Miles & Momma Monday - Life Update pt. 2

This is part 2 in a short long series about what's been going on in our lives since my last real post a year ago.  Since it's Miles & Momma Monday, here's what you've missed in the world of the cutest lil man you ever did see.

First - check this out.  This was one of the last pictures I posted of Miles:

This was Miles last Thursday night:

Like...is that even the same kid?  Besides being a year older, Miles has gone through some big stuff since last August.  We started him in Early On, which is the State of Michigan's early intervention program.  We felt like he was a little behind in his language development so we started some bi-weekly meetings with a speech-language pathologist to help push him along.  

We also decided, after an endless stream of ear infections, that we needed to go ahead with getting tubes in his ears.  The quick surgery was scary (I don't care how routine something is, letting your baby out of your sight to be put under general anesthesia and sharp blades run through his eardrums is some scary shit), but took less than 10 minutes and we saw a VAST improvement in his language right from the start.  You could see a huge change in his demeanor right away too - it was like he was hearing things for the first time.  He screamed - a lot - just to hear his own voice.  It was pretty amazing to see.  Here's little man before and after the procedure:

I'm working a little bit out of order here...but whateva.  In December we discovered that Miles was allergic to penicillin.  That was AWESOME, let me tell you.  So - as I mentioned before, kid was pretty much a non-stop ear infection for the better part of a year.  His pediatrician always prescribed amoxicillin.  The infection would clear up for a few weeks then come right back.  The only saving grace was that having an ear infection didn't seem to bother him much.  His only symptom was ever a runny nose - so while he was constantly having ear trouble, he wasn't in pain, which I guess is good.  For whatever reason, the pediatrician was not so hot on him getting tubes (I actually had to push for them when we got concerned about his speech), but just kept telling me - spring is coming, let's just get through the winter and he'll be good.  So he kept getting round after round of antibiotics...I digress.  So anyway, he was on the last day of what was honestly on his 9th or 10th round of amoxicillin, just after Christmas.  We noticed a couple of bumps on his back that looked like some sort of bug bites.  We decided to keep an eye on them (because it was the middle of winter in Michigan...there were no bugs).  The next day we woke up and his left eye was completely swollen.  It was awful.  

We took him to the doctor and they decided it definitely an allergy - most likely to the penicillin.  Luckily, his ears were cleared up and we didn't have to worry about finishing the meds.  She told us to give him benadryl and we went on our way.  The next morning we woke up and he wasn't any better.  In fact, he was worse.  

His entire face was swollen and red.  Those 2 little 'bug bites' on his back and turned into one giant full-body hive.  So back to the doctor we went...he had to be put on steroids.  The doctor told us it was one of the worst penicillin reactions she had ever seen and he would, more than likely, not be a candidate for re-introduction later in life (my husband, mom, and sister had all been allergic to penicillin as kids but can take it with no issue now) as each reaction would get worse and he may end up with anaphilaxis.  Sweet.    Here's my poor, miserable boy a few days into the steroid treatment (yeah...even with the steroids, it still took almost a week for that rash to go away completely...needless to say, we had to cancel our appointment for family pictures).

As if an interstate move isn't enough change for  little guy, we've also had to change his day care situation quite a bit in the last few months, which has been pretty rough.  It didn't help that we loved, loved, LOVED our day care provider back in Michigan.  She was amazing and Miles adored her.  He got so excited to go see Heather every day, got mad at us when we made us leave each afternoon, and never cried or fussed at drop off - we were lucky if we could get a kiss goodbye, because he already had Heather and his friends.  

When we first moved to TN, my mom watched him full time.  The first few days were tough, but once he got used to her, his days with Grammy ended up being pretty similar to his days with Heather, minus the drop off and pickup.  He especially loved all the time he got outside (which was a major change from the snow and cold we left behind).  After a few weeks, we all decided it would be best to put him in daycare part time - he needed the socialization and grammy needed a break (keeping up with an energetic 2 1/2 year old is tough)!  

We found a daycare center that is close to where our new home will be.  It's a bit of a trek for us now, but in the long term, it's a great location.  And it's one of the highest rated centers in the state and affordable and offers part time enrollment (which surprisingly, is very rare).  So, while the center itself is great - it's a very different atmosphere than what we're all used to with Heather's in-home daycare and then staying home each day (and continuing to stay home twice a week) with Grammy.  I think that transition has been the toughest for him.  Drop offs have been so, so hard.  I've had to fight myself a few times to not turn around and bring him back home.  But his teachers assure me that as soon as I (or Grammy) leaves, he stops crying and has a great time with his new friends.  And slowly, but surely, drop offs are getting easier and easier.  I think it's just a slower transition - but we'll get there.

Miles Stats:

Height: ~34"

Weight 20 lbs

Potty Trained? No, but starting to talk about it, and he sits on the potty at daycare (but doesn't use it).

Diaper Size: 6

Clothing Size: Shirts-2T, Pants-18 mos, PJs-3T

Favorite Foods: French Toast Sticks, Mac & Cheese, Grilled Cheese, Protein Granola Bars, String Cheese, Apple Sauce, Black Olives, Beans (Black, Refried), Hot Dogs, Fruit Snacks, Lemons (whole lemons...rind and all)

Favorite Toys: Spiderman Pillow Book, Stuffed Collie, Pete & Patty Pirate, Crane (pictured above - made by Miles' papa for Miles' momma 30 years ago), toy cars, toy airplanes.

Takin Pete and Patty for a walk

Favorite TV Shows/Movies: Super Why, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Sesame Street (Elmo!), Barney (ugh), Dora (ugh), Ruff Ruff, Tweet, & Dave, Big Hero 6, Avengers

Other Favorites: 

Airplanes (everything airplanes) - we live in the airport path, so there are constantly planes flying overhead.  And when he hears one, we have to drop everything to watch it fly over.  THEN we have to pretend to be airplanes and fly around the driveway.  

Water - his water table, the hose, squirt guns, playing in the rain - if it's wet, he loves it.  Unless he has to go in it...like a pool.  The bathtub is ok.  

Letters - most especially, the letter R.  No clue why.  but you better believe if he can see an R, he will get so excited about it.

He's growing into a little kid - he's definitely not a baby anymore.  It's so fun to watch and learn all his little personality quirks.  And kid definitely has some Chelish in him...

So that's it for our 2 part update.  More (or less) exciting stuff next time.  Until then...

A life Update - Part 1

I totally forgot to post this on Friday...oops.  So you'll get 2 posts today.   Please to enjoy...

So, prior to this week, it had been 6 months since my last post and that post was just an announcement that I was shutting down this blog.  So really, it's been 11 months since my last post with anything meaningful.  Well...but that was just a photo dump.  So my last post with real, written content was over a year ago. That's so crazy to me.  It definitely doesn't seem like it's been that long, since I sat and typed some rambling dribble about my life to whomever randomly navigated over to my little section of the Internet.

And a LOT has changed in that year.  So much so, that I need to break it up into multiple posts. Part 1 is what's been going on at Chateau Cooper in general.  Come back Monday for a Momma & Miles update (which we all know is what's way more interesting)!

So a few highlights - I had pneumonia in October, which occurred as a result of my continuing to work through a cold, which had turned into the flu.  Apparently, it is important to rest when you're sick...or something.

We took a trip to Tennessee in October.  We visited the Chattanooga Choo Choo hotel, went trick-or-treating at the zoo, went to the aquarium, a children's museum, and a petting farm.  We had a great time, but basically reaffirmed that we would never move to Tennessee.

I made a big investment in my Jamberry business and decided to attend the Regional Jamberry Conference in Columbus, OH.  I learned that in some dueling piano bars, the waiters will take their shirts off and dance on the pianos.

Despite never wanting to shoot or own a gun, my husband convinced me to go to the range with him one day.  While there, the instructor on duty convinced me to try it.  Turns out, I'm sort of a natural.  By the end of the session, he had invited me to join his competitive shooting team.  He did not invite Chad (teehee).  I politely declined, but was excited to have a new skill.  By the end of the year, Chad and I both got our CPLs - though I still have no desire to actually carry anything.

In January, I lost my great aunt, Sr. Kathleen.  We had been very close when I was younger - she was really like a 3rd grandmother to me, but she developed alzheimer's and we lost touch at the end of her life.  I feel very guilty that I did not continue to write and send Christmas cards each year.  I'm sure she would have liked to be remembered, even if she didn't remember me.  I thought about her all the time, but I still feel like I didn't do enough.  My most fond memory of her was staying at her apartment and reading the Warm Fuzzy tale.  After we had read the story, we made our own warm fuzzies then went around and gave them to the other residents.  She always told me that the rule of fuzzies was that they must always come with a hug.  So we passed out these fuzzies and hugs and it made all of our nights.  So for her funeral, I made up a bunch of warm fuzzies and gave them to the other attendees, along with the required hug.  I feel like she would have appreciated that.

In the time since my last post, I attended 3 Tigers games and TigersFest (which was a disaster and could be another post all on its own, so I'll spare you that).  This season is not turning out well, but I love my boys and I will anxiously await a big turnaround next year.

So now for the big stuff.  Remember how a few paragraphs ago, I said we had reaffirmed our desire to NEVER move to Tennessee?  Well....

In May, Chad was recommended and hired for a new job.  The catch?  The job is in Tennessee and he started 2 weeks later.  Woah.  We had been casually discussing the possibility of making a move to Tennessee in the future to be closer to family, but our goal was to get there before Miles started kindergarten...not anytime soon.  But it was an opportunity we could not pass up, so of course, he took it.  And we started prepping for a huge move, and put our house on the market.

One of the big questions was what would I do for work?  We figured if we sold the house quick enough, we'd be OK for  a little while on one income, but I'd need to hit the ground running once I got there.  Well...luck was apparently on our side.  When I called my boss to give my 2 weeks' notice, I mentioned that I would be willing to stay on and continue to work remotely.  Maybe it was just good timing (2 high level employees had also quit that day), but she agreed.  I mean...could it have gotten any better than that?!

About 24 hours after our house went on the market we got an offer.  It was a terrible offer, but in the end, we decided to accept it.  The money we made off of it would cover most (if not all) of a down payment on a new house and we wouldn't have to worry about the mortgage.  The closing process took entirely too long and we almost backed out a few times, but in the end, we got it done and we were no longer homeowners - which was awesome.

We had hoped that once we got settled in, we would find a new house and be out of my parents (who had graciously let us stay with them until we found other arrangements) in a couple of months.  Well, our first weekend in town we found the perfect house.  Only problem?  It wasn't built yet.  We have wanted to build since we got married, so we jumped at the opportunity.  This means that we're staying where we are for a little longer than we had hoped...but if it means getting into an amazing house - it will be worth it!  Our expected move-in date is December...hopefully we'll be in our new home by Christmas!

About 2 weeks into our new life in Tennessee, I got a call from an employment recruiter for a local company.  They had a few departments looking for Business Analysts and he thought I would be a good fit (I didn't apply for this company...this guy found me on LinkedIn and reached out on his own).  I went to two interviews and got 2 job offers.  Holy Crap.  I had an ideal work situation...working from home at a job I knew and did well.  But this was an opportunity that would allow me tremendous potential for growth (something I didn't have at my current job) and a big salary bump.  I couldn't, realistically, pass it up.  I felt awful - because my company had made a lot of special accomodations to let me keep working.  But...this was the best decision for my family and my career so I had to do it.  I also agreed to stay on as an as-needed contractor with my (former) company for 2 months during the transition in case they had something that they just couldn't do without me.  They haven't called yet... :-)  But I'm loving my new job and I'm so excited about everything I'm going to learn here.  

And now...I think that's just about it.  You're caught up with more information than you ever wanted to know.  So until Monday....

What (Not) To Wear - What I've Been Up To

So it's been about a year (what?!) or more since I last posted a WNTW. So what's been going on in my wardrobe since then?  Frankly, tons.  And I think most of it has been for the positive.

I've accepted leggings as pants.  And I live in them.
I now work at a job wear jeans are a no-no... In fact, I honestly can't remember the last time I put on a pair of blue jeans (oh yeah...I got a new job.  Life update coming in a later post).
I wear dresses and skirts - no wait - scratch that - I ROCK dresses and skirts pretty much every day (and then I come home from work and put on my leggings).
I know what box pleats are, and I covet them.
I mix patterns.  Camo & Stripes.  Florals and Polka Dots.  Giraffes and Geometrics.  I'm not afraid of any of 'em.
I wear heels.  And flip flops that I didn't buy at Old Navy.

Let's do a quick comparison....here are some of the "good" outfits I posted last year -

Not bad...not bad... but how about now?

Photo Gallery by QuickGallery.com

My saving grace has been a new direct sales company, LuLaRoe (I'm linking my fabulous consultant Jen).  I have fallen in love with their bold colors & prints, practical, yet fashionable cuts, and of course, their buttery-soft leggings!  If I could only shop LuLaRoe for the rest of my life, I would be too happy (my husband thinks I will get "peter griffen" syndrome if I do that -- you know he always wears the same green pants and white shirt day after day after day after...you get it -- but I think I can mix it up, especially with all those fun prints)!   And half of the fun of shopping LLR is hunting for your "unicorn" prints in the perfect size and style (each print is only made into 1000 pieces - so some can be tough to find)!

Between hunting for the perfect LLR prints and finding suitable clothing for my new job,  clothes are fun again.  I thought I loved having a job that didn't really have a dress code.  Being able to dress down for work was easy - but it was boring.  Not being able to wear open-toed shoes was an unnecessary torture.  I should have known better - when I had a job wearing scrubs everyday, I thought I would love it, because...scrubs.  But I hated it.  I wanted to wear a color other than maroon.  I wanted to choose an outfit.  Now I can be adventurous and classy all at the same time and I'm so excited!

So what do you think, friends?  How am I doing in the what not to wear area?  Would Stacy and Clinton still throw away my entire wardrobe?  Am I progressing (or am I Peter Griffen)?  I'd love to hear your thoughts!

And until next time, 

Big Changes Ahead - From June 2, 2015

I'm so, so, excited!  Today is my last day of work in my office at my "real job".  Starting tomorrow I am joining the Work-from-Home force ahead of my family's big move to Tennessee at the end of the week!

Working from home is going to be a big change for me.  It's going to require a LOT of discipline and ORGANIZATION!  Luckily, I've found the Erin Condren Life Planner to help get me there.

Let me start by saying, I am a total organization junkie.  I am by no means organized.  I'm one of the most dis-organized people I know...by a long shot.  But I try.  I am obsessed with office supplies and organizational tools.  As a kid, one of my favorite Christmas gifts was an Office Max gift card in my stocking - screams of joy for that one.

One of my favorite things to buy/use is a paper planner.  I consider myself to be very tech-minded (I do work in IT after all...), and I use a lot of online organizational tools like Google Calendar, Google Drive, Google Keep (notice a trend?), and Dropbox.  But there is something about putting a pen to paper, making an actual physical list, then checking or crossing things off of that list, that gives me such a sense of accomplishment - one I've never been able to replicate on a screen.

My husband was making fun of me the other day because I was describing to him the never-ending supply of notepads and notebooks I have to pack up as I move from an actual office to my new home-office.  4 years worth of notes and lists...things that I look back on from time to time when I need to remember something (I was blessed with a terrible memory...I'm one of those people who would forget their head if it wasn't attached...and I mean that in the least cliche'd way possible).

give me ALL the notebooks!

I grew up using a Franklin Planner.  It was very grown up and sophisticated, but if I'm being honest, I hated it.  I never used it the same way I used the notebook style planners I could get at the office supply store/section.  One of my favorite planners ever was the one I got for free at my college orientation.  I was so mad when I didn't get another my sophomore year.  That thing was legit.  The spiral-bound notebook style planner is just my thing.  It gets me.

So cut to last night - my husband and I were packing and purging (something that is very difficult for me as well...I'm a bit of a hoarder) and I found my old Franklin Planner.  I decided to keep it out because it would be a great tool to keep me organized as I transitioned to working from home.  But then today, as I was looking through new refill packs and not finding anything nearly cute enough, I decided I didn't want my old Franklin Planner any more.  I needed to go back to the old school.  I remembered my direct sales friends all RAVING about Erin Condren planners for their businesses and decided to look them up.

 

Um...I am in LOVE.  This is exactly what my life has been missing.  This is everything I need in a perfect little spiral-bound package.  I can organize my "real" work, I can organize my mom-life, and my wife-life all in this brightly colored gift from god.

Get yours here!

The 2015 planner launches in 7 days and I am all over it.  Sign me up.  NOW (actually...go sign yourselves up and get $10 off with this link)!

I'll be sure to post a review of the actual planner once I get it.  I am counting down the days, hours, minutes, seconds....until I can customize my new friend.  We're going to be besties, Erin and me.

*this post is not sponsored or endorsed by ErinCondren.com (though if they wanted to send me a free planner to review, I certainly would not say no).  All opinions are my own.*

Update - We're Moving!

Hello Loyal Readers (all 3 of you that may be left)!

I know it's been a minute (or 5) since I last posted.  The reason is that I have been really focused on my Jamberry business.  Everytime I want to write a blog post, it's about Jamberry and promoting a business was not what I envisioned for this blog.

But inevitably - I miss blogging.  I want to blog, I just want to do it about Jamberry instead of about me.  So I've started a new blog.  I'd love to have any of you join me at jamwithchel.com and follow my exploits in the world of nail wraps.  And I promise, it will still have a very chelish spin.

Thanks for your time, your comments, and your support.

Stay Chelish, friends!

miles & momma [day after] monday

Its been awhile but we're having fun watching the Tigs and Barney videos on YouTube.  So why not some silly selfies in the meantime?