Get your thinking hats on!

Ok, I'm assuming I'm not the only one out there who tires of the winters here because it limits the activities you can do with a toddler. So here's a little list of things we've either done or seen other mom's with toddlers do! Disclaimer: I did not think of ANY of these ideas originally! Most of them I either found in a magazine or can attribute to wonderful friends out there who are also wonderful moms, so thank you for your examples! If you have any more ideas of things to do with little ones indoors, I'd LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to hear about them!!

*Set up a card table somewhere half up. You can then set a chair they can climb up and use the table as a slide!! It works better if you have a longer card table. We don't, so we mostly used it to slide cars and other things down.



*Paint the Snow! I just posted a little about this, but you just get an old spray bottle, put water and food coloring in it and then let them spray the snow outside! Miles wants to do it inside too, so we just put plain water in a spray bottle and let him spray the floors.

*Play-Doh- A daily activity here

*Blow Bubbles- Also a daily activity

*Paint! You have to feel semi-ambitious for this one because there is always a mess to clean up. :)

*Sometimes we fill up the ice cube trays with water, then Miles helps me drop food coloring into each little capsule. He thinks it's awesome.

*Spread rice or corn meal on a cookie sheet and trace designs. (Can also tend to get very messy)

*Bake! Miles loves to help me "make" things in the kitchen. A favorite was him helping me make sugar cookies. We got to talk about shapes and then colors while we frosted them.

*Helping with chores. Miles really likes this actually. He can help hand me clothes for laundry, put the silverware in the dishwasher, "make" his bed etc.

*Color! He's starting to like this more, so we do a lot of tracing his hand and practicing shapes. Crayons are off limits for a while however since all he does it tear off the paper and break them.

*We love sidewalk chalk, but obviously can't do it outside. Solution? Get an old cardboard box and you can sidewalk chalk on that! It works great.

*We build forts with all the boxes in the office area

*Make a fruit loop necklace! Just did this the other day at a friends house and Miles loved it SO much, we had to do it again that night at home.

*Something that's been fun lately is flashlight tag! (Hide and seek in the dark) We wait till dad gets home for this one. Super fun!

*Play with bubbles in the sink. I'll just put a chair up to the sink, fill it up with water and bubbles and give him all sorts of utensils to play with. This usually keeps him occupied for about 20 minutes

*Singing and Dancing is really fun lately with Miles because he's starting to really "sing along" with his favorite songs.

*We run lots of errands! I can't stand being in the house all day for more than 2 days in a row, so I frequently take him on errands, even if I just make the errands up. For instance, we'll just go to the DI to look at things and he can play with the toys there. Or you can go to a place with a indoor play area to get some wiggles out. We visit Richie at work and he gets to "ride" the forklift. The library is another good one. They do these awesome story times that usually have a craft to go along with the book. We've never made it past the first 2 minutes. Miles can't sit still long enough, but we sure try!

*Let's face it, we watch a bunch of movies too.


OK! I'm all out of ideas. I need some more! Please!

Am I really ready for this??

If it were up to Richie, the day after finding out we were pregnant with Gwen, she would be here. I, on the other hand, am so relieved there are still 8 weeks left. Even though I had to do a 9 point turn in bed last night just to switch sides, even though I had to ask Richie to buckle my shoes the other day... I am glad there's still some time left. I have had so much more anxiety over having baby number 2 than with baby number 1. Normal??? I've decided it's because I have an accurate idea of what's coming. No sleeping, blow outs, can't-get-her-to-stop crying fits etc. Not to mention the part where it kind of hurts to do the whole labor and delivery thing.

Miles has come down with another case of croup already. If you remember correctly, we are a broken record over here apparently and just did this in early December. It is no where near as bad this time, thank goodness, and hopefully it subsides quickly. Until then we're doing lots of bundling up and going outside in the snow to breathe the cool, strike that, freezing air, especially at all hours of the night. I mention this because while it was hard and not ideal to be up at 2, 3, 4, and then finally 7ish, every time he cried "mommy" from his room, I couldn't get there fast enough. I wanted to be by his side immediately and he would hold my hand or stroke my hair while he tried to fall asleep, or we'd bundle up and head outside to get some cool air and he would snuggle right into me. Oh it was wonderful.

So while there may be lots of "scary" things coming my way with the arrival of a new baby, I just have to keep reminding myself how wonderful it will be!! A full time cuddler, those sweet baby sounds and coos, and watching her learn something new every day.

But just so we're clear...I'm still glad there's 8 weeks. :) Our house is so organized. I've cleaned out
*The cupboard above the computer
*The laundry room
*Taken at least 5 boxes of misc stuff to the DI
*Gone through all recipes and recipe books
*Spruced up the blog
*Completely switched up Miles's room. I'd post pictures, but I want to do a "big reveal" once I get some things sewn and painted.
*I've also washed and organized all of the wonderful little girl clothes we have for Gwen about a million times.

I'll be hiring out for a short time if anyone has any organizing they'd like done. This nesting thing is powerful and I guarantee a clean house. I charge a bazillion dollars an hour. Thanks.

Miles learns to...

Wear pointy toed shoes! Obviously he hasn't learned the rules about black and brown. He found these in the house, put them on, and walked around in them for about 20 minutes straight.


Go to school! We were watching the "Going to School" signing time, and in the middle, he found Richie's old backpack, had me help him put it on, then walked to the door and told me bye bye. I'm glad he hasn't grown up that fast yet!


Paint the snow! Want a cheap activity? We had old spray bottles around, so I put some water and food coloring in them and we "painted" the snow. I promise he really liked it, just not in this picture I guess.





He learned that if you're sharing one bowl of popcorn with 3 other boys in a tent during movie night, you have the best chances of getting the most popcorn if you keep the bowl nearest to you, in your arms if need be.


Go sledding....and like it right off the bat! Last week it took some getting used to. This week, he only screamed during the getting all of the snow gear on part. Actually going down the hill was a hit this week!


"If mom and dad give you a paint brush, paint and then take all your clothes off, they must want me to paint your body right?" Fortunately a lot of paint got on these blocks we scrounged up and I think Miles's blocks actually turned out the coolest. He'd mix some colors, dab it on the block and say "Oh cool!"


Good week.

Bring it on 2011

2010 was a somewhat low key year for us. We didn't have any more children, we didn't change jobs, we didn't start or finish a degree at school etc. We enjoyed just settling into our roles and becoming comfortable in this area. From what we can guess, 2011 isn't going to be anything like 2010. We are going to have a new addition in the family and a major job change, hopefully... So already we feel anxious, but we also feel confident because we are armed with our faith and with determination. I thought about doing a recap of this past year for a post. So in preparation, I browsed through all the posts from this last year. I quickly decided not to pursue such a re-cap post. Why do you guys read this thing anyway? I found myself getting thoroughly bored in some stretches and tiring of my writing. So why would you want to re-read everything I already wrote? huh?? You can thank me later for not putting you through that, and now we're on to a fresh start and a fresh post!

We started off the new year properly by going sledding! It took Miles a while to actually enjoy it, but he did eventually, and I enjoyed staying at the top of the hill as the pregnant cheerleader. :) We came home and had tomato soup, toasted cheesers and hot chocolate, which is exactly what we did and ate the first time I met Richie's family during that Christmas break, minus the pregnant part. Good times.



It's also time for another belly shot. Why you ask? Well, some people may see this picture and think, "Woah! She must be due any day now!" C'mon, I know you're thinking it. Plenty of people already say it to my face in some form or another. I'm over it.



Unfortunately, you'd be wrong if that was your first thought. It's time for another belly shot because today I'm officially 30 weeks along! For those of you at home doing the math, that means I only have 10 weeks left! Which means I'm due practically any day now right? Which means...I need to get the house clean and keep it spotless, and sew a bazilion things and freeze some meals and on and on and on. Nesting and I have a love/hate relationship.

The Christmas Post

Hey all! Here's pictures of our Christmas vacation! We got to spend a bunch of time in SG and a few days here and there in Bluffdale with Richie's side and were lucky enough to see most of our family, even if it was just sporadically. (sp?) We're now back home and getting into the swing of things. Real life is good and all, but I'm ready for another vacation I think. Maybe it has something to do with a puking toddler. Didn't get any pictures of New Years, but it was spent in true Crosby fashion staying up late and playing games. Richie went to bed early :) I'm going to try and have the captions line up with the pictures, very high tech stuff here, so hopefully it makes sense.

Here's Miles on Christmas morning. He crept into the room of presents before we lined up, but all he was interested in was the candy bowl. In fact, it was all he was interested in all morning. So much for presents.


Lining up, youngest to oldest. :)


Kids table


Playing "Minute to Win it" on Christmas eve


Favorite picture of the entire trip


Nativity


Candy making with Grandma Crosby. Still craving that fudge....


Mom helped me make a teepee for Miles


Out to dinner!



We miss everyone already. Thank you for such a wonderful trip and a much needed break from reality!

Joy to the World

My sewing machine is fixed! Wahoo! Now, I think I kind of actually like sewing! This weekend I finished some really simple curtains and valances. I also sewed a few other things, but don't want to post them, seeing as some of them mights end up being Christmas presents!




Speaking of joy, how can you not smile looking at that handsome, happy face? These pictures kind of shocked me when I was looking back at them because he looks so grown-up to me! Not to mention sitting at the kids table all by himself! We we able to have dinner with some great friends on Saturday and all these little kiddos are about the same age. Miles thought he was so cool!

Making a List and Checking it Twice

Got the downloading pictures problem figured out, so here are some pictures of things that have been occupying our time lately! For some reason we feel a sense of urgency to get all these little projects and things accomplished before the end of the year, so we've been busy around our home making lists and checking things off. Love that feeling!

We finally finished painting the office areas of the storage facility! I didn't bother taking before pictures, but it was just regular white walls and the boxes we had for sale etc. Now there's a cheery coat of paint and a bit of decor! It was a big project for Richie and I to undertake in our spare time, so we feel accomplished.







We also finished Miles' new big boy bed! I know the color probably looks crazy on the pictures, and it is a little bright, but you'll just have to trust me, if I can do everything I want to do in Miles' room to make it over, the bed will look super cool. I hope... For now, it just looks kind of out of place. Who said getting your toddler to sleep on a big bed would be hard? Holy cow, easiest transition of any transition we've made yet! He never tries to climb out, goes right to sleep just like he's in his crib. I'm wondering if once he gets use to it he'll start being sneaky, but I'm just going to knock on wood for now. :)




I made this the other night! We had some friends over to celebrate Christmas and I was so excited to make this gingerbread, raspberry trifle. It looked amazing!! Too bad the taste wasn't as good as what I was expecting. Still good, just not worth the effort.


Richie is such a good dad! The other day he came home from his lunch break and decided to take Miles sledding on the huge snow plow mound behind the storage units. I'd venture to say Richie was more excited than Miles. Miles hated it the entire 5 minutes they were outside. I don't blame him. It was cold! Maybe next time sweetheart!

All is calm, all is bright

I don't have any pictures, I think our downloader usb thing is broken, so for now you'll just get the written word. You know those times when you just feel humbled to be living your life? As if there are bad things that happen, and not everything goes your way, but if you have enough perspective you can see how really blessed your life is and then the unfortunate things don't seem so bad at all! I've been feeling in awe of my life lately, despite some small trials.

Last weekend I got to go to SLC to hang out with some old high school friends! Richie doesn't understand why I felt like it was so important to go since he doesn't really associate with anyone from high school, but he's sweet enough that he hauled us all down there anyway. Friday night Miles' cold evolved into this season's croup. Not just any croup, but a terrible croup that resulted in a sleepless night for everyone involved. Saturday morning he was improved enough that I felt ok to go be with friends. We had a great time! I think there's always room for girl time. Richie had left his phone in the car, so we hadn't been in contact all day. When I called later in the evening to see how things were I was shocked to find out that Miles, Richie and his mom had been in the hospital insta-care with Miles for the better part of the day and that if this last breathing treatment didn't work, he'd have to spend the night in the hospital. I felt like a terrible mom and left the gals to go be with my family. Long story short, he didn't have to stay at the hospital and actually slept amazing that night. He's since recovered from croup, but is still battling a bear of a cold.
Blessings of that weekend:
*Near a great hospital
*With a nurse (Richie's mom) all weekend to help Miles in ways we couldn't
*Readily available Priesthood holders to give blessings
*Family willing to fast and pray
*A small miracle that Miles' breathing improved so much in such a short time after a blessing and fasting and prayers
*A cuddly boy
*An early Christmas present from Richie's brothers to help us pay for the bills. :)

Now how could that burden seem even slightly heavy with such blessings happening all around us?? I could go on and on about how blessed we feel, but suffice it to say these feelings have been more poignant around this Christmas time. If you have a few minutes, check out this video of the choir singing "Silent Night". I think I shared it last season, but it's my favorite.

Deck the Halls

The halls have been decked. Check and double check. Here's a few picture of what our place looks like as of today! My mom taught me a good rule when decorating for any holiday. Always take down something if you put something else up! It helps it look like you did it on purpose and it's not half so cluttery. Our camera isn't that great, so the quality of the pictures doesn't do the real deal justice. Guess you'll just have to come up and visit! Not that it's amazing, it's just fun and I like the way our house feels. How about that home-made tree eh? I'd still like to make a tree skirt, but we'll see what I get to. One of the pictures wouldn't download, but I re-used the shiny, glass ornaments that we inherited and gave them new life in glass vases. Really simple idea and you can find those type of ornaments at the DI anytime. Happy Holidays!

A Man's Holiday

It was decided this Thanksgiving that this holiday is best suited for a man. You eat a lot of food, watch a lot of football and sit around. Nevertheless, I enjoyed myself as well! We went to Nampa to spend it with Richie's mom's side of the family. There's always a lot of nice people there whom I don't quite recognize or know and enough food to feed us for at least 3 Thanksgivings. I love the tradition they have of doing a Christmas craft after the big feast! What a great idea right? This was also my first experience with the infamous black Friday. We didn't go really early, and it wasn't nearly as crowded as I expected. I got some really good deals actually! I'm not totally converted, but it was a good experience. It would have been even better if I had more money. :)
However, we were more than ready to be home after this trip. Why does anyone with kids in their right mind ever take a vacation? WHY???? It just exhausts the child and thereby the parents. Miles was totally off schedule and one night stayed up basically all night. Finally at 630 I got up with him and we went on a drive so we wouldn't wake anyone else up. We drove and drove and drove, all within a 10 mile radius to avoid getting lost and I had some good retrospective time to cry and think about all things deep like, "Why do these stupid birds settle on the road?? Don't they know another car is coming in about 10 seconds?" and "That house is beyond huge! I'm almost positive the owners are involved in illegal activity." Thank goodness for good family around to take Miles from me when they can tell I'm this close to beating him, and who cleans up the massive amounts of puke he just created after Thanksgiving all over the floor. For the few major negatives, the trip was definitely positive over all. Miles even traveled great and we were blessed not to slide off the road like so many others.




I took a real belly shot (24 weeks) on Sunday because I was feelin' cute in my new early Christmas present from my mother-in-law. When I got to church a very sweet woman was asking me when I was due etc and then proceeded to politely tell me that every time she sees me I just get bigger and bigger! I must have looked shocked, surprised or like I was going to shoot lasers out of my eyes at her because later on she tried to dig herself out of that whole by telling me I was just "blossoming". Thanks a lot. I still have a sense of humor (thank goodness) at this point in the pregnancy because this is my favorite stage of the whole process.

It was a hit!

Saturday was full of errands to run, projects to work on etc and by dinner time I was ready to have a real weekend. Fat Cats in town is doing a deal where you bring in cans and they let you bowl for free! We brought in a bunch of cans, called up some friends and had a great time! It was Miles' first experience with arcade games and bowling and he was in heaven! We were all shocked at his strength. He had no problem picking up 6-8 pound balls and lifting them over his head to put them on the little ramp kiddos can use. Unfortunately no naps and a little sickness cause him to tire quickly and the trip was cut short. We'll be doing it again in the future though I'm sure. As for Miles' sickness, we took him to the doctor today and had that awesome experience of paying $20 for the doctor to tell me everything is fine. It's just a virus that's causing a rash and it's no longer contagious and the only thing to do is wait for the rash to go away. Wohoo!