I don't know what to say..

I have tried to write this post so many times. . .  I just have so much to say, I don't know what to say.
But today the guilt got to me. And I have not written in any type of journal for over a month. Bad. So here goes a month of happenings.....

I hosted and co-created an all handmade craft fair, we were on the news, a lot of cool websites, and we got a lot of publicity. It was a great success, but so much work. I felt like I was a really busy crazy exhausted person for about 6 weeks. But it felt so great to accomplish something and have fun doing it.

Brad had a test on the Monday after the Boutique, so I basically had to do it alone, and thanks to awesome babysitters, that Miles went to (a lot) we were a success. I think he watched more Baby Einstein that week than any baby has watched in their lifetime. Yikes. My house was a disaster and I ordered pizza way too much. It was a hard week. But rewarding.

But Meanwhile back at the ranch.... (book reference)
Miles has been growing up before our eyes. He does some really cute things. And some really not cute things. I'll make some lists.

Cute things:

• He has been sick for like 3 weeks now, either he keeps reinfecting himself or it is just never ending. So a lot of booger wiping. He came running to me with a kleenex the other day and I wasn't paying attention and all the sudden he is up in my grill wiping my nose with the kleenex.
• Brad told me he picked up the thermometer and put it up to his head. And then walked away like he accomplished something. (Its the head swipe one, and clearly he knows what its for)
• He loves to be chased, and we always say, "I'm gonna get you!" And I was putting decorations back on the tree (he took them off) and I was on my knees, and hadn't even played our chase game that day, and he came up and hit me with both hands on the back, turned around smiling and shrieking running away from me. He's a little ball of energy.
• He runs everywhere. Walking isn't a thing. So that means lots of bruises and bumps. 
• He can throw a ball pretty far, and throws everything.
• If you say, "Can mom have that?" He will hand it to you, but you better get up close because he will probably throw it at you. I have caught our crockpot lid from landing on the tile one too many times. I'm probably going to be buying just the lid soon.
• If he has something he really wants to keep but can't have, he will scream at you when you ask him for it, but he will still throw it at you. 
• He pulls all the books on my bookshelf out everyday, but they are all board books, and all his, but he also sits and reads all day long. His voice does all sorts of ups and downs, and all sorts of babbling. And I know that all my education about exposure to literature is true. He is learning so much about his world through pictures and reading print, he is a synapses making little man all day long.
• If he is crying in his crib in the night or in his nap, and I go in and get him out and hold him, he will lay on my shoulder at first then in his hysteria of crying he will turn and give me a kiss on the lips. And I can just about cry when I think of this one. Its the cutest thing, because he is still crying when he does it, and he keeps crying after he kisses me. Its just so sweet because he knows that he loves me, and even though he is upset he shows me how much he loves me and so glad I came in and got him. Little sweetheart.
• He loves wheels, or anything that spins, so even on car tires, he will try to spin them. Its hilarious. He will flip a car or tractor over and spin the wheels to check out the lubrication, spinning speed, before he drives it. He's very sophisticated. 
• He is kinda shy, but not. Its strange, and sometimes he will not go to anyone else. But sometimes he will go to a random person he doesn't know. So strange. But I love him and all his strangeness. 
• He brushes my hair with my brush, and his hair, which is getting pretty long. We are seeing where the long hair goes..
• He says ya, yep, and whisper ya to anything he wants. When you say 'say please' he says, "YA!" and hits himself for the sign please. When you say, 'do you want more' He says "YA!" And claps for the sign more. 
• He loves his blankie and teddy and binkie. And all the time we find him trying to pull his blanket through the crib railing, grunting and pulling, then yelling for us to come help him.
• He can throw a ball around the room for 30 minutes. He will crawl into all sorts of spaces to get it out from where he threw it. He runs around the room and throws his hands up in the air when he is excited. He claps for himself. Always.
• He loves being chased, and loves being tickled and thrown around on the couches and love sac. He giggles and screams and cannot contain his excitement. 
• He is really good at stacking blocks and he was really terrible at first, but he learns quick, and he loves doing it. (This one is lame, but it is really cute how slow and steady he puts it on top and then slaps his hands on his legs because he is excited)

Not Cute Things: (But somehow still kinda cute)

• He takes the remote and somehow puts locks on some of our channels. 
• He gets pretty angry when something does not go right. Like when he can't open something, put something back together (this little egg we have) and he clenches his fists and growls....and sometimes screams. Its really cute, but also a challenge to discipline. Usually I just talk to him about it. He may catch what I am saying one day.
• When someone takes his toy, he doesn't really hit them, if they are his size he just grabs their shirt and turns them where he wants them, then takes it back. And sometimes that little person ends up on the floor. Miles usually wins, he is pretty dedicated and feisty. But he doesn't throw fits, and if he wants something, he will scream, but you can throw a ball at him and he will forget about it, reminds me of a little puppy. Easily distracted.
• He opens and closes the cupboards all day, he mostly likes the sound when they slam, but sometimes he takes stuff out and brings it to me, and sometimes he throws it and I catch it just in time. Crockpot lid.
• He loves flushing toilets, and unrolling toilet paper rolls. I will be going to the bathroom and he will just come right over and flush the toilet 20 times while I am going. Also, I have yet to use toilet paper fresh off the roll in the past 3 months. Its usually covered in dust, and hair because I pick it up off our bathroom floor and cluster it in a big huge pom pom ball and put it in the basket on our toilet, and use it. Sometimes when I get ready....unrolling that toilet paper roll is just the right amount of time for me to get ready.
• Turns off and on the TV endlessly. Its always in a different language.
• Mouth, he still puts things in his mouth. Everything. I am so done with it. I am always saying, "What is in your mouth?" And he will throw it at me as he runs away, because he knows he shouldn't have it, and will usually scream as he does that. Just so I know he is not happy with my enforcing of the mouth rule.

Brad is doing well in school, and we just found out he can take the test early in 2 weeks, so we can come a day early, our friend is getting married, and we were going to have to drive through the night.  (RUN ON SENTENCE-YIKES) Phew for Brad, me...I would have just slept and kept Miles happy the entire time. Brad never lets me/wants me to drive. I am a fall asleeper while driving. So its a protective measure. 

I have officially decorated for Christmas for the first time ever! !!!!! Besides the tree. It was a fun endeavor and I have never gotten into decorating before, didn't own any nativities, but this year was different, I don't know why, I got into it. I want Miles to remember our decorations. He actually picked out our nativity today. We held two in front of him, because we couldn't decide, and...he just reached out and grabbed one, so we knew that was the one, and we went with it. He chose it and it was a family affair. I think our decorations will be special as our house expands, we will say, "Oh remember that is when we lived in Lubbock." (Providing we move away from here LOL) I guess we could say, that was when we were in med school and had no money, and you kept buying random Christmas decorations. I go in and out of frugal stages. I am always frugal, but sometimes I really won't buy anything unless it is an absolute need. Like not even one extra banana. Then other times I am like-freak I don't care I'm sick of stressing myself out to the max and not buying anything and being a cheap bum.

So then I throw in some kleenex brand kleenexes instead of the no name, and I throw in actual ziplocks, not the walmart brand. Then I think about returning them because I spent 2.00 more than I 'could have' spent. Guh. Its a terrible cycle to be in. But, its working out. And somehow it will always work out, it always does. And I am grateful for this stage of life, because we are so blessed with so much, and its good to be frugal and conservative, and not wasteful. I save all my boxes, and you know what...sometimes I use them. Ha! We also never turn the heat on. So Miles and I dress in very warm clothes all the time at home, then I am going crazy because I don't want to leave the couch under the blanket because I am so cold, then I decide to turn it on 67. Ha, but its kinda fun to be poor, kinda fun to budget and be concerned like we are adults or something. 

It brings us closer together too, we find fun things to do that cost very little. And, we bond because usually its a challenge. Drive in movie-double feature with a 14 month old until 1 AM. We really should just pay a babysitter and go to a real movie theater. But then......its not $5 a person, and we get 2 movies for the price of one. So, $10 and a fun date compared to $30-40 dollars for movie and babysitter.

I try to do anything I can to earn extra $$, I am always selling stuff online, and I teach preschool 2xs a week with a friend, and I did the Backyard Boutique which brought in some cash, and I have cleaned, babysat houses, consigned my stuff and done a number of strange things to make extra cash.

Since I haven't posted for so long, I could really overload with pictures, but since my IPHOTO is full....ya really bad, and I just cleaned off 23 GB onto my hard drive....and my photos still won't load off my IPHONE, which is also full of pictures......this post is pictureless....

So enjoy my words. Stay tuned for pictures :)