On the Sunnyside of Life

What Kind of Mom Are You?

2010-02-15T16:19:00.000-08:00

Over the course of the past few snow days, I have been catching up on the blogs of both my friends and some of the blogs that they frequent. I am amazed by the amount of different types of moms/friends that I have. I also am intrigued by moms on several of the blog sites that I have visited. (At some point I will learn how to embed their sites into my posts.)

I have loving, structured, godly, creative, patient, cool, calm, educational, well-planned, involved, sarcastic, energetic, organized, crafty, funny, and crazy-busy mom friends. Some of the sites that I visited showed very chic mom's and what the have done with rooms, photographs, etc. Getting to my point, I started to ask myself the question, "What kind of mom am I?"

Other than crazy-busy, I don't feel that I fall into any one of those above-mentioned categories. I try to be most of those things, but end up falling short, way, short. I can honestly give excuses for most of my shortcomings, but I don't want to do that. I want to be a better mom. I want to be the type of mom that God intended for me to be....I just don't know what that is yet.
Am I alone in this feeling?
I will be praying for direction and guidance toward the path of maternal leadership that God intends. What kind of mom will I turn out to be?

Here's Your Sign...

2010-01-19T16:31:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, I am a Horrible decision maker. I will avoid at all costs. However, I have been faced with many times in the last few years that I have been presented with HUGE, and usually unpleasant, decisions to make. I am happy to report that since God is in control and knows my fear of decision-making, he has guided me (sometimes by putting the answer in front of my face, literally) in making these tough choices.

Today was another one of those times when God said, "Here's you sign!"

My grandma has been in the nursing home for over a year now and her house has been sitting empty. Overwhelmed with the task of cleaning it and honestly avoiding it, I have turned my back on it for the most part. In talking with her lawyer recently, I knew that I was going to have to make some decisions regarding selling it vs. renting. Either way, I was going to have to clean it. Now this isn't light cleaning, she was a hoarder, hence my avoidance. Still, I was content to let it be until pushed to do something.
Out of nowhere today her neighbor called. Unfaithfully I was expecting the worst. She called to see if I'd be interested in renting it to her mom, who is moving back to help her with her children since her husband has been deployed to Iraq. She wants to rent it, will handle the upkeep, and possibly purchase it if I need to sell it for monetary reasons.

God, thank you once again for making this decision for me, and for forcing me to face the clean up.

Now all I need is a cleaning crew. Any takers?

Monday Minefield

2010-01-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

Mondays....a chance to begin again, to inspire the lives of youth, to totally fall flat on your face. Pick one, go ahead....

And the winner is....door number 3!

I woke up, half expecting a 2-hour delay, but no. Walked into the bathroom half asleep to notice an ENORMOUS wrinkle on the side of my face. Now I can tolerate my very, very, some say white-I say blond hair coming in. Easy fix with coloring/highlights. But wrinkles, not ready for that yet!

At school, kids were well behaved, a great day going til lunch. Then I proceeded to stick, no ram, my foot into my mouth. Luckily, I have wonderful friends who know that I would never hurt them on purpose and who are so forgiving. Still, I felt horrible all day.

Rest of the afternoon went well, then some potentially tough news from my hubby about his job. He is very hardworking and loyal. Just don't understand people. Trusting in God's plan for him though. Hoping that he does the same.

Well, in close of a long rambling synopsis of my day, it is now almost 10:00. Chores still to do, one kid still awake, day to get ready for, exhausted. A long day of battle!

Okay, let's try this again!

2010-01-10T17:52:00.000-08:00

After much debate I am going to try blogging again. Not that I remember much of what I knew how to do on my page, and not promising that it will be interesting. I can promise that I will add pictures and comments more than once every four months (as previous).

First of all, I am needing your help. Currently, my title is, The Patterson's. Forthcoming I know, but not at all catchy. I need a new title. Shoot your ideas at me and let's see what we can come up with.

Stick with me, and I will become more creative. Let me know what you wanna hear about, and I'll try to make it happen.

Past Due Pics

2009-06-09T20:16:00.001-07:00

Nicolas having some fun on a riding toy.

Daddy and his girl at the Buick GS Nationals in Bowling Green.

Summer is Underway

2009-06-09T19:54:00.001-07:00

Well, I am out of school for about a month and a half, so it is officially summer! Big plans this summer as we have a lot to do. Here is just a smaple of my to do list:
1. T ball games (Nicolas is very good, but does not pay attention very well. Alas, a 5 year old.)
2. Go through and organize and deep clean every nook and cranny of my house! (A hard task considering as soon as I get something finished, the kids have reaked havoc on at least three more areas!)
3. Re-decorate Nicolas's room. He has had the same room theme (trucks and other assorted vehicles) in every house that he has lived in. We are now at the moment going to a space theme. He did want dinosaurs, but ended up on space. Any ideas are welcome.
4. Get everthing organized, cleaned, and taken care of with my Grandmother and her house, things, etc. An overwhemling task, but one I have put off since November.
Alas, I know that there are several other things tucked in with the free movies, kiddie pool thatI just bought, summer trips, etc. However, for just a few days what I would most like to do is ....relax.

By the way, I just finished reading My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Piccolt. A great book. I wanted to get it in before the movie came out.
Anyway, enough rambling for tonight!

Ode to Naptime

2009-06-08T07:33:00.000-07:00

I promise that I will add al of what I've missed in the last few months, but right now.....

An Ode to Nap-Time
Oh naptime, how I miss thee.
My most precious hour (sometimes two).
Your silence - golden.
Your stillness - sweet.
My hour to choose what I will do.
I could read, shower, watch what I wanted to tv, or (drumroll please)even sleep!
But alas, those days are gone.

You see my kids no longer will take a nap. Sometimes they will lay down, but rarely anymore will they sleep.
I knew this day was coming, as well as it should.
But my friend, out time now comes to an end, and I must say goodbye.

As Nicolas will be going to Kindergarten next year, I have known that this is the summer that his naps would stop. However I didn't realize that Grace would no longer want to take a nap most days either. (I'm still not sure that she's ours, she requires very little sleep.) Maybe it is the fact that 5 year old boys cannot be QUIET!

WOW, Just how long has it been?

2009-05-27T21:22:00.000-07:00

Okay, I realize that it has been about three months since I have posted. I will get better at this! I will hopefull have some time on my hands in the next few days since school is coming to an end to get caught up.

I have a lot to cover...vacations, racing, sports, all kinds of family happenings!

Basketball Fever...

2009-02-16T17:29:00.000-08:00

Nicolas has been playing basketball all month as part of Enter His Courts, which is an awesome Christian organization. You can find out more about this at http://www.enterhiscourts.org/. Anyway, although he likes to play, he is somewhat frustrated by the game and guarding aspect. He just wants to practice making shots. That's kinda hard to do when on a team. He says he is not playing again next year, which is a huge disappointment to my in-laws. Sorry though Barb and Rick, with my gracefulness in his genes, I'm not sure he'd be NBA material! :-)

Okay, getting to the honest and humorous part....my mom asked him why he is playing if he didn't want to, and he looked at her and very honestly and innocently replied "I don't know, I guess its 'cause my mom signed me up."

(Note to self - When registering children for sports, ask first, then register. :-) )

A few shots of the action....

Yippee, continued...

2009-02-16T17:26:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm holding my fingers, breath, and whatever else I can hold because Grace is now peeing almost every time in the potty. I am so excited! Our goal is to sustain this, and then after a long, long while of peeing continuously, we will begin our mission to "get the poo out" on a consistent basis as well (so far only three times after a "clean out" regimen).

YIPPEE!!!!

2009-02-03T13:53:00.001-08:00

okay, I know that this won't interest some of you, but for those with young children, I know you will understand...Grace FINALLY pooped on the potty last night!!!!!!

We have an announcement...

2009-01-28T19:05:00.000-08:00

We now have a new member of our family, Lucy. I again will attempt to upload lots of pics soon. Lucy is a 9 week old lemon and white beagle. (As many of you know, our dog Millie passed away this past year after being with us since she was a puppy.) Todd and I thought the time was right (although, being that we just had a huge snowfall I'm not so sure) to adopt a new puppy. She is fitting right in and doing quite well at least peeing on her training pads. The kids love her and she loves them most of the time. She is a nibbler, so we are working on that with her. So now we are working on potty training and house training at the same time. Fun!

A Twist on a Favorite

2009-01-06T20:24:00.000-08:00

kids t.v. show that is. Grace and Todd have gotten into the habit of watching a show called "Oobi" if Grace happens to get up early or stay up late. The show is particularly dumb in my opinion (it is a pair of eyes on a ring, worn on a hand to make this puppet thing on a hand). they like it and tease each other about it all of the time. the funny thing is that Grace doesn't call it "Oobi" but instead says "Boobi" which is really interesting when she chases us yelling, "Boobi, Boobi, Boobi." We are working to solve this funny but problematic speech issue. :-)

Mother and Son Day

2009-01-03T15:02:00.000-08:00

Today Nicolas and I went out for a special day. I was hoping to overcome the doldrums that he seems to be having - no to mention oppressive whining and disobeying. So, he and I went out while my mom kept Grace, which was a reward for Grace as well.

We began by visiting the Home Depot for our monthly meeting with Corey and Jacob for Project Build-it. Today they made football helmet bookends. We ate lunch, the boys picked Burger King. (so much for healthy) Then we proceeded to go to Nicolas's choice activity for the day - ice skating. This was his first time, and I have to admit that we were both pretty excited since i love to skate but can't ever get anyone to go with me. Well, we made it a half a lap around the wall before he panicked, began screaming and crying with fear, and refused to budge one more inch. I finally flagged down a guard after dozens of people watched our struggle and offered to help. I swear, a persistent 5 year old can just about take down two grown adults when forced to move while off balance.

When we finally got off the ice and our normal shoes back on he began crying again as we left because he "wasn't finished skating."
That's when we went painting. Much better option, although more expensive.

As far as hoping that this excursion wold help with the attitude, well I report that I failed on that front, but at least we both have a day full of memories that we can share.

(FYI - I will begin posting pics as soon as I get my new cable so I can charge my camera!)

Our New Toy

2008-12-27T20:24:00.000-08:00

What a wonderful Christmas for our family. We spent Christmas eve with Todd's family, Christmas morning with just the four of us, and then Christmas night with my family. We all had such a great time. Nicolas was a little under the weather on Christmas eve, and didn't even stay up long enough to make Santa cookies pr reindeer food, but we covered it for him. Todd and I were challenged with on one of Grace's gifts, a trampoline with a bungee cord instead of springs, and a handle. It only two educated people 3 hours to put together! :-)

Our family gift this year was a Wii - I know, I said no video games, but Todd convinced me that this was different since we had to get active to use it. Well, we received it the day after Christmas and are now fans. I have to say it does challenge the coordination of everyone. Nicolas is learning a lot and Grace tries to mimic our actions. The only downside is that it is hard to play with a 2 year old attached to your leg. :-)

If anyone knows of any good family games, please let me know.

Also, I am searching for some advice. I am struggling with Grace's bedtime routine. She has never been a great sleeper or gone to bed easily. She still wakes up several times a night wanting more to drink (some night she can go through about 4 sippy cups). The only issue is that if we try to let her "cry it out" she cries until she pukes. Then we have to do the whole changing the sheets and bath routine. So I wind up laying there with her for at least an hour every night until she falls asleep. While I love the extra time with her, it is getting harder to stay with her that long, and Nicolas is feeling a tad bit rejected that I can't read to him at night anymore. Any suggestions to stop the puking?

Family Fun Day

2008-12-23T17:55:00.001-08:00

Today we loaded up and went to the Indianapolis Children's Museum. I was so excited because we were able to purchase a membership (thanks Papa Rudd)! We can now go up on the weekends when Todd is working and during the week as a family in the summer. (Hey Laura, how about getting together with the kids for a play date there soon?)

All in all it was a fun trip. They have the Yule slide for winter - this consists of a huge slide that they have put over the stairs going up to the second floor. Nicolas decided that he wanted to race me down the slide. We stood in line for about 15 minutes while Todd took Grace to the Playscape for smaller children. Nicolas could hardly stand the excitement as we approached the slide. They put down a fabric piece for you to sit on and slide. Well, about 1/3 of the way down the slide I have no idea how, but I lost my fabric and ended up having to scoot the rest of the way down. Talk about embarrassing! Nicolas said it was because I must have been too fat for the slide. (I think he overheard me saying that to Todd in an attempt to get him to go instead.)

Grace loved the carousel - they went three times, and both kids loved the dino exhibit. I am thrilled that we can go more often now. We have room for 2 guests any time that anyone wants to join us!

After we left, the weather was getting crummy, so we took a few detours to avoid traffic accidents on the way home. It was so slick that Todd even took a tumble on a sidewalk and hit his head (he's okay).

We are all now home and getting ready for the Christmas events that approach.

From our family to yours - Merry Christmas!

Our Story

2008-12-19T16:57:00.000-08:00

I may try to upload a few pictures of Todd and I from when we met and our relationship, but til then....here's the story.

Todd and I both grew up in the same town, school, everything. We even had a few elementary classes together (he will gladly tell you about how I used to cheat off of him on spelling in the 4th grade - ironically I am now the co-coach of our school's spell bowl team - still can't spell, ask Jen). Anyway, we began our relationship together in the 7th grade when Todd asked me to dance at the spring dance on April 8th, 1993. We dated all through high school and were married during my junior year of college on March 17, 2001.

Since then we have spent almost 8 years together and have 2 amazing kids - Nicolas, 5, and Grace, 2.