Syndicate

Chloe has finally outgrown her 18th month clothes, and my mom has sent the next installment, which means it is time to empty the closet. Every article of clothing you see is 18months. Including the 4 winter coats and 7 jackets. This is why Chloe has two closets in our house!

I have been researching “quality” picture books to read to Chloe, especially now that she is sort of over the run of the mill eye candy books and seems to be moving on into books that have catchy phrasing or interesting characters. So, I asked John to use our Discover Card cash back bonus on Borders Gift Cards so I can purchase some of these books. I spent two hours doing research and adding books to our Amazon Shopping list. Lo and behold, I added over $200 worth of books. And this is with the most expensive book costing $12. Unfortunately I only had $50 in gift cards. So, one puppy movie (thanks to grandma and grandpa Erickson who introduced Chloe to the Dalmatians and which she asks for CONSTANTLY) and six books later…its all gone, with us paying about $10 in shipping. Sigh…if only I had unlimited resources, my daughter would be a freakin’ GENIUS!

Chloe’s new favorite game is called, “Nap.” She lays down on the floor and says, quite proudly I might add, “I’m napping!” She also puts all of her dolls down for naps, and loves to point out when the kitties are napping. Earlier, Legolas was napping on a laundry basket I had tossed a comforter on top of, and she thought it was the funniest thing. So, when he moved (or she kicked him out, I am not sure which) she hopped in!

My child is so weird!

When we first moved into our house in New Jersey, there was a huge hot tub in the back yard. For some people, this is a perk, but for us it was a hindrance because our back yard is not that big, and it took up more than half of the area we could use for grass. In addition to a gigantic hot tub, the previous owners created a “privacy” screen using these large gorgeous trees, which again took up a large amount of space. We were able to sell the hot tub on Craig’s list (John used the proceeds to buy an XBox) and we have been debating what to do with the hole left behind. Well, its been almost a year now, and we finally hired a professional landscaper to come in, move the trees around, and resod. It looks absolutely beautiful and we now have twice as much grass!

Here are the before and after pictures:

Or whatever…when it comes to American Idol. Thank goodness Chikezie is gone, the boy was just weird! Next on my “vote off” list is Kristy Lee Cook, and its not because she’s country, although it certainly doesn’t help her cause. Its because she just doesn’t have anything unique about her. She sounds like every other female country singer out there. Although, I wouldn’t be heart broken if Syesha Mercado ends up on the chopping block next week…she just bores me. I am still rooting for Carly, but I have to admit that I voted for David Cook. His awesome rendition of Billy Jean totally rocked! (Throwing up my bloggers horns) I like Brooke White, also, but she needs to step it up. The last couple of weeks she seemed to be sliding a bit.

There’s my two cents worth, in case you were wondering.

I call this method the “Quick Tidy,” because I usually spend only about 5-10 minutes maybe 3-4 times a day tidying up around the house. The key to this is for everything in your house to have a specific and logical place. Then, it is extremely easy to see what is out of place in a room and to quickly put it where it belongs. I travel from room to room, quickly putting things back and gathering things that don’t belong. If the items need to go upstairs and Chloe is napping, I set them on the stairs until she wakes up, and then I carry everything that needs to go upstairs with me when I go to get her. This minimizes the need to go up and down the stairs multiple times.

You would be surprised how easy it is to find 5-10 minutes in your day. For example, while I am waiting for my lunch to cook in the microwave, I tidy up the kitchen. When I am talking on the phone, I tidy up Chloe’s playroom. When I have to go to the bathroom, I grab everything that needs to go into Chloe’s playroom along the way, put it away, and then take care of business. Then I move things out of Chloe’s playroom on the way back. I also make sure everything is where it should be right after Chloe goes to bed at night, that way John and I can enjoy the rest of the evening without having to worry about cleaning up.

I find that this way, I never feel overwhelmed by the task of cleaning. When it is time to do a “deep clean” (Which I will cover in a later post) its easier because everything is already where it belongs, and I don’t have to waste any time tidying up.

Especially when I am sick. Yesterday, I was overcome with what I have self diagnosed as a case of food poisoning. I spent most of the day on the couch trying not to move, because every time I moved, well…bad things happened. Unfortunately, I am still a mommy, even when I am sick, and Chloe has needs. A lot of needs. WAY TOO MANY NEEDS! Do you know how hard it is to change a poopy diaper or cook chicken nuggets when you are feeling nauseas? Not to mention that mommy kneeling over the toilet freaked Chloe out a bit. But she got over it once she started imitating me. Yes, my lovely little girl was on her knees pretending to puke into her training potty, absolutely adorable (she says ironically.) All I wanted was to go bed and watch movies and have someone wait on me hand and foot. Instead, I had to keep apologizing to Chloe because Mommy was no fun and couldn’t play with her today. Sigh….if only mommies had substitutes like teachers do. The good news is it has run its course and I am back to normal today, thank goodness!

Because we need an opportunity for Chloe to look this cute:

we would have done robes, but it seemed like a lot of work…you know, finding the right kind of fabric, enlisting a seamstress to sew the robes (aka: ellen) and I am sure there would be more to the ritual than I am willing to allow my toddler to witness, so a sacrificial chocolate bunny is where we compromised. Oh, and an egg hunt and dying eggs, I am pretty sure that’s all pagan, right?

Check out the gallery for additional pictures of the merriment!