I used to be an early bird…..way back before I had kids.  I was most productive in the morning and couldn’t wait to get out of bed and get going.  In fact, when Chad was working for his dad and would leave for work at 4 am, I would often get up then and clean the house or do homework for school.

I would love to continue being an early riser now…I think it would be awesome to be able to exercise (no apidexin for me!) and get my day going without the company of small people first thing in the morning.  But as soon as they hear me up, both of them wake up so I don’t think that’s going to happen any time soon.

So instead I’m stuck staying up until midnight or later trying to get work done.  I’m definitely not at my best, but it’s the only time I don’t have constant interruptions.  At least the kids sleep in until 8 so I can still get some sleep…..

….until lately.

Lately, they’ve been getting up before 7, which is oh so rude when I stayed up past midnight.  Something is going to have to give.  If they’re going to keep getting up so early, I’m going to have to come up with another solution to get stuff done and not stay up so late.  I have no earthly idea what that would be, but I can’t keep drinking my weight in coffee everyday!

Any suggestions….either for rearranging my schedule or for getting the kids to sleep later?

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I do not have a green thumb.  At all.  I know pretty much nothing about plants and only the hardiest ones survive my care.  Every year for the last few years, my grandma has bought me a hanging basket of moss roses because they need very little care.  I water those things maybe once a summer and they still survive (they do get rained on though)….now that’s my kind of plant!

Even knowing this, I’ve always wanted to have a garden, even when I was a teenager.  My mom, of course, waited to turn their entire side yard into a garden until after I moved 600 miles away.

We really have no room for a garden here.  We have a teeny-tiny back yard and pretty much no side yard (not even enough room for outdoor fireplaces here!).  So I decided to try to grow some veggies in containers this year.  I’ve thought of this idea before and always been overwhelmed by trying to decide which plants to try and how to grow them, so I decided to start with two this year.  I’m sure once I get my feet wet and am comfortable with it, I’ll have no problem branching out and trying more next year.

Any recommendations on which veggies to try first? I’m thinking green beans and tomatoes, but don’t have my mind made up yet.  I definitely want to start with something easy!

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I’m having quite a time deciding on the new car seats I want to get for the kids. Since the old ones were in the accident, our insurance company will be paying for us to replace them, which I’m very excited about! The hard part is deciding which one! This isn’t like picking out outdoor furniture…it has to be perfect and there are so many different things to consider.

This is my first choice…the Britax Boulevard TSIP Convertible Car Seat :

This seems like the safest seat, which is extremely important to me. I even found a great price on it, with free shipping (even though the insurance company will be paying for it). The problem? These things are tanks! Two of them in the backseat of my car would obliterate the middle seat. And I’m fairly certain I would never be able to have one rear-facing. Of course, by the time we plan to need a rear-facing seat again, I will hopefully have a van, but still…

My second choice is the Evenflo Triumph Advance LX Convertible Car Seat :

This seat was rated #1 for safety in 2009. I like it less than the Britax Boulevard, though, because it doesn’t have the Side-Impact Protection. It also only holds toddlers up to 50 pounds, while the Boulevard fits a child up to 65 pounds. But it is considerably smaller and costs less.

And my 3rd choice is the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1 Car Seat:

The only reason I’m considering this one is because it converts into a booster and then a backless booster. But it can’t be used until children are 20 pounds.

So there you have it. Do you see my dilemma here? Chad says I should just buy the Boulevards and not worry about the middle seat because we rarely use it anyway. I guess that’s what I’m leaning towards as well since I love the safety features. But I would really love it if you would weigh-in, too!

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

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Do you know how long it’s been since I did a Works For Me Wednesday?  I don’t either, but I know it’s been a looooooong time!  I miss blogging.  I cut back drastically on blogging to write articles for Demand Studios, but I’m just not feeling it.  Don’t get me wrong, I make way more writing there than I do here, but I miss the community.  I miss connecting with other bloggers.  I miss the happiness when I see new comments I’ve received.  And I miss the thrill of finding out that I helped someone!  I’m not going to completely stop writing at Demand, but I am going to get a lot more involved in the blogging community again.

But I digress…

Today Kristen has started a backwards theme for Works For Me Wednesday.  That means that instead of thinking of some clever tip to share with you, I get to ask you for your advice on a problem I’m having.

And my biggest problem right now is that my two-year-old, Ava, has decided that she doesn’t need to nap anymore.  But let me assure you, Mommy still needs naptime in order to preserve her sanity!

I’m OK with her not napping, especially because she goes to bed so much easier at night when she doesn’t nap.  But, I need her to have a quiet time while Kelvin naps so that I can exercise, start dinner, and get some work done during the day.  So my question is…What kind of activities would be good to have available for her to do during her quiet time?

She already has a bookshelf full of books and a toy box in her room (most of the toys make noise, though).  I’m looking for things that would keep her busy, without making much noise.  And obviously, I don’t want to put anything involving an lcd monitor (i.e. a TV) in her room.I can’t wait to hear your ideas!

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I’m going to start potty-training Ava tomorrow!  If you want to follow our progress, you can do so at my personal blog.  I’m sure I’ll need your encouragement and advice…so consider this your party invitations to the potty party!

So for those of you who have gone before me, what’s your best tips or advice for potty training?  What kind of plan or rewards did you use?  How long did it take?  Oh yes, and do you think 4 pairs of cloth training pants are enough?  If not, I want to order more as soon as I can.

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What are the top three baby products/gear that you think no mom should be without? Of course, this doesn’t include things like a car seat, which are pretty much mandatory.

For me, I think it would be:

1. Sling or other quality baby carrier
2. Swing
3. Breast pump

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Being a young mother with two very young children, I obviously don’t have all the answers (by the way, when exactly will I have all the answers?  LOL).  So I thought it would be neat to start a weekly feature where you, our readers, are the ones giving the advice!

This week’s topic:

What is your best advice for getting through the day after a sleepless night?

I’ve been having a whole string of sleepless nights lately and I need all the advice you have to give!

Coming next week….I think we’ll talk about tips and tricks you have for losing that baby weight!  I’ve never been one to buy diet pills and I have about 5 more pounds of Kelvin weight to lose, so I’m looking forward to hearing everyone’s advice next week!

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