random tidbits

Yeah, I know - I'm oh so creative with my titles. How DO you clever people come up with them?

• Scarlett is talking more & more. She says "tickle tickle" and actually tries to tickle.
  
• Anytime one of the kiddos sneezes, I say "Bless you". If they sneeze more than once quickly, I'll say "scat" and they both think it's hilarious. So now they fake sneeze. The other day I sneezed and they both immediately started fake sneezing, so I'd say "scat" over & over.
  
• Scarlett has the cutest facial expression - she scrunches up her nose & squints her eyes a little. It's definitely a devilish look, but I adore it. Now I need to capture a picture of it so I can hold onto it forever.
  
• Matthew is well trained to when it is time to come inside from playing. This morning when it was time to leave the park he went straight to the wagon. He might be a handful, but sometimes he's SO good.
  
• Matthew's been asking to potty more lately, and he is always successful. Unfortunately he wants to go every 10 minutes sometimes, and I think it's just for the candy reward. I'm still putting no pressure on him, due to my own laziness. I really think I should be more aggressive about potty training, I'm just lazy and don't want to clean up accidents.
  
• At least I can admit my faults, right?
  
• I'm no longer "mommy". I am "mama" to Scarlett, and Matthew has shortened it to just "mom". He sounds so much more grown up when he says "mom" instead of "mommy". Waaah! I want to be "mommy!"
  
• I had to have some bloodwork done this morning & I'm such a wuss. I hate needles, I even shake when I'm just having my finger pricked. I tried donating blood once but after 45 minutes of almost nothing coming out of my vein, they sent me on my way. This morning she stuck me & got the vein, but nothing came out. It took forever for my blood to flow. Seriously, it took about 15 minutes for her to get 2 small vials. What's up with that?
  
• I was showing Matthew pictures of my new nephew on the computer, and he said he wanted to go see him. I told him we can't because the baby is far away. He then asked if we could go on an airplane to see him. How many freaking 2 year olds know it's better to go far away on a plane than in a car? He's brilliant, right? :)
  
• Speaking of the nephew, he is doing much better but is still in the hospital. Sis was nursing him this afternoon (for the first time) and it was going well! Woohoo! He's off the oxygen, but still on glucose and under the bili lights. Hopefully now that he's nursing they can get him off glucose & that should help with the jaundice too.
  
• Last week I joined a weight loss challenge & am supposed to lose 7 lbs in 4 weeks. I've lost 2.5. Even with the party this weekend I should be able to lose another 4.5.
  
• I LOVE the bootcamp class at my gym. Love it so much I thought about joining the marines.

#98: Yankee Doodle Dandy

Last night David & I watched #98 on the AFI top 100 list, Yankee Doodle Dandy. It was my favorite so far, with the music, the acting - it was just fabulous. Yes, it's a gung-ho patriotic film, with its fair share of cheesiness, and definitely some historical innaccuracies, but it was a thoroughly enjoyable film. Fun to watch, with several sentimental moments thrown in.

Yankee Doodle Dandy is based on George M. Cohan's life. While I recognized the name, I didn't realize just what an impact he had on theater. He was born into a theatrical family, and was raised travelling the country, performing in small and big towns. From vaudeville to Broadway, this movie does a great job of showcasing Cohan's successes and it was very entertaining. But I love musicals. The songs, the dance....

I know that James Cagney was an excellent actor, and I think this role really showcased his skills. I also can't help but think actresses in that time were much prettier than actresses now. I know that's probably terrible to think about their looks, and certainly I'm generalizing, but I just look at these women in the older movies we've watched and think "wow, they are beautiful" - there's just something about them.

Up next: Blade Runner...just checked the library website & one copy is lost & the other is checked out.

gotta do a little childproofing

I have a confession to make. I'm not big on childproofing. While I don't remember when I was a tot, I do remember when my little sister was a baby. My parents didn't childproof, and yep, we turned out ok. Admittedly, that was back in the day of those wooden box televisions that sat on the floor, so there weren't entertainment centers to climb on & wires from vcrs, dvd players, surround sound, etc. everywhere, but they still had outlets. And I don't ever remember there being a cover on them. While we've done some basic child-proofing, I am still a firm believer that nothing is better than supervision.

But the reality is, I can't be there to supervise the kiddos all the time. Even though they are my job, I still can't watch them 100% of the time. Well, not even 100% of the time they are awake. Last night I told David a "cute little story" about Matthew playing doctor. Part of my intent of sharing the cute story was to explain to him WHY we need to do something about our mini-blind cords. Matthew loves to climb on the couch & pull the blinds up. This leaves a helluva long cord. Yesterday he wrapped it around his neck (YEP. AROUND HIS NECK!) and had the bottom part of it pretending it was a stethoscope and he was listening to Scarlett's heart & lungs. Pretty cute, except for the part that was wrapped AROUND HIS NECK! And folks, this was just in the time it took me to put a diaper in the diaper pail!

I explained that he shouldn't wrap things around his neck and then I tied the cords up where I didn't think he could reach them. I walked into the kitchen to wash up breakfast dishes & heard "mommy I need help" - come back in & he has another freaking cord around his neck. This one MUCH tighter than the one yesterday. So um, I gotta figure out how to keep these things out of his reach.

It kills me to say this, but maybe Kim was right about something after all. I really should do some childproofing. I still don't think green beans will cure a headache though. :)

Help or move on

I am part of a few message boards, and sometimes I just have to step away. I get so irritated with people who can't NOT reply to a question. Even if they don't have anything helpful to say. If you can't offer a solution or support to the person with the problem, just ignore the post. Don't criticize the decisions they have already made.

One example...this morning I was reading posts on a breastfeeding board. A woman posted asking how to handle her 25 month old son if he wants to nurse when her new baby is born. She specifically said "I don't want him to start nursing again" yet people got nasty with replies. Here's a portion of the reply that really pissed me off:
i would just let him nurse. i would feel really ashamed of my self if i was being greedy with my milk,knowing that im doing the best for one baby but not for the other

Those of you who know me well know that I joke about being a boob nazi, and I do strongly believe breast is best, yada yada yada. But this woman breastfed her son for 16 months. He's going to be over 2 when the baby is born & she doesn't want to breastfeed him and the baby. Seems to me she did a pretty darn good job of breastfeeding. How many people breastfeed that long? How exactly is breastfeeding for 16 months being greedy with her milk? How exactly is choosing to breastfeed an infant but NOT breastfeed a toddler (who already had the benefits of breastmilk for 16 months) NOT doing the best for that toddler?

I know there are a lot of studies about breastfeeding, and most things say breastfeeding until age 2 is best, but realistically she's not doing her toddler any harm by refusing to let him start nursing again. I know it's a breastfeeding group, so I expect people there to be more pro-breastfeeding, but they need to chill.

#99 - Toy Story

Sunday afternoon we watched #99 on the AFI's top 100 list. Surprisingly, neither David nor I had ever seen all of Toy Story. We had seen bits & pieces but somehow never watched the whole thing. We waited until after Matthew's nap & popped some popcorn & sat on the couch together to watch it. Matthew enjoyed the popcorn more than the movie, but David and I enjoyed the movie. I was a little worried that some of the crazy toy scenes at Sid's house might bother Matthew, but he didn't seem to notice the dismembered, messed up toys. It was a nice bit of family time...Scarlett even woke up from her nap early so she wouldn't miss out!

I have to say that while the movie was cute and teaches some valuable lessons, I think the reason it made the list is the computer animation. It revolutionized animated film, and paved the way to many other wonderful animated films.

Up Next: Yankee Doodle Dandy

our newest addition

My baby sister had her first baby Saturday. It's been a nerve-wracking few days (I can only imagine how it's been for her!) as her water broke late Thursday night but she didn't start having contractions until they admitted her Friday morning and hooked her up to pitocin. She still never made much progress and he was born via c-section Saturday morning. He was a good size, at 5 lbs 13 oz, and 18.75" long, but he had a little trouble breathing. They decided Saturday afternoon to transfer him to another hospital about an hour from where they live (he was born just about 5 miles from their house).

I have to admire her for holding it together the way she has. I think I would have been a complete basketcase if they had told me they had to transfer Matthew or Scarlett and I had not been able to keep them right there with me the whole time. I also can't imagine barely seeing them for the first 24 hours, not holding them for over 24 hours, and so on. I know the medical needs come first but I am really admiring her strength right now. She seemed to keep a level head and let logic guide her. She's usually the emotional one of the 3 of us. Much more sensitive than I am...yet she was really strong through all of this.

They are hoping their little butterbean will be released tomorrow. He is already off the ventilator and on just a little oxygen. They are hoping to wean him off that today, let her nurse him so they can make sure he's sucking ok, that he is strong enough to eat & breathe, and if all that goes well they'll get to take him home tomorrow morning. If you're the praying type, please say a prayer for this new family.

Here is a picture just before he was transferred:


Here's my baby sis holding her son for the first time:


Here is his daddy giving him some love:

a hilarious moment

Sometimes you just need a good laugh. And having a two year old pretty much guarantees that you'll get the chance for that laugh. We were having a rotten day - Scarlett had not taken a nap, Matthew had not taken a nap, and frankly, mommy NEEDS their nap times! I was struggling to not be in a bad mood, I had just nursed Scarlett & was trying again to get her to take a nap. When I got back to the family room Matthew was in the recliner with the boppy and his romper unsnapped to his waist. He said "look mommy, I found my boobies."

Trying not to laugh, I exclaimed "yes you did!" The conversation continued:

Him: "You want to go get Scarlett and my feed her?"
Me: "Babe you can't feed Scarlett"
Him: "Yes my can, I found my boobies."
Me: "but babe, only mommy's boobies make milk"
Him: "no mommy, see my boobies have milk too"

In case anyone was wondering, his boobies don't have milk. It was a priceless moment. I actually got some video on my cell phone, but the file isn't giving any sound when I upload it. I don't know why it isn't working, but without the sound...well it's just not that funny.

When Scarlett came downstairs and I was cooking supper, he did try to pull her into the recliner with him so she could "drink some milk." I'm going to have to watch those two!

WFMW: Lansinoh products

Ever since I planned to breastfeed Matthew and everyone recommends "that stuff in the purple tube" and a friend bought me Lansinoh breast pads, I've been a fan of the Lansinoh products. I've always found them to be great quality and have bought them, even when they were a little more expensive than other brands. Until the last two weeks I've been thrilled with their products. But lately...not so impressed. (*see below for the whole story) I'm putting the main "works for me" part next to save the reader some time if they don't want details. I get wordy :)

So I contacted them. I emailed them and had a response, a REAL response, less then 5 minutes after I hit send! Their response was not a canned generic, "we're sorry", it was a real response that addressed my issue, apologized, asked me if I had saved bags and if I would return them, and asked how they could compensate me for my loss! I felt like they truly cared that I had a problem. So for now, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and keep buying their products! So, Lansinoh products work for me, but what really works for me is speaking up when I have a problem with a product. I think most companies do want to stand behind their products so from now on when I'm unhappy with a product, I plan to contact the company and let them know. If they respond in a caring way, like Lansinoh did yesterday, I will continue to support the company. For more tips, head over to Rocks in My Dryer for Works for Me Wednesdays.


** And for the whole story:
I have a LOT of milk stored in the freezer, back from when my supply was abundant, and then when Scarlett refused a bottle at daycare. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot! All in Lansinoh storage bags. Since she's recently turned one, I've decided to cut back our nursing sessions and only nurse her twice a day. My plan is to use up my freezer supply of milk and then put her on whole milk. The first problem was the night of my first photography class. David put a bag of frozen milk into some water to thaw while he got Matthew to bed. When he went back to put the milk in a bottle, the bag was empty and the water was milky. He thawed a second bag, and part of it leaked too. He ended up needing a third bag to finish feeding Scarlett, and part of it leaked. At lunch I've been thawing milk to give her in a cup, and between what he lost that night & what I've lost since, I've wasted about 50 oz of breast milk. I don't consider this a huge waste, since #1, I'm still nursing her; #2, I have a lot more in the freezer, and #3, she's over a year old and can (and will) drink whole milk without a problem.

I grew concerned though over all these "bad" bags. What if I was a new mother struggling with nursing, about to go back to work, worried about my supply? *I* recommend Lansinoh to everyone I know. Has their quality gotten bad? Did I just get unlucky & get a bad batch of bags? I suspect that is the case, as all of the milk we've had leak was stored in a small date range, but still...I felt compelled to contact the company.

(and for the record, I told them I don't want any compensation-I don't need anything)

100 movies

The AFI has compiled several lists of "100 Best" films. In 1997 they published their list of "100 Best Movies", then in 2007 they updated that list with a 10th anniversary edition. David & I found out about this list because his mom had it on her refrigerator when we visited. As we went through the list, we had seen several of the movies, but probably not as many as we should have. We decided when we got home to start watching the movies on this list, from #100 all the way to #1. We plan to watch the movies we've already seen again, together. If we watch one movie a week, it will take us about 2 years to see the entire list. There will be weeks we miss, like when we're on vacation or visiting family, but hopefully we can complete the list in about 2 years. I'll try to do a weekly post documenting our progress.

If you'd like to check out the list, you can register on the AFI site and download the list, or you can go here. What I like about the AFI site is that they have other lists too, and you can access those as well. Let's say you like animated films, or science fiction, you can look at a least specifically for that genre. I think we'll venture into other lists provided by the AFI once we've viewed the top 100.

Last night, we watched Ben Hur. Neither of us had seen it before and we both enjoyed it. I am known in my family to be the one that can't stay awake, no matter how good a movie is, and last night I finally pulled out my knitting to work on while I watched. I promise, my falling asleep is NO indication of the quality of a movie, I fall asleep easily, and while I hoped to watch the movie without doing another task, I just couldn't keep my eyes open. Knitting keeps me awake, so I fell back on that. The movie really was great. Charlton Heston was an amazing actor; the chariot race was great. Film has come a long way in 50 years, but there were things that just seemed a lot better in this film. To think that everything had to be acted out, or done with miniatures, is pretty impressive. In our days of computer graphics, to think of some of the amazing scenes in this film being accomplished without the technology is just - WOW!

Up next: Toy Story

body image

I am thrilled with my weight loss, and I have to admit to feeling a lot better about myself. It's really amazing what losing a little weight can do for your self-image. I've been going to the gym fairly regularly, and I LOVE the boot camp class I've been going to. Ok, I've only been a few times, but it makes me feel SO good. Yeah, I hurt afterwards, but the rewards are obvious. First, I am keeping up a lot better than I was the first couple of classes. I am still behind the rest of the class, especially when they run, but I'm not as far behind. Second, I feel great the rest of the day after I go to this class. Third, I can tell I'm building some muscle. Last night I was folding laundry and noticed how defined my biceps are looking. Totally vain, huh? But I'm working hard & I am proud of myself. It feels good.

I should note that I'm still nowhere near where I *should* be, but I'm encouraged by seeing such obvious progress. In the past when I've tried to lose weight, I have fallen off the wagon easily, and this time the success is keeping me going. I have a couple of friends who have told me they are proud of me but jealous. To that, I'm sorry. I wish I could help them, but what I realize is that the motivation comes from inside, and it's something you have to do for yourself. No one else can do this for you. When you are ready to make a change, you'll do it.

I'm tired of feeling like the fat, ugly, frumpy chick. I'm making a change.

a great big brother

Matthew is usually a great big brother. He and Scarlett have "their moments" when they fight, but over all they get along well and play together. They are on different nap routines, but yesterday it just so happened that they woke up from their naps at about the same time. Matthew had been playing quietly in his room for a few minutes (maybe 10) when Scarlett woke up. She started fussing immediately, and I heard him shout "I'm coming, don't worry Scarlett". How sweet is that? Not sure how he planned to get out of his room...guess it's the thought that counts.

Then last night at supper, I left them eating to start cleaning up the kitchen. We do most of our eating in the breakfast area, in full view of the kitchen, so I often do this while they finish eating. David wanted to do a few things in the yard, so he went outside, and they were alone at the table. Matthew in his booster seat and Scarlett in her high chair. (I know that's not a sentence, forgive me.) I heard him scoot across the floor and then they were both laughing. They were sharing her food. He hardly touched his food, yet he ate hers like crazy! So I quickly took peas off his plate & put on the high chair tray, and took his steak, cut it into smaller pieces and put on the tray, and they ate together! I really don't want to encourage this behavior because I'd prefer to know what each one is eating, and how much of what, but it was too cute to stop!

On an unrelated note, I've lost another 2 lbs. David's meetings got changed from Wednesday to Thursday, so I'll be weighing in on Thursdays now. I weighed this morning before going to the gym & was down 2 lbs. The gym scale read 0.6 lbs less than our home scale. They are usually pretty close, I still don't know what was up last week. I've lost 28 lbs in a 12.5 weeks, I want to lose 29 more. I'm almost half-way to my goal!

AND, I took the pictures for my photography homework yesterday. I may retake them today because I wasn't thrilled with the results, but the assignment is complete.

at least they share

As we were finishing up lunch my phone rang and I walked away to answer it. When I got back to the table, Matthew had scooted his chair over to Scarlett's high chair and was sharing crackers with her. She also happily handed over her sippy cup. I don't know how much milk was left in it, but he finished it off. I asked him if he drank her milk and he told me "yes, I want more of Scarlett's milk." I asked him if he would share his milk with her and he gave her his cup. She gulped it down & they both seemed happy. I don't mind her having whole milk, I just hate for my frozen stash to go to waste. I'm not crazy about him drinking the breastmilk, but I'm thrilled they shared so easily.

WFMW: Aquadoodle to go

Last year for Christmas, we bought Matthew a Aquadoodle Travel N Doodle, thinking it would be good entertainment for when we travel and are in the car or on a plane for a long time. It has become a diaper bag staple now - we rarely leave home without it. Matthew loves the aquadoodle at home, and I love having something that is quiet and keeps him entertained when we go out. I probably wouldn't have thought to share this tip, but last week at Scarlett's one year well visit, another mom and our pediatrician commented on it. They said their children are always asking to take their Aquadoodle mats in the car and this is just perfect for car rides. We've only had it a little over 6 months, but it has been a great investment.

If you aren't familar with the aquadoodle, there are a variety of toys available. They are for doodling or drawing. They use a special mat and a pen you fill with water. The water writes on the mat and eventually disappears so you can draw again and again. No spills, no mess. The available products are great. Some mats come with cars that "ride" on the roads you draw, there are color versions, etc. Our favorite is the travel version though.

The Travel N Doodle works for me. For many great tips, head over to Rocks in My Dryer to see what works for others!

Tuesday Tidbits

My MIL just called, wanting to know if I'd done my homework for my photography class. I'm such a procrastinator so the answer was no! Back in elementary & high school, I always had my homework done before I got out of school for that day. I was a nerd, but not a nerdy nerd, and always managed to do homework for one class during the next class. Once I hit college that changed, and homework became something I did at the last minute. Apparently that's still the case.

Matthew is thoroughly enjoying the swimming pool. It's actually been warm enough the past few days to enjoy it, and the water has warmed up to (a still cool for me) 76*.

This morning once he got in the pool and I was scooping the pine needles out, I noticed my bottoms were on inside out. Not cool. But he was already in the water, and I didn't want to drag him inside so I wrapped a towel around my lower half and did a quick change.

I wish moms would stop judging other moms. I am guilty of it sometimes too but I am part of several message boards where it amazes me. I was going to say more but then this wouldn't be a tidbit. This is really a rant for another day.

I'm getting my hair cut this evening. I've spent most of the day in the pool or taking care of the kiddos. I will take a quick shower but I doubt I have time to blow dry & style. This stylist is still fairly new to me, so I like to go in with it "done" so she can see what I want the end result to be. With my "old" stylist I never cared. How about you? Do you "fix" before going to the salon or not?

I've been putting Matthew & Scarlett in their wool diaper soakers more often this week. I finally seem to have gotten them lanolized correctly. I think they're cute, need to take pics.

Matthew's awake - he is saying "I napped a lot of hours." I think it's so cute when he says this, especially when it's in the morning & he is waking from sleeping 12 hours.

boob addict

I am starting to make more of an effort to wean Scarlett. I plan to continue nursing her first thing in the morning & before bed for a while, but over the next month I hope to eliminate her two mid-day nursing sessions. Last week I started giving her one sippy cup of breastmilk when she wakes from her morning nap. She has been pretty persistent about wanting to nurse though, and I've given in a few times. It's just easier (short term, I know) than letting her fuss about it. Plus, she's cute. It's hard to say no to someone as cute as she is.

A few examples of her cuteness:

1. She brings me the boppy when she wants to nurse. She's so tiny to be walking around the room with it, but she somehow manages. Sometimes she puts it around the back of her neck. I need to take a picture or video of this!
2. When she wants to nurse she says "uhuhuhuh" in the cutest voice. I know a lot of babies do this, but it's still cute.
3. The funniest thing she does might seem gross to some of you. When she stops nursing there is sometimes a little milk left on my nipple. One day recently she noticed that milk and poked it with her index finger (like she wanted to pick it up), then sucked on her finger. She smiled really big and repeated the poke/suck on finger...several times. Now when she's finished nursing she'll poke & prod at my boob to get that little bit of milk. I guess it really is good to the last drop.

And why is it that she fusses about getting a sippy cup for herself, but if she can get her hands on Matthew's, she's a happy camper? I know she likes what's in hers!

photography class & doctor appointments

Last night was my first photography class. I was excited to sign up for it, but now I am even more excited! I was nervous going in, that everything would be too technical & over my head, but last night proved to be perfect. The instructor did say that by the end of the classes even the experienced photographers in the class would be challenged, but right now it looks to be exactly what I was looking for. He does give homework assignments and part of each class will be spend critiquing the pictures we bring in, but that's the best way to learn, right?

Matthew had an ortho follow-up Wednesday. After his last visit (which I thought I blogged about but when I went to find the link I couldn't so I guess I didn't), we were prepared for the worst, expecting the doctor to recommend additional casts and surgery. We took his shoes off earlier in the day than normal, to give him some time to run around & loosen up after being in the shoes for 12+ hours overnight. When we got to the exam room, the doctor watched him walk from several angles, then put him on the table to feel the flexibility. Then he told us he is very pleased with how Matthew's feet look and that we don't need to come back until Matthew is 3. Very pleased...doctor's words! David reminded him that when we were there in April he was concerned that Matthew was losing flexibility & he replied simply "well I'm not anymore". He then went into more detail about why the flexibility could have been worse then & improved now, and we were happy with his answers.

Whew, what a relief.

This morning Scarlett had her 1 year check-up. She weighs in at 19 lbs, 8 oz (25%) and is 30" tall (between 75-90%). She has dropped on the weight percentile but the doctor said it's probably because she's been walking for so long, and she's just built dainty. No worries, as all other development is great. She was a champ for her (3) shots and hasn't even acted bothered by them today.

how did I manage that?

I haven't figured out how this happened, but this morning when I got on the scale I actually weighed LESS than I did 2 weeks ago! I still don't understand how yesterday I weighed at the gym & weighed more than I did June 26th at the gym (3.8 lbs more) and this morning I weighed 0.5 lbs less than I did June 25th??? Can someone 'splain that to me please?

To add to my confusion, I ended up eating pretty poorly last night. I thought we would ignore my birthday, since I had kind of gotten my own gift. I told David I wanted photography classes for my birthday, he found a class, and I signed up. (I start tomorrow - YAY!) I had also indulged in good food while on vacation, so I didn't *need* cake (who ever does?). BUT, my super wonderful husband got me one anyway. A DQ ice cream cake! He knows they are my favorite! So after eating well all day and planning to have a small ice cream treat later in the evening (that I saved points for), I ate 2, yeah, not one, but two, pieces of ice cream cake. There went ALL my bonus points for the week! I'm exaggerating. I checked the DQ site & 1/8 of the cake is 15 points, so since I had 10 points left after supper, I still have bonus points left! Good thing since we still have cake left over. You know I'm gonna eat a piece of that tonight.

See why I don't believe the scale.

AND AND AND, my super duper wonderful husband, in addition to buying me a DQ ice cream cake AND photography classes, also bought me tickets to see Toby Keith. I have liked his music oh forever, and can't wait to see him live!

made it home

We got in around 6:30 last night, ate dinner, got baths & got the kiddos to bed. I'm copying all the pics off our memory sticks on to the computer (we took over 1000!!!) so hopefully I can go through them soon & post some. We had a great time, drove all night Thursday (June 26th) to get to my parents' house, then slept & visited Friday. Saturday we had Scarlett's party, had a great time...she loved her cake & ice cream! We played in the pool. Sunday we drove to Daytona...the kids loved the beach. We had a blast there. Scarlett is our little fish! The water was freaking freezing though We still had fun, even though we could hardly stand the water. Then Wednesday we went to MIL's - had an ok time there too. She behaved this visit. Saturday we drove to TN, had pics taken Sunday - I'll get a disk in about 2 weeks of those. Scarlett was not very cooperative though, so I'm just hoping they turned out ok. Then we played in the pool & visited. Drove home Monday.

Kids were SO good in the car - I couldn't believe what an easy trip it was! That being said, I'm still exhausted & happy to be home. I LOVE the beach though, I SO want to be back near it! I really miss being able to take day trips to the beach...yeah, we have beaches here, but nothing that's really swimmable, and to me, if it doesn't have that salty smell, it's not a real beach. :) Sorry to all y'all Michiganders, I know there's sand, water, even waves, but it just doesn't compare to the (normally) warm water, the nice ocean breeze, the salt in the air.

The worst thing about our little vacation is all the food I ate! I thought I did pretty well, even at my parents' with my mom cooking some of my favorite foods (homemade peach ice cream, can you say YUMMY?), I didn't eat to the point I was stuffed. I ate what I wanted but I didn't overeat. Plus I was active. Same at the beach. But then we got to MIL's, and there's not much to do there, it's hot, I just sat around & didn't DO stuff like I should. I didn't even think I ate too much. But then in TN, I did. Plus we spent so many hours in the car, it's hard not to eat fast food when you're on the road as much as we were. So well I gained 3.5 lbs (official weigh in is tomorrow, but that's what the scale said today). We're home & I'm back on points though...I'll drop that 3.5 & then some! :)