gym and school

Yesterday I dropped Porter off at Kim's house and took Liesl to a mom and tot gym class. Liesl was not that into it and wanted to nurse when we were warming up and stretching. Most of the other kids look to be around two so they could follow the directions a little bit more than Liesl. After a while Liesl got into it and during free play she just wated to go down the little slide. If another kid walked toward the slide she would say "no mine". She is so cute it is hard not to laugh when she says that but I did take her off it so other kids could have a turn. I went and picked up Porter and took him to meet his teacher. It was a really short meeting because we were the last one of the day and I think she wanted to get home or something. Porter and Liesl had fun playing and Porter was not happy to have to go home.
Today we stayed home because I was expecting a package of clothes I ordered. We just played at home and all took a nap in our bed at 12:30. Porter slept for 2.5 hours and I finally had to wake him up because I wanted to go to Target. I bought Porter some new underwear in a bigger size so he can pull them up easier at school. Porter was a little off today and I wonder if he is getting sick. I hope not because I would hate for him to have to miss school tomorrow.

bloody nose

Porter was playing in his room this evening and he came out with a bloody nose and said "different colors were dripping out of my nose". There was not much blood and it dried up pretty quickly.

Tonight Jason and I went to Parent Night at Porter's preschool. It was a little weird and I am not so sure I want Porter to go to school. We are going to see how it goes but I am not 100% sure it is the right choice. Tomorrow I am taking Porter over to Kim's house so I can take Liesl to her parrent/tot gym class at 10AM. That is so early for us I just hope we are not late. At 12 we have a meeting with Porter's teacher so Porter can get to know the classroom and her. I hope it all goes well.

This Old House

When people ask me if I love my house I always say "yeah I do" but I really don't. We just moved here in February and I thought I would love having a bigger house, a private yard and the neighborhood but I don't. When I can't sleep at night I think about how we could get out of the house and wonder if we could get what we paid for it. We bought a fixer upper but my husband is not the fixer upper kind of guy. I should have put my foot down and said no to the house but I got caught up in the whole new house idea. I did like it but the idea was that we would get enough money from the sale of the old house to put in a new kitchen in this one. That did not happen and now we don't even have enough for the foundation repairs let alone a new kitchen. I want the foundation to be fixed so I can start some landscaping so at least the outside of the house looks nice. I wonder how long we will live in this house.

quiet

Friday night my parents came over to babysit so we went to The Guild for dinner. We had about 10 of our friends come out for dinner and drinks and we had a great time. The food was good and it was just a really nice time. After dinner we went to the Turf Club for a few drinks and then over to the pink Elephant before we went home. The kids had a fun time with my parents and they got to have some ice cream for a special treat. Saturday we hung around the house and Jason broke down a bunch of branches that I had cut from this hedge earlier in the week. We were going to go for a walk and the kids got in the stroller then both of them fell asleep for at least an hour. When they woke up we walked over to Sara's house for a BBQ. It was fun and after that we went to a birthday party for our friend. Liesl was a little clingy at first but Porter really had fun running around with Audio. I was tired and passed out putting Liesl to bed but woke up around 10 and stayed up for a few hours. I went to bed but it took me a long time to fall asleep so I was still tired when Liels woke me up in the morning. I just want one day a week where I don't have to get up with the kids and I was pissed that Jason was not getting up so I went up stairs to sleep. I have no idea what time it was but when I woke up and went down stairs it was 12:22. The house was empty so I took a shower, are some breakfast, read the paper and cleaned up a little bit. I was a great morning for me, well I guess it was more of an afternoon! The kids were a little grumpy when they came home from the Zoo but we got through it. I made some tortillas and they wanted to play with the dough so I made them some play dough. They were both quite for 15 minutes it was amazing.

"it's good morning time"

Porter has been coming into our bed at night and it has been a little hard to sleep with all four of us in bed. I do love waking up and lounging in bed together. Porter woke up the other day and said to Jason "I love you Daddy, look the lights are off that means it is good morning time" It was so cute and just makes me love that little boy so much more.
I had to go out to Santee to give the Dr. a form to fill out for Porter's school. Liesl had been sick to I made an appointment to have her checked out. The Dr. said she had a soar throat and an ear infection. He prescribed some ear drops and an antibiotic for 10 days. Liesl was better at this point and I was not sure if I should give it to her so I waited until the next day to see how she was doing. The thing is that I would not have taken her in if I did not have to go there anyway and I just thought that the Dr. would say that she was fine. I decided not to give her the medicine and she is better.
We went to a birthday party tonight at Chuck E Cheese and two other families that we know where there for their own celebrations. Porter and Liesl had cake for dinner so it was a good night.

nine

Jason and I were talking on our way home from LA on Saturday about the number of people we know who have had a DUI. I don't drink and drive now that I have kids but I used to do it all the time. When Jason and I go out at night he always drives and he is really good about not drinking too much but I am sure if we got pulled over he would be over the legal limit.
Saturday we went to LA for the third birthday of my cousin's daughter. It was a hawaiian themed party and it was a lot of fun. It was really hot there and miserable but the kids had fun. Liesl has had a fever on and off since Saturday night. It has been between 102 and 104 and she is just miserable. I am going to the Doctor tomorrow to drop off some school release for Porter so I am going to see if he can see her. I have been giving her ibuprofin because that is what is giving her some releaf and alowing her to sleep. I hate having a sick kid, it really just sucks.
Sunday and Monday we celebrated my dad's birthday and just hung out by the pool. Liesl just wanted me to hold her and it was hot but she did get in the water for a little bit.

Peter Pan

My mom, the kids and I went up to LA to see my niece Amelia perform in Peter Pan as Tinker Bell. It was a lot of fun and Porter loved it. Liesl on the other hand just wanted to nurse the whole time so I did to keep her quiet but it pissed me off. This nursing relationship is not going very well for me. I just got the new issue of Mothering and there was an article on nursing your toddler and it really came at the right time. I am committed to nursing her until she is two so I have 6 months left and I can do it.

Pink Elephant

I am siting here trying to write something and I can't remember what I did this past week.
Monday we went to Lorien's house for the coop pick up.

Tuesday we did something but I can't remember what. Oh I think we went down to Bonita to swim in my parent's pool.

Wednesday we went to Java Mama for story time and the kids went to Esther's house while I went to the dentist. The story time at Java Mama was fun but that place overall in my personal nightmare. The dentist was supper high tech compared to my old dentist and he was really nice. I have two cavities under old fillings that need to me replaced. They wanted to do them in two weeks but I made the appointment for after my birthday.

Thursday we went to a friends house to play and to circus class after. Circus class was fun but Porter does not do very well in classes. He was really shy at first and then started running around making faces and not paying attention to the teacher. I think it would be fun for him to take the class but I am not sure if he will.

Friday we went to playgroup and had the neighbors over for dinner. Playgroup was fun and both kids slept when we got home so that was nice. I was able to start cooking dinner without to much distraction. I made Indian food and these yummy lemon raspberry pudding cakes.

Jason went out Friday night with his friends so he did not wake up until late Saturday morning. I made some pancakes for Porter so he was happy about that. I told him the night before that if he went to bed right away that I would. Saturday afternoon we went to a birthday party for one of Porter's friend. It was a nice party but I thought it was a little different that they offered beer and lemonade but there was no food. It was a two hour party and about an hour and a half into it they served some cake and ice cream and that was it. It was kind of like what a party should be in so many ways. Some of the birthday parties these days are so over the top it is overwhelming for the kids. Anyway I should shut up because some of my parties have been a little crazy. I am trying to change that and will not throw another crazy party for quite a while.
Saturday night I had Sara and Ticey over for leftover Indian food from the night before. We went to Pink Elephant in the evening and had a fun time.



Today we got up and went to this coffee shop up the street and Porter had a major breakdown and we were going crazy trying to deal with it. Porter cried all the way home and he ended up taking a three hour nap. I went with Sara and Ticey to a friends house for an afternoon tea. I made a strawberry cheesecake that was fabulous and it was a really nice afternoon. When I got home Jason had a friend over and they wanted to go to the Zoo. It was the perfect evening for the Zoo and we had a really nice time. Porter wanted to ride the Skyfari and it was an awesome view of the city at night.
This week I am not sure what is going on but I might go up to LA on Tuesday but I am not sure.

food and crafts

Liesl had a fever from Friday night to Tuesday morning. It was hard because she would only nurse and now that she is better she still only wants to nurse. I feel like I have a newborn again. Wednesday morning I decided to go to LA and was able to get out of the house by 11AM. It took three hours to get there and the kids were good. We went to the Santa Clarita Aquatic center and it was awesome. It was like a water park that the city owned so it was cheep and so much fun. Porter was very cautious in the beginning but after 30 minutes he started following Amelia and was comfortable in the water. Today we went to Griffith Park to ride the horses and the train. Porter was talking about the horses earlier in the week and wanted to go on the medium fast ones. I bought him two rounds on the horse and after his ride on the fast horse he was a little sad so I asked him if he wanted to have a ride on the slow horse and he said yes. Porter said the fast horse was too bouncy but he liked the slow horse. I was cracking up watching him ride the fast horse it was just so funny to me to see him on this trotting pony with his blond hair flying up and down. The train ride was fun but Liesl just wanted to nurse and that was a little annoying to me. Can I say that? I seriously am starting to really hate nursing but I guess that is because I feel like I am nursing a newborn.
I made some yummy food on Monday from one of my favorite cookbooks.

Some fun little things I have made recently.

two sick kids

Porter has had a runny nose for a week now and Liesl has had a runny nose plus she threw up last night and this afternoon. I hope they get better soon.

Some things Liesl is doing that I want to remember.
Words for things
Baby = Blanket
milking = nursing
jacket = anything she wants to put on
please = something she wants
Liesl is also obsessed with shoes especially Porter's shoes. I have to show her every pair until she see the ones she wants. If I don't show them all to her she starts crying. She loves to put anything on like jackets, hats, bibs, bike helmet. She is really into the layering look and loves to go out with a jacket on when it 100 degrees out. I was trying to make dinner this evening so I sat her at the bar with some food and when I turned around she had on a cowboy hat and two bibs on. I should have taken a picture she was so cute.

Yesterday morning I took Porter to the dentist and he has no cavities but his front tooth is dead. we are just going to leave it in and eventualy it will fall out whe the new one comes in. She was a nice lady and I will definitly go back. When we were leaving the dentist asked Porter if he wanted a sticker and he told her he was going to take two one for him and one fore his sister. I thought it was so cute that he was thinking of her. Jason stayed home with Liesl and Porter did not really like that we were leaving without her. I wonder if he is going to have a problem going to school by himself? I am looking forward to him going to school but I am not sure about it. My plan all along was for him to go the year before he enters kindergarden but I kind of got caught up in the whole school thing. I guess we will see how it all works out.

Damages on FX

I have only watched the first two episodes but I love it already. I used to read lawyer thrillers when I was younger and I really like this show. I was out last night with some friends so I am going to watch last nights episode tonight.

tortillas

Last night I made some flour tortillas using this recipe. http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/flourtortillas.htm I used coconut oil and want to try and make them with whole wheat flour but white flour tortillas are so darn good. I am at the point where I prefer brown rice over white but I still love those white flour tortillas. Anyway, Porter swore that I was making "heart cookies" and wanted a ball of dough so I gave him one. He shared it with Liesl and said "I love it mommy I really do love it".


Liesl liked it too and kept on screaming at Porter to give her more. I had a little measuring cup on the counter that had some extra flour in it and they decided that dough tasted even better dipped in flour. I left the room and they got a bag of graham crackers and started dipping those in the flour, yuck.



Then Porter decided to put flour on Liesl.




I should not have left the kitchen because this is what I came back to.


He poured the flour on her dress and face.

The tortillas came out good.

maggots, poop, the velodrome and a photo shoot

Okay so Wednesday morning the kids were sitting up at the bar eating their breakfast and I thought I would sweep up a little since I never do. Well there were maggots in the broom and all over the floor. I was freaking out screaming so loud the neighbors were probably wondering what the hell was going on. I called Jason but he did not want to come home and clean it up. So I did what any good housewife would do I put on my yellow rubber gloves, grabbed a bottle of cleaner and a wad of paper towels and went to work. First I sprayed each maggot with cleaner but it really did nothing to stop them so I probably used a whole roll of paper towels cleaning them all up. When I was done I called my mom to schedule Letty the cleaning lady for Saturday. I am not very good at cleaning the house and it is time for a professional to come in and get the job done. So anyway my Wednesday was actually a nice day considering how it started. I went and bought a tricycle for Liesl that I can push and steer for $10 from a lady off craigslist. Porter rode his "ordange" bike and I pushed Liesl on the trike to the park. Porter was not that into the park so we rode over to the velodrome and it was open. Porter went and rode his bike around the center loop a couple of times then wanted to go on the "fast" track but only made it half way around.
Liesl has pooped in the potty about 7 times in the last week. Today she pooped on top of the potty and by the front door but at least I did not have one poppy diaper to wash this week.
So this writer for the UT is writing an article about street art and wanted a picture of me by a pole warmer. I met the photog at Influx and Jason met me there to watch the kids and it was a really weird experience. I am just not comfortable having my picture taken like that. I am afraid that I am going to have this weird smile in all of the photos but we will see.

cramps

Last night I was in pain from 9:30 until 11:30. I had to take 4 ibuprofin just so I could sleep. My cramps are so painful it feels like the early stages of labor but there is no break. I have to concentrate and breath to get thought it and for a moment last night I felt like I was going to throw up. This is what I went through from the time I got my period when I was 12 until I went on the pill when I was 19. I remember going to the school nurse when I was in 8th grade and my mom was mad that I came home and told me that I was going to have to learn to deal with it. Pain releavers would work sometimes but other times they didn't. I would take baths or sit on the couch with a heating pad but it was hell. My friends moms would take them to the Dr. and they were able to get medicine to help releave the pain. My parents said that you only need to go to the Dr. if you are having sex. I thought that after I had kids this would all be over with but they are starting again. I am going to the Dr. next week for an anual exam and I am going to talk to her about this. I don't want to go on the pill again but I also don't want to deal with painful cramps every month.

in review

Thursday morning we went to Spreckles Park in Coronado. There were not very many people from the playgroup there but it was fun. Thursday afternoon we went to the North Park Farmers Market and bought a few things for dinner. We ran into Jane and Milo there and it was a nice opportunity to get to know them better. I tried to buy tortillas at the Albertson's by our house but they did not have any without partially hydrogenated or canola oil. I have tried three different recipes in the last month or so and I finally found one that I really like. The salomon mixture, brown rice and fresh tortillas made yummy burritos. Friday morning we went to a fun park in Encinitas. There was some traffic and the parking was hard but we had a fun time.
Friday our good friends got married at the court house and had their reception in the evening. I had the 16 year old neighbor take the kids to the park so Jason and I could get ready before my parent's came over to watch the kids. Ali was great and I am definitely going to use her again. The reception was at the MOPA where the bride works and it was a lot of fun. The cake was decorated with mushrooms and there was a frog ice sculpture.


Ticey, Sara and I by the ice sculpture.


Sara and I having fun.


on our way to the Pink Elephant

We did not get home until after two and my parent's were a little tired but we had a great time.

Saturday was hard but I did alright after I got myself out of bed. We went to the Big Kitchen for breakfast but it was not verry good. Porter and Liesl did a good job in the restaurant but I did have to take them out after Liesl started crying for milk. I am so over nursing and I am trying to cut back her daytime nursing as much as I can. Saturday night we went to Bird Park with our neighbors for a free concert. The kids had a nice time and we had fun even though the music was not great. Saturday night Lorien and Val came over to sew bags and we got a lot done. We are on a roll and I can't wait for Tuesday to start finishing up some bags.

sandy hair

Today we went to Loren's house for the coop pick up. I was about an hour late for my shift and I only checked one person so I kind of sucked as a checker. I got a pair of Birkenstocks that I have been wanting for a while and I love them. Liesl and Porter went into the pool and had a fun time. Porter just wanted to pour water on Nina, Nina poured sand on Liesl and Liesl just wanted to lie in the water. I have mellowed so much in the last year it amazes me. Last year I would have freaked out that Liesl got a hair full of sand but now I just thought it was funny. I tried to get it out a little bit but I was not worried about it at all. Some of my freakoutness came from my sister and now that she has mellowed out I have started to as well. We left Lorien's and met up with Esther, Vinja and Nyssa at 28th Street for a little bit. It was nice hanging out there and the kids had a great time. At 2 I took the kids to Sara's house so I could have a little break. Even though I tell her I don't think she knows how much I appreciate it. I met up with Jason and we went to the Princess pub for a drink and food then I went home and cleaned my floors. I ordered an Ergo carrier over two weeks ago and it never arrived so I emailed them and they sent me a tracking number and said it was delivered last week. I was driving home from LA that day and did not receive it so they are sending me another one. I hope it was just a mistake because I would be really sad if someone stole it from my porch. I never had any problems living in Golden Hill and I thought we were moving to a nicer neighborhood and if this is what I have to deal with I will be sad. Blah it is 12:53 AM Jason is out with his friends and I should go to bed. Oh Porter learned how to hit the baseball tonight with Jason. The last time we were out in the yard he was kind of doing it on his own but I did not think to throw it to him. Jason did tonight and one time Porter almost hit it over the fence. Porter is diaper free at night now and he has only had two accidents but that have been in the morning before he gets out of bed.

Monday and Tuesday

I usually go to the park on Monday for the AP playgroup but for some reason I did not go this Monday. It is Wednesday night and I am on my second glass of wine so I don't really remember what I did. Maybe I will remember in the morning. Oh wait I remember I went and dropped Porter off at Sara's house and took Liesl to Whole Foods. I used Kim's menu and bought everything on the shopping list for a weeks worth of meals. It made it so east to shop and the meals have been good so far. It saves money and I don't have to think about what is for dinner so I need to start making some of my own. Monday night I missed knitting because my parent's were over helping us move the new fridge in the house. Tuesday I went to 28th Street park but we did not stay as long as I would have liked because Porter said he was tired. We got home and I told Porter he needed to take a rest but that only lasted 15 minutes and then Liesl woke up. I was kind of bummed but whatever I am used to them not taking naps anymore. We went to Target and Porter got a new helicopter and Liesl got some new shoes. When we got to the shoes Liesl started trying to get out of the stroller and was saying "shoe" over and over. I finally found a sandal in her size so she as happy for a while until she wanted the string that hold them together off.

last week

Last week we went up to LA to visit Shauna for a night. The drive up was not too bad and we just went to a park with Shauna's neighbor when we got there. Wednesday we went to LA's fashion district with 5 kids, two in a double wide jogging stroller, one in a single stroller, one in a sling and one walking. It was madness so we did not stay for a long time but I was able to find some fabric for shopping bags. Thursday I met up with a group of my playgroup friends to sew shopping bags. It took us a while to get started and we only made a few bags but it was fun. Friday night we went to a concert in the park at Trolley Barn and met up with some friends. There were a lot of people there and we had a really nice time. I lost Liesl's brown sandal so that was a bummer. So far in the last month I have lost one while sandal, one brown sandal and a pair of white sandals that were the replacement for the one I lost. I never lost Porter's shoes and I can't understand how I am losing Liesl's. I was thinking of listing the left shoes on ebay but I don't know how well that would go. Friday night I met Sara and some of her friends at Bluefoot for some drinks. I drank more than I should have but I did not have a hangover so that was good. Saturday Shauna came down and we had a yard sale. My parents cleaned out their attic for the remodel they are doing and had us take all of our dolls and junk from our childhood. We did not sell much and all of the leftover stuff went to the thrift store. I could have saved it for Liesl but the plastic was not looking so good on my cabagepatch and rainbow bright dolls. Saturday afternoon I went and got my hair cut at Stacy's new salon. It is in a house and it is really cute. I loved my hair when I left the salon then I had a few days where I did not like it so much but now I love it again. I really like short hair and think it suits me well. Sunday we went and bought a new refrigerator! We went to the Sears outlet store and found one that had some scratches on it but was half the price. Jason went and recorded so I went to my parent's house to swim and hang out with Shauna. Liesl loved playing in the little pool we set up and Porter had fun in the big pool.

new name

I don't think I was ever technically a true urban housewife but I thought I was one. I lived so close to Downtown I was able to walk there whenever I got the urge to do so. We sold our house and moved to the burbs. Now I am just a wannabe urban housewife waiting for my kids to grow up so we can really move Downtown and I can truly be an urban housewife.

no no no

Porter is saying no all the time now. It was cute at first but now it is getting old. We went to the park yesterday there was this little girl that wanted to play with him. Porter just kept walking away from her saying no no no no. We went to the zoo today and went through a section that I have never been to before. It was fun but it has been hot here so we went home around 12.
I have been going to acupuncture for my sciatica. It seems to be helping and my back pain is getting better.
I just finished reading A Million Little Pieces by James Frey. That is one of the best books I have read in a while.
The baby is kicking a lot and I am getting big. I know I am going to get so much bigger and it is a little depressing. I am excited to have another baby in the house. It is going to be crazy for a while but it will be fun.
Jason and I are going to celebrate our 2nd wedding anniversary. I had our wedding Polaroid framed for a gift but it will not be ready until Saturday. My little sister is going to watch Porter for us and we are going to go to dinner. I don't know where we are going to go or if Jason has already picked a place.
Jason's friend Josh celebrated his birthday on Friday so we went to Bombay for dinner. I love curry and it was a delicious dinner.
Thanksgiving is going to be a lot of fun this year. The last three years we went to Portland so it will be nice to celebrate with my family.