A Rant - Car Seats

You know what drives me absolutely crazy?  When parents don't take the time (which is like 5 seconds) to properly restrain their kids in their car seats.  Seriously people, they have made it so simple to do and give pretty clear instructions.  Their straps should not be all twisted nor should they be falling off their shoulder.  The chest buckle?  It should be at nipple line folks, not down at their belly button.  Why do it up at all if it's going to be way down there?  It can't do its job and restrain your kid when it's way down there.
I can't think of a time when you would want to be most careful and ensure they are secure then when you are driving.  Another thing (this is more prevalent in infant seats), the straps should be tight.  Tight as in, you shouldn't be able to slip two fingers under the straps.  Yes, it looks really tight but guess what?  That's the point!  For older kids, if they are telling you it's too tight, that probably means it's snug like it should be.
I have 3 kids.  I know that sometimes life gets busy and you can have a lot on your mind but if you ask me, there is no excuse.  These are your children folks.  Your precious cargo.  The little people you claim to love with all your heart and soul and could never live without. Take the time (even if it will make you late) to make sure they are in their seats properly.  This isn't rocket science.

Can you see what is wrong here?  Can you see how this baby isn't even almost restrained as he should be?  Nothing about how he is restrained in his car seat would be of any help to him should there be a collision.  Grinds my gears like you wouldn't believe.

And this....

What the hell?  How could one look at this and say, "Ok,  You are all tied up and safe to go."  I get that they can be tricky in the winter with big, bulky coats but I have a simple solution.  If you can't do the straps securely, take their coat off.  In fact, this is recommended.  Cars have heat.  Cover them with a blanket.  I know you can work with a winter coat in a car seat.  I'm not a rookie.  I have 3 kids.  I know you can work around it.

I try not to be judgmental when it comes to parenting because I know how hard it can be.  I know how stressful it is.  I know that we don't all parent the same and different things work for different people.  I judge this.  When I see your kid in their car seat like this, I'm judging because I don't think there is any excuse.

I might get some flack for writing this but so be it.  It's my blog.  I can write what I want. 

Day Family Pictures 2012

This past June my side of my family got together for family pictures.  We hadn't updated our family pictures is over 3 years so it was time. Between mine and my sisters work schedules, early June is when we were able to all get together.
Getting together 7 adults and 6 kids aged 2-15 is no small task.  Reed was a mess, as expected.  I warned them all not to expect much from him.  He did not fail to perform! Although it was super stressful at the time, when I look at him in the pictures, I laugh because some of them are actually quite funny. 

Surprise!

Well hello there!  It's been a while.  No excuse really.  I often think of something to write about but then by the time I find the time to sit down and write it's either gone or I get lost in Pinterest.  Never heard of Pinterest?  Oh my!  Might I suggest you check it out.  Beware - it can be a time sucker.  You may even need a Pintervention.  If you require an invite, just let me know and I will be sure to send you one.
A little update on the kids:
Jack is doing very well.  He was student of the month for his class in January.  I was so proud of him.  He was quite humble about it.  He mentioned it to me in passing the day after he got his award.  He didn't even bring home his certificate for almost a week.  I had to remind him to be proud of himself.

Jack also got his first real pet for his birthday courtesy of his Auntie Jody.  By real pet I mean, not a fish.  He now has a pet Hamster.  He named him George.  I wasn't really too crazy about having a pet rodent and I'm not the least bit fond of handling him but he is growing on me.  He is kind of cute.  Jack really likes him.  I have learned that when he is out in his exercise ball that he needs constant supervision.  Reed taught me this lesson pretty quick after picking him up in it and dropping him.  I have never felt so bad for a little creature before.  It really scared him.

Oliver is also doing well.  He has adjusted to going to school nicely.  It wasn't like this at first but he has settled quite nicely and is learning quickly.  I find it really sweet to watch him make and play with friends at school.  He is quite the social little guy.  It really makes me happy to see that he talks to and tries to play with the boy with special needs in his class.  Despite the fact this boy has very limited language, Oliver approaches him most morning to say hello and ask him to play.  He never plays because he stays next to his Mom or his EA until it's time to line up and go inside but Oliver continues to do it most mornings.  Bless his heart.

Reed.  Reed is now 21 months.  It hurts to write that.  Reed has only recently started walking.  Recently being within the last two months.  When he wasn't walking at his 18 month check up, I was a little concerned.  He took his first step within 2 weeks of his check up and by the beginning/middle of January, he decided to start walking.  Now 2 months later, you would never know he was lagging behind.
Reed is a sweet, smiley and happy boy.  He likes to wreak havoc and get into everything and anything his brothers are doing.
Reed is behind in speech.  What do I mean by behind you ask?  He doesn't talk.  At all.  He says maybe 3 words (mom, sit, said ) and these have been the same 3 words for a few months now.  He does make other sounds (ba, da, ja) and he babbles A LOT but he doesn't actually have any distinguishable words.  I'm almost concerned about this, not quite yet though.  Jack and Oliver didn't really talk until after they turned 2 but they did have other words they used (ball, cup, milk, up, please, thank you).  In his own time I suppose.
This is how the kids have been over the past couple of months.  They are growing fast.  I would like it if they slowed down just a little.  This life stuff is going by much too fast and I'd like to bottle them up right now so they stay young and sweet forever!