Children's Museum

On Saturday, the fam and I had the pleasure of tagging along with my mom and my sister's kids to the Imagine Children's Museum in Everett for a fun day outing. I've never heard of this place before, but I'm so glad that my eyes have been opened because this place is AWESOME! Jayden (and even Jaxson!) had an absolute blast and there's tons to do. It's relatively inexpensive compared to some other outings that you could have as a family--- for like $22 we all got into the museum and we were there for hours! I'm sure that if we had let him that Jayden would love to stay there all day long and play with the trains, water, slides, and "flight control tower". :) Here are some pictures from our day.

First, when we started for the day, we stopped off at the Italian cafe where my niece, Shayna, greeted us as the hostess and even acted as the chef too!

Then we stopped at the Wildlife Clinic, but as you can tell Jayden wanted to stop being caged by Daddy's clutches so he could free roam like the wild animal he is.

I posed for a picture with Jaxson in front of the treehouse (which oddly enough you can't see in this picture). He loved being toted around in his brand new carrier... and let me tell you that this thing is an absolute godsend for the both of us!! He gets to be held nonstop as he likes and I can still snuggle with him while having my hands free (and be "ergonomically correct" since back pain sucks)!! Meanwhile, Trevan and McKenna were up inside the treehouse playing the "telephone game" with Shayna down below.

After that excursion, we stopped at the bank where my mom helped the kids "print" their own "benjamins" (that's a $100 bill for those of you who don't know), Jayden and Daddy played "Connect Four" with the dollars and coins and Jax and I posed with a picture of George Washington made completely out of coins. Trevan even helped out at the drive-up teller window (you could actually see cars pass through from outside as if they were driving up) and we found the "World of Treasures" hidden inside the secret treasure vault.

Next, my sister's gang and my mom went downstairs to create their own St. Patty's Day artwork in the Art Studio while Jayden found the theater.

If he doesn't sign up with the NBA or become a football player, he might just have a chance at being a stand-up comedian. Well, we thought he was pretty funny anyway and he seemed to laugh at our amusement... Who knew that running around and falling on a stage could be so much fun?

After washing up, McKenna and Shayna joined us at the theater in their almost-matching outfits.

It was all over once Jayden found...the trains. Yes, this kid could be occupied for hours alone just by trains. I think he'd die and go to Heaven if we ever had an exhibit of trains as large as they did. We had to wrestle him away after a half hour just so he could see the rest of the museum. He was captivated by the motorized train and everytime it came by him he's squeal all giddily, "Look Mama! Look Daddy! TRAIN!!". Oh how the smallest things can provide the most entertainment. :)

Next to the train exhibit was the plane. He knows all about any kind of transportation so this, too, was up his alley. He liked to "fly" the plane, but his favorite thing of all was the "flight control tower". You take these ping pong balls and put them into a vacuum tube (like the ones at a bank or drive-thru pharmacy) and it sucks them up into these 4 different tubes that criss-cross across the ceiling above the plane exhibit, then they fly across the room to this ramp that dumps them into a wooden box for the kids to start again. I wish I had gotten a picture of how many balls Jayden managed to carry over to his tube. I'm surprised there were any left for the other kids...

After that we stopped at the "H2O Headquarters" which was appropriately housed by a structure resembling a Washington State Ferry. Jayden loved playing with the fishies and ducks, splashing, squirting, and pushing on levers to make things spin and produce bubbles. As I've said before, bathtime is a favorite in the Andresen household and both boys take to water as well as a fish does. Even Jaxson got in on the action...and that kid is a splasher! Good thing they have aprons!! :)

The kids all gathered around in the Fire Station to slide down the slides, try on some hats, and take a picture with a very creepy, totally kid-unfriendly fireman (or at least I thought he was creepy...).

We even stopped at the farm where Jayden and Jaxson both took a turn on the tractor...and they both absolutely LOVED it! Jayden loves all things with wheels so this wasn't surprising.

And although Jayden had absolutely no interest whatsoever in the pony, Jaxson had a blast in the saddle.

Then Jayden drove a bus with Daddy before we headed up to the rooftop exhibit...

...where we all froze our butts off while the kids went down the slides, crawled through tunnels, played on the musical instruments, and Jayden attempted to uncover dinosaur fossils for like 5 seconds until some unruly grade schooler snatched the shovel he was using right out of his hand (and of course the stupid parents didn't even discipline their child even though I told the kid that he was being rude and that my son was using the shovel first). I mean, seriously, what kind of kid does crap like take a plastic shovel from a 2 year old when he's playing with it without asking? Oh yeah... the kind that gets away with everything because their parents have never heard of the word discipline. Luckily Jayden wasn't too brokenhearted and went back to playing on the slides, but I wouldn't have felt bad at all had he turned around and socked that kid and said "No, mine!". Ok, maybe I'd be slightly mortified and I might have disciplined him in public, but inside I'd be secretly laughing and feeling pretty dang proud that my kid stood up for himself (You go, Jayden...). But that didn't happen, so....

Lastly, we ended the day with Daddy and Jaxson riding in a Jeep before we walked out of the museum and back to our real cars for a bite to eat at Red Robin.

Had I not been so starving, I might have stopped to take some pictures of us at the restaurant, but really there's not much exciting about watching a bunch of people eat. The food was good, Jaxson's incessant screaming annoyed the people next to us, and I'm pretty sure that Jayden drank the restaurant's complete stock of chocolate milk while we were there. And then I had to change a very poopy diaper in the passenger seat of our car courtesy of our 2 year old... but I'm sure you really wanted to know that, right?

And no, I definitely didn't take a picture of that. It would have given you nightmares.

Jayden & Jaxson

Jaxson has hit two new milestones since my last post: as of Tuesday, March 9th, Jaxson has officially taken his FIRST STEPS!! I have yet to actually get a picture or video of it but hopefully I will soon. He's not full-fledged walking yet, but he's really close. And last Friday (March 12th) his first two "one year molars" came in. My baby is growing up!

Something regarding Jayden... we had him checked at the doctor today for diabetes and things look good so far. When he was born they did a test on him to see if he was a genetic carrier of the type of diabetes you are born with. Both Jayden and Jaxson's tests were negative for it but we were concerned that he might have it because he drinks excessive amounts of fluid. Within a two hour period he'd had 3 full glasses of milk and a full cup each of diluted orange juice and Powerade. He's an active kid and doesn't show any of the potential markers for diabetes other than his excessive thirst, but we still wanted to make sure he didn't have any other deficiencies. The doctors are having us do a urinalysis which should be interesting as we can barely get Jayden to pee in the toilet let alone a cup...

Oh, and speaking of deficiencies: I just found out that I have a Vitamin D deficiency so I have to take a large "booster" supplement once a week for 8 weeks, get my bloodwork done again, and then take a daily supplement after that. Fun...

Anyway, I just wanted to share a few recent pictures of my boys. They just light up my life... :)

Eleven Months

Look at those beautiful blue eyes and that toothy smile (hidden behind his beloved binky, of course)! How can you not love it? It's so hard for me to believe that my little boy is approaching his FIRST birthday!! Wow! Today marks Jaxson's 11 month "birthday". It's crazy to me to think it's been almost a year to the day that he was brought into this world. My, how fast it's flown... He has been such a joy in our family. Even though I complain about the lack of sleep or that he wants me to hold him all the time, I feel so lucky to be his "mama". I love the time that we snuggle with each other, and I truly do cherish it knowing that someday he's going to be "too big" or it will be "uncool" to be a Mommy's Boy (and I'm secretly hoping that he'll be one of those boys who isn't afraid to give his mom some sugar in front of his teenage guy friends...). I also love seeing him with his big brother...those two are already connected on a level that I cannot even begin to understand. It's like they can read each other's minds just by looking at each other.

The brotherly love I see emanating from those two astounds me and fills my heart with such a bright and beaming happiness. They are brothers. They are best friends. And they make each other laugh like no one's business...by doing absolutely nothing. Oh, and how much I love their laughter. Especially Jaxson's. I don't even know how to describe it, but it's such a deep laughter from his gut, but he's got that high pitched baby voice still. He's the cutest little "baby giggler". Jayden's laugh was much different: he always had a deeper and raspier voice even as a baby. Jaxson's is just loud, boisterous, and contagious.

In addition to his big brother, my wonderful second-born has made my world a happier and brighter place. Even though we hadn't planned on having him so soon, I'm so glad that God knew better than I did and brought him to my life. God's plan is WAY better than my own. I cannot imagine my life without my little "Tinky Linky". He's just precious beyond words.

And how much he's grown!! He is so smart just like his big brother! Here are some of the things going on in the world of Jaxson lately:

• He's cutting his first two "one year molars". That will make for a grand total of 10 teeth once they come in!! Oh, and the more to bite you with (and bite he will!)...


• Besides his first word of "mama", he surprised us just yesterday with his second "official" word, which we even got on camera!! What is that word?? Hot. Kind of an odd second word, but I was pulling pizza out of the oven last night and I said, "Watch out! It's hot!". Then Jaxson looks at me and goes, "awt!". :) So sweet!


• He's so close to walking, but he's still too hesitant. He stands perfectly well on his own and has good balance, but he's just a scaredy cat to actually take those steps. We're watching for those steps like hawks... :)


• He can climb (yes, CLIMB) up onto his big brother's bed all by himself! Getting down is another thing entirely, but he loves to get up on the bed and wrestle with his brother or play with his cars and trains.


• He's now on cow's milk. We switched him over to whole milk this week in hopes it will help him to gain weight as he's still on the small side. I'm not even sure he's reached 20 pounds yet. Since he has no dairy allergies so far, it doesn't seem to be a problem. With Jayden we waited up until his first birthday, but Jaxson's doing excellent. And I can only imagine that whole milk tastes better than formula...


• He loves baths and playing basketball with his brother. They may have different personalities, but those two love all the same things. Definitely brothers...
  
• Jaxson had his first night of sleeping through the night on February 28th!!! Too bad it only lasted 3 nights in a row, but it's progress... I'll take anything I can get!

And last, but not least: Jaxson's 11 month stats!

Weight: 19 lbs. 8 oz. (10-25%)

Height: 29.75 in. (50-75%)

Head circumference: 17.5 in. (25-50%)

Jax is going to be built just like his dad I think: tall and skinny, but with a small head apparently (Daddy has a bigger head and so does Jayden). His head hasn't grown in like 5 months! I'm sure that's all normal but don't tell Daddy... he'll just worry that it's not growing because of the CT scan he had back on Halloween!

Happy 11 months, Jaxson! One more to ONE! :)

Mommy loves you!

Oh, and on a side note completely unrelated... we got our $5800 tax return today!! Nothing like coming to work on a beautiful sunny day with a huge check in your bank account and paying off over $3500 worth of bills! Our TV is paid off, as are ALL of our medical bills, and one of my student loans! By next year we will be able to pay off both of our credit cards and my remaining student loan...wahoo! Today is a GREAT day!! Happy Friday!

Random Pictures

I just wanted to share some random pictures of me and the kids over the last week or so. It has been a long time since I'd taken pictures and I feel like a bad mom. I got some pretty cute ones, but I'm convinced that my kids take good pictures because they are so darned cute!

Please excuse the puffy eyebrow on Jayden. I picked him up from daycare where I was notified that he decided to spin around the room like a crazy kid and bashed his face on the corner of the coffee table. Tough kid... I asked him if his "owwie" hurt and he said no.

LOL. Daddy told him to make a "funny face". :) (Notice Jaxson standing all by himself in the background??)

Look at that big bump! Looks like he got in a toddler brawl, haha!

Me and my favorite boys! Jayden said he wanted a picture with his mommy...

Me snuggling with our poor sick baby. Ah...I love him. :)

I can never get enough of his cute, cheesy, big-toothed grin!

Apparently that grape was really sour... :)

My Little Monkey

So I captured this sweet little moment on video the other day and I had to share it with all of you. A little background on this... Jayden goes to daycare and twice a week they go to preschool and have "circle time"; they read stories, and sing and dance to music. At home we have a playmat for Jaxson that has a stuffed toy monkey. Jayden picked it up and brought it to me and said "monkey" and then started humming the "No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed" nursery rhyme song. My natural curiosity got the best of me and so I started singing the song to him to which he started "dancing" and bobbing his head. When we got to the last line, Jayden surprised me by belting it out himself! I had no idea that he even knew the song until then so he must have learned it at daycare. It was hilarious! And I, of course, praised him and told him how smart he was...and he is such a smart kiddo for his age.

So now it has become the new "thing" around our house as we can never get enough of him doing it. I was finally able to get it on video on my digital camera and upload it to YouTube. I'm really new to all of this YouTube stuff and I apologize in advance because the video is sideways...and I have absolutely no idea how to fix it. If you can get past the sideways-ness (yes, it's not technically a word...oh well) of it for 30 seconds, please feel free to take a look at my biggest little monkey here.

...oh and if any of you are YouTube gurus or know how I can get the video to be not so sideways, let me know!! I feel so illiterate!

Mom Meltdown

This past Sunday was coined "Mom Meltdown Day" by me. Not only did I have one of my own, but so did my mom and my mother-in-law. Must have been something in the water.

While I worry about my mother-in-law in some ways, she's got a way of bouncing back pretty quickly. But she has my husband and our family...and she knows that. She's told us on numerous occasions that she's so grateful to have us and we've been her saving grace. I called her today to check on her and she said she's doing much better today. Like everyone (and boy do I know because I've been there!!) she just has some days where she's just sad. And for no reason. But you know what? That's totally okay. I've had those days where I'm just inexplicably in a funk.

However, my mom is a completely different story. To be honest, I don't know what to do. I had a lengthy conversation with her yesterday and I worry about her a lot, but I just feel like I'm at a crossroads. I want to help her, but I don't know how and I hate that I don't have the answers. Part of me feels like I need to "save" her, but then on the other hand I know that I don't have control over her life and so that makes me feel like maybe I should just forget about it and focus on my life since I know that I can at least make changes to something I "own", you know? So what do you do? I'm a Christian woman. I'm not perfect by all means and am by definition a sinner, but I have accepted Christ into my life and recognize him as my Saviour. I believe He died on the cross for my sins and I've devoted my life to following Him. I'm not "old school". I don't tote around my Bible singing hymns and reciting scripture by heart, although I do believe in His word whole-heartedly. I'm very open-minded. I'm acceptant of same-sex partnerships, I'm not racist, I don't measure Christians by any indicators of their faith, I don't discriminate against others who don't share my faith, etc... but I do have a natural desire to help others open their minds to God. Trust me, you won't see me forcing church down your throat... I just talk from my personal experiences and extend an open invitation. I'm not a pushy person by any means (which explains why I always was so horrible in my retail jobs... I hate sales & retail!).

How does this relate to my mom, do you ask? Well, to understand it a little more fully, here's my mom's story. She's in her early fifties (not that she looks like it at all) and has been divorced for the last 3 years. She's desperate (and I do mean DESPERATE) to have a man in her life. I understand the desire... and I know she wants to grow old with someone. But she's wasting time and money on these dumb dating sites to meet guys who are never going to meet her expectations or be with her for the right reasons. I've done dating sites in my past and they are crap. Every single one. They are only an excuse designed to rip you off with promises of finding your "perfect match" but setting you up with other desperate singles who can't sustain a relationship because they are lazy, have a shady past, can't otherwise find a date for whatever reason, or just want to get some ass. Not saying that this is typical of all people on dating sites but for the majority... it's true. And so my mom has been disappointed. She's upset and miserable because she still doesn't have a man and it's been years. This has made her depressed and frankly she's just become a different person. Between not having a stable relationship and watching family and pets die, she's becoming very emotionally unstable and I'm frightened for her. I've tried to explain to her that she won't find "substance" in people on dating sites and that she should try a different avenue.

I've tried to get her to open her mind to the idea of Jesus thinking that maybe if she started going to church and creating a different lifestyle for herself that she might find the "substance" in the friends and companions she is looking for...people who are loving and selfless just as she is. I'm not saying that she should use the church as a dating service by any means, but I know how important it is to have people around you who care about you and support you and church has been a good way for me to connect with good, wholesome people while creating a working relationship with God. That relationship saved me. I love my husband dearly and am thankful that we are both connected through our faith, but I know that if something ever happened to my relationship with him, I'd still always have God...and that fills me. Maybe, just maybe establishing a relationship with God and opening her heart to a different faith will help her to become fulfilled in a whole new way. She could meet people who are walking the same road as her, make new friends, and maybe in time meet that guy for her that she never knew existed. The reason I feel so adamant that this could work for her is because I walked the same road as she did, but at a much younger age. I might not be 53, but I went through the same experiences as her in a 20 year old body.

While I cannot expect her to just turn to God because I said so (as it is a completely personal journey) I have to say that she just flat out surprised me yesterday: She thinks that God is punishing her. She thinks that He hates her and doesn't want her and that she's been cursed by the devil. She tells me of a vision she had when she was five...she said she saw two burning red eyes staring at her from across her bedroom so she hid under the covers and then she felt something touch her and breathing on her, but when she turned around nothing was there. She now thinks that that "being" was Satan, and now she's "damaged goods" and nothing good is destined to come to her life. She thinks that God is just a big bully who preys on the weak. What do I say to that? I KNOW that isn't true, but I don't feel qualified enough to be able to give her a good enough answer. Even speaking from my heart I cannot convey enough to her that God isn't spiteful. Bad things happen to good people, but God is not out to "get" anyone. It's not like He's sitting up there frying us little ants with his big magnifiying glass for the amusement of torture. Not that she'd listen to me anyway as she's too darned stubborn. How do I guide her? I can't just leave her feeling helpless and defeated. In my quest to help her, though, I've started to feel the same way myself. But I can't give up. But when is enough, enough? Do I give up? When? How do I help her? Is it even my place?

The thing that kills me is that I know my mom's heart. There is so much good in her, and therefore I refuse to believe that nothing good can come to her. I'm not even saying that God is the answer for her, because for some people He's not and to each their own, but it's just natural for me to want Him to pull on her heartstrings. To be honest, I feel like it's her only hope. She's rapidly deteriorating emotionally, and I know that my Christian faith is the one thing that brought me to the surface when I felt like I was drowning. I was saved. And I'm so thankful for His love. Only He knows where I'd be if I had not come to Him...and I'm thankful to be spared that knowledge. My own gratitude has led me to help others seek their own faith and I want so desperately for my mom to find that too, but I'm scared that she won't and that she will miss out on the best relationship of her life. The one that fulfills beyond anything. My heart is full, why can't hers be?

In the back of my mind I wonder if I just won't hear from her one day. I'm scared that I'm going to get a call saying my mom is dead...or worse yet, that I'd find her that way. It's THAT bad... I'm not just scared for my mom's heart, but her life. She's being consumed by her own depression and grief. She even told me not to get pregnant again and she'd be mad at me if I did because everytime my sister or I get pregnant, someone in the family dies. My uncle currently has cancer and she knows Aaron and I want another child and she's afraid that if we have another baby, my uncle will die because of it (needless to say I won't be telling any family for awhile when I do get pregnant because it's apparently not in their nature to be even remotely happy for me having a child...but that's another story entirely). My mom is consumed by death...and she thinks it's coming for her. She always says, "I'm not going to be around much longer. I've got maybe 20 years left...".

I'm just scared. I've been praying but I just don't know what else to do. I know it's not in my control to save my mother, but she needs saving some way, somehow. I'm so lost and torn and I just want my mom to be happy and fulfilled. If only she knew that she can have happiness if only she'd be open to trying something new...

Please pray for my mom. There is so much power in prayer and I know that God's plan for her life will be revealed some day. All in His timing...

Clean Slate

I have to say that I've been a bad dieter during the month of February. Birthdays and Valentine's Day completely derailed me, but I'm bouncing back from a bad month and hoping that March will be better. It's a fresh start and I'm starting with a clean slate. I ended up gaining 2 pounds back during the last month, so now to meet my March goals I have to lose 8 pounds. I have just under 5 weeks to lose that weight (and hopefully more). I have two new things in the works ( but I need to wait until I get my tax return back before I can take advantage of them) so my March & April challenges will be to start doing hot yoga 2x a week and combining that with the "Flat Belly Diet".

My issue has always come down to the lack of time and finances. It's really hard for me to stick with a lot of diets & lifestyle changes because I don't have a lot of time to keep up with a vigorous exercise schedule or cooking home-cooked meals every night and I don't have the money to fork out on a lot of the "healthier" food choices. I'm limited to quick fixes and cheap, fast meals to help me lose the weight...which doesn't help me stay on track. With working a full-time job and then coming home to two children, a husband, and a house to clean, there's not a lot of time added in for me to really take care of myself. So I've struggled to find something that will fit into my busy lifestyle that yields results without overwhelming me completely, both physically and emotionally.

So I guess that I'm really still researching my options and testing through trial and error until I can find something that just works--- that just fits who I am and the life I live while still giving me the advantages of losing the weight, keeping it off, and continuing healthy eating and exercise habits. Sure, I could go to the gym after work every night but then I would sacrifice time with my kids. I don't see them that much as it is since I work all day and they are in bed just 3 hours after I get home. I don't want to be a "weekend mom". This is where staying at home with my kids would come in handy. I'd have time every day to play with my kids, clean my house, work out, cook healthy meals, and still have some time to relax with my husband or by myself once the kids are in bed. Don't get me wrong...I love my job but, as empowering as it can be to be a working woman, I still feel like I'm missing out. There isn't enough time in the day for me to take care of everything that needs to be done. I'm just horribly overwhelmed every day. I'm tired of feeling like I'm busy all the time. I know that being a SAHM can be busy and taxing (it still is work!!) but it's so different being able to "work" in your own home and have the freedom to do things you cannot do when you are tied to a desk in an office.

Anyway, I'm starting to get off subject but my point is just simply that I need to find something that is adaptable to my lifestyle as there are certain things about my life I cannot change like the fact I work full time away from the home and that I am responsible for caring for two children, my husband, and maintaining our home. Not to discount my husband (because he does help), but I do most of the work around the house and am currently the only one with a job right now so I feel like lately I've been carrying a lot of the burdens. While he does help, I do think it's far from equal (and I can't really explain it to him because he either doesn't care enough or just plain doesn't understand). There's a lot of responsibility and pressure that comes with being a working woman, mother, and wife. It's hard to fit in to both stereotypes of "corporate woman" and "domestic goddess" and find additional time to be a "health nut". It's exhausting trying to keep up with all the demands.

Either way, I am looking forward to finding something that is easy for me to stick with given the complexity and chaos of my life while making me feel good about myself. Right now I feel terribly tired, overwhelmed, fat, and ugly. And it sucks.