Birthday Plans

Lulu has a birthday coming up.  We are gonna be low-key this year and invite 3 of her friends to dinner as well as my parents and her dad's parents... and her dad, of course.

So, I have to totally get ready for this party during this upcoming week.  This also means that I need Dear Husband to put together the trampoline that we got her for her birthday.  I also ordered her an insane amount of shaped rubberband bracelets.  While the rubberband-bracelet craze started over a year ago out West (I think), Lulu thinks that she started the craze here because she was the first person she knows to have them.  I accidentally stumbled upon the bands online one day and ordered them for her.  Next thing I knew... everyone had them... although I am sure that the craze was here before she got her bands.  Even one of the Survivor contestants (Tyson) was actually wearing one during the Survivor finale show.  I hope she likes the sets that I picked out for her.  Some of them came from her rubberband-bracelet wish list... a few were some new ones that that I found online.

Here is her rubberband theme wish list.  Note the few little items on the side... yes, it actually says, "nook/ipad."  Yeah right!  She's not getting a ipad for goodness sake.

The birthday and hipster sets are brand new.  Em LOVES peace signs so I know that she will love the hipster set. 

This birthday set picture is not that good.  I think that these bands are actually clear with glitter.

Her birthday cake request this year is... drum roll please... zebra hair bow.  I bet ya didn't see THAT one coming, did ya?  She loves zebra prints right now.  You can see her hair bows (some with bits of zebra print) here and her zebra pants in the last picture of this post.  She also has a zebra jacket and shorts, just to name a few.  So, yes, I have to make a zebra hair bow cake.  You can stop laughing now.  :-)

I'm also half-tempted to make some cupcakes with these printable toppers from an Etsy seller.  Actually, I'd prefer to just make the cupcakes but I know that Lulu will never let me get away with that.  :-)  Maybe I could serve cookies-n-cream ice-cream to go along with the zebra/black and white theme.  Huh?

Anyone here ever made a zebra print cake?  Do you have any other easy/inexpensive cheap ideas for the zebra theme?  

Do you hear that?

This is what happens every single time we hear a loud and large truck outside.

Brody runs to the window...

stands on his stool...

and waits...

and waits...

until I hear...

"Look Mom!  I see a trash truck!"

This is the highlight of his morning.

Disclaimer:  Please ignore the drapes; they came with the house and we haven't replaced them... just tied them up to keep them from collecting dog hairs from off of the floor.  Tacky?  Yes, I know.  Hey - at least we didn't resort to hanging a bed sheet in front of the window (yet) like we did with our first house.  Fairy Grandmother finally gave us the "green light" to pick out some window treatments as a birthday gift for the two of us because I think that she was tired of coming to our house and looking at the bed sheet hanging in the front window. 

... and life goes on...

My life has been crazy now that we added baby Brielle to the mix.  

Sleeping

As far as sleeping goes... my choices are CO-sleep or NO-sleep.  hahahahah - okay... NOT funny when you are the person going through it.  But, we've all been there so I'll stop my complaining... for now.

Other Family News

We are still watching hockey, as seen in the pics below, even though the Capitals are not in the playoffs.  Incidentally, the Capitals loss caused much grieving in the house, but Dear Husband was we were able to push through it.

Look closely... here is Bro's face when he doesn't want you to take his picture. 

  

And this is what happens when you bribe him with a chocolate chip.  {{Would I do that???  No!  Of course not.}}

Oh, and please ignore the big green ugly chair.  Yes, we know it's ugly... but it is so comfortable that it has earned itself some time in the main living area.  mkay???

And even Lulu joined in the fun.

Life as a real estate agent means that Dear Husband isn't always home in the evenings.  Recently, I had my first night at home with all of the kids {{ugh, there's that word again}}.  I felt like Superwoman as I made dinner for all of us and worked on helped Lulu with a MAJOR math project... while having a newborn attached to my breast the whole time.  

Lulu was such a mommy's helper.

 

Oh... and let me digress here for a moment.  See that book in that picture above?  It's a library book... a library book that probably cost me... oh... what do you think... maybe... about $5,000-15,000.  Yep... it's kinda a long story but when we applied for the loan for this house I was just a few hairs shy of getting the GREAT RATE... not the KINDA GREAT rate on my loan.  It turns out that I had a collection against me for a library book... a $50 overdue fine plus the cost of the book.  Without that library fine... I would have had the GREAT RATE... but I do NOT.  And so... in a round-about kinda way... that book {{coincidentally titled, What Moms Can't Do}} has cost me thousands of dollars.  I did not know the book was late nor did I receive a late notice - UNACCEPTABLE RUDE!  And, to be honest... I have not been back to the library since I learned of the book collection on my credit.  Just looking at that book fires me up! 
Moral of the story:  Return your library books folks!

Lulu also likes to spend time with Brielle too, but she is always so worried that Brielle will throw up on her, which she does often. 

Coming Up:  Napmom plans some birthday fun for Lulu and will reveal Lulu's birthday cake design request.

Naps... grammar... peonies... and Bri

Every day I wake up thinking that I am going to get a nap... and most often I do not get that nap.  This isn't to say that Brielle isn't cooperating with my nap schedule (because she sleeps all day long - which means that she tests my love for her parties all night long), but I just love the "freedom" that I have in the mornings and then I inevitably have some sort of afternoon obligation... which means... I don't get a nap, despite my efforts.

 
Today, for example, I took some sheets out of the dryer and made the beds (ours and the kids').  I prepped for dinner and made dessert (banana pudding in my little Tupperware cups).  Then, I made spaghetti for the kids to have in their lunch boxes tomorrow and I emptied the dishwasher... just to name a few.  Oh, plus I took a shower AND styled my hair - oh my.  **Is it ticky-tacky to refer to my children as "kids"?  When I hear people say "kids" I think of baby goats.  But, calling them my "children" seems awfully formal/snooty to me.  Thoughts?**

Admittedly, I watched some Martha Stewart.  Today she opened her show with, "Welcome.  The peonies are in peak bloom."  And, they are.  Here is a peony bush that traveled from my husband's grandmother's house in West Virginia, to our previous home in Crofton, and now is here with us in our new home. 

Yesterday, I took 50 pictures of baby Bri.  Here is my favorite pic.

Grammar check: 

Do you refer to your children as "children" or "kids"?  I must know.

Baby

Gee - it's been so long that I almost forgot how to do this "blog" thing.

Things are settling down.  I have soooooooo many details to share with you.

For now, here are the highlights.

Brielle Llewellyn was born on April 30 at 9:48 p.m..  I was induced {{blah}} earlier than I expected because the hospital had a sudden opening in their schedule and took me in {{how nice of them}}. 

Yep, she was 9 pounds 14.8 ounces when she was born.  The birth certificate reads 9 pounds 15 ounces... the doc said that if Bri had not pooped so much on the way out that I probably would have had a 10 pound baby.  Um.... after ALL OF THAT PUSHING... I think I should just get credit for a 10 pound baby... mkay?  {{And could you even imagine how big she would have been if we had waited 5 more days to induce???  Yikes!}}

I call this next picture her "Popeye" look.  Just look at those forearms would ya?

Sister Lulu was at a Finals competition for cheer when Bri was born.  However, Bro was able to come see his sister in the hospital.  He says, "Too loud Mommy - too loud," when he hears her cry.

Everyone is doing well.  I have more pics to share.  Surprisingly, Bro adores Bri.  He even shares his most prized possessions with her and looks for her when he comes home from school.  Maybe this will get worse, but we'll take what we can get.

Nursing is going well.  For now, Bri is sleeping in bed with us so I can just nurse her through the night.  This week's goal is to get her to sleep in her own crib at night.  We'll see how that goes. 

Healing is going amazingly well.  I don't have any stitches from her delivery {{how did THAT happen}} or hemorrhoids {{too much information, maybe??}}.  However, I think that all of the pushing gave me an umbilical hernia.  So, I have some calls in to some docs to see about getting that fixed ASAP...  {yuck}}.

Bri only sleeps if someone is holding her, someone is sleeping right next to her, or she is on her stomach.  I know... on her stomach.  I don't know what to do.  She has to learn to sleep on her own but I REALLY don't want to put her on her stomach.  :-(

Ok - well, I'll go for now... and... hopefully... I'll be back soon.  I can't wait to tell you what Lulu said to Bri when she first met her.  That girl cracks me up!

Talk to you soon...