Birthday Party (2 yrs old)

We threw a birthday party for my little girl and even if I do say so my self it was AWESOME. I though I'd share in case you want some good ideas for throwing a party for a 2 year old.

The best decision I made was to join up with a good friend. Lucky me, her son and my daughter's birthdays are only 10 days apart. We had talked about birthdays coming up and she was debating between 2 themes. One of the themes being Super Why, which is a PBS show both of our kids love to watch. I thought about it and decided Super Why would be perfect, why not do a combined party. So during a play date we planned and divided up the responsibilities. We had both done some Pinterest research before hand to help our creative juices flow.

We kept it simple, neither of spent much money. I was able to reserve the perfect location (a big empty room with chairs and tables) through my apartment complex at no charge.

I put together a fun invitation on my computer.

Super Letter Cupcakes

1st activity: Coloring 

2nd activity: Story Time in the Book Club

Story Time was a wonderful success, it probably helped that we gave all the kids a snack to eat while they listened to a couple of fun stories. I think the fact that we had age appropriate activities and kept it all very relaxed is what made our party such a success. Since we had all the kids in one place with there full attention right after story time we sang Happy Birthday then we took the birthday kids over to the table to blow out candles, and everyone who sat at the table got a cupcake after that we helped our children open there presents. People stayed and played at the park outside and left when they wanted. For a few extra decorations I colored some of the coloring pages we got form here and here and placed them around the room, as well as using them for signs to the room.

party favors

THE END

It's Just a Phase

Recently a Mom on Facebook posted a "mommy post" that reminded me of something very important. The mom explained a concern and problem she was having and asked for advice on what to do.

Not so long ago I had struggled with the same thing with my daughter so I left a comment with a few tips that had helped me. As I did this I realized that my daughter and I no longer had that particular problem. How exciting it was to be reminded that somethings are just a phase that are children go through and they don't last forever.

In the last couple weeks I have began to noticed a new problem developing with my daughter. Just last night I found my self in the middle of this struggle and tried to handle it the best I could. Afterward I was reflecting and trying to decided what was working and how to address the issue next time. I did not come up with any brilliant solutions, however one thought was very comforting. I remembered that "mommy post" experience and realized that this too is most likely just a phase that she will grow out of. The best thing I can to do is be patient while I try to hopefully speed up the "growing out of it" process, 

I am confident that this is only the beginning. As I learn how to tackle one problem or phase it will be time for the next one. So it is important to enjoy all the non-problem phases and not be too stressed over the problems. And that wraps up my mommy thoughts for today. 

Hand Foot Mouth Disease

I took the summer off from blogging which is really too bad because thinking back I learned a lot. How did I let this happen, well I missed a month, then I was on vacation, then we moved, then I was really sick for a while. However if I try to play catch up then I might never find the motivation to blog again so I'll just start with today.



I have been blessed with a healthy little girl, she is a month away from her 2nd birthday and today was our 1st doctor visit that wasn't preventive care. It started with a fever on Monday. The fever was short lived but then a rash appeared and spread. So today Wednesday I called the doctor and took her in. The doctors visit was short and simple she was able to quickly diagnose Hand Foot and Mouth disease.  Apparently most children will get this disease at some point and it rarely affects adults. The rash will go away on its own in 5 to 7 days in the mean time it is painful and very contagious. Treatment includes keeping the child away from other children till the rash goes away, and to relieve symptoms Benadryl, Ibuprofen, and Tylenol.



Today I am thankful and proud to be a stay at home mom. The last few days I have been able to watch and care for my sick child and pay close attention to symptoms which made the doctors visit quick and painless. The fact that my little girl can not be around other children does not affect my husbands work schedule at all. While some of our plans have to change like not going to playgroup or library story-time and missing a birthday party there is no scrambling or stress in keeping my daughter at home for several days. Instead I get to look forward to watching movies and kid shows and cuddling with my little girl, what an amazing blessing.

A Skinned Knee

This week I was reminded of how important it is to follow God's commandments and listen to his counsel.

How?

Short Answer:
My little girl skinned her knee.

Long Answer:
A skinned knee, no big deal a little blood, a few tears, and life goes on. That is exactly what happened on a walk to the park. We got to the park, the blood and tears were gone and off she went to play. I found a place to sit down and relax, except I didn't relax. After the scrapped knee I think I was more aware of other possible hazards. She is still very small and I realized there a lot of ways she could get hurt worse then a scrapped knee. So I stood up and followed her around ready to intervene if necessary. I suppose that is just what you do when your a parent, you worry and you try and keep your children safe.

All of this lead me to think about our Heavenly Father who is always there to help us when we fall. He also gives us guidance so we don't have to learn everything the hard way. Following his counsel can keep us safe and happy. And just like when I was there for my little girl to clean up the blood and wipe her tears when she fell Heavenly Father is always there for each one of us.

Matthew 7:11 

"If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?"

"I like my self the way I am"

"I like my self the way I am"
...this line from the movie "Penelope" describes how exactly I'm feeling right now. So I don't have a pig nose but I'm talking about more then just appearances here.

Back in high school I discovered that if I didn't like myself then I could change. Yes I distinctively remember as a sophomore looking at myself and thinking I don't like who I am. Back then mostly my reasons included disastrous wardrobe, being way to shy, and just not feeling cool. But by my senior year I liked who I was thanks to a combination of changes I made on purpose (example: my wardrobe and discovering how to be more outgoing) and learning to like the parts that didn't change. Looking back I love my high school self she was strong and hard working and I admire what she was able to do. She didn't let herself get lost in wanting to be cool but she really went for the things she wanted.

Now as a Mom I look at who I am and see just as many faults as my teenage self did. It is one thing to say well of course I'm not perfect no one is, but its another to see all the things your failing at. I am not going to go on about all my current short comings because while I admit them to myself I don't want everyone to know how imperfect I really am. I will say that the thing I'm most upset about is that I know I could be doing better.

With that in mind let me tell you about today and what got me thinking about all this again. I took a shower (as a stay at home mom that's just not an everyday occurrence). After my shower I put on some nice clothes, threw up my hair in a messy bun and applied some mascara. I was looking in the mirror and I thought I love my hair then I turned to the full length mirror and thought I look gorgeous today. And that's when I realized I do like me. Just like other women I have plenty of times when I think about the weight I want to lose or any number of my imperfections but today I love my body the way it is.

The messy bun is what made me go back to my high school days because that was my 'hair style' its such a little thing and yet it shows so much of who I am and what I love about my high school self. Don't worry I'm not going to psycho analysis my choice of hair styles. Moving on. 

After getting ready I spent the next 2 or 3 hours being all the things I love about me. Not on purpose. I think the positive thought in the mirror just let me keeping seeing everything else. Yes I still remember how far from perfect I am but it is so much easier to face some of those things seeing everything I'm doing right.

So mostly I want to share with you some advise from my high school self that I remembered today. If you don't like who you are you can change that.

It is not going to be a fast transformation. Start by focusing on what you like about you then look at what you don't like and start making decisions: is it something you can and want to spend energy on changing or can you find a way to like it? Don't be hard on yourself. Pick maybe one or two things. Figure out how you want to change them, set goals that can make that happen, and always remember to first find a way to say "I like myself the way I am" and mean it.

Bookworm! (that's me)

I love to read. At first I almost exclusively read what I call 'chick flick' books. And while I will admit half the books I read theses days could still fit in that category my love of reading has expanded and now I read a little bit of everything. Yes fiction is still my favorite, but I have been known to check out a book from the non fiction section of the library from time to time. 

Why am I telling you all this? I have recently been invited to review books on my friends blog to help people find good clean books to read. Her motivation more or less is to have a resource of books to share with her daughters as they grow up and go through their teenage years as well as sharing all of our experience and advice with anyone who wants it. 

My little girl is almost a year and a half and already she loves books. We go to our local library once a week and check out at least 5 or 6 picture books and then read them throughout the next week. I hope this love of books continues to grow and I am excited for when we can read chapter books together. I look forward to using this blog to give me great ideas for books to read with her as well as for myself. So if you like to read or if you want to find good clean books for your children then I recommend following the biscuitslibrary.blogspot.com. And if you don't see a book you are wondering about on the blog then please comment and let us know because I love any excuse to read a book.

Best Valentines Day Ever (....so far)

My husband and I originally said no spending any money this year but ultimately we both spent a small amount. That morning my husband made breakfast. (Thanks Hon).  Then he went off to school like any other Friday morning or so I thought. 20 minuets later we came back in the door with a rose for me and a flower for my little girl.
     
I am unsure I can use words to do my thoughts and feelings justice but I will try.
I half excepted to get a rose by the end of the day because he has often done so, but when I saw that he had included our little girl it warmed my heart. He is one great dad!
 
The rest of his gift, he informed me, was that he was staying home to help me clean up the house until he had to go to class that afternoon. He is a grad-student so most of his time is spent on research and writing a thesis - he apparently had already put in the hours he needed for the week. Wow! Can I just say that was exactly the perfect gift. I wouldn't have thought to ask for a day of help but I wouldn't want anything else. Yes I have one amazing man at my side and maybe this is coming across as a brag which it  may be. However my intent is to share the best moment as a mother and wife I had this month as well as share a small and powerful lesson that the my husband taught me this Valentines Day.

Valentines Day is a wonderful day to show people you love that you remember and care. I felt sad when I saw Facebook statuses of single awareness day and the like. Okay so I am married and may never be on that side of things again but don't you see? Valentines Day is so much more then that. I also saw on Facebook a family whose parents put on a special dinner for their kids and apparently it is quite the tradition. How wonderful! Valentines Day is not just for couples, its an excuse for everyone to do something special for those they love. You may well argue that you shouldn't need any excuses. True, but why not take advantage of one? I hope that in the future I can take better advantage of Valentines Day and remember it is an excuse to show others I care, not just for some outlandish romantic gesture.

A Day in the Life

My house is a mess.
Dirty clothes threaten to mix with the one basket of unfolded clean clothes. 
The dirty dishes cover the sink. 
My child will not take a nap even though she did not sleep well last night. 
Right now I am letting her scream in her crib because I don't know what else to do. 
She is old enough to throw fits but I have no idea what she wants because she can't talk 
I worry that I'm enabling her fits and I can't help but wonder if I'm spoiling her,
 but to be honest I'll do almost anything if she'll just stop crying. 
I miss my old job.
I feel stuck in my messy small house. 
I don't want to cook or bake and I don't like any of the options we have for dinner but I've used most the food budget already so no eating out tonight. 
Crying is so on my nerves right now. 
Today is just a fail. Ugg.

Lets look at the positive:
I did give my child and myself a bath so we are both clean and well dressed. 
I got a 10 min work out in today. 
I made scrambled eggs for breakfast.
My little girl has had 2 well rounded meals so far today. 
My bed is made so at least there is one place in my house that feels and looks clean. 
I have not yelled at anyone or anything today.

and she is still crying in her crib. 

What is my child teaching me today...I don't know or care, I just wish she would fall a sleep and my house would clean itself. 

...10 Minutes Later
My beautiful little girl has stopped crying and fallen a sleep in my arms. Worth it!
I love my life, promise.