Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down - 2012 #7

Happy Valentine's Day!! Hope everyone has someone they love to spend it with!

Kennedy's first Valentine's Day!

Up:

• After much debate I decided that the kids and I needed to come home. I felt like all I was doing was yelling at Jackson because he was getting into everything at my parent's house. Rather than be a grouch all the time, I figured Jackson would be better off at home where he can go to school once a week and tot time twice a week to get rid of some of his energy. It's also much easier to take care of the kids at home where we have all our things. We had a great time at my parent's house; it was just time to come home. We left on Thursday and made it home safely on Saturday night despite a fairly big set back (see downs below). The kids were SO happy to see Daddy and I didn't think we'd ever get Jackson to bed after we got home because he just wanted to play with all his toys.
• Jackson counted perfectly to 10 yesterday all by himself. We've been working on counting for a while by counting the stairs as we go up and down each time - I guess it worked!
• Kennedy has had a major growth spurt over the last week. She went from drinking 4.5oz. every 3 hours to eating cereal and drinking 6 oz. every 3 hours. She loves her cereal and ate it like a pro!

• Valentine's Day really isn't a big deal to us, we usually do a ceremonial nice dinner and Mike usually gets me flowers. This year he went all out and got me a beautiful double heart James Avery necklace and a beautiful bouquet of roses - wow! Can't say I minded a break in the norm! We also got Jackson a Mickey Valentine book that he has already read no less than 20 times today!

Down:

• On the drive back home we ran into some bad weather and hit a patch of ice. The new pick-up (well new to us) took a spin and did a couple of 360 turns across both lanes of traffic. It was very scary having no control over the situation and watching as an 18 wheeler passed us in the left lane. Luckily the truck hit a guardrail and the only damage was to the front end of the truck. We were all okay and we were going slow enough that the airbags didn't deploy. The crappy part was that we had to wait for ~2 1/2 hours in the pick-up with no heat and really cold temperatures outside. On top of that the state trooper decided to give Mike a ticket for going too fast for conditions. He was only going 45 and the speed limit was 75. Whatever! We're all okay and that's what matters most. 

Cooking with MiMi! 

This really cool McDonald's on the edge of Wyoming.

Jackson didn't want to eat on the saddle chairs - party pooper!

Favorite Thing:

As you know I like things clean, neat and organized. The bathtub is always hard to keep clean especially since Jackson loves bubble baths. I found this miracle product from Bed, Bath, & Beyond called Bathroom Stone. It is like a pumice stone for your porcelain. It works great in bathtubs and toilets.

Bathtub before.... 

Bathtub after!

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down - 2012 #6

Up:

• As always at my parent's house there is never a shortage of things to organize! This week I forced helped my Mom get rid of a ton of junk in their bathroom and the result was an organized, functional space! Not only that, now their is additional room to spare! We also organized her extensive jewelry collection to make it more user friendly. Thankfully Dad is a great sitter for the kids and very patient during the process! You know me...I love to organize!
• Jackson is such a great big brother! There have been so many sweet moments with he and Kennedy this week. He is always talking to her and kissing her. Today on the way home from church he said, "Kennedy, almost home!" although she was passed out and could've cared less! I have to watch though because a couple of times this week he has tried to pick her up. Thankfully, he realized that she's a little big for him to carry around! The adorable part of all this is that she thinks just as much of him. She is always watching big brother to see what he is doing and usually with a smile on her face!
• The things kids say! These are just a few of the great things that Jackson has come up with this week:
• Earlier in the week the dish man came to the house to fix my parents TV. He was a skinny guy with a mustache, beard, and longer hair. As soon as he came into the house Jackson said, " lub (love) you Jesus," they guy didn't hear him, but I immediately started laughing. As soon as the man left the room, my Mom was like, what are you laughing at. I told her and she shared with the dish man; he was touched because that's about the nicest thing he's ever been called by a customer!
• In Wal-Mart the other night a man walked by and coughed and Jackson said, "Bless you guy!"
• At church today when the bells rang during the consecration Jackson said, "WOW! Someone door," implying that someone was at the door! In addition to that was a whole lot of Alleluia! outbursts!

Little Cutie sitting pretty in her new clothes from  Pinkie!

I just know there has to be a tooth coming soon because Kennedy is chewing on EVERYTHING!

Jackson trying on PaPa's boots...don't mind the Cheeto mustache!

Climbing in the cabinets while MiMi and I cleaned everything out!

Down:

• These colds seem to be lingering for Jackson, Kennedy and I. Today we received the blessing of the throats after church, so hopefully that will kick in and we can be on the road to recovery.
• We are all missing Mike. It's so hard being away from him again even if this time is much shorter. I'm thankful for our new phones though so we can face time.
• Along with all the cute, sweet things Jackson does there are also those moments when we're out in public and I'd like to pretend he doesn't belong with me. His behaviors/tantrums are definitely getting worse and he hasn't even turned two yet.

Favorite Thing:
Everyone has their own remedies to cope with a cold. Growing up, my Dad always lathered our noses with Mentholatum. I have used it religiously since and also use it on the kids too. Sometimes I use it even when I'm not sick just because I like the smell of it! One jar will last you for years too, so it's a great investment :)

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down - 2012 #5

Up:

• My Grandfather's funeral was truly a celebration of life. I definitely feel at peace with everything and I think he would be pleased as well! Thank you again to everyone for the thoughts and prayers.

It is extremely rare that we are all together, but here we are - the Major girl's! From the left we have my sister, Carey, my cousins Madison and Lacy, me and my cousin Holly!

• On Tuesday our newest nephew was born, William Mark Hefferly! He arrived unexpectedly a whole month early! He was having some trouble breathing, but things are looking up now! I can't wait 'til he gets out of the NICU so I can meet the little fella'! Please continue to keep them in your prayers.

• Thursday our Kennedy turned 100 days old! Pinkie and Pa made her a card for the occasion!

• Friday I had a great evening with the girls at Cheddar's for Mike's cousin, Mandi, and Abby, my sister-in-law's baby shower.
• Saturday Mike and I had entire date day! We went to mass and ate yummy fried cheese at Spanky's then went to the movies. It was a great day!
• Also this week Mike finalized the deal on his new truck! He bought my Dad's old pick-up a 2007 Ford F-150. He has wanted a truck for so long and when this opportunity presented itself, he jumped! So now we have to sell my Saturn Vue - anyone interested?

Down:

• Hard to have any downs when you have that many ups! Unfortunately, Mike is let us Monday to go back home. We will miss him terribly and can't wait until the end of March when we get to see him again. 
• Also, Jackson, Kennedy and I have all come down with a cold - yuck!

Favorite Thing:
   During tough economic times everyone is making sacrifices to save money. One of the things I've done to save money in our household is making my own laundry soap. I've been using homemade laundry soap for over a year now and have only had to make 3 batches. It is extremely affordable and easy to make. I haven't had any issues with stains, smells, etc.! My sister-in-law, Laura, is the one who got me started and shared her recipe. If you are interested in making your own soap here is the recipe:

Supplies:
6 gallon jugs (the Arizona tea or Tree Top Apple Juice gallons work really well)
5 gallon bucket with lid
funnel
long handled spoon (I found a great one at the Restaurant Supply Store)
grater
1 box Borax
1 box Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
1 bar Fels-Naptha soap (found on the laundry aisle)

Grate the bar of Fels-Naptha Soap. Heat 4 cups of water in a saucepan over medium heat, add grated soap and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat. Fill the bucket half full with water and add 1 cup of Borax and 1 cup of A&H Super Washing Soda. Stir until powders dissolve. Add melted soap and fill bucket full with water. Stir again. Let the mixture sit over night. After the mixture sits it will be a gelled consistency. Stir again, very well, to break up the gel. Fill each gallon container 2/3rds full with mixture. Fill the remaining 1/3rd of the container with water.
The containers will need to be shaken well prior to each use. This soap isn't like your normal laundry soap, it does not 'sud up' and therefore can be used in the HE machines. Just because you can't see suds doesn't mean it isn't working. If you would like to add a scent you may do so by adding 10 drops of scented essential oil (like lavender) to each gallon. I just use the dryer sheets to add scent to the laundry. I actually like the smell of the soap just the way it is!
3/4 cup for large load, 1/2 cup for medium load, 1/4 cup for small load

I'm about to portion out my soap into each jug - seriously super easy!

This is what the soap looks like after it's gelled overnight.

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down - 2012 #4

It is with a heavy heart that I write today's blog. My grandfather, Theodore William Major, passed away last night. He was 87 years old and had lived a long, fulfilling life. It is a blessing that he passed on though; he has been suffering from the horrible effects of Parkinson's Disease that had gotten worse recently. Wanting to say something, but not being able to talk as well as constant involuntary body movements are no way to live. He was truly a faithful servant of God and never asked why to anything that happened in his life, just did the Lord's will at all times. I am so blessed to have known him and thankful for all he did to raise my Dad to be the wonderful man he is.

This is Grandpa back in 2005 when I graduated from TTU.

Dad & Grandpa dressed alike for my graduation!

This was at Mike's OTS graduation in Montgomery, AL . Grandpa traveled all that way with us.

Up:

• Anytime a family member passes, all the family gathers together. I can honestly not remember the last time that we were all together on my Dad's side of the family. We used to all gather for a mini family reunion on Memorial Day, but its has been quite some time since we've even done that. I look forward to seeing all of them again and sharing memories about Grandpa.
• Kennedy turned 3 months old this week and man is she getting big! She has the greatest smile, of course when I get the camera out she hides her beautiful smile.

I swear she is already teething, she chews on her fingers constantly!

• Jackson has been sleeping later in the mornings which has been really nice. Not only do I feel more rested, I also get to spend some one on one time with Kennedy before he gets up. If I'm lucky, I even get to enjoy a morning cup of coffee too!
• Mike and I had our first date of the year (one down, eleven to go)! We went to see the movie Red Tails and ate some yummy food at Carino's. The kids were apparently well behaved too according to the sitter.

Down:

• It seems as though Mike and I only have a few weeks or a month together before we are separated again. When I go home for the funeral, I will be staying through the end of March. My plan was to come home while Mike was on TDY anyway, but that wasn't until the end of February. Both of us agreed that it seemed pretty silly to go home and back only to turn around and do it again. Plus plane tickets aren't cheap these days. Therefore I will be staying while Mike returns to Mountain Home. I'll look forward to seeing him at the end of March and hopefully not being separated again for a long while.

Favorite Thing:

Keepsakes become all more precious when the loved one that gave them to you passes away. I started collecting shot glasses when I was very young, my Dad brought one back from one of his business trips to Tennessee and the trend caught on. From then on every time we traveled or my parents traveled I got a new shot glass. I think I have around 150 or so now. Mike keeps saying he's going to build me a shelf to display them all, but for now they are packed away in a box under the bed. 

When I was in high school Grandpa gave me a very special shot glass. He had purchased it at a glass factory in Venice, Italy in 1946 after WWII. It is such a special treasure and while I don't actually use my shot glasses for there intended purpose, I'm pretty sure that one helped numb Grandpa of the tragedy going on around him at the time. No, I'm not saying he was a drinker, but Grandpa was a fighter pilot in WWII. He only flew a few missions before the war was over. He remained in Europe after the war on grave detail - digging up dead bodies to send back home for burial. I can only imagine the awful things he saw.

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down - 2012 #3

Just got back from a great weekend in the mountains with my family! There wasn't enough snow to go tubing, but we did plenty of sledding and enjoyed each other's company and the other squadron families we vacationed with!

Up:

• Thanks to all of my generous fellow spouses I didn't have to buy one single size 1 diaper! Kennedy is now in size 2 and we are slowly whittling away at our supply! It really is great to have one thing that I don't have to worry about right now! Diaper showers are a Godsend when it comes to your second child. 
• Kennedy turned over on Thursday at only 12 weeks! Jackson was 3 months and 3 days when he turned over, so little sister already has him beat! She is just the sweetest thing and growing so fast!

Down:

• The postpartum hair shedding has commenced! It is everywhere. My only hope is that it won't last too long. When this started after having Jackson, I chopped all my hair off so at least they were shorter hairs I was shedding. I may have to do the same thing this time.
• I've been an Amazon Mom subscriber since Jackson was very little and my sister-in-law introduced me to it. It is so convenient to have the diapers arrive right at your door and at a very reasonable price. However, this week I received an email detailing changes to the 'Mom' membership which basically takes the discount I was getting (something like 30% off) down to 5%. I have a feeling they will lose a lot of business over this decision. The only way to keep discount is to subscribe to an Amazon Prime membership which is $80 and totally defeats the purpose of getting discounted diapers. I guess it's back to clipping coupons and waiting for sales or maybe even trying out store brand diapers instead of Pampers. Total bummer :(

Favorite Thing:

    I am definitely of the mindset that everything has a place. I don't like clutter. It has been really hard, especially in our current home, to have a place for everything when space is so limited. My favorite organizing tool to compensate for lack of space is an over the door shoe organizer! As you can see below, I have one for all my pantry miscellaneous, one for my cleaning supplies, and one three for their intended purpose - shoes! They would also be great for school/art supplies, gift wrapping supplies, or you could even put one in the garage for gardening supplies. Your only limiting factor is the number of doors available in your house!

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down - 2012 #2

Hope your year is off to a good start and your resolutions haven't already gone by the wayside! I have quite a few resolutions this year, most notably to get back in shape and fit back into my pre-pregnancy clothes. Mike has also set a resolution for both of us that we will go on 12 dates this year. That is pretty lofty considering we went on 2 dates last year and none that I can think of the year before! Hopefully we can meet that goal and it doesn't end up as the '12 dates' of Christmas by the end of the year!

My big helper with his new Dyson from MiMi and PaPa!

Jackson looks like a big boy in his clothes - growing up way too fast!

Up:

• This week was Mike's 31st birthday! I failed to get a picture of him with the cake because I was feeding Kennedy, but here is the cake after I finished it. It is tradition on Mike's birthday to eat Pepperoni Rigatoni and German Chocolate Cake; something his Mom started years ago. 

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• My Fabulous kids have been sleeping great this week. On Tuesday Jackson slept 13 hours (you'll see why below) and Kennedy slept 8! It gets better, on Friday night JP slept 14 hours!!! I'm sure with Jackson this will be short lived until he is completely well, but one can dream!

Kennedy after 8 hours of sleep!

Down:

• Unfortunately our year did not get off to a great start. Jackson and I have a nasty respiratory virus. It started the day after we got back and doesn't seem to be leaving anytime soon. It hit Jackson pretty hard on Tuesday and after he woke up from his nap he was crying uncontrollably. He kept saying, " not okay," and screaming intermittently. I seriously thought something really bad like a seizure was going to happen because I've never seen a child act like that for so long. It wasn't from a fever because his fever had broken at this point, but we went ahead and stripped him down to his diaper and just held him until he eventually stopped. Then Kennedy and Mike have had some type of conjunctivitis of the eye where it mattes shut and is very red/irritated.

Favorite Thing:

I thought that I would start something new on the blog this year. I'm always big on finding products/things that I enjoy or make life easier. Each week I plan to feature one of my favorite things. This week's favorite thing is Dreyer's Frozen Yogurt in Carmel Praline Crunch flavor. Everyone is trying to watch their weight this time of year, but it's hard to curb sweet cravings. This frozen yogurt is low in calories (120 for 1/2 cup) and has all the probiotic benefits of yogurt. The best part about it is the taste; in no way does this take like yogurt, it is rich, creamy, and delicious. We don't have the luxury of Blue Bell in this neck of the woods, but this yogurt is the next best thing.

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down - #1 (New Year & a new count)

Not off to a good start this year with an already belated post! In all fairness, I have been really productive in the other aspects of my life since arriving home.

Happy New Year!!

• We started off this past week with the 'Major' family Christmas. It was so much fun to have everyone at my parents' house. It was the first time in 5 years (since Mike and I were married) that everyone was home. We've added 3 more children into the family since then! Here are some pics from our celebration:

Check out Kennedy's new scuffs!

• On Tuesday, the 27th, my parents celebrated 35 years of marriage. They are such an amazing example to us and I wish them so many more blessed years. 
• Also on Tuesday, our baby girl was baptized! It was so great to have Kennedy baptized at the same church Mike and I were married in and Jackson was also baptized in - St. Elizabeth's. Obviously this church means a lot to us because that is where Mike and I met. Kennedy looked so beautiful in my old baptismal gown! We were also blessed to have many family members join us for the special occasion. Afterwards we went to Ruby Tequila's for fajitas and cake!

Kennedy surrounded by parents, grandparents and godparents - Aunt Marva Bichsel & Uncle Dave Hefferly!

Wearing my baptismal gown! 

Beautiful little girl!

• Wednesday brought friends to our house that we don't get to see very often. It was so great to catch up on everything and they got to meet Kennedy!
• Thursday was Mike and I's 5th wedding anniversary! Hard to believe it's been 5 years. I'm so lucky to have Mike in my life and we've had so many blessings in our short 5 years of marriage. Looking forward to many more great years. Mom and Dad watched the kids and Mike and I had a whole date day. That hasn't happened since before Jackson was born. We had a couple's massage, lunch at Abuelo's (the best Mexican food ever), shopped around and topped off our date with a mini blizzard from the DQ!
• Friday we celebrated the Hefferly Family Christmas! Everyone was there, but Mike's Dad who was working. It was a short visit, but it was great to see everyone and meet our newest nephew Grant though he is already 6 months old.

Mike with his siblings - Andy, Dave, Pat, & Laura!

Jackson with his favorite uncle - Pat!

All the cousins together (extremely rare) - Kennedy, Kolbe, Jackson, Grant, Reagan, & John! Next time we are together there will be a new addition, Baby Will!

Kennedy and Grant getting acquainted!

• Saturday we woke up at the crack of dawn to drive to Amarillo and catch our flight home. Thankfully, both Jackson and Kennedy slept the majority of the flight.

Down

• While we were home we went to see my Grandpa at his assisted living facility. For those of you that don't know, my Grandpa has Parkinson's Disease and it has recently gotten worse.  It is hard to see him that way because I still see him as the vibrant, full of life person I've always known him to be. I love him dearly and pray that he is not in much pain. He has lived a full life though and I know that the he is ready to go to his heavenly home whenever he gets the call.