Tissue Pom Poms

I have been working on decorations for Xavier's birthday for about a month now and now his birthday is just right around the corner. Tissue Pom Poms are super easy, cheap, and cute!

1.) you will need about 8 sheets of tissue paper

2.) fold the paper in about one inch sections. Not back and forth. The sections need to be on top of each other.

3.) then secure it in the middle with a pipe cleaner or something similar. I used a paper clip for these.

4.) next, cut the ends off either at a point or rounded.

5.) then separate each sheet one at a time.

*at first one side will look flat just keep messing with it and tweak it to your liking.

6.) Last, tie a string through the pipe cleaner and hang it from the ceiling.

For some reason the pictures keep getting out of order after I post them.

What's it all about?

I have taken this past month to think about this blog to try to find a direction. Nobody reads it, because I mean who is interested in my life. People have their own lives full of their own crazy. I noticed the only time I really get any hits on my blog is on the craft post. So right now I am thinking of going that route and making it strictly a craft blog. I'm not certain about it yet. I'm going make my final decision by this weekend. The only other options are crafts and some personal things but more like something that I like or the boys sports or something really special. If not either of those then I may just leave it alone.

Therapy

Keelan went to his first therapy session today. She just asked us a lot of questions and Keelan played with toys. She had a timer and set it for 15 minutes and only let him play with one thing at a time. Which ever toy he chose he had to play with for the entire 15 minutes. After the timer went off he could pick another toy if he wanted and would have to clean up the toy he was playing with. She has all the toys organized on bins. All the cars in a bin, all the farm animals, dinosaurs etc. and he did great with it! I was shocked. I don't know how we'll he would do with it at home but I want to try it out. Right now he is going to go every 2 weeks. And we have goals set for 6 months out. He is going to see a psychiatrist in January and he may be able to help with his sleeping. I am just praying and keeping my fingers crossed that this works because I can't take much more.

Halloween!

So Halloween is one week from today. I love Halloween. Not as much as I love Christmas but it pulls a strong 2nd for sure. Some Halloweens I dress up most of the time I don't. This year my boys are going to a Halloween party which doubles as one of my friends baby's 1st birthday party. So they are excited about that. Malique is going to be a vampire football player ( was suppose to be a zombie football player originally but changed his mind. Even though is makes no sense who am I to say what he can be for Halloween. Keelan is going to be bumblebee the transformer and Xavier is going to be a monster. I have a mandatory managers meeting on Halloween day and they have requested we dress up and are having a costume contest. So I guess I have to dress up. I don't want to be the only one that isn't in a costume. Problem is I am so broke it isn't even funny! So I had to come up with something that could work with stuff I already have. We have a huge ugly scary pirate mask but I don't have an outfit to go and I'm not wearing that thing all day. So then I thought maybe I could be a woman from the 50's but I don't have a dress. So I decided to be a chola. A chola is a Latina gangster type girl I believe. But they wear plaid shirts khaki pants and bandanas. They are best known for their makeup though. The makeup is actually really beautiful. And I am pretty good at makeup so I'm excited. I'll be sure to post pictures!!!

This is a picture I got off the Internet. This is close to the look I'm going for.

Update: I did not dress up like a chola. I got nervous about it because it was a work party and I didn't want to be inappropriate. Once I got there and saw everyone else I wish I would have but I didn't I played it safe. I went as a football player. I looked super cute though. My babies had a great Halloween. We went to a friends neighborhood and walked with them. Xavier just wanted to be carried the entire time.

Pinterest!

I went into a Pinterest coma today. I seriously looked at it all day long! But I have so many great ideas and things I can't wait to try. Especially for Xavier's birthday. Here are just a few of the things I pinned today:

A beautiful Saturday!

We had a beautiful Saturday filled with football. I got 0 pictures of Malique tho :( He won his first game 12-25 and lost the 2nd 33-0. So they are out of the playoffs and the 5-6 can't go to the playoffs. Actually I'm excited that there is only one week left. I love football but it is a long drive and a lot of gas money. I look forward to not having to worry about that for a little bit.
I said on my last post that I thought Xavier's eyes were changing but I got some great pictures of those baby blues! I also got some pictures of Keelan one of which I had to bribe him with a candy bar to get him to smile. And an awesome shot of him playing under the bleachers with another little boy. One thing I can always count on with Keelan if there are bleachers he will be under them and if there is any source of water anywhere he will be in it.

A haircut finally!!!

Keelan got a much needed haircut today! It has been forever! It's not my favorite look of his but it looks better than no haircut.

Xavier looked so handsome today in his big boy outfit. I think his eyes are starting to change. They aren't as bright as they use to be.

Malique has a football game tomorrow morning. They have only won one game so I think it's safe to say they won't be on the playoffs. Unless they pull off some kind of football miracle. Their last game will be next Saturday. I have to say I am looking forward to not driving to Joelton 3 times a week.

10 Months

Xavier is 10 months old! He isn't walking yet still just taking steps. He learned how to clap and it is the cutest thing! He has 5 teeth now and an awesome personality!

Ugh! I suck!

So once again I really suck! I don't know how to get in the swing of things. I feel like if I blog it should have at least one picture or it's not interesting. It takes too much for me to take a picture with my camera and then upload it onto the computer and I hate my "new to me" phone and it takes awful pictures anyway. So....Xavier is 9 months old now! He is so smart and so sweet and has probably one of the greatest personalities I have seen on a baby. The day after he turned 9 months old (this past Sunday) He took his first steps!!! I was so in shock I had no idea babies could walk that early. Of course he isn't fulling walking. Only taking steps here and there but I think he could be walking within the month for sure.

Malique is doing awesome in football! The 5-6 team is awesome and hasn't lost a game. The 7-8 team on the other hand let's just say they need more practice :( But my baby! He is rockin out there. I am so super proud of him!

Keelan.....Lord in Heaven I love that child but he makes me crazy. I don't know what to do about his behavior. I am at the end of my rope. My night last night ended with me balling my eyes out begging him to stop because I felt there was nothing else I could do. And when people tell my things like "Oh he will grown out of it." or "He's just being a 4 year old." No I am not an expert but I have enough sense to know that his behavior is not normal. Yes a child may get upset and pout maybe even throw a fit if they don't get there way. But when the fits are 45 minutes of screaming as loud as possible, throwing yourself on the ground, or like yesterday he threw his face into a pole and busted his lip that is not normal. He takes food out of the kitchen in the middle of the night doesn't eat it just makes a mess with it, mostly smearing it on the walls or floor. He gets into stuff and not because he wants to play with it. He does it to break it or tear it up. On top of everything else he doesn't sleep or not long anyway. He usually goes to sleep at about 12-1 am and is always up when I wake up at about 7am with definite signs that he has been up and into everything. About 3 months ago he started urinating in his room on the carpet and walls even though he had a fully functioning bathroom attached to his room. We moved a month ago and so far I have found no signs of it here.  He acts out the most when we are out in public and he has a audience. He tries to hurt Xavier when no one is watching. (Usually while we are in the car) He has done things like shoving his hand down his throat, pinching him, and smacking him in the face. If I were on the outside looking in I would say he is jealous and not reacting well to the baby. But he has been acting like this for 2 1/2 years. He was an awesome baby! And then he turned 2 and it was like a different kid. I don't know how to cope or how to deal. I feel like a horrible mother like I am doing something wrong. We have tried everything we can think of. Time out, spanking, grounding him from outside, no tv, no toys, giving him ALL the attention. Sometimes he can be the sweetest child ever but those moments are becoming less and less frequent. I honestly do not know what to do. I feel like if he is this out of control and he is only 4 I hate to see what it will be like when he is older. I don't even know if a doctor would take me seriously. Last time we talked to his doctor she said to ignore it and he will stop. Well that doesn't work! i just want me sweet little boy back. i have thought about called Center Stone which is a mental health center here that deals with ADD, ADHD, and other behavioral issues but i can't bring myself to make that phone call. It's like I am embarrassed.

Let's go Vikings!

Malique decided he wants to play football... I was not on board at first and was really concerned about his leg. Needless to say him and Daddy won that battle. I am glad now that we decided to let him play. He is having a great time and that is all that really matters. Keelan isn't old enough to play this year but I am going to let him try it out next year. Hopefully it goes better than I expect it to go.
Malique is playing for the Joelton Vikings. He plays on a 7-8 team and also a 5-6 team because of his birthday or something. I don't know or really understand it too much since this is a different league than we are use to playing in. They have different rules, policies and ways of doing things. He played in his first game 2 weekends ago. The 5-6 won and the 7-8 lost pretty badly. They had a jamboree this past weekend that they also lost. They held the jamboree at their own park and weigh in took longer than expected. The game was set to start at 9:00am and eventhough they weren' ready to play they started he clock at 9:00am and they didn't stat playing until there was only 6:00 minutes left in the first half/quarter. So the other team scored at the last minute and won. Not a big deal though it was just a jamboree. They don't have a game this weekend because of Labor Day. I am pretty happy about that. At least I will have this one Saturday to sleep in. Because it will not happen for the next too months AND it just so happens to be on a long weekend! Hell Yeah!

 

This is my baby at his first practice this season :)

7 months old!

I have been neglecting my blog! I have been so busy that I haven't had the time and when i do have time I just want to rest. Anyhoo...Xavier has started "crawling". It is actually more of a scoot right now but considering that face that I thought he would not crawl and would go straight to walking it says alot. However, he is walking too! Not on his own of course but he walks around while holding onto the furniture. I haven't got the chance to take his 7 month pictures yet. But I hope to do them this weekend seeing how he is almost 8 months old now. He has 3 teeth now too and has a pretty amazing personality. This was taken the other day :)

I started a new job 3 weeks ago. I got promoted to a Property Manager at another property within the same company. I am super excited about it and really love it so far. We are having to move next week also. But I think all is for the best and good things are happening.

Malique started school last week. We went ahead and enrolled him in school where we are moving to to o that he wouldn't have to transfer in a week. We was really nervous his first day. But this school was re-opening so I told him that everyone will be new there and he is awesome so I know that he will have no problem making plenty of new friends. And so far he loves it. He really loves riding the buds home. even though i have a heart attack everyday because I am so scared he will forget where to get off at.

I have got to remember to blog and take pictures of the things that I do so that I have something to blog about! I made a delicious no bake peanut butter pie the other day and took pictures of the 1st 2 steps and forgot to take a picture of the rest. I made a very tasty casserole with spaghetti squash that I intended to blog about and didn't take pictures of. I am trying to get better at this. I have some crafts coming up since we are moving that I will try to blog about.  am having a panic attack about having to paint over Xavier's murals that I painted on his walls. I'm not redoing them in the new apartment because I don't plan to be there long.



Tongue Tied

Xavier was born with a tongue tie. The band under his tongue was right at the tip of his tongue so he didn't have full range of motion. He had an appointment scheduled for July 3rd for forever it seems like. And it finally came. I thought they were just going ti look at it and decide what needed to be done and then schedule it for a later date. Nope! They did it the same day. I think I cried more than he did. I won't go into all the details because it hurts my heart. But they didn't put him to sleep and that was the main thing I was concerned about. I didn't want him to be put to sleep so young. It's done and he is doing great. It started bleeding a little bit yesterday while I was feeding him, but other than that everything has been good.

This was the room they did it in.

And this is my little trooper after all was said and done :)



Highlights

I was so tired of looking at my dark all one color hair! I had been thinking about getting highlights for a while but I don't have the money to go to a shop especially since my hair is super long they charge even more and I was scared to do it on my own. I have done it before myself but I was nervous. I bought the kit and it sat in my closet for a few weeks and finally I said "Forget it! I'm just gonna do it!" I figured if I messed it up too bad I would just go over it with my natural color. So I started and I didn't think that one kit would get all my hair but it was plenty. At first I put foil around the stands but when I went to check the color it was all patch like :( So I went back over all the stands with more bleach and left them out. This is what it came out like. Not too bad huh?!

XAVI IS 6 MONTHS OLD!!!

Xavier turned 6 months old on Friday! He went to the doctor today and he weighs 17 lbs. 13 oz and is 26 1/2 inches long. The doctor said he looks great. He does have cradle cap and he prescribed him some medicine for that. He has a little knot on the back of his head that I asked the doctor to check out and he said that it is a swollen lympnode from he cradle cap. So hopefully this medicine will clear all that up.

This has been a little bit of a slower month for him. He still can only sit up for about 30 seconds. He still hates tummy time and will lay there and cry instead of trying to roll over or crawl. I know the child can roll over I have seen him do it! But he doesn't do it. Not that I am rushing at all. I am just fine with him taking his time. We tried to put him in a high chair at dinner last night he held his self up for about a minute and then laid back and then slumped over. Like I said though I am just fine with him taking his sweet time.

We have got him to actually laugh a few times now instead of just grunting. He has the sweetest smile. God I love that kid! He babbles alot now and I know he doesn't know what he is saying but sometime he gets out a "momma" sound. We just moved him up to size 3 diapers and I think I am going to go through his clothes tonight and start getting out his 6-9 month clothes. His bottom 2 teeth look like they are going to pop thru any day now and I know he will be so relieved when they do. My poor baby has been absolutely miserable. :( And lastly, I started trying to get him to sleep in his crib the day he turned 6 months. Right now he is making about half way through the night. I know that he would sleep through the night in his crib if I would put him on his stomach, but that's not gonna happen!

Xavier's 6 month pics

Big Smile :)

Can you see my bottom 2 teeth about to pop thru?

New PJ's

We went to TJ Maxx last night and found Xavier some super cute alien pj's. They glow in the dark too and he was fascinated with them. All of my boys love pajamas. I love it because it is an easy gift idea that I know they will love. It's funny to me thought because to me pajamas are over sized t-shirts.

DIY Wipe Case Cover

I love do it yourself craft projects and I saw this online while searching for cool baby shower gifts. I could have bought it but that would be no fun! I forgot to take pictures of some of the steps but I'll try to explain.:)
This is the one I made for Xavier!

This is everything you will need: A travel wipe case (This is a huggies one), the fabric of your choice, batting, scissors, a pen, craft glue or hot glue, and some thin ribbon which is not pictured.

First place your wipe case on the cardboard and trace around the front, then flip it over and trace around the back

Cut it out

Use the craft glue or hot glue to glue it to the wipe case. One on top and one on the bottom

Then place the wipe case on the batting and trace around it about 1/2 an inch out to be able to wrap it around the sides.

 Do this 2x one for the top and one for the bottom and then cut it out

Place the batting on the fabric and trace around it 2x then cut those out

Glue the batting and fabric on to the wipe case one on top one on the bottom. If you have any that is too long just cut it off.

I don't have a picture for the ribbon :( Start at the back right along the edge above where the case opens and glue it along then overlap the ribbon at the back about 1/2 an inch. Do this for the top and the bottom.

I let mine dry overnight before I try to open it and it should come out like this. :)

You can also add embellishments to make it look super fancy!