I should have listened...

to my mother. When we first moved to California, my mom told me that I should now keep all my pantry food in air-tight containers because California has a lot of bugs. I brushed that off as a little crazy (sorry mom) and pretty much ignored her. And... we have had no problems. Zero. Way less bugs even than when we lived in Utah. Until now...

I mistakenly thought that since I am definitely on the clean-freak side (I seriously clean all the time) that I didn't need to worry about bugs. I was so wrong!!

Here is what a pantry moth looks like:

If you want to scream, then you can join me. Because I did. 

Tuesday was a crazy day. I spent over two hours entertaining both girls at the doctor while Steven got two sets of x-rays and a new cast. I'm still feeling very overwhelmed, and this was the last thing I needed. 

We were getting ready for bed when I noticed a moth fly out of the cupboard. I decided to investigate, and then started screaming when I found tons of moths and little worms in all our food! And, it seriously came out of nowhere. My mom was here last week, and was shocked that it happened, since she had just helped me clean the kitchen and there was no evidence of anything before.

Steven and I stayed up way late going through the cupboards, reading everything we could about how to get rid of them, and throwing out our food. We chucked everything. Every spice. Every cereal, crackers, rice. Everything. We discovered a bag of pecans as the little "home" to the moths. I guess often there are eggs in food packages when you buy something and you don't know until you have a full-blown infestation. 

Even though this is just another thing to add on the list of things that have happened in our lives lately, I was pretty proud of myself. Moths seriously freak me out. So much so, that I woke up from a nightmare in the middle of the night last night screaming, "they are everywhere!" Normally, I would have locked myself in the back room and made Steven deal with everything. But... since he has a broken leg, I had to do it. And I did.... even though I definitely freaked out a few times.

However, I think the battle of Paige vs. the Moths has been won by me. I only found one today. Yesterday, I scrubbed and cleaned and vacuumed so much that my hands are raw. And today, I started replacing our food and making sure everything is air-tight and sealed.

Oh... and replacing a whole pantry of food is so expensive. Spices are crazy. We have a long way to go before we actually have enough food to cook with, but things are coming along. 

The plus side is I now have the most organized, air-tight pantry around:

You can either laugh or cry, right? We have been doing a lot of laughing lately. 

The Girls

Life is still definitely crazy and exhausting and frustrating. I don't recommend this situation to anybody. But, while we are muddling through the days, I also don't want to forget the little things that my little girls are up to right now. Because, like every mom, I think they are incredible.

Aubrey:

• Has grown up a lot lately. She still can't sit still to eat a meal if her life depended on it, but she is becoming sweeter and more mature every day.
• Has a big heart. A couple of days ago, I was singing her songs before bed and Steven was crutching his way down the hall. I have to help him get onto the couch/bed. Aubrey stopped me in the middle of her song and said, "you go help daddy with his leg. Then come back and sing me a song." 
• Knows almost all her ABC's, and loves to point out the letters wherever we go. Especially her "A" for Aubrey.
• Is starting a ballet class in a couple of weeks. Loves playgroup, nursery and all her friends.

• Is still kind of crazy and wild. This girl likes to have fun and be entertained. It can be exhausting. She is almost always a really sweet girl, but when she is bored or wants attention, she deliberately acts out.
• Definitely something to celebrate: Aubrey is over her fear of public bathrooms! She still hates the loud, automatic flushers and hand dryers, but going out is easier now.
• Has mostly given up her nap. She will maybe nap once a week. I still put her in her room everyday for quiet time, but sadly, I no longer have a napping toddler.

Cora:

• 8 months old and on the move! We call her our little inchworm. She is pretty fast, but doesn't do normal hands and knees crawling. She gets up on all fours and then lunges forward all across the room and has been doing that for about a month. Maybe real crawling is coming? 
• She gets herself in and out of a sitting position and is starting to pull up on things.

• Sleeps through the night, every night, from about 7:30 to 6:30. Still a terrible napper. She is still known as Cora the Catnapper. But, I guess I can't really complain.
• LOVES to eat. So different than Aubrey! I have not put anything in her mouth that she won't eat. She also loves to feed herself, and drink from a straw cup, which was a huge struggle with Aubrey.

• Major separation/stranger anxiety. This part is also weird for me after Aubrey who wanted everybody to be her friend. Above is the face she makes when she realizes that somebody other than mom might be holding her. And then she cries. Ha... about the only thing Steven could do right now is hold her, and she cries and won't even let him!
• Still my sweet, fun little girl. She is determined and goes after something she wants with intensity.

We love both these little girls so much. And they love each other. They are already becoming such good friends, and already keep each other up at bedtime giggling and laughing. There are few things better in life than a good sister. I have a great sister and I'm so glad my girls can have the same bond.