15-Month wellness check-up

Not too much going on, that's why I haven't posted in a while.

Bret had his check-up yesterday - everything went well. He got his last round of polio and HIB shots.

He's still on the low side of the curve but his DR seems to be fine with it since he's still considered "normal".

Stats: 21 lbs 1 oz and 30" long

It is amazing what this kid knows and can do. He goes up and down the stairs without help :(, he feeds himself (except for yogurt - that's still super messy), and he's learned to nod and shake his head! It's hilarious to see him nod 'yes' to a question.

Bret shocked the crap out of me a few days ago.....I tried teaching him how to sign since he was 9 months old. He never seemed interested so I gave it up about a month ago. Well, earlier this week, I was giving him his before-bedtime snack and I asked him if he wanted more and he did the sign for more. I could not believe it! After about 5 minutes of praising he was so over it. I'm still amazed. Why can't kids cooperate when they're supposed to?! LOL

Another reason why no blogg-y lately - Justin's wedding.....one shower down, one to go. The bachelorette party is next and then *finally* the wedding. I've made the necessary appointments (hair, nails, dress alterations) and I purchased my undergarments yesterday. I still have to find some shoes. I need some advice though.....the bride would like everyone to tan for the wedding. I'm trying to be more cautious about tanning and skin care. Does anyone use a self-tanner? If so, what works well without the orange tinge? TY!!

Bret with his playgroup pals, Crue and Lily

Bret LOVES to grab the camera wristband and thinks it's funny, too

Daddy taught Bret that it's hilarious to wear your clothes on your head.....boys!!

Rockband and the tax man

Here's Bret playing Rockband with Jason at Aunt Ashlee and Uncle Justin's

This is our new accountant. He told us that we're getting a huge refund :) Bret says, "you're lovin' me now, aren't you mom and dad?!"

I'm so irritated right now that I can't even think of a title for this post......

Last week I volunteered to do some office work at church. At the meeting, the Religious Ed Director (RED) said that they're also looking for volunteers to update four bulletin boards to reflect Lent/Easter and to do prayer testing (having kids recite prayers to a "tester"). Since I'm a SAHM, I figured I should do something with myself now that Bret is a little older.

The office work is easy and it's nice to get out of the house. I have a ton of ideas for the bulletin boards and just need time (sans Bret) to get them done before Lent.

Here comes the BS part - I went to church last night to do prayer testing. The RED let me know what I needed to do and then *BAM* she bitch slaps me with all this last minute BS about how I'm required to attend a workshop on risk management and children; I have to go through a background check and sign some waiver. FINE. I asked her if the workshop was local and she said "in Monroe County"; which is the county I live in....OK, that's not too bad, I guess. Well, I look up the workshop information today and 1.) There isn't a workshop offered in Monroe County, 2.) It's F'in 3 hours long, 3.) The closest workshop (from now until March) is 30 miles away, and 4.) Now I'm obligated to attend this workshop within 6 months since I did the prayer testing.

Honestly, I'm not mad about the workshop. I'm pissed that the RED didn't tell me, UP FRONT, about the requirements. If I would've known that I had to attend this workshop in order to volunteer (interact w/ kids) then I wouldn't have offered. Now I have until July to do this.

I don't like the "oh, by the way" bullshit. I DESPISE when people do that. The really sad part about this whole thing is that now I'll be very reluctant to volunteer for anything else the RED may be asking for help.

OMG!!

That's exactly what I said when I saw that Caicos puked on our $200 duvet cover. F'in cat is about to become a frozen cat-sicle in our backyard.

American dream

Then:
....to get married
....to have kids
....to have a mom stay home and raise the kids
....to own a home
....to own a car

Now:
....to own a BIGGER home
....to own a BIGGER car
....to own Coach purses and accessories (and Chanel and Burberry and Gucci and.....)
....to go into debt for lavish vacations and to maintain a lifestyle that people can't afford

It is my hope, beginning with this new administration, that people can again find their American dream and live it.

Newest obsession

Enough said. Although I have to say, he looks much hotter with a full-on 5 o'clock shadow. MEOOOOWWW

Should I stay or should I go?

I'm a minimalist. I like the least amount of stuff to make my life great. As some of you may know, I've started F@cebook-ing. Now I'm hooked and debating whether or not to stop blogging. I don't want to keep up both sites - it's too cumbersome and time consuming. *sigh* Decisions, decisions....

Jason came down with something. He's been moping and whining all day today. Gosh, get over it. I didn't get a day off when I got sick. Seriously. I've tried making him feel better by cooking, letting him sleep almost the whole day away, etc. But he's still crabby. Good Lord, men are babies. Hopefully he'll be alright to go back to work tomorrow :)

Bret has turned into a temper tantrum throwing whiner. Man. If he doesn't get his way, he'll throw down a toy or shove it across the floor. He'll whine if I don't hold him or if I don't feed him fast enough. Now he *hates* it when I have to change his diaper because, God forbid, he has to stop playing for two seconds. He's also started pulling Caicos' hair and tail. WTF? He was doing so well and petting him so nicely. Then all of a sudden, Bret turned on the cat. I've been very stern with him and telling him "no" and "you hurt Caicos when you pull his fur" and "we don't hurt Caicos". Bret doesn't care, he'll still do it. I finally got fed up and slapped his hand. I didn't, and don't, want to be "that mom", but I think that Bret is doing it on purpose. I KNOW that he understands me when I tell him not to do it. I don't think I'm going to like the testing-the-boundaries stage at all!!