the 3! I don't know how women go on to do 4 and 5. Right now with the way my body feels I never want to experience this again, no matter how cute the end result. My body is just aching from head to toe all day long. I've always had problems with my back from dance but this is just the kicker, I don't even remember what it feels like to not have back pain. My hips have never ached so bad in my whole life. Even after 6 hours of intense dancing I've never felt so awful. Then of course is the breathing which is killing me. I can barely walk up the stairs without panting like I've just run a race, it's horrible. I feel like I am constantly short of breath and unable to catch it. I know I haven't been super active during this pregnancy but I am still teaching dance. I don't know how it could be better because every time I do try to do more walking I just feel worse and end up so sore and stiff I can barely move later in the day. I'm amazed at all the pregnant women I know who are working out to the very bitter end. As soon as I am done work in 3 weeks I'll be sitting on my butt not moving a muscle until I give birth. I know I just keep going on and on about this but my body really feels as though it is falling apart. Every day I keep fantasizing about the day I can work out again, do a dance class, lift some weights, do an intense hike and feel the burn of my muscles that feels good not like I'm going to die from walking up to my room with a basket of laundry. Seriously I don't even know whose body this is anymore.

My Thoughts: I'm almost in the home stretch. And by that I mean the 3rd trimester because I know there are still quite a few weeks (of aching) to go. Still 14 weeks isn't as many as it may seem and I know that I have a TON to do before I am ready to have another baby in my house. There are a gazillion projects that need to be completed before she arrives- furniture to be refinished, rooms to be painted, blankets to be made, chairs to be recovered. Oh my! I hope I can somehow find the energy to get it all done because I'm sure the next 3 months will go by quickly. I am also getting excited to see what this little lady is going to be like. Excited to meet her and her cute little face. Oh but I am dreading the name thing. We still have zero names on our list. Ha picking a girls name is tough!!!  Boys names are so much easier. I hope I can come up with something nefore she makes her debut.

Ok I'm, going to stop now. So that's all for my 26 week report!

Jordan

When Blogging Gets You In Trouble...

No seriously.

What do you do when you post something that includes your true feelings, but also happens to be good fun with the intention of getting a few laughs, never the intention of hurting people's feelings. And then someone somewhere along the line finds it really offensive?

I'm sure you can all guess which post I am talking about.

I already know many of my friends do not share my dislikes, but we were able to laugh over our differences and get over the fact that we aren't the same people and still be friends. I don't think its necessary for us all to like the same things just to be friends or coworkers or even acquaintances? Or is it?

And what about the others? Those who were offended? What should be done?

I'm hoping that most of us can agree to disagree, we are after all all grown ups and entitled to our own opinions. I'm also quite confident that I shared my feelings in a respectful way and never once suggested "you" were beneath me for liking the things that I dislike.

I guess what I'm saying is that I'm not going to apologize for sharing my thoughts or opinions, you can go ahead and share yours too. Isn't that what freedom of speech is all about?

However I'd also like to get some input from other bloggers because I feel a little confused. Do you think your posts should steer clear of potentially offensive posts? Or should your blog be a safe place where you are free to express your personal thoughts and beliefs, likes and dislikes?

A somewhat confused,

Jordan

10 Trends I just Can't Stand!

Ok so I'll confess I'm not a super creative blogger. I have friends who are always coming up with great post ideas while I typically stick to journal/documentary type entries. Two of my girlfriends are particularly awesome and creative. They just recently came up with a post list about popular trends that they just can't stand. I thoroughly enjoyed reading their posts (made me laugh out loud) so I thought I would follow suit (hope you don't mind Alex and Arianne.)

Please don't be offended or end our friendship over these things. I don't hate you if you love/sport these things, I just don't like em!

10 Trends I Just Can't Stand

1. The Sock Bun.

Seriously ladies it looks like you have giant doughnut on top of your heads and no I'm sorry it does not look cute it looks stupid. There I said it you can hate me now. The worst is that this is the hairdo selected by the studio I work at to use for the competitive dance season. So now I get to look at all my lovely students sporting these ridiculous hairdos in ballet class week after week! 

A sock bun is NOT a ballet bun! ARGH! 

Maybe I'm a bun traditionalist, but, I like a real bun, not a fake one.

2. Coloured Hair.

Why oh why do you think you look better with purple hair than blonde or brown or whatever your "natural" colour might be? I'm not against colouring your hair (I've coloured mine plenty) but I am against colouring your hair completely unnatural colours! I'm ok with a small highlight or colour patch but not a whole head of purple, blue or green, or rainbow?! Just what were you thinking?

3. Justin Bieber.

There is something about that boys face that just makes me want to slap him. (Sorry Alex!)

And can someone please tell him that pants are supposed to be worn around your waist and not below your butt cheeks!

4. Animals For Kids.

Seriously people dogs and cats are not kids. And they in no way shape or form like having kids so please don't try to relate the two together. 100% different I guarantee it! I don't care if you have a dog and love it, just don't try to tell me its like having a kid cause it ain't! And especially don't try to tell the woman who just lost her kid to suicide that your cats death is like the same thing, and that you have to be on anti depressants, so you completely understand how she feels. (True story!)

That's just down right ignorant and wrong. 

5. Hipsters.

Is this really necessary people? Is is just me or does it seem like the hipster trend is full people trying too hard to be different, to be unique, to stand out and get attention? It's one thing to be yourself but when you're doing it to follow a popular trend and fit within a specific subculture are you really being yourself? Or are you just following the crowd? Too many questions. I guess I just don't get it. 

6. Reality TV shows like: Survivor, The Bachelor, Big Brother, Jersey Shore, Teen Mom, The Real Housewives, Keeping Up with the Kardashians.

Junk, junk and more junk. That about sums it up. 

7. Self Photo Shoot Albums of Facebook.

Again, why? Please don't take 100 photos of yourself with your webcam and then create an entire album on facebook with all the photos. I can guarantee you no one want to look at this album expect you and maybe some weird creeper dude who doesn't even know you. Or maybe a weird creeper dude who does know you. Whatever.

8. Booty Shorts & Booby Shirts.

Please ladies have some decency and cover yourselves up a little. 

No one wants to see your butt even if you don't have one.

And there's no need to show the girls off to the world either.

9. Leggings As Pants.

Leggings are leggings. They should not be worn as pants unless you are working out. Please by all means wear leggings, I love mine, but wear a shirt that covers your butt with them. Wearing leggings is not the same thing as wearing skinny jeans. It just ain't.

10. Phone Cases With Ears.

I just don't get it, it's a phone not an animal!

There you have it 10 trends I just can't stand!

Jordan

On Potty Training Marshal

Well I finally decided it had to be done.

After several failed attempts at potty training I determined to buckle down last week and get er done. I'm no potty training expert. In fact I'd say I'm probably the farthest thing from an expert on the topic, but here's what I have learned so far during the whole ordeal.

1. Don't decide to potty train your kid unless YOU are 100% ready and committed. This may seem  like a strange thing to say, but if you have potty trained a kid you'll probably understand what I'm talking about. I tried several times and gave up. I definitely wasn't ready. Marshal didn't do bad the first couple times we tried and maybe he would have gotten it if I'd pulled through, but there were a lot of accidents and pooped underpants, and well let's just say my patience was wearing thin. I just put him back in diapers because I simply didn't have the patience to deal with all the mess. This time around has been way different. Perhaps because of the earlier attempts he has a bit of an understanding as to what is going on, but he has been WAY better this time. So just make sure you are ready because potty training is a real commitment.

2. Bribery works. I'm not ashamed to admit it, I have a jar full of candy and every time he goes pee or poop on the potty he gets to pick a treat out of the "potty treat jar." This first few times we attempted we just gave him one skittle each time he went, but that didn't seem like good enough incentive. Now he just gets to be sugar high all day long, but as long as he's using the toilet I'm happy. I figure I can cut back on the sugar high later.

3. Your kid needs to know you are on board to help them. As I've mentioned my earlier attempts were difficult and really seemed like a chore that I did not want to do. I'm completely sure Marshal could sense this. This time I've really been trying to be positive and encouraging and super supportive of him and his success. Again I'm certain he can sense this and is much more willing to work with me rather than against me. He is proud when he has a success on the potty and comes straight to me if he has an accident. So far only 1 or 2 pee accidents each day and that's ok by me!

4. There may be a serious change in your potty training success a week or so into it. I wrote the first 3 points a week ago when Marshal was doing great, but just this past week we've had a serious reverse in progress! While still doing amazing with peeing on the potty, pooping isn't going so well. In fact he has pooped his pants 4 times since Friday! It has been a major frustration to me especially since he clearly can go poop on the potty. I'm currently at a loss as to what to do!

5. Don't be afraid to ask for help. I need some serious help please! Any words of advice on the reverse in progress or how to deal with the poopy pant situation would be greatly appreciated.

6. Try to be patient  This is probably the area I need the most help in. I'm not sure why I find this so difficult but potty training is seriously killing me. I'm having such a hard time doing it and being patient about it. This is by far the greatest challenge in parenting for me so far. You may laugh because maybe potty training was easy for you, but I truly find this SO difficult. If I could pay someone to get this done for me I think I would. Sigh. Hopefully this will make me a better person in some way but I'm not sure how because it seems every day I am just struggling to be patient enough to do it.

I'm hoping we get there sooner than later or I'll be putting pullups back on Marshal because I don't know how many poopy pairs of underpants I can deal with!

Jordan

Cohen at 18 Months

Well it's hard to believe that Cohen is already 18 months old but he is! The past year and a half have simply flown by especially with two little monkeys to keep me occupied. Cohen has turned into a real little character and we are so glad that he is a part of our family. Here are some things about Cohen as he is right now.

1. Cohen still LOVES to be swaddled, have his soother and his sleep sheep to fall asleep. It's kind of crazy, especially in comparison to Marshal who rejected all of these things at such an early age, but Cohen is definitely still a baby when it comes to bedtime. In fact he loves bedtime, and is pretty much a grump from 6pm until the time he is safely asleep in bed. While Marshal fights us to stay up Cohen fights us to go to sleep! What a good little boy.

2. Cohen also still loves to nap (thanks goodness) and sleeps for about 3 hours every afternoon. Amazing! I am so thankful that I have at least one child who values his sleep.

3. His vocabulary consists of the words car, more, up, thank you (shankeu), ap (apple), my, bath and that's pretty much it. Ok maybe he has a few more words, but his choice of communicating relies heavily upon yelling, crying, grunting and moaning. I'm not actually worried about his lack of words. Marshal didn't talk much until he was about 2 and then he just became a chatter box. I know Cohen is smart, he understands everything I tell him to do, he's just plain stubborn. Whenever I ask him to say something he just stares at me with a blank expression then looks away!

4. Cohen is great at being a helper. He loves to throw things in the garbage and is always jumping to put away toys. Of course once he puts them all away he wants to take them all out again, but it is nice to have an eager little clean up helper.

5. He is obsessed with the dishwasher and fridge. Cohen loves to take dirty utensils out of the dishwasher and put them in his mouth and say, "Yum." Totally gross I know. He also likes to climb in the dishwasher. His obsession with opening the fridge began not long ago and has quickly come to a halt with the recent purchase of my fridge lock. Totally worth the $5. That little monkey was constantly going in the fridge pulling everything under the sun out of there. I can't lie it was super annoying! So thank goodness for the lock. He is super devastated every time he comes to the fridge and finds that he can no longer open it up! Sorry baby!

6. Cohen is obsessed with cars. And I mean obsessed. It's actually the first word he says every morning when either Dan or I get him from his crib- "Car, car" he just can't wait to get his hands on a car to start his day of playing. Thinking back Marshal had a very similar obsession at the same age. I am slightly afraid for my future with these two boys! Haha car obsessed and they're only 1.5 and 3. They are most definitely Fuller boys!

7. Wrestling is his favourite sport. I'm not kidding. I guess because big brother has been wrestling him since birth (literally) he has grown to love it. There is nothing (other than a car) that makes him happier than wrestling with Marshal and his Dad. He's actually pretty tough too, guess that also happens when you have a big brother.

8. He super brave. He walks up to kids 3x his size and tries to whack them or start wrestling them. It's kind of hilarious because the bigger kids always look at him and don't know what to do because he's a "baby." We were in the store the other day and he kept going over to these two boys reading books and hitting them on the heads. The kids were about 7! And then today at the library he started trying to climb on the back of a crawling baby about his size. Made me laugh, what a silly kid!

9. Cohen loves his Grandpa. Since he was a very little baby Cohen has had a special bond with my dad. It's been great to have my parents live so close and be a part of our boys lives. Cohen especially loves his Grandpa better than anyone else. Whenever we go to my parents house he just looks for him, and the few times Grandpa has been out Cohen has thrown quite dramatic fits, throwing himself on the floor and sobbing uncontrollably. When my parents come over to visit, Cohen throws similar fits when it's time for them to leave. He's a Grandpa's boy.

10. Cohen loves his big brother. No matter how many times Marshal steals his cars, hits him, pushes him out of the way, runs over him, wrestles him that much too hard or tells him he needs to go in "time out" for being naughty, Cohen simply adores his big brother and wants to be just like him. I guess that's part of what being siblings is all about. I'm happy that my boys get along so well and love each other so much (well most of the time.)

It's such a joy seeing little Cohen grow up and continue to discover the world around him, I'm certain we will have a very fun filled and adventurous summer!

Baby Cohen 4 months old.

Little Lion at Halloween.

8 months old.

9 month old cutie.

Best wrestling buddies. 

Colouring time.

1st Birthday.

Rockin the shag.

Loves to make these cheese face when we take photos now.

A little blurry but I love the joy in his face in this photo.

Little stud muffin.