I just bought a $300.00 pair of shoes

It's not what you think. And it's not even the whole shoe. It's just the sole of the shoe....going by the fancy name of "orthotics". How crazy is that? I went to the podiatrist yesterday because my feet hurt all of the time. The doctor asked me if I was a runner. I'd like to think he thought that because I have a lean body and a flat stomach. Umm, no....not quite...ok, not even close really. I'm pretty sure the calluses and blisters on my feet are what gave it away. Oh, well.

I remember my grandmother getting shoes from the podiatrist and she was so bummed to have to wear such ugly shoes. I've never been a shoe person and rarely ever wear anything but tennis shoes and maybe an occasional sandal. Rarely a high heel. Those things are just dangerous and my foot wasn't made for them....not to mention my coordination (or lack of it). I didn't quite get why my Mama Jean was so sad about the shoes. I mean, they fit, didn't they? And they were more comfortable than the other shoes she had been trying to wear. But as I passed by that shoe tree filled with the same type shoes (you'd think they could make something a little more fashionable by now, huh?), I got it. I don't want to wear those either. And so I paid for my $300.00 orthotics.

Finding time to update

So the whole schedule thing is working out pretty good. I've managed to keep the house clean and I've been working out and running pretty consistently. I just can't seem to get the blog updated as much as I would like. I guess it's easier to surf the internet then log on and update. Plus I constantly get interrupted with "Push! Push! Bee Bee!" or "Elp! Elp!" or "No No No!!" or "Get down from there, Caleb!". The first refers to Caleb wanting me to turn on the music and listen to "The B-I-B-L-E" for a million times. The second is him asking for help with something...usually his oven door that he can't open because I need to replace the knob (I should put that on my schedule). As soon as I open it, he closes it and says "elp elp". Ahhhh. The third is how I know to stop what I'm doing and see what's going on.....Caleb is saying no no no. I love that he tattles on himself. And the fourth is what I usually say following the "no no no". And yes, all four phrases have been used since the start of this update. And we are listening to The B-I-B-L-E for the fourth time now.

Help navigating through the blog

If you just want to watch videos or look at pictures, look on the right side of the page and click on "pictures" or "video" under the labels section.

If you don't have sound on the youtube videos, there is a button at the bottom right to turn it up. You can't miss the Dancing with Daddy video.

Also, there is a poll on the right side of the page. I thought it would be fun.

Dancing with Daddy

I love it when they dance :) Caleb's getting some of his molars in so he has been a little grumpy the last couple of days. It's nice to see him dancing and giggling with daddy.

Messy room

We got this toy bin from Target a few months ago and it is so great for quick clean up. See how neatly I have the toys arranged....balls all in one bin, ducks in another, cars in their own place, etc. etc.



And this is what is looks like as soon as Caleb realizes what a fantastic job I have done.... (push the button on the bottom left to play the video).




Seriously, he demolishes it in seconds. I try to sneak in to put his toys up before bedtime. Jason laughs at me and tells Caleb that I am demonstrating an "exercise in futility". That's the puppet stage he is throwing the toys over.

Kissing ouchies, Sesame Street, "Help!"

I taught Caleb a while back to say "help" when he needed something instead of crying and whining. I taught him this a couple of months ago and I was totally surprised that he understood what I told him. Ever since then, when he is having trouble with something he comes and get me, says help, and leads me to the problem. It's usually a toy that is stuck, something he can't get opened, a broken toy, or something that is too heavy or bulky for him to drag into the living room (because, you know, he can't just play in his room, he has to bring all toys in the living room). He fell the other day and hit his head and started crying. As I was hugging him and kissing his boo boo, he said "help". Ahh, I felt so bad.

I also love that my kisses actually make his boo boos go away. It's amazing how fast a kiss can't ease his pain. I just love it. I love that he can tell me what's hurting and show me what he is having difficulty with. It's just so cool. I don't know how many times he comes to me a day with an ouchie, shows me the ouchie for a kiss, and then he is absolutely fine. It's so cool to have that kind of power. Wonder if that would work for my patients at the hospital. Just kidding. Not gonna happen.

He is loving Sesame Street....Goggers (Grover), Nernie (Ernie), Elmo, Scoscr (Oscar), Baby also sometimes Abby (Abby, definitely NOT baby bear), Cookies (Cookie Monster), and I'm sure he knows more names and I'm just not catching on. Nernie is slowly catching up to Goggers in Elmo in popularity. I bought Caleb a puppet show stage from a yard sale and it came with a Ernie puppet. I did a little Ernie puppet show and Caleb came up to him, kissed him and tried to hand him a ball. Caleb did not understand why Ernie wouldn't take the ball. It was too cute. We are taking him to Sesame Street Live in a few weeks and I can't wait!!

My Nike Ipod

I'm still running. I finally ran a 5K under 22 minutes!!! Well, sort of. I paused the sensor a couple of times to stop, walk, and catch my breath. I'll eventually get there! Usually these times are with me pushing Caleb in the stroller, but the faster times are on the treadmill....no hills and I have to run fast otherwise I'll fall flat on my face. Hopefully, I'll be able to run a 5K under 22 in a race someday.

Putting me on a schedule

So I have a new system. It's worked for 6 days but it's easy to get behind. It's a system to keep me organized. I've planned the days I'll grocery shop, clean, pay bills, update this blog, even download pictures. So far I'm on schedule. The only glitch is when I work I don't feel like doing anything but vegging on the couch the next day. That's understandable, though, right? I mean I get 1-2 hours of sleep in a 32 hour period when I work so I'm not gonna give myself a hard time for slacking off on those days. That's why I've initiated a "catch up" day. Yeah, I know, we'll see how long this last. My goal is to update the blog at least on Fridays. I'm sure I'll hear from my mom if I don't. She still tries to keep me in line. This actually depends hugely on how long nap time goes for. My time today is almost up. Oh no. I still have several other things to do on my list.

Caleb and I went to the gym this morning. He loves going to play with other kids and is so excited to get inside. He is equally excited when I come to pick him up, too. He tells all the workers "Bye!" while waving to them. And he makes sure they all hear him tell them bye. He is too cute. He saw three young guys walking and said "Hi" and waved his little hand at them. They didn't acknowledge him. So he kept on "Hi! Hi!". They never said Hi back. It made me sad for him because he doesn't understand someone not speaking back to him. It made me mad that they would be so rude. I heard one of them say after we passed them "that little boy was saying hi to you and you didn't tell him hi!". Well, yes, that was very rude, but he could have spoken to him, too. I was very irritated with those guys. I wanted to tell them "hey, he is talking to you!!!" but I let it go. Next time I think I'm gonna grab their ear and pull their face down to my son's level and make them speak. Just kidding.

Visit from The Leggs, Caleb crawl out of crib, Poll

We had another busy, fun-filled weekend. Our good friends Heather and Jeremy and their little boy, Jayden, came to visit. Jayden is just a couple of months younger than Caleb. Oh, they were so cute playing together. Heather and I got out and left the boys with the dads and got a pedicure and massage and did a little shopping. It was so fun getting to hang out with them and having a girls day with Heather! We have some pretty awesome footage of Heather and Jeremy playing the Wii that we will post on youtube later pending whether they send the required ransom money or not.

Oh, yeah, Caleb climbed out of the crib Thursday. He had been to mothers day out and I'm not really sure that he really naps there. Jason tried putting him down for a nap when he got home. I think Jason rocked Caleb a little and put him in his crib. Caleb wasn't asleep and didn't want to be there so he started screaming. Jason figured he would let him cry it out and he would be so tired, he would eventually lay down and go to sleep. Jason turned on the baby monitor and got in the shower while I was getting my makeup on. I heard Caleb screaming and crying. Then he would stop. Then start again. This went on for a good 15 minutes. Then he stopped. "Good," I thought "he is finally asleep". All of a sudden I heard "Hi Mama!". I thought, wow that sounds really clear on the monit....whoa! I didn't get the thought completed before I turned around and saw him. I about jumped out of my skin because I sure wasn't expecting him to be in there with us! I told Jason it was time for a big boy bed. Jason is in denial, though. He said "we still have a least another year, don't we??". I don't know. He isn't a baby anymore :(. I've gotten advice from different folks that say to wait until he does it again and then for sure, it's time. Ooooh, sounds like a good poll question to me. I think I'll take a poll. I've been wanting to try it out.