The Importance of Overnight Diapers

We currently have three types of diapers at our house, regular Luvs, Swimmers and the Huggies Overnites.  Last night I got quite the reminder of just how important those Overnites are....

Lets start this story with the fact that we got home later than usual.  We were trying to just get dinner done, then Lyla needed a bath then I was taking her up to bed.  Well she just didn't want to cooperate with any of my plans.  After we finally got some dinner in her we went to the bathroom.

She is really hit and miss right now when it comes to peeing on the potty.  Some days she wants to try, some days she wants nothing to do with it, I'm not pushing it right now.  Honestly, having her potty trained isn't something I'm striving for at this moment, so when she is 100% ready, I will be too.

So I have to fight with her to get her clothes off and her earplugs in.  Then she decides she wants to sit on her potty for a little while.  She didn't pee and I finally put my foot down and said it was time to take a bath.  We were on a tight schedule, no time for messing around with this. 

Well she was acting all crazy in the bath, just total chaos.  But I got her clean and started draining the water from the tub.  She then stands up and pees....  So we had to have a talk about if she is in the tub and needs to pee she needs to tell me to put her on her potty.  Blah blah blah... So I take her to go put her pjs on.

At this point I'm exhausted and flustered and just want to get her to bed so I can go to bed too.  I throw her pjs on, take her upstairs and we read a book in our chair.  She was so tired she fell asleep on my lap (which rarely happens anymore), so I pick her up and lay her down in her crib.  And that's when I saw what I did...

Her diaper was sticking out of the top of her pj pants... her DAYTIME DIAPER....  SHIT!

So then I was faced with what to do.... Do I dare wake her up to change her in to a nighttime diaper?  I was so tired and just wanted to take a shower and go to bed myself.  I mean, she just emptied out in the bath tub, how much could she really pee during the night?  And really, aren't those nighttime diapers just a money scheme anyways?  Do they really make a difference??

YES, YES THEY DO!  For the record the Nitetime diapers are worth every freaking penny!

Because I decided to just let her sleep. 

I woke up to her crying at 4:00 this morning and I just knew.  I had to go in, get her changed and cleaned up and I brought her back to bed with me.  Then when I got up this morning I had to go strip her bed and do laundry.... 

What a great way to start a Thursday morning!

Memorial Day Weekend Highlights

Gary worked on this all weekend:

No, I don't have a before picture.  Imagine lots of nice bushes and plants when we moved in - I did not take care of them - so they were taken over by weeds.  Trust me, this is a huge improvement! 

I spent Sunday evening like this:

Lyla decided she REALLY likes corn on the cob... sadly I did not get a picture, it was pretty fantastic though!

Other than that we ran lots of errands, met Ashley for breakfast on Saturday, had Gary's friend and his wife over Saturday evening, and spent lots of time in the backyard Sunday and Monday. 

Now its back to work and prepping for Lyla's birthday on Sunday!

5 Things Friday - Favorite Summer Songs

5 Things Friday - 5 Favorite Songs that just make it feel like SUMMER!

1.  Summer Girls - LFO
ABSOLUTELY MY FAVORITE SUMMER SONG OF ALL TIME!  I don't care how old I get, how bad a mood I might be in, you put this song on and all is well with the world again!

2.  Still Not a Player (I Just Crush A Lot) - Big Punisher
I remember one summer when I was at the beach, it was the year this came out and your heard it everywhere you went.  Therefore it always feels like summer to me when I hear it!

3.  Bye Bye Bye - NSync
I have no explanation for this one.... I just love it and I love it more driving in the car with the windows down!

4.  Young - Kenny Chesney
It reminds me of summers when I lived at home.  Or all the concerts I've been to sitting outside on a hot summer night!

5.  Kokomo - Beach Boys
This song just makes me want to sit on a beach somewhere.  I love this song and the Beach Boys!

Please let me know what your favorite summer songs are!  I know there are tons that I can't think of right now!  Happy Memorial Day aka Start of Summer!  :)

Lifelong Friends

There is something to be said for a lifelong friend.  My lifelong friend is Miss Erin Ree.

I've been feeling just "off" lately.  Stressed out, not happy, just generally not feeling right.  Then I got to spend ALL DAY Saturday with Erin.  Just me and her and nobody else.  It was the most fantastic day I have had in I can't tell you how long!  And since then, I am feeling so much better, its like I got to reboot!

Erin and I have known each other since a very young age, I can't say exactly how old, but I can't remember a time when she ever wasn't in my life.  We grew up on the same road, out in the sticks where there weren't a whole lot of kids to pick from to be friends with!  So who knows, maybe we turned out to be best friends by default - lack of any other options!  But I don't think that's the case, because if it was, when we finally moved out and got in to the real world we would have moved on from each other and we didn't.

We have been through it all together, boys, deaths, graduations, weddings & births (mine, hers are coming soon), we know all there is to know about each other.  When we are together there aren't any background stories that you have to give to tell a current story.  We don't have to give any kind of explanation for why our families are the way they are.   We are just honest and we understand each other.

We find the same stupid things hilarious and we understand why the other gets upset.  We have changed a lot from the little girls we used to be, but we are changing and growing the the same direction and I couldn't be happier about that!

I spent over 12 hours with Erin on Saturday.  I was so sad to see the day come to an end and I genuinely can't wait until we have the time to do it again! 

5 Things Friday - Stupid things people do to their cars

Top 5 Stupid Things People Do To Their Cars (in my opinion)

1.  Stick People Family Stickers

I notice that this seems to be the new cool thing to do for all the soccer moms out there.  I think they are ridiculous!

2.  Team Flags Hanging Out The Window

Gary has WVU ones... I hate them!

3.  "In Memory of Mom/Grandpa/whoever"

I have never understood these.  People get those stickers on their back windows dedicating the car to whoever passed away.  Unless you used your inheritance money to buy the car, this just makes absolutely no sense to me.

4.  Lifting Your Wipers Off of the Windshield
Whenever there is a chance of the windows icing up some people I know will go out in the parking lot and lift the wipers up off of the windshield to keep them from freezing to it.  I get it, it protects the wipers, makes them last longer and all that.  But really all it makes me want to do is go and smack them down!

5.  Sunshades

Along the same lines as lifting the wipers, I understand the purpose of them, but I still make fun every time I see a car with one.  My favorite are the ones that look like big sunglasses!

Heard Around the House #10

Me:    Lyla what would you like to have for dinner tonight?
Lyla:   2 Chicken
Me:    Ok, and what do you want to have with your 2 chicken?
Lyla:   (looking at me like how stupid are you) DIP!

Duh... I mean, what else do you have with chicken?!?!?!

I like to pretend I'm a photographer!

I like to pretend I'm a photographer and I'm cheap.  The result of these two thing is me dressing Lyla up, taking her to the park and doing our own 2 year pictures instead of going and paying for a professional to do it!  I took 37 pictures, these are the  best ones:

I think we have a couple that will work!  And I'm positive she had more fun than she would have at a studio!

Happy Mother's Day to the BEST Mom Ever!

The Best Mom Ever would be my mom in my opinion, just in case you weren't sure!

And just so everyone is aware, after a quick search I have realized that I don't have ANY pictures of just me and mom since Lyla was born.... this is officially the last one!  All pictures either have Lyla or Em in them!  hahaha

I love my mom dearly.  I would not say she is my best friend, she never wanted to be my best friend, she is my mom.  She always likes to tell me, "there are just some things a mom doesn't want to know" whenever I start to get carried away and share just a little bit too much information about something.  No, I wouldn't call her my best friend, but I do talk to her more than anyone else in my life.  We talk on the phone, text, email, whatever the form of contact may be at least once a day.  And on the rare days that it doesn't happen, I always feel a little off until I talk to her.

I have learned a lot from my mom over the years and she is still teaching me new things all the time.  She taught me not to take things too seriously, what seems like such a huge deal right now isn't going to matter a year from now.  She has taught me to be honest, there isn't any good that can come from telling lies.  The truth will always come out in the end.  She taught me to enjoy reading.  She taught me lots of basic things too, how to do laundry, how to drive, although she did forget to teach me how to cook... but I guess there is still time for that!

We are a lot alike when it comes to some things.  Her and I prefer to plan our outings around what, where and when we are going to eat.  If we are going out for a day of shopping, we decide where to go based on what restaurants are near which stores!  We both have a very warped sense of humor.  When I still lived at home we used to love to watch beauty pageants on tv and make fun of the dresses and hair and how they would answer different questions, we also get the same fun out of watching the Olympics! 

We are also quite different.  I have only heard my mom say swear words very few times in my life.  When she does, you know its bad.  I on the other hand talk like a sailor (I think I get that from my dad)!  I like to go out and be in crowds, she would much rather stay home.

She always had funny rules for us growing up, some examples:
You could only have a band aid if there was blood.  If you want one just for the feel better aspect, forget it!
When you are sick, you should eat eggs.  Don't know why, but that's what we do.
When we were learning to drive she would always say "Watch your speed....".  Yes mom, I'm watching it get faster, thanks for pointing it out... haha

My mom has set a pretty high standard for me to live up to as a mom, but I'm doing my best!  I just hope someday Lyla can have same the respect and love for me that I have for my mom!

5 Things Friday - Guilty Pleasures

I'm starting a new thing I'm going to call "5 Things Friday".  Basically a list of five things for any random topic of my choosing that week!  This week:

Guilty Pleasures

1.  Boy Bands
I love boy bands, the old ones like New Kids on The Block, not so old like Nsync and 98 Degrees, and the new ones like One Direction.  Love them!

2.  Cup O Noodles
I love a good cup of noodles.  I don't care that there is enough sodium in them to last you a week or that they cost like 30 cents each....  They are so yummy! 

3.  Books for Young Adults
You know, Twilight, Harry Potter and the like.  All the books written for people who are obviously younger than I am!  I love to read them because when I'm reading for pleasure I prefer to not have to think too hard!

4.  Chick Flicks/Romantic Comedies
I don't care how cheesy they are or the fact that you can figure out the entire plot of the movie in the first 5 minutes!  I enjoy them!

5.  Chips
I try really hard not to have any in the house because when I do, I have no control!  You know what they say, you can't eat just one!

You won't like me when I'm angry....

Some people say I have anger issues, some say a bad temper, some people just call me a bitch.  It is what it is I suppose.  My favorite is when Gary says I'm "Hulking Up"!  I think that's truly the best description!  When I'm happy everything is fine.  I'm nice, easy to get along with, just a sweet girl.  But when you don't treat me or someone I care about with the respect that they deserve, then I am not going to be happy about it and I'm not going to have a problem telling you about it.  I also refuse to be walked on, I'm too strong for that.

You may also see the Hulk appear if I get too hungry.... but that's a whole different subject entirely! 

Changes Changes All Around!

If you are one of those extra, super, duper observant people you will notice that the blog has a new name! 

No longer being referred to as the "Burge Fam" blog, I have changed it to "Kate's Kaleidoscope". 

The definition of kaleidoscope is a constantly changing pattern or sequence of objects or elements.  I think this is a good description of my life.  Things don't stay the same for long!  If they did, we would all be so bored! 

When I started this blog a year ago... yes, a year has already passed.... I wanted to keep everyone updated on Lyla and how quickly she was growing and changing.  No worries, I'm still going to keep everyone updated on the little Bean, but I have realized that I really enjoy writing.  I enjoy just jotting things down that are on my mind and those things often don't have anything to do with the "Burge Fam", they have to do with me. 

I have seen some fun ideas on different blogs that I am thinking about incorporating here, I haven't totally figured it all out just yet.  But I'm excited about it!  So stay tuned!

Back to reality after a FANTASTIC Weekend!

As great as it is to spend time with our family and friends, my favorite weekends are when its just the three of us doing whatever we feel like doing!  And this past weekend was exactly that.

Friday night we went to Home Depot to get some supplies for working outside at our house.  Then we had dinner at Wendys (fancy, I know!).  But hey, we like it and we had coupons!  And Lyla is much more comfortable in that sort of environment.  She was standing in the booth next to me eating her nuggets and dancing to the music they had playing in the dining room.  The next thing we know she is shaking her butt in the air and says "Shake Your Butt"!  hahahaha  It was fantastic!

Saturday morning I needed to run up to the mall for a couple things and Gary and Lyla came with me.  I guess it was "Free Comic Book Day", Gary could tell you all about it, but I'm not a nerd like him, so I don't know anything about it.  But he took Lyla to the comic book store while I did my own thing and she was just as excited as he was!  It was cute seeing them together!

Saturday afternoon Lyla and I went on what seemed like a thousand walks, but I didn't care, the weather was so great I loved being outside and spending time with her!  While we did that Gary was busy pulling out plants/weeds along the side of our house.

Saturday was also Nathan's birthday!  We didn't get to see him on Saturday so we had to send him a special message to be sure that he knew we didn't forget!

Sunday Lyla and I went and did more shopping while Gary kept working out in the yard.  Sunday afternoon I painted Lyla's toenails!  I have been waiting almost two years to paint those piggys! 

She loves them!  She kept taking her shoes off to look at her "pink toes"!

So that's a quick rundown of our weekend.  It was perfect!  :)

Heard Around the House - In the Car - She really just never stops talking!

I have been wanting to do some "Heard Around the House posts" but they all keep piling up in my head and I just don't get around to posting them.

Lyla has turned in to quite the little chatterbox!  It doesn't matter where we are, she just talks nonstop!  And she doesn't even care if there isn't anybody to talk to, she has no problem just rambling to herself!

Here are some of my favorites lately:

She likes to say that she goes to "work" every day, not daycare.  So after I picked her up one day we had this conversation in the car:

Me:  So what did you do at work today?
Lyla:  Make money.
Me:  How did you make money?
Lyla:  Hot Dogs.
Me:  So you sold hot dogs and made money?
Lyla:  Yes.

Later when I was retelling this to Gary:

Gary:  Lyla, can I have some of your money?
Lyla:  No!  :) 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Her and I sitting in the back of the car on the way home.

Lyla:  (saying something I totally can't understand)
Me:  Finger?
Lyla:  (repeating whatever it is I can't make out)
Me:  Touchdown?
Lyla:  (repeating it once again, annoyed that I can't understand)
Me:  Can you use it in a sentence??
Lyla:  hahahaha Mimi funny!
Me:  I will take that as a no.... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She hasn't been really crazy about eating pasta dishes lately.  I made stuffed shells for dinner last night and wasn't sure if she would eat it or not, but figured I would give it a try.  I put her plate of shells in front of her.

Lyla:  MMMMMM Red Tacos!!

And she ate them!  So Gary and I just called them red tacos all night!  Whatever works right??

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Busy Saturday

Saturday's schedule was booked solid from start to finish.  First thing in the morning Gary had to go to work for a couple of hours so Lyla and I were trying to use that time to get a few things done around the house, like laundry.  Well my hands were full trying to get her and the laundry basket downstairs, I put my cell phone in the basket... and forgot about it.  Forgot all about it until I saw it falling in to the washing machine that was halfway full of water.... ugh  I yanked it out of there and took it all apart and put it in a bowl of rice.  Amazingly enough when I put it back together on Sunday it actually worked and is still working!!  But it wasn't a very good way to start the day.
When Gary got home he got ready and we headed to WashPA for things that we had going on there the rest of the day.  One of the things was a celebration dinner for my cousin who graduated from Pitt.  It was really nice getting to see all of our family from around the country (Texas, Colorado)!  All the cousins were there except for one, which for us is about as good as you can hope to get!  We got a couple pictures of the whole gang.  I hope some of the family can share theirs with me because when I got my camera and looked whoever was using mine only took two pictures...  But they are still great pictures nonetheless!

After the party my cousin Kristen came back to our house to stay.  We had so much fun!  I really wish that we didn't live so far apart because we always have a blast any time we are together! 

Edit:  Grandma just sent me two more pics from the party!