Relearning

If you don't do something for awhile, even if you were really good at it the last time you did it, there is going to be an adjustment period before you can return to your former skill level.

That's where I find myself right now. It's clear that Kev and I have been souly in charge of the decisions in our own little worlds on opposite ends of the country for a long period of time. We KNOW we work extremely well together. It will just take some relearning to get back to that after living alone for three weeks.

I have no doubts. These are just minor growing pains.

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Family time

It was so nice to have Kevin home today.

I got to sleep in!!!!

We went everywhere as a family and just got things done.

It's nice to enjoy a little normal.

Gettin' Crazy

Kevin's home!!!!!

The kids were SO excited to see him coming down the escalator at the airport.

I was so excited to see him tucking kids in bed!

On another note, look who convinced his mom that summer time is a good time to get crazy with the hair styles.

He's been begging for this cut for months. It was a good compromise considering that what he really wanted was to be bald. As in Bic it please bald...just to see what it was like.

He is one happy boy.

Home tomorrow

Kevin comes home tomorrow!

That's all I can possibly think about.

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Limbo

Things feel really limbo right now. I am still waiting to hear on a fabric line contract and Kevin is almost home.

I'm trying not to think about the fabric thing too much. Whatever is supposed to happen will.

It's just that the waiting KILLS me.

And waiting for two, whole more nights to pass before Kevin gets home is torture.

However, I am getting really good at finding ways to wait in a positive way. So, I guess that's the silver lining.

Oops!

Yesterday was the first day out of this WHOLE year that I didn't post.

Oops!

There have been other times when I had written the post, but forgot to publish it, but yesterday was just plain forgetting to do it. If Kevin had not texted me this morning asking me about it, I'm not sure if I would have realized what had happened.

Oh well, one missed time in seven months isn't too bad.

I'll post again tonight to make up for it.

Sometimes thank you is not enough

My sister, Meghan, is one of those people that literally never thinks about themselves. She is always serving. Always. I hope I can be more like her.

She gave me the afternoon/evening off! She came over at 3:30 and sent me on my way. She played with my kids, fed my kids, and even bathed my kids! I didn't come home until 8:00pm. That is 4 1/2 kid free hours, people!

It was just what I needed. I can't say thank you enough, Meghan. I can't find the words that feel sincere enough to express my gratitude.

Thank you for loving me. I hope you feel how much I love you.

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Watched over

The kids were amazing today. We were pretty much on time to church. The were very well behaved according to their ages during church. And I only had to ask one time before things were done.

I believe they each have a little angel helping them....which in turn helps me.

I feel very taken care of.

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Reality check

Tonight I was getting after Beckham over his, shall we say, "style" of rinsing off his dinner plate which included more water and food on the floor than in the sink. He calmly turned to me and explained, "Mom, you're still raising me."

Touche.

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Party Hardy

My very thoughtful sister, but which one you say as they are both very thoughtful?

You have a point.

My very thoughtful sister who lives in the same state as me, called to ask how she could help the kids and I enjoy the holiday weekend.

We decided a BBQ, the parade, which happens to go nearly passed her house, and a big fireworks show were in order.

The kids loved every. last. second of it. Even the scorching hot conditions of the parade. Sanders could not get enough of the police cars, motorcycles, and the floats. Oh my, but those floats put and extra sparkle in that kid's eye.

We just got back from a very long, enjoyable, fireworks show. All the kids were in heaven, but especially Sanders. He was either transfixed or giving a running commentary on the glory that he was witnessing.

We got home at 11 pm and they were all begging to be put to bed...well, the ones that were still awake anyway.

I'd say that means the day was successful.

Thank you, Megs, for helping me create some amazing memories for my kids!

World acording to Tennyson

As I was half crying, half questioning Tennyson as to why he had not gone back to sleep after his 5 am waking this morning, he let me know that he indeed had....I just didn't know it.

"But, Mawwwwm, I can only go to sleep with my eyes open."

Sigh.

Then later he asked me to help him get his already chewed gum out of his pocket so he could resume chewing it.

"Oh, Tennyson, (sigh) why did you put your gum in your pocket?"

"Because, I wanted to save it for later and I couldn't play this (holding up his harmonica) when it was in my mouth."

At least my days are never dull and I always, unfortunately, get an early start with this little guy around.

PS. Thank you to everyone who offered help to me the other day after my children decided that a store was a good time to practice everything I've asked them not to do. This girl feels very loved and looked after. Thank you!!!!

I'm on a journey. A journey to go blond. But because I am so dark...well, naturally. And because I have SO much color on my hair already....read, I'm going gray, I can't just bleach the whole thing. It has to be a process. But the good news is I AM blonder. 

Is  that even a word?

The before and afters aren't really dramatic, but here you go.

 BEFORE

AFTER

Karaia took all the pictures. Good job Karaia. Oh and please excuse the teenager skin. I should just photoshop the heck out of my face, but I'm too lazy and not vain enough I guess.

Different plans

It is only 5:30 pm and all my children have been sequestered to their rooms for the remainder of the evening.

Sigh.

It started out with a few instructions.

"OK, Guys, Dad is gone for two more weeks and we are out of food, diapers, and wipes. We've got to go to a few stores. First we'll go to Children's Place to return a few items. We'll be in there for about 5 mins. I expect everyone to behave. Next, we'll go to Target and then we will go to Costco and have dinner there. Does everyone know the plan?"

"Yes!"

"Let's go over store behavior rules. What's the number one rule?"

"No running."

"Good."

"What's another rule?"

"No touching unless we ask."

"Good. And the last one?"

"No screaming."

You have to know that my children are very well drilled in appropriate behavior when we are in a public setting. This conversation happens every. single. time. we are about to enter a public venue. And most of the time they do pretty good to follow the rules.

Tonight was different.

I put Sanders in a stroller and asked Karaia to push him around the store to keep him occupied while I found the items I needed to exchange and then complete that transaction. I gave Beckham Tennyson's hand to hold and told them they were welcome to walk around the store (it's a small area and I am able to see them from wherever I am) but they were not allowed to touch anything or goof off.

Within a few minutes Sanders comes cruising by me, out of his stroller, and I can hear Tennyson running toward me.

I found Karaia and asked her why Sanders was out. "He kept saying, 'Out!'."

I stopped Tennyson and asked him why he was running, "Because Beckham told me to run to Mom."

I found Beckham and explained he was not allowed to let go of Tennyson's hand and that I was almost done so please go and look at something quietly until I called for them.

I picked up Sanders to replace him in the stroller. Then the screaming started. He had tasted freedom and was not about to give it up.

Meanwhile, as I am literally wrestling to strap Sanders into the stroller while he his screaming at ear piercing volume, I see Beckham walk by....without Tennyson. Shortly, I can hear Tennyson running the perimeter of the isles. "Tennyson, WHY are you running?"

"Beckham told me to run to Mom."

I finally got my screaming banshee child strapped in a told the others that I was leaving. Right. Now!

They were all very upset. But seriously.

I explained to Karaia that Sanders is TWO and does not get to run the show. I don't care how many times he vocalized that he wants out. It's not an option! And I questioned Beckham as to why he would teach his little brother to do something that is so clearly known as a rule breaker.

We were in the store for no longer than 10 mins.

I feel bad for the people that had the unfortunate chance of being there the same time as us.

So, we still have no food, barley enough diapers, and, I am crossing my fingers, enough wipes. The kids were fed one hot dog and then banned to their rooms.

It may be harsh, but at least they'll be alive tomorrow.

I shouldn't be surprised

Beckham has been learning milestone skills at lightning speed in the past 3 days.

On Saturday, he learned how to tie his shoes. Not without a few frustrating moments on his side and mine, but in about a half an hour he had it down where he could do it by himself. He is currently working on learning how to double knot his laces.

Today, he learned how to swim. He has to keep his head underwater to do it, but he moves forward and doesn't sink. He tells me that means he no longer needs swimming lessons. I told him he would probably appreciate learning how to breath while swimming if he wanted to go distances greater than 8 feet.

That kid amazes me at how fast he picks these things up. He was like that with riding a two wheeler a few years ago as well. Take the training wheels off and he's good to go.

It still surprises me every time.

Way to go, Beckham!!!

You shouldn't be surprised

I just got back from a fun, week long vacation at my sister's house on colorado. Sans Kevin a he is in D.C. for three weeks...which is why I ran awayto CO.

SO you shouldn't be surprised that this is all the post you get.

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Kevin left for D.C for THREE WEEKS on July 10! That's right people three whole weeks. Sigh.

So, in order to encourage time to move a little faster I ran away to my sister's house in Colorado for a week.

My kids had never seen their cousin's house and it's about time they did.

We returned home tonight. Wish me luck for the rest of the two weeks.

There's always a sign

A week of fun usually equates to a week of sleep deprivation.

That is, of course, unless you associate fun with sleeping.

Anyway.

For kids, fun, most assuredly, does not include sleeping.

The signs of sleep deprivation include:

Extreme frustration
Inability to handle even the slightest misfortune
The since that the world, in general is in favor of everyone else but you

It also includes:

Extreme silliness
Quieter play
A lot of imagination that doesn't require great physical effort

I'll give you a few examples of some of these signs.

Brenner was inconsolable over the fact that it was terribly, terribly hard to get more than one small drop of hand soap while washing his hand. And Tennyson was emotionally insistent that washing his hands yesterday was good enough to carry him through today.

However, the boys played with plastic police man (the kind that look like army men) for over an hour. On one spot. Just arranging and defeating their legions of plastic men.

We'll be very sad to have all this magic end. You need the hard in order for the good to make the best memories.

The difference between boys and girls

At one point today all the girls where in princess dresses teaching each other how to dance as one princess (McKinney) wailed that she had forgotten how to twirl. Oh, the horror!

Wanting to join the party, but being a boy, of course Beckham came out in a giraff mask and holding a foam sword.

 Of course. Isn't that what you always think of pairing with a bunch of dancing princesses?

They claimed he was their pet giraff.

He agreed, but only if they would conceed that occasionally their pet giraff had a problem controlling his desire to weld the sword and might possibly lunge at them with it.

All parties concerned felt that was a fine comprimise.

The early bird gets....a grumpy mom

Guess who decided to wake up at 5:40 am?

Sanders.

Guess who decided to wake up at 5:45 am?

Tennyson.

Guess who decided that 6:45 am was a good time to start their day?

Karaia and Beckham.

yawn.

If I weren't such a night owl, this might not be as big of a deal. Seeing as I am, it is. It's hard to be the best mom you can be when you are tired.

Quintessential Woman Driver

I've learned this week, but particularly today, that I resemble the quintessential woman driver. I'm totally shocked. This may not be news to you, but it completely caught me by surprise.

It wasn't all my fault. The GPS I'm using likes to avoid freeways. I'm not sure why, but every time I'm trying to get on a freeway it tells me to turn around and take the more scenic route.

The other problem is I forget that I am supposed to be paying attention to the GPS. Yeah, OK, so that part IS my fault. An extremely annoying fault for sure.

The combination of the two added a whole HOUR to my little adventure today.

Awesome.

Oh really?

Tonight, while trying to put the kids to bed, I asked Tennyson to close his eyes still I sang him a song.

He told me he would prefer to watch me sing.

"Is that because you'll fall asleep if you close your eyes? "

"Well, I fall asleep with my eyes open! "

It's hard to argue with that kind of logic.

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Forced laziness

The kids went to bed very late last night. So of course, if we've learned anything from laws of the universe, they got up before 6:30 am. That in turn made them wired, quick to find injustice with circumstances, and the parental units tired and slow.

I was, however, mildly productive. I did have Annie cut my bangs. Hooray!

Oh, and it was free Slurpee day at 7-11.

You know it's been a slow day when those are the highlights.

Beckham did make me chuckle though.

Me: Kids, hop in the car we're going somewhere special! (we were going to 7-11)

Beckham: The circus?

I don't have a clue why he went straight to circus. Apparently, that was an obvious guess. Either that or he was hoping that the power of suggestion would work really well for him. Funny kid.

Things are the funniest at night

It's been a long, long, LONG day.

After days like today, the night always comes as a relief and things just seem much more humerous.

Case in point, right now we are giggling over getting soaked by a fire hose and our favorite quote of the night is, "I am not running on awesome."

That's super funny tonight. We'll see how I feel about it tomorrow.

Redone in Gray

It's done!

Sanders' dresser has been transformed. I love taking something old and giving it a new life. PLUS I am a huge sucker for before and afters!!

Before:

This little guy was in bad shape, but the details won me over.

After some gorgeous grey paint and a quick oil rubbed bronze spray paint on the knobs it was reborn.

After:

This piece is just one little part of the room transformation. It will take me quite a few weeks/moths to get it all done. One, because the painting on the wall is detailed and TWO, I am SO not ready to switch him out of a crib yet.

But for now it's exciting to get things started.

Passing on Traditions

There are two very distinct things that I remember about my dad when I was a little girl. One is he LOVES Disneyland. The other, is that he loves the zoo.

Since my sister, Annie, is in town for the week, we, my sisters and I, (how's that for a million commas?)decided to go to zoo with our kids and our dad.

Yes, my other children were with me, but were too involved in playing to be convinced to stay still enough for a picture.

The crowd level was just about perfect, the weather in the first half was better than can even be hoped for in July, and the kids loved showing Grandpa Guy all the things at the zoo....as if he was new to such a magical place as --the zoo.

Of course, the dinosaurs are still there. Our little group was really split on this. There were some kids that LOVED this and begged to run and find the next one on the list or where unimpressed by the size of the robots because in their mind they were going to be bigger. The others? Well, sadly they have a high chance of waking up sometime tonight pleading with their parents to save them from the all too realistic reptiles. There was at least one in every family that was not a fan. Mine was Sanders.

Oh, he liked most of them...from a distance. Until we got to the huge tyrannosaurs. Then he promptly turned his body around in his stroller and hid his face until we had passed.

I did lose Sanders for about 10 mins at the playground. Long enough to alert security. It was terrifying. Thankfully, he was just in the snake tube slide taking his own sweet time coming down and I had missed seeing him when I checked that area. Whew!

My dad adores souvenirs. Most of the time growing up the only time I would go to the zoo would be on a Daddy Daughter date ending with a trip to the souvenir shop. Today my dad passed on that tradition to the next generation. My kids could not believe it! They always as me if they can get something and I usually say no. They. were. in. heaven.

Thanks, Papa, for passing one of my favorite memories!!!!

On the Farm

We went to Wheeler Farm with my mom and sisters today.

To say the kids loved it would be an understatement!

The highlight of the trip was that all the kids got to milk a cow! They all were able to produce some milk all on their own. Even Sanders. He was very put out that his turn was not longer.

I kind of wish my kids had the chance to live on a farm. There's just something kind of awesome about it. Dirty. Very dirty. But very awesome.

Gray

I'm painting furniture. I'm painting it gray.

It's going to be awesome!

I've been thinking about and mind decorating Sanders' big boy room for months now. It's fun to start seeing the things from my mind come to life.

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The fourth with pictures

We hosted a Fourth of July party at our house on Monday.

I love my yard for parties. Enough room for everyone to do what they want.

This year was especially fun because my sister, Annie, and her family was able to join us.

All my mom and Dave's grandkids!

Twins? No just best buddy cousins!