paci fairy continued...

Okay, so Days 1 and 2 were perfect in terms of no crying or meltdowns, minimal asking about the "blue pass," just waaaaay better then I ever could've expected.

Days 3 and 4 for naptime were perfect, but at bedtime C began to stall, ask for "1 more book, no 2 more books, 3 more books." I was waiting for the Count to jump out of the closet and say, "ah, ah, ah!" After ALL books were done and prayers were said, she would scream bloody murder, jump up and down enough so the bed would move, and just cause utter chaos. We took turns going in and calming down and eventually she fell asleep.

Day 5 comes and she talks Cappy into laying down with her...sucker! ;) So all is "fine" with nap time that day. Again, bedtime is a disaster.

Day 6 - Day 8 we get the craziness at BOTH naptime and bedtime. I hated, hated disciplining. I hated raising my voice. I hated feeling like a failure because my once easy going child has turned into a difficult child when it comes to sleeping. And I also hated when the screaming fits woke Molly up, shook the house, and frazzled me so much that I just didn't know what to do anymore.

I kept wondering, did we do the right thing? Should we have kept the paci a bit longer? Is this even due to the paci? I pulled out every parenting book I have, scoured the internet, asked friends, and it seemed as though regardless of how small or severe these fits are, most toddlers go through this. Reading and hearing this doesn't make it any easier (especially during a screaming fit), but I was just holding out that "this too shall pass."

Day 9: We decided that after we give hugs, kisses and "I love your", we just have to walk out. It was becoming too much of a power struggle of lay down, when I count to 3, okay 1 more time. Now it's just we love, we'll see you in the morning/after nap time, and leave. At nap time she cried for 2-3 minutes, and at bedtime not even a full 2 minutes.

Day 10: At nap time and at bedtime she cried until I reached the top of the stairs (6 steps from her bedroom door). *This is how Day 11 went as well, so hopefully we are past the meltdowns...for now. 

So there is hope for! This past week (Days 3-9) was brutal. I swore I'd done the wrong thing, and gone were the days of easy nap times and bedtimes, but I just stayed consistent, got a few extra pep talks from my friend Erin, and we seem to have broken through! PTL! {Please remind me of all of this at our next crossroads!}

In other news, here a couple of pictures from our weekend!

Caroline can't stand still these days, so I got a moving shot from Doc's 2nd birthday party

MG was there too, chillin' in the stroller!


And enjoying her exersaucer!

paci fairy - day 1 and 2

I've gotten emails and tweets asking how the paci fairy went, I want to tell our whole story, because I want to help others who may be nervous about giving up the pacifier. So, with that said, I'm going to do 2 parts -- Days 1 & 2 and Days 3 - Now

Over the past couple of weeks, DP and I have been discussing when the appropriate/best time to take away C's paci would be. I mean let's be real, is there ever an easy time? We knew we had to give her some time after Molly joined our family, and she's ONLY allowed to have it when she's in her crib (nap time and bedtime). If she's not sleeping, she doesn't have it. One exception, a long car ride. I'm not talking Atlanta to Athens. More like Atlanta to the beach.

So for our traveling days to and from HHI, we allowed her to have the paci in the car, it kept her calm and relatively quiet, but we both noticed that she wanted it more and more during the day at the beach. While the trip home was fine, no major meltdowns, she fell asleep as we were literally turning on to our street. I tried as best I could to keep her up but to no avail (Mommy Fail!), and then once we were home, that was it. No nap, just fussy Caroline. And with fussy Caroline comes the constant, "blue pass, blue pass" (yes, she still has her blue soothie pacifier from when she came home for the hospital). After an entire afternoon of the fussies, we decided tonight was the night. I figured she was so exhausted that maybe she'd just pass out without realizing they were gone, or cry, then pass out. I got on twitter and pleaded for ideas STAT! After getting the same answer over and over, we decided to try the Paci Fairy.

Here's the gist: (and I know everyone has their own way, there's even a pacifairy.com that has a book, letter, etc, but I need to get this done ASAP so I had to improvise a bit. :) )
Put the pacis in a bag, write a letter to the fairy, leave them for her to come and get at night, she leaves a surprise treat in the morning.

Here's how the Parker's roll...get on the computer, write a quick letter to the paci fairy from C telling Miss PF that she's a big girl now, pacis are for babies and please take her's to babies that need them (used pacis - yuck!), explain to C that she REALLY is a big girl, not a baby like Molly and that it's time for her "blue pass" to go bye bye, Mommy runs up the driveway, shoves a bag of M&Ms and "George Snacks" (Publix Curious George Fruit Snacks) in the mailbox, hands C the bag of pacis and letter to put in the mailbox herself. And what do you know?! There's a treat bag in there!! We do a quick exchange, blow kisses, and proceed to gobble down all the "M-uh-Ms" and George Snacks before we can think about what we've done! Phew!!

So bathtime rolls around, jammie time, book time, and no mention of the pacifier. After prayers, we put her in the bed, told her how brave and wonderful she was, that we loved her and we'd see her in the morning (thanks Moms on Call ;)). She asked once, "blue pass?" to which we responded, you gave them away, you're a big girl now. She nodded and went to sleep. What?! Seriously, no tears, no nothing. Night 1 was a success.

Sunday morning rolls around, and Daniel and I, fully expecting to have a terrible night of night-wakings, were shocked that she hadn't budged all night. When her Mr. Sun light came on, signifying it was time to get up, we both bust in there doing the happy dance! Woo Hoo, what a big girl! So we told her after church we'd take her to target to get a special toy for being so brave! And you know what she said, "Blue Pass Outside"...uh, no the fairy took it.

Church comes and goes, we went to Target and she picked out some great toys. Then came nap time, which I'll be honest I was dreading. I figured she would realize what had been done and have a total meltdown. To my dismay, no meltdown, just a simple "Blue Pass Outside?" "Yes, Care we took them out yesterday and have them to the Paci Fairy, you're a brave girl now." "Okay Daddy"... uh, breaks my heart. But she took a fabulous nap, and we went through the same conversation at bedtime, and same outcome...she slept great! I was shocked, still am, but day 3 is where it gets fun! Ha!

So Day 3 to present is where I'll pick up for my next post. For now though, here are the pictures from our Target Adventure!

Her new/old obsession, Cars! So many choices!

After much debate, she settled on a talking "Whitening Queen" and Mater

Our big girl! She wouldn't pose, so these were all I could get.

And the kicker...a video! Kachow Daddy! 

mmm....rice cereal!

Yep, we've started Rice Cereal! Aren't you jealous?! I mean, who doesn't want rice cereal raspberried into their face and on their clothes! I forgot the mess that it can cause, but boy does this little girl love her some yummy rice cereal! Can't wait to share the video of her first bite of peas! Ha!

Gimme that rice cereal Mommy! {Notice the clean face}

And the mess begins...

"What's with that camera in my face, I'm trying to eat here!"

"We're not really done, are we?"

"Oh I want more!!"

is that a plank in your eye?

"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, "Let me take the speck out of your eye," when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." Matthew 7: 3-5

I'm going out on a limb today...I wouldn't normally blog about something so serious, I mean wouldn't you just rather see giggling babies and laughing toddlers, but I feel compelled to share this message with you. 

On Sunday, our pastor Andy Stanley, started a new series entitled "Recovery Road". We have so many things going wrong in our country and government these days and instead of dealing with our own "demons" and issues per-se, we would rather call our congressman, yell at the guys on CNN and Fox News, and tell everyone we know "I could do better." We're all guilty of this in some way or another, but that's not where I'm going with this. You can listen to Andy talk about that aspect of the message, he said it far better then I could ever even try.

What I do want to talk about is how Matthew 7: 3-5 pertains to the everyday aspects of our lives. Are there parts of our personal life that are in need of a recovery road? I read lots of mom blogs and have lots of mom friends and there is, as I know so many of you know, a battle going on. Who can mother better? Who's kid is more well behaved? Who has the better life in general? Working Moms vs Stay at Home Moms? The list goes on and on, but really it could all stop if we all just "take the plank out of our own eyes" rather then be worried about everyone else's "speck of dust."

I hate hearing of moms that are bashed and kicked down because other moms don't like what they have to say or disagree with an issue that frankly is none of their concern. I get it, blogs are out there for people to read and comment on, but there's a real person behind that post. A person that is trying their hardest to raise Godly, well rounded children, in this scary world. At the end of the day, isn't that what we are all trying to accomplish? My only guess is that they are attempting to make themselves feel better by pointing out everyone else's flaws. If they were to look in the mirror and change themselves first though, they would see clearly...maybe that "perfect" mom is struggling, maybe everyday isn't a piece of cake; you just can't see it because you're blinded by the log in your own eye.

I've got to work on prying the plank out of my own eye as well, but I'm willing to admit there is one and to start trying to get it out...

Recovery Road Part 1

What I'm Loving Right Now

With a toddler and a new-ish baby, I feel like I'm always buying new things or trying out new products. Having never had a toddler, everything is new to me {what toys they like, clothes, foods/snacks, etc} and I swear none of the products I bought when Caroline was a baby are still on the market! I feel like all of my items are ancient; there are so many new and innovative products available now! I went to help my sister in law register the other day and I'm not going to lie, I had to do some research on what's popular and great these days! Luckily I have a few friends that just had their first babies, and they so graciously shared their lists with me/us. :)

So, while registering and perusing the internet/doing my research I have come across some items that our household (mainly me) just recently discovered and now love and I want to share these with you!


Dapple -- Baby Friendly Dishsoap
Oh my gosh, this is my favorite new item! Are your bottles murky/cloudy looking? Have you noticed that the bottle nipples aren't clear anymore? This will change all of that! It's actually quite gross once you realize how clean they should be. We will be buying stock in this company (ha, just kidding), but seriously it's great!
(Image courtesy of dapplebaby.com)


NoseFrida -- Nasal Aspirator
I won't tell you what it's really called, because it will make you run the other way. I know it's gross, but as my other sister in law said, "When you're a mom, 'gross' is a relative term." She is so right, and when you have an infant who can't breathe because they don't know how to blow their nose, they are up all night snorting and crying because they can't breathe, and they are just plain miserable, you'll try anything. We had the blue hospital bulb {it became nasty}, then I bought the battery operated Graco nasal aspirator {that worked for a little bit}, and then I became desperate and was told by our ped that I had to go buy this. Done. It works, you get over the grossness after a couple of times, and best of all...your baby can breathe!
(Image courtesy of nosefrida.com)



Brookstone Tranquil Moments Baby Sound Machine
After two and a half years, Caroline's Marpac white noise sound machine started to bite the dust. When it runs for 1-2 naps each day and 12 hours every night, I guess it'll do a number of the "engine" of the machine. The air just started blowing slower and slower and was a lot quieter, so thanks to my friend Ashley, I heard about this one! It's great! It has 6 different sounds, although we stick to the white noise, and has a sleep enhancer...aka, it gets quieter after an hour or so once you're asleep to help "induce and promote good sleep." I don't really know if that works, but I do know that it's loud so crying babies won't wake sleeping babies! I also got it for 20% off!
(Image courtesy of brookstone.com)


Tommee Tippee Truly Spill-Proof Cup for Toddlers
We have these in Pink and Purple (of course), and they are the BEST! We've been through every cup you could possibly try...seriously, every.single.type. These are the ONLY ones that not only stand up to the "spill-proof" promise, but they are easy to put together! Love them! When M starts playing around with sippy cups in a few months, we'll be going straight to the TT level 1 cups! Side Note: I also love their spoons!
(Image courtesy of amazon.com)


Ok kids, that's all I have for now. I'm sure I could list a whole lot more, but I can't give away all of my secrets in one post! What fun would that be? ;)

I will say that I have a few more of my favorites at my Amazon Store though! Check them out!

Hilton Head 2011

We just returned from our third family trip to Hilton Head! Although there were lots of loved ones missing (Claudia and Family, Christine and John...hint, hint!), this may have been my favorite trip so far! I think it was because this was the first summer that Caroline was able to really, really enjoy the beach and pool and we were able to have fun with her. Plus, we had Molly {last summer I was so, so sick from the pregnancy} and my mom was able to join us for a few days. Hopefully next summer all the cousins will be together though and we'll have a real great time!

There are just way too many pictures to share in one post, so I'm trying to just share my very favorites. I think I'll just post a slide show of all of them in a later post so those that wish to look through the all can!

I hate that there aren't too many of Molly, but when you take 3 naps a day and it's 1000 degrees outside, it's hard to take a ton. We did put her in her bath sling in the pool a couple of evenings in between eating, napping, and eating again. We also have some from our night at The Crazy Crab and Harbourtown. Other then that, it's Caroline, Caroline, and more Caroline!...I think she likes it that way though. :)

If only Molly were looking...

MG's make-shift raft/seat. She seemed to enjoy it!

Would've loved to have Molly in this shot, but she was napping (shocker)!

Caught a little smile!

The girls and their g'mas (Cappy and Nana)

Love this girl

In case you didn't know, we're professional photogs! ;)

Molly is 4 Months!

What Molly's Been Up To:

*Weighs 16lbs 1oz putting her in the 90-95th percentile (Caroline weighed 14.5 pounds at 4 months and around 16 at 5 months).
*Her length is 25 3/4 inches, again the 90-95th percentile (Caroline was 25 inches at 4 months). Guess both girls have Daniel's tall gene!

*Wearing Size 2 diapers during the day and 4 overnights at night. (C wears 4s during the day and 5s at night now)

*She's wearing 3-6 and 6 month clothes
*If everything is normal (no teething, cold, playing, chatting, rolling over, wetting through our diaper) she will sleep 7p-7a.

*She is turning over from back to belly. The second you put her down, she's flipping over.
*Due to her turning over, she is now sleeping in sleep sacks. We like the Swaddle Designs and Aden and Anais ones. I found her face down crying into the mattress a couple of times, so I knew our swaddling days were over.
*She will sleep on her belly at night if she rolls over in her sleep, but as she begins to wake up in the am, she realizes she's on her tummy and will fuss or chat until I come get her at 7.
*Unswaddling her arms has proven to be harder then with Caroline, who wanted her arms out from the get go. Molly is sleeping great at night unswaddled, but naps are hard b/c when she turns over, she wakes up and cries. 

*She's giggling more and more. She has a belly laugh that will bring you to your knees, it's so adorable!

*Molly and Caroline like to have chat sessions where they see who can get the loudest. This is especially fun in the car or when I'm on the phone.

*She wants to sit up badly. Every time I have her angled on my legs or in the bouncy, she immediately pulls her head up as if to say, I want up! She is sitting in her bumbo on a regular basis now.

*She still enjoys tummy time, and Caroline enjoys it with her.
*Eats every 4 hours. Usually 7, 11, 3, 7-730 and takes 8-8.5oz per feeding. Her biggest feeding is in the morning usually.
*We have started eating a little rice cereal at night after her "supper" bottle before her catnap around 5. (Pics to come)

*Not only has she begun teething and cut ONE tooth as I recently blogged about, but she has now cut her second one as well!
*She'll easily beat you in a stare down contest and then smile when you look away!

*Molly is just an all around easy baby and has been the perfect addition to our family! I'm loving her little personality!

I know Caroline looks bigger in their comparison shots but I think it was just the distance that I took the pictures at b/c there is NO WAY I could put Molly in the 3 month onesie again. Someone may have turned me in for child abuse for being that cruel. ;) It was a stretch last month, I wasn't going to try it again. Instead, I went for a sure bet, the 6 month outfit that fits her perfectly!

And as you can see, I've been blessed with smiley babies! Love them!

Playdate with The Abs!

The girls and I went to visit our friends the Abernathy's {Ashley, Doc, and Mac} on Wednesday. It had been a while since we had gotten the kids together. Doc turns 2 this month and Mac is a month older then Molly so they are all right around the same age. 

I think Caroline and Doc proceeded to get out and play with every. single. toy. that they have in their house. It didn't matter if it was in a cabinet, container, or shelf, it was coming out to play with them! The littlest ones slept most of the time, although with all the yelling and noise from Caroline and Doc I'm not sure how. And I loved getting some Mommy time with Ashley in, it's always great to catch up! 

We had a great time, and can't wait to see them again soon...at Doc's birthday party in a few weeks! :) 

The littlest ones! Do you believe me when I say Molly is a month younger then Mac? Molly's a bit on the chunky side! ;)

I love how they are both looking at their Mommies! Ashley trying to get Mac to smile and me talking to Molly.

All four of the kiddos together, again each pair looking at their own Mommy. 

Oh So Close!

Molly has become quite the cirque de soleil performer....bending in all types of directions, trying to roll over! She's almost got it! That one arm of her's just won't move. ;)

These performances are especially entertaining at 430am when everyone but her is trying to sleep. We are trying one arm out of the swaddle for now. Both arms was a complete disaster (up every hour due to hitting herself in the face with her flailing arms), but when both are in, she rolls onto her belly and cries face down into her mattress...a mom's worst nightmare.

So anyway, I'm hoping she tires quickly of these middle of the night antics and remembers soon that we sleep when we're in our crib, play when we're out. I was really enjoying my 7p-7a nights!!

Here's a video I caught of her trying to roll, I swear she says "Uh-huh" when I ask her a question!

Can you bend like this? All the Pure Barre in the world wouldn't make me this flexible.