Marriage Preparation

We have three little girls. I am already worried about when they get to the age where they are interested in boys because that, to me, is when parenting gets really scary, especially in the world we live in. Living together and sleeping together before marriage are commonplace now. I want my girls to demand respect from men and to understand purity and that it STILL EXISTS!

Did I mention that Kayla is already planning her future marriage? She told me the other day, "I think I'm going to marry Elijah someday, Mom." (Elijah is the son of some family friends, just about her same age) So I am already putting together a required reading list to prepare our girls for dating and marriage. If they choose the 'nunhood' as I like to call it, these books will still be beneficial because after all, marriage is supposed to mirror Christ's relationship with the Church.

Originally I got this idea from my sister-in-law, Tracy. When I was dating Chris, she gave me a required reading list that she said everyone who is getting married should read together. Chris and I had to do it long distance because the year we were engaged, our relationship went long distance since I graduated from college and started my first year of teaching, leaving him behind to finish up his senior year at Franciscan. I am forever grateful to Tracy for suggesting the reading list, which I have since added a few of my own to.

THE LIST

And the Bride Wore White

A great book for young women about purity. A friend recommended it to me when I was in high school.
For more information read here

By Love Refined

A book of letters to a young bride, offers lots of insight about learning to live with and truly love another.
Read more about it here

A Catholic Handbook for Engaged and Newly Married Couples

This book brings up some topics to be discussed including living together, birth control objections, and even breaking off an engagement if you are uncertain. Can be referenced here and there or read straight through.
Read more about it here

Three to Get Married

An amazing work by Fulton Sheen. Move through slowly and discuss with another (perhaps the fiance, if applicable)if possible.
Read more here

Holy Sex!

This is a great book showing the beauty of Catholic teaching regarding human sexuality. Some people will be surprised at the Church's teachings...not so stuffy as they're often portrayed!
You can find more infomation here

This list is a work in progress...please feel free to comment with your suggestions for good books regarding sexuality, dating, purity, marriage etc.! May has well start preparing for the future now....

Worst Booster Ever

Months ago I posted a blog about my favorite baby product this Fisher Price Healthy Deluxe booster seat. Today I posted my FIRST EVER product review on the Walmart website for our other booster seat, the Safety 1st Easy Care booster seat. Let me give you the summary of my review...

This seat is the WORST!

1. The straps don't tighten well
2. The straps also loosen more if your child moves in the chair.
3. My child leaned forward and toppled a chair, with the booster seat attached, over. In the process she fell on her face, nearly missing the table edge.
4. The seat doesn't fold for travel.
5. The tray is tiny.

If you are a parent, grandparent, or know anyone considering buying a booster seat, tell them that the Safety 1st seat is NOT worth the "bargain" price. We hate it, and after tonight's experience, it will find a new home in the trash can. Fisher Price will get our business and we will be purchasing another of their seats soon.

August quicktakes

1. Potty training update. It's really a little late, but Kayla has kept a diaper/underwear dry at night for more than 2 months at this point. She is officially potty trained 100%. The most impressive part of it all is that we have been all over the place in the last several months and she was a total champ with it all. No accidents on our long trip to Orlando and Cincinnati. No accidents on our crazy quick trip to Porterville right afterwards. No accidents when we went camping or when Mommy and Daddy went away for the first night ever. She is awesome.

2. I am about 32 weeks or so now. And even in little old Foresthill, it has been really hot this week. We don't have air conditioning because the other 95% of the summer up here is perfect, so this week feels especially hot. And I feel especially pregnant.

3. The Great Pacifier Battle was fought here last week. I began by cutting off the tip (we did that with Kayla and she pretty quickly and easily dropped the habit). Elise was quite irritated by it, and spent most of nap time crying, fussing, then playing on and off. At night time, she was apparently so tired from having stayed up during her nap, though, that she went to sleep without the pacifier, no problem. The same sequence occurred the next day except that I didn't even offer the broken pacifier. Her morning nap was unaffected, her afternoon nap was a trial that ended in her falling asleep for about 20 minutes, and night was no problem whatsoever. And after that it was over. The next day was completely fine. The ONLY 'problem' has been that she takes about an hour to wind herself down for her afternoon nap now instead of falling right to sleep immediately as she had done with her pacifier.

4. We are still in the midst of trying to buy a house. It's a waiting game at this point. In the meantime, we have been packing up things that don't get used often to prepare for a possibly very fast move before baby comes if stuff goes through.

5. Elise had her 15 month appt, which ended up being at 16 months. She weighed in at just about as average as you can get. She weighs 23.4 lbs and is 31.3 inches tall. She apparently did grow a couple inches and gain a few pounds, though even my lazy, pregnant body can still carry her around just fine so she's just not THAT big.

6. Kayla also had a doctor's appointment. Hers was a 3 year appt, though she was about a month late for it. She weighed in at 34.8 lbs. and 37.3 inches. Average height and 75% for weight. It put her in the 90% for her BMI. Not too worried about that percentage at this point.

7. I mentioned the heat wave we've had this past week. Well, for our one week of hot weather, the girls and I have found ways to deal. We get in swimsuits and I spray them with the hose. Kayla mostly runs away from it, and Elise just cries because the water from the hose is so cold. Sooo, we found an alternative which keeps them cooler, but more happy. It also amuses them for a pretty long period of time.

I fill up bowls and containers with water from the hose, add some foam letters and cut up pieces of colored sponges, and let the girls go nuts in the water. It's like a water table except they sit or squat and it didn't cost me any extra money. They love it!

Water Safety

One of my biggest fears related to children is drowning.

This summer my side of the family had a reunion--a big huge one. I have 4 brothers and 2 sisters. Everyone of them except my little sis is married and has somewhere between 2-4 kids. Several of the ladies are currently pregnant. They were ALL here in CA at my parents' house for several days. Plus there was a whole lot of extended family there as well. It was A LOT of people.

Fact. My parents have a backyard pool. Before the reunion we discussed the importance of them getting a fence around the pool. They did this.

Fact. The problem is not solved just because there is a fence.

Like many others, I let my guard down a little at the reunion knowing that there was a fence to keep my little 3 and 1 year old from getting to the pool. Don't ever let your guard down where water is concerned.

Fences are great and help out, but they don't completely wipe away the danger of a pool. Let me tell you my story...

In the evening many of us decided it was a great time to go for a swim. We readied ourselves and our children for the pool. I took Kayla to put her swimsuit on. Chris was outside chatting with some relatives with Elise, who was playing in the grass area outside the pool fence. We weren't the first ones ready. As my siblings and their children were ready, the fence gate opened and shut behind them as they entered the pool area to swim. Somehow, in all the bustle, Elise managed to sneak into the pool area undetected. Even with several other adults in the pool area, she went unnoticed until I spotted her attempting to turn around and slide herself into the pool's shallow end.

Why did this happen?

A number of reasons. Chris and I let our guards down just a little bit. The pool had a fence so Elise couldn't get in....(right?) We assumed that people were all watching carefully to make sure that no one except their direct charges were entering the pool area with them.... We figured that even if a kid somehow entered undetected, they would be noticed right away by the many other adults in the pool area.

None of these things worked the way we assumed. The fence didn't keep her out. Lots of people were entering and exiting the pool area at the same time causing confusion about who was with who and who should be there or not. The adults in the pool area were focused on the little ones they had brought in with them, not looking for strays.

It was no one's fault really. But the truth of the matter remains. Especially in backyard party situations, you must know where your child is at all times. And please, please, please don't assume that pool gates, pool alarms, adults by the pool etc. mean your child is perfectly safe.

I love the summer sun and I love being out by the pool, but this experience made me a lot more aware. Don't be afraid to use and enjoy pools this summer; just be smart about how you do it with kids especially in larger groups. God bless!

My favorite baby/toddler product

Well, two kids in and I can safely say that I have figured out what the most useful item I have purchased for the money is. Our booster seat.



We bought ours a few years ago, so I think it was only around $20 then, but even now it's only about $26-30 (depending where you buy it). This seat has been a life saver for when we are out and about and on trips (ones that we don't have to travel by plane to). At home we use it for a high chair for the younger baby, and a booster seat for Kayla so she can reach the table and eat with us.

It folds up, making it very easy to take with you. We have brought it down to Chris' office for work parties, to friends' houses for dinner parties, to my grandma's house for lunch or dinner with the family when they all come to town, and on our travels around CA. It's easy to clean and very sturdy. Unlike some other slightly cheaper booster seats, the straps are well-made and don't loosen by themselves (making you frightened that your child will rock the seat right off the chair you have attached it to).

It has three tray positions for your growing child and the bottom of the seat can be adjusted taller or shorter depending on your needs. We currently use it in the highest position as a booster seat so that Kayla can join us at the big table. She loves it. No more tray, but we can still strap her in if need be(though usually she's well-behaved enough that we don't have to). The tray is large enough to fit a small plate on for the time when you are practicing using a plate, but they aren't quite ready for the table yet. It's just a fantastic buy for your money.

To save a little money (and because I assumed most of those types of seats would be about the same), I bought a cheaper booster seat for Elise, and it has not been a pleasant experience. I hate to feel like I wasted money, but since we've got another one on the way and the fisher price seat is ACTUALLY 100% useful, I think I may very well get rid of the crappy one I bought, and invest in another Healthy Care Deluxe Booster Seat.

On a side note that is slightly related....Elise has learned another word: "good". We always ask Kayla how her food is at meal times, and her response is usually "Good!". We usually ask Elise too, and the other day she answered with a resounding "Goo!" She even answers for Kayla sometimes now too.

Playground ettiquette

Does anyone else but me get REALLY annoyed when the other kids at the playground are all climbing UP the slides instead of going down them? No? Well, hear me out anyway.

My kids love the playground. If we could spend the whole day there, they would be as close to heaven as they could get on earth. And I love taking them to the playground. They get fresh air, sunshine (if it's out that day), and great exercise running around the place. I especially love it when we have the place to ourselves. No, I'm not against my kids making some new friends; I just hate having to parent other people's children at the playground.

In my opinion there are some basic rules that need to be followed at a playground. They are as follows:

1. If you bring your kids to the playground (no matter what age really) you should stay within a close enough distance that you can keep an eye on them and hear them if they call.

Why? Because they may be old enough to play on their own without being helped and spotted on all the various dangling apparatuses, but they may NOT be old enough to be patient and kind to the smaller children on the playground. The other day, a little boy (about 5 or 6) tried to manhandle Kayla all over the place and he did it right in front of my husband. Hello?? And where the heck are his parents anyway? Chris shouldn't have to tell some kid to "back up off"; that's what HIS parents should be doing.

2. The slides are for going DOWN, not up.

Why? Because it's dangerous. If one kid is climbing up the slide and another tries to go down, there will be a collision. Sometimes it might not be a big deal. Sometimes it might. And frankly, it's rude. That's not the way it was designed to be used, so don't use it that way. If Kayla tries to go up a slide, she gets immediately removed with a warning that if she tries it again, we will be leaving her beloved toys immediately. And we have only had to leave once. She has never tried to test me on it again. And yes, I know it's "more fun" to do it the other way sometimes, and maybe at times I'll make special exceptions when I am watching and when there is no one else at the playground, but we'll see. I'm kind of a slide Nazi. Plus I want my kids to know that it's important to follow rules even when we don't feel like it or another way seems more fun.

3. Take turns.

Why? Because it's safer that way. Plus I don't really want my small child being stepped all over by some bigger kid because she happens to be slower and likes to sit at the top of the slide for 5 seconds preparing herself before she actually goes down.

And that's really it. It doesn't seem all that difficult to me, yet there are so many people who can't or won't abide by them. Arggggghhh!

Yes, i know it's not at the playground, but this is how her face looks constantly when we are there. She LOVEs the great outdoors.

Christmas-y projects

My aunt Cindy knows my love of crafts and that I am already passing it on to Kayla at this young age. She found some foam sticker craft kits on sale last year after Christmas and brought them over to my Grandma's several weeks ago. So each time we visit Grandma's house during the Advent/Christmas season, Kayla gets to construct some projects. There are foam snowmen, ball ornaments, and wreaths. We haven't even tried out a few of the other crafty kits...one is some kind of jingly bell door hanger.

Anyway, Kayla is now able to use some fine motor skills and actually peel off sticker backings on her own. She can't do some of the really tough ones, but I'd say she can do at least 80% of the peeling on her own now which is awesome for me. The wreath kit came with a tube of glitter glue which is her new favorite crafting product....it sparkles AND has the potential to make a huge mess. What could be better in the mind of a 2 year old?

Here she is proudly holding a few of her wreaths.

Getting those backings off is hard work, as you can see.

We also made a deliciously fun Christmas treat that not only reminded us of winter snow, but brought us some real snow a few days later.

We just spread a little cool whip on a plate (you could use a cookie, but it just adds more calories and sugar. The exciting part for them is the cool whip and marshmallows anyway).

Next I let Kayla sprinkle some festive white and blue snowflake sprinkles and pretend that it was 'snowing'.

I let her use a few marshmallows to make snowforts, snowmen, snowballs, snowanything-she-wanted really.

Last of all, she ate her snowy winter wonderland. It was delicious.

This is totally unrelated, but way back before Elise was born, Kayla made her a little bib. She painted it herself and it was certainly not your most attractive bib as far as pastels and soft hues go...but I found that it is the BEST bib for hiding food stains.

Take a look at this pink pastel bib. After feeding Elise once, it is nasty looking and you feel like you should wash it.

Contrast that with the colorful and bold bib that Kayla made, and you can't tell the food from the paint. I just take a sponge and give the bib a quick wipe when I'm done, and I can use it for days and no one even knows it's been used.

Of course, I could also just invest in some of those plastic ones that you can wash off each time and never have to throw in the wash...eh, that sounds too easy. ;)

Homemade Baby Food!

I tried something new the other day. I made my own baby food. Why? Because those little jars of baby food are outrageously expensive considering the amount you get. They are more convenient, but right now the money saved is way more beneficial to us than the time it saves. Time I've got; money, not so much.

And it actually didn't really take that long. I just tried a few tiny batches of things to see how it would go and because I don't have much on hand right now except pears that aren't quite ripe. What I did have on hand was one carrot, one ripe banana, a couple ripe pears, and some coconut sweet potato mush that Chris made for our anniversary. The first step was to peel and cut stuff up. The pears and carrot both had to be peeled and then cut into small pieces and steamed until they got a little tender. You don't want much water in the pan, but you need some otherwise you'll just be burning instead of steaming. ;)

Then it's all about the food processor. I pureed the steamed pear and carrot. I also pureed the banana which, of course, did not need to be steamed.

The next step is simple too. Pour (or scoop) the pureed fruit/vegetable into ice cube trays. I was mostly using up stuff and experimenting so I have about half a tray of pear, half a tray of banana, half a tray of carrot, and then I filled what was left with the coconut sweet potato yumminess that Chris whipped up for our anniversary. The directions I found online said to put a piece of wax paper over the ice cube trays so I did that too and then just stuck them into the freezer.

My carrots, as you can see, need work. The consistency wasn't quite right, but since I had so little to work with because there was only one carrot, I just went with it. Elise doesn't mind if it's not well-formed in the ice cube tray anyway...

After they were frozen solid, I popped them out of the trays and put them in little ziplock baggies. So when I want to use them, I can just grab a couple cubes and unthaw. Elise had a little appetizer of tootsie rolls...just kidding. Kayla put those on her tray while I was getting her food ready. We actually let Elise enjoy some of the sweet potatoes that were still left in the fridge. She was a fan of the food, but still pushes most of it out with her tongue. We'll have to keep practicing...

Not so hard huh? Since we don't have much room in our freezer, I'm also going to try my hand at canning various fruits and vegetables using my Grandma's canner. Same basic concept (cooking/pureeing), but then instead of putting it in ice cube trays, you put it in jars and can it. Also pretty sweet in my opinion. I think I am going to have lots of fun with this in the future months....

Tidbits of Possibly Useful Information

Earlier this week, I got my Adult and Child/Infant CPR and First Aid certification. I learned many random pieces of information that I felt I would share on the blog because until I took the class, I was apparently going by errant "old wives tales".

1) Have you seen someone choking and had the urge to thump them on the back?? I have, especially when it is my small child. BUT, contrary to popular belief, you should NOT thump someone's back who has something lodged in their throat and is coughing. If they are still hacking, that means there is air still passing through and that their body is working to take care of the problem. When someone stops coughing and their eyes get big, and their mouth looks like they've had the biggest surprise of their life (shaped like an o), then is when you should step in and perform the Heimlich.

2) If someone gets a tick, I was always told you light a match, blow it out, and put the hot matchhead on the tick's rearend. That is not a good idea because the tick will essentially "throw up". Instead, you want to take a pair of tweezers, grab the tick's body as close to the skin as you can, and pull it firmly out. Don't twist. And this is a little gross, but if part of the head doesn't come out, just LEAVE IT. Your own body will expel it and the possible infectious stuff was in the tick's body, so you are safe. Trying to get the head out yourself will just irritate the area more.

3) Another interesting tidbit for pregnant ladies, well, actually more for people who know pregnant ladies. If they are choking and in need of the Heimlich, you obviously can't do it the normal way because they have a huge belly with a baby in there. The other person should stand behind them, reach under the armpits, and place the thumb side of their fist between the breasts. Grasp the fist with the other hand and thrust backward.

4) If you get stung by a jellyfish, you may have heard to urinate on the affected area. Well, sometimes people get cold feet or the urine isn't acidic enough, so a better bet is getting some vinegar and treating the area with that instead.

This next tip is a household tip.

1) Do any of you have child booster seats that with those plastic buckles and wonder how you are supposed to clean them when food particles and stuff dry on and inside the buckle part? Here is my trick. I fill a couple small glasses with warm to hot water and set them on the seat. Next I place the buckles in the water cups and leave them there for several hours. When you remove the buckles from the water, swish them around a little to shake off anything that is still caught. The water will be a bit murky; just pour it down the sink, dry off the buckles, and they are as good as new. I usually do this right after the last meal of the day, so they have a few hours to soak and then I remove the buckles from the water before I go to bed. That gives the straps all night to dry before your child has to use the seat again.

And that is some random information for you to process and store for possible later use. Do you have any fun tips or tricks to share?? I admit that my favorite part of Parents magazine is the section where moms give little tricks for doing things. Just last month I got a great tip for cleaning my microwave. Simply heat a bowl of water for a minute or two. The steam created will help to loosen the crusty buildup inside for easy removal. Genius.