Day 8

Well we got Hayden signed up for baseball today!!!!!  Really "blast ball" which is like tball but for 3-4yr olds.  He is technically too young but they want him to play anyways.  He is so thrilled!  He can't wait for his first practice.  


Tonight was Casen's first practice and he had a great time.  He had a lot of fun and was really happy to be back out there.  


Landon came home from school with his folder signed YET again.  5x in the 7 days of school!  So I wrote his teacher wondering what in the world was going on because this isn't like Landon at all.  His teacher called me back to talk about it and said that pretty much all the kids have been getting signed a few times and that she can tell Landon is a really good kid and he's just adjusting to her rules but she likes to enforce them from day one and she thinks that after he gets used to it he'll be great.  She said he's very smart and well behaved just keeps talking.  She also said though that most of the time he's getting in "trouble" is during math and I figured out why today.   He brought home homework, a math worksheet with about 20questions on the front and 20 on the back, he sat down and was done in about 2 minutes.  So....he's bored!  But they are reviewing from last year so I'm sure once they get into new stuff he'll be fine.  Just gotta get past these first few weeks.  I'm really glad I talked to her though because we had been grounding Landon to his room everyday he got his folder signed.  After talking to her today and realizing what it was about and how he really wasn't being "bad" we won't be doing that anymore.  If later in the year he starts getting in trouble again we will address it then.  


Today Casen left his lunchbox in his locker so luckily I had bought some extra little containers so I packed his lunch in that today.  Tonight for dinner we tried 'chicken in a crockpot' and Casen loved it and asked for LOTS in his lunch tomorrow....so here are their lunches

Chicken in a crock pot (Landon has some BBQ sauce to dip, couldn't find anything to put in Casen's 'lunchbox' to give him some so without for him)

Apple Banana Muffin

2 Carrot Snack Sticks

Cantaloupe and Strawberries

Granola Bar

Bottle of water

Day 7

School just started and both boys have already asked me to buy their lunch :(  WHAT!?  Landon said he just wanted to buy on chicken nugget day so next mission is to find a good recipe for nuggets that the breading will hold up to being in the lunchbox all morning, not get all soggy and yuck.  I think with Casen it's just the new factor.  First year in school, most kids in his class buy so he just wants to try.  I'll eventually give in and let him.  He said the biggest reason is he wanted strawberry milk so fine, that's what they get in their "water" bottles today.  Yeah, yeah I know....strawberry milk, sugar, unhealthy, etc...but I figure occasionally having stuff like that is fine, there is no reason to go fully without and make them want it even more.  


I've been cooking all night since they went to bed.  I was going to do it earlier but I got the new Shark Vac Then Steam and I got a bit carried away. If you have a lot of tile, wood flooring in your house you NEED it!  It's amazing, love it!!!!  Then I cleaned out the fridge, reorganized it and cleaned all the shelves and drawers...looks good :)  Then had to clean the rest of the house, make snacks, get the boys settled so I could jump in the shower.  Then get everyone ready to go to Casen's parent orientation (which went really well!) then home to make dinner, baths and boys in bed.  Then I've been cooking......laying in bed now typing this up about to go to sleep.  Tomorrow evening is Casen's baseball so thinking we'll do a crock pot recipe tomorrow, not so much work!  

Day 7's Lunch

Granola Bar

Apple Banana Muffins

Carrot Snack Sticks

Pretzels

Cantaloupe

Strawberry milk

Day 6

Well today starts week 2 at school!  Casen was very excited to go this morning, Landon was dead...so tired from practice last night, really didn't want to get up.  Hope they have a great week :)


First, snack plate from Friday.  Landon had practice this afternoon so I made more than usual and they were still hungry after eating it all!

PB pancakes with cream cheese and grape jelly inside

apples with PB to dip

granola balls

turkey

cheese

mash ups 

And their lunch for today.  I had to do grocery shopping yesterday then drop it off at home and take Landon to practice that started at 6pm, didn't get home until almost 8 and still needed to feed, bathe and get the kids in bed.  Bedtime is usually 8 but they didn't get in bed last night until 9.  By then I was just tired and didn't really feel like cooking for a few hours to prepare lunch stuff.  Sooo...today's lunch is pretty simple.  Today I need to cook and prepare some lunch and snack stuff.

Landon on left:

cream cheese and strawberry jam on sandwich thin

strawberries and kiwi

applesauce

for a treat kettle corn and a few blueberry pretzels

Casen on right:

PB&J

strawberries and kiwi

applesauce

kettle corn and blueberry pretzels

Both with water

Baseball Practices Have Started Back

Well fall season has started!  The boys are so excited to be playing again.  Landon's practices started back on Friday.  Casen hasn't had a practice yet but I'm sure this week.  


Landon amazed me on Friday though!  Last season was his first to ever play, he played on a team with kids that had been playing since they were like 4....they were good.  Most were also aging out of coach pitch and ready for kid pitch so they were just some awesome players.  Landon being his first year really wasn't very good.  He was a bit scared of the ball so wouldn't get out there and try and catch it, he didn't throw well and barely hit the ball.  But on Friday he got out there and was so into it.  He was into the game vs playing with the kids this time.  He was catching, fielding and throwing so well.  They even had him practicing on 1st base which he was thrilled about.  He really did a great job!  Tonight they had another practice and he played short stop and 3rd base, he did good but the sun was in his face and we forgot his hat so not as good as Friday, he is super sensitive to light so he could barely see.  But after practice he asked to stay and throw some more and he was in the shade then and was doing so much better.  Fielding REALLY well, caught a pop fly which he was thrilled about and throwing so much better.  His aim has gotten a lot better he just needs to throw a bit harder, he can't get it from 3rd over to 1st but he's doing sooooo much better than he was last season.  They practiced batting today and he didn't get a hit but he was swinging much better and harder so he'll get it soon I'm sure :)  


He is really hoping to get to play infield and some bases this season.  


Casen can't wait for his practices to start he's been so bummed about Landon having 2 and him none so far.  They've been practicing all summer he can't wait to show his coach how much he's improved too.  


The season officially starts on Sept 7th so I'm sure we will have our first game that day or that week.   The boys are going to be worn out from school and practices or games almost everyday but we are excited.  


Tomorrow starts the 2nd week of school, Casen has talked about it all weekend and can't wait to go back tomorrow :)

Back To School Blog and Twitter Party with Fed up with Lunch

Feeding my boys healthy, homemade foods is something I feel very strongly about.  I am constantly trying to improve their eating habits and have them try new foods.  I love when I come across blogs that help me with that. I hope that one day my blog will be as informative as theirs and help other moms come up with ideas for school lunches and healthy recipes to make for their kids


I found a blog today via www.anotherlunch.com called Fed up with school lunch, they are doing a Back to School Blog and Twitter party.  Go check it out!  http://fedupwithschoollunch.blogspot.com/2010/08/back-to-school-lunch-revolution-blog.html  Questions from her blog post.....

• How is “Back to School” going for your family? Great so far, we are one week in and I have to say this week was a total success.  No tears, happy and excited kids that are ready for next week
• Is school lunch important part of your child’s day? Yes, lunchtime is one of their favorites, what can I say my kids love to eat!  
• What is school lunch like at your school or your child’s school? Pretty typical I think, they do offer a fresh fruits and veggie bar each day, but the entree choices are what I remember as a kid...chicken nuggets, burritos, pizza and all the flavored milks
• Does school lunch need to be reformed? Yes!  Healthier options!  Our last school was a bit better, they had chef's salad almost everyday, baked potato bar, a lot healthier options
• Do you pack lunch for your kids and what do you pack?  Yes, I try and change it up, I've started posting their daily menu here on my blog.  Sandwiches, wraps, pastas, rice cakes, fresh fruits and veggies, homemade snacks and treats.....lots more to come as we get into the school year more.  We did fairly easy stuff this week just because it was all so chaotic getting back into the school routine
• Do you write notes in your kid’s lunches and what do you write? Yes the lunch boxes we got this year have a little white board inside so I write them a note everyday usually telling them I love them, to have a good day, etc.  I think I'm going to take from someone else I saw that answered these questions and do little facts on there too
• What are some of your favorite lunch recipes (kid-friendly or adult-friendly)? Southwest turkey wraps, granola balls, turkey pesto meatballs...I find a lot of my recipes on www.weelicious.com
• What are some great beverages for kids and adults? We mostly do water or maybe some watered down juice
• What is a traditional food item that you have made even more healthy and how did you do it? I think by making things homemade instead of relying on processed already made things it helps alot, using fresh ingredients.  We like to make homemade pizza pockets but stuff them with veggies and use pizza dough from a health food store or make our own
• How much time should kids get to eat lunch? About 25-30min
• What are some products that you use when you pack lunch? We love our lunch boxes from www.gogreenlunchbox.com  we also use camelbak water bottles that we really like

Day 5 Lunch

Can't believe tomorrow is already the end of week 1 of school for the boys.  They are absolutely loving it, but are also completely worn out and tomorrow starts baseball practice so even more tired, maybe they'll actually sleep in on Saturday.  


Today was a much better day around here, Casen finally remembered his daily folder and he's gotten stamps all week (good thing).  His teacher called today to schedule parent orientation and told me he is the sweetest kid in her class, so well behaved, polite and very smart.  Yay :)  


Here was their snack plate from today, they were still hungry after it, piggies. 

Blueberry yogurt pretzels

cheese cubes

banana

cream cheese and strawberry jam on a whole wheat tortilla

For lunches on Friday I'm going to let them fully choose what they get so here is what they chose this week

Casen's on the left and Landon's on the right

Casen: 

PB&J on honey wheat bread

strawberries kiwi and grape

blueberry yogurt pretzels

cheese cut into shapes

Revolution Foods jammy sammy (apple cinnamon oatmeal)

Bottle of water

Landon:

Southwest turkey wrap

strawberries and kiwi

blueberry yogurt pretzels

yogurt raisins

Revolution Foods jammy sammy (apple cinnamon oatmeal)

Bottle of water

Snack plate and Day 4 lunch

I've been trying to make the boys a snack plate so when they get off the bus they have something to eat because they are starving.  Here was today's, which they loved!

PB&banana quesadilla, grapes and veggie straws

They will be really excited about tomorrow's lunch because they love wraps, especially these.  We are trying something new too, the pb&j yogurt.  Hopefully they enjoy it all

Southwest turkey wrap, strawberries and yogurt raisins, veggie straws (becoming a huge favorite), PB&J yogurt, grape mashup and bottle of 1/2 water and 1/2 apple juice

Yesterday's lunch was a hit with Landon, Casen said he didn't really like the pb pancakes but he's not feeling well and hasn't been eating much so I think that has something to do with it, I will be trying again, probably during a weekend so I can encourage him to eat them more and see what he really thinks

After-School Snack Ideas

I got this in an email today and it has a lot of great ideas, I saved almost all of them.  Thought I would share in case anyone else is looking for ideas too!  I like to have a snack plate ready for the boys when they get home so this will really help change it up

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes-and-cooking/50-quick-snack-recipes/pictures/index.html?nl=EATS_082510_P2_Snacks

Day 3 Lunch box

Well I totally forgot to get a picture of yesterday's lunch, was in a hurry and just slipped my mind.  Hopefully I'll be able to keep this up.  I love finding blogs with people posting pics of their kids lunches and new recipe ideas, helps me give the boys more variety.  I've had a lot of people lately asking me for ideas so thought putting up what I'm doing and the recipes might help others too :)


I'm really big on the boys eating healthy though as you'll see they do get some treats and not everything is the healthiest, but we try.  

Here is today's lunch:

PB pancake sammys (one with grape jelly and the other with strawberry jam)

Grapes

Chewy Granola Balls

Sunshine Carrots

Mash Up

Bottle of water

I'll add recipes when I get them from another site (weelicious is a favorite) otherwise feel free to ask for the recipe and I'll post it :)

First day of school

Today went great!!!!!  They had wonderful days and can't wait to go back tomorrow!  


I got up about 6:50 and got my clothes and came out to the living room to get dressed and a few min later Landon and Casen walked in, woke up on their own, big smiles on their faces.  They went and got dressed while asking about 1000 questions and running around like crazy while I tried to finish up their lunches and make them breakfast.  I made them eggs and waffles for breakfast, yum!  They ate and by then we were running late, got shoes on in a hurry and ran out the door.  Got to the school and luckily lots of people were running late.  I walked Landon to his class first and took a pic real quick outside his room, didn't come out good :(  But I tried to give him a kiss and he turned his cheek for me to kiss there then took off into his classroom...getting too big I guess.  Sad!  


I then walked Casen down to his classroom, he was getting nervous but still very excited.  We walked in and he put his backpack and blanket away in his locker and then gave me kisses and sat in his seat.  I snapped a few pics then left fighting back tears.  But he didn't cry, he did really well!  Came back home with Hayden and we told Daddy bye.  We hung out all morning, played trains, watched some tv, danced.  Then got really tired and took an early nap.  When we got up he hadn't peed again, 3rd day no peeing in his diaper at nap or bedtime!!!  WTG Hayden!  Then he helped me make turkey pesto meatballs for our lunch.  We ate and hung out some more, the day was going by really slowly, couldn't wait for the boys to get home to find out how their day went.  Mark showed up about 3:15 because he wanted to see them get off the bus on their first day, awww good Daddy :)  They didn't get home until almost 4 though!  We all walked out to meet them and got lots of hugs and tons of stories from the day.  


Here are some pics from today

Landon outside his classroom

Casen outside his classroom

Hayden ready for the day at home with Mommy

Waiting on the boys bus

Maggie excited to see them too

First day of school= TOTAL SUCCESS!!!!!

Now I'm off to bed, lunches are done (pics to come tomorrow) and everything is laid out and prepared, hopefully tomorrow morning goes a little smoother

Weekend before first day of school

Can't believe that in just a few short hours I'll be sending TWO of my babies off to school!!!  We had a really busy weekend trying to prepare for it.  Saturday we went to Costco and then met Gail for lunch, came home and realized we should have left the boys with her overnight so we could get the house all organized and clean for them.  So called her and she said she'd keep them so drove back out to meet her to drop them off lol.  Then went and saw Heather for a bit, talked to friends, it was nice.  Came home and watched some tv and went to bed :)  Got to sleep in which was great!!!  Then we got up and cleaned out and organized Hayden's room, set it up for him and moved him back in there, rearranged the boys' rooms and got them all organized.  Went and picked up my babies and took them for haircuts and to Sprouts then home for baths and bed.  They are soooo excited for school tomorrow!  They were worn out from the day outside with Grandma and fell asleep as soon as they hit the pillow.  


I've been planning for weeks the boys school lunches, I'm really excited about their new lunch boxes and all the HEALTHY meals I'll be able to pack in them.  So after they went to bed I packed their lunch, baked breakfast cupcakes for them and now I'm sitting here being sad :(  


Here is their first school lunch, missing the breakfast cupcake that I'll add in the morning after cooking off the pasta

Cheese filled fish shaped pasta, veggie straws and frog shaped piece of cheese, apples and grapes, blueberry yogurt pretzels and a bottle of water :)  


Their lunch boxes are great and have a small whiteboard on the inside of the lunch bag so I wrote them a note on it and they are now in the fridge waiting for the morning!  




I really hope they have a wonderful first day, can't wait to hear about it

Meet the teacher night

Been so busy the past few days I haven't had time to update about the boys Meet the Teacher night.  They had it on Thursday.  


First, we went into the gym and picked up the boys school supplies we had ordered...OMG so much easier this way, def doing this every year we can lol.  Then found out what teachers they had and went to see their classrooms.  


We went to Landon's room first and met his teacher.  She seems very nice and he really loved his classroom.  We labeled his supplies and left that with her.  Talked for a few minutes then went to find Casen's classroom.  Luckily it's right down the same hall, maybe 50ft from Landon's.  His teacher seemed really really nice too, very bubbly too, great for kindergarten. He found his seat right away and was in heaven.  This child has been ready for kindergarten for 2yrs, he's so smart.  She had him right at the front of the class, perfect place for him, always wanting to learn.  He found his locker and checked out the rest of the room.  He is so excited.  We talked to his teacher about his OCD and anxiety issues and she said it was fine for him to bring his puppy for the first week or 2 in his backpack for comfort...which is great for him, help him calm down if needed.  


But it went great, I think they will have a wonderful year!

Happy birthday Grandpa!

Today is my Grandpa's birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!  Hope you have a wonderful birthday Granpda!  We love you so much and miss you tons.  I hope we can see you again soon.  He's only been able to meet my kids once, when my Dad passed away, but the instantly loved him, he's an amazing man!  


Hayden with Grandpa...orb in the pic too.  There were MANY pics I took this week that had orbs in them, I almost always snap 2 pics right in a row just to insure one is good, and one would have it and one it would be gone.  I like to think my Granny or Daddy was there with him <3

Casen and Landon with Grandpa

Happy birthday Grandpa!  We love you tons!

Cloth diaper week

Come check out all the great giveaways on this blog!'




http://www.couponmommyof3.com/2010/08/day-3-of-cloth-diaper-week-part-2.html




Right now she has giveaways for Apple Cheeks diapers, Doopsy, Soft Bums, Bummis and many  more!!!!  Enter for your chance to win!!!

Win an adjustable Balboa Sling!

Want a chance to win an adjustable Balboa sling?  Check out this mama's awesome blog!!


http://mamato3blessings.blogspot.com/2010/08/balboa-baby-adjustable-sling-review.html


These slings are great because unlike most pouch type slings you can adjust to fit your size instead of having to buy a bigger or smaller size when your weight changes.  


I'd love love love one of these our next baby!  I had a normal pouch sling for Hayden and it just never fit me right but he loved it and I love to babywear!

Potty Training Hayden

Well we are potty training Hayden....it's about time!  Haha


This is day 6 and he's doing pretty good so far.  We started out on the first day using a timer, i set it for 30min and had him go every time it went off.  Did the same the next day.  Day 2 he only had one pee accident all day.  Then day 3 I did it without timer all day and again only one accident.  Then this weekend he had like 2 accidents a day, I think he was just too busy with Daddy being home he kept forgetting.  But we are getting there!!!!! 


He even went out for a few hours both Saturday and Sunday in underwear with no accidents!


We are having some #2 issues which is strange because he's been able to do that for months, not every time but quite a bit and since really starting potty training he hasn't made it fully in the potty for it.  Hopefully this week goes better though :)

No more milk

No more milk for Mr. Hayden.  When he was a baby he couldn't tolerate me drinking milk, he would break out, act very fussy, seemed to be in pain and had some yucky diapers.  He did seem to do fine when I had very small amounts of cheese or milk cooked into foods, but anything more than that he couldn't tolerate.  We had him tested for allergies right over a year old and it showed none so we know he isn't actually allergic to milk but his body just can't process it.  Our pediatrician recommended trying him on it every few months to see if he outgrew it.  It seemed like at about 16mo he did.  But also since about then-18mo he's been a handfull.  I've talked a little before about some of the things he does.  He just does.not.listen.  He is into everything.  Like a toddler times 1000.  He is also very aggressive.  


Well I have read many times that certain foods like milk, wheat, dyes in foods, etc can cause issues in kids.  Their bodies can't process them and it becomes almost like a toxin to them.  With Hayden's past issues with milk we thought it would be worth trying to cut it out to see how he did.  So last time he had milk was Thurs.  We cut out all drinking milk, none in cereals, no ice cream, no yogurt but we are allowing some cheese and it cooked into things, just small amounts.  He is now having only rice milk.  And the difference in this child is amazing!  


He was at Dessa's on Sat and Sun at naptime we were still over there but on Friday and today he napped 3hrs, with no fight going down.  Normally it takes at least and hour to get him down, up to 3hrs, and he almost never sleeps longer than 1.5hrs.  He also hadn't been fighting bedtime until tonight, but even then it wasn't like he normally does, I think he was upset that Mark wasn't home yet.  


His behavior has improved dramatically too.  He listened all day long, isn't being aggressive.  It used to be like at any minute he would flip and be really mad, he seemed like he was sad/mad most of the time.  But now he's back to being happy.  You can talk to him, explain why he can't do something, whereas before he would just get really mad very quick.  


The difference is amazing.  I have a whole new child!  Definitely thinking it was the milk, which makes me feel pretty bad about giving it to him all this time then getting really frustrated when he was misbehaving but at least we now know and can prevent it.  


We'll see how he's doing in a week or so and see if the changes are still there :)

Night away from home

The boys are spending the night with Aunt Dessa tonight.  First night away in....I don't even know how long!  I think Hayden's only stayed the night away 1-2x, I know once on Thanksgiving night so we could do Black Friday shopping..that might be the only time, otherwise one more time since then.  I miss my babies :(  Landon and Casen almost never stay away either...same amount of times since Hayden was born.  But I know they are having fun so it's ok.  


Dessa has been keeping me up to date all night :)  Mark and I went to dinner at Babe's Chicken House...YUM!!!!  It was really good.  The boys called to tell me goodnight, Dessa said Casen had been telling her he was sleepy for awhile, I think really he just wanted to call and talk to mommy.  First I talked to Hayden then Landon got on the phone and he immediately asked where Daddy was, told me he missed and loved me but wanted to talk to him lol.  So gave the phone to Mark and he talked to him, then Casen got on the phone and immediately asked where I was.  Typical of them lol.  


When getting ready to go today the boys packed their backpacks up with toys so I was going through it to figure out what they should really take and add clothes and noticed Casen didn't have his puppy.  For those who don't know Casen's puppy has super powers, it keeps bad dreams away and calms him when he gets upset.  Casen has some anxiety issues when he's out of routine or somewhere he isn't used to.  Lots of hand washing, or other repeated things like that...very OCD.  He's been fine lately but I think that's because he has been home, no new changes or anything.  ANYWAYS....puppy wasn't in his bag.  So I told him to go get him, he keeps him on his bed at all times, went back there all excited and 10sec later he's in tears, screaming, crying, heavy breathing, totally freaking out!  Puppy was missing.  Not in his place.  It was seriously like a flip of a switch, fine, then total panic attack.  But we found the puppy and he was ok.  I was putting him in his backpack and Casen said "I hope I don't cry tonight, I always cry when I'm not with you for long" :(  But he's been ok so far she says.  He told her that without her hair she looks like me, we have the same face, he says. :)


Landon is having a blast, he misses us, but he's ok.  He told her she has awesome plates and the best apartment ever lol.  


She told Hayden the rule for Aunt Dessa's house was he had to use the potty, she doesn't want to deal with cloth, but that's all he wears.  So far he hasn't peed in his diaper and has been going in the potty :)  Be great if she sent him back potty trained lol.  I was planning on working with him as soon as the boys started school...he's too distracted at home.  


Last I heard, at 11:30, they were having a pillow fight with Chris lol.  She's gonna wear them out and they'll just pass out soon, surely by now they are asleep.......


Hope they sleep well, missing my babies <3