2 Week Staycation

The nature of my hub's job requires him to take a 2 week vacation. So he gets to be home with the family for 2 weeks straight! I know, awesome, right?

He said he wanted to make sure we had good family time but also got a lot of our "errands" done. He made a consolidated list of everything & it's my job to plan & schedule our days so we can do as much as we can, without killing ourselves.

So here's what we have, in no particular order:

1. Mall with my MIL

2. Children's Museum of Manhattan

3. Apple/pumpking picking with my MIL & hub's brother's family

4. Bear Mountain with my MIL & maybe hub's bro's family (G loves this place.)

5. Get magic straight perm for my new post 2 kid afro

6. Ptouch label bins on shelves in garage

7. Buy cordless dustbuster (I have no idea how I survived this long without one.)
8. Buy night light? (M's been scared of the dark lately since his bedtime is dark now, with longer nights.)
9. Get smartphones (Wahoo! It would add SERIOUS efficiency to my days.)
10. Make some concerted effort to take family pictures, esp. of E since her 1st birthday is coming up.
11. Add pics to family album
12. Get flu shots
13. Reformat & reinstall my computer. It's been on the fritz.
14. Hang magnet boards by M's desk
15. Hang M's nameplate letters (Long overdue since we moved him and rearranged his room so many times.)
16. Lunch with friend for her birthday
17. Plan a party for another friend
18. Bake some sweets for a sick friend
19. Finalize all ideas for E's 1st birthday party
20. Finish guest list & send invitations for E's party
21. Make dohl go-eems for E's party
22. Pick up kiddie placemats from BuyBuyBaby
23. Update recipe book
24. Dry cleaning
25. Clean house - major items such as kitchen & bathrooms
26. Organize kids clothes
27. Old Navy returns/exchanges
28. Walmart
29. Hmart with my MIL
30. Costco with my MIL
31. Make kimchee with my MIL
32. Cook at least 2 new meals for the family. You know, not the usual.
33. Cook at least 5 new foods for E
34. Bake something for my MIL
35. Make dinner for my MIL at least 5 times. So far I'm thinking dwenjang jigae & fish, dakdoritang, linguine with white clam sauce...need more ideas. Can't go too crazy. Don't have time and she's got a typical Korean palette. Anyone??
36. Try on (buy?) a pair of Gap's skinny cords. I hear they're SUPER flattering. Check 'em out!

I definitely won't look like that in them, but I wouldn't mind if I could look half as good...after I get them hemed a good few inches. ha~!

Anyways, I'm aiming to have at least 30 of these done! Am I being naive??
I love lists. They make me happy. They make everything doable, or at least reduces the stress factor. :)

How many do you think I'll be able to get done in the 2 weeks?

Maxx Oppa

I tried feeding both kids lunch together at the table. It's still not working cause E just wants whatever M is having and won't eat what I have for her. I had to step away to the kitchen for a minute and their "convo" went something like this...

E (crying): mamamama (E's way of saying umma.)
M (sweetly & quietly) : Ellie, no cry. Oppa here. No worry.
E (crying): mamamamama....
M: No cry. It okay. Umma comim' back.

I love them.

*umma = mommy
 oppa = older brother

6th Love Language...Food

My mom is out of town. (She lives with us.) At the same time, my mother in law is IN town. Double whammy. Don't get me wrong, I think I have one of the best MIL's but there will be extra things to do and think about for the next month or so..on top of lugging around 2 kids everywhere I go.

It's only been a week but the weekend of all things, was rough.
My Sunday looked like this:
9:30a - church (JCF)
12:00p - tlc (our church's "small group")
4:30p - niece's 100 day birthday party
8:00p - church meeting at my place

Then Monday morning, I had Ellie's 9 month appointment. (Yeah I know, I'm late a month.) Then in the afternoon, I took the kids to my SIL's where my MIL is staying. I want her to see the kids as often as possible while she's here.

Even with a nap, thanks to the kids napping at the same time, I was half dead by the time the hubs got home. I have a decent tolerance for physical tiredness but I literally was so tired that I was slumped over on my desk and didn't have time to make dinner for G. I felt so bad.

When he got home, he made himself dinner. I was too tired to eat. (Yes, it's true. I turn down food.) I just wanted him to tell me I was a good wife & mom and appreciate me and be on his best behavior to be super nice to me for the rest of the night. I managed to drag myself upstairs to take a shower and throw my PJs on. I came back downstairs and about 5 minutes after G finished eating, I got hungry. Go figure.

THEN....he had the BESTest BESTest idea anyone could've had at that moment. He went upstairs and grabbed the kiddie monitor and brought it down to my sister's place on our ground floor. It was only going to take 15 minutes but JUST in case. I was in my PJ's so he told me to throw on a jacket cause we were going to get ourselves some Spicy Chicken Nuggets from Wendys! OMG, the joy that filled my heart. You laugh. I'm serious.

It somehow turned into a mini little adventure because I was wearing Korean pajamas.

Here's an example of what Korean pajamas might look like. (And no, that is not me.)

They look kind of like little girl pajamas. Mine's not too off from the one above. (I'm REALLY hoping that only women read my blog.) And if you know me, it's REALLY not like me to wear something like this but my aunt in Korea got me and my hubs a matching pair and practically speaking, they're the lightest and coolest pajamas with sleeves. I rarely shopped for clothes. Now, never...esp. extras like pajamas.

So anyways, imagine that with a Northface fleece on top...stylin', I know. The hubs opened the garage door before I could get into the car so I freaked out a little. But yay for drive thrus! We got our nuggets as well as a small chili & bacon cheeseburger. I couldn't help myself.

It was like the rough couple days never happened. What is it about bad food really late at night?
Good hubs. Fun impromptu late night trip. Good food. I love food.

Yes, the nuggets are pretty good! Good job Dave, defs a keeper. You should check 'em out the next time you're stuck in your car with sleeping kids.

PS. For those of you who don't know your "love language/s", you can take a quiz here.
PPS. G never wore his pajamas. Imagine?!!??

Maxx the Comedian

This an old post I never finished but I want to post so one day Maxx can read all my memories of him.
From Sept 2010, when he was 2.5 yrs old.

...then"number 1 emo" (aunt), aka my sister, walked in on a conversation I was having with Maxx where he was finding new names for people. The conversation proceeded as follows...

#1 emo: What about uncle bbo-bbo? (kiss)
M: Noooo (shaking his head)

#1 emo: Then what about uncle jee-jee? (korean kids term for dirty)
M (nodding & laughing): Uncle jee-jee

#1 emo: What about uncle
M: Noooo (shaking his head)

#1 emo: What about uncle bboong? (kids term for fart )
M (laughing crazily): Uncle BBOONG! Uncle BBOONG!

My son's comedic platform is inappropriate conversation.
And if you know my hubby even just a little bit...genetics is a crazy thing.
God is hilarious.

Happy Music

I'm not big on knowing much about music but here's something I found that'll start your weekend with a smile. So fun, cute and just plain happy!

This one's dedicated to my single girlfriends.



I love how they contrast. She's so "whatever" and the guy is so into it. Funny and cute.

27 months & 9 months

Life with an infant and toddler is finally doable.
For the first 3 months, I was busy being tired & anxious.
Months 3-6, I realized it's extremely hard but that if I set my mind to it, I could do it.
These last 3 months, I could confidently say I got it down.
It's not perfect by any means but I can do it pretty okay.
Thank God!

I can now appreciate them and G so much more now that I feel like my head is screwed (back) on...somewhat.

So on that note, I'm not one to say proud things but i LOVE my kids and they're so FREAKIN' cute and smart and funny and fun and just plain AWESOME. hahaha~

Ellie now pulls up to standing position all the time and all over the place. She started crawling at around 8.5 months in this crab-like/monster way to get around. I later realized she only crawls like that on my wooden floor to get some leverage. On carpet, she seems to crawl normally.


ellie_crawl from joohyon doo on Vimeo.

Today, I found her standing 3 times, holding onto nothing for 2-3 seconds each time...wonder if she'll walk before she's one. She's starting to cruise too. For all you moms out there that may not be able to give your 2nds enough tummy time or attention and feel guilty for it...please don't! They seriously figure it out on their own. I was feeling so bad that I had her swaddled so much and didn't do tummy time and now E's gross motor skills are much faster than M's were by this age.

E is blabbing something constantly. She has been saying umma & appa (mommy & daddy in korean) for a little bit now. She's said the sounds at random times when she was younger but now, it'll come out when she wants us or needs something so we know she gets it. Her 2 "tricks" for the older korean crowd are man-seh (raising both arms) & jjakjjakkoong (clapping). We're currently working on jem-jem (opening & closing both hands repeatedly).

E also laughs and smiles really easily. She plays extremely well by herself and is so good in new environments and with new people. She'll sometimes be scared for a bit, but then quickly adapts. E is as stubborn as they get though. She is VERY vocal about what she likes and dislikes. The hubs says it comes from me....oops. :)

My only tough area with her is her eating. She LOVES milk and barely ate baby food for the last 3 months. I told myself I'd hold out for 3 months and then give her table food. I probably should've given her table food a little sooner. On her 9 month birthday, I started giving her jook (korean porridge), bap & gook (rice & soup), and literally in one day she started eating like a champion. Like mother like daughter, genetics are scary. Supposedly, I had bap and dwenjang jigae and kimchee starting from 7 months...I question my mother as to why you'd give a 7 month old kimchee!

Anyways, I wouldn't recommend giving a young baby table food if you can help it but literally that night, she started sleeping straight through the night. It's now been almost 3 weeks of that. 11 straight hours of night sleep. That is straight up awesomeness. E sleeps SO MUCH, i LOVE it. She sleeps 11 hours at night and takes 3 naps during the day which total 4-5 hours. And her naps are completely regular. Good, regular eating really helps with good, regular sleeping. All this sleep, along with her personality, allows her to be flexible on the days we're out and she's totally off schedule. The only down side is that I end up leaving her napping at home with my mom, instead of taking her out. Yes, I'm a semi-sleep nazi.

I'm SO proud of M lately. He's such a big boy now. He's my shy child. If he has an "area of improvement" it's in the social development area. He's not a fan of strangers, large groups and new places. For these reasons, I enrolled us in a Mommy & Me program at Hope Church in Teaneck, NJ. The rigorousness wore us both out at first but I'm SO GLAD we did it. It affected his sleep at first but he adjusted and is back to being a great sleeper. He still has a hard time with large groups but he's SO MUCH better with strangers and new places. He used to be stuck to me like glue anywhere new we went, or when a new person was in our house. Now he needs me for the first couple of minutes and then he's comfortable enough to wander around and explore on his own.

M gets funnier and funnier everyday. He randomly imitates things and people all through the day.


what am i from joohyon doo on Vimeo.

He sings and does motions to so many songs now, in english & korean, I can't keep track. He could literally sing and dance all day long if I did it with him. He's knows his alphabet, can count to about 14, then skips a couple before he hits 20, and now finally also knows his colors. (I felt like I was working on that one forever.) The other day my SIL's friend mentioned that kids with good language skill early on usually have a good memory. I never connected his memory with what he's good at, and what he's not but it makes complete sense. He's good at memory related things over the logical/understanding things as far as I can tell...which explains why colors took him so much longer than letters & numbers.

He's much more self sufficient - eating better on his own, drinking from grown up cups with less spills, taking shoes on and off (crocs), going up and down stairs on his own, putting things back where they belong, cleaning up, getting things for me to help me around the house, and the list goes on. He understands concepts and has sharper sense lately too. Today, my sister was trying to tell me something he did and was spelling out everything and using difficult words to explain it. He was staring at us from the corner of his eye trying to figure out what we were talking about cause he KNEW it was about him. I wish I had a picture of the look on his face.

M also started peeing in the potty. It's not regular at all but he's done it a dozen times so I think he's comfortable with it enough to start soon. I just received the rest of the cute 2-3T undies in the mail but I think I'll wait for grandma to return from Korea before I go full force with the training. I just can not deal with pee anywhere else but in the potty.

M is my sensitive, smart, funny, curious child.
E is my sweet, stubborn, bold, easy child.
I'm finding both of them are extremely determined. E in the stubborn and strong way and M in the slow and steady way. I continue to pray for gentle strength for E and for M, confident strength in doing God's work.

They now play together and entertain each other. It's so cute to watch them interact. M gives E hugs and kisses randomly. And E's eyes light up when she sees M...even a mere picture of him gets her all excited.

A picture I took in the middle of some hyperactive silliness.

PS. totally need more pics of me & the hubs!

Ooooh...Me Wants

Okay, why do I know find what I was looking for 2 years ago??

Check out Timi & Leslie's new Charlie bag...

Priced at $150, it ain't TOO bad considering you get all the accessories, functionality and it's one of a kind.  I'm not a fan of the little clutch it comes with but I'm sold as long as the faux leather isn't too pleathery, which it doesn't look like it is.

They have other convertible bags too but I like this one best.
Check 'em out here.

Update on M

New things Maxx is doing from over the last few months...

EATING
He eats by himself SO well now. He's really into soup these days and now gets most of it into his mouth. He spills so much less than before. He's been eating well consistently for weeks now. It's the longest run in a while. Hope he stays like this FOREVER. ha~

The pic below is of his leftovers from one lunch. Do you see the little brown things in his miyuk gook (seaweeed soup)? Those are pieces of chicken nuggets. Gross, right? He would only eat them if they were in his soup. What a weirdo.

Maxx also HAS to have kimchee with almost every meal. Could that be genetic? If so, I'll take it!

GETTING AROUND
Maxx now walks down stairs like adult by holding the underside of the banister/rail. He still can't reach comfortably to hold the top part. When we're out and about, he's so good about holding my hand when he should. And when he just walks on his own, he's great about staying in my view, or his view I should say. He still touches EVERYTHING in sight so I can never let him walk around stores.

SLEEPING
He consistently sleeps so well now. He sleeps like a big kid too. He HAS to be tucked in with a blanket and will try to stay under it. While he's sleeping, if he realizes the blanket's off, he puts it back on. Half the time, he now tells me that he's tired and wants to go to sleep. How CRAZY is that. His naps are longer now, about 2 hrs on average and I now start his night routine at 7:15pm. He's asleep by 7:30/45 latest every night and gets up between 6 and 6:30 every morning. When he gets up from his naps and in the morning, he play by himself for over 30 minutes, and always just says "umma, come!". Dr. Weissbluth knows what he's talking about when he talks about putting them to bed EARLY. It's so simple yet sheer genius. He still gets cranky here and there but overall, he's SUCH a better sleeper. "Dear God, please help Maxx to continue to sleep well so he gets all the rest his body needs to be healthy and happy."

TALKING
He talks SOOOO much now. He regularly says 4 word sentences and hardly ever does the grunting/pointing thing anymore. He's literally non-stop ALL day long. This drives me bonkers for 90% of the day because he doesn't stop talking and needs answers to every question. Fortunate or unfortunate, I'm the only one that understands just about everything he says. But when he says something smart or cute or hilarious, I can't help but hug and kiss him to death. He's such a ham though, he'll then say or do whatever it is 10 more times to get the attention. His vocab is crazy now too. He says at least 5-10 new words every day. Words that I've used with him that I had no idea he knew how to say. Serious sponge. Now I gotta get him more comfortable to talk in public. ha~

READING
We now read Dr. Seuss books as part of his nap/night routine. They are dramatically longer than Good Night Moon. Who knew when I picked up the first one! But since the first book, he sits thru the ENTIRE book and at times will tell me what's going on, according to the pictures. So cute.

But have you ever read "One Fish Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish" or "And To Think That I Saw That on Mulberry Street"? Oh my goodness. The first time I read those books, I had to stop multiple times on each page to correct myself. I almost felt bad for Maxx because umma felt so dumb not being able to properly read a children's story. hahaha. The rhyming and "unusual" language makes me have to concentrate which is hard when you're tired. Thank God "Green Eggs & Ham" and all the others are so much easier.


I swear that Maxx is so much more interesting than I am. ha~ People tell me he's smart. Not sure if he is really smart, but one thing he is, is extremely observant. He notices EVERY little detail. When he was 7 months old, he would point to a small shopping bag sitting on my kitchen counter. It would be the only "change" in the room and he'd have to call it out. (Yes, I'm anal and most things are put back to their place. ha.) He would point out if my cabinet door was left open or if the air vent was left uncovered. Genetics much? When he was about 15 months, I'd be folding laundry and he'd tell me who each shirt belonged to. That was strangely entertaining. hahaha. Nowadays, he points out EVERY train, big truck, mail truck, garbage truck, firetruck, school bus, and airplane in sight. We could be driving and he'll point out the tiniest airplane way up in the sky. I had NO IDEA there were so many airplanes in the air all the time.

Anyways, here are some other Maxx snippets...

M's scary face. Weirdo, huh? hahaha~
When DJ Lance does Funny Faces, M likes to make this scary face.

Accomplishment meets nap-needing delirium.
Note his thumbs up and pineapple head's cameo.


3_choo_choo from joohyon doo on Vimeo.

Maxx had a cold and mean umma still made him sing his ABC's.
And no, music is not one of our family's giftings.
Note to moms: Don't let anyone tape you with your kids from this angle. NOT flattering.

 
Untitled from gunn doo on Vimeo.

Playing the xylophone at the Liberty Science Center in Jersey City.

While he was doing this, a 5 or 6 year old African American boy came and took one of his mallets. He had to have been at least a foot taller than M. Watching this, I was scared for Maxx for sec but wanted to see what he'd do. I thought he'd start whining or crying but instead, he looked up, paused, then took a step forward and hit the boy in the stomach. I took a few seconds to CRACKING UP inside, then I went over and apologized to the kid explaining it was because he took the mallet from him.

Dear Maxx,
Hitting is not nice...but in this situation, I was SO proud of you! GO MAXX!!! You showed courage, strength, the ability to defend yourself, and independence. You didn't need me. Good boy! But don't forget...hitting is not nice.
Love, Umma

Update on E

So this last month or so, my life's looked a little like this - mom came back, hubs & I celebrated our 4 yr wedding anniversary, started maxx's 2nd birthday party planning, attended a couple of birthday parties for Maxx's friends, did some minor crafty things for some friends and family, checked out liberty science center, sleep trained Ellie, did some major overdue shopping for the fam, and more. During it all, i realize the kiddos are changing too fast! The kid's have been doing SO many new things. Some funny, some smart seeming, some just so FREAKIN' cute. ha! So I have to document so I don't forget any of it.

Ellie is 5 1/2 months now! She's nearing her half birthday. Not sure why I just wrote that because I never  really understood that concept. Is it a Korean thing? Anyhow, time goes SO fast with the 2nd.   I thought Maxx was a happy baby but Ellie outdoes him. She smiles and laughs SO easily and all the time. She's jibber jabbering a bit more too. No clear consonant sounds just yet but she's definitely trying to say something because she just stares at you the whole time she's talking to you. Normally she's looking all over the place.

Ellie smiling & laughing.
Please excuse my cold/sniffling & how gay I sound. Yes, I know, being a mommy changed me drastically. No shame anymore.

A big difference when you see Ellie now is her face. Besides the fact that I think she's really gotten prettier/cuter, her skin's SO much better than it was just a couple of months ago. Her skin was raw and crusty for months but now that's all gone! It still gets a little bumpy & red from time to time but it doesn't bother her nearly as much. Because she always rubbed and scratched her face, I kept her swaddled literally 90% of the first 4 months of her life. I know, I know. What about her arm development? I didn't know what else to do. Half of each cheek was oozing puss every other day. At her 4 month appointment, her super laid back doctor told me I had to let it go and just let her free. That she should be swaddle free by 5 months. Grrr...if I unswaddled her, that meant, she'd scratch her face more AND no more self soothing with paci because she'd knock it out. So you understand why I was reluctant to sleep train Ellie but I did it nonetheless and she sleeps really well now. I'm so happy! Probably because BOTH my kiddos are sleeping SO well and consistently lately. It's probably not going to last long but I'm gonna hang on to this for as long as I can! hahaha...

So getting back to Ellie, she now moves all over the crib so I had to take most of her stuffed animals out. They were distracting her and made it take longer for her to fall asleep on her own. She also now rolls onto her tummy but can't roll back so she gets stuck and ends up drooling on the crib sheets. Erg...another reason why I will like it when she can roll back.

My pineapple head baby now always has the first 3 fingers of her right hand in her mouth. Her sleeve gets wet all the way down past her elbow. It's pretty gross. ha.

Trying to calm the pineapple, I tried putting a hat on her but it made her look like a hobo. It was the free hat we got from the hospital, from the volunteers. Wish I could knit so I could make one that might actually fit her humongo head.

Since Ellie's always wearing blue or green, hand me downs, I always try to put on at least one article of clothing that's pink. It usually ends up being socks or mittens. I think I need to start looking into hairpins. Where do I find the velcro kind??

Dear Ellie,
Umma's sorry she's not dressing you so hot these days. Umma didn't buy you any girlie home/play clothes because I'm saving the money for better things for you. Promise! :)
Love, Umma

Week 4

So all in all, it's been tiring but doable. I'm shocked that I'm actually able to handle 2 kiddies on my own. The past few weeks, I've been busy with some showers and mini party planning. And I have yet to start planning Maxx's 2nd birthday party, too. Gotta get on that in a week or so. I also forgot how much I missed randomly hosting friends. I think I might be over doing it while my mom's gone but oh well. :)

Even though I've come down with a cold, I'm managing this weekend due to my super helpful hubby. (Thank you.) The AMAZING weather is a HUGE plus too. We took M to a park with some friends last weekend and he LOVED it. I honestly don't think I've seen him happier. I also set up a water table on our deck for M and he LOOOOVES it so much that he talks about it all day long ever since I put it out there. He also cries for it when he's tired and cranky too though. Oh wells.

Anyways, one thing I haven't had time for is blogging! Go figure. I have been taking some pics & videos of the kiddos so I'll post them once I get them onto my computer. Be back soon.

On My Own with Sick Kiddies

So I'm on my own with the kiddies for a month since my mom's on vacay in cali. It's day 3 and it's going surprisingly okay. I'm super duper tired but it's not as bad as I expected. My "always expect the worst" attitude makes me super anxious and stresses me out but it usually works. This time, I didn't think it would but it did again. ha!

So Monday was a super abnormal day. Maxx fussed little to none all day, had almost no "jealous of baby" moments, and ate well too. Ellie fussed a little but slept on her own (with a paci) for a few naps, a few others I had to rock her to sleep, and one time, she cried for like 5 minutes and fell asleep cause I had my hands full with Maxx. Ellie NEVER slept as well and as easily as she did that day. God is VERY kind. (Thank you!) Besides a bit extra TV for Maxx and some watery poo, the day went pretty smoothly. I even got to make dinner, even though it was kinda ghetto. So net net, Monday went pretty okay since the kids were strangely on their best behavior so I told myself, "Don't be fooled. This is an unusual day.". I had to keep myself pumped and confident that I could handle doing everything on my own. God wouldn't leave me to suffer too much, right? hahahaa~

On Tuesdays I now have help so I thought it'd be an "easy" day but at 8am, Maxx threw up his morning milk across a fourth of my kitchen and a little down the hallway. I have a BIG kitchen btw. It happened while I was holding him and had the fridge door open so it got inside and somehow under it too, just a couple inches from the wall. The stench of digested dairy throwup is DISGUSTING. blech. After a couple hours I knew he needed to eat something so I gave him some toast with a tad of butter and salt. He threw that up about an hour later. By 11, he started getting pissed that he was sick and was moaning and yelling "No more!" every time his stomach hurt. He was having waves of pain all throughout the day. Maxx has major A.D.D. and is always on the move but yesterday, he would grab his burp cloth and lay here & there for 5 minutes at a time cause he had no energy. He was so sad looking, literally. His lower lip was sticking out and he was all pouty faced all day. I felt SO BAD for him so I held him as much as I could. He ended up watching UP twice (off & on) and a few Yo Gabba Gabbas. It was the only thing I could do to try to distract him from the pain. I napped him early then tried a slice of apple and pedialyte. The apple stayed but not the artificial grape stuff. I called the doc to see if I should try to feed him or not and they said to just give him an ounce of pedialyte (2 tbsp btw) every 30 minutes. He threw up a little of it but was able to keep most of it down. Before the night was over, I got a couple of spoonfuls of jook in him too, which also stayed.

Aside from Maxx, Ellie was back to her usual self and fussed and cried a good amount cause I couldn't attend to her when she needed. I somehow fit in a bath for stinky pukey Maxx, 2 loads of laundry from all the pukey clothes, and homemade pasta sauce. No puke there. I haven't cooked in so long I forgot how fast I can do it, if i set my mind to it. Even with help, I barely ate 2 meals and I was 10 times more tired than I was on Monday.

Today, Maxx and Ellie both woke up earlier than normal. Maxx first cause he was so thirsty and was asking for water. I gave him some, then more pedialyte. That stayed, so then some jook and then later a third of a banana. He was whinier than ever today and kept asking for TV, saying he was "ah-ya" but I knew it wasn't as bad as yesterday. He just had no energy so it was makin' him cranky. Every time he heard Ellie start to fuss, he'd come to me asking me to pick him up knowing I was about to get her.

Around 11:30 this morning, Maxx was sitting in the corner of the sofa and holding his burp cloth and a banana and told me to "ga". So after I said "Ga, please." I went to the kitchen and started flipping thru some of the catalogs we got yesterday. About 10 min later I was wondering what the heck he was doing and so I tippy toed to the sofa to find him sleeping. SO CUTE and sorta sad cause it means he's that tired. This is the 1st time in his LIFE that he fell asleep anywhere on his own (besides his crib). I took a pic on my phone but I forgot to save it since I was eager to bring him to his crib. So no pic to share today. Boo.

Anyways, both kids are sleeping so I had lunch and even though I should be napping, I'm blogging.

So far so good. I didn't think I could handle it but I'm actually doing it. I think I just need some more social interaction so I don't go batty from talking to a 21 month old and a 3 month old all day long. Oh and I need to figure out how to reduce Maxx's tv hours, too. :D

Hymn to a Good Wife

Some things I will strive for until the day I go to heaven.

A good woman is hard to find,
and worth far more than diamonds.
Her husband trusts her without reserve,
and never has reason to regret it.
Never spiteful, she treats him generously
all her life long.
She shops around for the best yarns and cottons,
and enjoys knitting and sewing.
She's like a trading ship that sails to faraway places
and brings back exotic surprises.
She's up before dawn, preparing breakfast
for her family and organizing her day.
She looks over a field and buys it,
then, with money she's put aside, plants a garden.
First thing in the morning, she dresses for work,
rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started.
She senses the worth of her work,
is in no hurry to call it quits for the day.
She's skilled in the crafts of home and hearth,
diligent in homemaking.
She's quick to assist anyone in need,
reaches out to help the poor.
She doesn't worry about her family when it snows;
their winter clothes are all mended and ready to wear.
She makes her own clothing,
and dresses in colorful linens and silks.
Her husband is greatly respected
when he deliberates with the city fathers.
She designs gowns and sells them,
brings the sweaters she knits to the dress shops.
Her clothes are well-made and elegant,
and she always faces tomorrow with a smile.
When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say,
and she always says it kindly.
She keeps an eye on everyone in her household,
and keeps them all busy and productive.
Her children respect and bless her;
her husband joins in with words of praise:
"Many women have done wonderful things,
but you've outclassed them all!"
Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades.
The woman to be admired and praised
is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God.
Give her everything she deserves!
Festoon her life with praises!
- Proverbs 31:10-31

Time with God's been hard to find/make with Maxx but it was doable. Now with Ellie as well, it's even harder. Nowadays, it has shrunk down to a chapter of the bible a day, read online on weekdays only, and a short prayer, either when I'm rocking Ellie to sleep for the night or as I'm passing out in bed. Gotta start again somewhere.

Catching Up

By midafternoon, Ellie had already taken 2 long naps. For both, she was in her crib for the most part. That used to be rare but is getting more common these day. Yay!
Her 2nd nap was at the same time as her brother's. Even better.
I also got to shower too! Feat number 3.
The hair's been starting to majorly fall out but that didn't stop me from feeling like it was a good morning. :)


Yesterday...
I took Ellie to the doc for ther 3 month appointment. Time flies.
Ellie's skin's extremely dry in patches. She has 2 big patches on the lower part of each cheek that rub against her clothes so it gets raw. It's been a healing cycle...dry & flaky skin, rub, raw skin, heal...dry, rub, raw, heal...erf. Her face overall is less dry but the areas that are dry are REALLY dry and it's now spreading to her arms and legs. Darn ezcema! Why do you have to be genetic!!


Anyhoo, the doc thought it was bad enough to check to make sure her skin's not reacting from milk allergies. When she was a few weeks old, I had a feeling she might be. So the doc gave me 2 prescription meds. One antibiotic cream to heal the raw skin and the other, 2.5% hydrocortizone cream for overall healing of the dryness. Both of which she prescribed to Maxx when he was about Ellie's age. Again, darn genetics! She also told me to change her formula to Similac alimentum. I actually thought it was adamantium and later realized that's what Wolverine's skeleton is made of. ha! She said it doesn't taste very good so I was nervous Ellie wouldn't drink it but after a couple meals, she's gulping it down fine. I'm not too worried because I don't think her allergies are from milk or if they are, they aren't too severe that she isn't in the process of outgrowing it already. Optimism is good.


Over the last few weeks, there have been a bunch of firsts and funnies. Here are some I was able to capture.


First SNOWBALL - Maxx seems to be sick every time it snows so it had to be indoors. He called it "eye-sh" after a few minutes because it lost its white color and melted so quickly.

First ICE CREAM CONE - Don't you love what hats do to hair?

FIRST time EATING RICE on his own with a SPOON (aka hands). Thankfully this is just rice and not a boogie. He'd have suffocated. And this time, it's not hat hair. It's umma's bad hair cutting skills.

Look CAREFULLY. No, not the soggy diaper. It's what Maxx likes to do with umma's "weeng". I don't think appa liked it too much. :)

How appa likes to position Princess Ellie. She got so big but still makes our sofa look huge.

By the way, I need to do some serious tummy time with her. I was so good about it with Maxx. Poor Ellie. At this rate, she'll be 2 before she can crawl! Bad umma!

FIRST "REAL" PHONE CALL
sem-che = samchon, uncle in korean
comp! = come!
nite nite = sleeping
Maxx opened my phone and said "sem-che, comp!". It was 8 in the morning so I told him that samchon's still sleeping. Hence, the "nite nite".



uncle, come! from joohyon doo on Vimeo.


FIRST time at the new 5 GUYS by the new Walmart. Appas, it's nothing personal.



appa from joohyon doo on Vimeo.


I went with my sister, 2 mommy friends, their kids, and one of the hubbies came to meet us after work. L's mom pointed out that we probably looked like a guy and is 4 wives & 3 kids. hahaah~!


Moms, take your kids. They just LOVE the cajun fries, music and (I dunno why but) drinking cups with straws. The kiddies were boppin' to the music the entire time. They will have a blast while you enjoy a yummy hot burger with everything on it. Oh and of course don't forget to give them some real food too. :)


Oh and I know I mentioned it before but I L-O-V-E Walmart. I'm now going there regularly to get some of the basics for my house. Maxx's organic half gallon milk is $3.50. 50 cents cheaper than shoprite or hmart. Gunn has Activia every morning so I make sure to have that stocked up. The 8-pack is $3.98 at Walmart and shoprite's got it regularly for $5.98! That's $2!! Hell-ooo! And they're hardly EVER on sale. Eggs are way cheap too but I've never heard of the brand so I'm wondering if I should keep getting it there. I figure at least the brand name items are fine. :D


Okay, last but not least, what Maxx says EVERY night...



five! from joohyon doo on Vimeo.


Okay. Goodnight!

Outdoor Fun Indoors!

Nice stairwell, right? Did you look closely on the other side of the rail? Yep! It's a friggin' SLIDE! How awesome is that! Your mom You call your kids to come down for dinner and they might just come on time.

Here's another. You'd never know it were a slide unless the kid was there, right? Simple enough that the design doesn't make your home look like a playground.

Its so cold out and I love snow but when you have kids, ideas like this seem so awesome. At one time I wanted to be an architect, then I wanted to marry an architect, and now, well neither of those things happened AND I don't think I could ever spend the amount of money it costs to make such major changes to any home SO...this one from Ikea will have to do. :)

You can't get it online but our local Paramus Ikea has it. I would totally get it for Maxx's 2nd birthday but its not as cheap as you expect from Ikea. I think it was $150? Hmmm....maybe. Its times like this that I wish I had carpentry abilities as well.

Besides slides, the other obvious outdoor playgroud fave is the swing. Imagine having a jungle gym & swings like this one in your home? I WISH!

Again, not too realistic but these are!

You can use your doorways. If you own, you can make your own & for dirt cheap too (photo left). If you rent, then you can buy a pressure mount support beam and swing separately (photo right). At least you can easily move it from room to room or if you move, to your next place. The other advantage to the pressure mounted style is that you can also get other "attachments" like a trapeeze bar, rings, or even a toddler swing if you have a little one too.

And of course, Ikea also has their version. It's part of the Ekorre line which also has hand rings & a rope ladder.

I can't wait to get or make one of these for Maxx and Ellie one day. Gotta make sure it can hold the weight of an adult too. I know myself. ha~!

By the way, I found most of these ideas over the last few weeks on Ohdeedoh.com.

Meet Chef Maxx

On Wednesday, Maxx made our family english muffin pizzas topped with hot dogs & onions. My mom made these for us growing up so in true Lee family tradition, we had to use Boars Head, gourmet processed meat. ha~

Maxx & Emo

At first, I wasn’t sure if he was having fun because he was so focused. Or maybe it was because I was being so bossy when he was just trying to have some fun. Go figure.


making_pizza from joohyon doo on Vimeo.

Since we were waiting for the pizza to bake, I let him play with water in the kitchen sink. He most definitely enjoyed that.

Maxx & Umma after the water fun

There aren’t too many activities to do with kiddies under 2. He still would rather eat crayons than color with them and you can only play with the same toys for so long. You just run out of stuff to do when it’s cold out. (I can’t WAIT for nicer weather, you have no idea.) But making pizza was really easy with no extra clean up. I had to wipe down the counter and give him a bath anyways. Oh and bonus is that you have dinner all ready once you’re done. Only thing is, you may want to use healthier toppings. :)

In addition to the ever so famous RookieMoms site, here are a few other activities to do with your young toddlers from Ohdeedoh.

Time Starved

After I had Ellie, I found myself feeling less productive than ever and not feeling like I was doing anything well. There just wasn't enough time in the day. I know, I know. I have 2 kids to take care of so I should expect this, right? Yes and no. I expect things to be harder but that doesn't mean I want to accept a mediocre life of doing the minimum. I remember our Pastor saying that we all have the same number of hours in a day as Mother Theresa and Gandhi did. Who knows if they had kids but either way, they got a heck lot more accomplished in their lives than I can ever imagine.

I seek out being a good wife & mom but I know God wants me to do other things too. I want to still do things that Joohyon Lee would do, such as make time for family & friends, have people over now and then, and of course figure out whatever else it is that God's got planned for me once the kiddies are off to school one day.

In order to do more, I need to start being more efficient and productive with my time. I was a project manager in my pre-mommy life and I’ve planned numerous events in my personal life but I’ve never actually applied my love for organizing to how I spend MY time.  I’m a lazy butt & major procrastinator when it comes to my own life. Go figure.

When you're single or married without kids, you feel like you have the world ahead of you and all the time to do anything you want, whenever you want. If anything, you often get bored and waste time doing things that don't bring much satisfaction just to fill the time. What you don't know is that when you have kids, it takes 100 times more effort to do things you could've done so easily before. I know everyone says life gets harder as you get older, but who really can understand that or has any idea why or how exactly?

So no more wasting time. I want to be efficient and effective with how I spend my time so whether it's playing with the kiddies or relaxing, I want to do everything I do as best as I can so I can do as much as I can.

I'm literally hungry for time lately. I’m one that already sacrifices sleep in order to find the time to do the things I want but now I can only do that so much because I don’t have any down time to let my  brain go blank now and then. I showered somewhat regularly before Ellie. :) Now, if I don't consciously plan for it, days will pass before I realize I haven't showered. ha! When I just had Maxx, I had to often do 2 things at once. Now, I find myself doing 3 at once and rushing like never before. I don’t like the rushing part cause it feels like I’m doing things half-a**ed. I have no idea why I thought having one kid was hard. It now seems like the easiest thing in the world. Hate how the past always seems easier than the present.

So…planning out my time is more important to me than ever. :)

I was looking for a pretty but functional 2010 calendar for my kitchen when I came across this article on Real Simple called "How I transformed My Mornings". I find myself falling in the “I Prepare in Advance and Try to Anticipate Snafus” category. Just plan as much as possible in advance and what happens is what happens, right? I know I sound a little neurotic but it’s the way I’m built and how I can successfully get things done. What I think is a little neurotic are the “My Husband and I Run Our Routine With Military Precision” or the “Timers Keep All of Us on Schedule” women. They’re being literal. Scary.

Also, I can't help but want a smart phone. Having one around when I’m out and need to schedule kiddie doc appointments or play dates. Or when I’m waiting in the car for M to wake up…I could check email or BLOG! :) Why didn’t Apple bring the iPhone to Verizon already? The Nexus One is out now but only TMobile carries it, right? And then today, Apple came out with the iPad but its huge and I have enough stuff to carry. My brother has the Droid. The hubs said that Verizon is doing really well with it so people must like it. Maybe I can get him to get me that - gotta see when my next upgrade is. But if I get the Droid and then a few months later, iPhone comes to Verizon…I’ll be SO annoyed. Okay, back to waiting…

Okay, enough rambling for tonight.

Sewing Sewing Sewing

I want to get a sewing machine already.
(Yes, I know. I have no time and no money. Boo.)

I want to hem dress pants, shirts & skirts (skirts for Ellie one day cause I obviously don't wear them). I also want to hem expensive jeans to make them look like they weren't hemmed. It's SO expensive to get it done! Maybe I could be like Julie Andrews in Sound of Music and make dresses and play clothes for Ellie? Maybe some random things too like hats, dish towels, tissue box covers, and pouches for pens and change? You could make a ton of baby things too like changing pads, diaper/wipe pouches, bibs, burp cloths, blankets...dang! The list goes on. SO fun.

On Sunday, I was asking some mom friends at church where I can get cute hair accessories for Ellie. The ones I've seen online that I like are stinkin' expensive. My mom friends said that you lose them really easily, too. So even though Ellie has troll hair that's too short for anything yet, I'm going to try and make some myself so I don't have to spend much and I don't need to know how to use a sewing machine to make 'em!

Here are some tutorials I found online:

1. Felt Flower Pin by Hoot and a Holler

2. Rose Barrettes by The Purl Bee

I didn't think the rose pins were too cute but they look really cute in the girl's hair.

3. Ribbon Hair Clip

You can make these without the button too. You just need cute ribbon.

4. (Another) Ribbon Hair Clip

 

And when I finally do learn to use a sewing machine...

5. A Kinder, Gentler Headband

Arent headbands so sweet on little girls?

6. Little Boy's Tie - Something for Maxx too!

  

7. Christmas Stockings

I want to try to design ones for M & E on my own. :P

On a completely different note, I found a desktop wallpaper site I liked called PixiePresents. I downloaded this one. It makes me think of Maxx & Ellie a few years down the line. They're holding hands & looking up to God in the heavens. How precious.