Since we all have faults... here are mine...

I think the big one is routine. We don't really have one. It's sort of hard for us to get on a regular routine because Chris works random hours a lot of the time. I'm in school two days a week, and I work one day a week. Grace has gymnastics on Monday. And we always have something like a birthday party, doctor's appointment, meeting, etc. that's thrown in there. We always go to bed between 9 and 10, but that's the extent of our routine. (Hey, it's better than a year ago when we had our days and nights mixed up! Lol). So, during the day, we don't have a set routine. I always try to get on one, but we can never stick with it :/

The tv... ohh the tv. We are bad about leaving it on all day long. It's mostly just background noise. We play, do crafts, have our little lessons, etc, so it's not like I just stick the kids in front of the tv and ignore them, but it's still there, and it's still on. Grace didn't understand when I first started turning it off. I am slowly trying to wean the tv away. We have been turning it off a lot more, but not as much as I think we should... still working on that.

I get frustrated easily at the end of the day. In the mornings, I have the patience of a saint. Nothing can phase me. In the afternoons I'm pretty neutral, but close to bedtime, I have to remind myself that they are only little kids. I would never hurt them or anything, I'm just more quick to over react about things. But I have been taking pointers from Michelle Duggar. Regardless of your views on her lifestyle, that woman is SuperMama! She is my role model, and I am striving to have the patience and kindness that she is able to display. Needless to say, I still fall short.

I HATE cleaning. I love having a clean house, and I always feel relieved when the house is clean, but I hate actually doing the cleaning. Like right now, my kitchen needs to be mopped, and the kids' room needs to be picked up, but I'm procrastinating. My house is never filthy. I clean everyday. I just hate doing it, and because of that, some things get skipped... like mopping.

This one applies only to Grace... I cannot get that child to eat hardly anything healthy. She hates ALL fruits and veggies except apples. I have tried so many ways to get her to eat healthy, and I just can't. So we stick to the apples, and she likes key lime pie yogurt (which we get fat free), crackers, honey ham, cheerios, peanut butter and jelly (or sometimes just peanut butter sandwiches)... that's all I can get her to eat that isn't chalk full of sugar or deep fried. I have no idea what do aside from strapping her down and force feeding her, which I will NOT do. If anyone has any suggestions on how to fix this, please help! I ate lots of fruits and veggies when I was pregnant with and breastfeeding her, she had fruit and veggie baby food, and even ate fruits and veggies cut up as table food, but now she won't touch them :(

The Creative Discovery Museum... *Pic heavy*

Well, this past Wednesday, we decided we would go to the Discovery Museum. We checked the times, and their summer hours said they were open from 10-5 on Wednesday. We got there, paid for our parking, unloaded the kids, and started walking toward the building. This guy stopped us, and explained that they were closed on Wednesdays. Then a lady walked up. She was dressed very nicely, and I'm about 95% sure that she was like the CEO of the museum (if that's even a thing). She tried to tell us that the hours had been changed, so Chris pulled out his iPhone, and showed them that they hadn't been changed. She then started trying to say that there were signs up saying the museum was closed, so we showed her that wasn't true either. It was 11:30, an hour and a half after they supposedly opened, and they hadn't done anything to show their hours changed. Finally she changed her tune and became apologetic. They ended up giving us some free tickets to come back, and she said they would take care of everything. I was upset because Grace was so excited, but we ended up walking around downtown and letting them play in the water for a little while before we went back to the car, which there were then two different signs showing that they were closed, and later that day they had the hours changed online.
Anyway... we were finally able to make it back! So here are some pictures!!

What kind of mom am I?

I believe in co-sleeping. Partly because it's easier then having to get up during the night, and partly because I feel the kids are safer. Yes, I know the risks. I'm not over-weight, I don't do drugs or drink, I am not a heavy sleeper (I wake up at the slightest noise or movement). So, I truly feel they are safer. I'm at the point now where I'm ready for Grace to move to her own bed though. I think we are going to start working on that around her third birthday.

I believe breast is best, and I will nurse in public. I always use a cover, but I will not go sit in my car or some nasty bathroom. You don't like it, you can look away. I suppose I also believe in extended nursing because Brentley still nurses. He doesn't nurse anywhere near as much as he used to. Only when he's tired, upset, or not feeling well. He doesn't nurse for food anymore really, but I don't plan on stopping. We are just going through a VERY slow weaning process.

I don't believe in circumcising. I researched this extensively before Brentley was born (talked to people I knew, talked to moms on cafemom, researched articles online, and asked my doctor and midwife, and of course Chris since he is a guy). We feel that it is purely cosmetic. We never even got Grace's ears pierced because we don't want to alter their bodies without their permission. If Brentley wants to be circumcised one day, then he can. If we had gotten him circumcised, he cannot go back from that. I will not alter my children without their permission.

I believe in vaccinating, but not blindly. I am actually sort of torn on this. There are things I'm not comfortable with on both sides of this fence, but (again) through my research, I believe vaxxing is the better choice for our family. However, we don't do flu vaccines, and they only get two vaccines at a time as to not overload their systems. Also, if one of the kids were to have a serious reaction, I would no longer vax that child. I watch their reactions closely. Grace always got a fever, she would get really fussy, and the injection site would get hard and red. If it ever would have gotten more serious... like a high fever or a rash, I probably wouldn't have let her have anymore vaccinations. Brentley just gets fussy for a little while, and then he's fine.

You all know that I am a car seat nazi, so I won't really go into that except to say that this is the one area where I don't believe it should be a choice. This is truly about safety... life and death. This should not be regarded as something you can pick and choose. We will be extended rear-facing, extended harnessing, and extended boostering.

I highly value education. I want my children to always try their hardest. As long as I believe they are doing the best they can, I will not be upset. If I know they could do better, there will be consequences.
My children learn early. Grace can already do everything she needs to be able to do for kindergarten except write her name, and we are working on that. She is also beginning to learn Spanish. She picked it up from Dora, but I am helping her along now that she is showing interest in it. In addition to that, I am teaching her sign language. Right now we are starting with simple signs and the alphabet. She can already do A B and C. Brentley will be taught at the same pace. I find it to be a waste of time to wait until they're four or five to learn these things. They are ready so much earlier than that. I know that planning on sending them to public school may not seem like I truly value education, but we live in the best school district for miles. I have worked in the school that they will be going to (in four different classrooms) and it is Ah-may-zing! Plus, I am studying to be a teacher. I am learning first-hand how the system works, and I will know how to effectively add to their education when they are home with me. Again, I believe this is what will work best for our family.

I value imagination very much. Grace has a very active imagination, and I love to see it blossoming!   I have always loved where books can take the imagination. I have a list of book series that I want my children to read including Magic Tree House books, The Shadow Children series, the Harry Potter books (haven't read these, but I've heard nothing, but great things and plan to read them), and the Hunger Games series. Each of these books has great educational value as well as great potential to allow their imaginations to soar. I have so much hope that books will bring them the same joys that I have always found in them. I have read more books than I can even name. So many more than just these here, but these are the ones that top my list. The ones that I learned from. The ones that I connected to. The ones that made me want to believe in the places I was transported to by the books. I want them to have these experiences too.

 I also place a lot of value on appearance and attitude. Even now, I make sure they look presentable when we go somewhere. I want them to realize that a first impression is everything. The way you look is the way you'll be judged. It shouldn't be this way, but it is. I also want them to have a presentable attitude. Grace always says please, thank you, you're welcome. She even says bless you when someone sneezes. We are working on yes/no sir, yes/no ma'am. The way you look and act is everything in today's world.

I want to have a completely open relationship with them. I didn't know what a penis or a vagina was until I was almost 8 because I was never taught the proper names. I remember being very confused when one of my friends was telling me the real names.
I was never taught what a period was. I learned from one of my friends and from secretly reading the book "You" by American Girl whenever my mom would take me to Book-A-Million. Yes, secretly. I was afraid of what my mom would think if she knew I was reading that book. If I hadn't learned through that book and from my friend, then I probably would have thought I was dying or something the day I started.
The only sex talk I ever received was, "Don't have sex." And I got that from my dad when I was ALREADY four months pregnant (he just didn't know yet).

I do NOT want these things for my children. If they have questions about their bodies or even the bodies of people of the opposite sex, I will answer them honestly. It will be age appropriate, but it will be honest. I believe being open at a very young age will allow an easier open relationship as they get older. I was always scared to talk to my mom about anything like that because she never brought it up, and things were awkward if I did, so I just never did.
I want them to be able to ask questions without fear.

This is all I can think of right now. I will stand by my decisions. I will even advocate for them, but, as long as you aren't hurting your child, I don't care what you do. If you don't agree with these things, I don't mind at all. Different things work for different families. I won't judge your parenting style, so please don't judge mine :)