New Project

Sure I am a scrapbooker but I have been a SLACKbooker for quite a while now....one day I will go have some pics printed and start trying to catch up. But now that Eli is 2, there are so many things he says/does I have decided to try and figure out a way to record all these memories. Videos are great....I am trying to compile some videos of him making animals sounds, counting, identifying body parts, etc. and I suppose I will make a DVD to put inside his scrapbook....or something like that....I just don't have everything I need to include organized---I am making a list of all the funny things he says, if if miss anything you know of, tell me!


*first thing i ever heard him say-- "deja! deja!" (have no clue what that meant)
first "real" word was duck, then dada
eye-eye= Eli, what he calls himself
mygink- means "my drink" and can be said 10+ times in a row when necessary
shoodoo- his Po teletubby
baboo- his baby doll
oggy= monkey
choo choo= a train or any big truck
chack-tu= tractor (sometimes trucks too)
Sissy- Anniston, his big sister
shoont= star (the Sun can also be shoont)
boon- balloon (he get them frequently from Chick-fil-a)
bobbies- any fruit, veggies, or other round edible things
kendy- candy (normally said in a very whiny voice)
ah-see- Icee
gall gone- all gone
wawmaw- watermelon
ky-ging= crying
hearrit?? = do you hear it?
funder= thunder
soat= soap
fuh-he, fuh-he= funny
fiiiiine- when you ask him where something is, he points to it and says "find"
otch- ouch, what he says when we wants to headbutt someone
poppit= pocket (he always says "Mine!" and put things in his poppit
papoose= what he says when he is ready to get out of the tub and be wrapped in a towel (Nana started this)
side= outside
ight= light
awwwfant= elephant (can refer to cows too)
Coke- any drink including milk, water, juice. anything in a plastic bottle is Coke.
ose= nose
ouf= mouth
shash= hair
body parts he knows: shash (hair), eyes, ears, nose, mouth, teeth, tongue, hands, fingers, belly button, feet, toes
animal sounds he knows:
cow, monkey, tiger, kitty cat, dogdog, snake, horsey, duck, frog
phrases he likes to say:
it's hot
go go go!
ready, set, go!
awwwnooo- "i don't know"
hereidis- "here it is" when he finds something
bite- when he wants a bite
off! (he likes to press off buttons if he finds one)
he sometimes adds "ze" or "je" in front of certain words, for example "je poot" and "ze cars" (don't ask me!)
at 23 months he started saying "boo-boo gock" when Black Eye Peas' song Boom Boom Pow came out on the radio
at 24 months he has a new phrase "beeba-honk" and I have no clue what it means
when he wants to avoid something (food, scary toys) he either closes his eyes and covers his ears or runs away saying "ni-nite!"
when he is in trouble, he smiles and says "HI!"
he like to put deodorant on. anything can be pretend deodorant!

Just sharing a video

Motivation (or lack thereof)

You know how you have all these things you someday plan to do? I'm not talking big dreams here...I'm talking small, ordinary, everyday "chores" like..."oh, I'm gonna fold that laundry that I tossed on the floor yesterday" or, "Next week, I am totally gonna finish painting those baseboards in the kitchen!" But nope....doesn't happen. What is it, besides a kick in the rear, that will MAKE me get up and DO this stuff? I get on these 2-3 day long mini sprees where I actually surprise myself with accomplishment but then it never fails, I always come to a standstill. Then I sit down on the couch, eat some ice cream (never straight from the container though) and just LOOK at the rest of the stuff that is on the to-do-haha-yeah-right list. I feel like there aren't enough hours in the day, and even if there were more I would find something better to do with them rather than waste them on this stuff. I just don't have a good concept of time management. I have TONS of ideas swirling around in my head but they just don't always materialize. Sure, part of it involves being a SAHM to a 2 year old but I can't blame him entirely....I was this way before he was around and I freely admit it. I used to be worse actually. I used to have rubber maid boxes full of gallon size ziploc bags of "stuff" including school papers, random receipts, change, cut up credit cards, etc. I then realized, I could toss out anything from college as I would surely never need it again, and any receipts for anything that has already been consumed and cannot be returned to the store LOL. I got rid of lots of junk that I had been pointlessly hauling around each time I moved. It felt good to "clean house" and I am a lot better about not accumulating things these days. But, I still don't fold my laundry fresh from the dryer, or go through the junk mail pile on the kitchen bar, or dust ANYTHING.....or finish all these unfinished projects. I wish there was this magical team like the Merry Maids, that would come over and do my to-do list FOR me......guess there's no such thing as that hmmmm?

Jealous much?

So yesterday was the first day of my new babysitting job. Maddy is 21 months and will be coming over M-F for about a month or so. Eli was immediately possessive of his mommy, wrapping his arms around my legs marking his territory. He put his hands over his eyes and wouldn't look at her. He shoved all the cookies in his mouth at one time so she couldn't have any. It took them a while to warm up to one another but I guess that's only normal. They ended the day on a good note and he even cried when her mom took her home. I reassured him she'd be back in the morning when he woke up! Here are a couple shots throughout the day--including the ones of him throwing himself to the floor, covering his face with his shirt so he didn't have to see me holding her, and her tata-ing (sp?) him, telling him "it's okay!"

I feel like a salesperson!

I have been selling things left and right online. Meeting people in random parking lots to get cash for baby gear, playing phone tag and price haggling LOL! Recently I've sold:

a camera flash: $100
clothes, etc at garage sale: $200
an exersaucer: $25
a high chair: $10
a jumperoo: $40
a bumbo chair: $10
clothes to OUAC: $43
scrapbook supplies at SS garage sale: $38 (store credit)

and have these sales "pending" lol--
select comfort mattress: $50
fuzzi buns diapers: $20

I don't know what is still left in my house to sell, but if you think of something you want, make me an offer and we'll play Deal or No Deal LOL!

Book your shoot now!

Just a little P.R. for my bff Lacey!







She took some pics of Eli today, can't wait to see them!!

Arrrrgh!

Eli attended his first Build and Grow Clinic @ Lowe's. He is a little young to participate but since they were building a pirate ship I couldn't resist signing him up. To my surprise he knew JUST what to do. He put on those safety glasses and grabbed up his hammer and went to town! Of course he needed some help straigtening his nails but I think he did a pretty nifty job! His ship looked just as good as any of the 4-5 year olds there. I think I have a talented 2 year old! And here is the finished product:

What happens when a 2 year old dresses himself--

I was running late one morning and ALMOST walked out the door with Eli dressed like this! He was so proud of himself for getting his shoes (and on the right feet for once!) He stood up, grabbed his keys and said "Let's GO!" I opened the door but then noticed he was going out into the world in his underoos. And by the way, yes he does have his very own set of keys AND two cell phones---so he will leave my stuff alone!

HI!

A few days ago we had dinner at Zapato with my brother-in-law and his girlfriend's family. Eli climbed out of his high chair onto the table and just when I was about to swat his leg and tell him to get down, he gets up in my face and says "Hi!" Everyone at the table was like "Aww mais now you can't fuss him!" I couldn't help but whip out my camera, only further encouraging him. Yep, this boy is one smart cookie!

Scaredy Cow

MeMe made Eli this cute cow shirt for Cow Appreciation Day 2009. As soon as we walked in the door he freaked out. I should have known his recent everything-phobia would kick in today. He especially did not like the scantily clad girl next to us who had more body paint on than clothes. He kept his head turned the opposite direction until she and her girlfriend left. After he was sure she was out the door, he started to eat his food. I asked him if he wanted to play with the kids, and he said no. I told him he could go on the slide. Again, no. He was just too shook up over that cow. He would not wear his hat for a picture. It took lots of cajoling just to let me snap this quick one.




























After a while he forgot about her and decided he would go play after all. Here he is enjoying himself and even wearing the hat (backwards but oh well!)

















He had a good time until some big boys accidently opened the emergency exit and the loud alarm sent him into hysterics. That was our cue to go home and take a little cow nap!

Fun Project!

Gonna turn this





























into this:



I am so excited! I snagged these at the Goodwill Store for only 9.99! I have seen lockers used in kids' rooms in magazines but never thought I'd find some affordable ones around here. I'm thinking bright red will go best with his room. (or maybe yellow...hmmmm) Can't wait!

Look Ma, No Diaper!

So Eli and I had a date with MeMe today, we went all sorts of places, and bought all sorts of things. Soon I realized I had forgotten to bring diapers along for the trip and when Eli was sitting in his high chair at IHOP saying "poo poo" I prayed he was just joking with Mommy. But the lovely smell that soon drifted out proved otherwise. Luckily he was wearing his new big boy underoos over his diaper. We didn't have much of a choice other than for him to wear those until we got back home. So I took him to the bathroom and explained to him that he was going to wear his big boy underwear and he couldn't pee pee in them or he would get all wet. Of course my advice appeared to go in one ear and out the other. But even after a lengthy visit to Jo-ann's Fabric Store, he made it all the way home and managed to stay dry! I certainly hadn't planned a public outing sans pampers this soon, but I was so proud of him!

And now....he is going to model them for you:

Ta Da!

Swagbucks Anyone?

I just signed up tonight. I guess I thought there was no way I'd ever get enough to get a prize BUT so many people say it's not that hard, so I signed up. I have 6 swagbucks, and 5 of them were just for signing up. Someone, anyone? Help me understand what to do!!

Fearless to Phobic?

Anyone who knows Eli would probably call him fearless. This is the boy who does acrobatics off of the furniture, runs away in stores, picks up bugs off the ground, plays with scary toys like HULK SMASH! etc.

But over the past two weeks he has become afraid of lots of things. It really surprised me tonight that he cried at the Chick-fil-a playground. He did not want to climb to the top, he went to the door and said "bye bye bye bye bye bye" in a panicked little voice. He also hid under the table and behind my legs earlier when we got a little rain. The wind was blowing our screen door back and forth and the squeaky noise sent him into hysterics.

Even the crinkling of a plastic bag has him jumping into my lap and holding onto my neck for dear life with a pained look on his face.

I know this is all part of toddlerhood and we will find ways to deal with it but it seems odd that it happened so quickly.

Diapers on the cheap

I went CVS'n today. I purposely went in there to FIND something to spend my $3 ECB's on...(somewhere I have another $1 ecb, it's missing!) They had free (after ECB) CVS brand tape and 2/$1 (after ECB) dawn dish liquid. So I did those deals and just paid with my debit card since it was $3.7x and I had no cash, only my ECB's. I got back $1.49 and $1 ecbs's from that. Then I used those, plus the $3 ECB's, plus a $1/1 pampers q, to purchase a jumbo pack that was 11.99 on sale for 8.99 this week. So 8.99
- $1 mfr,
5.49 ecbs
= 2.50 total NOT BAD HUH??

I Am....

haven't done this in a while, but my last entry on a product review got me thinking I should rave about this new cleaning stuff I bought a while back (also at CVS of course!) It's called Dr. Bronner's Magic Pure Castile Soap. And.it.cleans.everything!



















I bought it with the intentions of making my own dishwasher detergent. A local AM mom posted a recipie online and several of us went out and bought all the necessary ingedients. I was waiting to empty out my bottle of storebought detergent so I could refill it with the homemade version, but decided to try it out on something else in the meantime. I cleaned my kitchen floors, the air conditioner register, the countertops, and the bathtubs. It can be diluted to various strengths depending on what it's being used for. So this 32 oz. bottle I bought can be diluted up to 40x! I am no math major but I *think* that would make it one cent per ounce! (if diluted that much of course) The most interesting thing about it is the bottle and the fact that the label is completely covered in writing of all sorts. You won't find much in the way of directions on how to use the product, but if you're looking for religious babble here ya go!

"It wasn't until I'd been using Bronner's for a couple of months that I actually thought to read the label. When I did, what I found was a whole lotta Crazy. See, the late Dr. Bronner was what you might call a little bit of a religious eccentric, and he liked to get his freak on with his product labels. So if you pick up a bottle of his soap, you are likely to be greeted with statements such as:

Absolute cleanliness is Godliness! Who else but God gave man Love that can spark mere dust to life! Poetry, uniting All-One! All brave! All life! Who else but God! "Listen Children Eternal Father Eternally One!"

Yes, the man lurved him some exclamation points. For the full dose of nuttiness, click on the pic and survey the entire landscape of the All-One Holy Jesus Carpenter Rabbi Hillel Extreme Love and Clean Shampoo! (All-One!) It's, um, entertaining." -- Me and My Jesus Shampoo

And if you'd like to spend a couple hours studying the actual label, click here.

Product Review

I decided to start posting product reviews now and then, and I will start with a recent purchase (from CVS of course!) Now, to be fair I got this deeply discounted and the expiration listed on it is 7/09. Still, I had high expectations for this product....



Laugh if you will, but my recent pregnancy/miscarriage have wreaked havoc on my hormones and I have had to deal with all sorts of problems since then. I felt I already had a good skincare routine but it obviously was not working, so I decided to try out some new products. No, I didn't want to shell out 99.95 for some infomercial package (though at least that one has a money back guarantee!) So I browsed the shelves at my local CVS and found Skin Effects brand on clearance. Frugal me, went prepared with a coupon for additional savings. My final price was about $8 for this supposed $19.95 retail product.

The package mentioned something about seeing a difference within 3 days. I have been using it for about 4 days now, with no real positive results. In fact today I saw a new spot starting to crop up under my skin. But I will keep using it a while longer just in case.

New blogs to check out!

Since I had to make a small change to my blog a while back, my blog list disappeared into the big black hole of the world wide web and I was too lazy to try and re-create it at the time. I recently noticed more AM bloggers and decided to go ahead and make a new blog list so I could include them. So if you take a look at the righthand column you will see some cool new blogs to take a look at.

Got a job?

So I have been job hunting for the past...5 years? LOL I have not been unemployed for the past 5 years, but have not found my dream job either. After my 2 year gig as a SAHM it is time for me to start getting paychecks again. So I have been hunting, applying, interviewing, and finally I was offered a job. The hours are lousy and the pay is lousier (sp?) but I accepted. Without.my.husband's.prior.approval. You see, I tried to call him but of course he was sleeping and did not answer. So I got home thinking he would be thrilled with the news, but unfortunately I thought wrong. He is concerned about the hours and (not) being able to find childcare to fit such an odd schedule. He has valid points, and I guess I jumped the gun and took the first job that was offered. I suppose the hunt is still on and I will keep searching until I find something better. What was the job? Inside telemarketing at Gulf South Water Solutions. I was less than thrilled about cold calling, especially during dinner time. But it was a job, that paid. I guess I will call Monday morning to let them know I won't be coming in. Sigh.

Check this out!

So my BFF does these classes at SS and she posted about her latest one here at her blog. I think they are so awesome and I can't wait to try out a couple of them!