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Thursday, January 15, 2009

Talked to the MOTHER SHIP

I called and talked to Kim earlier today to find out if her plane was scheduled to leave on time today. The weather forcast for Newark New Jersey is calling for snow and 21 degrees. Kim said that the plane was scheduled to take off on time and I have not heard from her since. I assume she made it on her flight and that the plane if in route to Charlotte. She has a 3 hour layover in Charlotte then its on to Jacksonville.

I am about to wake the kids up and get ready for dance. Tonights plans are dance at 4pm, dinner following, then pick Mimi and Mommy up from the airport. Then baths and bedtime.

Day #4 Feels like 40

HAPPY Thursday!!




Well today is the 4th and final day that I will be staying at home with the girls.



Kim gave me a schedule and on the to of the Thursday schedule it said "Good Luck" this is going to be your toughest day yet.

And that it is....

The morning started out great. Pop Tart wake up call at 6:58AM from Carley, followed by the announcement over the monitor from Caroline "My Momma" at 7:05AM.

I went ahead and got out of the bed to begin my day because I realized if I did not get in the shower then there may be no chance for the rest of the day.

After breakfast and a few morning cartoons I got everyone dressed to begin our day.

Angela invited Carley over to play with her daughter Grace this morning while I took Caroline to therapy.
So I drove Carley to Grace's house and dropped her off for a two hour play date. (that is such the stay at home mom phrase: "Play date")

Caroline and I then went to Physical Therapy. I was instructed by Kim to go to the therapy office and sit in the waiting room and someone would come and get us. That is exactly what the instructions on the sheet said. So that's what I did.
I was somewhat embarrassed by the pleasant lady who sat beside me in the waiting room. She leaned over to me and said you may want to take the tags off your children's clothes before they wear them. Not having any idea what she was talking about, I lifted up Caroline's arm and there on the sleeve was a brand name sticker and that plastic wire that holds the tag on the clothes. She help me undo the tags and then said its OK I am sure it happens all the time.

That was her way of saying Dad next time look at the clothes your placing on your child so you don't look stupid in public again.
After waiting about 15 minutes in the waiting room I realized that everyone was getting called back for their therapy appointments except me and Caroline.

I then walked up to the window and the ladies at the counter said oh Hi Caroline, not even acknowledging that I was in existence. I then asked if I was supposed to sign in or something because no one had called our name. So she said yes your supposed to sign in but usually when we see Kim we go ahead and call her therapist and she comes back. Next time I will know to go to the window and allow Caroline to greet the nice ladies there and well get called back right away.
Therapy was a little rough today. Caroline cried almost the entire time. All she kept saying was DADDA, DADDA. When the therapist would hold her she cried big alligator tears and she would then hand her back to me and she would smile and say DADDA.

After therapy we were off to pick up Carley from Mrs. Angela.

We then made a few quick stops at the post office, the bank, oh and Wendy's because Carley and I wanted a frosty.

You can make those impulse type stops when your in charge....

We soon arrived home for Caroline to eat her lunch and down for a nap she goes.

Now Carley had no interest in a nap today I guess because there is so much going on. Its OK I guess because we have to leave for dance around 3:30 and we started the nap attempts at 2:15pm.
I let Carley play in the back yard and sand box for a while because she need to work off some of that energy.
See the below picture of Carley playing in the sand box and notice the nice kitchen silverware in the top of the picture. I asked Carley where she got those from and she said the kitchen drawer.

You have got to be kidding me, she was playing with our nice silverware in the sand box. If mommy saw that she would have a fit.....











Its now 2:45 and this is the first time I have had all day to sit down all day. I have to go now its time to pack the dinner bag, dance bag, unload the garbage from the car, and re-load for round #2.

Stay at home Dad Emergency Car Kit



I have created a new product that every stay at home Dad needs in his vehicle.




Its the Car Emergency Kit.

Everything I placed in this kit is function and has been tested over the last 4 day.

~Disclaimer~
"The details in this post may or may not be representative of this stay at home dad. They are to be used strictly for example purposes and assistance to all the naive stay at home dads out there who have yet to pack their emergency car kit. Just because items are shown hear does not mean that this stay at home dad forgot them or failed to pack his diaper bag properly at all times."

Items I included in my Emergency Car Kit
-5 Diapers
-underwear in case of an accident
-baby wipes are great for any type of spill
-plastic fork, spoon, knife, cup, and napkins- We ordered mandarin oranges but we didn't get a fork or spoon to eat them with.
-Capri Sun because the 4 year old gets hungry after playing hard
-Snacks cookies, fruit snacks, and cereal bars
-Hair Clips and Rubber Bands- This will be a life saver when your 4 year old pulls her bow out and you can't find it prior to school (In theory)
-Infant spoons
-Bibs
-And the most important item of all. A roll of Toilet Paper!!! (See I survived another day post)

Having all these things in your car will make life a lot easier. Saved on multiple trips home or to Publixs




Tools for your Job

I finally realized today that if your going to do this job as a stay at home Mom or Dad you have to have the proper tools.
Kim has been telling me for a while that we needed a new dryer.
I saw that for myself last night. I had to run the towels in the dryer 5 times. You have got to be kidding me. 5 Times. No wonder our electric bill has been so high. I went to Sears today and researched dryers so that when Kim gets home we can go get her a new dryer.

In order to be effective at this job you have to have the proper tools. I realized that the hard way.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Well I survived another day

Well I haven't posted on the blog all day because I have been trying to keep up with this busy schedule.

I didn't finish the post from yesterday because the day was off the charts busy. I was going stir crazy inside all day. The girls and I played all kinds of games and toys and then we needed to get out of the house. The weather forecast called for Heavy Rain...

"Lesson Learned" In the pouring down rain it is not a good idea to take your kids out to an outdoor shopping center.

We went to the town center to develop some pictures for Mommy to scrapbook when she gets home. Kim has been asking for these pictures for quite some time. I took the girls to Wolf Camera because on Tuesday and Wednesday digital prints at 6 Cents a print.

The girls were great at Wolf Camera for a minute... Then Carley had to use the bathroom.
No big deal right. WRONG~! I asked the manager if we could use the restroom and he said no problem. When we finally got all ready to go to the bathroom there was no toilet paper. Are you kidding me. I am in the bathroom tripped over 3 boxes in the stock room, drove my limo sized double stroller in the back hallway of this store and they don't have any toilet paper. Maybe there is some in a box somewhere I thought. I went back out into the front of the store and said do you have any toilet paper for the restroom. The girl looked at my funny and said were out. You can use paper towels.
GREAT!!! By now I am in panic mode.
BIG PROBLEM.
Gotta go quick because were about to have a major problem on our hands. I realized that Toy R US is just across the street and its brand new and probably has nice restrooms. So away we went. I had to put the girls back into their car seats in the pouring down rain and hustle over to the Toys R Us to get Carley to the bathroom.

We finally get to the bathroom and Carley says to me. Daddy its OK I didn't really have to go that bad. ARE YOU Kidding Me. I was about to have cardiac arrest and get the Worst Stay at home dad awarded because my child wet her pants in a retail store.

Anyways long story short the Toys R US restroom saved the day.

"Lesson Learned" Don't take it for granted that all public restrooms have toilet paper.

More about this in a later post...
"See Emergency Kit Post"

When we arrived home from the Town Center I tried my hardest to get the girls to take naps...
No success...

I ended my night by remembering that I put towels in the washing machine at 8am and did not put them in the dryer all day.
So guess what, they smelled like... Well they smelled so I had to re-wash them and put them back into the dryer.
I had to run them in the dryer 5 times, to get them completely dry. I finally got them finished at 12:15AM!!!!!!!!

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Day #2 Raining outside






Well so far Day #2 has started out pretty good.


Caroline woke me up at 7AM as she was ready for her morning bottle.
I made strawberry muffins this morning for breakfast.

It is now 11Am and I still have not had a shower and the girls are still in their pajamas.

I guess its time to start out day...






More posts to come....

A day in the life of a stay at home "DAD"

As you can see from the previous post Kim's grandpa in New Jersey passed away. So Kim and I had a tough decision to make. It was what are we going to do with the kids. Since the weather was really bad in NJ and it was a long distance to travel Kim and I decided that I would stay at home with the kids and she would fly to the funeral.
I was excited to have the girls for the week by myself.

This was the first time that I have had them during the week to myself.

Day One Recap!

7:30 am awake to Carley saying she was hungry for a pop tart and ready for me to get up. I work up and got her ready for school.

I drove Carley to school and then when I got home Kim and her Mother were ready for the airport.

10AM Caroline and I drove them to the airport.

11AM Caroline and I made a detour on our trip for a stop at Gander Mountain Outdoor Store.
She loves that store....

Then its off to pick Carley up from School.

I picked Carley up from school and then we went to the post office. The ladies in the post office were very friendly and made every accommodation possible for me with two kids at the post office. I guess they are not used to seeing a dad with his kids during the week so they felt sorry for me...

Then it was off to home for NAPS. Kim warned me that NAPS would be a problem. Caroline was tired and went right to bed. Now Carley on the other hands. She was wired up and did not want to take a NAP. So we read two books and I stayed in her room until "I" fell asleep. I was quickly awaken to a 4 year old putting her fingers in my eyes and playing with my lips.
I realized that that was not going to work. So I got out of the bed and delivered an ultimatum for Carley to go to sleep.

2:45 to 4:45 was my only free time all day. I did house keeping and tried to figure out what I was going to do for dinner.
I decided I would make something easy because this was just my first day. So I made the girls stuffed pasta shells with garlic bread. I could not think of any side items to go with this so I decided to peel some oranges to make as a side item.
I am not sure that goes together but who cares they ate it...

4:45 The girls woke up from their naps and wanted dinner. I had already started cooking dinner and let them watch Clifford for a few minutes while I put the finishing touches on dinner.

The dinner was going to take another 30 minutes so I quickly gave both of them baths, and back to the den to wait for dinner.

We had a wonderful family dinner and everyone ate their share.

After dinner Dustin and Sarah and my Aunt Blanche stopped by. So they visited with me for a while and when they left it was time for bed.

I finally got both girls in bed and now it was time to clean the house.

I spend the next 30 minutes cleaning the den and kitchen.

I guess I have taken it for granted how much Kim does around the house. I can't believe how much work it is to be a stay at home mom. I really appreciate Kim and all that she does for our family. I am exhausted and it is now 12 midnight and I am ready for bed. My day has finally ended.
How do stay at home moms work out, visit with friends, or have any time to do anything they want to do....

To all the stay at home moms out there. God bless the stay at home mom!!!!!!!!
That is harder than any office job in the world.

I am looking forward to tomorrow. DAY #2
More adventures in store I am sure......
Cameron

Saturday, January 10, 2009

My grandpa

My grandpa passed away on Friday afternoon. He lived a very long and happy life. I will be attending his funeral this Wednesday with my family. Cameron will be staying with the girls. I have many memories I hold close to my heart of summers past spent with my grandparents. I so wish I could take my little girls, but not this trip. They both were able to meet their great -grandpa and I am so glad. Caroline even has her own video of her and Pop-pop. I will miss you very much!!!!I will post pics if I can find them of grandpa each with the girls.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Orthopaedist

We went to see Dr. Loveless today. This was a follow up of her minor scoliosis diagnosis. Caroline's X-rays today showed a slight improvement from six months ago. From his perspective he does not think her spine will get worse. He also does not think she will need to be braced. So that is great news!!!! He did want to see an MRI of her spine in the future. So we can get a shot of that with her brain MRI in March or April. Just wanted to send a quick update.

Friday, January 2, 2009

Christmas,foot braces, and MORE

We had a fun time at mom and dad's in Tampa. we drove up on Christmas day and stayed through Sunday. We took the girls to the park and ate at Cameron's favor tie BBQ place. It is an old family favorite really - JIMBOS. Carley and Caroline opened lots of gifts before we left from Cameron's mom and dad and all the aunts, uncles, and cousins. Carley loves her Jeep and Cool School Computer best. She got so many new learning toys, games, and books we have not even began to play with them all. Caroline got lots of new little toys to manipulate and a nice fun Rocking horse that she can bounce on. Her favorite gifts were her Elmo that talks up a storm and her PT body blocks. We love them to exercises with. we found these signing time videos recommended by others that are wonderful!!!! She signed more to us appropriately yesterday at breakfast for more applesauce. Cameron and I did our best to get all the decor down. it took almost all day. Then we went to Starbucks while the girls napped in the car and did returns at Target. Caroline has little wheezing in her chest so we may go on to the doctor today for a check before the weekend. I am excited about our little cold blast we have today and yesterday. I actually got to wear long sleeves!!! I sure do miss the weather from NC and TN days. I have also really enjoyed connecting with friends on facebook - it is great! we want to wish all of our friends across the US a Happy New Year and many bright blessings!!!!! I will have Cam post pics of Christmas and the park soon.
PS - Caroline got her foot braces and I am excited about them. I hope they help her put more pressure on her little feet. They are so cute and little!!!! We are still waiting on her stander to be ordered. Pics of those little foot braces to follow soon!