Look what we Kandoo

Well not yet really, but its a start. Yesterday was very monumental in our lives. On January 19, 2007, I announced to Chase that he had officially used the last diaper in the house (other than the 20 I stashed) and that they no longer made any his size, so we had to use underwear from here on out. For those of you who don't know Chase well, he is EXTREMELY strong willed and has no desire to potty train. Just the other day, he informed me that he loved diapers because they were perfect for him.
After being told it was underwear or nothing, he proudly chose to adorn his derriere with "Sarge" underpants:





I had prepared for the day by making sure all easy removable pants such as sweat pants were freshly washed and ready for soiling. We had also purchased the oh so important and even more over priced Kandoo products:






So we were off. Of course the very first time he needed to go he expected to have the same effects as a diaper so he waddled down the hall announcing "Mommy my legs is wet." So, he quickly learned how to remove his own clothes and put a whole new set of dry ones on. I explained that we did not want to wet his pants again and he responded by telling me, "yes I do." I realized I was in for a long day.
I persistently escorted Chase to the restroom to at least "try and potty." Of course his response was always "I don't have to" or "I don't want to" yet each time we went he managed to muster up urine!
At the conclusion of day one, he never quite got the hang of announcing BEFORE he had to go, but he was a champ at announcing when he had gone. I however, got pretty good at judging how soon after a drink or the last trip to the potty, to insist that we try once more.
All in all, it wasn't as bad as I had imagined. I of course had a full load of laundry and a handful of soiled underwear, but not too bad.








He did not have to "poop" on day one, so that will probably be another blog in itself. We have 3 more days before we HAVE to go out anywhere, so let's hope we can get some consistency in the works by then. until then, stay tuned.

I will end with a clip of the oblivious brother and his new found trick:

Go Baby Go

Well its official, my almost Derby baby is out of the gates and running. He is now mobile. For weeks now, he has been perfectly content with scooting and sliding across the hardwood floor that is located throughout our house. He had no traction, so when he attempted to crawl, his legs would slide out from under him and flat on his belly he would go. Eventually he learned how to get himself up on his hands and knees and do the infamous baby rock. I knew we were getting close and he has finally figured it out. John swears he did it a couple days ago, but I saw what he was referring to and I would not consider it a crawl. Yesterday was the first time I have seen him truly crawl. I have had the camera sitting out ready to go for days now, so as soon as I sensed it I grabbed the camera and captured the moment. So without further ado...here he is:
Yes, that isa chain that my sons are playing with, did I mention we were a little red (it was passed down from their Dad)?





I also have a cute clip of my cute little redneck singing one of his favorite country tunes.






Last but not least, my little giggle box:






Hope you enjoy my video frenzy!

My outlet

When I started this blog at Amber's request, I planned on writing about all the funny and interesting things young children do in a days time. However I find myself using it almost as an outlet to vent about all the difficulties I have had to face since having a second child.
Chase was such a happy baby. Other than the typical teething episode, bumps and bruises, or the one stomach bug he got, the kid never really cried. He never got sick until his first birthday. He began sleeping through the night early on,and other than rough patches while teething, he has always been an awesome sleeper. He is wild and rambunctious, but what young boy isn't? All in all he was truly a wonderful baby and is a good kid.
I know that everyone tells you no two kids are alike, but I never imagined just how different two could be. Other than the first couple weeks of life, Cole has been a challenge to say the least. He does have a very strong personality and can show his temper quite often, but all that aside, the biggest challenge is how sick he has been. The list is ever growing.
Around 3 or 4 weeks, we discovered Cole suffered from colic. Anyone who has ever dealt with a child with colic knows that you feel as though life could not possibly get any worse. When it is 3am and you have been pacing the house with a screaming (not crying, screaming) infant for hours, you start to understand how some people with no support system and no outlet, go crazy and hurt their poor innocent children. It is hard, very hard. Never in my life have I prayed as much as I did during those long nights.
Once we started to feel like we might be getting somewhere with the colic we learned Cole suffered from reflux. This helped explain some of the screaming after he ate and why the moment we laid him down, he would wake wailing and tossing around as though he was in severe pain. Eventually with medication, we felt we were getting somewhere with that as well. He even began sleeping until about 4 am every night. Things were looking good.
I believe our next hurdle was his first ear infection. After that, I lose track of the order becasue it all seems to be one ongoing illness. Following that ear infection, he added RSV, croup, and 3 additional ear infections to the growing list of illnesses. Since Christmas, my dear Cole has been to see the doctor at least once a week, sometimes twice.
As a parent, it is the worst feeling ever to watch your child suffer day in and day out and not be able to just fix it, I have had to give him medication daily now for 7 months of his 8 months on this earth. I cannot imagine what parents dealing with such larger issues must go through. I realize I am truly blessed with both my boys, but I am ready to see my baby feel good and possibly sleep through the night at least once.
Our most recent visit to the MD was yesterday when we learned that cole had the fourth ear infection that I mentioned. I will be calling an ENT this week to set up an appointment although our pediatrician said we have to have one more ear infection. I feel sometimes Mom knows best, even if I don't have MD after my name.
I am included photos of Mr. Pitiful. Please pray for my sweet baby that soon, very soon, he will feel much better and that we can both get some much needed (8 months worth) sleep!

Better Than Sex?

I decided to try something new this Christmas and I found a cake named the "Better than Sex" cake. I had heard people talk about it before but had never tried it myself. I found a recipe that sounded good and sent my dear husband to the local grocery to purchase the necessary ingredients.

Now to decide where to take the cake. In my family everyone, including grandparents and both my parents, has been divorced and then remarried at some point. Some call this a blended family, I often describe it as "disfunctional". Whatever you choose to call it, sadly enough, it is become more and more common these days. Anyhow, due to my blended situation and the fact that I adopted a whole new family through holy matrimony; who thankfully are as nonblended (notice I did not say nondisfunctional) as they come, we had a total of 6 Christmas gatherings to attend. I decided on gracing the Kellogg family (Grandaddy Bob, Shawnee, Aunt Kristin, and whomever her guest of the year may be, this year it was a freshly aquired boyfriend named Nick) with my cake.

As I was making the cake, I had to phone my father and inform him, "Dad, this is going to be good, really good." I tried to explain to him how good this was going to be, but he just kept telling me abot his new "electronic gadget of the week" as he often does. So, I proceeded to complete my cake and place it in the fridge as directed.

That evening, we carried the cake among the 1000 other items that are required for a family of 4 with 2 small children to attend dinner at Dad's. Most of us, well all over the age of 17, enjoyed a delicious bowl full of chili that Dad had prepared that day. The rest, those under 17, were either too worried about when we were going to open a present or had eaten McDonalds right before Christmas dinner.

After dinner we proceeded with opening the presents, which is such a thrill when a 3 year old is involved, they get so excited! Once we had all gotten our presents and inspected our new loot, we all headed outside to surprise Chase with a John Deere electric powered tractor. Of course he was thrilled and rode through the chilly night on his tractor for an hour following its unveiling. This could be an explanation of why we have been battling croup and a cough for over a week following Christmas as described in a previous blog!

Eventually it got late, and kids got tired, so we packed the car with the now 1020 or so items that we had. As we were preparing to walk out the door, I remembered the cake in the fridge. Duh! Most said they were full or weren't a cake fan. I explained that I had worked hard and wanted everyone to at least try it. So we all, except John (VERY VERY rare) and "new beau Nick" got a piece of the cake. Although Nick did not get a piece of cake, he asked Kristin for a bite of hers and then proceeded to devour the rest of it. Suddenly everyone is ranting and raving about how this is the best cake they have ever tasted and they are getting a second helping as most often do during the holidays. John regretted that he only had a small piece left to eat once we got home and he tasted it.

Of course I was proud because I had made the cake, but pride aside, this is truly the best cake I have ever tasted! We decided to refer to it as the "Best Cake Ever" since we were among children (aka Chase) who would definitely tell their preschool teacher about the fact that they had cake at Christmas that was better than sex. So, call it what you want, you MUST make this cake and make it often because although it is not the healthiest cake you will ever make, it is truly THE best cake you will ever make.

Read directions all the way through first or you will mess up the chocolate chip step.

Ingredients:
1 german chocolate cake mix
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
caramel topping
12 ounces Cool Whip
3 heath bars, crushed


Directions:

Heat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour 9 x 13 inch pan. Prepare cake mix as directed on package; pour into prepared pan. After 10 minutes of baking, sprinkle with chocolate chips. Continue baking until cake is done.

While cake is still hot, poke holes in it with handle of wooden spoon. Pour sweetened condensed milk over cake; let cool. Top with caramel sauce, then whipped topping. Sprinkle with candy bars.

Cabin Fever at Sea World

Christmas was wonderful as always. I enjoyed seeing family and friends that I have not seen in a while. However, as the days progressed my boys started to get sick. Cole was doing his infamous ear tug and Chase was coughing, so the day after Christmas we found ourselves sitting in the germ cess pool aka "sick waiting room" at the pediatrician's office. Cole checked out fine, but Chase was diagnosed with croup. So, we filled his prescription and headed home. That evening, Cole also developed croup. For those unfamiliar with croup, it is a cold like virus that causes swelling around the voicebox so that whenever the kid tries to cough, or talk for that matter, they sound just like a seal. So, with two sick kids, it sounds like Sea World around here.

Cole progressively got worse and due to his young age, I was asked to bring him back to the MD, I am sure it was so they could receive another $15 copay. In addition to determining Cole had croup, they also pointed out that he has 5 teeth coming in at once on the top. Again, for those unfamiliar with kids, that translates to no sleep for Mom. I was told to keep both boys home since they were still contagious as long as they were coughing.

So, here we are over a week later and the cabin fever is hitting us hard. Chase has tested me beyond believe, how he has survived, beats me. Cole has spent most the day whining and most of the nights wailing. Chase has watched more television than a young boy should be allowed in a year, but sometimes that is the only way Mommy can shower, nap, or just regain some sanity! Between the pitiful moments, we have had some fun moments as well. Aren't we a bundle of fun?