Quick picture fix

We went to our friends' cabin this weekend so I can't wait to post all about it! But first, I wanted to get some pictures posted for Grandma's and Grandpa's and Aunts who are going through withdrawals.

Bria on her way to spend the night at Aunt Heather and Amy's, Grammy was there too!

She loves slumber parties there, and so do Mom and Dad ;)

I went out for Lanie's birthday for a girls night the other weekend and we had so much fun! We went to Claim Jumper for amazing dessert, played Just Dance on the Wii (sooo fun!), painted our nails, and watched a movie.

I knew that when Bria saw my nails the next morning she would want hers painted to. Sure enough 10 seconds after she saw me that morning she noticed my pretty purple nails and said, "Paint Bria's nails! Ready! READY!"

So little miss is now sporty cute pink fingernails to match her toes.

And here is a little video of Bria learning her colors. Sometimes she seems to know them and other times she doesn't. Either way she gets excited when she gets it right!

Cozy days

Bria has been playing pretty well the last couple days which makes such a huge difference. I think her teeth are giving her a break because she just seems so much happier and content.

Today she was playing with her doll and started putting her in time out. Then she'd go get her and say, "Want to cuddle?" I couldn't help but laugh, that's usually what we do after time out. She really doesn't go in time out often but apparently it really effects her, which I guess is good because it's effective.


We are now the proud owners of a portable dvd player for our car (have I already mentioned this?) and I am ecstatic. We tried it out and oh goodness what have we done without this thing? Now the long drives won't be so painful and I'm so excited. You'd think Bria would do well in the car since she loves to read but that is not the case. Maybe it makes her nauseous to read, who knows, but either way we have a the dvd player now and it's wonderful :)


That's about it for my random updates, I think I'll go lay down now :)

What kind of Mom are you?

I'm the kind of Mom that gets stressed out easily.

I'm the kind of Mom that let's my child watch tv and to date it has not stopped her brain activity, she's still smart...I'm not bias or anything.

I'm the kind of Mom that can't sleep the night before Christmas or my child's birthday because I'm so excited to see her face when she opens her presents.

I'm the kind of Mom that can just sit and watch my child read or play because it never gets old, it's cute every time.

I'm the kind of Mom that puts matching PJ's on my child every night, even though it really doesn't matter.

I'm the kind of Mom that way over thinks things, I rarely fly by the seat of my pants. And I'm also not good at thinking outside the box, that's what Dad is for.

I'm the kind of Mom who is terrified of being judged by other moms, and to make matters worse I am very sensitive and over analyze everything.

I'm the kind of Mom that is neurotic about her child's sleep, it's on my mind a lot (which is pretty evident considering most my posts include some kind of blurb on Bria's sleeping).

I'm the kind of Mom that will lay on the floor and take a 2 minute nap while my child plays.

I'm the kind of Mom who wants my child to be grateful, to feel loved, to love family, to love God, to be hard-working, and to be kind hearted.
I'm the kind of Mom that is so grateful to be a Mom.

A cluster

This post has no organization, it's just a cluster of stuff we've been up to...so pretty much like most of my posts.

Doing her new favorite thing: the dishes

"Mom, can you stop making me say cheese so I can get back to the dishes, I am very busy."

Trying Moms shoes on

I watched Oprah the other day and her organization guy was on (I can't remember his name right now) who cleaned out this families house. They had a playroom stuffed with toys and he said, "Have the children pick out 5 toys each, those are the ones to leave out." I thought it was a great idea to simplify, plus I've heard less is better when it comes to toys.

So I ran to Costco yesterday, got 2 totes and went to town in Bria's room and her toy cube in the living room.

She still has more than 5 toys, like a lot more than 5 toys. But stuffed animals and books don't count so really she doesn't have too much more than 5, if you also don't count alphabet things 'cuz those are for learning, not just toys. The point is, I boxed up a lot of toys and put them in storage. Her room looks better and she doesn't miss anything I packed up, she still has her favorite toys. It's a win-win really.

While I was busy with the organization bug, these 2 cuties were chillin':

Watching TinkerBell together...doesn't get much better than lounging around with your best buddy.

Also this week I watched Bristol for a little bit, like half hour because Lanie's doctor's appointment was ridiculously short. These two cuties played pretty darn well together. Bria is getting soooo good at sharing and it is making me very happy. Don't get me wrong, she's still a toddler and has her moments, but she's made a huge improvement.

Did you know it's nearly impossible to get a picture of 2 toddlers looking at the same camera?

Bria looking

Bristol looking

Now I just need to photoshop ;)

Alright, I think that's the end of my random, cluster post. Friday is almost here people!

Laundry can be fun...

...if someone puts you in the laundry hamper with warm clothes and then pulls you up and down the hallway like a race car.

Laundry took a little longer this day but Bria sure had fun :)

It has been raining nonstop for what feels like weeks and it's really starting to get on my nerves. Yesterday we finally had a break in the rain so I decided to take Bria for a walk, well my little bookworm made me carry her for most the walk and just wanted to go home and read. I'm not complaining, I love that she loves books, I just thought she'd want some fresh air! I think it's been so long since we've played outside she forgot it was fun.

I mean, who doesn't have fun contorting their bodies into small places?

Bria has some crazy hair these days, especially in the morning. Her hair clips are having a hard time holding it into place.

Flock of Seagulls

Amy has named Bria's awesome hair her Flock of Seagulls haircut. If you do not know what I am speaking of then 1.) You don't watch Friends enough 2.) Go google it

Giddy up

I have been thinking about Bria's room and how I want to decorate it when she gets into a big girl bed...still months down the road because I am in no hurry to battle the getting out of bed thing. I want to do Tinker Bell, but not an overkill. Like instead of doing a Tinker Bell bed spread and sheets, I would like to get a green duvet cover (She'll have my twin size down comforter) and then paint her walls a light purple. Then put touches of Tinker Bell around the room, like fold up a Tinker Bell blanket and put it on her bed, put her Tinker Bell nightlight on her night stand, maybe have a Tinker Bell silhouette on her wall, that kind of thing. I'd love to hear ideas if you have them! I'm not a huge fan of purple walls but I think with the green comforter and stuff it would look ok. Anyway, I'm open to ideas or websites!

Alright, I'm off to finish drinking my coffee and get ready for the day. I get to watch Bristol today while Lanie goes to a doctor's appt, can't wait!

A mini mommy

Bria is very into helping right now. She absolutely LOVES to help so I try to give her lots of tasks throughout the day, even if they create more work for me :) She gets so tickled with herself when she does a good job, she is so proud.

She also loves to play with her dolls, which I think I've mentioned before. She totally plays a mom and it's darn tootin' cute.

On this particular day, MJ was the baby:

And Bria thought it was essential to bring MJ lots of stuff for her nap.

She also read MJ a Tinker Bell story and drew a picture

MJ was such a good sport and just laid there while Bria brought her blankets and toys and all sorts of stuff.

Bria and Brian both seem to be under the weather a little bit, this week has been a little rough sleep-wise for everyone. Bria also has her canine teeth coming in, three have popped up but one has yet to break through so I think that's been a lot of the reason for Bria's lack of sleep.

Hopefully they both feel better and we can all sleep soon :)

Painting & I told ya so

Bria and I went to the dollar store the other day and got stuff to paint with. I've been trying to think of crafts that Bria would have fun doing since we're stuck inside so much.

I think she had fun. Her favorite part was dipping the paint brush in all the paint and mixing them together.

I got that cute little apron/smock thing at the dollar store too, I thought it was too cute to pass up.

"Arrrrgh matey!"

After she finishes painting I stand her on a chair and she does the dishes for me. This is also a great way for her to wash her hands.

This takes up almost an hour of our day and she has so much fun. Glad I found a craft! Now to find 7 more that take an hour each ;)

We did not get six inches of snow. We got a very light dusting last night and this morning there were no signs of it. Just back to normal Oregon rain. I hate to say I told you so weathermen, but I told you so. And I'm not happy I was right, I really wanted some snow.

Weekend Update :)

Brian and I got to go out on the town this weekend and it was sooo much fun. We went out with a big group to celebrate a friends birthday, first to a comedy club and then to a bowling/dance place. I've been wanting to go to a comedy club forever so I'm so glad that was in the plans. It was hilarious and I always love to laugh.

Then we went dancing and oh goodness I was having a ball. Brian and I haven't gone dancing in forever and we had such a blast. My feet were killing me by the end of the night since I was wearing heels, but it was so worth it. We stayed out until 1 am which is so flippin' late. But we got to sleep in since Bria had a slumber party at Heather and Amy's house.

Not only was our night a success, but Bria had so much fun with her Aunt's. When I went to pick her up the next morning she wasn't even that excited to see me.

Cuddling on the couch with Pinkie and Bunny.

Bria and her crazy hair :)

The rest of the weekend we hung out and relaxed. Of course Brian also put Bria in a bag and swung her around because that's just what you do on weekends in the long Oregon winter.

Who doesn't like to be swung around in a bag?

Good thing Bria has a big, strong, Dad to play fun games with her.

"Dude, Mom, this is awesome."

Rumor has it we are going to be getting snow this week. I would love that but I'm a little skeptical, I'll believe it when I see it.

Nap advanced

Nap advanced is a term I made up for Bria. My child is advanced in her napping, meaning she is ahead of schedule, meaning she has always napped less than babies/toddlers her age...meaning soon I don't think she will nap. This is the part where I cry.

Playing in her Tinker Bell fort

Precious

I had a suspicion that Bria was going to be one of those children that stop their nap early on, meaning at age 2. I would hear about these kids taking naps until 4 years old, some even until 5 and had to be weaned off naps in order to attend kindergarten. A little dream bubble would appear and I'd fast forward to Bria being 4 and just stopping her daily 2 hours naps. But then the bubble would burst at the sound of Bria talking away in her crib when she was suppose to be napping.

Why are naps so important? If you asked that silly question than you are a) not a parent yet or b) you are my hero because obviously you have some sort of special power where you can be "on" all day long and your patience tank is never empty.

Playing patty cake with MJ, MJ is such a good sport.

I need some time during the day to collect my thoughts, clean up a few things, play Wii, and blog. Nap time is my time to do that, it's also my time to recharge for the afternoon and build my patience tank back up.

I stress out when Bria doesn't nap. The funny part is that she usually does pretty well without a nap, although she does get crankier as the evening progresses. The scary part is that she usually does pretty well without a nap. Yes, I meant to repeat myself there. I'm not ready to give up naps!! I'm NOT READY! Why didn't she inherit her Dad's eternal love for napping?

But as a mom it doesn't matter if I'm ready or not, it's not about me, it's about my little one. And so I will try hard to keep going with naps, but I know sooner rather than later the naps will turn into Bria having quiet time in her crib. I should be okay with that, and part of me is, the other part is thinking it's insane that my not even 2 year old toddler will go already go without naps some days. But somehow I'll adjust, just like I did with her going from 3 to 2 naps (I think she napped 3 times a day for like 2 days) and from 2 naps to 1. I have a feeling going from 1 to 0 is going to be the hardest though. Just a hunch :)

Plus, look how adorable she is playing "Mom" with her doll. Sigh.