Sugar the enemy...

So we are supposed to get some more bad weather tomorrow. I hope the weather reports are wrong. I don't mind snow, but the ice is really horrible. We still have ice that is about 4-5 inches deep by our cars. This really sucks when I have to take the kids to the car. I am always afraid that I am going to fall, so I leave the house much less. This is bad for a number of reasons. First, I get cabin fever really bad. Second, so does Sophia and she will drive me nuts.

Speaking of Sophia, I called the pediatrician this week regarding her bouts with hyperactivity. She is too young to really have ADHD or anything (or at least be diagnosed with it), but I am so worried that she will eventually be labeled as so. I will refuse to give her medication for this, so I want to get some coping tasks early. I told the doctor that we feel that Sophia has always had high energy issues, but it seems more pronounced now that we have an additional child. She gets so keyed up that she will literally just walk around in circles looking for something to get into. When agitated, she is not able to focus on what we are telling her, so this makes it hard for us to stop the cycle. We have also noticed more and more that she is unable to concentrate on things such as; coloring, looking at books (on her own) and potty training. Some days I just want to cry.

I would think that all of this behavior was the result of having a new sibling, but as I said this has been going on for some time and in some ways we have seen some improvements in her behavior since Nicholas arrived. I try very hard to not make her feel like she is second when I am caring for Nicholas. Bob is very good about helping with both kids, so this helps. Sophia is very bright. She was speaking in complete sentences by a year and a half, so we also wonder if maybe she is not being mentally challenged enough. I get so frustrated sometimes and feel helpless thinking that I am a terrible mom, because I can't figure out what makes her tick. It is very hard to be patient, sometimes. I also get concerned that as Nicholas gets older, it will be harder for me to handle them both.

So basically the pediatrician's office said that hyperactivity would need to be dealt with by the metal health professionals that my insurance company uses. The office had the doctor call me back just to go over things with him. First he said that we need to try to cut back on the sugars in her diet and then he gave us some mental exercises to do to try to help her focus better. He asked that we try this for awhile and if we see no results to call him back.

We started cutting back on the sugars already. I really think that she is like a sugar junkie. She kept on sneaking into the kitchen taking things like Froot Loops and those fruit gummy snacks. Thankfully, we caught her each time she attempted. We are also going to try to use a more "Whole Food" approach to the food in the house. I don't think it is going to be fun, but if it will help Sophia then I am all for it. We are not really sure how sugar became so important, but for now we are viewing it like the enemy. We also started the mental exercises that he suggested and it seems to work to a certain degree. So now we just have to make sure that we stick with the things we are putting in place.

So that is what we are up to for right now. I hope that you are all well and ice free.

Still recovering...

I am still recovering from the Christening. I am happy to report that all went fairly well. My mother, as expected, did not show up. This was truly a blessing in disguise, because I did not have to deal with explaining her weirdisms. I was glad to have many friends and family from Bob's side there. Nicholas looked and acted like an angel. Sophia looked angelic, but acted otherwise. I attribute this to being three years old.

The reception after the Christening went very well. The food was great and I think people had fun catching up with each other. I put together a box of craft items for the kids and they had a ball coloring and making Valentines. I also put in paper bags for them to decorate and had each child pay me a visit before they left, so that I could give them a couple of handfuls of candy to take home. I was happy to see that every kid left with a smile on their face.

So right now it is snowing and sleeting and freezing rain is expected to follow later. We should have over 1/2 inch of ice by morning. I expect that Bob will be working from home tomorrow. This will be a nice Valentines gift for us all, but we could do without the ice.

I will put some pictures of the Christening here for you to see. I hope you enjoy them.



This is Sophia before the Christening, sorry it is so light.

Nicholas getting wet. This is me holding him, his Godmother (and Sophia's) to my left while Bob and Sophia look on.

Nicholas during the ceremony with Mommy and Daddy.

Nicholas' cake, too bad he couldn't have any, it was yummy!

Sophia with some new magic marker marks on her chin (washable) enjoying a piece of cake.

I will have to see if we have any other photos that I can post, but in the meantime, have a wonderful Valentines day!

Stinkin' Doodle Doll...

If you have access to a little girl you might be familiar with a toy called a Doodle Doll. Sophia has two. They are a doll that you can write on with special markers that when you are finished doodling on them, they get thrown in the washer to be cleaned. Seems like a good idea, huh???

As my few readers know, Nicholas is being Christened this Saturday. It is a fairly big to do with in excess of 80 people coming. Sophia has a beautiful new dress that we purchased at Macy's. Keep in mind that the dress is sleeveless.

Tonight around midnight Sophia woke up calling for me. I was busy with a task for the Christening, so Bob went up to help her. Next thing I know, he brings her down to me so that I can see what she has done to herself. Apparently, she found both a purple and hot pink Sharpie and went to town on herself as if she were a Doodle Doll. She in fact told Bob that it would come off, like a Doodle Doll. I almost cried.

I am here to tell you that Sharpies don't say they are permanent for nothing. I scrubbed and it was still there. I can hide the belly, back and legs, but the arms are another story. I am just hoping that I can get her to take a long bath tomorrow and it will come off.

I know that I will look back on this and laugh. Even now I can see the humor in the situation. I particularly loved how she was able to get marker on her back. She also paid special attention to her belly button area (she now sports a very dark purple belly button). She was sad, because I got so mad and then I felt bad. After her bath I made sure to hug her and tell her that I loved her, because I do, despite the Sharpie.

Oh well, just another day with a crazy preschooler. If you got little kids around, make sure that they can't get to the permanent markers. Learn from my mistakes, please!

Take care and stay warm!

Yuck!

What is up this winter??? I was sick last week with a cold and I am not happy to report that I caught Bob's damn stomach virus yesterday. I have not thrown up (other than when it was liquor induced) since I was 13 or 14 and I made up for lost time last night. There is nothing more vile than to puke! Today I am having some other stomach issues. YUCK! I have only eaten four crackers since yesterday afternoon and the only thing that seems not to bother my stomach is a coke! I also have this lingering headache. I tried Tylenol and when that did not work, I ended up taking a Motrin 800 and that mostly got rid of it, but it is still hanging on just a bit.

So please have a nice big rich meal on me. Make sure that it is good and tell me about it. Hopefully, I will feel better by the Superbowl. We are having all kinds of Mexican food, which are some of my favorite foods. Unfortunately, they don't go well with a stomach virus.

I hope that you are all doing better than me right now!