Christmas Shopping

Yes, it's that time of year again!I can't believe it's already here! I've been working for a major department store for seasonal help, and seeing all the sales makes me want to buy it all! But then I always have that nagging feeling that I could get it cheaper somewhere else. My budget is already tight, so any little bit I can save helps! I prefer to comparison shop as much as I can, but I never have the time. I search many sites and even download apps to do it for me. Why spend hours browsing a toy store when I can look online and instantly see the best price? This year my kids are getting older and no longer are excited by a new cup and a pack of socks. Austin wants a new Mario game, William is loving his blocks, and Chloe Beth is just getting into baby dolls. And since they all have a birthday within a few weeks of Christmas, I get the joy of shopping for twice as many gifts! I haven't decided what exactly they should get, but they'll likely still get some socks! Grandparents buy them enough toys, so one toy from Mommy and Daddy should suffice, the rest will be much needed clothes, school supplies, and some new toddler bedding for Chloe's new big girl bed! They grow up entirely too fast!

Winter is Here!

Contribution by Stevie Kirby

It’s hard to believe it’s already the time of year when we need to turn on our heat in New York. After a beautiful summer and brief fall it’s getting colder by the day. Last year our heating bills were higher than my roommate and I were comfortable with so I decided to look online for some tips on energy efficiency. Although it won’t help, I learned a lot about building design and location and how it affects heating and cooling efficiency. Everything from topography and building location as well as where you place windows can have a major affect. I guess these ideas did not come into play in 1955 when my apartment building was built! After getting side-tracked by all the interesting information that I could not use, I went back to my original search for things that would be helpful. I visited www.newyorkenergyrates.com to see if I could get some pricing relief in my area. I also looked at the new energy star rated appliances at the major department stores. Maybe if I save enough on my bills I can get a new dishwasher!

Day 14

Sunday! We hope to accomplish more today with both of us home, but it really depends on the kids. B has a high fever so we are keeping a close eye on him.

We need to finish yesterday and today's chores:
-scrub kitchen
-take out trash
-more laundry
-vacuum living room
-scrub nursery (again)

Day 12 & 13

I have two sick kids, so I did little cleaning yesterday and today.

My lists were:
Laundry
Take out trash
Scrub down kitchen
Pick up clothes in bedroom

I managed to get laundry and the bedroom done, but thats it. I do not expect tomorrow to be very productive either.

Day 11

Today I hope to accomplish much more! I have more laundry to wash, fold and put away. More work to do in my bedroom, and a few more errands to run.

Laundry: another load of kids clothes, mommy clothes and perhaps some pillows
Errands: go to the drug store and the post office -DONE!
Home: find, wash, dry and package all items sold. (2 diapers, 3 longies, 2 soakers) - DONE!
Cleaning: scrub toilet,(DONE!) take out trash, vacuum living room and kitchen.
If I have time: pick up master bedroom, box up old baby clothes


Its 3am, and there is so much to do, but I simply don't have the energy tonight!
A friend just had her baby (like 30 minutes ago) so I have been waiting up for that. She is a beautiful healthy little girl! I stopped to order her a new baby gift, and stayed up to make sure Lee's clothes were ready to go. But now I must sleep!

Day 10

Today was another simple day. Lee had to do some household repairs, which required me to contain the babies, so there wasnt much I could do.

-laundry:diapers, Lee's clothes, kids clothes, spare bedding. All done!
-fix nursery door and pick up nursery-done!
-fold a few more baskets of clothes-done!

I was not planning on making a big dinner, but that changed last minute so I made a big pot of chicken and dumplins, which took much longer then the burgers I planned on having.
Also managed to wash a few dishes and pick up the bathroom. Yay me!

I was hoping for more progress this week, but between family visits, surprise errands, and a teething toddler, I got less done than I hoped for. But tomorrow ia another day, with room for growth and more progress!

Day 9

Because the last two days have been smaller tasks, though still progress, Tuesday's list is slightly more intense.

-organize filing cabinet
-dust and organize desk, bookshelf, end tables
-move shoe rack from living room to closet, replace with wicker basket
-wash and fold 4 more loads of laundry
-wash diapers, fold and put away
-clean out large dresser in bedroom

The chores are smaller, but more tedious. If I can get all this done, my bedroom can be easily cleaned and organized!

Day 8

Today my list was short, and even though it took until midnight, I got it done.
-put away all clean laundry (9 baskets)
-wash a few dishes
-run all my errands

Even though running errands is not cleaning, it did get my finances and paperwork organized! I got all my bills paid, every bill or expense got its own budget, envelope, and cash balance for the month. Now I can actually save what is my checking account! This took care of the pile of bills and papers on my desk. I also got my grocery shopping done, made arrangements for tax payments, and went to Austin's old school to transfer his records. I'm quite happy with today's progress!

Day 7

Furniture has been delivered, assembled, and is looking fantastic! This gives me even more motivation to continue on my cleaning challenge! Last night I managed to fold and put away several loads of clothes, in the nursery, while the babies were sleeping. I was quite proud! So on to Day 7 tasks...
-wash, fold and put away: Lee's clothes for the week, blankets, and another load of diapers.
-scrub down kitchen table, freezer, counters, and windows
-attempt to make more progress in my bedroom. Though this may get put on hold until Monday. Lee is trying to encourage me to get out of the house while he watches the kids. I'm undecided if I'll go or what I'll do, but if I can, I would rather get a small break than clean some more. While I'm excited about my progress, and really motivated to keep going, I am starting to freak out when I have to leave the house. I have been to my parents' house a couple times a month, and a few trips to the dr, maybe a handful of times to the store at 2am. But I still freak out around people. I have no idea why. I've gotten so used to being at home all the time, that I can't even function in a normal society. So right now, getting over my fear is slightly more important than more cleaning. But I do plan to finish the kitchen and laundry before doing anything else.

Day 6

Today's tasks are quite different, because today we will be moving furniture! Lee is going to pick up our new living room furniture, and moving around/hauling off some old stuff. So most of today's things will revolve around keeping the kids out of the way, and making space.

-Vacuum the living room (after the moving, I'm sure it will make a mess)
-Clean off and organize old/new furniture (current entertainment center is going upstairs for Austin's tv, movies and books)
-Laundry: Wash Mommy's clothes!!! And diapers. I won't have much time to do more, but those need to get done.

30 Days of Cleaning Day 5

Day 5:
Today's tasks are out of order, but, 'the show must go on!' Since I had a sleeping child in my bedroom yesterday, I was not able to get much work done in there. So I worked more in the living room instead. So today I need to get done what I should have done yesterday.
-pick up laundry in bedroom
-vacuum living room
-fold and put away clean laundry

I now have 7 loads of clean clothes to put away, but I'm not adding much more to my list for today. Once I get my bedroom in decent shape, I can work on thoroughly deep cleaning each room next week. Then organizing specific sections the next week. Then repairs and maintenance the last week. We actually got a couple repairs done yesterday, since I didn't want to do nothing, but couldn't work on my scheduled chores. Fixed a door, cleaned out the vacuum, fixed the shoe rack, bolted down the toybox, and moved more things to upstairs storage. This allowed me to get more work done in the living room, like cleaning off the couch, getting rid of an oldchair, wiping down the fingerprints and filing some papers. Not major work, but more than the picking up I did before and allows for easier deep cleaning next week. The nursery still got done, so the day wasn't a total waste. Hoping Day 5 is pretty productive!

Day 4

30 Days of Cleaning: Day 4

Today's tasks are:
-clean nursery: empty & wash toy box, scrub down furniture, clean carpets
-pick up master bedroom: pick up all laundry, take out trash
-laundry: one more load of kids clothes, 2 loads of mommy/daddy clothes, extra bedding

The nursery will take a while, I'm sure, since I will have two toddlers "helping" me. And I don't expect it to last long. But it needs a thorough deep cleaning. Master bedroom isn't ready for a deep cleaning, all the clothes are in the way! The bedroom will be a ten-part project. LOL Baby steps.

Day 3

30 Days of Cleaning: Day 3
Today's tasks are:
-clean out and organize hall closet
-pick up living room
-laundry: more kids clothes, extra bedding, pillows
-if I have time, fold and organize all diapers. With one almost completely potty trained, I can stash some of his day time diapers away and pull out the big boy underwear. But this involves being in the nursery, so can't be accomplished during nap time. Daddy will have to take over for a while.

Lee was pretty impressed with the bathroom and actually managed to not make a mess, and he promised to help in the kitchen this week. If nothing else got done, I would be satisfied knowing he at least wants to help now.



UPDATE!
Day 3: Done!
Closet is all neat and organized, living room was picked up (twice, darn kids!), laundry is washed and still drying, and I even managed to get some diapers folded!

Day 2

30 Days of Cleaning: Day 2

Today I have slightly bigger tasks, but I'm hopeful I can get it all done!
-Kitchen
-Pick up nursery
-Laundry: blankets, nursery bedding, and a few more towels.

My downfall will be the kitchen. I don't expect to do as thorough of a job as I did with the bathroom, but I hope to make a noticeable dent in it. I need to take out the trash, clean off the counter tops, and wash down the table. Currently my table is covered in papers, dishes, groceries that have yet to be put away, and my sewing supplies. Ideally, I would like to get my sewing supplies and Lee's crap out of the kitchen and upstairs. Then take out the trash, clean off the tables, and wash some more dishes. I don't expect to get to the details, like washing the stove and fridge, or sweeping and mopping the floors. But no matter what I do, I will be making progress. And unfinished tasks will stay on the list and be moved to a later day. If I can tackle most of the kitchen early in the month, I can do the detailed projects later and not be overwhelmed. I'm determined to stick to my plan!


Update: Day 2 done!
Got a few more loads of laundry done today, cleaned up the kitchen and did a little in the nursery. Both kitchen and nursery still need some work, but I'm happy with my progress! Got the floor swept, pantry cleaned up, table cleaned off, and boxes moved out. Still needs some detail work, but I got a lot done. Now to rest up for tomorrow!

Day 1

My tasks for today are:
-Clean the bathroom
-Wash dishes
-Laundry: diapers, kids clothes, and towels.

So far I have washed the diapers, got the bathroom half cleaned-before I was interrupted by two cranky toddlers-and I'm starting a load of towels.


Update:
DAY 1 DONE!
I scrubbed the bathroom, top to bottom. Got down on my hands and knees and really scrubbed the floor. Washed out the diaper pail, trash can, training potty, and cabinets. I washed a load of diapers, a load of towels, and two loads of kids clothes, with a few of Lee's shirts thrown in. :) I washed dishes, then they got used immediately, so I need to rewash them just to stay caught up. All in all, I'm happy with my progress. I managed to get all my tasks done, despite the hectic morning and two cranky toddlers all afternoon. Now to plan out Day 2 and get some rest!

My List

Here is my list of things to do for the next 30 days. Again, tailor your list to fit your needs.

30 Days of Cleaning List:

Kitchen:
-take out trash
-separate and wash dishes
-sweep floor
-clean stove (top and front)
-clean refrigerator
-scrub counter tops
-scrub table, put on new table cloth and place mats
-scrub walls (fingerprints and pen marks by homework station)

Laundry:
-wash diapers first
-table cloth, towels, high chair cover, dish rags
-blankets, kid clothes
-bedding, extra blankets
-Lee's clothes
-Mommy's clothes
-pillows, bath mat
-fold and put away as each load is done

Bathroom:
-pick up clothes, towels, toys, etc
-clean out and fill soap bins
-clean sink and drain
-scrub tub, faucet, shower head
-clean toilet
-clean off shelves, medicine cabinet

Nursery:
-empty and wash toy box
-put all toys away, toss broken toys
-scrub dressers, doors, baseboards, beds
-wash stuffed animals, bed rail cover, curtains
-hang diaper organizer
-clean under beds
-scrub and vacuum carpet
-clean (sanitize) mattresses and put on clean bedding
-store extra bedding in closet drawers
-wash foam mattress pad

Master Bedroom:
-pick up and bag all clothes
-put all shoes in basket (in closet)
-take out all trash
-dust walls, ceiling, fan, dressers
-hang all clean laundry
-vacuum
-store purses, suitcases, and other bags in plastic tub (in closet)
-store all unused items (spare alarm clock, back massager, etc) in plastic tub (in closet)
-clean out large dresser; store socks, underwear, and out of season clothing
-clean air unit
-wash blinds

Living Room:
-take out all trash
-pick up and bag all clothes and other laundry
-put all toys in nursery
-move storage tubs to upstairs room
-fix and fill shoe rack, extras go in bedroom closet
-put all tools, paint, xbox and computer parts in storage tub upstairs
-dust all surfaces
-clean air unit
-scrub and vacuum floors
-clean off and organize bookshelf
-move tacklebox, fishing poles, extra tool box upstairs
-hang purse, backpacks, and diaper bags on coat rack
-scrub walls and doors
-move file boxes and all paperwork to new filing cabinet

Hall Closet:
-sort and re-organize medicine bins
-wash and fold extra blankets and bedding in storage tub 9bottom of closet)
-put all school supplies, arts & crafts, games on top shelf
-move all cleaners to laundry shelf in kitchen
-scrub closet door

Upstairs:
-take out all trash
-vacuum
-sort, wash and put away all Austin's clothes that still fit, suitable for school
-clean (sanitize) mattress and put on new bedding
-clean and store ferret cage and accessories
-clean out closet
-move drawers, bookshelf and chair to corner
-scrub walls, baseboards and doors
-straighten up storage closet

Miscellaneous:
-clean off and scrub washer and dryer
-vacuum hallway
-scrub walls and baseboards in hallway
-set up laundry system in hallway
-scrub back door area
-clean off front porch and surrounding area
-store extra laundry baskets upstairs
-clean out and scrub inside fridge and freezers

30 Days of Cleaning

As I look around my house, I see disorganized piles, dishes in the sink, laundry to fold, and general disarray. I am determined to fix this, once and for all. Not just clean up the mess of toys, or put away the laundry, but to make a real change. To ensure that my house not only GETS clean and organized, but stays that way. So I have made a plan, and would love for you to join me! In 30 days my house will be a spotless, well organized, machine!
The Plan: make a list. Anything that needs scrubbing, sorting, donating, repairing, or just throwing away goes on the list. Just deciding to clean has never worked for me. I lack the time and motivation to tackle such a large task. Once I have my list, it goes on the schedule. Every task is assigned a time to get done. For my schedule, I chose 2 big tasks a day, and one ongoing task. For example, in the morning while the kids have a snack and quiet play time, I will surface clean the bathroom. In the afternoon while they nap, I will tackle the bookshelf-sorting through the papers, trading old magazines, etc. My ongoing task will be laundry. Mondays are kids laundry: this includes each child's clothes, bedding, blankets, stuffed animals, and diapers.
Tuesdays tasks will be: morning-surface clean the kitchen (wipe down countertops, sweep the floor, take out trash, etc). Afternoon: vacuum the floors. Ongoing task (laundry): Household laundry (towels, table cloth, dish rags, bath mat, etc). Most people probably don't do as much laundry as we do, but it takes us forever. With the babies issues, everything must be rinsed twice to ensure no detergent residue is left on their clothing. From start to finish, each load takes about 3 hours. So laundry is an ongoing task, and source of frustration for us. Perhaps your ongoing task will be dusting if you have allergies, vacuuming up pet hair, or watering the plants. Make your list and schedule to fit your needs. I will be posting my detailed list and schedule later. My goal is to have the big tasks done, so each week I only need to do maintenance, which takes far less time.
Tips for making your own list and schedule: know your routine. If your child has soccer practice on Wednesdays and you don't have much time, opt for a simple task, like vacuum the living room or take out all the trash. Don't schedule all the chores you hate in one day. Knowing when you get up that you have to do something you hate will kill your motivation. Spread them out. Schedule scrubbing the toilets with an easy chore, like putting away the folded laundry. Choose one big chore and one easy chore a day. Reduce weekend chores. Nobody likes cleaning all weekend, so pick one chore those days. Perhaps washing and changing all the bedding, or enlist the whole family in a quick dusting. If, like me, you have small children who aren't able to do much, let them help on their level. I give Chloe a basket to gather all the toys, and Will gets a small spray bottle of vinegar and a rag to clean the finger prints off the fridge. They learn to help, but don't get in the way. Giving them separate tasks, often in separate rooms, keeps them from getting distracted and playing.

So get started on your list, make a schedule, and join me in a 30 day cleaning spree! Feel free to comment with any tips or just share your accomplishments! We can encourage and motivate each other. :)

More craziness

Life in this house is never dull, that's for sure! Fighting with the family, financial stress, and Lee's school driving me nuts. I'm so frustrated all day and feeling so helpless, then right now, at 2am, I get to crawl in bed and cuddle with my middle angel. He played so hard today, then came home to a tickle match with Daddy. He was worn out! Now if I could get the school to answer the phone and help me tomorrow, it will be a good day. Tuition has been paid and there is still $6k I km grants and scholarships that hasn't been touched. We need that money! But nobody can tell me if and how we can access it. Pretty annoying. I'm so ready for a stay income! Still no job leads, no interviews, and no hope. I can't wait to get to a place where we can support our own family. But for now, we are depending on help from every angle. At least my kids are taken care of. I know, no matter what, they always have what they need.

Wanting a baby....

I'm sitting here on the couch, watching 19 Kids and Counting. And every time they show a baby or delivery, my baby fever goes wild. I miss my angels being little babies. It makes me want another baby. I miss all those precious times with a sleeping baby in my arms, the constant cuddling and the easy feedings. Those don't require a bath after every meal and sweeping crumbs of the floor. I want another one. As I say this, it is 10:30pm and both babies are still wide awake and quite loud. Yet I want another one. Another little mama's boy. Beautiful is getting too big. I need another mama's boy for me to spoil. But for now, I need to tend to the ones I have.

Life is Insane!

It's been so long since I've updated, life has just run over me lately. I'm not even sure where to start.

Austin. We shall start with him. We decided it was best that he spend some time with his family in Hawaii. He left June 1st, and will not return until mid October. He has a new baby brother down there, as well as another younger brother, an older sister and a new baby cousin he's never met. We want him to be connected to his family, and to know he is loved by so many people, and I think going down there is the best thing for him right now. He'd been having more behavior issues and was just getting out of control. He'd been seeing a child psychologist, but wasn't making any progress. He'll be seeing a new psychologist while in Hawaii, hopefully a better trained one, and we're praying for great improvements! He's called crying several times, and has asked when we'll be picking him up, and it just rips my heart in two. His good days there outweigh the bad days, but it's hard to hear your child upset and asking for Mommy when he's over 4,000 miles away. I've cried over it everyday. I just hope he knows how much we love him, this is not a punishment, and it's what's best for him right now.

Then of course, there are my babies here at home. For once, I am happy to report they are both healthy! This is an amazing accomplishment! Beautiful is talking more everyday and never fails to make me laugh. While playing at my parents' house, he ran over my dad's foot with his truck. My dad, unharmed, exclaims "Ow!!" expecting an apology, or at the very least a kiss. Beautiful stands up and yells out "Oh, get over it, Papa John!" My dad was not amused, the rest of the room burst into laughter. Chloe Beth is still not talking, at least not in English. She says "dad-dy" all day long, and babbles away, but doesn't say much you can understand. Occasionally she will tell her brother "NO!" And she's starting to say "Chlo-Chlo", usually meaning 'that's Chloe's, don't touch'. Beyond that is purely guesswork. She squeals and giggles and screams to get her way. She is already so spoiled. She knows she's the baby, and the only girl, and will pretty much get everything her little heart desires. She has her daddy wrapped around her little finger.
I am also happy to report they are both currently rash free! Since it is summer time, and so very hot, they do get heat rash and red blotches on their legs, but certainly nothing like before. :)

And of course, there's Lee and I. With financial struggles, sick kids, and school stress, our marriage has been rocky. We are trying to work through it together, but we still have our bad days. Austin leaving certainly didn't help, but since we both understand the other's pain, it's a little bit easier to cope. We're both struggling with depression, and I've started talking to a therapist to help. Right now, we're all each other has and we are clinging on to this marriage for dear life. He seems to be handling everything much better than I am. Every day is a struggle for me. I feel physically worn down. My weight is all over the place, I have no motivation to get up or do anything, and I'm spending more and more time in bed. Luckily, the babies are perfectly content to pile in my bed every morning and read books or play a game. Now that we aren't rushing to get to school on time, we can have lazy summer days. We lay in bed and read while we all wake up, then enjoy a big breakfast, play for a while, then lunch and nap time. They are doing very well on this schedule. They happily sleep until 7 each day, instead of being woken up to get dressed and out the door. They eat a better breakfast, play more and cry less. This makes us ALL much happier! Nap time is much easier, too. After lunch we read some more then all go lay down. Chloe goes right to sleep, Beautiful insists on a few more stories. I'm happy to oblige. :) They are my little rainbows at the end of a daily storm. They can always make me smile again. And they just love to give kisses! I get kissed every five minutes, and they are the most perfect kisses. Beautiful with his gentle peck, and Chloe Beth with her slobber-filled whole-face kisses. I couldn't get through the day without my angels.

New Ways of Torture

My kids have always been very creative in finding new ways to torture me, but this week they stepped up their game.
Beautiful has been eating my chapstick. He loves the stuff! I keep it on my night stand to use before bed, so when he crawls in bed at night he sneaks the little tube and has himself a snack. I've gone through four tubes of Blistex this week. I can't imagine it tastes good, yet the constant teeth marks prove he loves the stuff!

Then there's Austin. Oh dear. He has been extremely sneaky lately. While cleaning out some stuff in the closet upstairs, I discovered 2 cases worth of soda cans. He's been sneaking them from the fridge, hiding away in his room to chug them down, then quickly stashing the cans in the back of the closet. No wonder he's been so hyper lately! But it does make me wonder when he's managing to sneak the cans. We're in the living room most of the day, so he can't sneak into the kitchen without me noticing. So he's either timing my bathroom trips perfectly, or coming downstairs between 2 and 5am, the only time both Lee and I are in bed, and helping himself to the fridge. It's not that he's thirsty. He has his own cup which he can get water in at any time. He just wants the sodas he knows he's not allowed to have.
Then last night I discovered the best surprise ever at the worst possible time. He had gone into the bathroom at some point, and unwrapped every single one of my tampons, pushing them out of the applicator. Perfect. now they are completely unusable, unsterilized, and useless to me. Aside from the fact that it was a brand new box, and those things aren't cheap, what the heck was I supposed to do?! And WHY? WHY would you feel the need to do that? WHEN did you have time to do all this? I don't watch him go to the bathroom, and I certainly don't time him. If he's taking a while, I just assume he's taking care of business. If he needs me, he can yell for me. I tend not to interfere. But maybe I should.
Then Lee discovered his new, family size bottle of Head and Shoulders shampoo was empty. I don't use the stuff, and the babies are never unattended in the bathroom...so that only leaves Austin. He's been using it as bubble bath! Which seems fruitless, as it doesn't really bubble- probably why he used the whole bottle. For the most part, he's not alone in the tub. I get the babies out, put him in the tub while I put them in bed, then it's back to him. So in that five minute window he manages to drain an entire bottle of shampoo. Lovely. Another $10 down the drain.
Oh, but he didn't stop there! He found my hair dye. Which had to be quite a feat for him. It stays in a cabinet, top shelf, above the toilet. So he had to stand on the toilet and rifle through the cabinet to find the box, buried way in the back (my roots can vouch for this fact)then open all of it. Again, WHY?! So now we've gone from annoying and inconvenient, to possible dangerous. What if he had gotten the dye in his eyes or drank some? I would assume that my child would not drink hair dye, but I'd also assume he wouldn't play with my tampons. And just like everything else, he shoved all the contents back into the box, placed it back on the shelf and pretended nothing ever happened. Another $20 out the window. So in a few days, and a few short bathroom trips, he's wasted $40 and caused more gray hair- which I now can't cover up. The joys of motherhood. And we have no idea how to fix this problem. I think it would be a violation of privacy to stand there and watch him every time he has to go, but I can't let him continue to play with chemicals. We use mostly homemade cleaners and the few store bought things are organic. I don't like chemicals in the house. But hair dye is full of them, and I'm not willing to give that up yet. 22 year olds shouldn't have gray hair, but I do. This is why. I'd like to continue to dye my hair, and not be worried my kids will eat it. Everything has child locks on it, but he's smart enough to work it. He can open all the gates, door knob covers, fridge and cabinet locks, and everything else we've tried. So short of following him around all day and never letting him have a single moment of privacy, there's no way to stop it.
And then there's Chloe Beth. The cutest little girl, with the biggest personality- and the creativity to make me crazy! She will attempt anything, right in front of you, grinning innocently the whole time. As if she looks cute enough you won't mind her stealing your drink, sneaking money from your purse, or pulling all the books off the shelf. She started walking this week. Now I have three mobile terrors. Awesome! She thinks she is the coolest thing ever and can do everything she wants. And should the dreaded "no" be uttered, you can expect her to fall to the ground in a flailing fit. She's learned to roll her eyes. I thought I had a few more cute years out of her. Not so lucky.
I think my kids have a secret meeting once a week, where they share ideas and plot against me. They make the plan that Chloe Beth will need a diaper change at 3:42pm, when Austin will sneak in behind me to grab a soda, Beautiful can rush to the bedroom for his Blistex fix, and everyone be back in place by the time the new diaper is on. This would make sense, as she fights changes to the death, stalling so they have plenty of time to sneak a cookie too. I don't want them to grow up. I want them to stay little. I just want them to be cute AND innocent, not one or the other.

Finding Fluff

I decided, with the help and encouragement of my friends, that I could make a business out of shopping for fluff! I already spend hours browsing sites, finding new styles, trying different things. I recommend so many brands and I'm constantly spamming people with new fluff. Might as well get paid for it! So that's what I did. While I am just starting out and haven't figured out all the details, the process is simple. For $5, I will hunt and search for your perfect diapers! You tell me what you want, colors, budgets, styles, and I give you a list of diapers that I think you'll love! I will be at your service for 24 hours, we can talk about pros and cons of each diaper, and if you're not satisfied we'll work until you are! This should be a good way to feed my addiction and let me shop, while staying on the wagon!