How was everyone's weekend?

We had a BBQ at my Mom's last night. It was a nice, relaxing day.

Lily is starting to specifically ask for "boobie milk" throughout the day, so I'm thinking weaning her is going to get more and more difficult as times goes on. I may have to start now to save some heartache later on!


Jack has started "school time" while Lily naps, where he and DH color or practice writing letters and numbers for 30 minutes at the kitchen table. He loves it, even though every letter he writes is backwards! I don't think I should be worried about that, right? In case we do preschool in the fall (not sure yet) I want him to get used to sitting for a period of time and doing an activity directed by an adult, and he's doing well so far. I fingure there isn't much "work" involved in preschool, but just in case they have anything structured I want him to be prepared.

I have to start paying my student loans back in May! I owe $65K, though that may not include grad school. I have to look into this website to see if any of my loans were sold to other lenders or if that figure is everythng I owe for undergrad and grad school. That means I have to find a job this summer instead of my teacher summer off! I'm hoping the day camp my Mom works for will hire me, too!

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Best of luck paying off those student loans Amy. I was so relieved when we finally finished paying off Dh's. For the longest time, we just paid what we had to and then we finally got smart and put everything into it and paid it off. If we hadn't done that we'd still have a loan I'm sure.

Re: Jack, you don't need to worry about letters being backwards at all. If Jack is still reversing the ever so common b/d, p/q and some others consistently in late 1st, early 2nd, then you can worry, but not until.

I don't want to wean Tyler. I thought I'd be finishing up around now, but I just am not ready. He only nurses about three times a day--breakfast, lunch and dinner so it's not a big deal and he drinks milk from his sippy just fine, it's just me. Weaning him will be a sure sign he's not a baby anymore and I am just not there yet.

Still cleaning over here...we're getting there. I'm so proud of Dh...He's really gotten into the purge. He hangs on to everything and he's finally been willing to let some random stuff go. He has a tendency to hold onto things because some day, way, way off in the future, we might need it. I think he's finally realized that if that time ever comes either the thing will be so out of date, we won't use it, or we'll just support the economy and buy another one.

Speaking of which...any fun plans for the govt. rebates? We need to buy a new computer. I'm thinking maybe a laptop. Mine is so outdated! We went to buy a new all in one printer etc. this weekend and it wasn't compatible with my dinosaur computer so we had to wait. A computer's not a bad d way to spend the money, but I wish we we're going on vacation instead!

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Andy

Hello! We had an ok weekend. Too much to do and not enough time to relax. (For me anyway, dh got to play on his computer all weekend!) Phoebe turned 10 months this past Saturday! Time is flying by! But I have to say, she is so much fun! She really enjoys playing, especially with Natalie and Katie. They can really get her laughing hard.

Amy~ I wouldn't worry about Jack's backwards letters either. Katie was doing that sometimes at the beginning of this school year. And she's in 2nd grade! I have about 46K in student loans left to pay. I really wish I didn't but that's the price of education these days.

Andy~ After your done cleaning and purging from your house, you wanna come over and do mine!!! I still have things in boxes from 2001! Dh asked me why I don't just get rid of the stuff in the boxes since they haven't been opened in years. Some of them have things I would actually like to use or put out, but since we've moved 6 times in 7 years, I'm going to wait until we actually buy instead of rent.

I (more than likely) won't be getting any money from the government rebates. I used that calculator on the IRS website and since I had to claim a loss this year, it said I wasn't eligible. If I don't need the money with a huge loss from the business, then who does! So we'll see if we get anything. IF we do get some money then I think I'm going to have to use part for rent and put some in savings for a much needed vacation.

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Amy - That's about how much I owe from law school too. We pay about $300/month. I think that gets me paid off in 20 years? We couldn't afford more than that, but once I start working, then we'll bump it up a bit. I hope yours isn't too difficult for you to manage. I also agree on what everyone says about letter reversal. We still get some confusion w/ S.

Carrie - That's a bummer about not getting any $. I think we'll get close to the max. It will really help, as we had big expenses while on our mini-leave.

Andy - Isn't weaning bittersweet? I had a really long-term nurser and a shorter-term nurser, and it was a little sad/hard each time. Raphael shows no sign of weaning, but he only nurses to sleep and at night.

Our weekend was just spent catching up from our trip and finishing up Pesach. I got mastitis just before we left - the first time in nearly 6 years of nursing. I'm trying to remember to take the antibiotics, which is really hard for me.

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Kate
hcg @ 12 dpo 95.4, Progesterone 18
@ 17 dpo 960.6
@ 26 dpo 28,970.8
Heartrate @ 33 dpo (6w5d) 130

Beansie's EDD: May 12 (arrived May 10)
Lucky Clover's EDD: July 2 (arrived July 3)
Little Boo's EDD: January 25 (arrived January 31)
Heartrate @ 8w3d 174

Student loans, ughhhhhh. I am so glad mine are paid off!! I did AmeriCorps the year after grad school and that helped pay for some. Good luck finding a FUN summer job, Amy. Summer camp doesn't sound too bad! Also, Amy congrats on passing your portfolio!!! Will you take part in the graduation ceremony in May or just get your diploma and run?

Carrie, how has the reception been with your new store format? Are you getting any feedback? Good, I hope!

Andy, we need to get back to having a downsized house. That is awesome you got your dh on board!! My dh is a packrat. I wish he'd do a little purging. I can't wait for the consignment sale this weekend to pass on all this baby stuff. All I have left to price are Bryce's 3-12 months stuff and a few big items like the travel swing. I keep finding more things and keep looking for more things to sell and give away. Our govt. rebate will go towards our plumbing work. Now that the weather is finally warming up (I HOPE!!) we can get back to that mess.

Speaking of Bryce, his birthday went really well!! Saturday was the nicest day we've had in weeks, perfect for a party at the park. I can put up a few photos later. He is still teething hard, something coming in on the lower left. He feels around there with his tongue and keeps chewing his fingers and sleeping poorly. Hurry up, teeth!!!

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Kate, so sorry about the mastitis!! I have a golf ball sized plugged duct that formed overnight, the first in 12 months!! I hope I can clear it soon, have a heat pack in my bra right now. Sucks!

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WTG, Andy, on getting organized! What a good feeling that must be!!!!

Melissa, I'm SO glad the weather was nice for Bryce's bday! That can make such a difference in how an event goes!

Ugh, Amy. I hope you are able to pay them down quickly. My parents made me save half my income from my early babysitting days through working summers in high school and put it toward college. At the time, I was ticked about it but now I'm sooo glad, because between their help and the saved money, I didn't have to take anything out. Of course, I didn't go to grad school either! Yeek! Hang in there!!

We went out to my in-laws' lake house this weekend. The weather was in the low 50s at best and my crazy husband was wakeboarding. He just loves the sport. It is fun to watch him, and the boys LOVED being on the boat again. I stayed inside with Max.

Max will be one month old on Friday! He's still a dream baby, and it's the first time that I've had a baby and not been so looking forward to having them grow up. Maybe it's b/c it's possibly my last...jury's still out on that one.

My sister found out she's having a girl!

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Mel

John & Melissa (Married July 2001)

Hello ladies!

We had a great weekend. I had a day away on Sat (with Truitt). We went to my mom's house and had a scrapbook party. I made quite a bit of money and got rid of a bunch of inventory that had been sitting on my shelves for quite sometime. While we were gone dh and Keegan worked out in the yard. It is looking very nice.

Sunday, after church, we went and bought some plants and vegetables for the garden as well as new patio furniture. We also got our hot tub cleaned and fixed this last week. Our yard is looking great. I can't wait for the weather to get nicer so we can spend more time out there.

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Angela

Mommy to Keegan Jude & Truitt James

ladies!

Amy - Good luck w/ weaning. I hope it goes well. How fun for Jack to "play" school.
Andy - How fortunate to get DH on board. Mark me as having a pack rat too. Much to our Presidents disappointment we're going to save some of our rebate and catch up on some bills. It's so fun being responsible w/ money *rolls eyes*
Carrie - I love it when Carsen laughs hard. It's priceless, isn't it? I hope you get something back as a rebate.
Kate - Sorry about the mastisis. I hope it goes away quickly. Don't forget to eat some yogurt if you go antibiotics
Melissa - I love the new siggy. He's such a cutie!! I'm glad he had a great party. Come on teeth!!!
Mel - How crazy that your DH was out on the water. How fun to get away w/ the whole family.
Angela - Congrats on getting rid of inventory. Does that keep you busy or is it just a side job here and there?

I held my first House Party which featured Hershey Bliss chocolate! YUM I had 7 or so girlfriends over to sample 3 kinds of Bliss (6 bags supplied by Hershey!) w/ wine pairings, appetizers and Johnny Depp (movie, Chocolat). Everyone had a blast. THEN on Sunday, we had my mother's surprise birthday party. FUN fun fun! We had a pinata for her.

I need to post pics of my garden. I made a new bed by the pond, our tomato plants are growing and so are the banana peppers and herb garden! I'm growing about 4 different kinds of toms.

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Melissa ~ So far we've had a great reception for the new concept at the store. We're still trying to get more artists in but there is a huge arts and craft fair this weekend. I'm planning on going and passing out my business cards to anything I think looks good. My dh is still working on the website, but he's already gotten some pictures of the new stuff on there. Park Place Gifts

Kate ~ Sorry to hear about the mastasis. I was lucky enough never to have anything like that, but I also only bf for 4 months.

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Melissa, I'm going to the ceremony. I couldn't go through all the juggling for the past 3 years and not walk the stage!

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Well, then, Amy, I look forward to seeing pics of you in your cap and gown with your family.

Carrie, I checked out the website and what is there so far looks good! I hope you find a bunch of new artists at the craft fair. I remember you said the farmer's market is right across from your shop, also.

Not good news here. Yesterday MIL called to say she was having angioplasty this morning. She was having what she thought was acid reflux pains but went to the dr. to be safe. They ran an EKG and it was abnormal. She thought at worst they would place a stent today. Instead they found that 5 of her arteries are almost fully blocked and she needs immediate bypass surgery. She is lucky she went in when she did. You might remember my BIL was in rehab for alcoholism a couple months ago. I am really hoping this doesn't set him back. Dh said BIL is really shaken up, reminds him of when their dad died (though that was from lung cancer, very rapidly). Anyway, if you could spare some prayers or good thoughts, I'd appreciate it.

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I'll be praying Melissa.

Cute stuff Carrie. Can I suggest brighter colors for the background? Just a thought. I love eye candy.

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Prayers for your MIL Melissa!

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Yea, the cleaning has been a good thing. Dh usually isn't on board, but he has been this time around, so I am taking advantage of it! Now if I could just clear a path in the garage so I could start tagging stuff, it would be perfect.

Oh Melissa! How fortunate that they discovered your MIL's condition in time, but what a frightening thing to go through nonetheless. I hope your family is able to go through it peacefully.

Amy, good for you for walking. Neither Dh or I did. We should have though. I like those master's robes a lot!

Jaime, seriously, are you going to send a pic of Cole anytime soon? How is he doing anyway? How are you doing? Adjusting to the lack of sleep OK?

Mel, has it really been a month already? Geez! Glad to hear he is still a dream baby. I hear you on not wanting them to grow up. It's why I'm still happily nursing Ty. Just not ready to let that go...

Candes, what a fun party! I really need to entertain more. I really do enjoy it, we just don't make the time. We have friends over for dinner, but I'd love to throw a party that doesn't involve a jumpy house. I actually took a bunch of wine/grape decorations from my aunt's house so I could throw a blind wine tasting party. I think it would make a perfect hot summer evening shindig.

Sara, how's E? Still super fussy and clingy? have you found anything that works? Hang in there!

Off to get a pedicure. Yippee!

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Andy

I think we'll use our rebates to fence in the back yard (only one side isn't fenced in) and to build a small wraparound deck in the back yard. I've been looking everywhere every day for a wooden swingset with slide and fort and NOBODY has them in stock. I call 4 Toys R Us stores and 3 Walmarts nearby every other day, and they're still out! All the other stores in our area charge way too much for the sets, so I have to be content to wait it out. I do check craigslist every few hours though, in case anyone is trying to unload a set!

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Amy have you ck'd Home Depot? That's where DH bought Tucker's swing set.



DH put his name in for a drawing at work, play off tickets to see the Spurs (beat) vs. the Suns. He and I were IMing about who we could get to babysit or who he could take. HE is always lucky when it comes to winning tickets on the radio, so it was funny that he was planning on who he'd call and I kept saying "well, you have to win the tickets first" but we both knew he probably would. NO SURPRISE he calls me later to tell me he won. "WHY am I NOT surprised?" I laughed when he told me. He took our neighbor Bill. It was a great game. I was so happy for the both of them.

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Hello.

Things have been better. I actually pushed the sippy with water and it seemed to help. I never did to formula. I think he was just thirsty and coming to me for liquid. He can still be clingy but things are little better. He still wakes up at night so that is hard. I had a scare because friday I locked myself out of the house and the kids in the car. I called dh freaking out but he is like 25 mins away. Thankfully it was not hot and I was able to couch alex on getting out of his carseat. 5 more mins and I would have broken the window because the baby was sweating alot.

I am in the process of looking for a playscape for our back yard. They are so $$. Especially when you factor in the mulch and barrier for it.

Candes is your home depot one a disney brand. I am seriously looking at those. I am also thinking of this rainbow one that they sell at costco that is suppose to be really good but it is still so $$. I don't know what to do.

oh here is a pic of E. sorry it is so big it is from my blog

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Andy, thank you for asking about me.

Sorry I've been such a negligent poster! You're right... I totally stink because I haven't posted a pic of Cole (or his birth story!). I promise, I will. I swear. I think I'm doing a 1000% better than I did after having Braiden. I haven't had any signs/symptoms of PPD and to be honest, I had no idea a person could mentally/emotionally feel so good after having a baby. I'm so so so thankful that I've had an easier time overall with this baby. The lack of sleep has even been easier to deal with. To be honest, it's the hardest in the morning (7:30 a.m. or so) when I just want to sleep in but I have a baby looking to eat and a three year old boy who's climbed into my bed bombarding me with questions, demanding milk and treating em like a jungle gym.

Braiden has been doing well. He seems to love his brother, but at first seemed angry at me for having a baby. He would often act out against me and that was really hard to deal with. In general, it seems to have gotten better, but we still have our moments.

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Jaime...Mom to Braiden


Born 2/2/2005
4 lb. 13 oz
17 3/4 inches long

We have a Rainbow one and it is so well worth the $$$!!!! You can even add on to them, if you wanted. We got ours with green accents. The guys put it together in about 1.5 hours. There was a HUGE sale on them when we got ours, which included free delivery and installation. We could not pass it up. We put lawn fabric under the mulch to help stop grass and weeds coming thru. Also tilled and compacted down the area before anything got started.

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Rachel
Proud Mother of 2 Boys and a Girl
Isaac David born February 24th, 2004
Carson Eli born January 18th, 2006
Kianna Rachelle born May 25th, 2008







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