Wait...He's How Old?

In an hours time

# of times pulled Neptune out of fridge - 12
# of times pulled Neptune off of counter - 8
# of times fished Neptune out of toilet - 1

going out with adult women this weekend - priceless

He's 2

I can't believe my baby is 2 today. I love babies. I miss having a baby. But I love my boys. It melts my heart when Neptune looks at me and says, 'Pay (play), pweees (please) Mama.' How can you say no to that? He is such a sweetheart.

Looking back, I can't believe the ride we've been on to get here. The blood sugar problems. The breathing problems. The asthma. Him being sick and on antibiotics for over half his life so far. The being almost totally deaf. My boy is a fighter! He is no longer deaf, his hearing is perfect thanks to a wonderful dr. He can breathe and does not turn blue when I lay him down anymore, thanks to another wonderful dr. And he has only been on one antibiotic in the last...I can't even remember how many months. It used to be days. To this I thank God. My sick little boy who'd sleep in bed with me every night while Jupiter slept on the couch, just so I could listen and make sure he was still breathing, is a big healthy boy now. I thank everyone who's prayed for him during his surgeries and trips to the ER and blood work. And I thank God every day for giving Neptune to me. It's been a struggle at times, but we've made it. He's a *mostly* very healthy little boy and one of the two biggest joys of my life.

Happy Birthday Baby

Disclaimer

So I got an interesting piece of news yesterday at church. Seems they are doing something new with announcements at the beginning of service. Seems they also need more workers in the Preschool area. Guess who's in preschool? Mercury. Guess who they've picked to interview to get people interested in working back there? Mercury. Now I'm very flattered (and believe me Mommy Pride is huge) that they picked my kid to interview out of all the others that are back there. They seem to think that Mercury is the most vocal and the funniest kid to talk to. So believe me I have a big head right now. But I also let them know in no uncertain terms do I take any responsibility for anything that comes out of my kids mouth! lol. Thank goodness it's all pre recorded. At least someone was thinking here!

Please Check This Out

The prematurity thing on my sidebar from the March of Dimes. I learned about this from The Adventures of T & Super B. And Neptune was also a preemie. He was a lucky one. He had some breathing and lots of blood sugar problems in the hospital, but we only had to stay one extra day and my dr refused to discharge me until Neptune was discharged. So we had a very easy ride as far as prematurity goes. I do have a friend who just recently had a baby at the same number of weeks that Neptune was born at and her baby died in the hospital. So I am very thankful for what I have. We need more research and funding for the March of Dimes. So please take the time and sign the petition.

Surgery and Christmastime

Here's poor little Neptune before surgery. Poor kid had no idea what was coming to him! He got up and went to the hospital with me and was in a great mood. The nurses just totally fell in love with him. The weather was awful, but we made it and were even there a little early. It was nice having the first surgery of the day 'cuz everyone was on time for the most part. It was very quick and uneventful. The dr came to talk to us afterwards. The poor kids nasal passages were more than half blocked by adenoid tissue. He's going to be able to breathe so much better. I can't imagine dealing with asthma and that on top of it!

After surgery he was obviously not feeling as wonderful. In fact he's had a much much harder time getting over this than Mercury did. And that amazes me. I thought Neptune would be the tougher of the two. The dr finally today agreed to call in a narcotic for the poor kid. We've been alternating Tylenol/Motrin every three hours and that only does the trick for two out of those three hours. And nighttime...is a nightmare. He's up every two hours screaming his fool little head off. We'll probably only use the prescription stuff at night, and I sure hope it helps.

When we got home from the hospital I set him down so I could go to the bathroom. Well he decided he was
gonna get up and walk. Poor kid
was still so doped up he fell into a
dresser and bruised his head. The cut under is eye is something his brother helped him out with the day before. Nice, huh? Anyway, I was so looking forward to a nap with Neptune before Mercury got home from daycare. No such luck. Neptune waited until Mercury was home, then passed out on the living room floor. Thanks kid. How come I always get screwed?

As for Christmastime? I learned an important lesson this year. No matter how strange a present is that ends up on my kids list to Santa, I must listen. Mercury had put a telescope on his list to Santa. I kinda blew it off. Till yesterday. 'Santa' sent him a video email and mentioned that he was sure Mercury would get that special present he had asked for. When I asked Mercury what that present was I was informed it was the telescope. What 4-yr old asks for a telescope? I asked Mercury what would happen if he didn't get it from Santa. He looked at me with all seriousness and said, "I would cry".

Well guess what kid? Santa didn't get you a telescope! So I've had this huge internal battle all night. Do I hunt down a telescope on Dec. 23rd or let my 4-yr old be disappointed on Christmas. Am I spoiling him if I get one? I wrestled with this all night. And I was up basically all night 'cuz Neptune was screaming his head off. So this morning I start searching the Internet and calling around to stores. 'Cuz if I'm gonna do this I'm not getting a 4-yr old some $70-300.00 telescope. That's for darn sure. Well my SIL suggests calling Dicks Sporting Goods. I now owe my life not only to her, but to that store as well. This morning...that's right this morning they clearenced a bunch of telescopes down to $20.00. So I called Jupiter and he ran right over there. The thing comes in a case with a stand and a microscope. Mercury is going to be sooo excited come Christmas. Now I'm sure it's not some extremely powerful telescope, but it will be more than enough for a 4-yr old.

So what did I learn this year? PAY ATTENTION! lol

This Time Tomarrow

My house will be adenoid free! Both kids will have had their adenoids removed. The hospital finally called and Neptune is to be there at 6:45 am. He is the first surgery of the day. I don't like getting up early, but I'm glad I wont have to deal with a hungry kid for hours and hours.

The crappy part? We're supposta get a huge winter storm tonight. I'm hoping it's like the last one we got. I hate driving in the winter and I have to drive in the morning. Our last one was only like 8 inches. I can handle snow. It's the ice I'm terrified of. I've been watching the weather 3x's a day for almost a week watching this storm play out. That's how much I hate ice! And as of last night it looks like the ice will stay south of us. So this huge storm they're predicting is hopefully only gonna end up being 7in by morning then another 7 by bed time. And if you were born and raised in Michigan as I was, you know that's nothing to worry about. So I'm hoping they are right about this and we just get the snow and no ice.

Wish us luck and see you on the other side of surgery!

Surgery? Again?

I knew it was coming. I did. I'm just surprised at how fast.

Back story. Neptune was born a month early. He had blood sugar problems in the hospital and we had to give him glycerin water quite a few times. He had breathing problems while in the hospital and was monitored very closely. He had to stay longer 'cuz here in this part of the world, he was considered premature. I had a wonderful OB (well I had a midwife, but she could not do my delivery 'cuz Neptune was premature) that wouldn't release me from the hospital until Neptune was released. And for that I am eternally grateful. At three days old Neptune had his tongue snipped. He was born tongue tied. At one week old he had his first ear infection. From then on he had 'on average' one ear infection a month. He was tested at 11 mo old. He was almost totally deaf from the infections and fluid in his ears. They put tubes in three weeks before his first birthday. Five days later he started walking. Two weeks or so after his tubes were put in he had another ear infection. Since then (January of '08) he has had 5-6 ear infections. With tubes. He just had another one about 12 days ago. I took him back to the ENT today and they are going to take his adenoids out. Mercury had his adenoids out last November ('07). He had chronic adenoid infections. He was on an antibiotic every other month or so in the winter since birth. In the past year since his surgery, he's been on one antibiotic. It's been amazing! So yes, I am a little bummed my baby has to go through another surgery, but I am so very hopeful that this one will correct the ear infections. I feel so bad for that poor kid. His ears have been infected almost as much as they have not been infected during his almost two years of life. He's very sensitive about people touching his ears. I really pray this fixes things for him.

The ENT wanted to wait until his next ear infection and then schedule the surgery. But as we talked, he realized what a help it had been to Mercury to have this surgery and with Neptune's past, it was bound to happen at some time. So he let me just go ahead and schedule it. He had wanted to give me time to get used to the idea of my 'baby' needing to go under the knife again. But once he realized I knew it was coming and was as o.k. with it as I was going to be, there was no need to put it off. So next Friday (the 19th) is the big day.

And us, well Mercury started us off in October of '07 with the first of our family's surgeries. Since that one, this next surgery will put us at...6 surgeryies in just over a years time! But I'm glad to get this one in before my outpatient co-pay goes up next month!

The Terrible Two's

I have a toddler for sale. Heck, you can have him for free!

I did survive the terrible two's once already. I'm sure I did 'cuz I'm still here and so is Mercury. I'm afraid I'm not going to fare so well this time around though.

Neptune has hit them full force. And he doesn't turn two until next month! It hardly seems fair I have to deal with this now. He went from super lovable, good natured baby to tyrant over night. I had no warning. I kept waiting for it to wear off. And it's not. Which leaves me with only one conclusion. We are in the deep, dark, stinking hole of the terrible twos. Hey, at least I appreciate Mercury much more now. His temper tantrums seem like a fly buzzing around my head compared to the hammer bashing my toe every 3 1/2 minutes of the day, that Neptune's feel like.
He hits, with a fist. Not an open hand. Where did he learn that? He pulls my hair. He bites any exposed flesh he can find. And there have been a few times when I have turned my back on him he's ran up and bit a butt cheek (love that he's tall enough to grab that part of me and bite). Now if that isn't lovely in public! Remind me, just how long does it take for them to grow outta this phase? 'Cuz I don't think I can make it much longer.

Please, send alcohol and chocolate. For me. Not the kid. Thanks.

Grasping

Why is it that Christmastime doesn't seem nearly as magical now as it did when we were kids? I'm very excited for Christmas morning, but I'm more excited about the days leading up to Christmas. I want my boys to learn about what I feel Christmas is really about. I want them learn to enjoy the season, the shopping and giving to others, and I want them to feel peace. Do you think that's too much for a 4-yr old and a 1-yr old to grasp? Probably. 'Cuz I feel like I'm grasping at straws here. Mercury and I curl up on the couch with hot cocoa almost every night and watch a Christmas special on t.v. I love the time with just him. This is my favorite time of year. I just hope I can teach them to love it for the same reasons I do.

It was MY day

Do you hear me? MINE! I called it (childish I know, but I don't care at this point). I was sick...am sick. Horrid stomach issues. Well, I've been spared from the diarrhea thank God. But for two days straight I've felt like I wanted to ralph the entire contents of my stomach and then some. And I still mustered enough energy to take my children to Crazy Bounce on Saturday (you know one of those bounce house places with the massively huge slides). BTW, do not try going down those slides when your stomach is in knots. They are not your friend. So I called Jupiter who was out of town on business and said I was spending Sunday in bed. That was that. So he gets home around 4am Sunday morning. Neptune wakes at 7ish. Who gets up with him? ME. Who takes care of the kids all day? ME. Who does the laundry, dishes and feeds the kids? ME. Who does bath time? ME. What did Jupiter do? He layed on the couch. Oh he did get up and finally do half a sink of dishes and he did make some rice for the two of us. But that was it. When do I get to be sick? I never get to lay around all day when the kids are home. No matter how sick I am...or what surgery I just had or what child I just gave birth to. What is it gonna take for me to get a day where I have to do nothing?!?

They Should Warn You

Who is 'They' exactly? I'm not sure. But someone should warn you. Those baby dolls they give out in health class that cry, they just don't cut it. 'They' need to make a doll that will run away from you and hide while you're shopping at Walmart. And make the doll able to hide so well that you have to get employees to help you find your child and call a Code Adam. Then laugh and think it's funny that they ran away once you have them back and are crying and trying to teach them a lesson.



'They' need to make a doll that will (when you think you're finally cool and have got the kids under control 'cuz the oldest one is now on a leash in Walmart) grab a bottle of dish soap while your back is turned and down it like a bottle then scream, gag and foam at the mouth. This causing all the other shoppers to stare at you like you've committed some heinous crime while you quickly pay for your groceries and high tail it outta there only to sit in the parking lot on the phone with poison control.



Then...'They' need to make a doll that will poop through its diaper and clothes not only when you're on your way out the door to school (see yesterday) but also (repeatedly) at three in the morning so you have to change p.j's and bedding and do a load of laundry in the middle of the night.



Then you need to go to work the next day smelling of said poop even though you've scrubbed and showered many times.



After all this, if you can handle it, you may be ready to try parenthood.

Poop

Literally.

I have never seen so much poop or seen it spread over an entire human being, like the way I saw today.

Neptune must have some kinda stomach bug. Cuz that was the most poop ever. Up his back out his pants through two shirts and up his belly. And of course just as I'm getting ready to walk us all out the door to get Mercury to school. And on a day we're getting blasted with lake effect snow so I need to give myself extra time to get to the school. Love Lake Michigan in the summer when we can be at the beach. In the winter? Not so much. Seriously in all my years of babysitting and raising two kids I've seen some blow outs. But this made them all look like small potatoes. Ick. I may never eat again after seeing that. All I can say was atleast we weren't in the car when it happened. Ohh it would have been bad trying to clean that outta a car seat. Here's hoping for a much less poopy day the rest of today.

Bad Bad Bacon

OMG that's all I can come up with that could have caused such a nasty reaction. I was fine all day yesterday. FINE! Finally before bed I decided to warm up three pieces of leftover bacon. About five minutes after eating it my tummy starting feeling a little...strange. Then Neptune woke up an hour later. I was in the middle of changing his diaper and had to tell Jupiter to take over as I bolted to the bathroom and proceeded to empty my guts into the toilet. Good thing I scrubbed it while the kids were bathing last night. I hate staring into a dirty toilet. And yes, I was thinking that the whole time I was ridding myself of the bacon. Then of course Neptune does not want to go back to bed. But I played the sick card, slept on the couch and made Jupiter take care of him. I horrible, huh? I did end up with Mercury sleeping on the couch with me at some point during the night. Then this morning, I'm fine. I'm glad it didn't last longer than that. But how strange. Needless to say I will be throwing all that leftover bacon away when I get home today. And then..Jupiter as the nerve to ask me if I'm pregnant. Uhhh he had the Big V months ago and I'm in medically induced menopause. So no, I'm not pregnant. Then he says, "I'd appreciate it if you and the guys you sleep with would use a condom. I've already got two, I'm not raising another one." Are all men like this? Ugh. Like just 'cuz I barf I gotta be knocked up. Men sure are special creatures. That's for sure.

I am tired, I am crabby...

I WANT TO SLEEP!

What has happened? Is there a full moon coming up that I'm not aware of? Neptune has decided sleep is for the birds. Therefore, mommy doesn't sleep either. Seriously could someone pass me some tooth picks to prop my eyelids open with? ARGH! Not a good feeling when you have to deal with numbers and other peoples problems all day long every day. Just shoot me now.

Halloween

My boys. One batman, one 'groupie'. For some reason Mercury thought Neptune needed to be a bat too.

BAT-DOG Nananananana BAT-DOG

vicious looking isn't he?

My boys with their great grandparents. We do one picture like this every year. Hopefully we get to add many more.

Yea I'm kinda late. So sue me.

And since I'm in that kinda mood, here's some more pictures. Not of Halloween, but they are still scary...

Yummy. Who doesn't love a spaghetti dinner?

Now, if you haven't already...please go vote.

You're Gonna Miss This

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vG9XfJxMY8A

I woke up with this stuck in my head today. I'm having a really hard time with Jupiter lately. I just don't understand him. Maybe it's a man thing. I've basically had to club him, and drug him to get him to agree to help me take the boys Trick or Treating tonight. Mercury is in this horrible phase where he just takes off at any given moment and Neptune will not hold my hand. So no way can I take both boys myself this year. And Jupiter has not gone ONCE. He's fighting me the whole way. And I just don't understand. He hardly spends any time with the boys. Yes they can be annoying. They don't listen, they fight, they break things, they talk back, but they are kids. I don't understand how he can not miss these things he's not doing with them. Maybe it's because I'm female, I don't know. But as trying as the boys can be and as much as they annoy me to no end some days, I can not imagine missing out on their lives. This in my mind is the best part of my life. This is what I've always wanted to do. How can he not enjoy it? I don't get it. But I know one thing. I'm gonna miss it. I already miss they babyness. I miss it I miss it I MISS IT! But I will not miss out on these things that are so important to my kids. I will be there for them and at least I will have the memories.

No More Briefs

So Mercury was potty trained at a fairly reasonable age I think. He was totally potty trained (day and night) about a month and a half before his third birthday. I think that's pretty good. Especially for a boy, and because I think Neptune will go to college in diapers. Anyway, he graduated on to 'big boy undies' or briefs with cartoon characters all over them. We had Scooby-Doo (those were the favs), Cars, Bob The Builder, Thomas, dinosaurs, trucks...you name it. The kid had more undies than I knew what to do with. Then all the sudden one day...the love affair with 'big boy undies' was over. He refused to wear them (he is now 4 btw). All his 'big boy undies' had become, "For babies mom!". Um last time I checked diapers were for babies.

OMG I'm sitting here reeling! First of all when did he get such an opinion and since when did he decide what undergarments are appropriate and what are not? He now must have and will only wear boxer-briefs. We tried boxers, he got them stuck in his zipper or they were all bunched up and hanging out the top of his jeans. But boxer-briefs fit the bill here. Do you know how expensive it is to go out and replace perfectly good undies? And they don't carry very many boxer-briefs with characters in his size. Ugh.

But my 4-yr old is now perfectly dressed in his boxer-briefs and his little hiney is very happy.

Menu plan menu plan menu plan

Well to be quite honest I've run outta money and food. So the next few days are gonna be a throw together whatever the heck I can!



Friday - chicken helper (I *think* I have some of this...)



Saturday - uhhh a roast? or something I can throw in the crockpot



Sunday - pork chops and potatoes



Monday - Mercury and I are going to "VeggieTales Live" so...something on the road.



Tuesday - something with kielbasa



Wednesday - speghettios? (healthy, huh?)



Thursday - I CAN GO BUY SOME FOOD! Stir-fry beef and cabbage with crab rangoons and fried rice



Now after seeing how poor I am, would you rather see some more pictures?

Neptune on a hill. Exciting huh?

I like to pretend I can take good pictures. So humor me

Obviously the boys were playing in the woods

This is Mercury this morning on the way to daycare. I just can't get over how he can look so 'old' sometimes. Please ignore the trash in the back of the van.

Back To The Land Of The Living

I.AM.BACK!



I had pnemonia last week. Came outta nowhere and hit me like a ton of bricks. I've never had pnemonia, and I hope to never have it again.



I'm not quite sure how my kids survived except their wonderful daycare kept them late a few days and then brought them home. I think I would die without that woman!



Then Tuesday Mercury had his pumpkin patch field trip with the preschool. That was fun. So I'm trying furiously to catch up here at work. I was out a week, back for a day, gone a day, and now I am back. Ugh. Talk about a mess. But here are a few pics from the week/end for you to check out until I can get my head outta my butt and back on this planet.

This is Mercury and Neptune after decorating for Halloween.

This is the first time I let Neptune have cotton candy. He wasn't sure he liked it at first. Then...he became a huge sticky mess!

Here is the first day I was starting to feel better. I took the kids out and Mercury was having fun with some batting practice.

And this is Mercury and I at the pumpkin patch on Tuesday. Notice how we have the same stupid smile?

Kid-Friendly Food

Oh yes my friend. This is something I will be doing on a semi-regular basis. Like when I actually find something my kids will eat! lol. And that I have! I found it last night. Now I made some changes to it, but I will post the original recipe for you in case you don't like my changes. But my kids loved this. Even Neptune gobbled it up and that kid does not like meat.

Crescent Sloppy Joes
The original recipe is by Pillsbury
http://www.pillsbury.com/Recipes/ShowRecipe.aspx?rid=15515

Here is my version:

Brown 1lb ground beef and drain grease. Mix in one can of Manwich (the only kind of sloppy joe I will eat). Separate your crescents into four rectangles. Place a generous amount of sloppy joe mixture in the center of each. Throw some grated sharp cheddar on top. Fold over and seal. Cut a slit in the top to vent. Bake at 375 for 11-18 min. (or in my over for 10min 30sec). Enjoy!

They are awesome!