Looking for a job?

Times are hard. The economy is "dodgy". People are "fortunate" if they have a job right now... not a job they love... just a job.

So, I have an offer for you...

I STINK at puppy training! I'm seriously toying with the idea of hiring someone to train my puppy NOT to poop or pee in my house!

Anyone need a job? :)

**Oh! If you can potty train Riley in the process I would be eternally grateful!

Meet Annie

Here is the newest member of our family...

Annie is 8 weeks old.
She is a Black Lab mix (possibly some Chow)

I picked her up yesterday before I got Chandler from school.
Riley loved her right away!

She likes to nip quite a bit, but we're working on that.

We decided to go to a park at the University last night for a picnic dinner.
Annie went along for the ride...

She travels in the car VERY well.

When the girls crashed between 9:30 and 10 last night... so did Annie.
She claimed a spot on the bathroom floor and passed out!

Riley's favorite new thing is to come into the room and say, "where annie?"
or "there annie! she sweeping" (sleeping... no, i haven't trained her to sweep the kitchen... YET!)
or "NO NO Annie! NO NO!"
or "Mama! Annie!"

Basically anything to do with Annie...

Chandler is doing well with Annie.
She has taken her out to go potty a few times.
When she took her out this morning, Annie pooped. Here's our conversation...
C: "Mom. I need a napkin."
J: "Why Chan?"
C: "Annie pooped in the grass."
J: "That's ok. We are trying to teach her to go potty outside."
C: "But someone might step in it. I need to pick it up."
J: "Ummm... ok Chan. If you really want to."
C: "I do."

Uh... what? She WANTED to pick up dog poop!

She isn't my kid!! :)

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY ANNIE!

ho chee!

no, we're not moving to china or studying chinese! lol

that's riley's newest "catch phrase"... "ho chee!"

any idea what it means?

"HOLD ME!" or maybe "HOLD YOU!" since lots of kids say that when they want to be picked up!

it makes me laugh every time she says it! and she says it A LOT!

All About Riley

Wow! This kid cracks me up!

Here are a few pictures of Riley from the past few months...

February:

Riley and Me riding the carousel at Zoo Atlanta

NO FEAR!
Feeding the giraffes at Silver Springs

Licking Ranch Dressing out of a cup!

March:

Waiting for Chandler to get out of school

My "human scrapbook" as Denise called her!

April:

Sick day! :(

Salt on spaghetti-Os?

Apparently salt on spaghetti-Os is good.

Diva Riley

Date night at Chick-fil-A

Waiting to see the pediatrician!

not back... just yet...

i'm not really back to blogging just yet, but i had to share the conversation i just heard in the car:

Chandler needed a new school folder so she gave Riley her old school folder. While we were in teh carpool line, Riley thought it was funny to drop it and laugh then call for me to pick it up.

C: "Riley. Stop dropping that folder."
R: giggling "Mommy. Up"
C: "Riley. Stop it. I really mean it."
R: giggling "Mommy. Up"
C: "Riley. Look at my eyebrows! They are not happy!"
R: hysterical laughter!!!

I admit I started cracking up too!

J: "Chan? What did you just say?
C: "I said, 'look at my eyebrows. they are not happy!'"
J: "That's what I thought you said. You are a funny kid."
C: "I know!"

Has it really been over 2 weeks?

Wow! I haven't blogged in over 2 weeks!

Life has just been CRAZY! Evan was here for 2 weeks and we've been trying to get back into our "regular" routine... if there is such a thing!

I just haven't felt like blogging...

and sadly, my Project 365 went down the tubes when my camera decided to stop working properly. It was just too hard to keep up with it using my camera on my phone. :(

But here's a picture I took a few minutes ago...

is it ok to bribe my kid with M&Ms to make her poop in the potty?

If it were working, I would say yes... so far, no such luck!

Oh yeah! I forgot to mention that Riley turned 2 on March 2nd! Happy Birthday Baby Girl!!

A letter to Diego

Dear Diego,

While I can appreciate the values and education that you and your cousin, Dora, are attempting to pass along to preschoolers, I do have a small complaint.

You see, my daughter, Riley, is 23 months old and as of late has developed a slightly, albeit cute, obsession with your television show.

Normally, this is not too much of a problem except that she wants to watch your show even when it is not on. I have not yet been able to teach her about the structure and schedule of the tv guide.

So, in order to remedy this small problem, I have begun setting my DVR to record new episodes of your show. Problem solved, right?

Well, in today's episode, Cousin Dora made a guest appearance. The combination of her two most beloved cartoon characters on the television all at once was too much for Riley to contain!

It could only have been more exciting if you had been rescuing Blue and Magenta from the evil clutches of Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper (and let's not forget Baby Paprika) while Joe (or Steve) narrated the adventure.

Ok, but back to the excitement...

This caused Riley to run down the hallway screaming "Day-go! Dora! Day-go! Dora!"

Unfortunately, this was during Jeremiah's nap.

I was using nap time to get some much needed work done around my house. *sigh* I was being quite productive until this moment.

So, Diego. I appreciate the entertainment value that you bring to my home. I appreciate that I can often sneak in a shower while you memorize my child with stories of 3 toed sloths and baby beluga whales.
I just wish your show didn't come on during nap time!

Sincerely (yet frustrated),

Jennifer Miles

Ah, to be 2 again...

Well, 23 months, but that's close enough, right?

42/365

Oh how desperately I wanted to lay down and take a nap this afternoon!! Brandon found Riley laying on the sofa, sound asleep.

**Yesterday's post has been edited to add the picture that I couldn't get to yesterday.

Why I hate doctor's appointments...

Today was full of appointments for me. Really I only had 2, but you know how long to have to wait anytime you go to the doctor. Two appointments turned into a whole day!

You may remember I had surgery back in September... if not, and you want to read about it you can find the story here.

And for the entertaining pre and post surgery pictures click here.

Anyway, today I had a follow up mammogram...

That's about all I'll say about that. :)

Later in the day I had another appointment. Because it was the only appointment I could get on a fairly less hectic day, I couldn't be picky about the time. I had to pick up Chandler from school early and take her AND Riley to my appointment.

I'd like to tell you that this is how my kids acted the entire time...

40/365

Unfortunately, that would be a lie.

Because this is actually how they acted...

Ok, in all fairness to Chandler, Riley was really the only one acting this this.
However, Chandler did her fair share of pestering about how long it was taking for the doctor to see us.

Yes, Chandler it took a long time. I agree with you! *sigh* It always does.

One of a kind...

That's my Riley...

29/365

Just recently she has started sleeping with a bed FULL of babies!

She arranges them all in her crib.
Brandon asks her, "Where are you supposed to sleep??"
She just smiles.


This is her at dinner tonight...

"Hey! Think I'll put this empty carry out box on my head!"

"It fits!"

"Did you see me??"

She is CRAZY! We never know what she might do!!

Meet Jeremiah

Isn't he adorable?

27/365

Jeremiah is the something "new" I mentioned in yesterday's post.
I got permission from his mom to blog about him.

His mom is a friend of mine and a teacher at Chandler's school. She and her husband found out that the place they were leaving Jeremiah during the day changed their hours of operation so she asked if I would be willing to watch him on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

I obviously said yes. :)

He's a very sweet boy and Riley just loved having him here today.

We need to work on her "quiet voice". I never realized how LOUD she is during the day!! Good grief that girl is noisy!

J: "Riley. Shhhh. We have to be quite. Jeremiah is sleeping."

R: At the top of her lungs, "SHHHHHH!!! BEBE IS SLEEPING" (as she RAN down the hallway past the room where he was sleeping)

I also discovered that the reason he was having a hard time falling asleep this morning was that Riley was going in and "checking on him" every time he made a bit of noise.

"Hey Bebe!"

"No No Bebe"

"HEY!"

Interpreted as, "Hey! I'm trying to watch cartoons! Get away from me!!"

In "training" news:

You're reading this post which means I survived not only the first HORRIBLE day of running, but also tonight's run. *I didn't have to put my head between my knees tonight... that's a step in the right direction!

No picture to post tonight.

There are 2 reasons for that...

1. I'm disappointed in myself. Yesterday I ran 2/3 and walked 1/3. Today I WALKED 2/3 and ran 1/3... It felt like my heart and lungs might explode so I had to walk my last lap instead of running it.

2. I didn't look nearly as cute tonight. Which means it's a really good thing my heart and lungs didn't explode... I would have hated for anyone at the hospital to see me the way I looked. :)
(I'm kidding... sort of!)

No running tomorrow. Wednesdays are our off day. :) Hallelujah!

Her father's daughter...

This would make me gag...

18/365

Riley enjoying a carton of cherry tomatoes.

I think more of them ended up on the floor than in her mouth, but it did keep her busy for a few minutes!

To the people at Play-Doh

To whom it may concern,

I would like to thank you for having the forethought to create Play-Doh in a NONTOXIC form.

This is not the first time I've thought this.
I thought it once while I was working at a daycamp and one of the kids took a bite out of her Play-Doh creation.
I thought it once while I was babysitting and one of the kids fed some Play-Doh to her sibling.
I thought it once while working in a classroom full of 2 year old at church and I noticed a big bite taken out of the Play-Doh as I was collecting it.

The reason I write to you today is because I've never been more thankful for your NONTOXIC Play-Doh than I am today.

You see, my daughter, Riley, is 22 months old and she has recently discovered the enjoyment that is sitting at the table and rolling Play-Doh with a rolling pin.

She has taken to doing this almost daily.

I've suspected that she might be "taste testing" her projects from time to time, but I've never actually had proof.

That is, until today.

I have just discovered that several of our 2 ounce containers of Play-Doh now contain significantly less than 2 ounces.

Apparently that lovely light brown, beautiful bubble gum pink and the shocking green apple must be the most tasty. Maybe it's just that she's a fan of those colors. She is after all, my daughter.

Don't worry, she's an equal opportunity taster. All colors have been tasted.

I guess you can say Riley has literally tasted the rainbow.

Sincerely and with all my thanks and appreciation for my child's safety,

Jennifer Miles

*sigh*

This has just been one of THOSE days.

I'm not even really sure why... it just has.

We got off to a rocky start this morning. There was a cup of coffee, a small child and a brand new off white turtle neck shirt all involved... just as we were walking out the door to church. *sigh*

Church.
Lunch at Cracker Barrel with Brian & Trish.

Home to clean...
We all helped clean the girls' room... it was a disaster!

I sat down for a minute to help Chandler with a Mario Kart race course (Mario Kart for the Wii was her birthday gift from me and Brandon)... in the midst of helping Chandler, Riley was wiggling all over my lap... screaming... she popped up and hit my chin with her head... the result? I now have a loose bottom front tooth and a tiny chip in my top front tooth. *sigh*

Worked in the kitchen... Washed the top of the fridge. :) Cleaned the counters. Washed them down with disinfectant wipes.

Washed 4 loads of laundry and still have atleast 2 more to do. *sigh*

Brandon put a frozen pizza in the oven for dinner.

Riley refused to eat her pizza. Instead, she ate the cheese out of my salad.

Apparently she's still hungry... this is what I just found...

11/365

Please ignore my nasty floor... it's time to mop!

Riley carried her stool into the kitchen and helped herself to several handfuls of Hershey's Kisses. *sigh*

Is it bedtime yet?

1st Monday Mumblings of 2009

1. Tomorrow Chandler goes back to school. I have mixed feelings about it. I've enjoyed having her around over the Christmas break and she and Riley have been getting along really well the last few days. Riley will miss her while she's off at school... and probably be bored to death with me!

2. Chandler will be 6 on Wednesday. She's excited about taking cupcakes to her class.

3. We are taking her bowling for her birthday. She is excited!

4. Over the past week Riley has ended up in our bed several nights. She just starts SCREAMING out after being asleep for several hours. I think it's her ears again... *sigh*

5. Last night she slept across me... yes, across... her head and neck were draped over my neck. Not comfortable for either of us. Brandon tried to help me out by moving her once... actually it was probably more because she had her feet in his face... but she ended up right back where she started!

6. She probably didn't get the best night's sleep, but I'm sure it was better than the sleep that Brandon and I got!

7. Since starting this list I have been interrupted 6 times...

1st it was Riley:
R: "Bebe? Bebe?"
J: "Looking for your baby?"
R: "Uh huh."
J: "Let's find the baby."

Then she came back...
R: "Bebe nigh nigh."
J: "Does the baby need a blanky to go night night?"
R: "Uh huh."
J: "Let's go find the blanket."

Then she came back...
R: "Bebe! Bebe!" Pointing her the baby's mouth
J: "Does the baby need a bottle?"
R: "Uh huh."
J: "Let's go find the baby's bottle."

We found 2 baby bottles!

Then it was Chandler:
C: "I need a baby."
J: "You know where they are."
C: "I want the one just like Riley's" (thanks to Aunt Amanda we have TWIN babies! it saves us a lot of fights!)
J: "You had it yesterday. Where did you put it?"
C: "Oh yeah! Thanks mom!"

Then she came back...

C: "Riley won't share a baby bottle with me."
J: "Did you ask her?"
C: "Yes. She won't."
J: "Let's go ask again."

Riley is sitting happily on the sofa watching cartoons and feeding her baby from TWO bottles!

J: "Riley? Can Chandler's baby have a bottle?
R: Silence
J: "Riley? Chandler's baby is hungry. Can she have a bottle?"
R: Silence
J: "Riley? I think Chandler's baby is crying. Can Chandler have a bottle to feed the baby?"
R: "Bebe cry?"
J: "Yeah. Can she have a bottle."
R: "No."
C: "MOM!"
J: "Hey Chan. Why don't you feed your baby cereal?" (She was having frosted mini wheats for breakfast)
C: "She doesn't like them. I think she's allergic!"

*sigh*

8. I downloaded a new ring tone on my phone. Super Massive Black Hole by Muse... more commonly known as "the song during the baseball scene in Twilight!"

9. Now I'm just waiting for someone to call me so I can hear it...

10. Maybe the nice guys from Lowe's will be the 1st to call me! :) That will be 2 reasons to smile... my cool new ringtone and a new front door!!

Haaaaaappy Monday!

So far so good!

Yep, it's only day 2 of my Project 365, but I'm proud of myself for just remembering to carry my camera in the diaper bag today! :)

Brandon had to go back to work this morning... boo!

The girls and I took it easy.
We slept in a bit... the girls slept in a bit more than I did... that may be a first in our family!!
We were just lazy.
I did some laundry.
The girls watched cartoons.
Riley played with the Hotwheels racetrack we bought them for Christmas.

About noon we started getting ready for the day because...

We had a DATE!

Melanie met us at the movie theatre with Daphne, Micah, Gabe and Myles!
If Riley had been sitting in her own seat (instead of crawling all over my lap) we would have taken up an entire row of seats!

We saw Bolt. I know it has been out for a while, but we had not gotten around to seeing it yet.
It was HYSTERICAL!

If you haven't seen it, you should. Rhino, the hamster made me laugh over and over again! Although, I think Melanie laughed harder and louder than anyone else in the theatre!

I wanted to get a picture of all of us in the lobby after the movie, but it just didn't happen.

However, on the way to the theatre, I passed my camera to Chandler and asked her to take a picture of me...

So begins, PROJECT CHANDLER

I've realized that there are SO many things to learn from seeing life from a child's perspective.

Such as:
I need to pay more attention to what my hair looks like from the BACK!
and
I look incredibly tense when I drive... I don't feel tense, but I look it!

There will be more installments in this project... be on the lookout! :)

And picture #2 in my Project 365:

2/365

This picture says SO much about Riley and who she is right now.

1. She is FOCUSED!
2. She is determined!
3. She is a connoisseur of movies.
4. She loves CARS! Not just the movie, but actual cars... hence the Hotwheel racetrack.

On my list for today...

Here's what today's to-do list looked like before I went to bed last night...

*Get a shower
*Get Chandler ready for school
*Get Riley changed
*Take Chandler to school
*Feed Riley breakfast
*Sort the dirty clothes
*Start the laundry
*Go to Chattanooga for a dentist appointment
*Finish my Twilight movie review
*Send a few e-mails
*Feed Riley lunch
*Put Riley down for a nap
*Start more laundry
*Clean the living room
*Get Chandler from school
*Start more laundry
*Work on dinner
*Eat dinner
*Pack, pack, pack

Nothing too exciting.

Here's what happened...

*Awake at 3:30am to Chandler yelling, "Mom! Dad! I'm gonna throw up!"
*Brandon takes care of Chandler
*I take care of Riley who has been startled awake by Chandler's yelling
*Tuck Chandler into my bed
*Console Riley for about 45 minutes
*Fall asleep on Chandler's twin bed with Riley poking me in the face until she passes out
*Awake at 6:00am to go crawl back into my bed
*Awake at 7:00am to Chandler asking if she can go to the bathroom to throw up!
*Get a quick shower... hoping that Chandler doesn't get sick while I'm in there!
*Make Chandler a bed out on the sofa
*Get a cup of coffee... finally!
*Startled to death to find Riley standing behind me as I pour my coffee... I forgot she wasn't in her crib!
*Ask Brandon to cancel my dentist appointment
*Console Chandler after Riley smacks her in the head with a "Little People" van
*Sort the laundry
*Start a load of laundry
*Watch "Elf" with the girls
*Send a few e-mails
*Give both girls medicine
*Make lunch for Riley
*Put Riley down for a nap
*Fall asleep on the love seat watching Dora
*Wake to Chandler climbing on top of me!
*Finish my Twilight Movie Review
*Get Riley up from her nap...
*Take the sheets off of her crib... because she took off her pants and diaper at some point and wet the bed.
*Take some Tylenol............

Why am I choosing to embarrass myself?

I saw this posted on Heather's blog as well as Renata's blog... check them out!

15 years ago, I was...
*13 years old
*In the 8th grade at Osceola Middle School in Ocala, FL
*The drum major of our middle school band for the Ocala Christmas Parade
*playing the flute
(Sorry, no picture for this one... I honestly looked, but the 8th grade was such an awkward year... I probably burned all pictures from that time in my life!)

10 years ago, I was...
*18 years old
*A high school graduate... graduated with honors :)
*Spending my last summer at home doing community theatre
*Moving to Tennessee in the fall to attend Lee University
*Majoring in Music Education
*Playing the oboe in the Symphonic Band

That's me on the right

The only picture you may ever see of me dancing... I'm just to the right of "Frank Butler"
The show was "Annie Get Your Gun"

Freshman year of college in the Symphonic Band
That's Brandon sitting behind us... funny that we barely knew each other in the picture!

Me and Brandon coming home from a mission's trip to Brazil... we were only friends back then.

5 years ago, I was...
*23 years old
*Becoming a mom for the 1st time in January
*Married for 2 years
*Graduating with a Bachelor's of Science in Business Administration in May
*Spending 7 months as a stay at home mom after graduating

My first good look at Chandler

Chunky cheeks!

Graduation was extra special as a mom of a 4 month old baby girl!

Thanksgiving 2003

3 years ago, I was...
*25 years old
*Working as a Ministry Assistant at our church
*Married for 4 years
*Excited that we were buying our 1st house!

Our house just before we bought it
It looks different now :)

Chandler and Me December 2005... the pile of notebooks on the table reminds me of all the work I had to bring home with me!

1 year ago, I was...
*27 years old
*A mom of two beautiful girls
*Married for 6 years
*Staying at home full time!

Riley was born in March 2007

Just me: Mother's Day 2007

My Family on Thanksgiving 2007
Dad and Mom
My Sister,Erin, and her husband, Joel
Me, Brandon, Chandler and Riley

This past year, I was...
*watching my baby have surgery
*watching Chandler turn 5 years old
*watching Riley turn ONE!
*going to my 1st UGA football game
*becoming obsessed with Twilight
*off on an adventure to Australia!
*having life changing surgery
*learning to take time for myself.

Riley's cyst removal: January 2008

Chandler's 5th Birthday Photo Shoot

Riley's 1st Birthday Photo Shoot

Our 1st UGA football game!

My Twilight Obsession!

Me & Charlie the Koala in Sydney, Australia!

Me just before surgery

Just Me: October 2008