Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down 2012 #27

Up:

• We had a fairly laid back/uneventful week. The kids and I went swimming most days just to take  a break from the heat. The best part about this week is that Mike was home at a pretty decent hour most nights!
• Every year (well for the past 3) I've made a photo album for Jackson to document everything he did that year. For the last 2 photo albums I ordered them from Shutterfly because they ran a special for a free book on Father's Day. This year they only gave 50% (bummer) and they completely changed their format for creating photo books. It was not user friendly at all, so I switched to Snapfish. It was super easy and I finished his 2nd year photo book in like 2 days! He loves looking through the books we have at home and seeing pictures of him as a baby and in Mommy's belly! I think he'll really appreciate having them someday. Plus it's a great way to store photos in an organized/uncluttered way. Now I need to work on Kennedy's album. Hard to believe that in 4 short months she will be a year old!

Down:

• Jackson has been a total hellion this week. That word is actually probably an understatement. In addition to waking up between 5-5:30 every morning (which he's been doing since K was born) he is deliberately doing things he knows are wrong and watching to see how we react to them. He was in the refrigerator messing with the food and Mike went in there to discipline him; meanwhile Kennedy noticed Daddy's unattended coffee on the end table and decided to dump it all over the white carpet/couch here. Thankfully she didn't burn herself. I blame Mike partially for that one not just Jackson getting into the fridge. He's also been pulling off his diapers, he peed in our bed, oh the list goes on and on. No amount of discipline seems to help. We've tried time-out, spanking, putting him to bed, taking away his blankie, everything. I hope these years pass very quickly and that Kennedy doesn't learn these same tricks. 

Kennedy loves her some goldfish. It's amazing how much she can eat with just two teeth!

I thought this was so cute. Both kids went into the bathroom to watch Daddy shave.

Jackson at the bowling alley. He preceded to run out of the bowling alley and around the building while Mike and I were bowling our turns. Thankfully one of the other guys caught him just as his kid was following JP out of the building. Uh, what are we going to do with him!

Adorable little kid bowling shoes!

Kennedy absolutely loves cuddling with Daddy!

Jackson felt left out of the pic.

Pretty girl!

Jackson playing dress up with Daddy's cover. He put it on and said I've got to go fly planes now!

Favorite Thing:

Seems like there is always a never ending pile of dishes to be washed and a large portion of them are hand wash only. To avoid getting super dry/cracked hands I use dish gloves. This is a set my Aunt Marva gave me a few years ago. They've lasted really well and also protect my hands from the hot water. Plus they make a fashion statement! They are a brand called Gloveables, but you can also buy similar products at Bed Bath & Beyond and World Market. Even Playtex has some dish gloves in cute colors available at the grocery store. They also make great gifts too. If you live in Mountain Home, they sell the Gloveables brand at the Save-on Pharmacy. When I'm finished doing dishes, I hang my gloves on an over the cabinet towel rack to dry out. 

Hope everyone has a safe and Happy Independence Day!