Mrs. Clean or Mommy??

So anyone who has known me during the 2+ years Steve and I have been married you know that my house was not the cleanest on the block. During our first year of marriage I worked 4 days a week and the weekends were our time so I didn't focus a lot on cleaning. My bathrooms would get done twice a month if I was lucky (yea I know gross!), floors would sweeped every other day sometimes every day, but would only be mopped once a week, and a load of laundry would get done only if it was absolutely needed! I would fear someone coming over unannounced. In fact one time the group commanders wife (who was amazing and would NEVER judge anyone) called to ask if she could come by and pick up the graduation folder from me. I couldn't tell her no, but I pretty much broke out in a panic speed cleaning. You would think this would have taught me a lesson, but it didn't! In fact it only got worse when we moved to Colorado and I got further along in my pregnancy. I can't believe I am going to admit this but there was a point when our bathrooms went almost a month without being cleaned, and I am sure the floors went longer then that! I did however deep clean the house before my mom came to visit in December, and of course Grace's room was always spotless! After she was born I had reason to keep up the cleaning a ton of people were coming to see her. When the company died down so did my clean house. I would spend time catching up on sleep rather then cleaning, but some where in the past 4 months I have done a total 180! My house is clean (not spotless) most days. I don't know if it's because Grace is getting older and I don't want her crawling in filth, or if the I am so tired of a dirty house that I decided to do something about it. I no longer fear someone showing up because I feel my house is presentable. I vacuum at min once a day and the floors are mopped no less then 3 times a week. I dust, clean bathrooms, and wipe down windows etc weekly. I have spent the last 15 minutes trying to figure out what load of laundry I could throw together tomorrow, because really everything is pretty much clean. I have a monthly cleaning list of things such as the fridge , the couches, etc. Even the backyard gets cleaned up on a weekly basis. I am not writing this blog to toot my own horn (ok maybe just a little tooting!), but rather to share how sometimes something changes in you that you don't even know is happening. For once I feel like I am justified in relaxing on the couch at night, because I feel like I have accomplished SOMETHING!

The Hodge Podge Blog

   So much has happened in the last couple of months that I could not pick a blog topic so I decided to do a Hodge Podge of everything.

The Waldo Canyon Fire 

    Unless you live under a rock I am sure you have heard of the fires reeking havoc in Wyoming, Utah, and of course Colorado. I could not believe how quickly the Waldo Canyon fire turned. It started on a Saturday looking like a large house fire in the mountains and by Tuesday it overtook a good portion of the city. Over 18,000 acres were burned, 32,500 people evacuated from their homes, 346 homes completely destroyed and 2 people killed. It was heartbreaking to see the city I have grown to love go though such a trying ordeal, but was uplifting was how this community has come together. I can not explain it to anyone who has not been there. Watching people willing to go that extra mile to help complete strangers really helps reassure ones faith in humanity. We were lucky that the fire did not impact us directly, but we can't say the same for people know here. The fire is FINALLY at 98% and full containment is expected for tomorrow. Please continue to keep Colorado Springs and the people affected by this tragic even in your thoughts and prayers.


Family Visit


     My parents and my brothers came to visit this past week. They drove 30 hours in two days and got here Monday (June 25th). Although there were some alternating of plans due to the above fire we still managed to have a great time. However, traveling with a baby for 6 days is exhausting!! Grace got off her sleep schedule of course which led to many many sleepless nights for this mommy. However, it was nice having the extra hands during the day to help out and on days where things just got to be too much it was nice to sneak away for about 20 minutes and get some shut eye. Over all it was a great 10 days  even with our firework less 4th of July. I miss them terribly already and I can not wait for the next time we all get together.


Gracie Bell is 6 Months Old!!!

    I know I am like 2 weeks late on this but hey it's been a little CRAZY! Grace turned 6 months on June 20 and I can't believe it!! My baby girl is just growing so fast. Her baby well went great! She weighed in at exactly 14 lbs and 26 inches long. Due to her small size we do have to go to a 9 month appointment, but her doctor says she's not worried about her at all just a precaution. I don't know if she was showing off for her grandparents this week or what, but man did she decided to start hitting milestones left and right. On July 2 mom and I where sitting in the living room with Grace on her play area and Kovy (our dog) walked by. I guess she wanted to see what he was up to because she started crawling across the floor to get to him. It was amazing!! Since then she's been all over the place. Time to pull out those baby gates for the stairs. Then on July 4th she decided she was going to just sit right up. Now she's been doing what the doctor calls tripod sitting for about 2 months now where she uses an arm to hold her up, but this time she just sat up normal. It was like umm...don't babies normally do that before they crawl? LOL She looks so cute though sitting like a big girl! Today she started another thing and to be honest I was kinda sad. She pulled herself up on the couch and her bumbo to standing position a few times. It's like girl you just started crawling let's wait a bit for walking please!! My mom says it is karma because I started walking at 9 months and made her life that much more hectic! LOL. I guess only time will tell with little bit! We also have decided to start looking at infant to toddler car seats for Grace.  Although she is NO where near the weight max for her infant one she growing out of it length wise. Plus I think she will like a bigger carseat better. She always looks so squashed in hers. So if you have a recommendation for a good one let me know. :-)

Well, I guess that's about it for now. I am exhausted and little bit is down for the count so I should probably follow. I'll try to be better at posting. Try being the key word in that statement!

Good-Bye Neighbor Joe!!

   So this week I got to relish in one of the many perks of living on base. If you don't like or have issues with your next-door neighbor just wait a little bit and either they or you will move! I am not saying I have had a real run in with this neighbors they were just a little.....strange?? Oh I'll just start from the beginning. Steve and I moved in to the house August 7th. I met the gentlemen living next-door that very day. We were letting the dogs run around in their new backyard and he happened to be out with their two dogs (little yapping dogs at that.) We introduced ourselves and had a nice conversation. He was E-6 Army (I only know because he was wearing his uniform), but we did not talk about what either him or Steve did in the military. He seemed VERY friendly and I thought um this won't be so bad living here. His wife was out of town, but he told me that she will be excited to find out that a little baby would living right next-door (I was about 5 1/2 months pregnant), as they were older and had no children. This would be the last conversation we would have in over  6 months.
     The next couple of months for us were very busy (hello BABY!) and anyone who knows me know that I am kinda of shy. In the sense that I won't usually start a conversation, but I also won't end one lol.   The neighbors wife made it back to town at some point, but let me tell you this I have NO CLUE what she looks like. I would catch a glimpse of her going into the house or pulling out of the driveway and I would wave, but that's about as far as it would go until February 5th ( I know the date, because it was the sunday before I left to go back to GA).  Steve was flying and I am home with Grace who is just about 2 months old and there is a knock on the door. It was our neighbor and another guy who looks like the neighbor from across the street. So I open the door and they ask if they can talk to my husband. I already don't like where this is going, what could you possibly have to say to him that you can't say to me. I tell them he's working, but asked if I could help them with something. So the next-door neighbor ask me if they did anything to offend us? I am sure I gave him the craziest look ever because we haven't talked in 6 months! I tell him No and asked if we did something that would make him think that? He tells me just some stuff going on with other neighbors. So conversation continues for about 15-20 minutes about random stuff, but nothing serious. We leave it on what I thought was neighborly terms. However, this is the last conversation we ever had.
      In the months to come I would see him or his wife out and I would smile wave, but would get nothing in return. I brushed it off as them just not seeing me. That was until this Tuesday evening. Steve was cleaning out the garage and Grace and I were out there supervising. We were standing in the MIDDLE of the driveway when the neighbor starts to bring his trash to curb. Steve waves a total of 3 times and still nothing in return. So the next time the neighbor is out Steve calls out "How's it going!" The guy just keeps walking!! So Steve looks at me like What the HECK!??? I shrug and go okay that was so not my imagine this time. He totally ignored us!! The very next day I am walking to the mailbox  with Grace and he's out front. So I think ok let's try this again. I call out "Hey how's it going!" He looks RIGHT AT ME and NOTHING!! Are you kidding. I mean come on you could at least say SOMETHING. The only conclusion I can come to is something must have happened with housing and they think we had some part of it. Umm No! If I have an issue with you YOUR gonna know about it FIRST! If it continues then I might take other routes, but YOUR the one who I am gonna talk to FIRST! So I am thinking OH GREAT this is going to be a fun couple of years. Then God smiled and things started to look up.
     Friday morning I wake up to guess what...A MAYFLOWER truck in their drive way!! They are OUT HERE!! No more awkward passings! I told myself that with these next neighbors I am going to make an effort to get to know them a little better and hopefully avoid 2 years of nonsense!!

The INdependent

   Any military wife knows the Murphy's Law of your husband being gone. As soon as he's gone for more then 24 hours the kids get sick, the car breaks, the house falls apart, or all at the same time. It's just the way it is. Nothing seems to line up when he's home. Today I got a call from a friend (Heather) who I haven't talked to in a long time. I told her that I was on my way out the door to the BX because the handle fell off the downstairs toilet and it wouldn't stop running. She asked what I was going to do about it. I said fix it? When she asked had I ever fixed a toilet before I said no but I am sure it's not rocket science and I could figure it out. Then she said what only someone who hasn't spent any time in the military would say "Why don't you wait till Steve gets home to do it." You see Heather has been married to John for three years in those years he has been away probably a grand total of 2 weeks. She's use to being able to wait for him to fix it. I laughed and told her  that if I waited for Steve to do everything nothing would ever get done around here. I know we've been extremely lucky in the "my husbands gone" department. He hasn't deployed YET...but it's coming I have a feeling sooner then I would like but I know it's coming. However when he is here it's not like he's always home at night. His job has him gone at least one overnight a week and about 4 nights every two weeks. It's just how the cards have been falling. When he is home I try to use him for big jobs that I can't do with Grace around. So when something small happens and I am pretty sure I can fix myself I do. It's just part of being a military wife. They call us dependents, but I think we all know the truth we are all INdependent. We can't always count on our husband being home on the weekend to cut the grass or pick up the dog poop (COUGH COUGH STEVE!!!) or wait on them to change those lightbulbs to high to reach without a ladder. Now someone might ask but Katie you live on base why didn't you just call the housing office? I did and they wouldn't be able to come for the toilet till friday, because it's PCS season and it was considered a non emergency. I was not about to listen to that running toilet for 3 days! I figured that I would just pay the 5 dollars out of pocket for a new handle. I took apart the old one and put the new one back the same way and VIOLA fixed toilet. I know I know it's not that big of a deal, but it was for me. I was able to figure it out all by myself and fix it without bothering anyone else. As I said before it's just what we have to do. We can't afford to wait around or nothing would get done. We learn to do it ourselves and if we can't we lean on each other to get it done. I love being an Independent dependent I wouldn't have it any other way.

Parenting Styles

      Let's face it we all have one and NO TWO are alike. In the 15 years that I have been around/working with infants and young children I have been exposed to MANY different parenting styles. Some I have shaken my head at and others I have picked apart to make my own. As a nanny you are paid to help raise that child in the style that their parents wish them to be raised weather you agree with it or not. I have been extremely lucky and the parents that I have worked with are not crazy. While there was this one mother who was a little extreme, but I only watched her little girl for a week. ANYWAYS, my point is that when someone offers me advice I do truly take it into consideration, because I have witnessed how things that I would never thought would work make miracles happen. However, I draw the line at judging! If you want to tell me how you raised your child that's fine I will listen I may even steal something form your veteran mom experience BUT if you want to tell me that how I am raising MY child is wrong you can save your breath or in this cause your energy in typing because I don't want to hear/read it!
     A while back I posted a video of Grace's first taste of solid foods. She was exactly 4 1/2 months old. That night I got a private message from a Facebook "friend" who told me how I was just asking for health issues with Grace. How I started her too young on solids and that she will end up with Leaking Gut. Well lady I am sorry you feel that way, but the last time I checked you did not have MD and my doctor does. I think I will take my medical advice from her Thank You. A couple days ago I posted a picture of Grace with her grow with me sippy cup. Something that we are working on. I don't expect her to actually be able to use it but I have learned though my experience that introducing the sippy cup early on makes an easier transition later. If anyone is interested it's water in the cup nothing else. That afternoon I got another private message from that same "friend" about how I was hindering Grace's learning. I had ignored the first message, but this one I could not. So here was my reply.....


Hey I am going to try and not be too rude here, but your really crossing a line. There are a lot of things that I have seen on your Facebook with your children that I just think are plain dumb. Did you get a message from me judging your parenting?? I didn't think so, but since you feel the need to share let me enlighten you on my views. One your 3 year is still in diapers. You haven't started to potty from what I can tell. Are you kidding me? If your child can tell you that they went to the potty you should at least being trying to train them to use a restroom. Two said 3 year is still breastfeeding?? There's no way your telling me those teeth aren't a bitch to deal with! Three you complain about your sex life while here's a thought how about you try moving your kids out of the bedroom??? I understand the youngest having an issue but why is your 7 year old still sleeping in your bed!! So before you start telling other people that YOU don't agree with how they are raising their child maybe you should take into consideration that the way YOUR doing it doesn't appeal to others! By the way you can mark this as the end of our conversations. I don't have time for your judgements I have a beautiful HEALTHY baby girl to raise Thank YOU!


      I just don't get where some people come off thinking they have the right to tell others how to raise their kids. As I said before advice is one thing, but judging you can keep to yourself!!

Mother's Day

   I started off my Mother's Day in true new mommy form Grace apparently decided that sleep was HIGHLY overrated and wanted to stay up. She had fallen asleep at around 9:30 as she normally does but by 11 she was wide awake. I thought maybe she just hungry which she was, but that didn't make her want to sleep. We stayed up playing for a little while but around 12:30 I was exhausted. Steve recently came home with a head cold that he felt I should share with him so I was dying to just lay down. After reading a couple of stories Grace finally started to drift off. I laid her down in her crib and just as I was crawling into my warm bed she rolled to her stomach startled herself and woke up crying. I tried a couple of times to get her back to sleep but eventually gave up went down stairs and laid with her on the couch. Somewhere after 1:30 the both of us drifted off to sleep, but it didn't last long because at 2:45 she was up again. GREAT! Back upstairs we went and read a couple more stories, ate another 5 ounces of food, and FINALLY at 4 am she drifted off from pure exhaustion. I quickly followed.
       I woke shocked to find out that it was not only 9:50, but that Grace had not woken me up. I hit the button on the monitor to find out that she wasn't in her crib. So I went downstairs where I found her and her daddy happily playing on the floor. It was sooooo nice to be able to sleep in a little. Then Steve told me that he forgot a part of my gift and had to run out really quick. So I said Ok and took Gracie Bell upstairs to get ready for the day. After showering and bathing little one I could hear Steve bumping around down stairs so I decided to give him a little more time to do whatever it was he was doing. After about 20 minutes Grace and I went downstairs where I was welcomed with the lovely smell of COFFEE! Set up on the counter was an Espresso machine and all the fixings! I swear I almost went though the ROOF. I love LOVE I mean REALLY REALLY LOVE me a Latte! LOL. Then it was time for Gracie's gift. She got me a St. Anne medal (The patron saint of mothers and housewives) with the words GOD BLESS MY MOMMY GCB (Jenn M. I didn't realize until that moment that she shared those initials with GCB the show! LOL So at first I read it as MY MOMMY Good Christian B*&%H thought you'd get a kick out of that!) which of course made me cry. I put it on and it has not/will not come off unless it's an accident. Then it was time for church.
        Let me tell you it was soooo weird being a mom in church on mother's day. I've always been there when they do the mommy prayer but I am not going to lie I almost didn't stand up. It didn't hit me that I was mom too lol. After mass we went to Carino's an Italian grill that I have been dying to try. It had great chicken parmesan! Grace and I basically passed out on the couch when we got home watching Leap Year and slept for two hours which is so not like her at all, but since she only slept like 5 hours the night before I guess that makes since. For Dinner we went to BWW because I wanted a chicken wrap and I didn't want to cook. Not to mention the only thing Steve can cook without help is spaghetti and we had that for lunch. Then we came home and just hung out and I made my third latte for the day lol. It was sooo good! I don't think I could have asked for a better way to spend my first mother's day. I got to spend it with the most important people in my life my hubby and my baby girl! I could not ask for a better role in life then that of MOM!
   

FAIL!!!

   So presidents day weekend Steve and I went dining room table hunting. We ended up at the only Macy's here in Colorado Springs. I was unaware that Macy's sold furniture and to be honest I was quite impressed. We ended up finding not only a dinning room set that we liked but we also found a sideboard and a couch that we loved. The sales lady Alicia was amazing. She was also a military spouse so she understood my hesitation is purchasing new furniture when I know that we have  a ton of moves a head of us. She told us to go home think about it. Steve and I had basically made up our mind by the time we got to the car, but I still wanted to sleep on it. Let's face $3000 is a lot to drop in one weekend. The next day we returned and made our purchase. Unfortunately EVERYTHING we wanted was on back order. Our couch would not be available till the first week of march and the dining set till April. I figured what the heck we really like it whats a couple months wait.
    A couple weeks later I got a call that our couch was available for delivery. We sent up for saturday March 10th so Steve would be home. The delivery guys called that afternoon around 4:30 said they were on their way and within 30 mins the couch was step up in house. The guys were professional and friendly and the experience was great. So great that I actually called Macy's that week and bragged about impressed I was their service. Little did I know that I would be eating my words 2 months later. Around April 14th I got the e-mail that our dining set was available for delivery. This time they only had a Thursday (April 26th) open and since I didn't want to wait till May to get it I went ahead and booked. It was about here when things went to HELL.
      Thursday April 26th I got up at 8 am with Grace and got ready. They had called and told me that our table would here between the hours of 11-1. So I wanted to make sure that I didn't get into my normal lazy morning routine and stay in jammies until one. Around 11: 25 I got a call from a driver that I could barely understand telling me they were on their way. As I usually do I informed them that we live on an Air Force base, even though that was already marked in the Macy's records. They said no problem see you in 20 minutes. One hour later I get a call from a different guy saying that they were going to have to reschedule  because either him nor his partner could get on base. They both had some issue with their license. Ok fine, I understand that sometimes living on a military installation can cause hiccups in usual everyday affairs. That night I get a call from a costumer service  representative wanting to set up a new delivery time because the base was not allowing deliveries that day. Literally the conversation went like this...

"Mrs. Bostwick, You base was not allowing deliveries today so we are calling to set up a new time."
"What? That's not what your drive said at all. He said that they couldn't get on base because of issues with their identification."
"No Ma'ma that's not what we were told."
"I don't care what you were told I am telling you what YOUR driver told me. Not to mention that there is a UPS truck across the street right now, and I have seen the SEARS truck in the neighborhood today."

To that he had no response. SO we set up the delivery for 2 days later that Saturday.
     Saturday Morning I get up at 8 am and shower, because they did not call with a time slot for delivery we end up canceling plans with friends to wait on the table. By 4 pm I still haven't heard anything so I call the customer service line where I find out our time frame is from 4:30-6:30 and that we are the LAST delivery for the day. Ugh I could have slept in till 10 with Grace!! At 4:45 we get a call from the same costumer service rep. as before. He tells me that we have to reschedule again because the base only accepts morning deliveries on Saturday. ONCE AGAIN BULL CRAP!! So I send Steve up to the gate to figure out what happened. Basically they went to the wrong gate. They were told that at that gate they can only do truck inspections from 9am-1pm due to manning issues, but that they can go to the west gate and get in 24/7. Apparently the delivery guys just went home because the west gate guards said they never saw them. I try to call the service number but they close at 5. As I am sure you can guess it is ON monday morning.
    Monday morning rolls around and I get up at 7 to call them first thing. I get a lady and explain everything to her. I am sure I was not as sweet as I could have been but I am kinda upset at this point. She basically tells me that she's sorry, but there is nothing she can do for me other put a message in for a manger to call me and reschedule. Ok fine when can you have my table here. She says "We have Thursday or Saturday." I said Thursday. So Thursday comes no call again with a time frame so I get up at 8, get ready, and wait, wait, wait. By noon I have had enough I call up to find out when our time frame is I am told "Ma'ma your delivery date is Thursday May 17th." LIKE HELL IT IS! At this point I politely lose it. I demand to talk to a manager RIGHT THEN because they still haven't called me from 4 days ago.  I am transferred and at first I am fairly nice I explain everything that has happened for the umpteenth time and wait. She basically tells me she is so sorry, but because I live on a military base I need to be prepared for issues to come up. EXCUSE ME!!! So I ask "So basically your saying that Macy's policy is that if I live on a military I should EXPECT SUCKY SERVICE, especially because the issues is with your DELIVERY PEOPLE NOT MY BASE!" I then tell her that I have had enough. I am writing a letter to the Base Papers of all FIVE military bases here and letting them know just what kind of service Macy's provides their armed forces. AND DO YOU KNOW WHAT SHE SAID???? "I am sorry you feel that way." So at this point I just hang up because I just about lost my religion on that woman. I call Steve at work and tell him what happened and he says he'll handle it.
       About 20 minutes later Steve calls me and tells me he talked with his Sqd. Commander who gave him the idea to call the local store. THe problem is we are dealing with corporate and they could care less if they lose our business because we are just a tiny dot to them, but the only store here is going to care. SO  Steve calls and talks to the manager there. She is extremely upset by how we have been treated and tell us that she's going to make some calls and she'll call us back. Within the hour we hear back from that not only are they going to bring on table the following week, but that they are refunding the delivery fee and sending us a $100.00 gift card. Ok Great at least that's something for our trouble. So I get an email that our table is going to be delivered May 10th between the hours of 1-3 pm.
       This thursday comes and I get to sleep in with Grace till 10. I get up get dressed and wait. At 12:35 I get a call that they are on their way. Great! I call Steve and he comes home from work. At 1:15 I get a call. The driver can not get on base because he has a misdemeanor on his record and is pending trail. FANTASTIC!!! I tell Steve and he says "Can the other guy get on base?? I'll unload the DAMN TRUCK myself if it gets the table here." So that's what we did. The one guy who doesn't speak a lick of English brings the truck and Steve and him unload the 117 lbs table, the 234.3 lbs sideboard, and THREE that's right I said THREE chairs. Umm??? Steve tries to tell the guy that we are missing 3 more chairs and the guy just laughs and says in broken english, NO table to heavy for me just pop the legs on it all good. hops in the truck and LEAVES! You have got to be kidding me. So Steve who rarely loses his temper is now pacing the house. He calls Kelly the manager of the local store and leaves her message and heads back to work. Later he comes to tell me that Kelly has called him back and she is even more upset then we are. SHe told us not the touch the boxes at all. Someone will be out to put our table together and bring our other 3 chairs, but that she has had enough as well and she is taking it as far up the chain as possible. SO now we are waiting with 3 chairs and two giant boxes in our dining room. At this point anything short of a full refund just won't satisfy me at all. I appreciate Kelly's help, but this company needs to get their crap together. Next week will be 3 months from when we ordered our table and we still won't have it! I am calling this GREAT MACY"S FAIL of 2012!