Top Ten Tuesday - Cleaning Supplies

Let's be honest - I don't clean nearly as often as I should.  But when I do clean, I always like a gadget or two in the process.  Here are my Top Ten Cleaning Supplies:

 1.  Oreck Upright Vacuum - We used to own a Dyson, and while I loved the suction, I hated how HEAVY it was (around 20 some lbs).  The upright is 8 lbs making vacuuming the stairs much easier.

  2.  Oreck Hand-held Vacuum - The hand-held is awesome at vacuuming corners, edges, couches, and has a great bare floor attachment.  I wasn't sure I was going to like having two separate vacuums (upright & hand-held), but I have come to appreciate them!

3.  Pledge Spray and Dust - Squirt, squirt, wipe, wipe, and done!  I love not having to carry around an extra rag and a spray can.

 4.  Spot Shot Carpet Cleaner - Ahem...not  that we have any issues with pet stains on the floor, but rhetorically speaking, this stuff is like magic on anything the pets have left on the floor.

5.  Cascade Actionpacs Dishwasher Detergent - It sounds really lazy, but it's so nice to pop a pac into the dishwasher and not try to pour powder into the right compartment.  Plus, sometimes with powder, our dishwasher wouldn't dissolve all of it (and it's a new dishwasher) and a hard clump of powder would be left.  We've never had dissolving issues with these and they work really well!

 

6.  Kaboom Bathroom Cleaner - Yeah...I know it's from an infomercial, and every time I see it, I hear the same voice in my head, BUT it does work really well.  And anything that keeps me from scrubbing a shower too hard is a keeper in my book!

7.  Lysol Kitchen Cleaner - We use this stuff like it's going out of style in our kitchen.  It cleans everything and smells pretty good.  Plus antibacterial and fairly cheap...rock on!

8.  Dobie Sponge - In the rare instance we have something not dishwasher safe, this little sponge rocks.  It cleans hard messes and doesn't scratch!

 9.  Lysol Wipes - I use these a lot for everyday wiping down in the bathroom.  I have a pack under almost every sink in the bathrooms, and I try to make it a point to wipe down the vanities before going to bed.  It keeps the bathroom manageable.

 10.  Rubbermaid's Reveal Spray Mop- this is a fairly new tool in the house.  We used to have a Swiffer Wet Jet.  Here are some of the reason's why I love this 30x better than the swiffer: I love being able to make my own floor cleaning solution.  I'm able to purchase a regular floor cleaner and dilute it in the provided container...better yet, I can easily just make a Vinegar/Water mixture that is safe for Morgan and the pets.  This saves SO much money because the Swiffer cleaning product was pretty expensive, and there have been issues with the toxicity of the Swiffer solutions.  I love that the mop head is washable (up to 100x), and because it's cloth, it cleans much more effectively than the Swiffer paper cleaning pads.  I love that it's a regular trigger spray (not-battery operated).  The batteries were constantly dying in the Swiffer, so again, it's just another money saver.  Two thumbs up!

And I think that's as domestic as a post can ever get!  Happy Top Ten Tuesday, everyone!

One Year Pics

Just because I have some extra time with Chris on the road, here's some of our favorites from Morgie's one year pics:

Where have I been for 6 months?

Ok, ok.  I think it can safely be said that I am not a faithful blogger.  I blame it on my work computer not giving me access to this site.  Since I spend 40+ hours on the computer at work every week, I'm normally a little too computered-out to post any blogs after making dinner and giving Morgan a bath.  Plus...our computer was upstairs in an extra bedroom that sometimes serves as our gym or guest bedroom, and I really just didn't like that room...it was hot, ugly, and for a while it smelled like cat urine.  Yep.  Sounds silly (and gross), but it's still true.  HOWEVER - lucky blogger readers, we've recently moved the computer downstairs into our living room with the new office furniture we recently purchased, and I think it's going to be MUCH easier (and more pleasant) for me to update!  Yay!  By the way - if any of you know a full proof way to get the smell of cat urine out of the carpet, we'd be much obliged.  At least it's in a secluded room...

I'm not even going to try to go back the past 6 months.  Let's start with a fresh slate on where we are now!

• Chris is driving from Phoenix to Shreveport, LA today.  His father had a mini-stroke late Thursday night.  Praise the Lord there doesn't seem to be too much damage.  He has lost some peripheral vision out of his left eye, but it remains to be seen if this is permanent damage or if this will return after the clot has been reduced.  Teresa (his sister) and her husband, Zac, are also en route from Nebraska to Shreveport.  Morgie and I are going to hold down the fort at home.  We felt like having a baby in the small house with Chris's dad coming home from the hospital would be too much added stress on him.  Let's face it...Morgie is not always an easy going baby!  Pray for safe travels and a full recovery.
• My company is still going through the transition process with Verizon.  If I haven't explained it before, my portion of the company is supporting customers who could not transition to Verizon and are transitioning to several buyers.  Hopefully, after that transition is complete, we'll be able to transition to Verizon.  Since there hasn't been much hiring by our company during this time (duh), I've been able to help Verizon's retail recruiting teams, so I've been getting to know everyone over there.  It's been a really good experience.  I hope in the end, I'll get to work with them permanently.  The rest of my time at my company is spent on working on HR Consultant level projects, and I've really enjoyed that experience as well.  We're all just trying to roll with the changes!
• Morgie is a feisty little toddler.  Is it accurate to call a child a toddler even if they are not walking?  Yes...Morgie is 15 months old and not yet walking.  She will cruise with the best of them along the edge of a couch (which she started doing at 13 months), but she has yet to take a step away from holding something.  She can stand up on her own without grabbing anything...and she has started crawling with her feet (instead of her knees).  It's pretty funny looking and we're thinking that maybe walking is next???  Eh...it's like you want them to hit that milestone, but at the same time, I'm fine with her not moving onto that next main phase!  And little she is!  She is in the 5th %tile for her age group.  We went to the doctor last week (she was running a high fever with the flu), and she had only gained 6 oz from her 1 year appointment.  Tiny, tiny girl.  I purchased all of her winter clothing ahead of time in size 12-18 months...and they are all too big.  I never would have thought we'd be going to Nebraska in December and she would still be in 12 month clothing....

Alas...that is an update on the three of us.  I vow to get more faithful with blogging.  I know it will serve as a good reminder to us where we were in 2010.  Time goes to too quickly...  Speaking of time going quickly, I hear Morgie singing in her room.  She must be done napping!  I'll leave you with some recent photos!

Family Photo at Schnepff Farms

Mommy and Morgie at the Petting Zoo

Daddy and Morgie

Watch out Katie!

Walking with my walker - making progress

Go Big Red!

Just cruising along!

Daddy looking ferocious...I think Morgie's face says it all!

Oh my gravy - Morgan is 9 months old!

Where have I been since January???  Ah yes...chasing after Morgan, working, and trying to stay caught up around the house.  Morgan had her 9 month check-up last Friday.  She's a small one!  17 lbs 12 oz (25th %tile), 26 inches (10th %tile), and 10th %tile for her head circumference.  Yep...pretty small.  She's crawling EVERYWHERE!  We have baby gates up, and it's a good thing.  I feel like everytime I turn around, she's gone.  This past Saturday, I caught her at the dog's food bowl, grabbing fistfuls of dog food and throwing them on the ground.  After putting her in her high chair, I noticed she was chewing on something.  Yep...dog food.  Awesome.  I've also caught her chewing on the dog's rawhide bones...and she would rather play with the dogs toys too.  She and Honey are the bestest of friends!  Haha!

Morgan and I are making the trip to Florida in a few weeks for Chris's sister's wedding. Chris was originally supposed to go with us to Florida, but he received a promotion at work and he has to attend a once a year training that starts the week we are supposed to be in Florida. At first I think he was upset, but now, I think he's looking forward to a nice quiet house. I on the other hand am thinking, I'm supposed to travel by myself with Morgan to Florida??? Oh I know once I get to Florida, I'll be ok - Chris's family will be there to help, but the flight to Florida (with a layover in San Antonio) does not sound fun. 5 months was a piece of cake, but now Morgan's at an age where she wants to MOVE....she does not like to stay still long. Eh...it's only 6 hours of traveling....we'll make it! PLUS - Chris got the promotion! Wahoo! Pretty much the same job responsibilities...but better pay! AND - he has been switched to a team that inspects the bridges in the Phoenix Metro area...so starting in July, NO MORE TRAVELING!!!!! Well....maybe every once in a while...but I can't believe he gets to stay in town! God is so good! It took a lot of faith and trust to have him leave his last employer, but we've been blessed immensely!

We've had a bunch of visitors over the last several months: Chris's parents, my parents, and my brother. Fun times. I'm ready to catch up on everyone else's posts...so here's some pics....and away we go!

Morgan is 5 months!

Where is the time going?  Again, I'm on an air card, so no pics...  I'm waiting for a cd of pics from our trip to Nebraska (we were horrible and took like NO pics and have to rely on everyone else for their pictures).  We had a great time in Nebraska, he's a recap of the trip and where Morgan is in her crazy development journey:

-We flew to Nebraska without any hiccups.  It was wonderful!  Morgan didn't cry once on the plane and was such a trooper in the airport before the flight and after while waiting for our luggage.  She did finally have a melt down on the drive back to my parent's house, but it was around 12:30 AM, and she was pretty tired!

-We had such a nice visit in Nebraska.  I don't think Chris and I got to hold Morgan for more than 5 minutes: everyone wanted a little Morgan love.  She had a yucky cold while in town, but other than that, as long as she got her naps, she was good to go again.  She really bonded with Keith (Chris's stepdad).

-Whoa-the snow!  A blizzard hit a few days after we flew in (cancelling Christmas Eve service), and I think we got around 14 inches of snow...and this is after the almost 2 ft Nebraska got a week before we got in town.  I think I'm done with shoveling snow for a while....a good workout though.

-It was sad to go back home, but at the same time, I think Chris and I were ready to get back into our own house.  Living out of a suitcase starts to wear on you... 

Now onto Morgan!
-She has found her feet.  Whenever she lays on her back, she's clinging to her feet.  She's started doing this while sitting in her bathtub too.  It is SO cute.

-She's eating rice cereal like a champ.  Unfortunately, she's constipated now from the rice cereal, so I think we're going to skip that for the rest of the month until we can start veggies and fruits next month.

-She's still not drinking much.  I think most everything I read says that around this time, most babies are drinking 40 oz....  my child drinks 30 oz on a good day.  However, she's still a chub-a-wub.  She has thunder thighs for sure!

-When on her belly, she's pushing herself all the way up on her arms and is so close to figuring out how to put her weight on her knees.  She is scooting like a pro.  I'll put her on a blanket on the floor, and I turn around for a minute and look back - she's halfway across the room (off the blanket....with a little spit up hitting the carpet).

-We returned her old car seat because it would no longer "lock" into the base (hello - safety hazard!) - and got the baby trend car seat with jogging stroller.  We all love it!  Morgan is finally happy in a car seat, and is pretty happy staying in her carseat in a store.  We love going for walks with the stroller because it handles the rocks and bumps in the road fairly well.  Yay!  Oh!  And it fits better in our Jeep!  For whatever reason, her old carseat was so HUGE, it wouldn't fit in the middle of the two front seats, so they were always pushed way forward - no problems now, and we are all comfy!

-She's FINALLY in her 3-6 month clothing (yes...she is 5 months....and yes...the 3-6 month clothing is a little long in the arms and legs for her).  I never thought she'd be this petite....most of my friends have big babies that are always ahead of the months their clothing says.  Oh well!

I think that's all the updates for now.  I WILL come back and try to put in pics....but if not, check Facebook.

So the only time I post is when I'm traveling out of town for business!  And then...I'm on an Air Card, so uploading pictures is out of the question.  When I have a chance to jump on while in town, I spend so much time catching up on everyone else's posts that I run out of time for my own posts! Eh...

Morgan is 4 months!  I can't believe it!  In case I come back to read this in the future, here's where we are in life:

-Morgan does not like to eat in the mornings AT ALL!  I am lucky if I can get her to drink more than 3 oz between the time she wakes up and noon.

-Morgan has gotten into a bad habit of drinking bottles at night and not during the day...this has led to 2-3 wake up calls every night from Morgan.  We are trying to break this habit by letting her cry it out....and that is harder than I thought it would be...  I'm told it's normally 3 rough nights...and then it gets better...

-Morgan has recently discovered that her hands can go together.  I've caught her clasping her hands together and staring at them.  She's fascinated that they can touch each other!

-Morgan is a HUGE hand-sucker.  Forget the thumb....fit in whole hand.  Very impressive. 

-Morgan is a laughing machine.  She loves her jumperoo and she loves when we "dance" together

-We tried rice cereal for the first time this week...and she is definitely not ready for it (nor do I think she likes the taste)

-When on her belly, Morgan will push her self almost all the way up - I think crawling is in the near future.  She's already a rolling machine (back to tummy) since 2 months....I think she's a little ahead of her time developmentally...

-Anytime we go to a store, we use the Baby Bjorn....not because I believe in baby wearing per se, but because Morgan hates her car seat in the store (she likes to look around), so she loves the Baby Bjorn...and a pleasant baby in public is worth wearing her.  Plus...I hate her car seat.  It's uber ugly...I wish it was a little more girly with more personality.  I've looked up car seat covers online but they are crazy expensive and not worth the cost (in my opinion).  We're getting a jogging stroller from a coworker...and I think as soon as she's ready for that, we'll switch to the convertible car seat since we never take the infant car seat out of the car when we run into the stores...  But until she sits in a shopping cart...we plan to wear the Baby Bjorn...and I think she and I look pretty cute together with it on....it's how we plan to travel in the airport - having two hands free vs. lugging a car seat sounds like a great plan to me!

-I have been traveling a little more for work recently...and if I want to secure a full-time/permanent job, I may be traveling a WHOLE lot more...and that makes me nervous.  Chris can handle Morgan when I'm not there (though I don't think he'll enjoy doing it that much more often)...but I know it will be stressful for the both of us...  Since, I'll probably have to travel when Chris is in town, and he'll haved to travel when I'm out of town...

-I think we really like the idea of returning to Nebraska to be closer to family (especially since Morgan arrived), but since we purchased a home BEFORE the economy took a nose dive, we won't be able to sell our home without taking a 50K+ loss....and that won't happen.  We'll see if the Christmas trip cures the Nebraska bug or makes it stronger...

-Chris and I will be celebrating our 10 year anniversary this week.  10 years.  A decade.  And that's not 10 years with some off and on....but 10 years of exculsive dating/marriage.  That blows my mind.  10 years ago, we went to our youth group's Christmas dinner together....who would have thought that'd be the start to the rest of our lives?

I think that's all for now.  The battery is dying...and the bed is calling my name!

And another 5 weeks later...

Last post was September 15, 2009?  REALLY?  Holy guacomole....  I do have an excuse though...  I think it's the MAN trying to keep me down.  Yep...the MAN.  If you're not familiar with the MAN - take a few psychology courses, and I think you can blame EVERYTHING on the MAN.  So...here's how the MAN is keeping me down on my blogging.  Below is the agenda to a typical weekday while Chris is in town:

3:30A - Morgan wakes up for a nightly bottle (and a diaper change)
3:50A - I drowsily walk back to the master bedroom after placing Morgan back in her crib
4:45A - Chris's alarm goes off and my first attempt to wake Chris up.
4:52A - The snooze alarm goes off and my second attempt to wake Chris up.
4:59A - My FINAL attempt to wake Chris up (and I get pretty mean with this one).  Chris takes a shower.
5:20A - My alarm goes off and I join Chris in the bathroom and hop in the shower while he finishes getting dressed and shaves.
6:15A - I wake up Morgan to get her ready for the day and to give a final bottle before she goes to daycare.
6:45A - Leave the house to drop Morgan off at daycare
7:30A - Arrive at work
4:15P - Leave work
4:45P - Arrive at daycare to pick up Morgan and get the recap of her day (normally always good)
5:00P - Get home and let the dog out/feed dog
5:15P - Give Morgan another bottle
5:45P - Start Dinner
6:15P - Chris comes home/Eat Dinner/Clean up after dinner
8:15P - Bathtime for Morgan
8:45P - Final bottle for Morgan
9:15P - Morgan in bed and Chris and I getting ready for bed
9:30P - Lights out!  Whew!

And those are the days when Chris is IN town!  The weeks when he's traveling for work are even more hectic because then I have to do all of the cleaning up on my own, trash, recycling, etc, etc, etc.  So really, my only free time to blog would be during lunch at work - but this website is BLOCKED at work.  Seriously...the MAN is trying to keep me down.

Anyhow.  I'm not complaining - just simply giving you an insight to my day.  I love my life, my husband, and my baby.  I wouldn't trade a second of it for anything...though being around family might help sometimes to have a few hours for a date night a little more often...but we have some good friends who are helping us with that!

Morgan is almost 3 months old and that blows my mind!  Here are the status from her two week check-up:
Weight: 11 lbs 5 oz (50th percentile)
Height: ???? (34th percentile)
Head Circumference: ???? (34th percentile)
She's getting to the end of her 0-3 month clothing...and I'm really sad because she has the cutest outfits...and she doesn't even wear them...she normally wears her sleepers all day long at daycare.  During the weekends if we're going somewhere, we'll put her in an outfit...but honestly...she just chills in her sleepers.  I'm such a bad mom sometimes...note to self: take time to dress daughter in some of those really cute outfits hanging up in the closet!  I will do this and take pictures!  :o)

I'm amazed at how much Morgan has grown and progressed!  She holds her head steady on her own and rarely has a head bobble.  She started rolling over from her back to her stomach at 2 months 1 week.  We always place her on her back to sleep, but everytime we go in there to wake her up or give her a bottle, she's on her tummy.  And that girl can move.  She is all over the crib.  Sometimes, Chris and I will take bets at what direction she'll be laying in the crib and then turn on the video monitor to check!  Silliness.  Morgan is a talker.  Every evening, she'll sit on my knee and face me and we'll "chat" for about 10 minutes...and she just goes on and on!  We haven't heard her laugh yet, but she's getting very, very close.  She has started to reach for toys hanging from her playmat or her bouncy chair.   She drinks about 5 oz at every serving and normally downs 7 oz for her last bottle of the day.  I'm really hoping we get to the point where she sleeps a little longer at night...but I can't complain about getting up once a night..  She's just amazing, and I can't wait to see how she grows.  I'm so excited about taking her to Nebraska...she's going to be quite a different girl than the one everyone met in early September...she'll be almost 5 months when we visit Nebraska...

Time to start working again (I'm using an aircard during lunch to get around the block at work)...  I would post some pics...but the aircard makes that a VERY slow process.  Check them out on facebook!

Top Ten Tuesday

Morgan is 6 weeks old!  That is SO crazy!  I return to work next week, and Morgan will be at the home daycare full-time starting Monday.  *sigh*  Part ot me is sad because I know I will miss a lot of "firsts" because I have to work, but the other part of me is excited to return to work (and then that makes me feel guilty...as in..shouldn't I WANT to stay home with Morgan full-time and be heart broken to have her at daycare?).  Even when I dropped Morgan off at the home daycare for a "trial run" last Thursday for a few hours...I wasn't heart broken at all...worried, yes...but heart broken, no.  Morgan seemed very content when I returned to pick her up, and her daycare provider was overjoyed with the new baby in the house (Morgan is the only infant).  I'll be leaving Morgan for a few hours again with her daycare to have a few hours to myself on Thurday: a massage and haircut...  Yay!  Maybe things would be different if I had family around to help, so I could have those moments...but I think that's what the home daycare is for me...it's that sense of relief and freedom that most of my friends have the luxury of enjoying anytime grandma or grandpa is able to watch their little ones for an afternoon or a date night.  Luckily, I do have several friends who have volunteered to babysit anytime we need a break...and I would probably take them up on their offer a little more readily if Morgan wasn't such a high maintenance baby... 

Anywho....onto my Top Ten List.  Below are the Top Ten Things I have Learned in the Last Six Weeks (this list is obviously not all inclusive....it's why it's a Top Ten list!):

1.  I can take a full, complete shower (minus shaving the legs) in two minutes.
2.  My daughter is excellent in the car for me...until the car stops moving...and notice I said for me...when Chris is driving...she normally screams for about 80% of the trip.
3.  I truly have a "high maintenance" baby.  Praise the Lord she's not colicky though....at least she is soothable...either by holding her and bouncing, rocking, walking, or swaying.  And a swing or bouncy chair does not cut it.  She knows it's not a person holding her...and she will not have it.  From what I read...she's supposed to grow out of this by about 3 to 4 months....and I am counting down.
4.  Chris gives in to crying faster than I do...he has such a soft heart for her!
5.  6 weeks can feel incredibly long and at the same time seem to have flown by...
6.  I have become someone who gets excited when her baby "makes mommy a poopie!"  I never thought that would happen!
7.  You don't realize how simple life was before baby...my biggest lesson...I can't just hop in the car and run to the store now...it's normally a 40 minute process in prep to do that including feeding, changing, loading into a car seat...etc.
8.  Every morning is a new start and I always get an incredible renewal of patience to handle the challenges of the day.
9.  I really, really, really miss living near ANY family....
10.  Nothing warms my heart more than seeing Morgan smile...