Here we go again.

Hi! I'm back. I've been thinking about this blog again lately, and how it has captured a time in my life that seems like a million years ago. It's inspired me to start writing again, not everyday, not any specific amount of times a week, but as much as I can. More than anything, this is a time capsule for me to look back on, and maybe Levi will even read it some day. I have been truly realizing how little moments can slip through your fingers as time edges on. Sometimes the days tend to fade into a blur of routines, errands, and work, and sometimes I forget to appreciate (or even forget, period) the little moments along with the "important" ones. Levi is changing before my eyes, growing physically, emotionally, mentally. His vocabulary is increasing, and the little funny approximations he used to use for words he couldn't quite say are waning. I can have full-on conversations with my little boy; he tells me about his day, about his likes and dislikes, his train collection, his favorite book, the funny part of a movie, a song he loves. It's amazing and heartbreaking all at once. My little baby is turning into a kid, day by day. I want to savor every bit of this time between babyhood and boyhood, because I'm realizing that what everybody says is true: time flies.

So here is my Levi, 2 years and 5 months old. 

Technically this picture is from a couple months ago, but I love it :)

His favorite colors are red, green, and sometimes purple.

His favorite movie is Fantastic Mr. Fox.

His favorite thing in the world is anything with wheels: cars, trucks, trains, etc. etc. He will point out the different types of trucks on the freeway that he learned in his truck book: "Dat's a transporter truck...dat's a tow truck....dat's a delivery truck".

His favorite thing to eat is berries, any kind. Blueberries, or "blees" as they were called, used to be his favorite, but now he is also a fan of blackberries and "red berries", a.k.a strawberries. He also loooooves oatmeal.

His favorite thing to do is go to the park and go down the slides.

He also wants a dog.

Just FYI, I'm thinking of maybe changing the name or URL of my blog. Some of my content has been compromised to due to someone linking it to an inappropriate website. Changes to come!

If you'd like more snippets from our lives, follow my Instagram! 

Username: chelseaspatz

Q: What time is it? A: Tooth-Hurty

Yes, that's right. Teething is in fuuuullllll swing.  Levi has an actual TOOTH pushing through the gums! I can see it!  I can feel it! I have named it "The Tooth". I am really praying that he quickly grows out of his "it's fun to bite mom's boobs" stage, or else breastfeeding might have to come to an unfortunate, premature end.  It hurts enough with just gums!

So far we've tried homeopathic teething drops and Hyland's teething tablets, along with cold water teethers and frozen washcloths, but I'll try anything and everything to ease his pain. I think I'm going to try mesh teething bags where you put frozen food or ice cubes in a little mesh bag so they can chew on it, but I'm afraid a huge mess will accompany that.  I'll give it a go! Oh, and amber teething necklaces are supposed to be another natural remedy, but I wonder of they reaaalllly work. Supposedly something in the amber soothes their discomfort, but I'm not about to drop 25 bucks on one if it's a shot in the dark whether or not they work.


Any tips or suggestions from my fellow teething warriors?

the flash majorly washed out the picture so you can't see it, but it IS there!!
also, note the mass amount of drool on his shirt...geeze!

Ha! Yahoo's '10 Most Irritating Parenting Tips Ever'

Saw this on my homepage yesterday and had a little chuckle. Unfortunately I've experienced about 90% of those..ahem..."tips".


I know people usually just mean well...but honestly, they need to just put a sock in it. Acting like they have all the answers and making me feel like I'm doing it wrong just adds fuel to the annoyance fire. I've been taking care of my baby practically on my own since the day we left the hospital - Clay went back to work when Levi was 4 days old and I didn't have my mom staying with us to help or anything. And being that I had virtually ZERO experience with even holding a newborn, let alone raising one, I'd say a mother's instinct counts for something. I know my own child better than anyone else.

It used to really get to me, but I've learned to a) not divulge a lot of information that leads to said "advice", and b) if it is offered, I take it with a grain of salt.  If I know that a particular person is very generous with tips, I will even kinda stretch the truth in some situations..i.e. "Oh yes...he sleeps right through the night!" simply to avoid being lectured to. Defending my parenting decisions (like not doing the cry-it-out thing, breastfeeding, supplementing, co-sleeping, etc.) only happens when I really feel the need to stand up for myself, otherwise I've discovered that it's just not worth getting into arguments over. I do what is best for my baby and if they have a problem with that, well, that's their problem. One of the only people whom I don't mind getting feedback from is my mommy, and not just because she's my mom. She has a way of being really receptive and totally non-judgemental, and I know she really cares about Levi as much as I do. Also, she doesn't really push her opinions on me unless I ask her. Which, if you know my mom, is kind of surprising! She's usually pretty opinionated...the apple doesn't fall far from the tree ;)


Question for all my mom readers: have you experienced any of these? If so, do they annoy you as much as they do me (and the author of the article)?