Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Conversation in the car ride home today...

Car honking.

Mya: What happened?

Me: Some kids just ran out in front of that car. That wasn't a very good choice.

Mya: No, it wasn't.

Cor: Sometimes I really hate teenagers.

I start laughing.

Mya: Then you are going to hate yourself.

Em puts on her Santa hat.

Mya: Hi Santa or Mrs. Claus!

Cor: Did you really see him.

Mya: No, Em just had a Santa hat on.

Mya: (to Cor) You better eat your french fries even though you're not French.

This all happened in real time, no breaks, or silent moments in the conversation.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Updates on the latest at our house

My birthday...

I had a good birthday. A lot of friends and family called and wished me well. My cousin and BFF Stephanie came over to have lunch with me. We had a good visit as always. She is one of those friends where it doesn't matter how long we haven't seen each other that we always pick up where we left off and we can talk for hours. Plus we know all the solutions to the world's problem's.

DH was gone all day and so the kids ate popcorn for dinner. My parent's and my brother Kirk and his wife Brittany came by later and hung out for a while. I enjoyed that. Kirk is a funny guy. The more I get to know Brittany the more I like, not that I didn't like her in the first place. Whatever, I am not sure what I am saying. They are buying a house near by and I am excited for that.

Becca brought cupcakes so I did have cake and one candle for my birthday which makes it official. I am 33. Someone tell me what that means.

Saturday Deena watched our kids so we could go on a date. After dinner we walked around Target all by ourselves. I know that is pathetic. We didn't make real plans and there is very little to do around here. We ended up buying DH's fire pit for his back yard project. So I thought it was my birthday but apparently it was his. Oh well.

Most of all I am grateful for all my friends and family that remembered my birthday. My Sister Jenna got me a gift card for a Nail and Spa place here in town. I am trying to decide between a pedicure or a bikini wax. I have never had a bikini wax before and even though I know it will hurt it would be so nice to not have to worry about shaving during the swimming season. I have had my eyebrows waxed, it hurt a little but loved not having to pluck for a while.

No, I don't think I am brave enough to have a Brazilian wax!

Ballerina potty training...

Oh joyous day. My 4th and last child has begun potty training. We started on Thursday when DH took Mya, Cor, and Em to work for "Take your child to work" day. We spent all day watching movies and sitting on the little potty. She loves being naked but has aversion to peeing on herself so she figured out to go in the potty right away. Extra fluids made it so she had to go more often than usual. She still has not pooped in the potty but I have let her wear diapers to bed and whenever we go out. For some unknown reason she refuses to wear the pullups. When I put panties on her it gives her a false sense of security and she pee's or poops in them. DH didn't know better and put panties on her while I was gone and he had to clean up the poop. So for now she is naked from the waist down while we are home.

It makes me happy that she is doing so well and probably this week I will try to get her to the next step of panties and pooping in the potty. The main problem I have now is that she can pull the part out of the little potty that holds the pee then she runs around the house showing it to everyone and splashes pee all over the place. I am cleaning it up as best I can but I will need to clean the carpets this week.

TV shows...

We don't have cable or a dish so we watch our TV shows when they come out on DVD. We have blockbuster and that works out pretty well for us. I love not watching the commercials. And my kids have been unexposed to all the trash that is on TV. We are on the 4th season of 24. I really like it but when you watch them back to back it's a lot of violence to tolerate. DH is sure by the time we get to season 6 Jack will have killed 2/3rds of the population.

My brother Kirk also convinced us the Arrested Development is a funny show so we will try that next.

Movies...

Well just one movie. I watched The Painted Veil. I had put it on my queue a long time ago and kind of forgot what it was about. But I moved it up because it looked like a romance and I really wanted to watch something like that. I loved it. It was romantic and tragic. Total girl movie. If you are prone to cry then you will definitely need some tissues. The actors played their parts well and the story was classic.

I have Juno but haven't watched it yet. I am getting Lars and the Real Girl next. It looks interesting.

Books...

I just finished Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin. It's chick lit. I can only read so much of that because it seems to be consistent that the characters are self-centered and I can only take so much of that at time. All the characters except the main character lacked anything resembling morals. And in the end the main character got what she wanted to by breaking all the rules she had always lived by. She got her man but was disillusioned by what she had to give up. She seemed to justify that it was all worth it and that you have to give up certain things (including high morals) to be happy. (Worth it meaning having someone to sleep with was more important than being honest) I disagree with her philosophy but it gives me insight into how some people may feel. It's a book that once you start you simply have to finish just to know how it ends.

Cor's swollen nose...

I had to go pick up Cor from school because he fell on the balance beam during recess and smashed his nose. His nose has been bleeding all afternoon and it's still a bit swollen. He tried to convince me that he was ok enough to go out and play with the neighbor kids while there was still blood running down his nose. Kids are funny.

He also has this friend (Cn) at school and he used to call Cor on the phone all the time. Like 2-3 times a day. One day he said some insulting comments to Cor on the phone and I told Cor to hang up. I also told Cor to tell Cn that he can't call if he is going to be mean. They have had couple play dates before and they seem to get along but now this boy thinks it's funny to be mean and tease Cor. Cor is a sweet boy and he tries to be nice to everyone. Last week Cor told me he didn't want to be friends with Cn any more. I told him that was fine but to be nice to him anyway. Today when I went to pick up Cor his teacher told me that Cn was picking on Cor a lot this morning and she has made sure to keep Cn away from Cor. I told her about the phone calls. She said she would be willing to make a stop to that. Cor's teacher loves Cor's innocent sweetness and seems pretty protective of his feelings. I told her that I would talk to Cn's parents if he kept calling but he hasn't called for a while since I kept telling him he couldn't play with Cor anymore. I don't think Cn's parent's knew that he was making so many phone calls. I have a problem with that. I have also felt uncomfortable talking to Cn's parents because they are very serious towards me. Besides that it made me really upset this morning to find out Cn's been mean to Cor at school but comforted that his teacher is dealing with it right away. I think Cor can stand up for himself but he really makes an effort to be nice to everyone. I realize some boys think it's fun to say those kind of things to each other and maybe because Cor doesn't have brother's he is just not used to it but if the teacher thinks it's a problem then it's something more than boys being boys.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Journal Jar Question for Tuesday

Do you remember a special birthday party you've had, given, or attended?

Once I did a special Birthday party for DH, I think he turned 28 and he had graduated from the Master's program in Education. I had each of the attendants bring a one word description of Scott written on an apple. I assigned each person a letter of the alphabet. It was fun. He didn't really care about the party but it was fun to celebrate being done with school. Now he is going back to school in the fall for his Administrative license, he is going to be really busy and really stressed. Yay for school!

When I was 16 my parents and friends planned a surprise Birthday party for me. I started suspecting something was up when my family was frantically cleaning the house but didn't ask for my help. Then later all my friends came down the road in a big caravan towards my house honking their horns. We lived out in the country so you can see the roads for about a 1/2 mile in any direction. That's a great memory.

When I turned thirty my husband planned a surprise party and my sister and her family drove to Boise Idaho and back to bring my other sister over for a Sister's weekend. I was really surprised because they had told me they were going to the beach for the weekend. I was pregnant with Ballerina at the time so it meant a lot to me. We went to the beauty school and I got a face massage. I enjoyed that more than any body massage I've had.

This last February my sister and I bought my Older Sister Staci (from Boise) a ticket to come over for our second Sister's Weekend, which I have blogged about previously. We decided we need to do Sister's weekends every year.

Monday, April 21, 2008

Journal Jar Question for Monday


I have a journal jar I started using to help me think of things to write in my journal but now that I blog I don't write in my journal so much. So I thought I would use the questions for this.



Question: What special skills did you learn as a child? Who taught you?


  1. Sewing: Mom, Grandma, Great Grandma, and Aunts
  2. Cleaning and house keeping: Mom
  3. Crosstitch: Self taught
  4. Make believe world creating: Cousin and BFF Stephanie
  5. How to ride a bike: Cousin Evelena (she is one year older than me)
  6. How to be kind: Oldest sister Staci
  7. How to not get caught: Older sister Jenna
  8. How to drive: Dad but mostly self taught
  9. Camping: Mom and Dad
  10. Cooking: mostly self taught, my Mom preferred that we learned by watching and not asking too many annoying questions.
  11. Asking a lot of questions: self taught
  12. Lying with a straight face: I am sure I picked this up from my older brother Brady but I don't remember.
  13. Fixing my hair and makeup: Sisters Jenna and Staci
  14. How to put together an outfit: Sister Jenna
  15. Sense of humor: Dad and DH before he became my DH
I tag anyone who reads this post to answer the same question.

Friday, April 18, 2008

Anth had her baby!

My BFF Anth had her 2nd baby today. We hung out last night, ate sugar, and timed her contractions. At 3:00 AM she called to say it was time to go. I hung out at her house till it was time for Miss E to wake up then she spent the day with us. In the afternoon Anth's DH called to say he was born. Baby boy weighed 9 lbs. 6 oz. That's a big boy. Her stomach had grown but I didn't think it was that big. She was definitely all baby. I am so excited to go see him tonight. But I'll have to lift some weights before I get there. My boy was 8 lbs. 14 oz. and I thought that was big. I love new babies and I am really excited for Anth.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

The ABC's of EdgyK

Tagged by Anth.

A-Advocate for: SAHM's, sewing, being a prude, reading, letting kids be kids and not force them to be perfect or a super star at age 2.

B-Best Feature: My charming personality, actually I don't know but my DH would say my cleavage.

C-Could do without: whining and flabby stomach (whining about my flabby stomach)

D-Dreams and Desires: Ripped abs and to be able to beat the next person who says something rude about how short I am. And I keep thinking that I will be an expert at something someday but I haven't decided what I want to do someday.

E- Essential Items: Mary Kay Mint Bliss Energizing lotion for feet & legs, Deena gave this to me for my birthday last year and I can't live without it. Also, mascara, My mom says her girls are so pale without makeup our faces disappear when we close our eyes. Also, Steak!

F-Favorite Pastime: Lately hanging out with Anth talking about the weird things our families do, somehow it makes it funny.

G-Good at: Sewing, Lying, DH says I'm good at being a wife and Mom. Finding deals.

H-Have never tried: peeing standing up and eating chicken talons.

I-If I had a million dollars: I would have it converted into $1 bills or gold coins and I would put it in a big vault and swim in it.

J-Junkie for: Food

K-Kindred Spirit: Anth, Stephanie, Staci, and Jenna

L-Little Known Fact: My birthday is April 25th but mentally I celebrate from April 1st to the 25th.

M-Memorable Moment: Seeing my first child for the first time and DH telling me we had a girl. I was so amazed at how beautiful and perfect she was. I couldn't believe I really did it.

N-Never Again will I: Watch the movie Earthstorm.

O-Occasional indulgence: Skinny cow icecream or a candy bar

P-Profession: Husband pleaser (only my husband)

Q-Quote: It's nice to be nice to the nice. (MASH)

R-Reason to Smile: Today Em couldn't get the sound on the TV to work so she cranked it up all the way. When she actually got it to work it almost blew the speakers. Both Em and Ballerina were frozen in place screaming (not that I could hear them), then they ran towards me, and Emily almost ran into the door. I felt bad for them but it was really hard not to laugh.

S-Sorry About: All the stupid things I say but don't realize it until later.

T-Tag some friends: Becca and Amber

U-Uninterested In: Ever mowing the lawn myself. That's what I got married for.

V-Very Scared of: Losing my wedding ring and getting into a car accident with the kids in the car.

W-Worst Habit: Wasting time on the computer.

X-X marks my ideal vacation spot: Any tropical island but no bugs.

Y-Yo Anth there was no Y on your blog???

Z-Zodiac Sign: Taurus. Today's horoscope: It's sad but true. Romance requires work, from time to time. Roll up your sleeves. And an OVERVIEW: Your easy going energy makes your friends gravitate towards you, even if work or family obligations get in your way. You're having so much fun that you should be able to overcome almost anything. (Don't those two things seem to contradict each other?)

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Family and Personal Statistics and Facts

These are in no particular order because I do not think in order....Random Thoughts remember.

Marriage: One Current husband, no ex-husbands, husband is the father of all my children.

Children: 4

Ages between Children: 1st and 2nd is 22 months, 2nd and 3rd is 37 months, 3rd and 4th is 20 months.

Gender of Children: 3 girls, 1 boy

How many children did I want when I grew up: 6

How many more children I plan to have: 0

Pets: 0

What I wanted to be when I grew up: A mom

College degree: Clothing and Textiles

My siblings: 9 total, 4 boys, 5 girls (2 adopted sisters after I got married)

Location of siblings: Oregon, Idaho, and Utah

Loads of laundry a day: 2

Loads of dishes a day: Average 1.5

Bags of garbage per week: 6

Recycle: yes, a lot

Mop the floor: Once a week

Change the sheets: Once a month

Water my plants: only when they look on the brink of death

Vacuum: 2-3 times per week

Days of exercise per week: 4-5

How often I bake for fun: 2-3 per week

How often I get laundry put a way the same day I wash it: once a week

How often I make my bed: 2-3 times a week

Hugs per day: 6-1 billion

How often I lose something: 2-3 times a day

Phone calls in a day: 1-2 on average

Traffic tickets: 0

Hours per day on computer: 2-3

Books read per month: Average is 3

Hours watching TV or movies: 6-8 hours per week

Shave: 3 times a week

Break up fights: 5-6 per day

Friday, April 11, 2008

Wishing for someone else's life?


Sometime's when things are bad we tend to wish for someone else's life. You could take mine but I'd like to convince you to keep your own. I have a great life, great husband, great kids but this morning I didn't want to face it so much. It's not like I haven't done this a million gazillion times but it never seems easy. We just got off the quarantine from the eternal cold going around our house so I was very excited to get back to normal.

This morning I woke up early to the sound of DH starting the laundry. That means there's been some kind of accident. Cor threw up in bed. I told him he couldn't put throw up laundry in the washer if it had actual chunks of food, it has to be cleaned off first. He gave me a face and told me it wasn't that bad. I should have just said thank you for cleaning up the mess. Normally he would have already been gone to work. I finally convinced myself I must get up and deal with the problem. I got dressed. Check the progress of my completely broken out face then headed to the kitchen. I mixed some bleach water in the sink and wiped everything down.

Cor had another incident in the bathroom so I had to clean that up and Mya was late to school. I was frustrated about that so I got after the girls for not getting into their car seats as asked a billion gazillion times. When we got back home from dropping off Mya, Ballerina threw her usual "I don't want to get out of the car because I can't remember the fit I threw about getting in the car 5 minutes ago" routine. I told her "Mommy is not doing this this morning." Somehow she did not get the message. I carried her into the house but I forgot to let her push the button that closes the garage door. The above picture is her throwing a fit to get back out and turn back time so she can close the garage door. She said the funniest things while she was throwing a fit, the last rant she kept saying "Oh Man!" Currently she is opening the fridge and eating whatever she can get her little paws on. Now I know why my Mom used to say, "You kids are going to drive me to drink."

Conclusions I have drawn from this experience:
  • You must appreciate your life no matter what
  • Enjoy the good, boring days when you have them
  • There is no "normal" when you have kids
  • I am glad Cor can get himself to the bathroom when he needs to puke
  • Sometimes I don't think I love my kids enough but today I know I must or I wouldn't be able to handle yucky stuff like this
  • Thank goodness for girls night out and dates with my husbands or I wouldn't survive these precious moments
  • It's fun to take pictures of your kids when they are mad
  • I can tell you all the things that don't digest well in a child's stomach
  • Thank heaven for my washing machine, bleach, a toilet that flushes, DH who wanted to spare me of the puke smell, oh ya and rubber gloves!
I lovingly dedicate this post to my friends who have kids or who are pregnant and expecting the arrival of one more precious child who will make their life as richly blessed as mine. Look at all the patience and knowledge you are about to acquire.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

2 Shiny Stars

Today I exercised for an hour so I get put 2 shiny stars on my calendar. I get one star for each 30 minutes I work out. I had done the Walk Away the Pounds in an exercise group so I ordered the 3 mile work out with Leslie Sansone. She is your typical happy skinny, exercise enthusist but she is not as annoying as some (Denise Austin). She has a lot of different videos and I think all of them are walking routines. I did the workout yesterday and I was sore this morning. I did it again today. It's only about 45 minutes so I did a 10 minute Ab workout afterward.

There's three things I like about this video:
  1. The women have all different body types. There is one woman who has some ripped abs and I would love to look like that. Warning: the older man in the video is creepy, his shorts are too tight.
  2. The routine repeats itself and you don't have to have any kind of coordination to follow it. I do enjoy a complicated routine now and then but most of the time I don't want to have to think too hard but I also want to work up a sweat. It works many of the muscles of the upper and lower body.
  3. It is easily adjustable to whatever type of intensity you want to be at that day.
**********

Today when I we got back from dropping off Mya and Cor to school I opened the door to get Ballerina out and she said, "Well, what do we have here." And she said it in a very sinister two year old voice. I don't know where she heard that but it was funny.

Em and Ballerina are both in time out. When I am on the computer they like to either maul me or pick on each other until one of them hurts the other. They were doing both.
Ballerina said she is done crying now.

***********

DH wants to buy a scale. I am against it. I hate them. I try to only weigh myself three or four times a year to avoid ever getting paranoid over my weight. If it's here I will be tempted to weigh myself. I can't decide if I should keep protesting or just have him hide it from me.
Why do I hate scales? I had one of those jerk boyfriends in high school who told me one time that I looked liked I had put on few pounds. He was right I had maybe gone from 95 lbs. to 100 lbs. But I have been paranoid ever since.
Don't hate me for those numbers because I am barely 5 foot tall and a healthy weight for me is 102 lbs. I am not 102 lbs. right now but I don't worry about it because I rarely weigh myself. I exercise because it makes me happy and I do like having muscles versus flab.
There are muscles somewhere under my flabby 4 baby tummy but it would take a lot of work for them to make an appearance.
But today I am going to proud of my 2 shiny stars!

Monday, April 7, 2008

I lost my keys

Today I lost my keys. I got in the car to take the kids to school and they weren't in my purse or my coat pocket. Those are the only two places I put them. I have lost many things in my life but never the keys. I had a Valet key in my purse so I used that to get the kids to school. So I had to scour my memories of what I did this weekend. I was so upset about that because I have the worst memory.

We had a pretty mellow weekend and the only times we went out DH drove. I did remember taking the keys out at Winco (grocery store) to open the van on Saturday. So I called Customer Service to see if anyone had turned them in. I called both family members that we had visited on Sunday. They weren't available to look right away. Em and I said a prayer.

Oh, I have to back track a little. Em had lost her frog she got for Easter and I had already found it while looking for my keys. She was completely positive we would find the keys since we had already found Froggy.

I decided to just answer emails for a while, for a little distraction from my stress attack. While I was typing I remembered that Cor had used the keys to go get the mail around 6:00 pm Saturday. Our box has a lock and it's across the street from our house. So I ran outside and I could see them hanging there. Two nights, including all day Sunday, they hung there in the lock of our mailbox, totally visible to anyone going by. There were the keys to both our cars and the house key. I don't know if we are lucky or being very blessed for something we are doing right. Whichever, I am enormously grateful.

As an afterthought...earlier when I was trying to reconcile myself that I may never find my keys I decided I would miss the remote lock for my van the most. Because I am lazy and it makes it easier to lock and unlock the car. Is that sad or what? I've only had the remote lock for 5 years of my whole life and now I think I can't live without it.

I never did tell Cor about what happened. I knew he would feel terrible and it was an absent minded mistake and I make those all the time. Also, I knew his sisters would tease him about it. I send him to get the mail because he loves to do it and I don't like going out in the rain. I will have to be the one to make sure he gets the keys back where they belong.

Thursday, April 3, 2008

Fun times with the little ones

Dealing with the yucky stuff...

So this morning I was going to get up and take a shower before the kids got up. I haven't done that in a while since I have the eternal cold. Just as I was getting in the shower Em came in to tell me Ballerina had taken her diaper off and was poopy. I threw on my robe and she was in bed. Lying in her mess very content. I pulled off her nightgown and put her in the shower. She screamed the whole time. When I wrapped her in the towel she was happy again. But then it was time for lotion and bum ointment because she had poop on her bum for I don't know how long. She screamed until I had her completely dressed. I gave her a hug and told her what a good girl she was (it's so easy to lie when you love your kids). She was all happy and smiles again. Bad news: I had just put clean bedding on her bed yesterday. Good news: I put the plastic lined mattress pad on so the mess was nicely contained and easily thrown into the wash. During this whole ordeal I was in my robe that kept coming untied from fighting with Ballerina. It's amazing how no one notices that I am naked (DH was not home). Even 7 year old Cor hasn't realized he doesn't want to see his mother naked. I once heard an female announcer on the radio say that her teenage son still tries to come talk to her while she is in the bathroom. It almost made me cry. I am glad my kids are so comfortable with me and I am almost resigned to the fact that privacy is non-existent.

Cabin Fever...

For the last three days after we drop of Mya and Cor to school Ballerina has started screaming whenever I take a right turn off the street from the school. Because she realizes that I am headed back home. She screams, "Go the other way, Mommy!" She knows that if I turn left it means we are going somewhere, anywhere, but home. Today I turned left and she was soooo happy.

Time flies when you are having fun...I think...

Yesterday Anth came over to work on our quilt squares. Mya and Cor were being silly and teasing each other. She said, "So this is what I have to look forward too." Soon her little baby boy will be born and her little girl LB and baby BS will be 22 months apart. Just like mine. It was so weird to realize that it has been 7 1/2 years since I was where she is now. And it is so cliche to say it but it seems like yesterday. There are so many things that I have forgotten or blocked from my memory but it really doesn't seem like that much time has gone by. It made me a little sad and then made me feel a little old (not too much because I really only view people as 80 or older as "old"). Because when I had Cor I thought people with 4 kids were so much more mature and experienced. So now when I look at people with teenagers, I shudder to think that could be me in a few seconds. Because in 2 1/2 years all my kids will be in school!

I don't have any regrets about it because I have tried to enjoy it as much as I can and I have really tried to be a good mom. I have so totally failed at times and I am sure my kids will let me know how I screwed up someday. Actually 9 year old Mya already does except she tries to tell me nicely, in a stating the facts sort of way. I still think of Mya and Cor as my babies, just with different responsibilities. I wonder if I will always think of them that way?

I don't know how to describe how difficult it has been to raise my kids. Sometimes I feel like my brain is going to explode or simply that it had broken beyond repair, sometimes I feel like I would give them away, or that I'd never be good enough for them. On the other hand it has been so wonderful to love my babies. I do miss the little baby stage as Ballerina is almost 3 years old now but I plan to live vicariously through Anth and my other friends with new babies. DH and I already look forward to being grandparents someday and lovin' our grandbabies.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Mr. Mouth and Barbie




I cleaned and cleaned this morning and could have cleaned some more but I decided I would spend some time iwth my little girls. They spent most the day on their ownm yesterday while I worked on the check book and paid bills.

We played Mr. Mouth then we got out the Barbie coloring thingy where you put the plates in that has a raised design, then you put your paper over the top and rub with the long side of a crayon.

With Mr. Mouth the girls just like to see if they can get him to bite them. I really try to improve shooting skills. For our Barbie activity we take turns and this is good practice for 2 1/2 year old Ballerina. She did really good until we decided we were done. Now she is sitting on my lap pushing buttons.

In this picture Barbie is sporting a floor length dress and apparently getting lots of presents. Barbie loves flowers. Ballerina and Em like this one because there is a moon and stars. I noticed Barbie either wears floor length or mini skirts. I guess knee length would be to homely for her.