Rawr!

You are probably tired of my constant comments about how hot I think my husband is..... Guess what?!?! Don't care! I love that his tattoo peeks out of his dress shirt. Super YUMMY!

Cam-isms

Cam asked me to play "old lady" with him this morning.

A.K.A. Old Maid

Kid Questions

Why is America referred to as a "her"?

HSM

As an avid reader of my blog, you know that my kids are very creative and have wonderful imaginations. They will be busy for hours playing with everyday items that are made into one thing or another.

I very rarely hear "Mom, I'm bored" by the two youngest because they are always constructing and creating.



The kid gets kudos for making his own basketball court while he is in his sister's production of "High School Musical". Gracie said that he was Troy and she was Gabriella. Apparently, Cam wouldn't take off his shirt during the basketball game.

Google

Natalie asked me a question the other day and I was honest to tell her that I didn't know the answer to it.

Her response was to ask Google "because Google knows everything, Mom".

Birthday

Today is one of my favorite holidays, MY BIRTHDAY! It's all about me, baby!

I wanted to share a favorite memory from a birthday past.

Back story: Besides G.H, my favorite city is Portland, OR. The weekend of my 30th birthday, I planned a sleepover for a few of my girlfriends and I. Each girlfriend there was from a different part of my life. I was happy to have them all together in one spot. We were all working women with husbands, responsibilities, a few kids and plants.

I had thoughts of drinking, dancing, dinner, and laughing until all hours of the night. Things didn't turn out exactly like I had envisioned.

After drinks and dinner, we ended up back at the hotel room. Deciding we needed ice, all of us went for a walk. The picture is taken as we are heading back up to our room. I was laughing so hard I peed (the benefits of having some babies!) my pants because we were all SO SOBER (Really!) no one realized Alicia had put on two DIFFERENT pairs of shoes for the walk.



Shoes seemed to be the theme. Leann, in her jammies, got out of bed, put on her heels and headed into the bathroom. She said in no way were her feet touching the hotel carpet! More laughing!

We were all in bed by midnight watching Trading Spaces and took A LOT of alcohol home that was brought for the "wild" party!

It was a perfect sleepover and birthday!

And earlier

My wood nymph not yet 2

Started young

I was going through some old pictures and came across this one.... apparently she started her style very early.

AP and UT

AP= Aunt Penny
UT= Uncle Tom

I have a lot of wonderful memories with them as a child. Life and miles got in the way and I hadn't seen them in almost 20 years. Over the past few years, we have gotten reacquainted with my mom's sister and her husband. My aunt had to have her hip replaced and stayed with my mom for convenience and nursing and that was the start of it. We get packages every so often with goodies and postcards from my Aunt. The kids not-so-patiently wait for the mail to see if there are any "Penny Postcards".

The two of them have become a favorite of my children's, especially Gracie. I know my uncle has a huge soft spot for the wood nymph. A friend of mine took a gorgeous picture of Grace last year and we framed it and gave it to UT. Of course, it had some art work to go with it~ that's when Grace used "UT" for the first time and it stuck.

Gracie and I had a sleepover at AP and UT's house last year. Gracie still talks about it.... the mashed potato picnic, doing work out in the yard, their driveway of rocks. This picture was taken of Gracie and UT during one of our mashed potato picnics. It's one of my all time favorite pictures.

When we left their house after our sleepover, my aunt packed some food for our long drive home. She threw in a spoon for... I think, it was yogurt. Gracie was so thrilled to have a Penny Spoon that she used it for just about every meal. The battle over the spoon started shortly afterward. My mom came to the rescue and produced two more spoons that were given to her in a snack bag for the ride home via AP. So, now there are enough Penny Spoons to go around. Who knew that my aunt trying to get rid of mismatched silverware would turn into precious treasures for my kids.

As children, each of the grandchildren received a bench with our names carved into them, made by UT. I still have mine. Have I mentioned he is an extremely gifted wood worker.... cabinet maker just doesn't do his talents justice. They were each natural wood and gorgeous. Gracie got one........

When word spread that hers was pink, it's didn't go over well. What made her so special that she got to pick the color of hers!? ;)

My aunt and uncle are two very special people. I find them extremely genuine and am at a peace and calm when I am around them. My uncle can come across sometimes very serious. That's why I love this picture of the two of them together. It shows their silliness and love, not only for life but also for each other.

Hereditary

I think it's kinda sexy when Jim does this...

(He is so dreamy!)

I think it's hysterical that Natalie can do it too.


It's only the one eyebrow they can lift like that!

I find these things terribly interesting. I need to get out more, I know!

All the kids, Jim, and his mom have ,what I call, the "Sun Sneezes". When they get the sun in their eyes, they sneeze repeatedly~ it's usually at least four times!

Cameron and I can touch our tongues to our noses.

My mom and Grace can't roll their tongues.

I don't have a point to this blog... just wanted to post a really cute picture of my husband!

No Joke

This is not an April Fool's joke, people!

It really is me, blogging for the first time in ages. So this means that the not so subtle hints via email, Facebook, and blog comments can end!

So can the threatening phone calls, Mom!

Fancy Hair

Her teacher must think I'm crazy.

Yes, Grace went to school after she did her own hair and yes, I was okay with it. I was only concerned with the kids being distracted by all the hair "pretties" she had. I guess the only thing Grace was asked is if she did her own hair that morning and it was all by adults.




Fancy hair to go with all her fancy outfits!

Ivie

One of Cameron's friends was not able to make it to his birthday party because she fell asleep and her mom did not want to wake her. I was taught never wake a sleeping baby so I totally understand!

Ivie's mom handed me a card for Cameron when we saw them again at preschool. I gave it to Cameron to open when we came home. We read it together and then he threw it down and hid in the closet crying.

He was upset because she spelled his name wrong.

Fashion

Time to teach him, like I taught his father. Or maybe we will have Gracie teach him a thing or two!



You can see that those are sweat pants, right?

Costco

When mommy and daddy go to Costco for paper towels, what's the best thing to do with them?






I missed the mid run picture.... she was too fast for me!

Disaster Strikes

Pampered Chef Microwave Rice Cooker vs. Me

I think I forgot a cup of water.

J-E-L-L-O

To answer the question of what the surprise REALLY was (not a vacation to Hawaii like Gracie had guessed!).... (drum roll).....it was chocolate pudding!


It was a big thrill for my kids! We don't typically have pudding cups in the house. Poor neglected kids, I know!

Bullet points

Leah has had me hysterical with her stories about her daughter learning about life before technology. You know the days..... card catalogs, typewriters, and computers the size of a Buick.

I guess there is a library in our state capitol that still has a card catalog in the childrens' section in addition to a computer version. I wonder if I would still know how to use one.

Natalie's is "allowed" per her teacher that she can do her spelling word homework on the computer and just print it out to hand in.

A friend of mine was helping her daughter with her homework. She wrote out the word verb and adjective and then numbered the lines below.
After her daughter was done, she asked her mom if she could type it out and put in bullet points.

My friend was a bit stunned when her daughter printed the finished copy, bullet points and all since she isn't quite sure herself how to do it!

Vacation

I told the kids that once they finished dinner I had a surprise for them.

Grace brought her plate in the kitchen to help clean up and asked what their surprise was.

Before I could answer, she started guessing.

"Vacation to Hawaii?"

In her six years, we've gone camping, flown to Arizona to visit my sister and grandparents, flown to D.C for my brother's wedding, and taken a few road trips.

Where in the world did she get Hawaii from?!?!?!

Question and Answer

The answer is

CHOCOLATE, CHOCOLATE, CHOCOLATE ~ the darker, the better
ICE CREAM especially my men, Ben & Jerry
WINE ~ light, fruity, and cold
LAUGHTER ~ from friends, movies, kids, sister-in-laws

The question?

What do I do when I have had one of THOSE weeks to feel better?


Good thing I posted way in advance because it has been one of those weeks. I was on a roll in postings. Only missed one/two days!

I'm in search of a magic wand on eBay or craigslist in good working order for a reasonable price so, if you see one let me know!

Rx

Since my kids have seen me take medication on a regular basis, I am pretty open with them as to why. I have kid answers for them rather than the diagnosis. If and when they are ready to know more, I will have no problems talking to them about it.

For now, they know it as mommy's 1. no more baby pill (reason: 4 is a perfect number for me!); 2. no more crabby pill and 3. no more crazy pill.

The other day, I was just about DONE! Cameron was into more than usual. Grace was especially sensitive to life and was very teary. At one point I shoo-ed both of them into their rooms to sit on their beds.

A while later, they both came out and Cam asked why they were in time out because he didn't do anything wrong.

I told him that it was mommy who needed a time out because she was crabby.

His response.... "Take a pill, Mom"

I laughed so hard! And so did the person I was on the phone with who heard the entire thing~ thankfully she was someone who knows me VERY well and has known me FOREVER!

The kids and I danced in the living room until we were dizzy to get all the laughter out!

Football

Cameron's birth day was planned around the Super Bowl.

My due date coincided with the Super Bowl the year he was born. Jim joked (so he said) that we would be watching the game if/when/during the time I was in labor and delivery. I think not was what my pregnant self told him loudly.

So we picked a date a week and a few days earlier. With Cameron being my third child my doctor delivered, she had no problem with it.

Now, fast forward four years and as I am looking at his birthday party pictures, I notice something interesting......




Not only is he wearing a football related shirt BUT the playoff game is on the TV in the back ground. Both games were on the entire day even during his party! I am sorry, son, that you will never get away from the Super Bowl come your birthday! Him being him though may never have a problem with it! The difference of raising a boy vs. a girl!

The Best Part

With a house full of grandbabies, my mom went and did "kid" grocery shopping. She bought mac and cheese, cheese sticks, Oreos (which I think she needed to use the kids so she could eat them all herself!), and tons of fruit! The kids devoured the fruit! Apples, bananas, blueberries! I went to the store for a refill and came back armed with grapes.

I set the bowl on the table and the kids sucked them down. With the exception of my niece, who just sucked on them and said "Yummy juice!"

Notice her two piles...



The pile on the left is her not-yet-juiced grapes!

More Apples

Apparently, SOMEONE taught Miss Madi how to use the camera.



When we asked Madi if she knew what the pictures were of, she promptly replied "My pajamas!".

Baby apples don't fall very far from their cousins!

Photos

My sister and niece were just here. These are my favorite pictures of their visit.


I miss her so much! And I so love the shirt I "borrowed" from my mom~ I think borrowed might turn into "stole"!

M is 6 feet tall, blond hair, blue eyed. I.e. The woman is gorgeous! She doesn't think so! This is my favorite picture of all time of her. Most of her pictures look completely posed and you can tell she hates being in them so I was trying to get one of her totally relaxed~ Voila!

And this is my most favorite Madi of all time! I don't think I could have taken a bad picture of her. I did take a lot! I love being "Auntie" just as much as I love being "Mama"!

Fashion Show

My mom owns a ton of scarves and the kids love to play with them when we are at her house. The scarves have turned my kids into everything from pirates to Santa and his reindeer AND now dress designers/models. Enjoy the fashion show!






Their outfits also really express their personalities!

Oh boy, am I in trouble!

My fairy

So love her!

Wordless Wednesday

Dragons

My brother and his wife are expecting their first child in the summer. I couldn't be more thrilled to be an auntie again! I absolutely adore his wife and think both of them will be wonderful parents!

My brother has gotten some practice with my kids so he'll be a bit prepared. He's not a big kid guy but he has love and sensitivity on his side. He's also great at putting together things so anytime "Froggie" (early ultrasounds brought on the nickname) needs toys put together, he'll be all over it.

Just like he was with his niece at Christmas. He realized mid-construction that it was more than he bargained for.



But him being him, he had to see it to the end.


Grace was thrilled and spent a lot of time in her castle.


And then the Great 4 year old dragon came along and destroyed the castle! I know my brother isn't prepared for dragons in his house! How do we prepare him for that?!!?!?!

Talent

My mom was so impressed with her picture taking skills in NYC, Natalie got a digital camera for Christmas.

I took pictures off her camera yesterday.






I don't think this is what my mom had in mind!

Gracie-isms

Winter time colds have been flying around our house. We have been dosed up on Dimetapp Cough and Cold.

Gracie announced she had a "stuck sneeze" when she got the bug.

**********

Grace does not like spaghetti sauce. Kinda difficult when we are such a huge pasta family- well, the kids and I are. Jim is a meat and potatoes man. He has difficulty just having pasta with cheese and butter for dinner.

Today for lunch I tried to get Chef Boyardee Ravioli past her- not usual in our house (I'm a pasta snob!). She wanted to know when she came to the table if it was the "kind of ravioli with Spaghetti O sauce". Okay, so I'm not opposed to it for lunch!

Father's Day 200?

This is one of those things that I've meant to blog about for ages and don't think I ever did.

After so many holidays of trying to come up with creative gift ideas for "Daddy", this was my best one yet. I traced the kids hands on paper and then cut them out. I then let them loose with crayons to decorate their respective hands. After finding this great frame, I had a masterpiece! It's still hanging in Jim's office but after a few years the hands have started to slide a bit. Oh well!

Tattooed

I want this one tattooed on my tush! (Not really but it's a great thought that makes me laugh so hard I have to cross my legs and practice Kegels)