Playing with chickens

Kaiden must certainly take after me - he loves just about every animal he meets! While cows still rank up there as one of his all time favorites, he's taken a great liking to chickens lately. He really enjoys going over to Dana and Richards to feed them, especially when he gets to gather eggs. Watching him chase the chickens to try and pet them is wicked cute, although... I'm not sure the chickens would agree on that one.



Next to playing with chickens, going over there to gather (and eat) tomatoes is quite fun. He gets his own cup to fill with cherry tomatoes. Only problem is, by the time it rolls around to leave, he's already eaten them all!




In other news, Kaiden is doing GREAT with the potty learning. He initiated going to the potty on his own several months ago now, but we have been rather lax as of late encouraging him to use the potty. However, he's been (almost) completely dry for almost a week now! He's even waking up dry more nights than not! We're still using trainers when we're out, but at home he's usually in undies.

It's incredible how quickly and how eager he is to use the potty. Perhaps part of his learning so early is due to the cloth diapers, perhaps not. In either case, it's a bittersweet moment. He really is growing up! No more baby in adorable fluff who depends on Mommy for everything.

Fun on a swingset

Kaiden got a new swingset for his birthday. Thanks Trish! He LOVES it! The slide, despite being huge for him, is his absolute favorite thing to do when he's outside now. Slightly nerve wracking, but certainly a blast!







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Now playing: Coldplay - Clocks
via FoxyTunes

Happy birthday! Almost...

Kaiden's birthday party was last Saturday (19th), and was a blast! It did wind up pouring for a little bit, right when we were opening presents too! But otherwise it was sunny and just wonderful, although pretty hot... We had a good turnout, Kaiden had a ton of fun! Really, the only downside was Zach cutting K's head off in some of the pictures.

Since it was so hot, we let him open his new sprinkler toy early. Mom has one at her house, and all the kids love it. I don't know what it is, but every time he gets into a sprinkler, he ALWAYS has to stick his tongue out!

Next up was a nice music/percussion set Kim gave him. She had to leave early, so we wanted to get it open while she was still there.

When he first saw what it was:


And playing drums



I think this has to be his favorite gift out of all the small ones he got! He LOVES this thing! He helped pick it out in the store, and thankfully forgot all about it by the time his party rolled around. I love his expression in this pic.

He also got a bunch of Matchbox cars, and some coloring/drawing stuff. I was VERY pleased with his gifts! He certainly loves them too! I don't think there's a single thing he hasn't played with.

We had to rescue the pinata from the rain at one point, but then after we were finished with gifts, it stopped raining and all the kids got to try and break it. The party was a tractor theme, since it's one of his hugely favorite things right now. I couldn't find a tractor pinata though, so we went with a cow instead, his next favorite thing. That thing was hard to bust too! Even with the teenagers going at it, everyone got two rounds in before it actually busted open!

Last but not least... The cake that almost wasn't! Thank goodness they were able to get this thing made Saturday morning! I don't know WHAT we'd have done otherwise! (The store lost power Friday due to some bad storms, and originally wasn't going to have it back until Sat afternoon)

He also got an art easel and a table and chair set this week, and will be getting a toy kitchen as soon as we actually order it. He really loves drawing, so the easel was a must. I honestly can't believe HOW much he loves it though! The first night, he was playing on the chalkboard for at *least* an hour. Trying to get him to bed, I asked if he wanted milk, and he actually said NO! (Those that know him well, you know how much he likes his milk! lol) Then when we finally got to bed, he had to wave ni-night to the easel. The table is great too - now he has somewhere to do his puzzles!

Wow, I really stink at this...

Well, blogging at least! It's hard to believe I haven't updated since January. A lot has changed since then!

For starters, it's summer! No more winter blues, no more snow, no more cold, and no more bundling up to go outside! I would have never believed it, but those 5 foot piles of snow in the yard finally did disappear! Summer really must be the best time of year. The sun is out, it's light all day long, you can wear sandals, or even go barefoot! The beaches are great, the windows are always open. Perfect.

The animals are all doing well. We had the joy of fostering a puppy for a few months this spring, and while stressful, it was a lot of fun. Keifer was a young mixed bred who came to our house recovering from worms, partially housetrained, and in need of some guidance. While I usually don't care for puppies, he was very mature for his age, and it was all but love at first sight. He was adopted by a wonderful couple, and is now living the high life! Really, who couldn't love this face?




The rescue is going well. We're closing in on a year in operations, are incorporated with the state of Maine as a non-profit organization, and are working on becoming 501c3! I manage the store, which seems to become busier by the day. It's a ton of work, and while I don't gain any income from it, it can be fun, and it's great knowing I'm supporting our rescue efforts in such a large financial way. We've had adopters from as far away as New York, and have had customers from all across the country.

Check us out and spread the word! http://www.mainelyratrescue.org


Kaiden is doing great. It's very hard to believe he's going to be TWO years old in just a couple weeks! He looks so grown up now, even with his beautiful curls, there's no mistaking he's no longer my little baby. He's learning new words all the time, loves giving big bear hugs, and will eat almost anything you put in front of him. He's had spells where he's wanted broccoli constantly, how's that for an awesome eater? His all time favorite foods have to be tomatoes, strawberries and pickles though. He could down an entire container of cherry tomatoes in a day if we let him, and the same holds true for strawberries. He's always asking for pickles, and loves the Hannaford brand organic garlic dill spears. Apparently, pickles also go especially well on pizza! ;)

He has some cute quirks as well. When he asks please, he'll tap his right shoulder. Sometimes he'll do it along with verbally saying please, while other times he'll just tap his shoulder. I have no idea how he came up with that sign, but it's very cute! He has a little toy cow he loves. He has it with him most anywhere. He builds it barns from his blocks, feeds it "hay", and makes sure it goes to sleep in the proper place every night. He really enjoys helping with the laundry, and usually is the lint trap checker.

His birthday party is this weekend, and this week is already flying by trying to prepare! There's calling around to those people who haven't RSVPd yet, getting all the food, tons of cooking I'm sure, cleaning up the wazoo! He's VERY into cows and tractors, so we're doing a mostly John Deere theme this year, since he had cows/farm last year. We couldn't find a tractor pinata though, so he's got a cow one. He even helped pick out the pinata fillers, and had great fun choosing what we should have.

We have a Dr's appt next week for him. We're having issues with his eczema, and need to get a referral to a pediatric allergist. Hopefully our Dr doesn't give us a hard time about it, as we really need to figure out his triggers to get it under control. I don't know what we'll do if strawberries wind up being one of his triggers, but we'll find out soon enough. Nate also wants to get his hips/legs checked, as K has an odd gait while he's running. It's possible it's just typical weird toddler running, but it doesn't hurt to get it checked.

As for our crazy weird lifestyle? We're still doing cloth diapers, and Kaiden is getting very close to being potty learned already! I've got to sew him up some trainers, but most days he stays pretty dry. He's differentiating between which he has to do, and will ask "potty" if he has to urinate, while will ask to "toilet" (rather urgently!) if he has to poop. We are still nursing, mostly at naps and bedtime, though still here and there throughout the day. I've been able to maintain a (mostly) plastic free household, at least inside. We were planning on doing a garden this year, although the plans never were actualized.

Now lets see if I can actually keep this thing up to date this time around! Here are some recent pics of K to tide you over. :)













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Now playing: Jamie O'Neal - Somebody's Hero
via FoxyTunes

We're still alive...

No, we haven't fallen off the face of the planet! ;) Things have just been extremely busy around here! Since my last update, LOTS has happened!

Kaiden is now not only toddling, he's practically running everywhere! He loves reading, and is constantly bringing me books to read to him. Today, I think I read "It's not easy being big" about 10 times! His vocabulary is expanding, and he understands pretty much anything you say to him. He loves the Christmas tree, and now that he's pulled off all the ornaments withing reach, he anxiously waits every day for me to turn on the tree lights. When I turn them on, he'll just sit there for a minute chattering about and to the tree, and exclaiming about the pretty lights. He's gotten to be such a big boy in the past few months, he looks so grown up now! Looking at old pictures makes me miss those baby days.

Next Monday Nate and I celebrate our 4 year anniversary! I'm not sure what, if anything, we'll be doing, from the sounds of the weather we'll be spending the day shoveling! Today was his last day of class! Believe it or not, he will *finally* be graduating college!


In October, a couple other ladies and myself founded a rat/small animal rescue! We've already been inundated with rats needing new homes, mostly due to a large rescue situation from up north. Unknown to us, almost every female from that rescue was pregnant, and we wound up with over 120 rats including all the pups! We still have a lot of rats available, so be sure to check us out and spread the word! I'm in charge of running the store, which is a lot of work, but also fun at the same time. Mainely Rat Rescue, for anyone interested!


And if running a store while chasing after a toddler wasn't enough, I've been busing sewing lately as well! I'm doing trades with a couple mamas I know from online message boards. I'm making a bunch of diapers for them, and LOVING how they're coming out! One of the mom's has girls, so it's really fun being able to sew girly things for once. Here is a preview of a couple of the diapers I've just done.



In other news, we finally got a "real" couch!! Nice full size couch, complete with matching storage ottoman! It was a wonderful early Christmas gift from Nate's mom Trish. :)

Winter has come early here for once! We've already had one storm with a foot of snowfall, a couple smaller ones as well. Tomorrow into Friday we're getting another 2-4", then Sunday we're supposed to be getting a big ol' nor'easter! I think, for the first time I can remember in recent history, we will actually be having a white Christmas!

Kaiden's fun day!

Kaiden's great-grandmother gave him a playhouse and Cozy Coupe, so today I set the house up and we played outside all afternoon! He had a BLAST! He loved playing with the shutters on the house, and peeking through the windows. The Cozy Coupe was great, he loved pushing it around the yard, though he doesn't quite get how to drive it yet. He also figured out how to climb up the steps on the slide, and kept wanting me to "help" him slide! Very fun day!
















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Listening to: The Fray - How To Save A Life
via FoxyTunes

One year ago today...

I was in the hospital, getting ready to head into the birthing tub... My, how time flies! I swear it was just yesterday I was in there, thinking I couldn't do it, how it was too sudden, and too soon, feeling elated that I would still be able to have the tub birth I'd dreamed of, even though my other hopes of going naturally had been dashed. That week was such a roller coaster. Knowing I was being induced, but not when. Finding out when I was going, then realizing just how much was still left to do. I had a baby shower that weekend, I had stuff to buy, and I had to go to the hospital the next day!

Then, at 2:30 am Tuesday morning, only 9 hours after my water was broken, Kaiden Reese entered this world.

It's been a roller coaster, and a year full of learning, admitting mistakes, growing up, and realizing just what love means. It's been crazy, depressing, and even downright awful at times, but I wouldn't trade it for the world! Seeing his first smile, his first laugh, his milk drunk smile as he falls asleep nursing, and hearing the word "mama" come out of his mouth for the first time. Nothing in the world is better than that, and it makes any bad day so, so worth it. I wouldn't wish for anything else.

Happy 10 months!

Kaiden turned 10 months old back on the first. To celebrate, he decided it was time to show off his first tooth!! You can't see it well, especially since he's always sticking his tongue out, but you can CERTAINLY feel it!

He also stood up on his own for the first time the other day! He was standing up next to me, then let go and stood by himself for a few seconds before realizing what he did and grabbing back onto my leg. He hasn't done it again, but at the rate he's been cruising around the furniture, I'm sure it won't be long before he's WALKING!

I've already started trying to plan out some details for his birthday party, I can't believe it's only a month and a half away! He's grown up so fast!

Being sick is no fun!

And it's even worse when it's your baby who's sick!

Kaiden went to the Dr's yesterday, where we found out he had conjunctivitis (we knew that) and an ear infection. He also has a really bad cold, to the point where he'll cough, start gagging and throw up. :( It's the first time he's really been sick, you can see he just doesn't feel good. His voice is hoarse, and he wants Mommy all the time. Good thing about babywearing - he can be cuddling with me, and I can still get things done around the house.

He's on erythromycin ointment, and liquid amoxycillin, plus occasional tylenol for the fever and pain. His eyes already look tons better, but you can tell he doesn't feel good at all. Hopefully our next update will have him feeling better!

Open House at a local alpaca farm!

Yesterday afternoon we went to an open house at a local alpaca farm, Long Plains Alpacas. There were representatives from several other local farms (and some of their alpacas, of course) including Sunshine Alpacas, Foss Mountain Farm, White Barn Meadows, Abenaqui Alpacas, Maple Hill Farm, Pamelamas, and Bellemont Farm Alpacas. There was a shearing demonstration, spinning, and other information, kool-aid dyeing for the children, and a ton of yarns and fiber for sale, as well as ready made goods. Very tempting, but I was good and didn't buy any!

With the exception of Sunshine Alpacas, they were all huacaya being represented. Sunshine Alpacas brought 3 of their suri alpacas. They had already been shorn, and she didn't bring any fleece, so I missed out on the dreadlocks! Looks like they'd be gorgeous though! White Barn Meadows had a pair of gelded fiber males, they were beautiful! Cinnamon was especially sweet, and gave Kaiden kisses. He was beautiful, I just wanted to snuggle him!

Kaiden had fun, he was checking everything out, and kept trying to play with the yarn. All in all, a very fun day! I can't wait until the Fiber Frolic the 9th and 10th!

Here are a bunch of pics from yesterday!

Cinnamon, gelded male from Sunshine Alpacas


Some alpacas from Abenaqui Alpacas


Suri alpaca from Sunshine Alpacas


Sugar Ray, before shearing demo


Sugar Ray after shearing


A befuddled Kaiden


Comfy Kaiden!


Resident llama of Long Plains Alpacas