And this is why I don't like to travel with 2 toddlers...

We were gone for 5 days over Christmas and this is why I don't like to travel with 2 toddlers....

...it took me 5 days just to pack for the trip
...45 min to pack the car
...8 hours of entertaining 2 kids, one who likes to drop everything off to the side just out of Mommy's reach which results in a crying fit in return causes the othe child 8 times out of 10 to start crying as well
...5 stops to pee, and let the girls run around
...the very first day I got the stomach flu and have been sick for a week
...daddy got the stomach flu and has been sick for 4 days
...the kids didn't get normal naps for 5 days straight, aka: cranky toddlers
...the kids didn't eat a decent meal for 5 days straight, it's hard to push them to eat their food when your either surrounded by family or in a restaurant
...Caylee poops a lot! There are not a lot of changing tables on the road. Tricky with poopy.
...it's hard to plan the day around nap schedules
...the girls wake up scared because they are in a new place
...forget about sleeping in, once they open their eyes they can see you and want you to be awake NOW
...it's hard to get ready and have to make sure the kids don't get into any thing that is not kid proofe
...packing and re-packing lots of snacks every day and knowing what to expect
...Courtney was so thrown off by all the Choas that she peed her pants 3 times in one da
...Caylee got diarrhea and leaked thru onto her carseat in the last 2 hours of the trip resulting in a cranky toddler for the last 2 hours
...it takes a few days for the girls to get back into their sleeping/eating routines
...it takes 5 days to unload, unpack, do laundry and re-organize from the trip

I've got to get this down better if we ever want to travel more

There is only one Mommy

On Monday night Caylee woke in the middle of the night coughing and started to cry, not normal for her. So I went in there to comfort her. She calmed down but then it happened again, and again and a fourth time. After that, I decided to just sleep on the floor in front of the humidifier with her. Each cough seemed difficult and was painful. I felt so bad for her. I laid with her a few minutes and it seemed to be working. Courtney want me to lay with her, so I asked her to lay with us. Within minutes Courtney said she had to poop. She went into the bathroom and instead of pooping she started throwing up all over herself. Oh my goodness! I put Caylee down, and proceeded to clean Courtney up. By that time, Caylee got her second wind and was ready to play. She was being crazy and getting into everything, including the puke on the floor. I got Caylee some warm apple juice and honey and we headed back up to hopefully get both girls down. Caylee continued to ransack the room while Courtney wasn't feeling too good. Coco didn't want me to hold Caylee and Caylee didn't want me to hold Coco. But neither felt good. I held Caylee and laid down and then Coco puked again all over all the blankets. So back up to clean her and the floor up. Now I felt like I needed to hold Coco and not Caylee. Ugh! There is only one Mommy, what do I do? I eventually had to put Caylee in the crib and let her cry. I held Coco until she was ready to go to sleep. I ended up sleeping in Coco's bed, so I was nearby the girls if anything else should come up.

Then today, Romo threw up on the floor. I cleaned that up. Romo wanted to go potty but I couldn't take him out. I smelled this horrible smell and looked over at Caylee and she had diarhea filling her highchair. I put Romo on the patio and he proceeded to have diahrea all over the patio. Meanwhile, I pulled Caylee out of the highchair and put her in the kitchen sink. Oh man, she was disgusting. Poop everywhere, in her hair, and every wrinkle. I finally got her cleaned and then had to clean the highchair, start a load of laundry, and clean the patio. I need a clone with all this sickness stuff.

Oh and did I mention we have a new puppy? Thank goodness for her crate.

Our new puppy "Belle"

Ever since we gave Wrigley our dog away, Daddy has been wanting to get a new "Romo" dog. Romo is the best dog we have ever owned. He is perfect in every way. He doesn't need exercise, doesn't eat much, doesn't need exercise, holds his pee for a very long time, and we can leave him all day and he doesn't care.

So after 11 months of asking, begging, asking more, beggging more, prayer, more prayer, and talking, Daddy got me to agree to a new puppy. He found a puppy immediately and we went to see if the next day. Courtney and Daddy fell in love with her. She slept in Coco's arms for 10 min, she was super mellow and very sweet.

We had to wait 2 weeks and today was the day. Mommy had a hair appointment while we were supposed to pick up the puppy, so Daddy took the girls to go pick her up. Courtney has been asking for this puppy every day and so she was very, or should I say overly excited to have the puppy at our home.

The poor puppy was a little overwhelmed it's first few hours. Between Courtney trying to carry her by the neck and Caylee banging and shaking her cage, she didn't have a quiet moment to adjust. But she handled herself well and by the end of the night she was snuggling with us, eating her food, making her way around the house, going potty outside (no accidents so far!) and going in and out of her cage.

It's going to be interesting tomorrow and the next days when Mommy has to take care of her while the girls are awake. I fear for her little life.

Photo Book

Click here to view this photo book larger

Shutterfly allows you to customize your photo book just the way you want.

Sunday Baseball

The Coffey family came to Chino Hills (30 min) away for Isaac's baseball tournament yesterday and I wanted to make a point to see them. Whenever they are close, I try to always see them. They are the greatest family ever. We love them, respect them, enjoy lt being with them so much that a few years ago we chose them as the girls's Godparents.

We got there early this morning. Isaac pitched a lot the first game, he did great and the team won. The girls were really good, so we decided to stay for the next game. The girls got to play at the park and daddy got to hit some baseballs, then we sat in the snack bar are to watch the next game. That was perfect because the girls could walk around and play and it was easier to watch them and the game. Caylee even got to nap. The game was exciting and ended in another win! We had to stay for the next game, which involved a bit of a wait. So Amy cut Courtney's hair and then Amy and I took the girls's to Starbucks while the boys stayed back and watched football and baseball.

Game number 3 was against the best team in the nation and it didnt seem like the boys had a chance. Courtney found some little girls to play with and was pretty content. The game had some great plays, Isaac had a perfect catch and they ended up winning the game which meant they won the tournament. It was fun to part of the excitement.

I was proud of the girls for being so good despite not really having naps. I did not plan to be there all day so I didn't bring a bunch of supplies, but we managed, they were entertained and we all had a blast.

Courtney' 1st Dance Class

"what do you want your new teacher to call you? Coco or Courtney?"... "Courtney!" .... Courtney's Gamma got her dance lessons, dance shoes and out fits for her 3 rd birthday. There was a waiting list, so finally 1 month later she got in. She was nervous going, but within 1 minute she was having a blast. She did so good! She listened really well to the teacher but definitely was off a bit. But who wouldn't be the first day. She had so much fun, but when you ask what her favorite part was, she says "When the teacher said I was smelly!". She holds her nose. I'm not sure what happened because all the parents were outside, but she thought it was really funny.

Stationery card

Family Stories Christmas Card

Heartfelt: Christmas photo cards and holiday cards at Shutterfly.

View the entire collection of cards.