Wilma

Ruth usually calls William "Buddy," "Bubba," or "Brother." But recently she's been trying to say his real name...it comes out "Wilma" instead of William. Pretty funny.

January in Review

First and foremost we solved the "accident" problem by re-introducing the training potty and not trying to get her to go on the normal toilet. The kids have been taking baths almost every night and having a BLAST together. And this last week Brad and I went to "Death by Chocololate" where we tasted chocolate in the cookie, dessert, brownie, cake, and candy categories and scored which was the best. We left the kids with Shirlaine for the night and we had so much fun. Then we also went to an Elder's Quorum activity where we played bunco and left the kids in the nursery to be attended by 12 year old girls, also WAY fun. And then we also watched "Inception" which is our new favorite movie. It was warm enough to take the kids on walks this week and to go play at the park. Will was super giggly when I put him in the swing (it was his first time). We also got a lock for the bathroom door (finally, right?) and are in the process of putting pulls on the kitchen cupboards and drawers. Aside from dieting, this was a GREAT week. Here are other highlights from the month:

Brad has been teaching Ruth to play the piano with her fingers...here she is instructing her toys

Getting rid of the Christmas tree

She LOVES her daddy

Learning to play together

Playing with her "bugs" (Cooties from Aunt Tia)

Thought of You

I don't usually go for dance, but i thought this was really nice. the art is really spectacular and I love the music. The whole album is highly recommended.

Down Again

I'm back down to 180 pounds. Although I'm pretty sure this weight loss is due to not breastfeeding much any more. It has become a wrestling match every time we sit down, and he LOVES bottles, so I've pretty much given up nursing him, thus the weight loss.

taking care of myself

in my post about things i learned this year i included that i need to take care of myself. well, i learned that last year, but didn't do the best job of it. some things i've done recently to improve this situation include:

*dying my arm hair (if you've ever seen me you KNOW i have the nastiest, manliest, dark, thick arm hair. but when i dye it you can hardly notice it and it makes me feel so feminine to focus on the dainty freckles on my arms and not the gross hair). i haven't done this since we got married! yuck.

*painting my nails. in the last 4 days i've painted them TWICE

*exercising like a maniac. i've lost 3 pounds, i'm down to 182! today i jogged 2.5 miles straight, no walking allowed!

*insisting on quiet time. ruth doesn't nap anymore (her choice not mine) so i've implemented quiet time. i can't always keep her in one place so at the bare minimum she knows she has to leave me alone for at least an hour. yay! (this usually coincides with Will's nap time so i get to do whatever i want for at least an hour, woot!)

i've been so much happier and feel like such a better and more capable mom because i've been doing these things.

Actual Conversation: Van Envy

So I went out to lunch with friends the other day so our kids could run around in the play place at Arctic Circle (very glamorous I know). This was part of our conversation:

Alisa: So we got rid of that Chevy van that had electrical problems that I told you about.
Me: Oh good.
Shirlaine: So what are you driving now?
Alisa: a Honda Odyssey!
Me and Shirlaine: OH MY GOSH! You're so lucky!

I never thought I would be envious of someone's van, that day has come. And while I feel slightly lame that I think a van is rockin', seriously have you seen the Odyssey? It is totally awesome. But for now we don't need the extra space and one car is enough of an expense. But we are very grateful to have an operating vehicle, thank you Asa.

In other news, Ruth is way past 3 word sentences. It's so crazy that from one day to the next her language skills get so much better. This morning while she was eating breakfast she told Brad, "Sit here (she pulled the chair next to hers) and read a book." Well okay!

Will's 4th tooth is bulging and so close to coming in. He eats like a beast! I've started giving him an entire 6 ounce cup of yogurt, ontop of the several ounces of applesauce and oatmeal he gets in the morning and several ounces of veggies and ground meats for lunch and dinner. We've also started work on a sippy cup. He's sleeping better, I usually just get up at 2am to feed him now, blessed boy, he gets so fussy by around 6:30 that he's always in bed before 7pm, and sleeps until about 8am. WOOT!

Funny Ruth story: Brad was in the bathroom and Ruth said she had to go too (this usually happens, the bathroom will be occupied so Ruth will think she has to go too, usually she doesn't). Brad told her to wait. I was in the office, and Ruth comes in without her pants on. (When she walks around without pants it's usually because she had an accident). "Ruth did you have an accident?" "Yes," she says. We go to her room and her pants are dry...but there is a HUGE poop on the carpet. She really did have to poo, but because we are constantly telling her not to have an accident in her pants, she took them OFF to have an accident! Haha, funny kid.

The kids are learning to play together better. Ruth loves it when I fly Will around and pretend like he's going to attack her. She also loves to give him hugs while I hold him so he's standing up. It's been fun having him get so mobile because he can just follow us all around the house as we move from one room to another. He's a cutie, and now that he's sleeping better he isn't screaming so much!

Pictures

This is Will's new face, he sniffs air in and out of his nose really fast while making this face, it's so funny!

My toothy boy

Ruth was so excited it was finally snowing again!

I love that you can see her feet prints go all the way down the deck through the yard.

Look at those gray-green eyes!

My Weight

Well starting in November with the massive influx of cookies and birthday cake and culminating this last week with sparkling cider and more cookies along the way (not to mention the cheesy potatoes, fried foods, eating out more than normal, etc.) that we did in the last two months, I managed to gain 5 pounds. I'm back to 185. And while at first I was really annoyed that I was so unrestrained in my holiday eating, I have to accept that what is done, is done.

Now that I've gotten over a cold I'm ready to get my butt back in gear. Our holiday splurge this year was a new elliptical machine, which has been so nice to have down in the basement. Now I can watch "What Not to Wear" and dream about the shopping spree I get to go on once I'm back down to my desired weight, just 25 more pounds! I'm ready to start saying "no" to treats again and "yes" to working out. So I'm excited, and hoping that once again posting my progress online will help keep me motivated.