a few of my favorite things...

I haven't been blogging much lately because I have been a cleaning freak. When Ethan had mono I spent the week cleaning and organizing closets, my scrapbook room, my laundry room, etc. It was so satisfying! I found a couple cool things that I am loving right now so at the prompting of my sister, here they are!

1. Shoe organizer


I found this at Storables but they also have it at the Container Store (my favorite store!!). I got it in chrome but this one (in bronze) is on sale now for $20! It holds 18 pairs of shoes and each tier spins so you can find what you are looking for easily. Plus my kids think it is fun so they actually put their shoes away!

2. Closet rod dividers


Some might say this is the pinnacle of craziness but I think it is amazing! I got these at the Container Store for 99 cents each. I wrote on them with dry erase marker and organized my closet. I have categories for tanks, short sleeves, cardigans, hoodies, pants, dresses, skirts, etc. You get the idea. It not only helps me find things, it also helps me put clothes away--there is a hanger in place for everything!

3. SIGG water bottle


I have two of these--one is 20 ounces to take out with me and the other is 33 ounces to keep at home. I love the way tap water tastes out of these! I keep them in the fridge filled up so they are nice and chilly. Plus, you don't have to worry about any gross chemicals leeching out into you water. And you can wear your ecofriendly badge proudly when carrying one around. :)

thump.

Olivia just jumped out of her crib. I have been dreading this moment for quite some time. We heard a huge thump and ran up there--she was standing in the dark screaming and seemed a little confused as to what just happened.

I tried to reinforce the idea that we stay in our beds, not jump. I didn't do that with Ethan--and it was terrible. I don't want to go through that again. Hopefully she scared herself tonight by falling and won't try it again for a while. But knowing Pibs, she will soon realize how much freedom can be found by not being caged.

Time to start looking for a big girl bed!

who has he been kissing?

Ethan has mono! Seriously. I was shocked--I didn't know that little kids could get mono. He has had a high fever since Friday morning so I took him in yesterday--mono. He is on an antibotic to help with the lymph infection but other than that there isn't much to be done for the mono. She said he will most likely start feeling better in the next few days. Needless to say, it has been a miserable few days at the Olson house. Now I'm just waiting for Pibs to get sick!

Jay took yesterday and today off work so we could do some fun family stuff. Yeah, we aren't able to do much of anything, except break up fights between the kids (apparently you can fight just fine while having mono). And now Jay is feeling sick! He is still in bed with a really sore throat and the start of a summer cold.

I was able to clean and organize Ethan's room and our bathroom linen closet and I must say, I feel a little high from it. Really! I get really juiced up when I do a really good cleaning that results in good organizing. And I didn't spend a dime--usually my organizing requires a few trips to the store. Jay and I have bets on how long the clean will last. My money is on a week.

That's it from our part of the world. I feel like melting but I sure would love to be at the pool with the kids. Maybe soon!

good for a laugh

A friend introduced me to literal music videos a while ago and this one is by far my favorite! It is good for a laugh. Sometimes I find myself singing the words in this video instead of the actual lyrics!

the first of many difficult questions

Tonight Ethan asked me how babies come out of mommies tummies. Hmm. I was utterly unprepared for this question. I answered it as best I could, hoping he wouldn't move on to the next question that I knew would come. But he didn't rest--he asked how babies are made. WHAT?!?!? He is FOUR. Isn't that too early to expect a decent answer out of a parent? I really hadn't thought about this topic because I figured I had at least another five years before I'd have to answer it--guess not. I did okay with my answers and he seemed satisfied, at least for now. Ugh.

Today was Olivia's 2nd birthday! She was very sweet today. We've had a busy week of playdates and park time. Olivia's most favorite activity is sitting in a swing. She calls it the "whee" and will pull and tug on me to get me to push her. She also will take a swing at me when I try to remove her from the whee. I was going to buy her a swing for her birthday but then I found the very one I was going to pay full price for at a garage sale--for 2 bucks! I don't normally garage sale but the rush of finding the swing was exquisite. Might have to do it more often.

Ethan and I have been working on being respectful lately. When I tell him no or won't let him do something that is against our rules, or when he isn't listening to me, he gets angry and yells at me about how I am ruining his day, destroying his day, making him so frustrated, etc. I am trying to get the point across that despite those feelings, I am still in charge and deserve his respect. It is a tough concept for a kid, especially a talker like Ethan. But we had a great day today. He listened, obeyed, and was very respectful all day. I praised the crap out of him and told him the specific things he did to show respect and how told him how thankful I was for such a great day. Hopefully that will hammer the lesson home for him and we can continue to have great days like today. Sometimes I look at him and can't believe he is my little boy--he is getting so big!

Tomorrow we head up to Baker for camping with Grandpa Jimbo. Ethan and I are going; Pibs and Jay will stay home. Pibs at a campground is a little difficult to handle. Plus, it is fun for Ethan and I to have a special thing to do together, and I love camping so it works out for everyone. We'll swim, throw stuff in the lake, eat tasty food prepared by Camp Chef Jimbo (seriously, he made homemade pesto last time), throw more stuff in the lake, stay up super late and get up super early, chase after fish in the lake (I will only be spectating this one; I hate fish--but Ethan is passionate about sea creatures so I try to keep this a secret), and throw more stuff in the lake. Anything that isn't tied down. I think most kids respond really well to alone time with one of their parents and Ethan is no exception. We will have a blast.

That is about it from our homestead. It has been almost a month since I've blogged! I'm not even sure why I haven't posted. Just didn't have anything interesting to write about I guess. I'll post pics soon--they are on the other computer.

midweek update from our house

Greetings! I don't have one specific topic to blog about today so it shall be a hodge podge of items.

1. I have cut way back on my pop consumption. I don't have much in the house (Jay told me I still had to buy since he hasn't stopped drinking it). I don't allow myself to drink it at home most of the time--I did have one yesterday while Rebecca was over. No sense in making her suffer too! :) I will drink it when out to lunch someplace. But I would say I go without at least 4 days out of the week--that is pretty good! I feel a little sluggish but I'm hoping that it will pass the longer this goes on.

2. Ethan is still obsessed with sea creatures. He got "The Complete Shark Collection" from Michaels. Yes, that is exactly what he calls it--I don't even know if that was really the name! I had to give them water yesterday while he was playing soccer. I don't know about this kid sometimes!

3. Olivia. Sigh. This girl is totally nuts. She started taking her diaper off anytime she was in her crib (no poop though--thankfully). I had her in a onesie for a while and that seemed to do the trick. But then she managed to get out of the onesie without unsnapping it so that was over with. I pulled out an old sleeper without footies and put it on her backwards. That seems to be working so far. I have to put her in it at naps and bedtime. And I only have one so we'll be hitting Once Upon A Child later for some more. I just can't stand the idea of buying a brand new sleeper and chopping the feet off so used will have to do it. But wait--there's more! Now she has been taking her diaper during the day. I was in the kitchen cleaning up yesterday and went into the family room to check on her. There she was, naked as a jaybird, watching TV. She had taken everything off--and her diaper had poop in it! Thankfully it was a hard poop but there were little niblets all over the carpet...nasty. She did again later in the day. I can't tell if she just honestly doesn't get that she shouldn't do that or if she totally gets it and is just tormenting me.

4. JT (my brother-in-law) and I have started a child swap. We've been at it about three weeks. It is the BEST!!! He gets a day to go golfing and I get a day to just do whatever I want. It is so nice to have that break from my kids. I love them and I know that my job is to be home with them but sometimes I just need some time off. Real time off, not just time off during naptime. The unexpected bonus from this on my end has been getting to know my nephew, AJ. I admit that I haven't paid much attention to him since his birth (although I did put in quite a bit of time in the delivery room, much to my chagrin). But hanging out with him on my swap days has been really fun! I'm getting to know him and figuring out how to take care of him. He is warming up to me--yesterday he sat on my lap at Ethan's soccer game for quite a while even though Em was right there. He and my kids have a ball together and he is figuring out how to torment Olivia as good as she gives it. :) It gets a little chaotic with three little ones running around but knowing that there is a day off coming up makes it a little easier!

5. Josie helped me do some serious cleaning of toys last week. I pitched a bunch, donated a bunch and put most of the remaining toys in the storage room. It means a lot less mess to clean up every day and it feels more manageable.

That is it from here. I wish the weather would shape up. I need to do some serious damage to my garden with a bottle of Round Up but it is always either raining or blowing hurricane force winds down here.

delicious bubbles

Lately I've been really feeling like I need to give up my diet pop addiction. If I'm being honest, I probably drink 36 ounces each day (much, much more if I go out to lunch). I don't think it is so much about the caffeine, although I never drink it after lunch. It is more about the bubbles and the flavor. I do drink quite a bit of water but I think food tastes so much better when washed down with a little bubbly. It has become very clear to me though that diet pop is basically just chemicals, some of which are probably harmful to my body.

Have you ever given up pop? I've tried to cold turkey it but that didn't last long. What would some reasonable substitutions be? Can I mix Crystal Light in club soda? Or is the carbonation just as bad as the chemicals? Insight?

Also, take my new poll about the (not) Swine Flu!