What do you think?

We are tired at our house. Well, Jacob isn't, but the rest of us are. Jarom thinks we need to sleep train Mya. I am not a fan of letting her cry, and my excuse is that she shares a room with Jacob so we can't let her wake him up now that he is an awesome sleeper (it only took 3 years to turn him into a great sleeper:)).

So moms--what do you think of cry it out methods? What else have you done that helped your baby self soothe during the night?

Yesterday was a sad, sad day for the people in the state of California. Well, really for the United States of America. That judge single-handedly overruled the desire and opinion of over 7 million people. What a slap in the face! Aren't we a democracy? For the people, of the people, etc...UGH!!

yesterday

was one of those days. one of those days that starts too early and with me in a foggy, sleep-deprived sort of state. i tried to do fun things with my kids to help my attitude. we walked to the park, jacob had a playdate, we went to the aquarium, we went hiking up the canyon, we got custard at the custard shop. despite all of this, i still found myself short of patience throughout the day. all i wanted was some "me" time. i desperately wanted a break from my kids. sometimes i blog stalk in an attempt to escape what's going on around me. i came across this blog yesterday. the great thing about the blogosphere is that you get to hear these stories that are so inspiring and amazing. stories that you most likely would not otherwise hear about. this is one such story. in short, this mom has never been able to bring her little girl home. she has lived in a medical facility since birth. i cannot even imagine what that must be like. i take for granted that i get to snuggle my kids every day and night. yes, sometimes i just plain take my kids for granted. i am trying harder not to do that. i am working to find a balance so that i don't get that desperation for "me" time that leaves me feeling irritated and/or short of patience. i am doing the best i can. but i can always do better.

Mya at 9 months

Well she will be 9 months on Wednesday. I don't think I've posted about her for awhile, but she's been crawling for about two months now. Just in the past couple of weeks she's started pulling herself up to things and getting a little more curious about what's behind doors and inside drawers. Luckily, a closed door is still good enough to keep her out of most things. She never stops moving. She loves to eat. This girl will not turn down food unless she is full. I love that she's such a good eater. It's fun to give her new things. I also like not having to worry about whether she's getting enough. She loves her dad. She lights up every time he walks into the room and reaches out for him. I think she has mixed feelings about Jacob. Sometimes she giggles and giggles at him and wants to play. While other times, she clings to me and seems terrified of him. Those are the times when he's not being nice. I spend a good portion of my days trying to get him to leave her alone unless he plays nice. Any tips with that??? She loves to be outside and is fascinated by things her size like animals and other babies. She likes to go through purses and picks out the wallets and keys. She also likes beaded jewelry. Such a sweetheart!!!

Jacob these days

Believe it or not, but Jacob's love affair with animals is waning. He still plays with them on occasion, but it is not constant like it has been for the past 3 years. These days he prefers pretend play. Today after church Jarom found him outside being a dinosaur. He was sniffing all the green stuff and holding his hands like claws. He is also fascinated by volcanoes. He finds volcanoes everywhere we go. We check out volcano books at the library, he watches volcano videos on you tube, he is planning a trip to Hawaii with his dad to see the real volcanoes. I, apparently, do not get to go because the volcanoes are too scary for me. A couple days ago he and his friend were making all kinds of noises, and when I asked them what they were doing, Jacob told me they were putting on their lava suits so they wouldn't get burned by the lava. Later he told his dad that his lava suit was made of wood :). His imagination is so much fun to see lately. He cracks me up everyday. Jacob can also be very stubborn lately. He's very persistent when there is something he wants. He thinks he can negotiate with things, and sometimes it's hard to turn him down because it's so cute and funny. Even when I'm mad at him. My little guy is turning 4 next month. Wow!!! He thinks he wants to have a dragon party with his friends so we will see how that goes.

If you insist....

A couple of weeks ago, I was eating lunch at Zupas with my kids when this girl approached me to let me know how adorable Mya was. Not unusual for me as Mya has been turning heads and picking up compliments left and right since birth. Anyways to make a short story even shorter this chick wanted to take pictures of my kids for free. So we finally went yesterday to get them done, and I was pleasantly surprised with how they turned out. Don't love the ones of Jacob. LOVE the ones of Mya. And yes, they are wearing the same clothes they wore in our family pictures two months ago. I have not had time to shop for them and it was the only thing they had that matched each other.

On my mind.....

Jacob is a little social butterfly. He asks EVERYDAY if he can have a friend over. If I say no for whatever reason, he says, "But then what can I do?" Really? He's three almost four. He's not supposed to be this way already is he? When did I stop being his favorite playmate? He never asks for friends to come over when his dad is home so I guess Jarom is still at the top of the list. Monday: we called a friend to come play during the day. That evening we had lots of friends over for treats after FHE. Tuesday: we had another friend over. We do a date night swap, and that was last night so he went to play again. Wednesday: we went to playgroup at the park for two hours and now he is playing at his friend's house. Is that too much for such a young kid? Jarom & I both don't remember being that social at 3 or 4. But do we count? He had a permanent little buddy to play with, and Liz is not much younger than me. Honestly, it exhausts me. I miss the days when it was just us all day everyday. We still have those days sometimes........On the other hand, I am so grateful he has lots of friends. I am grateful that Jacob is really great at making friends. Even when we go places just us, he always meets someone new. I am grateful he's not shy like me. I am grateful also that he pushes me out of my comfort zone. I make play dates and call his friends' moms and have people over. And I NEVER did that. I just hope that when he starts choosing his own friends that he chooses good ones!