I am a blessed woman!

Like many women, I often find myself slightly frustrated with the differences in habits, priorities, and thought processes between my husband and myself. While I try not to let these issues obstruct my vision, I sometimes overlook what a wonderful man I share my life with. This past weekend, however, I was reminded.

We recently were in a position to obtain an item that would have been greatly beneficial for our family. The original owner no longer wanted this item and had asked a friend of ours to dispose of it. The friend then offered the item to us, knowing we could use it. We were thrilled! However, during a conversation while we were preparing to make the item more usable for our family, it became apparent that not only did the original owner have no idea that we were going to take it, but that the original owner would most likely not be happy about not being asked.This wasn't something we had really thought about. If we were in the owner's position, we would have loved for our unwanted item to go to someone that could use it. But after the discussion with our friend, we felt it was something we shouldn't broadcast. The secrecy of the situation immediately made me sick to my stomach, so we discussed our options.

There wasn't much chance the original owner would ever find out what had happened to the item, but I didn't feel right about it. We could have called the original owner, but it was already several days after the item was supposed to have been disposed of. William and I did not want to make things difficult for our friend who had simply tried to help us. So, that left the only other option of disposing of the item as the original owner had asked. I really felt as if there was no other option, but it was a disappointing option. We really would have benefited from keeping the item, as it would have solved a dilemma we had been working on for a while.

My wonderful husband listened to me explain my concerns, chief among them being I didn't want to regret keeping the item and feel guilty every time I used it. I also didn't want to see Wyatt using it and know that I had put him in a position to be using an item acquired by anything less than the most honest means. Even as I was explaining myself (and as I type it now), I could hear how corny I sounded. But that wonderful man I have been blessed with as my husband simply sighed and told me he didn't want me to feel that way, so he would take care of it. This was no small feat for him. It actually required some work to dispose of the item the way it was meant to be, but he did it so that his wife could comfortably stand by her convictions. He very easily could have argued with me. The item was being tossed, and the original owner didn't want it. Instead of arguing, though, he supported me.

I truly am a blessed woman. My husband works hard to take care of our family and supports me in those little moments when no one will see but me.

Ode to the Queen of Procrastination

I am, admittedly, a procrastinator. I proclaim my procrastinating abilities, for that is truly what they are, not with my head hung in shame, but with a toss of my head and a smile on my lips. It takes great talent and skill to pull together a final outcome of such high quality as I do, and I felt I should share some secrets of this unnoticed art.

To truly master the art of procrastination, you must fully understand the reasons behind it. Amateur procrastinators lack substantial reasoning skills and must be called as they are... lazy. Professional grade procrastinators, such as myself, find personal meaning in their sluggish design. Each must find his/her own drive. For me it is simultaneously the contradicting desires to plan and be flexible. You see, life has taught me that very little is a "given." Courses change without consideration to your goals, ideas, dreams, or plans. In that aspect, I have developed an appreciation for the flexibility my procrastination allows me. If I have not yet acted, I do not have to undo my actions when things change. In the same respect, allowing time for those changes gives me ample opportunity to plan for them. I can ensure doors are left open in the event things do not pan out as hoped for in plan "A." Thorough planning and reviewing allows me to then act more efficiently as the deadline draws near and produces a complete, spectacular outcome.

So, put those projects off a little longer. Spend a little more time planning and accept those curve balls with grace.

Now, I must go procrastinate my packing.

I'm signing up for remedial blogging classes

This past weekend I was thoroughly chastened for my lack of committment to my blog. I have been adequately humbled in my shortcomings, blah, blah, blah. I know, you've heard it all before. However, since my parents have decided to uproot yet again (aparently at the most mercurial phase in our lives, we, as their children, are expected to provide our own sense of stability), I am forced to turn to my witty literary skills to keep them updated.

So, updates:

William was offered a job with the Wheatland Police Department and will begin the second week of May. We are so excited about this opportunity, and we really like the community. Of course, we thought it was going to be absolutely perfect because it's only an hour away from here, where we believed my parents were still going to be located... Silly me, thinking they would like to keep things simple.

We have decided to buy a house in Wheatland... a BEAUTIFUL house! It's an old home, built in 1923, with a LOT of charm. We are going to do some work, but most everything we want done is cosmetic. We plan to refinish the floors, do lots of painting, and spruce up the kitchen. We also want to redo the bathroom (we're putting in a claw foot tub we got at a KILLER price, and a seperate shower since it doesn't have one), and we're going to finish the basement. The two rooms in the basement are finished, but the main area (which will be our family room) isn't. We also want to put up a fence around the front yard, since we are getting a dog as soon as I feel settled enough to take on that task! We'll definitely have a busy summer, but we're excited!

Front of our house. It's on a corner lot only 2 blocks from the PD!!!

My beautiful, sunny kitchen! The countertops are going to be replaced (we're doing it ourselves!), but I can't decide about the yellow. BTW- the wall is NOT lavendar as it appears here!

This is looking at the front door from the dining room. The kitchen is behind you. Again, the coloring is WAY off in the picture... the walls are actually light green, not pink!

The dining room, and looking into the kitchen (the front door is behind you). As you can see, there's LOTS of space. The house is HUGE (over 2900 sq. ft.)! The 2 upstairs bedrooms are located off to the right from here, as well as a bathroom. Downstairs has 2 more bedrooms, a 3/4 bath, a laundry room, and a large walk-in storage closet.

I will take "before" pics as well as "after" pics for each project that we do so you can see our vision coming to life! We will be in this house for at least 3 years (have to stay for 3 for the tax credit), at which point we will re-evaluate. We would like to be able to move out of town, so we'll see if it's reasonable to do at that time. We've looked at similar homes in the area that have been fixed up the way we plan to do, and I think we'll be able to make quite a proffit when we do decide to sell. Of course, I plan to be as frugal as possible in our updates, which will make our return even bigger!

Hopefully, that was enough of an update! Things are going to be hectic with the move and the job change, I know, but I will try to continue to post regularly, even through all of that. Of course, you, my adoring fans, deserve more posts, but my new found determination stems from a desire to keep my dad informed while he is in Afghanistan. It's been such a blessing to have my parents right here this past year. I was so confused about the way things turned out when we left the Air Force, why the job we wanted didn't work out. But this past year has been the greatest gift I could have been blessed with. It gave us a moment of cohesion and stability during a very difficult transition before we all split in different directions again. I am so proud of my dad for being willing to go when he feels the call, and I'm proud of my mom for being the strong, steadfast woman he needs. It will most definitely be rough, but we'll be alright.

Way too busy!

Sorry for the lack of posts. My life is crazy right now... seriously, on overload. So, be patient, my adoring fans. Details are to come!

A few more details...

Alright, I'll give a little more explanation, but only because I'm SURE the rest of your life would have to remain on pause until I did.

The weighted blanket is not a huge hit at night... though he does love to cuddle with it during cartoon time (yep, we have cartoon time. He watches a cartoon while I fix lunch and I feel absolutely no guilt about it). I'm going to try reducing the weight a little, since it feels a little on the heavy side, and my scale is notorious for lying (it really is rude, and I've threatened it with replacing it with one of those sleek, little smooth-talking digital models. It usually pouts for a few days, but then resumes its naughty little tricks!).

Anyway, for those of you who want to know, which I assume is everyone (including those who don't follow this blog, but just know there is someone of my awesomeness caliber out there with all the answers they have been seeking), I will give you a breif discription of how I made this blanket.

The general guidelines for a weighted blanket include that it must be big enough to fully cover the child, and the weight should equal 10% of the child's weight +1 pound. So, I happened to have two matching blankets (thanks grandma!!!) that are the fleece throw type you can buy for fairly cheap around the holidays. I used these since they were the right size and already had finished edges.

So, first I cut 15 squares out of some scrap material (I believe it used to be a sheet). The size needs to be determined by the size of your blanket, as the squares need to be spread evenly over the fabric, with a little extra room on all sides. I then cut strips of velcro and sewed them onto one side of each square.

Next, I sewed strips of the other side of the velcro onto the blanket. I then attached the squares to the velcro on the blanet, and sewed around the three loose sides of each square. This made the inside of the blanket look like this:

Then I simply sewed a long strip of velcro on the top of this blanket, and the opposite side of the velcro on the top of the matching blanket. I pressed the velcro together, and sewed the two blankets together on the three open sides.

So, the blanket opens at the top by peeling apart the velcro (I reccommend using very heavy duty velcro), and inside are pockets that are also held closed with velcro.

I then measured out 5lbs of rice and seperated it equally into 15 ziploc baggies. I taped them shut (duct tape) and put one in each pocket inside the blanket. This allows you to take out the rice (or beans, wheat, or whatever) to wash the blanket

(And yes, yours will lay funny, too... it's just the weight of the rice.)

A few notes:

I would make the squares bigger than I did to give the rice a little more room to move and lay evenly.

This can be made with poly-whateveryoucallit beads (like they use for heavier stuffed animals), and sewen in channels instead of pockets. If you use these beads, you can just toss the whole thing in the washer and dryer. However, these materials are quite expensive, and I was determined to just use what I had (I'll detail my frugal quest in another post).

So, that's how it's done! Like I said, we will continue to play with the weight, because I really am convinced it could help my little stinker!

And the result is....

HE HATES IT!!!

Sleep Solution #593

I have a secret.




My son doesn't sleep through the night most nights.


There, I said it!!!

For a long time, I seriously thought it was just my parenting. When I mentioned it at his appointments, the doctors would just tell me I had to be better about a routine. I became a fanatic. It didn't work. I searched the web, and tried adding new things and taking things out of our routine. It didn't work. I became obsessed with watching everything that went into his mouth. It didn't matter... he still rarely slept through the night. I thought I was alone in this, and quietly nursed my shame at my inability to get my child to sleep like a normal person. Then I stumbled upon a discussion thread and found hundreds of parents like me, dealing with children who just wouldn't sleep. I found lots of ideas, some of which have helped improve our situation. However, there is one more we are trying for the first time tonight.

For anyone else dealing with this seemingly shameful issue, let me share what HAS made a difference after 2 years of battling this problem.

Nightlights- he picked them out, and they help him feel safe when he wakes up at night
Keeping the door open- we keep the door open until he falls asleep. He knows we're right there if he needs something.
Daylight Rule- We have established that if it is light outside, he may come snuggle with me. This way he knows that he is allowed that time, but Mommy doesn't have to fight little feet in her back all night.

There were lots of other suggestions we've tried as well. He has a "bedtime chart" that has pictures of what he needs to do that are turned over as he accomplishes them, and he REALLY likes it. However, the bedtime process has never been an issue. He just has a hard time falling to sleep (lots of tossing and turning... sometimes for 2 hours). Then he doesn't stay asleep. He usually wakes up after about 3 hours or so, and then has the problem of falling back to sleep again. I've finally accepted that this is just how he is, and that it's not my fault! While it's great to feel that relief, we still have to deal with his problem. I seriously wouldn't care if he just stayed in his room and played quietly, but he's also a little afraid of the dark. The nightlights keep him from screaming to wake us, but he does get up and wander around, sometimes deciding that watching cartoons would be a good idea.

Anyway, I read a post from a mother who tried a weighted blanket because her son was so "fidgety" at night. What she was describing sounded exactly like Wyatt! He is definitely a sensory seeking child, and so a little constant deep tissue pressure may help him. I felt a little dumb for not thinking of it sooner, as this type of therapy is something I've used in classrooms, but it's usually restricted to children diagnosed with disorders. Wyatt doesn't have a sensory disorder, but he does have behaviors that are indicative of sensory seeking. So, why wouldn't this work?!

I did some research about how weighted blankets are made, and found some suggestions for making your own. The retail price for a child's blanket is over $100. That's not happening. So, I made my own! Tonight will be the first night with it, so I'm crossing my fingers it will help. I don't expect it to be a miracle blanket, but anything that will improve his sleeping is appreciated! When I've got another minute, I'll post more details about how I made it, etc. I was just so excited about the possibility with this, that I just had to share!