Line in the Sand

I don't think we really drew a line in the sand on purpose, maybe we didn't, but there ended up being one and we definitely crossed it.

Our sleep issues have come to a head. Makafui isn't crying out because he needs his mommy anymore (whether perceived or real). Now, he is a screaming pissed-off baby who doesn't want to be in his dark room. It ain't pretty! And it is certainly not working out very well.

G and I went round and round about what to do. We knew whatever we chose, it would be hard, but we still didn't have a plan. Last night (with little in the way of a plan) didn't go well....at. all.

Today, he had his 9 month check up a little early and his Dr. asked about sleep (I was purposefully avoiding the topic). I told her it was terrible and getting worse and she told me he associates sleep with nursing and we need to change that. In order to get better sleep and teach him to go down on his own she suggested changing his bedtime routine and nursing first instead of last, then patting/singing/whatever it took that wasn't nursing to get him to sleep. Sounds easy, huh? She noted that he was healthy, thriving and had a great bond with me and that he could definitely handle the change.

So here we are. I am blogging while G sings Jesus Loves Me to a screaming baby.

This is not going to be easy. I know that. I don't regret what we have done up to this point, but I do think it's definitely time to work on this. I'm ready. Whether he knows it or not, I think M is ready too. We may fail over and over again, but I hope to be thankful for more sleep by Thanksgiving!

Here goes...

What a Weekend!

We had so much fun this past weekend! Nonnie (my dad's mom) came down from Louisville and all the Browns made the pilgrimage to be together. I don't know when the last time the 6 kids were all together, but we have never been together in a group this size! There was lots of eating, laughing, goo-gooing over babies, eating, story telling, laughing, more eating, chocolate, awkward pictures, food and fun!! It was so much fun, but I must be honest...it was also a weeeeee bit exhausting!! We can recover a little before Thanksgiving (which won't be this big).



The whole family...happy heart!

 

FOUR Generations! :)

 



The large group was overwhelming to M at first, he eventually warmed up, but really loved the one-on-one attention!

Happy 81st Nonnie!

It was hard to find pictures to post...someone or everyone had food in their mouths or there were so many people in a picture that someone looked bad. So this is it.

Dear Killer

To my wonderful car Killer,

I'm sorry to say, but I didn't exactly want you in the beginning. You came to be mine through a bizarre turn of events. I never would have picked you out. Never. It wasn't that I had anything against you specifically...well, kind of. The thing is, I HATE blue! And you, you are not just any blue, you are screaming loud blue! Oh well, I took you anyway and I was grateful...most of the time. Now, I am far more than that. We've been through a lot!

You got your name in the early days. Partially after my favorite band of the time and partially because of that baby deer.

You were a wonderful companion as I drove all over town in my single days going from one nanny job to another, shopping a lot and just livin' the life.

The "snake bite" on the inside passenger door is from surprising my dad and getting metal yard edging for a project. I thought you were an SUV, turns out, you're not. Whoops, my bad. I smile every time I look at it.

Your trunk doesn't completely latch anymore because of that unfortunate little rear end thing. My first car accident, lost in Lakeway on the way to babysit for one of my dad's co-workers. It was a very bad day. Our two stupid insurance companies fought it out so long that no one paid for the repair, so it didn't get repaired. I used to be so embarrassed when people would stop and tell me the trunk wasn't closed. I don't care anymore, it's character.

The back door on the driver side is especially shiny since it got replaced after someone backed into it. Question, how blind do you have to be to back into a PARKED electric blue car in the middle of the day? Probably shouldn't be driving. Just saying.

Your front wheels and back wheels don't match. Again, this used to embarrass me. Now, it's character. Someone else was driving you when they hit a pothole and cracked the wheel. Replacement wheels from Saturn were crazy pricey and would take a week or more to come in, so they chose nicer ones and thought I would get the matching pair for the front. They thought wrong, I didn't.

You have hail damage and it makes me smile. A hail storm came through and got ya pretty good. I got the check from the insurance company, had your repair scheduled and then lost my job. Since I didn't want to pay the deductible, I just held on to the check, hoping to fix you as soon as I started working again. Instead, the repair check paid for George's plane ticket from Ghana. I smile when I see all those tacky little bumps. It gives you character.

Your finish is a wreck! Shortly after my sweet husband got here, he decided to wash you with something that was not very soft. He scratched the hell out of you!! I was so mad! I'm not mad anymore. It's character.

Your clock won't stay programed for more than a week. It just won't. You think that's funny, don't you?

Even though you are a freaking Saturn Ion you have low profile sport tires. I'm sorry, but I still think this is stupid! I cringe when we have to buy tires.

Now that you have a new axle, steering rack, something frame, wheel, blah, blah, blah you drive reeeeally well! You drive better than I can remember you driving. And that weird sound is gone. I am so happy about that.

You have been a good, good car to us! I love that you are so small that the car seat is just over my shoulder. I can reach Makafui while I'm driving! I like that you are so small I can park you anywhere. I like that you are safe. I like that you get us from place to place. I like that George learned how to drive with you. I like that you are reliable. And you know what? Knowing what I know now, I might just have chosen you. Please keep on truckin'! We're glad to have you back!

Your favorite driver,
Bethany

To Spook or not to Spook...

Halloween is coming up and we've had lots of people ask us what Makafui is going to be.

Um.....nothing? Well, a cute curly haired baby, of course!

I didn't think we'd have to even have an opinion on Halloween so early, but it has come up a lot!

I didn't grow up "doing" Halloween. We didn't trick-or-treat, we didn't decorate with scary stuff, we didn't watch Halloween movies. The first real Halloween party I went to was as an adult! We did go to trunk-or-treat church things and did harvest and fall type stuff. Sure there were a few times I wanted to do what the other kids were doing, but all in all, it really didn't bother me, I still got candy.

George is coming from a totally different place. A place where witchcraft (or juju) and evil are very real and very present. A place where people who love God run from that evil and don't play with it. It's not funny and it's not a cute holiday.

I totally agree.

So why, since we're in America and we make the evil and witchcraft more cute and mainstream is it okay?

I guess it's not.

I went around and around about this for a few reasons. One, babies and kids in costume are SO CUTE! Two, I don't want Makafui (and any other future children) to feel like because we love Jesus, we can't have any fun. And three, because of the backlash from other Christians/church people who do participate in Halloween.

Here's the deal, he can still wear a costume. In October or any other month of the year, they're cute! And of course we won't do scary.

Secondly, there is a difference between "not having any fun" and conforming to the things of the world. Christians should be different, we should be set apart. And, we can still enjoy in a non-scary, non witchcraft way with cute church festivals and harvest stuff.

And the backlash, well I may just be over that. We all have different convictions, different ways to raise our families. Some of them are just that, different, but sometimes it's not that simple, sometimes not all choices are equal. If people have a problem with my way and feel the need to voice it, it usually betrays a sense of guilt on their part. This is our way. It's not the first time we're gonna stand out and it certainly won't be the last.

So the decision has been made. No spook here.

Weekend Update

This was a wonderful weekend!

 

G started it off right! M has had a kind of tough week with allergies, teething and what seems like that 9 month growth spurt all at once, so some nights have been harrrrd! On Saturday, M was up for the day a little before 7. We brought him to bed and tried to get him back down, but it was a no-go. Sweet G took him out of our room and closed the door. The next thing I knew, it was 8:30 and G and M were greeting me with a HUGE Pumpkin Spice Latte and brownie! Isn't that the sweetest? When M was a newborn, I would hear about husbands "letting mom sleep in" or other things like that I thought that would NEVER be possible, that Makafui would be stuck to me 24/7 until at least Kindergarten. Suffice it to say, this little treat was a total dream come true!

 

Later, we went to the park and had a blast swinging....



 



 

M also went down the slide for the first time. He didn't dislike it, but I'm not sure he's in love with it. :)

"Mom, what are we doing?"
 

Side note: While I was pushing M in the swing, my husband was taking pictures of me (yeah, he thinks I'm hot). Look at that bizarre chunk of short hair on the side of my head! Why didn't the books tell me that "baby bangs" meant wonky chunks around your head? Chunks that even your clever side swept bangs can't hide? Furthermore, why didn't anyone who knows and loves me tell me I looked like this?

Anyway, back to the weekend. We had a great mix of being productive, running around and relaxing. Makafui is in a super fun stage right now. He just could not get over George cleaning the balcony. He was squealing and completely enamoured with what he was doing. I had so much fun watching my baby watch his daddy.

 

As you can see, my baby will be crawling soon!! I am so proud of him and love watching him discover and try hard things. But part of me wants to just scoop him up and tell him to cut it out and stay my baby...and so it is, this is how I'll feel forever.

 

In other news, Makafui ate pot roast and yogurt this weekend. Both BIG hits!!

Freaky Friday

• Killer (our beloved bright blue, hail damaged, 2004 Saturn with 138,000 miles on it) got a boo-boo last week. And by boo-boo, I mean Killer came within an inch of his bright blue life! Thank God, and the wonderful people at Caliber Collision, they managed to repair it instead of total it.
• Blue is my LEAST favorite color, really not a fan.
• I super love Killer, I'm so glad we get to keep him.
• We plan on driving Killer into the ground, but not into anymore curbs.
• I love Progressive insurance.
• I need to vacuum out my window sills, like NOW.
• Makafui is really getting into self feeding. It is so much fun!!
• Now that M feeds himself a little more, it's a big mess!
• I think I need a splat mat under the highchair...or a robot vacuum....or a live-in maid.
• Nearly every time I exclaim how proud I am of M for eating like a big boy and start to get out the camera, he chokes!
• A lot of people I know are totally knocking and complaining about apartment living lately. Really? It's not only annoying, but a little bit hurtful. Furthermore, much of the world lives in or would be delighted to live in apartments. People.
• Can the election be over already?
• G's mom is on Facebook!!
• I love having Mama G on Facebook, not only is it sweet and funny, but we are getting to connect like we haven't before and she gets to see lots of Makafui!
• When I grow up, a long time from now, I want to be like Dame Judi Dench. She seems like a pretty rockin' old lady.
• I love tulips.
• Makafui is having his first cold or terrible allergies. I'm still not sure which one it is. Poor baby, he's quite the trooper though.
• I have this thing about having a peaceful home and developing a good attention span in Makafui. My number one way to achieve that is by not allowing flashing, noisy toys.
• The recent cover story with naked plus size models has been very interesting and gotten lots of people talking. I certainly do not think that the ideal body is a size 0 and that you should starve yourself to be unnaturally thin-nor is a size 8 "plus" or "big". But the "I'm fat and I'm proud" mentality is equally wrong and unhealthy. Blah. Could we just have some average size, healthy looking models out there?!
• I got a text from G last week that said: 'Thanks for coming to visit me. You always look pretty. You are a great wife.' Is it wrong that the always pretty part was my favorite?
• Wouldn't it be great if dishwashers unloaded themselves? That is my least favorite chore.
• Cadbury Creme Eggs aren't just for Easter anymore. They now make Cadbury Screme Eggs for Halloween....the "yolk" is green. I'm not sure how I feel about this.
• We were in the car yesterday and that Chris Brown song Don't Wake Me Up came on...G started singing with his own lyrics. Killed me! I'm glad I didn't marry a boring man!
• We have a 50lb dumbbell in our closet. Ridiculous.
• When I can't find G, he's in the closet, you know, working out his body.
• I got an ad (if you can call it that) in the mail yesterday about bladder incontinence surgery/therapy something like that. I died laughing...G was very confused.
• At the post office this week, the ladies went nuts over Makafui. While I was waiting for my letter, one woman exlaimed loudly, "He mees whi Messycan?!" "Ummmm, I'm sorry?" I said, "Wha he mees wihh? Messycan?" Processing, processing, processing......"Oh! Uhhhh, no, African." "Oh," she shouted, "That why he so prittay!"
• Makafui has green skinny jeans and they are the bomb!
• Happy FRIDAY!!!

Shameless Plug

So I've started selling Avon. I need to get it out there and get customers. I won't blog about it all the time and have you missing out on my adorable baby...promise. :) Here are some favorite things!

Reversalist

My mom got the 2 week kit to try this out and is totally in love!! She could go on and on, and I now have a great Christmas gift idea for her. :)

 

Holiday Silliness

 

 

If you know me well, you know I love all things Christmas....and Cinnamon is a favorite scent/flavor. I'm all over these $.69 lip balms!

Winter Hands

I can't wait to give this a try! We wash our hands a lot and they just get so dry in the winter. Skin So Soft has a great track record, I already know we'll love this.

mark.

 

 


mark. is another fave. It's Avon's younger, hip line of products and it's very cool. They have great hair styling products, fun and funky jewelry, makeup that's on the trendier side, skin care for younger skin and even clothes and accessories!

Okay, so that's my shameless plug. Go ahead and check it out and let me know if you have any questions! Click HERE!

Did I mention FREE shipping when you spend $30?!?!

Ok, done.

Another Sister!!

My baby brother got engaged!! I guess that means he's all grown up now. :)

I am so excited for him and super pumped for Avery to join our family! We love them so much!!!

Grocery Shopping....One MONTH at a Time

Warning: Boring homemaking blog.

Has anyone else noticed how expensive food is getting? Our grocery bill has been creeping up and up and up, so I decided to try something new. I shop for an entire month instead of just a week.

It's a big job! I hit up Sam's, Sprouts and H-E-B all on one day! I like it because it's already a pain in the butt to shop with a baby and lug everything upstairs, so why not do it once a month instead of once a week? (And, I only bring in the cold stuff and G has to get everything else once he comes home:) I've had several people ask about the logistics of this, so I thought I would share.

First, it takes some serious planning! I have to plan a menu for the entire month and then make a list off of that. That's 90 meals!! There are some repeats, but it's not identical week-to-week. I check the ads before I go and try to plan off of them, but sometimes I have to change the menu mid-shopping (like when roast was $5/lb...I think not!).

We go back to the store once to get milk and eggs and maybe some more fruit or veggies.

As far as produce goes, we eat all the stuff that goes bad quickly at the beginning of the grocery cycle; strawberries, salads, bananas, etc are all eaten right away. Then, we eat oranges, apples, pears, melons, squash and frozen veggies for the back half of the cycle.

I make a lot of some things and freeze portions, which is saving me some serious time and money. For instance, I got those gigantic cans of tomatoes at Sam's this week and made large amounts of Ghana Stew and Chili. We also freeze nearly all of the meat we buy, 5lb bags of shredded cheese, deli meat and juice concentrate.

The verdict? Huge savings and worth all the trouble! I save more than $100/month doing it this way, maybe even $200 (not including the gas and my time going to the store so many extra times) and really, it doesn't take that much longer to actually shop. I also find that I'm more inspired to cook and bake because there are so many more options in the house...aaaand, I feel like a total rock star when I finish my shopping! The only down side is that we barely have room to keep all the food. Currently, there is a case of bottled water, bag of sweet potatoes and 2 bags of apples sitting on the kitchen floor.

I don't mind...too much.

Floored

One of the things I am learning as a new mommy is to go with the flow whenever possible. It's the whole choose your battles thing. That is why my baby sleeps on the floor. Yes, on. the. floor.

Earlier this week, we were I was having a helluva time getting Tiny Togbe down. I went back to our room declaring defeat and that my sweet and wonderful baby could just cry! G had a bigger more wonderful parent heart at that moment and went in to take a turn. He made a pallet on the floor with M and they laid down together. After a little while, M fell asleep and G left. What? I didn't know this was possible! He's been on the floor ever since. Mind you, he has the most state of the art crib mattress on the market that is made to help regulate heat, reduce SIDS, blah, blah, blah but he would rather sleep on the floor. When I put him back in his crib in the night, he wakes up an hour later. So I'm going with the flow. My baby sleeps on the floor....and wakes in the morning happily playing on his tummy.

In other news, we have successfully weaned him off of Prilosec!! We are so excited to be medicine free (for real this time)!

And here is some cuteness for the day-I tried to post a video of M jumping, but it wouldn't work. Instead, how 'bout what Makafui looks like after my stylish African husband dresses him wacky and has a time with his hair? LOVE!

Wednesday Wanderings...

• This morning did NOT start the way I wanted it to.
• I'm leaning heavily on God and trying my hardest to trust him for the details.
• God always shows up for us...always.
• The cold snap we had this past weekend reminded me that the only part of winter I like is Christmas. I want it to be cold for Christmas, then it can go away.
• I will not complain about the weather, even if I do get cold.
• The Jammie Fairy came to our house! M has some cute new blanket sleepers...I super love them.
• I was praying for encouragement in any form God wanted to give it on the day the Jammie Fairy came. I'll take it! :)
• My husband sure does work his butt off. I'm so blessed by him.
• My husband is also SUPER modest and wouldn't tell people how hard he works or how well he is doing. I think that's hot.
• My husband is so hot.
• Entitlement is uuuuuugly. Like real ugly.
• I wonder what parts of my life I have a sense of entitlement...
• I love having the back door and windows open when the weather is nice. It makes me feel like we have the most simple, wonderful life.
• I started selling Avon....it's not just for old ladies. Word!
• I hope I am successful with sales and can make some pocket money or something.
• Since becoming a mom, I kind of think I can do anything. Really, anything. I haven't fallen flat on my face yet, but sometimes in the midst of the big things I'm doing, I do doubt that I'm as super as I thought I was.
• Funniest thing I've heard in a while; "What kind of coma is this?!" "Um.....do you know what a coma is?" "Oh, you are asleep for some time and then wake up! Seriously, he should answer his phone!"
• When my Nonnie and other family are in town at the end of the month, I am going to make a KILLER chocolate cake. It weighs 5 lbs!! Whatever they don't eat, I'm sure I can take care of.
• I love chocolate caramel apples. They seem so fallish to me.
• Chocolate caramel apples totally count as a fruit.
• Makafui leaned in real close to give me a kiss, but burped in my face instead. He is all boy.
• M has suddenly learned how to chew! It's pretty wonderful, he wants to try out this skill all the time now and thinks he can eat whatever we are eating.
• I'm not a hopeless romantic, but I totally believe in love and I want other people to as well.
• Everyday I look around our wonderful home and thank God for it. We have a beautiful apartment, and it's perfect for us.
• Algebra sucks...I'm just sayin'.
• George threw away the shoes I wore for the half. They were that bad.
• 1 week later G bought me some WAY better shoes-I'm back to getting my fitness on!
• I am maybe possibly thinking about doing the 3M Half Marathon in January. Maybe.
• International Delight's instant Pumpkin Spice Latte is just as good and way cheaper than the Starbuck's Via version. You're welcome.
• Fall and winter food is amazing- caramel apples, salted caramel cake balls, pumpkin bread, seasonal lattes, cranberry bliss bars, gingerbread and chocolate stuff, stuffing and so much more are just the bomb. So many delicious carbs!
• Those yummy foods are why I may be considering the 3M Half. If I start running/training then I can eat what I want.
• Nothing zests like a real Microplane, nothing.
• My parents are such a huge blessing to me. I can't even put it into words.
• I like Acorn Squash. I never seem to pick a good one though.
• My mom ALWAYS picks a good Acorn Squash.
• I'm doing a pretty big grocery shopping trip on Thursday, instead of making the real list, I am blogging about random things with lots of food thrown in. Hmmmm....
• One of Makafui's favorite play things of late is the Pepto Bismol bottle. Those little pills and that pink bottle are just too much fun. I laugh every time I see him shaking it up and down.
• Speaking of, Boy has got some rhythm! And no, he did not get it from the black/African side of the family. Don't stereotype.
• The thing about stereotypes is, well, usually they are true. Mostly.

Pumpkin Patch!!

We went to our very first Pumpkin Patch as a family. It was fun, but I know M will appreciate it a little more next year. :) It was also cold outside and Makafui had been quite the trooper who had been drug around town all weekend, with few naps. So he's not quite his normal smiley self, but I love the pics anyway.

I see so much of my family, especially my dad in this pic.

 

We love family! What a fun day!

End of an Era...

Just home from the hospital...

 

8 months later...

"I'm bustin' outta this joint!"

 

What has happened to my teeeny tiny baby?! The swing isn't safe anymore. Today, I put it away. This has been the single most used piece of baby equipment in our home, and I have loved it dearly. :) It was bittersweet putting it away. My baby is growing so fast!

8 Months!

We have official kicked into the , oh-my-goodness-time-is-flying stage. Makafui is 8 months today!! I cannot believe it! Each day I marvel at how wonderful life is with him as a part of it.

He's gotten another tooth and is working on 3 more. They've been giving him a hard time lately, but he's still quite the trooper!

He is oh-so-curious and I love it!

He goes from sitting to on his hands and knees, to his tummy all the time! Once he's on his tummy though, he can't figure out how to get back up to hands and knees.

He pulls up from sitting, but only onto his knees-thank God.

He still can't figure out how to go from laying down to sitting up. I'm not too bothered by this, it means we don't have to lower the crib yet. :)

He has figured out how to inch-worm nearly out of his swing. I'll have to say goodbye to that wonderful invention soon. :(

He has started saying the sounds ma and nuh. Pretty cool.

He will wave on occasion and say "hi", but with a very thick southern accent. Hilarious.

He's still ga-ga over his jumper. Too cute!

Hanging out in the nursery is a little bit of a crap shoot, sometimes he does super great (like today) and other days he doesn't last very long.

He cries when I leave the room sometimes and when I take something (usually my phone) away from him. These are both new developments.

He seriously seems to get cuter, sweeter, more fun and even more precious each day! So, so in love!