Tuesday, December 08, 2009 Lasting Love For a while, I have been thinking that long lasting love is so wonderful. Isn't the idea of sharing your life with someone amazing? What could be better than growing old with someone and knowing most of the people in each other's lives and all of their stories? Believe me, I am all about adventure and crazy shenanigans in life. However, when it comes to romance and love nothing could be better than stability. Perhaps, that ultimate dream kept my marriage together for longer than it should have been. This week, we finally watched “Up.” What a cute story and it just happens to go along with this theme. Anyway, when I saw this article: How to Make Romance Last, I had to laugh and do a quick post. I am already in my upper 30s, so spending most of my life with someone isn't possible. I guess I can still dream of meeting a great guy someday and spending half of my life with him. Labels: husband, marriage Freckle Face Girl @ 8:01 PM |

Tuesday, December 01, 2009 Baby Boy Turns Two I can't believe that Jordan is two today. He is turning into a little boy and leaving his baby years behind, which makes me so sad. He has also just entered into the terrible twos and has begun demanding to "do mysef." Like most little boys, he loves balls. I gave him a set of nerf balls on Sunday and he has slept with one of them every night since. He also carries one around where ever we go. One of the best things about him is that he is generally a happy little prankster and pulls sly pranks on all of us. Almost everything makes him laugh, even getting punished. What a joy these two years have been! Labels: Birthday, kids Freckle Face Girl @ 5:02 PM |

Tuesday, November 24, 2009 Thankful For It has been one crazy year for me and for lots of my friends and extended family. As you know, my year has basically revolved around divorce. I have also been feeling sad for others who are close to me (friends & family) that are dealing with so much more than I had to. On the bright side, I have received news that quite a few people I know are pregnant. Overall, it has been a year for the books. There are MANY things to be Thankful for though including my top six list for 2009: 1. My wonderful kids who are healthy 2. Friends and family that have gone above and beyond to be supportive 3. That the second half of the year has been MUCH better than the first half 4. That money is tight, but we are getting by on my part time job and child support 5. That my brothers and their families are all coming for two weeks at Christmas 6. That Steve and I don't hate each other I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving! Labels: divorce, thanksgiving Freckle Face Girl @ 5:37 PM |

Monday, November 16, 2009 One Minute Please Shortly after moving here, a neighbor lady started telling me about a wonderful parenting book that she was reading. I listened with interest especially since big changes in kids' lives bring about crazy behaviors. However, I had to smile thinking about taking advice from a SAHM mom that has 3 full time maids and 2 nannies all in an effort to take care of a household that has three kids. About 2 weeks later (while she was off vacationing with her husband, kids and entourage), I got a copy of the book in the mail from her. I smiled at how thoughtful she was. Anyway, the book is called "The One Minute Mother" and it is by Spencer Johnson, M.D. While I am thrilled with some of the results, I don't recommend you go out and buy a copy. There are only 3 simple points that the entire book is written around. 1. One Minute Goals (use 1 sheet of paper to write down goals that you set with your child - must only take 1 minute to read) 2. One Minute Praisings (Praise good behavior, clearly identify what they did right and how it made you feel, hug or touch the child, and tell them you love them) 3. One Minute Reprimands (Reprimand poor behavior, tell the child exactly what they did wrong, pause to let it sink in, remind them that they are better than that and that they are good kids, hug them and remind them that you love them, and drop it) The book is full of examples and such to convince people that it works. I think 2 and 3 are pretty much common sense, although in the craziness of life they may not happen as often as they should. At least for me because my two little ones are doing things all day everyday that should be addressed. The one thing that I hadn't tried before was number 1. Once a week I started sitting down with Lexi and coming up with a one page list of goals for her, Jordan and me. I use a big marker and draw a picture next to each goal so she can "read" them. She participates in creating the list. Here are some examples: Lexi's Goals 1. Put my crayons away everyday 2. Don't block my brother (not letting him pass through doorways) 3. Listen to my mom 4. Hug and kiss my mom more (her idea) Mom's Goals: 1. Exercise at the beach 4 times this week 2. Complete.... (something from my to do list) 3. Hug and kiss Lexi and Jordan more (her idea) When we are done, we tape the lists in the kids’ bedroom. Every night Lexi reads hers as part of our bedtime ritual. We have been able to stamp out quite a few behaviors that time-outs were doing NOTHING for. The best part is that when she is doing something she isn't supposed to that is on the list I only have to remind her ONE time!!! I HATE being a broken record. The past few days things have been getting out of hand with the kids pestering each other. It was especially annoying this morning, during our walk on the beach. I suddenly remembered that we hadn't made a list in a few weeks. We sat down this afternoon and so far we are right back on track. Labels: kids, parenting Freckle Face Girl @ 6:48 PM |

Saturday, November 07, 2009 New Blog: The Design Buzz My cousin, Kim, has started a new blog devoted to vintage items and her own designs. She also has an Etsy shop. Check it out: The Design Buzz Labels: bloggers, family, shopping Freckle Face Girl @ 8:45 AM |

Friday, November 06, 2009 Current State of Mind With all stages in life, people are immediately interested in the next step. When you start dating, they want to know if you are going to get married. When you get married, they want to know when you are going to have a baby. When you have a baby, they want to know if you are going to have another one. The same is true with divorce. It is about finding love again. I have heard from several people that I will quickly find a new guy. I don’t believe it of course. It is completely crazy thinking. First, I was 30 when I got married. That means that obviously I am not the kind of person that marries the first guy I date. Secondly, my kids are my life. I rarely go anywhere without them and we are usually in kid friendly places. How do you meet someone in those settings? Third, it takes time to get over a failed marriage. I think divorce not only sours a person’s view of marriage, but rocks their self esteem in regards to meeting people of the opposite sex and dating. A lot has changed about me since I was single - mainly that I have two adorable kids that I devote my life to. I also don’t have the body that I used to. Should I even mention that I have moved in with family, have only been working part time so I don’t have to put the kids in daycare yet, and have NO idea what I even want for the future? What kind of guy would be interested? - Probably not one that I would be interested in. Basically, dating is not a priority for me or much of a consideration. I am just taking life as it comes. I am focusing on keeping up with my insane workload, taking care of my kids, and waiting as patiently as possible for some of these hardships to pass or ease up. Hopefully, soon I will be ready to take better care of myself and get interested in things that I usually care about. It is just a matter of time and a little more happiness. Labels: dating, divorce Freckle Face Girl @ 2:15 AM |