9.21.12 I have faith, and that is all I need.

Enjoying a walk through Historical downtown Newnan with Sam and Daisy

More of Liam's schoolwork- just too cute not to share

Being silly

Do you know I'd do anything for you?

And you....and you!

And of course, you :)

The chillier nights have Morriskitty snuggling in our bed. Most mornings I wake up to a ball of fur purring next my head.

Loving Daisy's curly faux-hawk. Rocking that hair-do girlfriend!

Mine! No, Mine! No, Mine!

Playtime at the park for the birds, Parch fam taking over this place ;)

Having fun in Liams doggy tent

Helping mommy keep those tile floors clean, one crumb at a time...

We're out-doorsy kinda people

Nuss

Liam reaching for Miko, who's off to the side...I could write a caption saying something about aww how cute, Liam petting Miko...but in reality, he was trying to push her off the play set. Lol.

Oh, Chrissss.....

Scratch courtesy of Miko.  Liam loves chasing the animals around the house, this time Miko was not having it... Angel face none the less....besides- chicks dig scars ;)

We're taking over your computer

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We had a pretty laid back weekend. Went to the park,did a bunch of cooking for the babies, and Liam for the week. I am learning to make big batches of stuff and freeze the rest for later. This is especially good for making Liams GFCF foods, since they can be a bit pricey. Dont want to waste any of that gluten free, Organic, GMO free, Dairy free, Soy free goodness! Roasted a big pan of chopped up sweet potatoes, and it made me crave fall even more. the smells of brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg always do.

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Ok, so what do you do, when its been 10 MONTHS,and your little one is still taking bottles through the night and waking up 2, sometimes even 4 times a night?
LET HIM CRY IT OUT.
But, there's something about a baby crying that just gets down to your very core. Your first instinct is to stop the crying. STOP THE MADNESS!
There are even studies done on the adult response to an infant crying. For real.
I can only take so much sleep deprivation. I promise, i am not superhuman regardless of what you've heard.
We got lucky with Daisy, she has been sleeping trough the night on her own since she was about 4 months old. I practically have to wake her up most mornings and nap times since sam is always the first to rise (i try to keep them somewhat in sync).  At 6 months we let Liam start crying it out. It took almost 2 weeks but then he began to FINALLY start sleeping through the night.
I have waited almost 10 months to try this method with Sam. My reason for waiting this long? He was so tiny at birth and he's still a slender little lad. My mommy instinct is to fatten him up even if it meant feeding him through the night for the past forever months.
But. OK now. Its been almost 10 months. So yeah. I'm done.
We began last week. Bed time is pretty much always at 8pm for all 3. It was pretty rough the first few nights, letting him cry when he would wake up between 1am and 3 am. I would go in and try to tuck him back in, and if he would not be soothed i would just walk away. As rough as the first week can be, it is so worth it. It works. Its been about a week now and after those first few nights, he is no longer taking any bottles, and for the past few days he has only woken up once during the night. i go in and rock him for a few minutes and then hes back down, no problem until 7 or 8 am. Now we just need to get him to stop that one time wake up and get him on a continuous sleep pattern, and if he wakes he self soothes back to sleep.
Good thing is, even through all this "ferberize-ing" he wakes up happy. He doesn't even remember it.
We're almost there.

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Liam's first two days riding the bus and at school were great. Then i think he realized that this is going to be a permanent thing, and he bucked. Its been challenging. He began crying getting on the bus, getting off the bus, randomly crying while at school....just on and off the whole time (as reported by his teacher and bus driver). After talking to his teacher on Tuesday (rough day for Liam), i just couldn't stop thinking about the whole situation. As a mommy, i hate knowing that Liam is struggling, unhappy. I want him to thrive, enjoy school, enjoy being a kid. What if he doesn't adjust? I could pull him out and home school him, i know moms who have. (just some of the momentary panic stricken thoughts that zap through brain) But hell to the no. Because, 1- its really only been a month. 2. what would that teach him, ultimately? I mean, the reality is, he needs this. and life is not easy all the time. We will be facing challenges our whole lives. The key to growing , learning and thriving is to always try our best and forge ahead, even when it something seems impossible to achieve. I know Liam can do this. I know he can. I know it may be tough for a little while but so be it. We will only continue onward and upward.
Yesterday I was determined to make it a better day for him. I did a lot of praying (A LOT) and knew that ultimately its in the hands of God. That was the first step. But, as i believe with most things, you cant leave things up to just hope and a prayer. That's why God gave us free will. So, the second step was my method of preparing, right before the bus came. Long story short- it worked! He did not cry getting on the bus, not once and at school, his fussing was less. I look forward to the day that Liam gets excited to ride the bus to school,  go to school, etc. May take a hot minute but i have faith.
And that's all i need.

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I will be turning 33 in 5 days. I don't get freaked out about getting older, like some people do. I think its funny actually, when people lie about their age or act as if one more birthday is just oh so horrible. Ridiculous.Be grateful for your years my dears!
I welcome each year spent living, and learning. Time always has something new to teach me, about myself and life! Every year that passes I am understanding and embracing more of what makes me truly happy, learning to decipher what doesn't and doing my best to reject the bullshit off the bat. I think that's worth a few wrinkles and grey hairs :)
I feel like the older I get, the more FREE I become. There is still so much more to do :)

Love and Light, 

A