Monday, September 27, 2010

Insane or thrifty? I'll let you decide!

Here it is, my cloth diapering system. Yes, that is right, I said cloth diapers. For a while now, every time I would go to Costco I would hum and ha and grumble just slightly at the money I had to shell out for disposable diapers. And, for a while now, Matthew has timidly suggested we convert to cloth. I would usually just give him the "easy for you to say, mister goes to work all day" look and he would drop it. But my good friend Carrie, who just happens to cloth diaper herself, finally convinced me to just try it out. She loaned me some diapers, some wipes, and the special laundry soap you wash them with. I was fully prepared to hate every minute of it, but much to my surprise, it wasn't that bad, or that hard. Yes, you have a bit more work involved--but I found that being able to save $100.00 a month on diapers (I currently have two in diapers at the moment) has been well worth it. So, I went on line (there are so many websites now for cloth diapers), bought my diapers(I got two sets to start with), my diaper sprayer, my pail, wipes, and a few accessories, and have been exclusively cloth diapering for a few weeks now. I still have a day here and there where I think "why did I get myself into this?" But most days I am really glad we made the change. The only thing I still buy are wipes for around the house and to keep in the diaper bag for cleaning hands, faces, and the occasional mess. And I will have to buy the laundry soap every few months. But I am still saving much more than I was spending. And I am happy to say that both Olivia and Parker seem to have adjusted to the change as well. I was most worried about Parker, but he does great in them. And for an added bonus, Olivia hasn't had diaper rash since we switched to cloth.

Here is my angel baby sporting her cute new look!

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Going private

Matthew and I are thinking of privatizing our blog. If you would like to still keep up with us, please leave your email address in the comments section, or email directly with your information. That way if and when we do go private we will know who to add!

Friday, September 17, 2010

Great grandparent-a-thon

For a while now Matthew has been wanting to visit his grandparents. But, I was big and pregnant and not in the mood for travel, and then we were just in survival mode after Olivia was born. But, last weekend we decided it was time to get in gear and see the great grandparents while they were still here. Matthew and I got up Saturday morning at around 6:00 a.m. to get everything packed and ready to go. We got everyone in the van, and left at around 8:30 a.m.---an hour later, we had only gone 30 miles! First Olivia started SCREAMING, so we pulled over to feed and change her. After 25 minutes we were back on the road, only for Aidan to tell us he didn't really go to the bathroom before we left after all, and was going to pee his pants. We were well on the highway at that point and there was no where to stop, so on the side of the road he went! That took another 10 minutes, because Aidan got "stage fright" and didn't get on with his business right away. After we are back in, seat belted up, and on our way again, Emma says "I think I need to go pee, too" Really? Seriously? You didn't have to go 10 minutes ago when we were already stopped? SO, we pull over AGAIN and out hops Emma, very excited, unlike her brother before her, to pee in the dirt. "Look dad, I made the ants a pond." To which dad replied--"that's great, get in the van."

So, three, instead of two, hours later we arrive at GranMarie's assisted living facility in Gilbert. And, much to our happy surprise, Matthew's sister Amanda and her family had waited for us and we were able to visit, play games, and let the cousins hang out. Here are some pictures of the first stop on the great-grandparent-a-thon:


GranMarie eating her lunch, while Grammy Ann holds Olivia. Parker, being adorable as always!

I'm not sure what to say about this one...Emma's a nut!

The cousins playing in the shade

Playing Apples to Apples while trying to feed Olivia at the same time

Four generations of Petersons/Carpenters. Aidan takes after his father WAY too much when it comes to smiling for pictures!

After our visit with GranMarie, we headed to Cafe Rio for some very yummy Mexican food. I love eating there because 1. reminds me of Provo and 2. if you eat in the restaurant kids under 12 get free cheese quesadillas. Everyone was well behaved at the restaurant, a nice side effect of being tired, and the only complaint I had was that there were no changing tables in the bathroom. I had to change Olivia and Parker on the floor. Then it was off to Valley Farms to visit the Carpenter grandparents. This leg of the trip was much better, everyone was passed out :) Here are a few of the photos we snapped while there:

The kids eating the wonderful dinner Grandma made for us, along with their second cousin Tanner. His family lives right across the street--very Everybody Loves Raymond, although I think they all actually get along :)
Me and Olivia visiting with Grandpa and Grandma

Parker, showing the love

And last but not least, Grandma with one of the newer great-grandchildren...I can't keep up with how many there are now!

It was a long trip and a long day, but such a wonderful one. The kids really had a great time visiting with everyone. But the best part of the day for me was the ride home, in the dark, while everyone was sleeping, and the happy and content look on my husband's face. Let's hope he feels the same way next summer when we all go to Vermont :)

Monday, September 13, 2010

Baby Envy?

Lately, whenever I leave the room and then return, I usually find Parker in something that belongs to the baby. Here he is in Olivia's Bumbo seat...

...and here in the bouncy seat (he climbed on the table, crawled in, and proceeded to drink his bedtime bottle and play with the toys for a good 15 minutes. And just in case you think it's a little weird that we give our almost 2 year old a bottle still, he is underweight and will only drink large amounts of whole milk from a bottle. So, we still use them along with sippy cups)...


...and lastly in her swing. He even buckled himself in and closed the tray!

Since the day we brought Olivia home, Parker, the one we thought that would have the most problems with a new baby, has actually been the gentlest, sweetest, and nicest to her. However, it appears that part of him misses being the baby :)

Monday, September 6, 2010

The star of the show

Our sweet Olivia Rose on her blessing day. That smile melts my heart every time!

Sunday, September 5, 2010

The things I think, but never say out loud...

...it's getting dark in my room right now, the blinds are closed and I am too lazy to turn on the light. I can hear the sound of Matthew taking plates out of the cupboard, no doubt to feed the kids--my job, but I am too lazy to get up and do it. Today we blessed our daughter Olivia at our church (I say we, but really it was just Matthew who blessed her. I don't have the priesthood--and that's ok, because really, I am too lazy for the responsibility.) It was supposed to be a spiritual day, as most Sundays are supposed to be. But this was supposed to be a special spiritual day, a day to thank Heavenly Father for the new life we are now in charge of. A day of family and a day of happiness. But for me, as most Sundays actually are, it was anything but. It was chaos. It was my mother getting mad at me for not letting her take the sacrament. She's not a Mormon, and for some reason when she takes the sacrament, it really bugs me--I know, stupid, we let our kids, not yet baptized take it, but that's how I feel. It was Aidan's constant out of control behavior, it was Parker throwing up on the newly shampooed carpets, and it was my father-in-law's subtle jab that I never let my husband go hunting (which is true, but I spend ten hours a day away from him as he attempts to impress the bosses and further his career-- so, too bad, he's spending labor day at home with his kids!) It was sore feet, knees, and a back from hours of cleaning to help me feel like at least my house is half way decent, even though my neighborhood has gone to hell. And it is, that every day, in one way or another, life is just never what I want it to be. I think these things a lot, especially when it's dark in my room and I am too lazy to turn the light on. When I can hear Matthew in the other room with the kids, mostly yelling because he's the lone parent on duty, trying to give me a break and some time to myself to think about these things I never say out loud-- except to him. Except to the one person on this planet that doesn't care that I think these things. Who loves me when I'm grouchy, when I'm unfair, when I'm overbearing, when I've failed as a mother (which is most days), when I say mean things, when I slip and use bad language (which is most days), when I make him do more than his fair share (which is not most days, usually just Sundays) because I am too lazy to do my fair share, and when I cry because I am all of these things. He doesn't judge me. He just holds me tight and whispers all of the things I need to hear. These are the things I think, but never say out loud. And I probably won't say them out loud again, because really I should just keep my thoughts to myself. Except for tonight. Tonight was for me, because today was for him. Today meant more to him, than it did to me--and for them, because they mean most of all.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Gift

What does a husband, whose hobby and side business is web design, get for his wife as an anniversary present? No, not the earrings she asked for...but a BLOG MAKEOVER!!! Matthew has been wanting to re-do the design on my blog for a long time now, but with how busy he is with work, his own business, and being a husband and father, there wasn't much room in his schedule for my little ol' blog. SO, I went to Kassie Garlock, from Designs by Kassie and she gave me a blog makeover! She was so wonderful to work with, and so accommodating! I love my new blog--who needs earrings? This was much more fun, and it was really nice to have Matthew come up with a gift on his own, and actually have him excited about it. And honestly, it was nice for me to be surprised instead of having to tell Matthew what to get me. Way to go honey, and thanks Kassie!!!