Craig's List – I am not a fan as of late

Here is Jesse's mysterious post....back again in all it's glory for everyone to read.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great website to use if you want to get rid of a bunch of crap you no longer want in your house.  Next time you're considering hauling something away or putting it out by the curb to fill up our landfills, I suggest you at a minimum “Craig's list it” under the “free” stuff.  I guarantee someone will come get it.  When we gutted the basement bathroom, I took out the shower/tub unit and put it out by the curb for the trash to come get.  I would have to pay a fee of course, but it’s the convenience.  Well, since I had a week for it to sit there, I decided to take a couple pictures (this thing had not been cleaned) and posted it for $20.  Within an hour I had multiple people interested and drove to our house and loaded it up and hauled it away… and I made money on the deal… not too shabby.  So for instances like these, I do like Craig’s List.
(Disclaimer - I am not trying to throw Kristen under the bus here… just telling a story.  I probably look like the jerk anyways, so let’s proceed)
However, my wife has started a trend that I am not too fond of.  Namely, she’s finding random pieces of furniture (for cheap – so that’s the one positive side), and purchasing them without consult.  She knows better than to ask me, cause we got enough “crap” around here that I cant seem to get things cleared out and put into organized storage. 
Let’s reflect on this past weekend.  I’m vacuuming, because that’s how I like to spend my Saturdays, and push open the door to the sewing/guest bedroom.  This room always frustrates me because we spent all this time renovating old bookshelves and cupboards so that she could have a place to store all of her sewing stuff but things don’t quite make it there or she has bought so much additional stuff that there’s no where for it to go.  This room is a pit and I am seriously getting pissed as I type.  Deep breaths.  OK… so I open the door to vacuum inside that room and two sitting chairs (from a hotel supposedly) greet me.  Just right in the frickin center of the walkway to the room.  It’s time for a “discussion”.
Trying to maintain my calmness (which left me in early childhood I think)… I ask when and where did these come from.  Deep down I hoped that these came from someone we knew, but knew the culprit was Craig's List, I just needed to hear it from her.   “A guy on Craig's list, he delivered them too,…. bla bla bla”  "So let me get this straight… you paid a guy $20 for a couple sitting chairs and he delivered them?… please tell me you inspected them for fleas/bed bugs/urine/etc. because that is probably why he was so eager to get them off his hands.  The inspection was lacking (go figure) but turns out that he allegedly ended up getting these from a hotel and had extra so Kristen wanted to make a project out of them.  So in the end, we have two chairs, that came from God knows where, and are infested with God knows what… sitting in a bedroom of our house… not in the unfinished messy basement where a person could take a dump on the floor and not know for a couple weeks… in a guest bedroom.  Would this disgust anybody else?  So as you can tell, I was not happy whatsoever about the chair purchase and let Kristen know… for about a half hour.  I would like to dispose of them by tossing them out the window onto the concrete below.  Sometimes things can be so random and who knows their history…if it sounds like its too good of a deal… 2 sitting chairs for $20 with delivery… it probably is.
Craig's List – I am not a fan

Jesse

And if you couldn't tell, this is in relation to my new reupholstered chairs. Go here if you haven't seen the finished product yet.

In my defense I did check them out and smell them before I moved them up into the guest bedroom/sewing room.  But I did purposely hide them because I knew Jesse would freak out when he found them.  My hope was the get the whole thing finished before he knew about it....but then he had to go and vacuum in there :-)

I broke down today

After being “stuck” with both kids at home for over a week, school being out, Bella being fussy, Oliver being pent up inside with no one to play with, Jesse at work, or out scooping snow, not really wanting or being able to leave the house with all the snow, and of course never getting enough sleep….I just couldn’t take it anymore.

I literally sat on the couch today and cried.

I’m not sure what is wrong with me, but one thing is for sure.  I don’t have the mind set of someone who can “entertain” little kids all day long.  I don’t know how people run daycares.  I guess the only blessing is that those kids have other kids to play with, so it’s a little easier.  But around here that isn’t the case.  I try to play with Oliver, but my time is also being spent trying to take care of Bella.  And today that wasn’t good enough.

Bella continued to fuss, eat s…o….v….e…r….y…s….l…o…w…..l….y, and want to be held.  Oliver also wanted attention and anytime I was with Bella he was acting out and in particular climbing onto and into EVERYTHING.

For a good 45 minutes during my feeding Bella lunch, he carried this play table around to every single outlet on the first floor and would turn the lights off and on and off and on, until I would tell him to stop, pull him off, put the toy back in the rec room.  And then of course he would just pick it back up and take it to a different light.

What was worse was that when I was finally finished with Bella, I actually tried to play with him.  But he had so much energy at that point, that he thought it was fun to hit me and throw his toys at me.  The hitting is on purpose, but the throwing toys I don’t think is meant to hurt…except that it does.

And that’s when I couldn’t take it anymore.

I absolutely know he does it because he isn’t getting the attention he wants.  But I can’t ignore Bella and give him all the attention.  When Bella is at school in the mornings and it’s just me and Oliver, it’s a totally different experience.  And when Oliver is at the sitter’s with his friend Max who is the same age as him, he is a wonderful child (so I’m told), and loves to play and run around with the kids.

I decided the answer was that I was never meant to stay at home.  I never planned on it, and I don’t really want to.  Except of course I can’t work full time.  I still haven't been able to find good care for Bella on a long term basis.  Not to mention all the school functions, doctors appointments, sick days, etc that happen on an almost weekly basis.

No I can’t go back to work full time.  So I’m stuck right where I am in this mess I call my life.

On a brighter side – Jesse and I are going on a vacation, without the kids.  A whole week on an island.  It will be a much needed break.  Now if only I can make it a couple more months before the trip happens.

Dining Room Progress Week 3

With all the snow we have had, most of Jesse’s time has been spent outside removing snow for ourselves and all our neighbors…plus playing with the kids.

But we did manage to get a few things done on the dining room.

This past week we got the carpet removed and the cement board down, plus we picked up the tile (which is all the boxes you see in the room).

Now we need to lay the tile.  Which we can’t quite figure out how we will get that done with a busy 1 1/2 year old running around.  I’m thinking we are going to have to tile little by little while the kids are sleeping at night.  But that’s not very convenient when you have to clean tools after only doing a small amount of work.

It was a crazy snow filled weekend

Here are just some of the pictures we took this weekend out enjoying the snow.

Oliver absolutely loves being out in the snow.  There is so much snow he can’t walk around in it, and falls all the time.  When he falls he just hangs out until someone picks him up, and then he is back trying to move around again.  It’s been a lot of fun watching him.

And since we are supposed to get another foot of snow this evening….we should have plenty of snow around for awhile.

BTW – we thought Bella would really love sledding.  She didn’t give us any idea kind of emotion at all when she was sledding.  Don’t know if it’s because she has been feeling bad lately, or because it was so very bright outside and blinding her.

A big snow day

Bella has been a pain or in pain…depends on how you look at it.  Regardless the only saving grace for me has been that she goes to school.  With Presidents Day on Monday = no school and a snow day today = no school.  I haven’t gotten much of a break.

Today she was doing a little better and then of course Oliver decided to be super hyper and into everything and climbing everything.

Although even when getting into trouble he sometimes makes me laugh.

This morning he kept climbing over furniture to get into the dining room he wasn’t supposed to be in and then taking off his pajamas.  He would look at me from the wrong side of the baby gate and be so proud of himself.

Later he found the diaper changer and decided it would make a good man purse.  So he carried it all around the house.  Unfortunately he wouldn’t let me get a good picture of him, so this is the best shot I got.

Bella is still pouty….but I’ll take pouty over fussing any day!

And then once dad made it home from work….Oliver really wanted to go out in all the snow.

So I bundled him up in some snow coveralls I got second hand, although they are size 5/6…and just a little large on him.  And then we pulled out his 3T jacket I got on clearance to use next year..but it makes a better snow coat than what he currently has.  And let’s not forget that his snow boots are borrowed from the neighbors and 3 sizes too big.  Poor kid, but it doesn’t bother him a bit.

Although the snow excursion only lasted a couple of minutes because Oliver kept falling into the snow and Jesse wanted to get busy clearing things off, so he would have a better path to walk on.

And just so you can get an idea of how much snow we actually have at our house…should be about 11 inches.

And wouldn’t you know it.  Dad is away at work all morning, and then he goes out and removes snow for a couple of hours…all of which both kids are up and being pains.  And then the second he is finished and comes inside both kids go to sleep.

You have got to be kidding me! 

I think he mentioned he wanted to get outside and finish up some things…I’m sure that will coincide nicely with both kids waking back up.

Finally An Answer

I have teased you for awhile.  I created a poll to get some info from all of you.  It was all leading up to some changes for this blog.

This blog will still exist.  This blog will continue to be about our family activities and struggles.  I will have a new extension of this blog that will now be showcasing all my “side projects”.  If the main reason you come to this blog is to see the creative side….home remodeling, sewing, crafts, furniture, design, etc.  Then you might want to change and start following the new blog www.crazykuhlencreations.blogspot.com . Both blogs will have a link to the other on the sidebar, so you can keep up with either, or follow both.

The content will not be repetitive, but the personal blog might at times give you insights to the background information on projects going on.

In preparation for launching the new blog, I have been working on quite a few things….so they can now be revealed on the Crazy Creations blog.

Nothing

I’m sitting here at my computer and I should be working.  And if I’m not working I should be doing a million other things that need to get done.

But I’m just sitting here.

Bella has been high maintenance since Sunday.  It seems that her teething is back in full force.  She was up last night crying.  And this morning she was up at 5:15am crying.  Oliver was also up at the same time.

So we took the kids downstairs.  Bella was still crying.

1.  I held her – still crying

2.  Jesse gave her tylenol – still crying

3.  I put orajel on her teeth – still crying

4.  I held her and gave her drinks – still crying

5.  I feed her – still crying

6.  I got her dressed and ready for school – not crying anymore, but still fussing

7.  I sent her off to school at 8am

I’m not sure how she is doing, but at that point there wasn’t anything more I could do for her, so she might as well go to school.  And after 3 hours of crying, fussing, and trying to accommodate 2 kids.  My energy is gone.

So I’m just sitting at my computer…not really doing anything.  And not looking forward to the fact that both kids will be home in 2 hours, and I’m pretty sure this afternoon is going to be horrible.

I just want a day off, where I can do whatever I want and can blow off all the things I should be doing.  That isn’t going to happen, so I would settle for a day in which Bella is happy….don’t think that’s going to happen either.

It’s a Roar

We spent the weekend up in Nebraska visiting family.

Today we finally got Beckett his present for his second birthday.  I had asked what his favorite characters/animals were and I was told monkeys and dinosaurs.  I went with dinosaurs.

I made him a dinosaur sweatshirt.  I actually bought the sweatshirt and then sewed on scales and teeth.  I made one for Oliver too.  I actually made his first in case I messed anything up.  Now they have matching sweatshirts.

Poor Oliver was soooo tired.  We were holding off on nap time until we got back in the car to head home. 

Here is the best side view we got.

Beckett wasn’t sure what to think at first.

Hopefully he likes it.  I did manage to get him to model the dino tail I made for him too.  There is quite a bit of room for him to grow into it.

The boys then had snacks with Grandpa.

And managed to liven up while playing piano.

Happy Belated Birthday Beckett….hope you enjoy “roaring” around town!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

This morning the kids received their Valentine’s from Mom & Dad.

They both got some crazy socks.

And someone was excited to see a small Elmo.

Bella got a mini Count Dracula.

Soon Oliver had both of them.

Kindergarten Meeting

I was telling you yesterday how filling out the kindergarten forms was getting me depressed.

Attending the meeting was even harder.  When we were leaving Jesse asked me why we even went if it didn’t pertain to us at all.

I knew this was a general meeting for all the kiddos going into kindergarten.  Bella is going into kindergarten, but it has basically been determined that her developmental delays are severe enough that she will not be integrated into the normal classroom, but instead will be placed in a separate classroom.  In our particular school it is called a FOCUS room.

We haven’t finalized anything yet, so this is the placement we are leaning towards.  But back to the general meeting.  It was held so the parents could meet the kindergarten teachers, the principal of the school, get paperwork turned in, and determine if they want morning/afternoon or full day kindergarten.

They went over things you could work on over the summer to prepare your kids for entering school.  As I was listening to the different things they were talking about, I was holding back tears.  There are different times I find myself almost crying in regards to Bella.  It’s normally when we are in a situation surrounded by “normal” children and we have the hard reality of seeing just how far behind she is.  I always tear up in church when the young kids sing in front of the congregation.  I often tear up when I attend Bella’s school classroom for parties and events.

Mainly it’s because I want Bella to be able to enjoy all these activities that the other kids are doing….and I know she can’t, or at least not in the same way.

So last night as I was holding back tears because my daughter wouldn’t be learning any of the things “normal” kindergartners learn, the only hope I have is that she continues to enjoy school and is able to enjoy learning what she is capable of learning.

Kindergarten Questionnaire

I mentioned we have a meeting for Bella’s kindergarten class tonight.  I am currently filling out the paperwork we need to turn in for them.  It’s generic paperwork that they send each family that is in the area that has a kindergarten aged student.

We have already been going through the kindergarten placement with Bella’s current preschool teachers.  We have a lot of things to work out and figure out as to the best placement for Bella.  And as far as I know, nothing has been decided yet, except that Bella will go to Kindergarten next year.

The meeting tonight is just a general meeting for us to see the school, meet the staff, and also meet all the other parents of kids that will be the same age as Bella.

So back to this paperwork.  It’s depressing.  I am filling out a questionnaire that is specific to the school.  I’m sure they want it so they can tell at what level the child will be at when they walk into the school next fall.

1.  Did/Does your child attend preschool?     Yes

2.  Can your child write & recognize his/her name?     No

3.  Can your child tell you the letters in his/her name?    No

4.  Can your child recognize the letters of the alphabet?  No

5.  Can your child identify the colors red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, black & white?  No

6.  Can your child rhyme?     No

7.  Can your child sit and listen to a story?    Maybe

8.  Does your child have experience using scissors?   No

9.  Does your child demonstrate curiosity?  Maybe

10.  Does your child stay in the lines when coloring?   No

11.  Does your child assist with responsibilities?   No

12.  Does your child correctly count 10 objects?  No

13.  Does your child talk in sentences?   No

14.  Does your child tell or retell stories?  No

15.  Does your child follow 2 step directions?   No

16.  Does your child sing and recite nursery rhymes?   No

17.  Does your child express ideas so others can understand?  No

18.  Does your child attempt to write letters or numbers?   No

19.  Does your child attempt to invent his/her own spelling when writing?  No

20.  Does your child use words to solve problems when angry or frustrated?  No

21.  Does your child attempt new tasks, knowing it is okay to make mistakes?  No

22.  Does your child have success in taking turns and sharing?  No

23.  Does your child ask for help when necessary?  No – or all the time, depending how you look at it.

24.  Does your child comply with rules, limits, and routines?  No

25.  Does your child pretend to read books by reading the pictures?  No

The sad thing is, even if you gave us a worksheet to fill out and ask us questions that a typical one year old could do, I would still have to say no to most of the questions.  And if you gave me this same questionnaire 10 years down the road, I might still have to reply no to most of these questions.

Only time will tell what God and fate has in store for this one.

Dining Room Week #2

It’s two weeks in and we have finished painting and installing the chair rail.  Jesse also got all the electrical outlets replaced (old ones were so bad you couldn’t even plug anything in without it easily falling out).  We also replaced the light switch with a new dimmer switch.

This week the dining room will be on hold as we have an extremely busy week.

This week includes Valentine’s day…which when your kids are in school and especially when you are a room mother means a lot of extra work during this week.

This week is also parent teacher conferences and kindergarten informational meetings, so that eats into two nights.

This week is also the beginning of Lent…Easter is super early this week.  So in our usual Lenten style we will be giving up a bunch of things.

This week I also need to get handmade gifts finished to give to certain someones….see upcoming post next week.  Can’t spoil the surprise yet.

And then of course we have a normal week of both working.

I’ll admit I’m a little stressed looking at my to-do list.

Diaper Dance

This morning.

Oliver pooped.  I changed him.  He doesn’t like to be changed, so it takes a little bit of patience to make sure he is occupied with something and that you are quick and efficient.

I was taking them to the sitters today so I can work.  I had gotten them both dressed and was going to put Oliver’s shoes on, when I noticed a smell.

Oliver had pooped again.

This time he kept running away from me and did not want me to change his pants.  I chased him down and picked him up.  He then proceeds to bite me on the shoulder as he is screaming.  I tell him to not bite me, and to stop screaming, he needs his pants changed because he is stinky.

I hand him a toy to play with and lay him down.  He proceeds to keep screaming and kicking and then chucks the toy at me.

At this point I am done.  I tell him that if he wants to run around in a poopy diaper all day long and stink up the house…fine by me.  If he wants to have that in his pants and make his bottom red, raw, and bloody…fine by me.

Of course I really couldn’t send him off to the sitters like that.  So I held him down and told him he was going to get his pants changed.  And finally we got it done.

I was so glad to drop them off at the sitters and get some time away from poopy diapers and tantrum throwing “I want fruit snacks” and fussing..try and guess what I want children.

A Valentine’s Day Attempt

I was attempting to recreate a photo shoot for Oliver.  The idea of course came from pinterest.  I am not a photographer.  I did get a better camera which takes better pictures than previous.  But I have a long way to go before I would say I am even taking decent pictures.  The main problem being that most of the photos I try to take are inside, and we just don’t have the proper lighting to pull off good pictures.

So I tried my best.  I used a red blanket to give a theme appropriate background, and I applied some lipstick kisses to Oliver.  And here is where the problem started.  If Oliver sees me putting on “chapstick”, he wants some too.  So I had to hand over some chapstick for him.

I tried to get him to give his puppy kisses, but he wanted nothing to do with it, since I had just taken the chapstick away from him.

He was more interested in running away from me.

I tried to get him to hold up a sign for me, but again he wanted to run away.

Until the chapstick came back out.  Then he would sit still.

So I didn’t quite get the shot I was looking for.  I guess you will have to wait till Valentines to see what I came up with.