Rashes

Getting into the swing of having a baby is way harder than I thought it would be.  I forgot so much from when I had Annie and no two children are alike.  Trying to figure out little Elsie's schedule is impossible.  I'm pretty sure that the second she thinks I'm catching on she changes it up.  She doesn't eat or sleep in any sort of recognizable pattern, nor does she respond to me trying to give her one.
The worst part is that she has had this terrible diaper rash for a week.  I finally figured out that it was a yeast rash and not a regular run of the mill rash.  So now I have to spray her butt with diluted vinegar water and wait till it air dries before I can put a diaper on her.  Do you know how many times a baby pees in a day?  Not to mention her latest trick, poop right before mom is about to walk out the door with you.  I might as well not diaper her at all.  I should be one of those crazy moms who potty train their newborns (no offense, but how realistic is that anyways?).

Annie's Ballet

Annie has been practicing her dance more and more frequently lately and last night she put on a performance for Texas and I.  It was quite elaborate.  She asked if I could "movie it" and put in on the blog.  So this is a small snippet of her performance.

*No judging me by the background if you can see it.  I made the video extra small in hopes of you all not seeing the giant mess in my dining room/ bedroom.

Eureka!

Last night my very wise older daughter informed me that the baby was keeping her up at night and she would like to sleep in her room upstairs!  I can't tell you how proud of her I am.  Since Annie moved into her big bed 2+ years ago it has been her little nest.  Even in the chaos that is our house, she goes up during the day and sits with Banjo in her bed to look at books.  She decided on her own (maybe a few subtle hits from mom) that she needed to be in her room at night.  Even if that meant being the only one upstairs.  She woke up this morning well rested and ready to go.  I have new hope that I will survive this new baby stage, and that Annie is going to be just fine.

Diapers

So we started up with the cloth diapers.  I forgot how much laundry babies make.  Add not have having enough diaper inserts and I'm running to the basement constantly (please note in order to get to the basement you have to go outside). Evidently over the last four years I lost quite a few of them from Annie's diapering days.  I vaguely remember washing some with an ink pen and having to throw them out, but it was so long ago.  Today, in an effort to make my life easier I went out to Cotton Babies (the high end boutique of diapering gear), and bought more inserts.  I love this store, but I'm not a fan of the their locations, SO far away.  If going there doesn't make you consider at least for a minute that you want to cloth diaper your kids you aren't in the right store.  They have found a way to make cloth diapers appear hip and trendy.  With not only your choice of diaper systems, but a multitude of colors and fabrics.   It's hard to resist the temptation to buy all the bright colored diapers.  I use the boring white system with no bells and whistles, but I love this system.   I just have to remind myself of that before entering the store. It's easy and requires very little thought (I wouldn't want Elsie's diaper to clash with her shoes).  Mostly, I love not having to run to the store at some insanely inconvenient time to buy diapers with money I'd rather spend on something fun because I ran out of disposables.

We need a bedroom!

We are still using our dining room as a bedroom.  It's not terrible, but it is a little frustrating.  The biggest issue?  Our house feels like the size of a shoe box because all four of us are living in two rooms.  We wake up and move from the makeshift bedroom to the living room where any combination of eating, working, playing, and t.v. watching is going on at once. There is no such thing as alone time or quiet. 
Texas is ready to run for the hills; thankfully he's channeling his cabin fever toward finishing our bedroom.  The last two days he's been locked up there mudding, sanding and scraping.  Painting should start any day now!
Annie thinks it's great, but I don't think it's that great for her.  She really doesn't sleep well unless she's in her big bed.  Her and Banjo cram into her little toddler bed and it's like watching a really sleepy game of twister.  They constantly toss around trying to keep from sliding off. 
I just want privacy.  I'm not the wife who makes the bed in the morning every day, and now everyone I know has seen first hand that I suck at putting laundry away too.

Yarnage

Today I got a package in the mail from my friend Heather.  She recently moved out to Oregon, and sadly I think she really loves it there.  I was hoping she'd move back to St. Louis one day, but it's looking like that will never happen.   Anyways, inside the package was this amazing sweater that she made for Elsie (and a treasure for Annie, but Annie isn't home to open it yet).   I'm thinking Heather needs to add baby sweaters to her Etsy shop because I love this sweater.  It's so adorable.
For Elsie's arrival my sister made her an adorable hat and then made Annie and Elsie the sweetest little necklaces with their initial's on it. Elsie is a little to young to wears hers still, but Annie is keeping it safe for her till then. 
Between my sister Greta and Heather I'm thinking my kids will be in handmade yarnage for years to come.  And I'm officially to intimidated to ever pick up a ball of yarn again.

Here is the sweater:

She really hates when I fuss with her clothing

 Here is the Hat:

And here are the link's to the two most talented women I know:
Girl with a hook

GREMADCHA

Update

Out with the old (leaky and smelly dishwasher)

In with the slightly less old (not so smelly dishwasher)

Basically this is my husbands way of telling me he expects me to start washing the dishes.