not so much

as soon as I posted the post about naps Ellie started crying (1 1/2 hours after putting her down for bed). After 5 minutes I went in there and she reached for me. I picked her up thinking she had a bad dream and sat down with her on the futon (which is in her room). She immediately wanted to "talk" and read more books. I turned the light on a bit and decided to "re-do" bedtime. It was then that I saw all her stuffed animals were in a pile outside of her bed as well as her pillow and blanket. We read a few books, I sang her a few songs and walked out of the room. Now she's screaming for us again.

I think I'll send Chris in next.

nap update

so Ellie is doing much better with her naps or should I say I am doing better at dealing w/ her when she doesn't want to nap! Thank you to every one who gave me advice. I may still need more in the future! She still has a hard time on some days - she will just cry and cry and cry. As a matter of fact the last 3 nights (tonight excluded) we put her to bed at 8:30 and she fussed for 2 1/2 hours before finally falling asleep. Every time we went in there she just wanted to play or talk. There was nothing wrong! It's so hard to know what to do as a parent in those situations.

But I may try the chamomile tea sometime. If anything it will calm ME down at night!

Mamanisita

I love the Mamanisita blog. Not only do they have great giveaways but they also have great reviews on toys. Including a Holiday Toy List. Check 'em out - and while you are at it scroll down to the bottom of the page and enter some of their giveaways as well!

the kids

Chris put Ellie down for sleep tonight and I put Josiah to bed. We came out of their respective rooms (J sleeps in our room still) and gave each other high fives. We went back in 40 minutes later to calm two screaming children back down :) Josiah had just rolled over to his tummy and needed his paci so I had a relatively easy job getting him situated. Elizabeth wanted to "talk". She watched to talk about "mao" (kitty), annie, doggy and all the other stuffed animals she goes to bed with.

giveaway spree!

It's been awhile since I've blogged about a giveaway. I've entered only a few the last few months and today I went on a "giveaway spree". I found one that I really liked . . . a "KISS MY FACE GIVEAWAY". They have a new kids line and I would LOVE to win!! They don't use any artificial colors, unncecessary chemicals, or animal ingredients (this is a good thing)!

Check out the giveaway for yourself and YOU could enter for a chance to win!

my photoshoot

A couple of weeks ago I did a photoshoot with Josiah for Earth Mama Angel Baby. We went to Lori Dorman Photography in Glendale and she took some pics that they wanted done and then some pics of Josiah & I together. Check out her BLOG and see if you can figure out which cutie is Josiah. She'll be emailing me all the pics that she took so I can purchase some for myself. It was fun - even if Josiah peed ALL over me at one point.

running errands

Today I ran some errands on my own . . . did I mention I was by myself? It was amazing. A friend came over to babysit Ellie and told me she'd watch Josiah too. I was nearly speechless! I left her w/ some freshly pumped milk and took off. It was amazing. I got to Babies R Us, where I had an exchange to make, turned to grab my purse and realized I brought my diaper bag with me. I laughed and was glad that the diaper bag is the one Jenna, from Sweet Baby Creations, had made. It's stylish and could pass for a big bag, unless you looked inside it and saw the diapers inside (check out a pic of it HERE)! I grabbed my bag and took off toward the store . . . when I realized I left the item I wanted to return in the car. Oops. I think I'm more "on top" of things when I have the kids w/ me . . . I don't really know what to do with myself when they aren't there! After Babies R Us, I went to Trader Joes and was surprised at how quickly I could get through the store! I finished my errands in 45 minutes . . . then came home and started dinner.

Which, by the way, was yummy. I had leftovers for Chris and I but made Ellie "Creamy Potato Soup" from Jessica Seinfelds "Deceptively Delicious" cookbook. Ellie LOVES this soup - and it's one of the only ways I can get her to eat potatoes. It has cauliflower and carrots (or you can put butternut squash) mixed in. I froze it in two batches for the future. It's great to have on an, "I'm not feeling good" kind of day!