Wednesday, June 12, 2013

WHERE DOES THE TIME GO??

    I just happened to end up on my blog site today accidentally! I was typing in a website and my blog site came up so I curiously clicked on it and began to read my 3 yes just 3 posts over the past 2 years!! I honestly had good intentions when I started my blog but they obviously fell through... it did however make me wonder WHERE IN THE WORLD HAS ALL THE TIME GONE???? Also while reminiscing through those 3, yes only 3 blogs, I began to realize how much has changed (and how much hasn't changed that I thought would) in 2 years!

    In my first blog I explained how one day I would go potty all by myself along with both of my children being potty trained. I am happy to announce that we are officially a diaper free home!! Matty handles her business completely on her own with all doors shut and NO ONE is to enter! Micah is a little less private about his business and prefers the open door policy in which he also likes to announce to everyone ALL that is taking place within his restroom experience! Despite their differences in approach they are both diaper free and "going potty by themselves''!! I can honestly say it all happened way faster then I envisioned while writing my first blog! Like I said, where did the time go? I woke up with an almost 3yr old and a 4yr old in my house this morning....I was living with a 10mth old and a 2yr old in that first blog!!! I was cleaning highchairs...we no longer have a highchair in our home! I was talking to toddlers at lunch, today I ate lunch alone because my children were at preschool!!! In my first blog I found myself plagued with visitors to the restroom while I was in there, I have to say my visitors to the bathroom are very rare these days (with the exception to the cat, he for some reason believes he belongs in the bathroom with anyone that goes in)!!

     Like I previously mentioned several things have changed. My kids are potty trained, my kids are verbal, my kids go to preschool, love to swim (they hated water 2yrs ago), love to play outside, love their friends and family, in a nutshell: my kids have grown from babies to kids since that first blog!! They went from diapers to undies from highchairs to big chairs at the table, they went from spending 24/7 with mommy to going to school and enjoying time with friends and other family members! Micah wasn't even walking in my first blog!!! He had yet to have his first haircut!! Matty was still in diapers, still in a highchair, still roughing through those "terrible twos"! Micah is now running and climbing and speaking in sentences (most of which I can understand). He goes to school and interacts with friends! Matty completely dresses herself, potties by herself, gets into the van, buckles, and closes her door all by HERSELF (she's always been the independent type), she is starting to read, she also goes to school and even has friends that she knows by name! She even played her first season of t-ball this year and ended up loving it (a nice surprise for a mommy that loved and played softball most of her life)! Really...WHERE HAS ALL THE TIME GONE?? I feel like I have blinked and 2yrs have rushed by since that first blog!!

     A few things haven't changed since that blog 2yrs ago. I truly thought I would be well on my way to my masters by now, unfortunately this Mama can't figure out what she wants to be when she grows up! I have an awesome opportunity thanks to the G.I Bill to go back to school to get my master's...only problem...once I use it then its gone...I am feeling the pressure to choose and choose wisely and I have always sort of been a  "Jack of all trades but master of none" kind of gal. I can usually, sometimes awkwardly, but usually nonetheless fumble my way through most things that come before me. I have yet to really find anything that truly excites me (with the exception of being a mom...I absolutely LOVE that role in my life). I have explored a few options from creative writing to nutrition to counseling but so far I haven't found anything that has fully panned out. I think my ADD might be getting in the way...I can't COMMIT!! I am afraid something better might come along and it will be too late...so I sit...and I wait...and I look...and I find...and I get super excited...and then I procrastinate....so I miss a deadline...so then I sit...and I look...and I find something else...and I get super excited...and then I procrastinate....yeah you get the picture!!! Why are decisions so hard to make as an adult? 

     Despite my inability to choose a career path for my middle aged years, I haven't been completely stagnant. My outsides look a lot like they did 2yrs ago (same t-shirts, same disheveled approach to my hair, same flip flops, and same jeans, black shorts, etc. depending on season) but my insides have grown with my children. Every birthday or holiday or milestone that passes reminds me that this time with my kids is short lived. It won't be long till I come back to this blog and find it nothing but a memory! Not every day is easy, not every day is hard, but there is only 24hrs in every day and I only have so many of those days on this planet. I may not know what I want to do next but I do know that right now I am a mom, I know that these kids have changed me for the better, I hope to see them grow into amazing adults with kids that intrude on them in the bathroom one day, I also know that I am not promised to see that! I know that for my kids to remember me tomorrow I have to be there today. I am not going to say to enjoy every day with your kids because that's just not life. Some days flat out suck as a mom...you feel inadequate...you feel ugly...you feel fat...your child is THAT child throwing the huge temper tantrum in Target...you worry...you fret...you are puked on pooped on and snotted on...you are a  MOM!!! We all go thru it...we all try to pretend that we don't (if you don't then please by all means feel free to leave me a few tips)...but truth be...we are all kind of in this together...we are given these little helpless beings and it is our job to grow them into decent adults in a world that is a little less than decent! Hang in there moms and keep moving forward...embrace (don't feel like you have to CHERISH) the bumps along the way...enjoy the good days and find a good friend and a glass of wine for the bad ones!

    

    

Thursday, April 12, 2012

here's to 3 years!!!

  I have recently read several articles on "motherhood" and it has made me sit and think about my own experiences and what I thought motherhood would be and how motherhood has actually played out for me......Being a mom is something I pretty much always knew I wanted to be. I had images of me with my children that I thought about often before my kids came along....it was images of me softly instructing them when they were being mischievous, taking them on walks where learning ALWAYS took place, and my kids were always smiling cutely, never fighting, never yelling, never throwing temper tantrums, never calling me poo poo head, basically they were well bathed, well mannered children with a perfect mom (you know they weren't like the "other" kids you see in public places with parents without a clue.....I definitely thought I  had way more answers on parenting before I actually had kids) I saw Matt and I lovingly taking care of our children and we too were always smiling (maybe not as cutely as the kids but smiling nonetheless) never fighting or yelling, and working together perfectly to take care of our family.....and even our dog was well behaved and always clean (Jack has definitely shot this image in the foot, but its amazing how endearing that little fella is)!!! To sum it all up, my idea of motherhood was idealistic to say the least.
 
  I found out I was pregnant with Matty in June of 2008. I was slightly surprised and extremely excited when Matt and I went to my first appointment and the nurse told me "Well, you're pregnant....but I guess you already knew that!" As the nurse began to laugh Matt's eyes filled with tears and as he came towards me to hug me I nervously pushed him away (just from shock I think) and looked at the nurse and asked "Sooooo, I am gonna have a baby?" She laughed and said "that's what usually happens in these cases (still laughing)" It was at that moment reality hit me and I realized I was going to be a mom....a "for real" mom....I remember those thoughts going through my head like it was yesterday....

  The day Mattelynn Jude Walker came into this world is the day I became something I had never been before....on January 15th 2009 I became a mom!!! I was filled with all sorts of emotions...emotions I knew I would have like excitement, pure joy, unconditional love, and relief because my baby was here and healthy!! I also became somewhat of a crazy person that day...lol...I all of the sudden noticed just how cruel, harsh, and dangerous this world is. I was convinced that it was my job to protect my child from EVERYTHING!!! Matty's paci was boiled every time it fell out of her mouth, I didn't sleep even when she slept (like tons of people told me to do) because I wanted to watch her breathe just to make sure she was ok, I was the only person in this world that knew how to drive properly, I was the only person that could properly buckle my child in the car seat, change her diaper, bathe her, etc. etc. etc.....long story short....I had no idea there was sooooooo much to protect a child from!!! It didn't end there, not only did I feel it was my job to protect her I came to the conclusion that I was solely responsible for teaching my child EVERYTHING!!! I ordered the your baby can read set when I was only 8mths pregnant with Matty. I was watching infomercials at like 2am and was fully convinced that my baby was going to be the ONLY baby in the world unable to read unless I spent $200 right then and there to order the best of everything they had! Oh, by the way, neither of my babies can read and the your baby can read set was a bust...if you don't have it don't get it...if you do have it I hope you get more for your money than I did because ours have been collecting dust for about 3yrs now!! Thinking back to those first few months with Matty makes me want to go back and do it again....if I could do things differently I would take a deep breath, enjoy my baby more, and enforce the 5 minute rule with the paci!! No one prepares you for those first few months as a first time mom. For me, I had tons of expectations for myself as a mom....I wanted to be everything for my baby.....I wasn't able to reach those expectations (mainly because they were unrealistic).....I felt like a failure often....the more I felt like I wasn't adding up the harder I got on myself and the harder it became to get out of the baby fog (this is the term I have come to use for the first 3-4mths after your baby is born because its all pretty hazy). I wanted to be the marathon runner, Martha Stewart, Marry Poppins, and teacher of the year all rolled into one....I wasn't....I never will be!!

  I found out I was pregnant with Micah in November of 2009....It was more shocking than when I found out I was pregnant with Matty!! I was shocked and scared this time! I was shocked because my first baby was only 10mths old and I was scared because I couldn't figure out how to be everything for one child much less two....especially since my first baby was going to still be a baby when this baby came!!! The thoughts flooding my mind this time were....how am I gonna do this, how, how, how???? After some time I pretty much just decided to DO IT and quit wondering how...it was too late to think about how....it was time to DO!!
  Micah Andrew Walker was born on July 19th 2010. He was an extremely "happy" baby and very laid back. He ate and he slept.....I didn't really know what to do because he was breastfed and didn't take a paci so I didn't have anything to boil every 5 minutes. I also had a pretty "demanding" 18mth old that wasn't real excited about having a new baby in the house so he wasn't held 24/7 like his sister. I had some "mommy guilt" after Micah was born but it wasn't as intense as when Matty was born. It may be simply because I had to step back and let other people "do" for my children. I mainly worried that Micah wasn't getting enough attention or that Matty wasn't getting enough attention (which at 18mths means that they act out). I will never forget going to the dentist after Micah was born....after he told me I had a couple cavities which came at no surprise....I asked him what I needed to do with my 18mth old because it was a fight to brush her teeth EVERY TIME....he simply told me....sometimes you just have to get in there and DO it....she'll still love you!! Those words still provoke emotions in me....it was like a light bulb went off in my head....to me it meant....relax....you are the mom....your kids love you....just DO what you got to do.........

  Where are we today??? We have grown by leaps and bounds!! I am pretty sure I have learned more from my kids than they have from me. I have learned that no one is perfect! There is not one perfect way to raise your children but there are millions of perfect ways to raise your children!! Every child is born to the parents they have for a reason...I believe that God does not make mistakes...I once wondered why my kids were "unlucky" and ended up with me as a mom....why weren't my kids good enough to get a better dressed mom, a more self disciplined mom, a mom with more ways for providing for them, a mom that was crafty, a "perfect" mom is what I thought my kids deserved! I still think my kids deserve the best but I now believe that I am what is best for my kids!! My kids will never have the "best dressed"mom, they will never have an "organized" mom, they will never have the "fittest" mom but they will have ME! They have a mom that loves them unconditionally, a mom that has finally learned that dirty hands and boo boos don't kill but probably produce confidence, a mom that is creative but not the best at finishing the 200 crafts she wants to do, a mom that keeps a clean house but has no clue as to how to actually decorate a house, a mom that once saw exercise as a must that now sees exercise as a leisurely stroll around the park with the kids, a mom that can confidently smile at a nearby elderly woman as her 3 year old says "shit" because she dropped a toy from the dollar bin at target (I also let the elderly woman know her Dad is in fact a sailor and I let Matty know that we don't say those words...I just don't freak out and start thinking I am a terrible mom), a mom that is by no means perfect but that was meant to be theirs!! God has blessed me and entrusted me with 2 beautiful children and I am fully aware of that calling but I also now realize that He has empowered me with everything I need to be everything he wants me to be to my kids. If my kids were meant to have something different they would have been given to someone else! For me there is something calming in knowing that I am no longer having to strive to be something I am not....it frees me to be what I am....I am a quirky, badly dressed, lose my keys daily, loving, loyal, mother of 2!! My children are no more perfect than I am...Micah is constantly breaking something and climbing into places he shouldn't be, Matty can verbally cut me down like a 10yr old, Jack (our dog) poops on our deck almost everyday.....but Micah also gives the biggest smooches and is always making me laugh, and Matty builds me up with her words twice as much as she cuts me down....there is nothing like hearing your child tell you how much they love you, how beautiful you are, how you make their day, and my new favorite phrase she says is "we stuck together like birds of a feather huh mommy?"...I absolutely LOVE that!!!........and Jack...well, Jack greets me like I am his favorite person in the whole wide world despite the fact that I tell him on a regular basis that he is one deck poop away from being put on craigslist....

  If I could go back and tell myself one thing before Matty was born it would be to relax!! You are not going to do things the same way others do, that's ok, your not going to be great at everything, that's ok, your child will get dirty, have boo boos, and sometime during the terrible 2's you will be called a poo poo head, your child loves you!!

  Oh and I still have crazy spells like just this morning I was ready to wage war on all spider kind when I found one in Matty's closet, I was sure that they would be coming back for vengeance when I killed one of their own....I still think everyone drives terribly (I mean do they not know I am carrying special cargo) and I still occasionally (ok every night) check to see if my kids are breathing when they are sleeping (to my defense...I do only check once and it is just before I go to bed). It's a process, right???

                                                              (Matty age 2)
                        Like Mother like daughter...we have our "own" fashion sense!

                                                       (Micah 6mths)
                 Micah just before surgery! Such a happy baby...Mommy was crying!




                                                The past couple of years!!
                                                  Time sure does fly by!!












Tuesday, August 9, 2011

...milestones....

Well, a few major things have taken place in the lives of my children since my last post....for my little man Micah he has recently celebrated his first birthday, recieved his first haircut, and taken a few independent steps...and for the self proclaimed "princess" of the house (Matty)....well, she has started making the first steps towards potty training. I say she has started "making the first steps toward potty training" because at this time we have yet to really "use" the potty...right now I am pretty sure she thinks the potty is something you sit on and look at books for 20minutes before you put on your diaper and actually "go potty"...but hey, like I said...its the first steps...right...lol...another major, major, major milestone for my little princess...well, actually I guess its more for me but....the "terrible two's" seem to be declining....yay!!! I am not sure if it is simply that she is maturing and more capable of vocalizing her needs in order to get them met or the fact that I have backed off slightly and I let her do some "big girl" things on her own...like brush her teeth by herself (this one is huge for me because I am extremely OCD about clean teeth) and I even swallowed my fear, took a few deep breaths, and I have been letting her walk by the shopping cart instead of riding in it when we go for groceries (I know this sounds ridiculous, but for me it was huge...I have a tremendous fear of someone taking one of my kids!!...so in a way you can count this toward a milestone of my own as well!) I really think it is a combination of Matty growing up and me letting go of my "baby" a little....whatever it may be...it's been an amazing difference! A milestone of my own is my recent decision to go "back to school" in January to get my Master's degree in clinical counseling!! yeah, pretty excited about that one.....

To sum things up.....everyone in the house is currently "growing" and moving forward...............more details and pictures to come........................I had planned on a longer more in depth post but I have 2 active, mobile toddlers in the house and I just heard a loud crash come from the play area........sooooo ummmm....I am heading that way.......pray no one is hurt!!...lol

Friday, June 10, 2011

How to start...hmmm...

Well...well...well...here I sit with an empty page before me, my kids tugging at my legs beside me, and lunch still smeared across a couple of highchair trays that I am currently avoiding. Yes!! It is the life of a stay at home mommy...you have internet (mostly facebook because it makes you feel as though you have a life outside the home) you have lunch with friends (yep you guessed it peanut butter and jelly...AGAIN...per request of my 2 year old) oh and the friends I just mentioned are my 10mth old son and 2yr old daughter (which I have to say are quite entertaining at the table and the conversations seem to never run dry)...turns out toddlers can be great company :-)!!!!

I have a tendency to ramble so I am going to try to cut straight to the point of my blog and even the title of my blogsite (One Day I Will Potty By Myself)...I hope to use this site to note some of the funny, hard, and triumphant times of raising my toddlers....The title of my site came from a thought process I have had for awhile which began one day when my 2yr old was basically trying to tear down the door of the bathroom while I was in there....I started trying to calculate the last time I had gone to the bathroom without an audience at the door and then I began to think about how one day no one would be at that door anymore and how I would miss it and (if you know me you know my mind also rambles) then I began to think about how many diapers I change a day and how one day there will be no more diapers and even though I would be happy to have the extra money I thought about how I would miss having babies around and would even miss my little unwanted guests to the bathroom.... and VIOALA....I started keeping a journal, which is now going to be a public journal, and I named it "one day i will go potty all by myself" basically because it parallels my kids current diaper situation and my current "visitor to the bathroom" situation....I hope to use this site to keep up with my growing kids and my life as I navigate through this mommy thing.....

ok so i am also computer retarted so lets see if i can even get this to post......