Sunday, October 31, 2010

Halloween Highlights 2010!


Chris sent me to my room tonight after we got home from Tricks or Treat! He said I had enough. I think he is right! I'm so tired I think I will let last night's blog stand as a testimony to Halloween 2010. It was wonderful! I can't wait till next year. The craziest thing was the perfect weather, highs of upper 70's all week.

The neatest thing we did was late last night Chris and I stayed up till midnight watching some old magician clips (I used to help out with his show) online on Comedy Central's site. We just laughed and had our spooky romantic time.

Chris is just grateful this is the only holiday I really go crazy on. Next week promises to be insane for us with family photos, Dia de los Muertos, and Ren Fair but the main insanity is over... enjoy the highlight pics ;) I'll have more pictures up later this week on our other blog.





Final note: Costumes were funny. I learned big bulky costumes are a fail. Cally went crazy in his lobster costume (he was ready to go to Red Lobster and be put out of his misery). Harm picked out his own costume this year and I must admit it was the biggest hit. Kids and adults alike kept shouting "hey Sponge Bob". My costume got lost on Friday night and so I had to improvise with old ones and Chris' broke :p I'm glad Rachel and Harmo will likely fit in theirs again next year! That means with Cally wearing a hand-me-down... no buying :)

Saturday, October 30, 2010

A moment (oh wait month) of pure insanity!


Chris may just sell me! I think he never really understood how much I loved Halloween until now. The first year we get married, it was 5 days before Halloween and so I didn't have much time to get mixed up with everything b/c we were on a honeymoon. The next year we were all mixed up with the magicians in Las Vegas so he figured it was just the company I kept. Than our next year we had just barely moved to New Mexico and I was a fish out of water. Than last year we had two micro-preemies who had barely come home so I didn't risk doing anything with them.

This year is quite different! So far we have done the following activities (many in full costume):
  1. Pumpkin Patch w/MiMa
  2. Boo at the Zoo (it was great trick or treating and everything)
  3. Farm and Ranch Ghost Tours
  4. Barnes & Noble Halloween Parade and Story Time
  5. Halloween at Aprendamos and Tresco Tots (the kids early intervention groups)
  6. Trick or Treat at our HB office (everyone was so sweet to our critters)
  7. Trick or Treat at the Farmer's Market
  8. Desert Hill's Elementary School Halloween Celebration
  9. Dia De Los Muertos celebration in Mesilla
  10. Dinner w/Gualita
We still have: Trick or Treat tommorro and dinner w/MiMaw and PaPaw

Practically every night this past week we have been watching the classics! Harmon loves Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin the best! But with recommendations from dear friends we picked up Ichabod and Mr. Toad and we also love Mickey's House of Villains. We don't watch a lot of TV so for Harmon this is a big treat. I love just sitting back and sipping the chocolate with the kids I love.


Today knowing I had a little spare time I actually made a really cute Pillowcase dress for Rachel. I think this was when Chris knew I was certifiable. But I figure we are going to church tomorrow she might as well go in style ;)

The one thing that has gone well for Chris is that I keep trying to bake. He has has been loving the Funfetti brownies, cakes, cookies, etc. that keep coming out of the kitchen. 1/2 the time he is taking over and making it and I must admit, he is MUCH better than I am. He is also loving ALL the candy Harmon and the Cupcakes are banking. Of course we are limiting them to lollipops so he of course is making sure it doesn't go to waste ;)

Thursday, October 28, 2010

My best ghost story!!!

So in honor of Halloween and my anniversary I thought I would share my best ghost story!


Chris and I celebrated our wedding with a honeymoon in San Francisco. It was wonderful. We stayed at the Westin St. Francis which is one of the oldest hotels in the city being built in 1904. It was great and so was the honeymoon. So on our second night there I was walking alone to the room b/c Chris was needing to schedule things with the concierge. While in the elevator a nice old couple saw me hit the 12th floor and they got all excited "oh you are on the haunted floor!" I just smiled it being 3 days before Halloween I assumed they had ghosts and goblins on the mind.

Our room was at the end of the hallway. The exits were all on the other end (stairs and elevator). That night we heard 3 loud distinctive bangs on the door. Because I have insomnia I was watching tv and so I looked at the door and saw no feet at the gap between the door and floor. There were no doors or other noises on the floor and my tv was very low. Chris immediately jumped out of bed and opened the door to look down the hallway the hallway was fully deserted. It was very unnerving so Chris called security and a few minutes later they called us to report that no one was on our floor or looking suspicious according to the cameras!

So on the day we checked out I went to the hotel channel to do the check out. After I checked out I left it there to listen to the hotel history. Than they explained the story of the "Fatty Arbunkle Scandal (link)" . They say that the ghost of a young girl haunted our room, 1220! Maybe she was knocking?


Wednesday, October 27, 2010

A Very Sad Pathetic Anniversary!

Last night I wanted to blog about all sorts of things but gave up after my first one. I was just feeling really bad. I told Chris that I have a very bad feeling about how I'm doing and he just blamed it on me being tired... well I was right. Today was a vomit fest but unlike when I have viruses I didn't feel as bad. I suspect it came from a batch of homemade salsa that went bad that I was munching on yesterday.


Our engagement picture

Anyhoo, today was our anniversary. We planned on having a nice lunch and than going to El Paso for a romantic date tonight sans kids. Chris got me a VERY sweet gift (the latest version of Photoshop) and I waited till today to buy his... of course I never left the house. I feel so bad, we had both been looking forward to this day but Chris has been sooo sweet and supportive. Tomorrow, if I am sans vomit, we will have lunch and Mom Hakes has offered to take the kids for a couple of hours in the evening so we can be romantic. I picked out a nice gift for him that is an IOU. I hope tomorrow we can enjoy a do over! But I guess the lesson in all of this is marriage always is for better or worse!

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The Customer is always wrong...


When I worked for the hotels in Las Vegas I always practiced the motto "the customer is always right" even when they were not. Now a days with our housing company that motto is even more important. After all in economics class I learned when there is a plethora of sellers but not a lot of buyers it is a buyer's market. Conversely when there is a plethora of customers and not a lot of sellers it is a seller's market.

In Las Cruces it is definitely a seller's market when it comes to health care services. We had to BEG for almost a year to get our current pediatrician who is awesome. The same issue occurs if you are looking for an OB/GYN, general practitioner, etc. Most offices treat you well... my OB's office is not one of them. I only go to them b/c they were the only ones who would take me when I first moved here. When I got pregnant I started going to El Paso for a specialist. Anyhow these people torture me. I set an appointment on Monday and got there early to ensure I could be out by 2:30.

First thing that happens the lady starts telling me you need to fill out the new client paperwork. I explain I am not a new client and none of my information has changed. She insists so I fill it out. She than complains, you filled it out messy... I than assure her nothing has changed. She than explains I have to have a pregnancy test. I explain I am on continuous birth control and since I am a cash client I would rather not. She insists so now I have a pee cup filled and I wait... and wait... and wait... I finally ask what is going on and she acts dumb. I than insist she gets up and find out what is going on. Low and behold I get called a few seconds later. I explain to the nurse that I have been waiting and need to leave to pick up my special needs child. She than explains that my file had not been taken back as it should have until I had complained. I than ask why I need to take a pregnancy test and she said I didn't need it.

So I get out just in time for Harmon. Unfortunately I forgot I had a pee cup in my purse (full mind you). Harmon was looking through the purse while I was talking to the teacher. He shouts "juice"! I'm really starting to regret this speech therapy.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Comments...

I got an email today saying comments had been turned off. Let me know if they still don't work! I think I fixed it :)

Also next week I am going to try and spruce up the blog a little. If anyone has any ideas to make it nicer please email me!

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Harmon and Stitch!


Vintage Harmon in his first week of life w/his Stitch doll

One of my favorite movies in the world is Lilo and Stitch! My favorite part is when Stitch creates the entire city of San Francisco out of the blocks in Lilo's room and than trounces them like Godzilla (link). Stitch was always a walking contradiction: cute, fluffly, crazy, and destructive all at once. He wanted to be good but he was sort of programmed otherwise.

Today I was watching the movie and I realized that is sort of how Harmon is. He is such a good little guy but his Sensory Integration makes it hard on him at times. Just like Stitch is cute and fluffy; Harmon is truly a heartbreaker in his polite manners, charming smile, and little blonde curls. If you catch him on his harder days you see a kid with the Terrible Two's on steroids. There is no way around it between the biting, hiting, and him banging his head against the wall... he is a handful (sort of like Stitch attacking San Francisco).

I don't really ever talk about this that often on our blog because I don't want Harmon thinking he was a bad kid later when he reads this. It is just that his brain is wired to seek danger, to struggle with communication, impulse control, etc. Part of the misconceptions about kids with Sensory Integration is that they are bad apples. We suspect Chris probably had this in some form and his childhood's earliest memories are of everyone telling him how bad he was. They are good kids who need help getting the extra energy out while they learn to handle their environment.

Harmon is doing so amazing. He has very few meltdowns these days and his focus is amazing. During parent/teacher conference on Friday his teacher marveled at how well he is doing. He is not only behaving but proving to be a leader in the classroom. She also told me that he knows things that her 4 and 5 yr olds do not know (like he can identify numbers 1-9 random on paper). As his verbal continues to improve he is learning to communicate rather than just scream. He sings all day long and even will tell us stories. While he still does "normal" two yr old stuff like whine about not getting a toy or get impatient; the issues we were most worried about seem to be slowly getting much better!!!

So just like Stitch over came his "programming" our Harmon is learning to over come his. The teacher thinks he will not require any special education by the time he enters Kinder and will be ahead of his peers even. I'm sure he will always have to cope with a sensory issue here or there I don't think it will keep him from doing anything he wants in life (in fact it might help him, after all we think that this is one of the reasons Chris is so organized always and a great multi-tasker)!!! So Harmon I hope you never think you were rotten or bad, you are a wonderful exuberant child who has so much to give the world and we are so glad to have you!

Friday, October 22, 2010

Some quick laughs with the kids!


I should have been born blonde!

I've always known Harmon LOVES his blondes. His Aunt Eliza, his MeMaw, and of course the love of his life: Taylor Swift! Now Cally is selling out as well. He has a new speech therapist who is this cute Taylor Swift look alike and he couldn't be more in love. He flirts, he gets all shy, etc. It is a hoot. Than there is Harmon who sees her approaching to the door and he is like "HI!!!" and than follows her obsessively and stares at her with puppy dog eyes. My boys will definitely be popular with the ladies something tells me.


I'm cheating on Chris w/Pop & Fresh

After my succession of failures with the baking and the cooking I went back to basics. I baked cupcakes for the first time since I was 8 using the Funfetti batter Chris loves! It turned out great and I renewed my love affair with eating raw cake batter. As was pointed out I ate an entire cupcake worth of batter before I got them in the oven. Now that they are cooked though I am leaving them to Chris and the office to eat... after all it is much more fun to eat the batter than the actual cupcake! Oh and they came out perfect!

After all Pop & Fresh reminds me of Chris... when I tickle his belly he laughs.

Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend

We were all wandering the mall as a family and Chris thought it would be fun to check out Zales and look act diamonds. So we went in there and Rachel went CRAZY! She loved all the fancy shiny diamonds. She just was obsessed and tried to keep grabbing everything. You have to feel sorry for this girl's future husband... the girl has expensive tastes!

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Chris' Amateur Police Work!

Deer Hunting

No Chris doesn't hunt (I would kill em b/c I feel guilty when we kill ants), but he bought this dear hunting camera that detects when "deer" walk into range of the camera and than sends a text message to the hunter. Chris got it because one of the companies' houses keeps getting the copper stolen out of it. I think he is just a little bat crap crazy but he is determined that the thieves will set off the camera and than he will rush out to the job site in the middle of the night and apprehend them red handed. I predicted we will get lots of texts at all hours of the day and night while none of them being copper thieves.

So tonight we had a family dinner out (I know... still no cooking for me this week). We were all eating when of course he gets a text... the deer were in range. He leaves dinner (me alone sitting at the table w/the 3 kids) and chases after the suspects... there was nobody there! And I ended up eating a lot more than I ever would have sitting at a table for a prolonged period of time with tons of food and no adult conversation. So who here bets that in the middle of the night a stray dog will wander in one of the houses and Chris will chase after it? I give him one more chance to get his "deer"!

Edit: The darn thing went off last night at 1 am!!!!! I was so mad. Chris went out in the dark of night and I was worried if he did catch people what would happen... Than he came home and said it was nothing. I asked him how that could be if the house was locked. Simple the back door was not on it. Thus the alarm probably went off b/c some stray dog wandered in. I was furious. So this morning Chris had a big bouquet of flowers waiting for me when I woke up and made me breakfast in bed. He promised no more deer hunting (our Super-Intendent actually wants to keep tabs) and so how can I be mad... after all I got eggs and sausage this morning!

I asked Chris this morning what the pictures showed on the camera. The earlier incident were actually our buyers looking at their house but the night pictures... well they didn't come out... yeah, I'm not buying that. 10 bucks says their cat burglar was just a cat!

Proper Etiquette for a 50's Housewife!

In response to yesterday's blog one of my friends copied and pasted this from somewhere else (sorry I don't have the source). But I thought it was a hoot!!!! Hope you get a good laugh!

The following guidelines appeared in a 1955 edition of Good House Keeping Magazine.

  • Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have be thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they get home and the prospect of a good meal is part of the warm welcome needed.
  • Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you’ll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.
  • Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.
  • Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives. Run a dust cloth over the tables.
  • During the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering to his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.
  • Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Encourage the children to be quiet.
  • Be happy to see him.
  • Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.
  • Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.
  • Don’t greet him with complaints and problems.
  • Don’t complain if he’s late for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through at work.
  • Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or lie him down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.
  • Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.
  • Don’t ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.
  • A good wife always knows her place.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Betty Crocker on Crack!

I'm really grateful I am a mom in this day and age because I COULD NOT hack it in the 1950's. I'm really grateful for who I married because my husband cares values me more for my education and my opinions on economics and politics than for my cooking skills. This is a good thing because if that were not the case I would be single (after all the only thing home cooked so far this week was when I put a sweet potato and some green beans in the microwave while he grilled our salmon on Monday... otherwise it has been DiGiorno pizza and brats on the grill).

Nevertheless I am not putting down my dear friends who are culinary geniuses. In fact I revere you for your talents! I read my friends blogs on cooking and I hear of their tales during girls nights; and you inspire me. So much so that I bought a series of cook books this past month (I can cook some great Mexican and Puerto Rican dishes but I want to branch out with more variety and healthier alternatives). I became determined that I too could be the cute chick in pearls baking the pies.

I was wrong! In one week I've managed to ruin a fish meal, apple crisps, and a pumpkin desert. ALL TASTED HORRIBLE. All were cooked unevenly. And yes ALL Of them Chris ate with a smile on his face and asked for seconds. Add in a very horrible experience trying to make a modge podge craft w/some friends (Harm can do better in his pre-k class) I'm trying not to let all the "house wife" failures get me down.

I guess I'm just not meant to be Betty Crocker (which is probably good considering Chris has a sweets addiction) or Suzy Homemaker. I just hate failing. Just know all my dear friends with great talents in cooking, home organizing, crafts, and cleaning... I don't like you any more.

Edit: Chris states officially for the record that none of these dishes were as bad as I state. Of course this is the man who also is asking me if we were married on the 27 or 26th...

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Halloween Preview!

Presenting!!!!!!!!!

Cally the Lobster!

Rachel the Bumblebee

And Sponge Bob Harmon


I'm excited, I this will be a really fun year. We are planning on a couple of parties and a few community Trick or Treat activities. I still am looking for a shirt under Rach's dress b/c it is a bit big on her (also if it is a cold front she will need something really warm but as of now it is still in the 80's here). Also Harmon needs to get used to his costume. He picked it out, he loves Sponge Bob, he just doesn't understand why he is wearing Sponge Bob!

Corn Mazes, they are not fun, they are a quest!


Every year Chris just LOVES to go visit the corn maze. We started doing this when we moved back to Las Cruces a couple of years ago. Now for me the idea of getting lost in a giant maze of corn is for an hour and a half is not my idea of good times but Chris makes it fun. He gets into his operations manager mode: makes a plan, and than methodically executes it swiftly walking through corn while I limp my way along after him. Of course this all hits a wall b/c the maps they give us are never correct. So than he is all interrogating the poor employees of the maze like a cop on Law & Order until eventually they give us the correct route and we accomplish our mission. This is NOT how this year worked out!


On Friday I went to the pumpkin patch and maze where these cute pics came from. Chris couldn't change his work plans so instead MiMa came for a little while and Miriam (our nanny) came afterwards to help me out. We picked out pumpkins, went on a hay ride, took pictures, enjoyed some rides, etc but both Miriam and I knew there was no way we wanted to take these kids into a corn maze. So after our date fell through on Friday Chris was determined we shall do a corn maze... all of us...

So we drove out to a place called La Union where they have the big maze. Except oddly enough there were not many people there. After we bought tickets we found out the good maze had moved to near La Vina and we were in a new maze. This maze was not nearly as organized or as nice as the La Union one we normally went too. They were very nice though and even though we were so hot and tired we decided "lets do it". So we start it and yes the map was COMPLETELY wrong so Chris started whining. As we got deeper into the maze and the corn started hitting little Harmon he started screaming and crying uncontrollably! "Scary Scary Plants! Scary Scary Plants! Scary Scary Plants! Scary Scary Plants!" and curled up in a little ball in the stroller. It was so sad! The babies were crying, I was limping like always, Chris was frustrated, Harmon was screaming about the plants, so finally we gave up and got an escort out.

We learned that pumpkin patches are awesome for little ones but corn mazes should be left to the adults. Hopefully we can still get a night date going and get to go through the La Union maze at night just the two of us.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

We finally got a date night!

Two sisters came through for us and so we hung out at Buffalo Wild Wings for a couple of hours... KID FREE! Wohoo!!!



In a cute Rachel story: she woke up after we had left. When the girls went to her crib to get her she immediately got upset so she grabbed her trusty blanket and went about searching for us room to room! When she realized she had been abandoned she sat in the corner of the living room facing the door (with her blanket) refusing any interaction with her sitters. Poor thing didn't like being left behind :(. Our boys on the other hand loved the sitters so much they wish we had stayed out longer!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Friday, October 15, 2010

Date night gone bad and only got worse!

Tonight I was VERY VERY excited b/c I had planned a really neat date for Chris. We were going to the corn maze at night. Since today I took the kids to the pumpkin patch I thought it would be fun to take Chris there to the corn maze part tonight (which is one of Chris' favorite things and I thought going at night would be super fun and romantic). Anyhow, a different baby-sitter canceled on us at the last minute... 2 babysitters, 2 wks in a row... are my kids really that horrible? I'm starting to feel like that Simpson's episode where the sitter agency hears the name "Bart" and everyone starts going crazy out of fear!



So we decided to do what any jilted couple would do, go to Sam's club with them critters... Okay no sane couple would do that but we had put it off long enough! My nanny pointed out we had 20 of Rachel's diapers left, 9 of Callum's, and only a meager 5 of Harm's, so it was either now or we waste money at Walgreens. We promise ourselves we will go once every few wks so the tab doesn't equal a mortgage payment but like a plague we wait till we are out of EVERYTHING.

We start having dinner there but of course Harmon hates the entire menu (his sensory issues) and so we have to make some Mac & Cheese before we leave. Than there is no fresh vegetables so we have to bring some veggies for the babies. So we sit, eat some food, and get to work. The first thing I do is grab a giant bag of Halloween chocolates (the good ones like Reeses PB cups and Snickers Bars). Than I have Chris asking: "can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate?" every stinking 10 seconds. Than Harmon who LOVES both repeating and chocolate starts going: "can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate?" In unison with Dad. He no longer is willing to sit in the cart until I bribe him w/yogurt bites and take the chocolates out of my bag. Afterwards Chris and I are enticed by the crumb we just simply don't need (exmp would be a 9 pack of toothbrushes or a giant box of 5 brownie mixes). Quickly the joy of putting nonsense bulk items into the cart turns into misery once we have to get the essentials such as 4 separate boxes of diapers (each child wears a different size and than Pull Ups for potty training), two boxes of wipes, etc.

A long, long time later the kids are now munching on apple slices and we check out. We are exhausted, they are cranky, and the worse part is that we have to unload it all. At the last minute Chris reminds me "grab the Halloween candy for the Trick or Treaters"... I go and grab a big bucket of Halloween pretzel bags (we only had 3 kids come by last year and I know full well Chris' plot of eating 180 fun size candy bars well before any child knocks on the door). The nightmare is now over, until we get home!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Introducing the World's Greatest Drama King!

This blog was written by Chris and I tonight. Callum is just such a little character, like no other little guy we've ever met.

His war cry when someone is trying to take away a toy has turned into a whole new dimension of cuteness (or annoying depending on the moment). You see when he doesn't get what he wants he flings his back on to the floor and he starts to MOAN an CRY but if you give him the toy he just POPS right up as if nothing happened at all. It reminds of my brother who used to "faint" in the middle of the grocery store when my mom wouldn't get him a toy or candy. We are just shocked a 14 mos old has already mastered the art of manipulation.

Cally is all about them ladies. He smiles, he then puts his hands behind his back and looks down shyly, and than shyly looks up at them again with a gleeful smile. It is a perfectly heartbreaking seduction. He loves to dance to music. He just sways gently back and forth but he sees you looking at him he gets all shy and embarrassed.

Daddy loves to tease him, either by pretending to do something and "freezing" or hiding behind the crib and sneaking up on him. Both of these things cause such deep belly laughs from Callum that you can't help but laugh.

All of our kids are very special in their own way and for Cally one of his gifts is his amazing spirit. He is our peace maker, drama king, class clown, and little joy all at once!

Please Watch!!


This blog's main purpose is to just share stories of the Cupcakes, but every now and again someone else's story touches my heart. If you have the time please watch this brief YouTube video. The mother had her son abducted by her ex-husband. It has been 5 days and he can be anywhere. Also please share this link on your blog, twitter, or FaceBook page. The more people who see this the more chance of someone recognizing either Everett or the Dad!

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

I've got it all figured out ;)

Yesterday we were having lunch w/some friends who happened to be new parents. We were all laughing because some one had told them "you have it all figured out". Our friends like us knew the truth: YOU NEVER HAVE IT ALL FIGURED OUT! Sometimes I think I have it down but new problems always arise or old ones always come back.

Take for example Harmon has been doing so well in pre-k and his sensory issues have been like night and day. He has few meltdowns, is better behaved, his speech is exploding, and is so much happier. I felt like WOW, we are really conquering all of this special needs stuff with him!!! Now his night terrors have been increasingly getting worse (last night we were woken up 7 times to the poor guy in agony moaning and screaming, but not actually being awake)! So now once again we will be meeting with his pediatrician Thursday, we are talking to the school counselor, his teacher, and I'm a googling trying to figure out the latest mystery.

I should be down (I'm not down, just tired) about this but I know it will pass. That is the life of being a parent. You figure it out and than like a moving puzzle it messes itself all up again. Just like our friends joked "we have it all figured out until the next growth spurt"; I shall also be enjoying my victories as a mom... while they last.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Date night gone BAD (and ended up okay)!!!

So we try to go on dates once a week but it is a challenge. The problem is that 3 kids under 3 seem to scare most baby-sitters. So normally we take a lunch during the week since our nanny is already on the job and the other times Gualita in El Paso takes the critters.

But Chris really wanted to go to the NMSU vs UNM game (the company gets free tickets and I guess it was our weekend) so we got a babysitter... who canceled on us... 1 hr before. Since obviously no one is willing to take the critters at the last minute I wanted to cancel but Chris was determined.



So by the time we got the critters ready and left the parking was ALL gone. The cop felt bad for us though and showed us a secret lot where we got great parking. Next we discovered we forgot the diaper bag (with everyone's food) so the kids were going to have to eat our crap food. Than as we got Harmon out we realized he had NO shoes... Chris still not to be deterred just carried Harmon everywhere and Cally (I lugged the little one). I think people thought our family was more curious than the game b/c everywhere we went the comments abounded. I truly felt like we were a side-show attraction. We should have worn our company's logo and we could have been a great advertisement "we build homes for families suddenly out of space".


I must admit though, Chris was right! They loved the noise and the energy around there. We all had a great time for the 35 or so minutes we were there (we couldn't stay long b/c bed time was calling) and miracle of miracles NMSU actually won. And as a side note these were the nicest most laid back fans I've ever seen (not the Texas fans yelling obscenities and standing on the stands screaming or the UNLV fans throwing beer at one another). So maybe, with better planning we just might try this w/the critters again!



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Friday, October 8, 2010

Silliest and most vain baby product EVER

Tonight I took Chris to Dollar Tree (his first ever visit). This is where we found the silliest baby product ever!


Are you tired of your baby girl being bald? Than get her hair extensions!!!! I really can't stop laughing at this although I think are some moms in Vegas who really will want this ;)

Thursday, October 7, 2010

A very special day!



A year ago today I got a call from the NICU nurse right before I was leaving for the hospital. They had told us many times before Rachel might come home but each time I would get to the hospital all excited, but there was always a setback. So this phone call was a VERY big surprise. Not only was Rachel coming home BUT Callum (who had been behind on his weight) was ALSO coming home. Since than my life has NEVER been better (and I've never been more exhausted)!


Rachel,

A year ago you came home from the hospital and now you are taking your first steps! Even with feet that don't quite work right you are determined to walk. That is you, you have the determination to do anything and everything you put your heart into and I've no doubt you will rule the world one day ;) You will always be our "little princess" and we love you like crazy! We hope as you move mountains you will still have time for a quick kiss and hug.

Love,
Dad and Mom

Callum,

You are the little fighter who surprises us always. Last year I was worried I was going to leave you behind in the NICU but than BAM you caught up and got to go home w/your sister. You are the biggest sweetheart. You are quiet and gentle but I have no doubt in my mind that in your heart you posess the strength of an army. With a combination like that how could you lose? We love you so much and I hope we will always be close to you and feel your beautiful spirit as you go out into the big world one day!

Love,
Mom and Dad

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Obsession... and some good news



One of the best things about pre-k is that Harmon is really learning to express himself well. For the first time he is getting some real intelligible speech! Of course this means we are dealing with new spectrum behavior that we haven't seen mainly repeating, and repeating, and repeating, and repeating... Yesterday for example I showed him a picture of Uncle William at the Raiders game in face paint. For the next 2 hrs he kept saying over and over again LOUDLY "Uncle Willy Scary". There was no changing the conversation. The boy was obsessed. Today he repeated "garage broken" about 20 thousand times. I know this is normal and he is just expressing himself, but boy it makes me miss the silent days!


I got a new computer tonight thanks to Chris' urging. He has been worried that my computer would permanently keel over at any moment (and since my life is in there he knew I would go insane if that happened). You see my work computer was destroyed by Harmon so I reverted back to my Ibook, the one I bought in college (in 2003). It has been having unexplained power failure and was slowly dying. So the good news is for all those who follow my blog, I now once again have Spell Check! This means you will no longer have to suffer through my dyslexic faulty spelling.

Monday, October 4, 2010

The Flu Shot Conspiracy!


Growing up I was a bonafide Simpsons addict!!! I learned from a young age that everything important in life you learn from The Simpsons. One episode that I always think of is when Flanders declares after reading Homer's gossip blog "They are controlling our minds with Flu Shots"! I find it hillarious b/c I actually know many people who believe this to be true... or in some other form. My mother believes flu shots are a conspiracy by the AMA and the pharmaceutical industry to actually innoculate us with the flu virus so they can sell medicines and keep the offices full.

This year I decided I should get the flu shot and get the children vaccinated as well. To me it makes sense considering our home has been a plagueville this last year and Harm just started school. I have a low immune system, Callum has breathing problems, and heck who needs the flu. Of course my mother is angry at me. She blames my stomach virus of last week on the shot (which is amazing when you consider Chris had it first and never had a shot). Chris thinks he is tough and doesn't need to waste $2o. My nanny is at least honest and hates needles (which I do too)!

So we shall see who is right! If any of these people come down with the flu I win. If they don't I wasted 4 co-pays but at least Harmon got a yummy lollipop afterwards. If the Simpsons are right my shot will give me Black Friday fever and increase my Christmas shopping!


Saturday, October 2, 2010

Lessons learned while being sick!

My husband always thinks taking sick pictures of me are funny! One day I shall return him the favor ;) Anyhoo the plague has ended. I'm still a little tired but I am no longer having fever/chills, returning my food to sender, or seeing multiple people when in fact there is only one person in front of me.

Being couch/bed bound for 3 straight days taught me my critters are getting REALLY big really fast. Cally loved me being immobile and took full advantage by hanging out in my lap the whole time. I could see in his eyes Harmon when we first moved to Las Cruces. It makes me want to spend just more time where I am not preoccupied with life and I'm just appreciating how cute they all are. Each one I observed special little things with this week:

  • Harmon has gotten so much better w/his sensory intergration. He is much calmer and happier. He is really starting to express himself with his words! He sings this song all on his own, 5 little ducks, and is so proud of himself. He will sing it to you all day if you let him.
  • Rachel is so smart. My Mom got Harmon this Toy Story Race Track designed for kids 2+ Rachel has already FIGURED IT OUT! I just can't believe she is handling these small cars, putting them on the top of the track and than pushing the button to go down.
  • Callum is getting really strong and so well coordinated. We have those little plastic balls that we all played with as kids. Cally goes and throws the ball against the wall so it comes back at him. He plays like this for 5 or so minutes. Very cute and smart!

Today I heard something interesting. It was a talk about how young airplane pilots fly into turbulance and decide the best thing to do is to fly faster; but really when you fly planes and you run into turbulance the best thing you can do is slow down. I attack life at full speed but it made me think; what am I missing while I'm trying to do "it all". Later in the talk I heard the speaker said something to the effect of: we can fill up our lives with many good things but sometimes b/c we are so busy we are missing some of the best things. I think this is me! Slowing down a little isn't the worse thing... lets just see if I heed my own advice.

Oh the sadness!


Last week I was lucky. While Texas was horribly being slaughtered by UCLA I was too busy in Arizona to notice. Had we not been traveling I would have been at Bufflo Wild Wings teaching my children colorful vocabulary. So this week I pretty much knew we were doomed. I prepared myself that OU was about to kick our boots. It still sucked and in two weeks I fear history will repeat itself w/Nebraska. We are still wearing our orange proudly. You can't be top 5 every year! Now we just have to hope either Garrett Gilbert miraculously becomes decent or we quickly get rid of him, b/c at this rate he has been OU's and UCLA's MVP.

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Halloween Highlights 2010!


Chris sent me to my room tonight after we got home from Tricks or Treat! He said I had enough. I think he is right! I'm so tired I think I will let last night's blog stand as a testimony to Halloween 2010. It was wonderful! I can't wait till next year. The craziest thing was the perfect weather, highs of upper 70's all week.

The neatest thing we did was late last night Chris and I stayed up till midnight watching some old magician clips (I used to help out with his show) online on Comedy Central's site. We just laughed and had our spooky romantic time.

Chris is just grateful this is the only holiday I really go crazy on. Next week promises to be insane for us with family photos, Dia de los Muertos, and Ren Fair but the main insanity is over... enjoy the highlight pics ;) I'll have more pictures up later this week on our other blog.





Final note: Costumes were funny. I learned big bulky costumes are a fail. Cally went crazy in his lobster costume (he was ready to go to Red Lobster and be put out of his misery). Harm picked out his own costume this year and I must admit it was the biggest hit. Kids and adults alike kept shouting "hey Sponge Bob". My costume got lost on Friday night and so I had to improvise with old ones and Chris' broke :p I'm glad Rachel and Harmo will likely fit in theirs again next year! That means with Cally wearing a hand-me-down... no buying :)

Saturday, October 30, 2010

A moment (oh wait month) of pure insanity!


Chris may just sell me! I think he never really understood how much I loved Halloween until now. The first year we get married, it was 5 days before Halloween and so I didn't have much time to get mixed up with everything b/c we were on a honeymoon. The next year we were all mixed up with the magicians in Las Vegas so he figured it was just the company I kept. Than our next year we had just barely moved to New Mexico and I was a fish out of water. Than last year we had two micro-preemies who had barely come home so I didn't risk doing anything with them.

This year is quite different! So far we have done the following activities (many in full costume):
  1. Pumpkin Patch w/MiMa
  2. Boo at the Zoo (it was great trick or treating and everything)
  3. Farm and Ranch Ghost Tours
  4. Barnes & Noble Halloween Parade and Story Time
  5. Halloween at Aprendamos and Tresco Tots (the kids early intervention groups)
  6. Trick or Treat at our HB office (everyone was so sweet to our critters)
  7. Trick or Treat at the Farmer's Market
  8. Desert Hill's Elementary School Halloween Celebration
  9. Dia De Los Muertos celebration in Mesilla
  10. Dinner w/Gualita
We still have: Trick or Treat tommorro and dinner w/MiMaw and PaPaw

Practically every night this past week we have been watching the classics! Harmon loves Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin the best! But with recommendations from dear friends we picked up Ichabod and Mr. Toad and we also love Mickey's House of Villains. We don't watch a lot of TV so for Harmon this is a big treat. I love just sitting back and sipping the chocolate with the kids I love.


Today knowing I had a little spare time I actually made a really cute Pillowcase dress for Rachel. I think this was when Chris knew I was certifiable. But I figure we are going to church tomorrow she might as well go in style ;)

The one thing that has gone well for Chris is that I keep trying to bake. He has has been loving the Funfetti brownies, cakes, cookies, etc. that keep coming out of the kitchen. 1/2 the time he is taking over and making it and I must admit, he is MUCH better than I am. He is also loving ALL the candy Harmon and the Cupcakes are banking. Of course we are limiting them to lollipops so he of course is making sure it doesn't go to waste ;)

Thursday, October 28, 2010

My best ghost story!!!

So in honor of Halloween and my anniversary I thought I would share my best ghost story!


Chris and I celebrated our wedding with a honeymoon in San Francisco. It was wonderful. We stayed at the Westin St. Francis which is one of the oldest hotels in the city being built in 1904. It was great and so was the honeymoon. So on our second night there I was walking alone to the room b/c Chris was needing to schedule things with the concierge. While in the elevator a nice old couple saw me hit the 12th floor and they got all excited "oh you are on the haunted floor!" I just smiled it being 3 days before Halloween I assumed they had ghosts and goblins on the mind.

Our room was at the end of the hallway. The exits were all on the other end (stairs and elevator). That night we heard 3 loud distinctive bangs on the door. Because I have insomnia I was watching tv and so I looked at the door and saw no feet at the gap between the door and floor. There were no doors or other noises on the floor and my tv was very low. Chris immediately jumped out of bed and opened the door to look down the hallway the hallway was fully deserted. It was very unnerving so Chris called security and a few minutes later they called us to report that no one was on our floor or looking suspicious according to the cameras!

So on the day we checked out I went to the hotel channel to do the check out. After I checked out I left it there to listen to the hotel history. Than they explained the story of the "Fatty Arbunkle Scandal (link)" . They say that the ghost of a young girl haunted our room, 1220! Maybe she was knocking?


Wednesday, October 27, 2010

A Very Sad Pathetic Anniversary!

Last night I wanted to blog about all sorts of things but gave up after my first one. I was just feeling really bad. I told Chris that I have a very bad feeling about how I'm doing and he just blamed it on me being tired... well I was right. Today was a vomit fest but unlike when I have viruses I didn't feel as bad. I suspect it came from a batch of homemade salsa that went bad that I was munching on yesterday.


Our engagement picture

Anyhoo, today was our anniversary. We planned on having a nice lunch and than going to El Paso for a romantic date tonight sans kids. Chris got me a VERY sweet gift (the latest version of Photoshop) and I waited till today to buy his... of course I never left the house. I feel so bad, we had both been looking forward to this day but Chris has been sooo sweet and supportive. Tomorrow, if I am sans vomit, we will have lunch and Mom Hakes has offered to take the kids for a couple of hours in the evening so we can be romantic. I picked out a nice gift for him that is an IOU. I hope tomorrow we can enjoy a do over! But I guess the lesson in all of this is marriage always is for better or worse!

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The Customer is always wrong...


When I worked for the hotels in Las Vegas I always practiced the motto "the customer is always right" even when they were not. Now a days with our housing company that motto is even more important. After all in economics class I learned when there is a plethora of sellers but not a lot of buyers it is a buyer's market. Conversely when there is a plethora of customers and not a lot of sellers it is a seller's market.

In Las Cruces it is definitely a seller's market when it comes to health care services. We had to BEG for almost a year to get our current pediatrician who is awesome. The same issue occurs if you are looking for an OB/GYN, general practitioner, etc. Most offices treat you well... my OB's office is not one of them. I only go to them b/c they were the only ones who would take me when I first moved here. When I got pregnant I started going to El Paso for a specialist. Anyhow these people torture me. I set an appointment on Monday and got there early to ensure I could be out by 2:30.

First thing that happens the lady starts telling me you need to fill out the new client paperwork. I explain I am not a new client and none of my information has changed. She insists so I fill it out. She than complains, you filled it out messy... I than assure her nothing has changed. She than explains I have to have a pregnancy test. I explain I am on continuous birth control and since I am a cash client I would rather not. She insists so now I have a pee cup filled and I wait... and wait... and wait... I finally ask what is going on and she acts dumb. I than insist she gets up and find out what is going on. Low and behold I get called a few seconds later. I explain to the nurse that I have been waiting and need to leave to pick up my special needs child. She than explains that my file had not been taken back as it should have until I had complained. I than ask why I need to take a pregnancy test and she said I didn't need it.

So I get out just in time for Harmon. Unfortunately I forgot I had a pee cup in my purse (full mind you). Harmon was looking through the purse while I was talking to the teacher. He shouts "juice"! I'm really starting to regret this speech therapy.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Comments...

I got an email today saying comments had been turned off. Let me know if they still don't work! I think I fixed it :)

Also next week I am going to try and spruce up the blog a little. If anyone has any ideas to make it nicer please email me!

Sunday, October 24, 2010

Harmon and Stitch!


Vintage Harmon in his first week of life w/his Stitch doll

One of my favorite movies in the world is Lilo and Stitch! My favorite part is when Stitch creates the entire city of San Francisco out of the blocks in Lilo's room and than trounces them like Godzilla (link). Stitch was always a walking contradiction: cute, fluffly, crazy, and destructive all at once. He wanted to be good but he was sort of programmed otherwise.

Today I was watching the movie and I realized that is sort of how Harmon is. He is such a good little guy but his Sensory Integration makes it hard on him at times. Just like Stitch is cute and fluffy; Harmon is truly a heartbreaker in his polite manners, charming smile, and little blonde curls. If you catch him on his harder days you see a kid with the Terrible Two's on steroids. There is no way around it between the biting, hiting, and him banging his head against the wall... he is a handful (sort of like Stitch attacking San Francisco).

I don't really ever talk about this that often on our blog because I don't want Harmon thinking he was a bad kid later when he reads this. It is just that his brain is wired to seek danger, to struggle with communication, impulse control, etc. Part of the misconceptions about kids with Sensory Integration is that they are bad apples. We suspect Chris probably had this in some form and his childhood's earliest memories are of everyone telling him how bad he was. They are good kids who need help getting the extra energy out while they learn to handle their environment.

Harmon is doing so amazing. He has very few meltdowns these days and his focus is amazing. During parent/teacher conference on Friday his teacher marveled at how well he is doing. He is not only behaving but proving to be a leader in the classroom. She also told me that he knows things that her 4 and 5 yr olds do not know (like he can identify numbers 1-9 random on paper). As his verbal continues to improve he is learning to communicate rather than just scream. He sings all day long and even will tell us stories. While he still does "normal" two yr old stuff like whine about not getting a toy or get impatient; the issues we were most worried about seem to be slowly getting much better!!!

So just like Stitch over came his "programming" our Harmon is learning to over come his. The teacher thinks he will not require any special education by the time he enters Kinder and will be ahead of his peers even. I'm sure he will always have to cope with a sensory issue here or there I don't think it will keep him from doing anything he wants in life (in fact it might help him, after all we think that this is one of the reasons Chris is so organized always and a great multi-tasker)!!! So Harmon I hope you never think you were rotten or bad, you are a wonderful exuberant child who has so much to give the world and we are so glad to have you!

Friday, October 22, 2010

Some quick laughs with the kids!


I should have been born blonde!

I've always known Harmon LOVES his blondes. His Aunt Eliza, his MeMaw, and of course the love of his life: Taylor Swift! Now Cally is selling out as well. He has a new speech therapist who is this cute Taylor Swift look alike and he couldn't be more in love. He flirts, he gets all shy, etc. It is a hoot. Than there is Harmon who sees her approaching to the door and he is like "HI!!!" and than follows her obsessively and stares at her with puppy dog eyes. My boys will definitely be popular with the ladies something tells me.


I'm cheating on Chris w/Pop & Fresh

After my succession of failures with the baking and the cooking I went back to basics. I baked cupcakes for the first time since I was 8 using the Funfetti batter Chris loves! It turned out great and I renewed my love affair with eating raw cake batter. As was pointed out I ate an entire cupcake worth of batter before I got them in the oven. Now that they are cooked though I am leaving them to Chris and the office to eat... after all it is much more fun to eat the batter than the actual cupcake! Oh and they came out perfect!

After all Pop & Fresh reminds me of Chris... when I tickle his belly he laughs.

Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend

We were all wandering the mall as a family and Chris thought it would be fun to check out Zales and look act diamonds. So we went in there and Rachel went CRAZY! She loved all the fancy shiny diamonds. She just was obsessed and tried to keep grabbing everything. You have to feel sorry for this girl's future husband... the girl has expensive tastes!

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Chris' Amateur Police Work!

Deer Hunting

No Chris doesn't hunt (I would kill em b/c I feel guilty when we kill ants), but he bought this dear hunting camera that detects when "deer" walk into range of the camera and than sends a text message to the hunter. Chris got it because one of the companies' houses keeps getting the copper stolen out of it. I think he is just a little bat crap crazy but he is determined that the thieves will set off the camera and than he will rush out to the job site in the middle of the night and apprehend them red handed. I predicted we will get lots of texts at all hours of the day and night while none of them being copper thieves.

So tonight we had a family dinner out (I know... still no cooking for me this week). We were all eating when of course he gets a text... the deer were in range. He leaves dinner (me alone sitting at the table w/the 3 kids) and chases after the suspects... there was nobody there! And I ended up eating a lot more than I ever would have sitting at a table for a prolonged period of time with tons of food and no adult conversation. So who here bets that in the middle of the night a stray dog will wander in one of the houses and Chris will chase after it? I give him one more chance to get his "deer"!

Edit: The darn thing went off last night at 1 am!!!!! I was so mad. Chris went out in the dark of night and I was worried if he did catch people what would happen... Than he came home and said it was nothing. I asked him how that could be if the house was locked. Simple the back door was not on it. Thus the alarm probably went off b/c some stray dog wandered in. I was furious. So this morning Chris had a big bouquet of flowers waiting for me when I woke up and made me breakfast in bed. He promised no more deer hunting (our Super-Intendent actually wants to keep tabs) and so how can I be mad... after all I got eggs and sausage this morning!

I asked Chris this morning what the pictures showed on the camera. The earlier incident were actually our buyers looking at their house but the night pictures... well they didn't come out... yeah, I'm not buying that. 10 bucks says their cat burglar was just a cat!

Proper Etiquette for a 50's Housewife!

In response to yesterday's blog one of my friends copied and pasted this from somewhere else (sorry I don't have the source). But I thought it was a hoot!!!! Hope you get a good laugh!

The following guidelines appeared in a 1955 edition of Good House Keeping Magazine.

  • Have dinner ready. Plan ahead, even the night before, to have a delicious meal ready on time for his return. This is a way of letting him know that you have be thinking about him and are concerned about his needs. Most men are hungry when they get home and the prospect of a good meal is part of the warm welcome needed.
  • Prepare yourself. Take 15 minutes to rest so you’ll be refreshed when he arrives. Touch up your make-up, put a ribbon in your hair and be fresh-looking. He has just been with a lot of work-weary people.
  • Be a little gay and a little more interesting for him. His boring day may need a lift and one of your duties is to provide it.
  • Clear away the clutter. Make one last trip through the main part of the house just before your husband arrives. Run a dust cloth over the tables.
  • During the cooler months of the year you should prepare and light a fire for him to unwind by. Your husband will feel he has reached a haven of rest and order, and it will give you a lift too. After all, catering to his comfort will provide you with immense personal satisfaction.
  • Minimize all noise. At the time of his arrival, eliminate all noise of the washer, dryer or vacuum. Encourage the children to be quiet.
  • Be happy to see him.
  • Greet him with a warm smile and show sincerity in your desire to please him.
  • Listen to him. You may have a dozen important things to tell him, but the moment of his arrival is not the time. Let him talk first - remember, his topics of conversation are more important than yours.
  • Don’t greet him with complaints and problems.
  • Don’t complain if he’s late for dinner or even if he stays out all night. Count this as minor compared to what he might have gone through at work.
  • Make him comfortable. Have him lean back in a comfortable chair or lie him down in the bedroom. Have a cool or warm drink ready for him.
  • Arrange his pillow and offer to take off his shoes. Speak in a low, soothing and pleasant voice.
  • Don’t ask him questions about his actions or question his judgment or integrity. Remember, he is the master of the house and as such will always exercise his will with fairness and truthfulness. You have no right to question him.
  • A good wife always knows her place.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Betty Crocker on Crack!

I'm really grateful I am a mom in this day and age because I COULD NOT hack it in the 1950's. I'm really grateful for who I married because my husband cares values me more for my education and my opinions on economics and politics than for my cooking skills. This is a good thing because if that were not the case I would be single (after all the only thing home cooked so far this week was when I put a sweet potato and some green beans in the microwave while he grilled our salmon on Monday... otherwise it has been DiGiorno pizza and brats on the grill).

Nevertheless I am not putting down my dear friends who are culinary geniuses. In fact I revere you for your talents! I read my friends blogs on cooking and I hear of their tales during girls nights; and you inspire me. So much so that I bought a series of cook books this past month (I can cook some great Mexican and Puerto Rican dishes but I want to branch out with more variety and healthier alternatives). I became determined that I too could be the cute chick in pearls baking the pies.

I was wrong! In one week I've managed to ruin a fish meal, apple crisps, and a pumpkin desert. ALL TASTED HORRIBLE. All were cooked unevenly. And yes ALL Of them Chris ate with a smile on his face and asked for seconds. Add in a very horrible experience trying to make a modge podge craft w/some friends (Harm can do better in his pre-k class) I'm trying not to let all the "house wife" failures get me down.

I guess I'm just not meant to be Betty Crocker (which is probably good considering Chris has a sweets addiction) or Suzy Homemaker. I just hate failing. Just know all my dear friends with great talents in cooking, home organizing, crafts, and cleaning... I don't like you any more.

Edit: Chris states officially for the record that none of these dishes were as bad as I state. Of course this is the man who also is asking me if we were married on the 27 or 26th...

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Halloween Preview!

Presenting!!!!!!!!!

Cally the Lobster!

Rachel the Bumblebee

And Sponge Bob Harmon


I'm excited, I this will be a really fun year. We are planning on a couple of parties and a few community Trick or Treat activities. I still am looking for a shirt under Rach's dress b/c it is a bit big on her (also if it is a cold front she will need something really warm but as of now it is still in the 80's here). Also Harmon needs to get used to his costume. He picked it out, he loves Sponge Bob, he just doesn't understand why he is wearing Sponge Bob!

Corn Mazes, they are not fun, they are a quest!


Every year Chris just LOVES to go visit the corn maze. We started doing this when we moved back to Las Cruces a couple of years ago. Now for me the idea of getting lost in a giant maze of corn is for an hour and a half is not my idea of good times but Chris makes it fun. He gets into his operations manager mode: makes a plan, and than methodically executes it swiftly walking through corn while I limp my way along after him. Of course this all hits a wall b/c the maps they give us are never correct. So than he is all interrogating the poor employees of the maze like a cop on Law & Order until eventually they give us the correct route and we accomplish our mission. This is NOT how this year worked out!


On Friday I went to the pumpkin patch and maze where these cute pics came from. Chris couldn't change his work plans so instead MiMa came for a little while and Miriam (our nanny) came afterwards to help me out. We picked out pumpkins, went on a hay ride, took pictures, enjoyed some rides, etc but both Miriam and I knew there was no way we wanted to take these kids into a corn maze. So after our date fell through on Friday Chris was determined we shall do a corn maze... all of us...

So we drove out to a place called La Union where they have the big maze. Except oddly enough there were not many people there. After we bought tickets we found out the good maze had moved to near La Vina and we were in a new maze. This maze was not nearly as organized or as nice as the La Union one we normally went too. They were very nice though and even though we were so hot and tired we decided "lets do it". So we start it and yes the map was COMPLETELY wrong so Chris started whining. As we got deeper into the maze and the corn started hitting little Harmon he started screaming and crying uncontrollably! "Scary Scary Plants! Scary Scary Plants! Scary Scary Plants! Scary Scary Plants!" and curled up in a little ball in the stroller. It was so sad! The babies were crying, I was limping like always, Chris was frustrated, Harmon was screaming about the plants, so finally we gave up and got an escort out.

We learned that pumpkin patches are awesome for little ones but corn mazes should be left to the adults. Hopefully we can still get a night date going and get to go through the La Union maze at night just the two of us.

Saturday, October 16, 2010

We finally got a date night!

Two sisters came through for us and so we hung out at Buffalo Wild Wings for a couple of hours... KID FREE! Wohoo!!!



In a cute Rachel story: she woke up after we had left. When the girls went to her crib to get her she immediately got upset so she grabbed her trusty blanket and went about searching for us room to room! When she realized she had been abandoned she sat in the corner of the living room facing the door (with her blanket) refusing any interaction with her sitters. Poor thing didn't like being left behind :(. Our boys on the other hand loved the sitters so much they wish we had stayed out longer!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Friday, October 15, 2010

Date night gone bad and only got worse!

Tonight I was VERY VERY excited b/c I had planned a really neat date for Chris. We were going to the corn maze at night. Since today I took the kids to the pumpkin patch I thought it would be fun to take Chris there to the corn maze part tonight (which is one of Chris' favorite things and I thought going at night would be super fun and romantic). Anyhow, a different baby-sitter canceled on us at the last minute... 2 babysitters, 2 wks in a row... are my kids really that horrible? I'm starting to feel like that Simpson's episode where the sitter agency hears the name "Bart" and everyone starts going crazy out of fear!



So we decided to do what any jilted couple would do, go to Sam's club with them critters... Okay no sane couple would do that but we had put it off long enough! My nanny pointed out we had 20 of Rachel's diapers left, 9 of Callum's, and only a meager 5 of Harm's, so it was either now or we waste money at Walgreens. We promise ourselves we will go once every few wks so the tab doesn't equal a mortgage payment but like a plague we wait till we are out of EVERYTHING.

We start having dinner there but of course Harmon hates the entire menu (his sensory issues) and so we have to make some Mac & Cheese before we leave. Than there is no fresh vegetables so we have to bring some veggies for the babies. So we sit, eat some food, and get to work. The first thing I do is grab a giant bag of Halloween chocolates (the good ones like Reeses PB cups and Snickers Bars). Than I have Chris asking: "can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate?" every stinking 10 seconds. Than Harmon who LOVES both repeating and chocolate starts going: "can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate? can I have a chocolate?" In unison with Dad. He no longer is willing to sit in the cart until I bribe him w/yogurt bites and take the chocolates out of my bag. Afterwards Chris and I are enticed by the crumb we just simply don't need (exmp would be a 9 pack of toothbrushes or a giant box of 5 brownie mixes). Quickly the joy of putting nonsense bulk items into the cart turns into misery once we have to get the essentials such as 4 separate boxes of diapers (each child wears a different size and than Pull Ups for potty training), two boxes of wipes, etc.

A long, long time later the kids are now munching on apple slices and we check out. We are exhausted, they are cranky, and the worse part is that we have to unload it all. At the last minute Chris reminds me "grab the Halloween candy for the Trick or Treaters"... I go and grab a big bucket of Halloween pretzel bags (we only had 3 kids come by last year and I know full well Chris' plot of eating 180 fun size candy bars well before any child knocks on the door). The nightmare is now over, until we get home!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Introducing the World's Greatest Drama King!

This blog was written by Chris and I tonight. Callum is just such a little character, like no other little guy we've ever met.

His war cry when someone is trying to take away a toy has turned into a whole new dimension of cuteness (or annoying depending on the moment). You see when he doesn't get what he wants he flings his back on to the floor and he starts to MOAN an CRY but if you give him the toy he just POPS right up as if nothing happened at all. It reminds of my brother who used to "faint" in the middle of the grocery store when my mom wouldn't get him a toy or candy. We are just shocked a 14 mos old has already mastered the art of manipulation.

Cally is all about them ladies. He smiles, he then puts his hands behind his back and looks down shyly, and than shyly looks up at them again with a gleeful smile. It is a perfectly heartbreaking seduction. He loves to dance to music. He just sways gently back and forth but he sees you looking at him he gets all shy and embarrassed.

Daddy loves to tease him, either by pretending to do something and "freezing" or hiding behind the crib and sneaking up on him. Both of these things cause such deep belly laughs from Callum that you can't help but laugh.

All of our kids are very special in their own way and for Cally one of his gifts is his amazing spirit. He is our peace maker, drama king, class clown, and little joy all at once!

Please Watch!!


This blog's main purpose is to just share stories of the Cupcakes, but every now and again someone else's story touches my heart. If you have the time please watch this brief YouTube video. The mother had her son abducted by her ex-husband. It has been 5 days and he can be anywhere. Also please share this link on your blog, twitter, or FaceBook page. The more people who see this the more chance of someone recognizing either Everett or the Dad!

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

I've got it all figured out ;)

Yesterday we were having lunch w/some friends who happened to be new parents. We were all laughing because some one had told them "you have it all figured out". Our friends like us knew the truth: YOU NEVER HAVE IT ALL FIGURED OUT! Sometimes I think I have it down but new problems always arise or old ones always come back.

Take for example Harmon has been doing so well in pre-k and his sensory issues have been like night and day. He has few meltdowns, is better behaved, his speech is exploding, and is so much happier. I felt like WOW, we are really conquering all of this special needs stuff with him!!! Now his night terrors have been increasingly getting worse (last night we were woken up 7 times to the poor guy in agony moaning and screaming, but not actually being awake)! So now once again we will be meeting with his pediatrician Thursday, we are talking to the school counselor, his teacher, and I'm a googling trying to figure out the latest mystery.

I should be down (I'm not down, just tired) about this but I know it will pass. That is the life of being a parent. You figure it out and than like a moving puzzle it messes itself all up again. Just like our friends joked "we have it all figured out until the next growth spurt"; I shall also be enjoying my victories as a mom... while they last.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Date night gone BAD (and ended up okay)!!!

So we try to go on dates once a week but it is a challenge. The problem is that 3 kids under 3 seem to scare most baby-sitters. So normally we take a lunch during the week since our nanny is already on the job and the other times Gualita in El Paso takes the critters.

But Chris really wanted to go to the NMSU vs UNM game (the company gets free tickets and I guess it was our weekend) so we got a babysitter... who canceled on us... 1 hr before. Since obviously no one is willing to take the critters at the last minute I wanted to cancel but Chris was determined.



So by the time we got the critters ready and left the parking was ALL gone. The cop felt bad for us though and showed us a secret lot where we got great parking. Next we discovered we forgot the diaper bag (with everyone's food) so the kids were going to have to eat our crap food. Than as we got Harmon out we realized he had NO shoes... Chris still not to be deterred just carried Harmon everywhere and Cally (I lugged the little one). I think people thought our family was more curious than the game b/c everywhere we went the comments abounded. I truly felt like we were a side-show attraction. We should have worn our company's logo and we could have been a great advertisement "we build homes for families suddenly out of space".


I must admit though, Chris was right! They loved the noise and the energy around there. We all had a great time for the 35 or so minutes we were there (we couldn't stay long b/c bed time was calling) and miracle of miracles NMSU actually won. And as a side note these were the nicest most laid back fans I've ever seen (not the Texas fans yelling obscenities and standing on the stands screaming or the UNLV fans throwing beer at one another). So maybe, with better planning we just might try this w/the critters again!



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Friday, October 8, 2010

Silliest and most vain baby product EVER

Tonight I took Chris to Dollar Tree (his first ever visit). This is where we found the silliest baby product ever!


Are you tired of your baby girl being bald? Than get her hair extensions!!!! I really can't stop laughing at this although I think are some moms in Vegas who really will want this ;)

Thursday, October 7, 2010

A very special day!



A year ago today I got a call from the NICU nurse right before I was leaving for the hospital. They had told us many times before Rachel might come home but each time I would get to the hospital all excited, but there was always a setback. So this phone call was a VERY big surprise. Not only was Rachel coming home BUT Callum (who had been behind on his weight) was ALSO coming home. Since than my life has NEVER been better (and I've never been more exhausted)!


Rachel,

A year ago you came home from the hospital and now you are taking your first steps! Even with feet that don't quite work right you are determined to walk. That is you, you have the determination to do anything and everything you put your heart into and I've no doubt you will rule the world one day ;) You will always be our "little princess" and we love you like crazy! We hope as you move mountains you will still have time for a quick kiss and hug.

Love,
Dad and Mom

Callum,

You are the little fighter who surprises us always. Last year I was worried I was going to leave you behind in the NICU but than BAM you caught up and got to go home w/your sister. You are the biggest sweetheart. You are quiet and gentle but I have no doubt in my mind that in your heart you posess the strength of an army. With a combination like that how could you lose? We love you so much and I hope we will always be close to you and feel your beautiful spirit as you go out into the big world one day!

Love,
Mom and Dad

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Obsession... and some good news



One of the best things about pre-k is that Harmon is really learning to express himself well. For the first time he is getting some real intelligible speech! Of course this means we are dealing with new spectrum behavior that we haven't seen mainly repeating, and repeating, and repeating, and repeating... Yesterday for example I showed him a picture of Uncle William at the Raiders game in face paint. For the next 2 hrs he kept saying over and over again LOUDLY "Uncle Willy Scary". There was no changing the conversation. The boy was obsessed. Today he repeated "garage broken" about 20 thousand times. I know this is normal and he is just expressing himself, but boy it makes me miss the silent days!


I got a new computer tonight thanks to Chris' urging. He has been worried that my computer would permanently keel over at any moment (and since my life is in there he knew I would go insane if that happened). You see my work computer was destroyed by Harmon so I reverted back to my Ibook, the one I bought in college (in 2003). It has been having unexplained power failure and was slowly dying. So the good news is for all those who follow my blog, I now once again have Spell Check! This means you will no longer have to suffer through my dyslexic faulty spelling.

Monday, October 4, 2010

The Flu Shot Conspiracy!


Growing up I was a bonafide Simpsons addict!!! I learned from a young age that everything important in life you learn from The Simpsons. One episode that I always think of is when Flanders declares after reading Homer's gossip blog "They are controlling our minds with Flu Shots"! I find it hillarious b/c I actually know many people who believe this to be true... or in some other form. My mother believes flu shots are a conspiracy by the AMA and the pharmaceutical industry to actually innoculate us with the flu virus so they can sell medicines and keep the offices full.

This year I decided I should get the flu shot and get the children vaccinated as well. To me it makes sense considering our home has been a plagueville this last year and Harm just started school. I have a low immune system, Callum has breathing problems, and heck who needs the flu. Of course my mother is angry at me. She blames my stomach virus of last week on the shot (which is amazing when you consider Chris had it first and never had a shot). Chris thinks he is tough and doesn't need to waste $2o. My nanny is at least honest and hates needles (which I do too)!

So we shall see who is right! If any of these people come down with the flu I win. If they don't I wasted 4 co-pays but at least Harmon got a yummy lollipop afterwards. If the Simpsons are right my shot will give me Black Friday fever and increase my Christmas shopping!


Saturday, October 2, 2010

Lessons learned while being sick!

My husband always thinks taking sick pictures of me are funny! One day I shall return him the favor ;) Anyhoo the plague has ended. I'm still a little tired but I am no longer having fever/chills, returning my food to sender, or seeing multiple people when in fact there is only one person in front of me.

Being couch/bed bound for 3 straight days taught me my critters are getting REALLY big really fast. Cally loved me being immobile and took full advantage by hanging out in my lap the whole time. I could see in his eyes Harmon when we first moved to Las Cruces. It makes me want to spend just more time where I am not preoccupied with life and I'm just appreciating how cute they all are. Each one I observed special little things with this week:

  • Harmon has gotten so much better w/his sensory intergration. He is much calmer and happier. He is really starting to express himself with his words! He sings this song all on his own, 5 little ducks, and is so proud of himself. He will sing it to you all day if you let him.
  • Rachel is so smart. My Mom got Harmon this Toy Story Race Track designed for kids 2+ Rachel has already FIGURED IT OUT! I just can't believe she is handling these small cars, putting them on the top of the track and than pushing the button to go down.
  • Callum is getting really strong and so well coordinated. We have those little plastic balls that we all played with as kids. Cally goes and throws the ball against the wall so it comes back at him. He plays like this for 5 or so minutes. Very cute and smart!

Today I heard something interesting. It was a talk about how young airplane pilots fly into turbulance and decide the best thing to do is to fly faster; but really when you fly planes and you run into turbulance the best thing you can do is slow down. I attack life at full speed but it made me think; what am I missing while I'm trying to do "it all". Later in the talk I heard the speaker said something to the effect of: we can fill up our lives with many good things but sometimes b/c we are so busy we are missing some of the best things. I think this is me! Slowing down a little isn't the worse thing... lets just see if I heed my own advice.

Oh the sadness!


Last week I was lucky. While Texas was horribly being slaughtered by UCLA I was too busy in Arizona to notice. Had we not been traveling I would have been at Bufflo Wild Wings teaching my children colorful vocabulary. So this week I pretty much knew we were doomed. I prepared myself that OU was about to kick our boots. It still sucked and in two weeks I fear history will repeat itself w/Nebraska. We are still wearing our orange proudly. You can't be top 5 every year! Now we just have to hope either Garrett Gilbert miraculously becomes decent or we quickly get rid of him, b/c at this rate he has been OU's and UCLA's MVP.