Happy Place

This blog is primarily to share pictures and stories about McKenzie. However, now that I'm staying at home, I want to expand it just a little bit to include things that are on my mind. So, I'm going to steal an idea from my friend, Jenny, and start a new series: Happy Place. The idea is to share things that make me happy. Could be products, could be TV shows, could be something Brant did, but don't count on that. Also, don't count on any regularity for this series as my happy place thoughts strike randomly. I just wrote a long post espousing the benefits of each product and guess what? It was boring! So, I'll be brief in my Happy Place posts, telling you why each thing makes me happy as concisely as possible.

The first edition of Happy Place is all about cleaning, because I seem to do a lot of that these days.

Mr. Clean Magic Eraser Bathroom Scrubber:

Removes soap scum so I don't feel like that person who cleans their bathroom about once a month. And I'm being generous when I say monthly.

Method Detergent:

Small packaging takes up less space in my laundry room.

The pump dispenser means I no longer have to clean up blue drops of detergent, although the Magic Eraser worked wonders for that!

Method Surface Cleaner (Cucumber):

It's non-toxic, so while I won't be offering it to McKenzie in a sippy cup, I won't freak if she gets a hold of it one day and sprays a few drops.

It smells fantastic!

Rubbermaid Reveal:

The scrubber is effective and washable.

I can use any cleaning solution in the bottle.

It's the one product that inspired me to mop my hardwood floors. I haven't done that since we moved in to that house.

For Today

Just a cute picture!

Razorback Bling

Everyone that knows me could probably guess that I wouldn't wear a shirt with bling on it. So it even surprised me a little when McKenzie received this Hog shirt for her birthday and guess what... I LOVE IT! It's easily one of the cutest shirts I've seen and it looks great on her. We have a few Razorback outfits for her, but I can guarantee this shirt will make multiple appearances. Much thanks to Sheri for getting McKenzie such an awesome shirt!!! And hopefully, I'll get a better picture of her in it next time she wears it.

She was on SALE!

How could I not get her? I believe it was Granddaddy Carter who first put her in the shopping cart. And I believe all of our backs hurt just a little from pushing her around. Yeah, once she rode around for a little while, she decided that she LOVED being in the cart. She looks a little upset in that first picture, but I can assure you that when I got her out of the cart, she stood next to it and cried until I put her back in. Also, please note the back wheels. Pretty sure the cart wasn't made for 2olb toddlers!!

Shopping with Sambo

Or should I say, shopping for Sambo. McKenzie got a shopping cart from her grandparents, and she decided to test it out. Get ready for picture overload because once little Sambo got put in the cart, every picture was cute. In a few days, I'll post pics of what else we were able to find while shopping...

The Hardest Part

Do you think I'm sick?

I could come up with about a million answers for the question, "What's the hardest thing about being a mom?" Well, delivering the baby wasn't exactly a Caribbean vacation. Putting a onesie on such a tiny little wiggly thing is no picnic either. The explosive diapers aren't fun and three months of sleepness nights is just insane. But without a doubt, the hardest thing is this: deciding when to go to the doctor.

McKenzie has been to the doctor, and once to the after-hours clinic, to be diagnosed with vomiting, teething and a cold. All three of these basically mean that nothing can be done. I imagine the doctors probably laughed at us as we were walking out. But she has also been diagnosed with three ear infections, which require medication. It's a weird feeling to think "I knew it! I knew she was sick! In your face, nurse that told me not to come in!" I'm not happy that she's sick, but then again I kind of am because then I feel like I knew what I was doing by taking her in. It's such a fine line between being that mom who goes to the doctor when her child sneezes and that mom who waits until the child is running a fever, covered in snot and coughing wildly. You feel stupid when the doctor says it's just a cold, but you feel kind of ashamed when the doctor says that's a pretty bad infection.

So there it is. The hardest part. I don't want to see my baby suffer, but I don't want her to suffer through a needless trip to the doctor either. And for all you experienced moms out there, please understand that when I look back at this being the hardest part, I'll wish we were back here again. I'm certain my answer to this question will change when she's six and headed to kindergarten, thirteen and talking about boys, sixteen and wanting to drive, eighteen and leaving for college... Ok, I have to stop thinking about all that. Those teenage years are doing to be tough. For now, I'll just hold her, hug her and take her to the doctor when my gut tells me to!

Parenthood

As of yesterday, I officially entered parenthood. How do I know? Because my solid food eating child got sick and threw up all over me. Gross, I know. Rite of passage into parenthood? I think so. Although, my wise friend Jennifer said it's the cleaning up that's the worst. And you know what? She's right. In the moment, I was too concerned about McKenzie to worry about the grossness that was all over me. After everything had settled down, the clean up came and that was probably the least fun thing I've done in quite some time.

So everyone, no recent pictures today. Sorry! McKenzie fell asleep on the floor after being sick and she looked really cute, but I didn't dare risk waking her for a picture. She doesn't seem 100% this morning, but she does seem better. Here is a picture from a few weeks ago during much happier times!

Cranky Pants

On Thursday morning, McKenzie woke up on the wrong side of the crib! There is no other way to describe it. She woke up around 6:45, a little earlier than usual. She needed to go back to bed immediately, but of course that didn't happen. Instead, she piddled around the house getting crankier by the minute. So despite how cute she may look in the pictures, I can assure you that her Oscar the Grouch shirt was quite fitting for the day. In her defense, we've all had those days when you wake up and you're just plain cranky. Brant can certainly attest to that fact about me!

80's Night

This blog is mostly about McKenzie, but I had to post a few pics from a recent evening. McKenzie's Aunt Erin turned 30 in August and celebrated with an 80s themed party. Brant and his dad decided to go as the Blues Brothers. I think their costumes were pretty spot on!Randy showing off his dancing skills... McKenzie is fairly unimpressed it seems.
I told them to "mean mug" the camera.
Nice moves!
Randy, you can smile again!