No complaints here.

I was actually going to come on a bitch and complain about the little things that bothered me today. But then I thought "who wants to hear someone else bitch all the time?" So I decided to come on and talk about some of the things that made me happy today. Bear with me - I'm attempting to bring a little more sunshine into my world...

Ok. Today - DESPITE the stifling heat, I managed to get both little ones to the park on time to meet with other moms. And DESPITE the fact that Evan was whining about wanting to just go home, I didn't lose my cool!! This is truly an astounding feat for me as I do not mix well with humidity and heat. If I have more than a tank top, shorts and sandals on... Oh man. Don't come near me! So, for me to calmly just leave after getting there and not yell like a maniac... Well. I just want to pat myself on the back.

I actually got the Jell-O for the Cub Scouts meeting made and REMEMBERED to bring it tonight!! Again - wow.

Justin said several times (as they all lay on our bed watching a recorded Avatar before bedtime) "I just love playing with Corinne! Aren't babies so much fun?!?" She and Justin were just giggling and PLAYING. It's a cool thing to see your kids' relationships budding and blooming.

Evan cracked us up today. When Patrick got home from work, Evan said, plain as day,
"Hi Daddy! Did you have a nice day at work?" Now, this sounded so damn cute!! He looked at us as we giggled and we said that he was so sweet for asking. He made sure to ask if it's a really nice thing to ask if someone had a nice day.

I don't have to make lunch for Justin for the rest of the school year!!! Halleleujah! He's buying lunches for the rest of the week and then he's out for the year. I am so stoked! The community pool is calling my name!

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Ahhhh... I feel pretty content. No major gripes. No major problems. How's about a few more random bits of info about me? (Cuz I'm such an interesting topic) Actually, doing this is good for me. It helps me to really think about who I am, and what I am.

So. Random, random....

I like pink. There. I've admitted it. I've come to terms with it... I never was a girly girl growing up. I liked to wear dresses on occasion, don't get me wrong, but I never would have said I was a princess. But, I have come to realize that I like to be feminine at times. And that I can be a little feminine without losing what I am. I now have a few pink sweatshirts, t-shirts, nightgowns, and dressy shirts. I bought them and told people I had bought them because I needed more laundry to put with Corinne's pink stuff. But the truth be told, I LIKE the way I look when wearing pink! So, I guess I do have a bit of a girly girl in me after all.

I love being in the woods. I wish I had more time to just be in the woods alone. I used to go all the time before kids, but now they're always with me. And if I did manage to get out by myself, I'd be on a timeclock and be thinking about having to "accomplish" something there, instead of just BEING there. I will get back to my solitude of the forest, soon. (But not now. It's too darn hot and humid!)

I'm a roller coaster freak. LOVE 'em. Haven't been on a true ride for a few years now. Been either pregnant, or had a cash flow problem so it's been a while. But this year, my husband and I are taking Justin to a park nearby for the day! Just the three of us! And he is tall enough and loves to ride the crazy rides too, so we are gonna have a blast!

I used to have so many talents... I was an artist, an actress, a writer. I read many, many books. I had a multitude of ideas and ideals. Now, my talents have all gone away. They've died from disuse. I'm sad that I didn't cherish them more. I'm sad that I lost them in the mommy job. But I am trying to find my new talents. I'm trying to find new things that I will equally love that are worth my precious time. I'm enjoying scrapbooking my children's youths. I record the sweet and not-so-sweet moments with not only pictures, but the stories behind the pictures. I hope they will all realize how much love and time went into each book and treasure them as much as I do...

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Ok. Long post. If you stuck it out, cool. If not, well, you're not reading this anyway, so phhbbbttt!!!!!

Just another post...

Aaahhhh....

The house is silent, once again. My hubby is with my brother-in-law and some buddies on an rv trip to Indy 500. Drinking beer will be he highlight of the weekend and they may even see a few of the races (or is it only 1 race? Who knows? Who CARES??). Justin and Evan are my mother in law's house overnight! Drinking root beer, eating popcorn and watching the Chronicles of Narnia until late in the night. It's almost TOO quiet!

I had Corinne with me at a retirement party for a former high school teacher tonight. She was a wonderful teacher who also did the speech and theater with her hubby for about 30 years. She has kept in touch with literally HUNDREDS of former students and some of us were there tonight to honor her. It was very touching and sweet. But I swear, if I had to answer ONE MORE TIME about what is on my daughter's head to this one kid, I will have had to smack him upside the head! I know he's really still just a little kid, but I have a hard enough time as it is when she's meeting new people. (Corinne has a medium sized hemangioma on her forehead. I'll post a pic if I can find one).

Ok, she looks drunk in the first one (I swear, no hard liquor) but it gives you a semi shot of her birthmark. It's really really not that big of a deal. And as she gets older, it should disappear. And her hair will probably cover it (if she ever grows any) so it's not an issue for me most of the time. I'm just a little tired of repeating myself over and over about what it is to the SAME people.

Now my husband and I have commented to each other how strange it is that we really really don't see her birthmark anymore. Seriously! I see it, obviously, but I don't focus on it. (She also has a large one on her back and several tiny ones on her scalp). But when she's meeting new people, I notice that they aren't seeing her the way that I see her. Which is as the most beautiful baby in the world (no bias)!

Where was I going with this? Ah, yes. People and staring. Just ask the question you're thinking. PLEASE. I prefer to explain it outright and then we can focus on how damn adorable she is and not have you staring and then averting your eyes when I look at you. Lucky for her, she's a smiley, happy kid. She gets them every time with her beautiful smile and big eyes.
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I had mentioned to Patrick that there was the cutest little yellow finch outside my kitchen the other day. The boys and Corinne all got to watch it with me as it jumped from branch to branch in the small poplar tree just outside the window. I said something like, "I want to get a little bird feeder so we can get more finches! They're so pretty and the song is so sweet." I'm thinking we could put some peanut butter on a pinecone and hang it there. Well, my well-intentioned, sweet-hearted husband comes home that night with a bird house. A BIG bird house (because bigger is always better, right?) that is on its own post that sticks into the ground. A BIG BIG bird house that he fills with a whole bunch of bird seed that instantly attracts the black starlings (I think) that are freaky looking to me. Bunches and bunches of these black beasts that knock the seed all over the patio(which attracted the bunnies, surprisingly enough) and poop all over his grill and made me start to worry about the bird flu epidemic. Yeah... All because I wanted a few finches to entertain me as I washed the dishes. BUT, I love him for his kind thoughts. It was really sweet to try and make me happy.
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So, the plan is to wake up at normal hours in the morning (6 am, thanks a lot Corinne) and get going right away so I can go GARAGE SALING!!! I had such a great time buying her a whole buttload of clothes at the neighbor's house the other week, that I can't wait to see if I can find any other steals! Justin needs a spring coat (his zipper broke), Evan needs tank tops and Corinne could always use another dress.

So, as I go to bed, I will be thinking of how thankful I am that I can appreciate a quiet house, that I have the means to GO to garage sales, that my family loves me so much and that we can afford the air conditioner cuz baby, it's NASTY outside!

The sound... of silence...

(insert Simon and Garfunkel song here) Aaaahhhh... The family is all asleep. My hair is almost dry from the BATH I took with bath fizzies and a book and everything!!! HOLY CRAP!! After this weekend and beginning of the week, I felt I deserved my first bath in a looooooong time. And you know what? I had to cut it short cuz I was getting nauseous and faint. Great. Just what I wanted - to pass out in the tub. So, I had a SHORT bath, but I ended it with a Polar bear wake up: I poured several glasses of cold and colder water over my back and head until I couldn't take it anymore. YIKES! That'll wake you up!

Justin stayed home today and was feeling better when he went to bed. Let's hope it stays that way tomorrow. I can't stand the idea of him missing school on his last weeks! He only has 6 more school days for crying out loud!

I managed to make more and more piles today... piles of clean laundry. piles of folded laundry. piles of laundry that needs to be REWASHED as it still smelled pukey (grrrroooosssss).

Corinne still manages to grow every day even though I am NOT encouraging her to do so. She was up on all fours today. I am literally gonna cry when she is mobile. I had Patrick take a picture of her in my sling today as she napped on my chest. I commented on how beautiful she was and how fast she was growing and he said something to the effect of "Don't be getting any ideas, now!" Puh-lease. As IF. As if I'd REALLY be thinking of a fourth baby. Noooo..... Not meeee.... Sigh. I wish we could afford another - financially and emotionally. But she is our last. (Unless we are pleasantly surprised some day.... I can still hold out on that hope, right?) Of course, when I was in the mayhem of the delivery room with her, I had that moment of remembering "Oh yeaaahhhh. This HURTS LIKE A BITCH. Doh!" Luckily, my kids like to make a fast appearance. I'm rambling again, aren't I?

Evan is getting quite the little mouth on him! I honestly don't know WHERE he gets it from!! (twiddle, twiddle). He has taken to calling Justin a poopyhead and a loser. Nice, huh? And he acts like he didn't know he'd get sent to his room for it every single time!! Grrrr.... He thought it was pretty darn cool to take a bath with her tonight. Splashing and giggling...

I'm hoping for a nice dry day tomorrow. The rain has been nice, and we probably do need more to keep the water levels nice and high (no more drought, please!) but I'd like to take the kids to a park and get some fresh air as we were in the house all day today.

Ah, and I must say good night, dear blogger friends, as I do need my beauty sleep, you know.

My Tagged responses!

What is your favorite word? Gonna have to go with OW here and say "Mommy."
What is your least favorite word? Anything ignorant. I have a few: stupid, shut up, excessive use of f*ck, and any racist slur.
What turns you on spiritually, creatively, emotionally ?
spiritually: nature in silence. I love the early early mornings all alone outside. The birds, the light breeze, the smell of morning.
creatively: I love to scrapbook for my kids. They each have 1-3 books (depending on their age!) and I also write journals for each of them. I have kept these since the moment I found out I was pregnant. I remember being pregnant with Evan and watching the 9/11 bombings on tv... I journalled my fears and prayers.
emotionally: My family. Watching Patrick play with the boys or talk to Corinne. Seeing them all interact sweetly or help each other. It warms my heart!
What turns you off? Ignorance. I cannot STAND people who won't even try to accept someone that's different than themselves. I hate it when people get so riled up that they react in violence. War is ridiculous and wrong and never solves the initial problem it set out to conquer. If the world were run by women, we'd have more discussions and less guns. Would we even HAVE guns I wonder?
What's your favorite curse word? I don't swear TOO much, but when I do the words "crap" and "damnit" seem to be my cuss of choice.
What sound or noise do you love to hear? Oh, the sound of my kids laughing! Especially when they're making the baby laugh! What a combination!!
What sound or noise do you hate? overly loud music from someone else's stereo. It doesn't matter what kind of music it is. I don't want to listen to what you're listening to!! I promise! Also, old man farts are gross! :)
What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? Someday, a preschool teacher. I've been thinking about it lately, and think that this may be the direction I go when Corinne is waaaaay older. Of course, by then, I may change my mind! I would also have loved to have been a stage actress... sigh.
What profession would you not like to do? Medical professions. Too much responsibility, too many hours, too much liability, not enough respect.
If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say at the pearly gates? I do believe that heaven exists, but am not sure God is a "talking God." I would mostly like to FEEL God and to understand eternity and peace when I die. I would like to feel that my family that has gone before me and remains after me will be happy and peaceful as well. I would like to know union with everyone and nature.

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Ok, I tag Jennifer and Michelle. OMG OMGOMG!!! I figured out how to link!!!! I am soooo cool!!! This has totally made my morning! You have no idea! :)

double groan...

Well, another quick post today as Justin was up late last night, puking everywhere. And I mean EVERYWHERE. His entire bed including several stuffed animals, pillows, the railings for his bunk (he's on top) the ladder, the floor under the bed, some of Evan's bedding... And the really nasty nasty "you can see what you ate" puke. Poor kid was crying over the toilet several times last night. He slept on the floor outside of my bathroom door and made several trips there. I had a slight headache again.Also, Evan managed to sleep through the whole puke thing but woke up with a bad dream! Luckily, the baby slept through the night, but was up at 5:30 aas usual. Soooo.... I'm waiting for the coffee to brew, the laundry to finish drying and for 7:30 to roll around so I can call the school. I'll probably post later on today as it'll have to be a quiet day around here. He was so pitiful. I hate it when they're sick!

grooooaaaannnnn.....

Ugh. Well, I have been feeling quite disgusting these past 2 days. Nasty stomach. I went to the Da Vinci Code movie with my mom (liked it. Haven't read the book yet, so can't compare). Afterwards, we went to Baker's Square and I just could NOT get a bite down. Felt like I was gonna hurl. We left early and I went right to bed.

Today, I still feel icky. I had to take Corinne in for her pictures and managed to get some decent ones (not great, though). Then we stumbled through the grocery store to get a few things to survive on for another day or so. I am just running on fumes, here. I had a glass of juice and a bowl of ice cream today. THAT'S IT. So, I'm off to lie down again. Hope to post and read everyone else's posts soon...

Ten "D" things

Well, Miss Cheerios gave me the letter "D" for a quick list of ten d things about ME! So, I'll update you all on the excitement of the garage sale, day 2, later. Again, don't pass out from the anticipation.

D - daughter. I'm DEFINITELY my mother's daughter. I'm even starting to look reaaallly similar to her. My hands have always looked like her, but my face is thinning and I've noticed that I tend to dance alarmingly like her... Hmmm... I always thought I looked cool, and used to make fun of poor Mom. Seems the joke's on me!

D - Dago (Is that how you spell it?) I am only half Italian (my mom, again) but it's the heritage that has been most prominent in my upbringing. I love all things Italian (except olives... Not so crazy bout those. And that whole Roman empire thing didn't sound too friendly). I would LOVE to visit Italy someday. I could go knocking on some poor, unsusupecting distant relative's door...

D - Drama queen - Well, not too much. But I did truly love being in the theater in high school and college. That would truly have to be my one regret in life, that I didn't continue acting. I do still judge for high school speech meets, but it's not the same as being the one FEELING The part.

D - Dunkin Donuts - love 'em. Krispy Kremes make me feel pukey.

D - Devoted - I am really devoted to my husband, children and family. I do NOT want to move away from this area EVER. I enjoy and cherish the fact that my children are FRIENDS with their cousins. I never had that with mine.

D - Dancer - Ok. I'm not professional. But I LOVE dancing. Even though, as I mentioned, I apparently dance like a 50 year old grandma. But I love the freedom and don't care who's watching me. I wish I knew some more people having weddings. Those are the best places to dance at.

D - dirty - I like getting dirty. And I don't mind if my kids or house get that way, either. Don't particularly like them TOO dirty, but their feet are filthy right now, and guess what? They're going to bed that way! Gasp!

D - drug-free. Well, not all my life (ahem) but I mean I verrrrrry rarely take over the counter or prescription drugs. And I can't swallow pills (phobia) so I only take liquid form medications when I DO break down from pain and go to the drugstore. I had liquid Tylenol after each birth and a surgery. (I found out that Morphine and me do NOT mix well. Nor does Stadol-sp?- for "dulling the pain" during birth. snort.)

D - droopy - (Not my boobs. Well, actually...) I just feel, you know, droopy sometimes. I haven't wanted to dedicate my brain to anything more complicated than first grade homework since the baby was born. I know it'll change soon, but I'm not pushing myself and have been quite lazy lately.

D - delicate as a flower. Bwaaahaaa haaa!!!! If you haven't noticed, I'm a pretty tough spitfire when I want to be (picture short and small brunette). But I DO feel quite passionate about things and can get really sensitive and emotional.

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Man, those were tough! I want to tag somebody else! But I don't have quite the long list of people yet. NOR CAN I FIGURE OUT THIS LINK THINGY!!!! I'm still trying....

Now, I'm off to get everyone ready for lunch at Great grandma's tomorrow and then my mom and I are going to see "The Da Vinci Code" tomorrow ALL BY OURSELVES.

Mommy, why do I have to die?

Oh man... This is what Evan just walked in and asked me. Poor baby had a sad sad look on his face. And I just explained (as I always do) that dying is just our bodies not working anymore and our souls going to heaven. "Will I be the first to die?" he then asked. Oh man....

Just another day!

Well, today went well! I managed to get Justin up and at 'em early enough to get the garage sale set up. I had forgotten that people tend to come BEFORE the sale officially opens and as you're frantically trying to pull things out of your garage and get the kids dressed and ready for a zoo field trip and keep the baby out of the laundry (failed that one. Poor thing had socks and a sheet on her head). I didn't make too much money today ($30. whoop dee doo) but I also sold $16 of my sister's crap. So, not a terrible amount of stuff sold. But if I had been willing to part with Patrick's fishing poles and tools, well. THAT would have made me a bundle! I'm hoping that a few of my bigger items will sell tomorrow. I don't want it back in my house!!! Any of the stuffed animals or small toys that don't sell will be donated to the women's shelter. I just want to be less cluttered!

I am currently feeling not-so great. Icky icky tummy. I'll spare you the details as I'm sure you can imagine what I'd rather not discuss. Fun. I'm thinking it's the shrimp that my DARLING husband fed to me that I had to spit out as it tasted verrrry fishy. So, I called him at band practice (he and a few friends having fun) and asked for him to come home early... I was REALLY Feeling crummy, but he didn't realize how bad I felt. I'm now wishing I had explained a little better!

I was on Miss Cheerio's blog and saw that my name is on her list of reads!! How awesome! My first!! But I now feel a terrible responsibility to provide entertainment worthy of a daily check-in!!!!! But it's really a cool feeling. Like being asked to join a club in school or somethin. I'm so cool! Also, I'm STILL trying to figure out that whole link thing. I did EXACTLY what 2 ladies suggested, and it STILL doesn't show on my links! Grrrr..... Plus, how do I show a person's link while typing IN the blog? Hmmm... another high-tech thing I have to figure out when I have more than a few spare moments.

Spongebob is on in the background and I have "Bend it Like Beckham" paused on my dvr upstairs. I think I'll post just a few random facts about myself and call it a night.

- I hate cleaning. My house is in a constant state of "piles." Piles of things to sort through, laundry to fold, laundry to put away, dishes to wash, dishes to put away... you get the idea. I am constantly playing catch up.

- I have 2 cats. (And I'm waiting for them to die) No, not really. But I have, quite possibly, the 2 WORST cats in the world. They tend to pee on piles of laundry that is either clean, dirty, folded or whatever. They tend to chew on anything plastic that may make them puke in piles of laundry. They have a wonderful habit of sleeping on said laundry piles and embedding hair into a favorite shirt. But, they're almost 10 years old and, seriously, I think I can survive it another 5 years or so... (I used to loooove pets pre-kids.)

- I love taking pictures and keeping journals. Which is why this whole blog thing is seeming like a great outlet for me. I can jabber on and on as much as I want and I may even make a friend or two while doing it! I have many many picture albums that I put the first set of pictures into the second I get home and scrapbooks for each child that I use the doubles for. I'm a little behind on the scrapbooks, but I'm working on it.

- I love to read. Anything I can get, but I haven't had much time lately.

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I'm starting to think I'm pretty boring as those random bits aren't that exciting and I had to reach deep within myself to find even those few!! I'll have to think more on this...

Garage Sale!

Ok, how big of a nerd am I that I am super excited to be having a garage sale this weekend? I know. Pretty big nerd. Somebody come buy my crap!! I don't want it anymore! So, I have to "prepare" for tomorrow (make sandwiches, juice, get the money box ready for change, and shower - really need a shower).

I sure hope tomorrow is as beautiful as today was. Evan, Corinne and I went to the park with a mom's group and had a fun day. He got to be the big kid and leader which doesn't happen as often with a big brother in the house.

So, short post today, but I'm sure I'll have a riveting one tomorrow regaling the excitement of garage sale day#1!! (How's that for a cliffhanger?)

:)

What is a Mommy?

Copying another mommy's post... Can't remember who, but it's cute!

Evan's answers-age 4
1. What is a Mommy? A good parent
2. What do Mommies do? Take care of babies
3. What do you like best about your Mommy?Playing with her.
4. What do you not like (if anything) about your Mommy?When you're not playing with me.
5. What are things that Mommies can't do? Not hurt babies and not hurt kids.

Justin's answers-age 7
1. What is a mommy? Somebody who takes care of you.
2. What do Mommies do? Take care of kids.
3. What do you like best about your mommy? Playing with her.
4. What do you not like (if anything) about your Mommy? Nothing (I rock)
5. What are things that Mommies can't do? Climb trees fast. ( I beg to differ)

Things that made me laugh (and cry or count to ten) today.

Evan's running commentary on the way home from dropping Justin at school:

Hey Mommy? Remember when I was a little kid(um, yeah) and I took naps?

Hey Mommy? I am super tired(wipes brow. I kid you not). We should have drived to school.

Hey Mommy? I wanna stop at the rocky park. I wannna! I wannna!!

Hey Mommy? Is Joey home yet? (neighbor boy in second grade. Um, not home yet).
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Tonight was FUN. (dripping sarcasm) Justin was having one of his "moods" where he sits at the kitchen table crying hysterically for an hour because he doesn't want to eat his dinner. Sigh. He is the kind of kid that is so determined that he WILL cry for the full 3 hours till bedtime, go to bed hungry, and still cry for another hour or so until he passes out from sheer exhaustion. RINSE AND REPEAT as he is 7 years old and still thinks that a fit will get him his own way! NOT! He did manage to eat half of the piece of fish and half of the rice (all that we required) and made it with a full ONE MINUTE to spare before the 6:30 cut-off of us not taking him to Wal-Mart to get the bike he wanted to get with birthday money (since his old one is destroyed). So, off they go (ahhhh... quiet for a while) and come home with the more expensive bike (I saw the sale ones. Looked fine to me, but whatever). He gets his helmet on, Daddy helps him up and down the sidewalk twice, and he decides he's done for the night. VERY TYPICAL stuff around here. I did manage to take a pic, so I'll post it when I get the film developed. Hopefully, he'll be braver tomorrow. We are NOT putting the training wheels on. He will just have to deal and learn.
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Corinne went to sleep without being swaddled tonight!! She has had to be wrapped (tied up, I lovingly call it) tightly every night since birth to get her to fall asleep. Well, tonight she was so beat, that I just let her fall asleep lying on my lap while watching "Gone with the Wind" on TCM. I was just positive she'd wake up doing the transfer to her crib, but NO! She stayed asleep!! Halleleujah!!
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12 school days left! I am so ready for summer break. Bedtimes can be lax, schedules can come to a screeching halt, and we can just BE for a while. I was feeling bad for not signing the boys up for a sport this summer, but I kept forgetting. But you know what? I am soooo thrilled to not have to sit at any sports in the summer! We can do a sport when it's cooler out, because I hate being in the sun and heat and not being in the water! We will be at the pool every day. I will sign them up for lessons. Justin has Cub Scout camp for a week. We'll be in Wisconsin Dells for a week. We plan on camping a few times. We WILL be busy, so I am glad that I didn't add to the schedule. YAY!! 3 weeks!!

Tuesday Treasure

Well, this is from an idea from Overwhelmed (how exactly do I link a name, now?). My Tuesday Treasure would have to be this man I married... He's my best friend, a wonderful father, a good husband and a pretty great human being. I love him completely (even when I want to strangle him) and am so thankful that he has touched my life. Plus, it's handy to be married to such a tall guy. You know, high shelves and such...

Am I a bad mom if...

I think the baby is just being so good and quiet, only to realize that she's having a fine time petting the cats with drooly hands that she's then eating? But she was having FUN!!!

What a load of crap.

I had a pretty crappy discussion tonight with my mother. Not about us, but about issues with a school worker discussing my son with my mom outside of school. I'm pretty pissed about this and don't want to post about it in detail, but I've sent an email to the school and can hardly wait for the response. Yay... sigh.

Aside from that, a pretty good Mother's day. I have a SPOTLESS van (yes!) and didn't want to let the kids get in it! :) They made me a funny card and dh made me french toast with strawberries, bananas, grapefruit, sausage and coffee. He loves to cook breakfast foods! I was stuffed! And we had a good time at my sister's house. The kids were pretty good and my mom liked the earrings that dh picked out! (I couldn't get out to get her anything!)

I'm pretty tired and want to finish watching my recordings of Extreme Makeover and Desperate Housewives. So adios for now! Here's to hoping tomorrow's bright and shiny!

Strange but true: A joke that a 4 year old tells 68 times in a row is ACTUALLY still funny to said 4 year old, but not the rest of the world.

Hmmph.

Hmmph. Remember my "snuggle" in bed I was supposed to have last night? Try getting a 4 year old that has SERIOUS sleep issues involving kicking, punching, and elevating a foot over the bed and flopping down on anyone in the way. Justin, unfortunately, was bearing the brunt of the beating as I was shielding Corinne on the other side of the bed, because, apparently, last night was party night and everyone needed to be in MY bed! She woke up at 1 am. The baby that NEVER wakes up in the middle of the night. SCREECHING! Poor thing! Scared the crap out of me! Just needed to eat, or her teeth may be coming in, or she has an earache, or WHO KNOWS. So. So much for sweet snuggle time.

BUT! I am here, typing, at 3 in the afternoon while baby sleeps and dh and the kids are getting the van detailed!!! I hope the poor man at the detail shop doesn't go into shock when he sees how disgusting the floor and seats are... Ah well. At least I'M not the one who has to be embarrassed!!

Ugh. He just called and is LOST trying to find the detail shop. He had BETTER NOT come back with it unfinished!! I will lock the doors!!

I was watching an Oprah today from a few days ago (dvr). It was about a bunch of sad women. But that's beside the point. The point I got out of it was that my kids are being molded by everything I do and don't do. I know that this should have been a totally obvious realization, but I seem to have misplaced that knowledge somewhere in the last 7 years and have turned into the yelling, short-tempered, not so friendly mom I swore I would never be. I'm not saying I'm awful. I'm NOT. But I'm not as nice as I should be. I'm not as patient as they deserve. I'm not as good of a mom as I KNOW I can be! So, this Mother's Day, I think I will set a goal for myself. A goal to practice patient love. A goal to be the GROWN UP and not yell when they yell. (duh, right?) A goal to play more games and read more books. And to talk TO them more. Not AT them.

So. Quite a lofty goal for me. I've got a lot of work. Wish me the best...

Strange, but true: We are the hardest on those we love the most.

Precious moments...

Precious moments happen everyday in my life. But I can't stop to relish them all. I try, Lord knows I try, but they just tend to slip away into that vast collection of memories that are just mushed together into a feeling. A feeling of a time in my life that I had small children. Well, I try to write things down as much as possible. I have journals for all 3, and I will try to maintain this blog and print it for them all later on. But there's just too much!!

Like the expression on Corinne's face tonight as her brothers made her crack up by saying "baby taco!" (I have to wrap her up tightly before going to bed... it's her only comfort issue).

Like the way Evan has been putting his fingers in his ears when I'm telling him what he did was naughty. - He'll do it once. I tell him to take them out, and he'll slowwwwlllly put them back in again. Then he'll slowly put his fingers just NEXT to his ear holes so that he's not ACTUALLY doing it anymore. sigh...

Like Justin demonstrating the African, Japanese, and Irish dances he learned in school recently. His sense of incredible rhythm on the piano does NOT transfer well to dancing!!

The mundane, everyday stuff gets lost over time. Fixing breakfast every day. Walking to school. Playing blocks. Reading books. Tucking into bed. Don't get me wrong. Some of these everyday things stick out from when Justin was a baby, still. But not as many as I wish. I had forgotten that he used to sleep with a little board book for the longest time. Or that he used to have to put pennies in his piggy bank every night. Or that he would wake up every morning and naptime singing baby songs! Just singing!

Try as I might, my desperate scramble to retain every single memory is futile. I hope that I remember this very moment (the smell of cinnamon toast, the sound of a baby squealing at 100 decibels), but I'm pretty sure it will just fade into a collective memory of this period of time...

A wolf in my house!?!

My son is a wolf. He has gone from being a Tiger scout to a Wolf scout tonight. (for all of you non-scouting families, he's simply going up a grade.) But it's yet another marker for the progression of time, the pulling away from little boyhood to big boyhood. Life is full of these little kicks-in-the-butt. Just when you get used to things being a certain way, it changes and you have to readjust. And just when I think I'm USED to the constant change, another change will just knock the wind out of me! Who would have thought that a simple ceremony (by candlelight, no less. And they had a drum beating and did face stripes for each stage. Very impressive... I guess) could make me all weepy?

Also (total aside) why is it that the adults at these things are so loud and noisy? The PA system sucks there, so you really have to strain to hear some of the speakers and the hum of the parents talking about baloney throughout the entire thing really peeves me! It's a constant battle to maintain the peace! WITH THE ADULTS! Not the 40 or so grade school boys! And WHY IS IT that a woman with a baby in a sling (ME), a few other parents, a couple of first graders (one of which was my son), my dh, and my 4 year old were the only ones carrying about a hundred and 50 chairs back to their spots?!? The lack of consideration of some people amazes me...

I've been doing some random blog hopping lately. I've found some really sweet, heartwrenching, interesting, funny blogs and I've read so many now, that I can't remember what all of their names were!! And I can't figure out how to make a list thingy to the side of my own blog to be able to reread them! Can anyone in cyberspace help me?!? I read the instructions that I could find on my own settings tab (or whatever) but I am, alas, technologically challenged at times. Any helpers?

I am eager to see my big ole van tomorrow night after my dh and boys clean it out. This is the ONLY thing I have asked for for Mother's Day. I want my van spotless. Pristine. I want to be able to lie my baby on the floor and not worry that some critter has evolved and is existing on the McD's nuggets, pistaschio nuts, squished Easter candy, and lord only knows what else that covers the floor of my embarrassment. (hey, are there 2 "r"'s in embarrass? Or 1? (embarass, embarrass... I guess I could spell check it, but that might be just a tad too much work...)

Today, I went to Justin's school for a Mother's Day party. It was sweet. They sang us a song, we planted a flower, and we all did a little activity sheet together. And then we got to leave a little early so that we missed the traffic which was hellatious because of the neverending RAIN!!!

Well, I am off to go snuggle in bed with Justin and Evan. They are sleeping in our bed tonight as a special treat. Remember when it was cool to do that? When is it no longer so cool? 8? 10? Sigh... I don't have much more time with my oldest, do I?

Strange but true: In mid-January, a 50 degree day warrants short sleeves, windows are rolled down in the car, and people are outside in droves. In mid-May, we turn the heaters back on, put on sweaters, and can't believe "how cold" it is. Gotta love the Midwest!

Just another post...

Today... drop Justin off at school in the rain. Run to grocery store to buy SOMETHING that's not a condiment or boxed food (i.e. fruits and veggies). Unload van IN THE RAIN while baby fusses and Evan begs for a Danimals drink thingy that we just bought. Clean house (shocker!) Manage to feed both children and keep them relatively entertained and clean for the morning. Friend drops off her 2 year old for an hour while she goes to a Mother's Day tea at her son's school. Entertain sad 2 year old who misses his mommy by playing Thomas the Tank engine on the family room floor. Go to school after little boy leaves to pick Justin up. Have to park almost as far as we live from school and walk to the school with both little ones IN THE RAIN so that we can attend an end of the year party for his chess club. Leave party slightly disappointed but relieved that it's over IN THE RAIN. Convince Justin (miraculously) to do homework AND piano practice with minimal resistance. Reward with Xbox time. (I hate video games). Actually COOK DINNER (needed a CPR machine thingy to restart Patrick's heart when he walked in and saw me standing at the stove COOKING). Dinner is actually good! I actually got to TALK to Pat for a few minutes! Kids get dressed and ready for bed early and get into bed after I read one book and Justin reads me Curious George(awwww....). Rock Corinne to sleep after nursing her and singing "All through the Night" for about 10 minutes or so. Marvel at her beauty in sleep and desperately wish for a longer babyhood for my last child. Kiss her cheek and breathe deeply to inhale her smell one last time before lying her down for the night. All in all, a pretty marvelous day...

Strange but true: Oprah Winfrey can have a show on the most destitute and desperate of situations in the most destitute and desperate of countries in the world on a Monday, and have a show about the most expensive designer "fall fashions" on Tuesday... And millions of viewers have no problem with this discrepancy... (though, I must admit, I am a viewer myself. Guilty pleasure).

Can I post a pic?

Let's see if I'm technologically able to do this...

Ooohh!! I am!! Ok, here's me at a wedding recently... And here are my monkeys on Easter.

Why is it...

Why is it that whenever the media talks about Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise's children, they feel the need to ALWAYS point out that they are adopted? On the way home tonight, there was a blurp on the radio about Nicole and it went something like, "... Nicole and her adopted children were seen by the papparazzi..." Honestly, does it matter? I think it's pretty crass to keep labelling the family that way. It's only ONE PART of their lives, not the sole point of their beings.

Strange but true: when the house is finally quiet and everyone's asleep, you will suddenly find yourself wishing for some of that noise that you couldn't wait to get away from... whatever will I do when they're all grown up and moved out? (Insert true misting eyes and sniffles here...)

My children speak their minds...

A conversation with Evan:

Hey Mommy, you know what? The T-Rex and the velociraptor were fighting and you know what? They were chasing a long neck in the Mysterious beyond, but you know what? They got hit by rocks and you know what? They DIED. Cuz you know why? The rocks squished them, but you know what? They came back alive, cuz you know what? The water was magic. But you know what? It's not like the magic in Harry Potter. And you know what? Voldemort's magic is BAD magic and you know what? HE came back alive too. And you know why? He used Harry's BLOOD, but you know what?


Get the drift?

Justin says (at 7 am):

Mommmeeee... (insert whine), leave me aloooone. I don't want to go to school today. I don't want to eat breakfast. I don't want to talk. I'm SERIOUS, Mommy! Stop talking to me, PLEASE!

He's not such a morning person.

So, what exactly do I have to do to get people to read me? Type all sorts of key words? Mom, Mommy, Mama, baby, kids, crazed, frantic, advice, sahm, scrapbooker, wife, sister, friend, lonely, silly, photographer, drool covered, poopy diapers...

Corinne says:

vb xcv bv n vn x fxc c x bcv v mC N tg vb v fgfvb 4efvd j56c4c5dfD4D545EXXCXBVVCV5BYGVBYVHBV6VBVCV BHGCBN NB B B B B B B B

Yay me! I love days when I feel like I truly truly accomplished a lot! Vacuumed a bunch of dead ants, cleaned out the front hall closet (I have NO IDEA how we had fit so much crap into such a small closet), colored a picture of a rainbow with a pot of gold while Evan did a picture of an ant getting eaten by a scorpion (he had just watched "Honey I Shrunk the Kids"), and I have done buttloads of laundry. I also managed to WATER my flowers, but I think it's going to rain soon, so that was a waste of energy. Can you tell I'm not big on chores around the house?

I'll give you ONE GUESS what I'm drinking... Have you been paying attention? Has anyone even been READING THIS?!? :)

I got a comment! Woo hoo!! Thanks, Michelle. It's nice to hear from another mommy. Your baby is beeeeautiful!

I've decided that this whole J, E, C, P crap is for the birds. My family is me, (Tracey) my husband, Patrick, and my kids- Justin-7, Evan-4, and Corinne-6 months. There. I'm out. I'll be sure to not use anything too horribly incriminating! :)

My coffee's cold. Back in a sec.

Aaahhh.. Nice and hot.

Evan's watching Spongebob while Corinne sleeps upstairs. Peace... peace....

Tonight I'm taking Evan on Mommy/son date to see Curious George at the dollar theater. He said he'd only go with me if I bought him candy! WTF?!? Am I a bad date? I have to PAY my kids in candy to hang with me? Sigh... Maybe he's trying to tell me I need a shower? (sniffing myself) not TOO bad.

I have to sew a bunch of badges on Justin's Cub Scout vest this week as he has a ceremony on Friday to become a Wolf scout (I think). I HATE sewing those things on! I think I need a thimble or something cuz it kills my fingers!

Also, I'm trying to find a good baby life vest for a 6 month old. It needs to be a life VEST so she won't sink like a load of bricks if I have to grab for Evan in the pool this summer. Anyone know anything about the Stearn's brand of vests?

That is all. I could write about nothing for hours and hours, but really, what would be the point?

Strange but true fact of the day: No matter how hard you scrub a little boy, there will always be a few dirty spots. (proven last night after bathtime).

Ramblings...

Today was a good day. Got to go to a playgroup with a mom's group. Had some slightly dull but none-the-less cheerful conversation with other moms that are grasping for friends (as am I). Found a bunch of ants crawling on the floor by the fish tank. Ewwww.... Sprayed everywhere I could find a crawler and am now paranoid that the baby will suddenly learn how to crawl overnight and will get to the sprayed areas before I can wash the spray off, thereby ingesting the chemicals and officially making me a "bad mom." Had a lovely walk home from school with J and E while carrying the baby and listening to J and a neighbor boy talk. The conversation went something like this:

Do you like the Splash Mountain ride at Disney World too? DUDE! So sweet!

Yeah, YEAH! Me too! And did you know that the ride at Six Flags is, like, 183 or 200 or 1000 feet tall?

DUDE! SWEET!!

Yeah, sweet!

Snort. They crack me up. Later, Pat actually got home EARLY (shocker!!) and I was able to sit in on J's piano lesson. He's soooo good at it. It's amazing to me that he's been playing for less than a year... Got home and found Pat and the neighbor kids, along with E, in a riveting game of dodgeball (thankfully, no one got seriously hurt as the balls were FLYING FAST!). As I walked into the house, I hear the baby SCREAMING upstairs! I rushed up and she was just hysterical, sobbing and shaking. I was FURIOUS. He didn't have the friggin monitor turned up and was so involved in dodgeball that she was crying for only God knows how long!! Poor princess! At least dh was truly apologetic and upset... and then went on to hurl the balls at the kids again.

So, tomorrow will find me vacuuming little ant corpses, doing laundry, and drinking reheated coffee. Hopefully, I will fit in a few games of Uno, color a few Star Wars guys, read a few books, and snuggle with my family.

Strange but true fact to end this on: my shirt smells slightly like baby spit up, and it is actually something I LIKE.

Today P is golfing. Blecch. I hate it when he golfs. He's gone so friggin long, and I get all 3 kids alllll day long. So, the weekend is just another workday for me. Anyway... I am (yet again) drinking reheated coffee and snacking on pistaschio nuts. The breakfast of champions! After watching an Oprah show the other day regarding health and what we eat etc. etc. I am starting to think I need to REALLY rethink our family's diet. I just need to figure out HOW to afford the extra money it would cost to buy so much fresh food so regularly!

I'm soooo ready for J's school year to be over. 19 more school days! I know that in a month or so I'll be pulling my hair out for him to be back to school, but I am just tired of the routine, the homework, the misc. bullshit. Thankfully, he's been doing sooo much better these past 2 months. He had a rough rough start in Kindergarten and the beginning of first grade: pushing, hitting, not listening. Not ALL the time, but if he got angry or bored, he'd do something so STUPID it'd make me question how smart he really was! He's a very very bright boy! I am wondering if he's bored with some of the work, but that doesn't excuse acting out like that. It's been more difficult to parent him than I ever imagined. He's so dang stubborn! And whoever taught kids how to whine? Are they naturally inclined? Is it inborn? Nothing cuts through my nerves faster than the high-pitched whine over stupid shit every day. And my reactions vary from day to day (main problem for stopping it, I know) but it's soooo hard to NOT react when they know just what buttons to push.

SERENITY NOW!!!

But today is actually looking good. We stayed out late last night at my sister's house, sitting around the firepit in their backyard. Had a GREAT time. The kids were all being so good, Evan even fell asleep on the cushioned love seat by the fire. We only got one ember to ignite our extremely flammable blanket (yikes!) and I managed to scare the crap out of my husband when he was walking around the fence line to bring back the wood by jumping out and growling! Gotta get your giggles any way you can!

Baby C is 6 months old! I can hardly believe it... It goes by incredibly fast. She's sitting up on her own now, but not showing any signs of crawling, THANK GOD. My house is such a death trap of Legos, toy cars, cords etc. I have GOT to get on babyproofing immediately! She's also FINALLY taking some baby food and a sippy cup (sort of). I have been exclusively nursing her and she refuses the bottle. Hence, Mommy doesn't get out for very long very often!

Well, I am off to do laundry (surprise surprise), reheat my coffee, and find some socks that match (or not) as my feet are FREEZING!

Talents

The talents you acquire as a mother:

The ability to type a blog with 1 hand while holding a raspberry-blowing baby in the other.
The ability to not shower for 2 days and not smell "too bad."
Being able to decipher a 4 year old's rendition of Star Wars
The ability to NOT scream bloody murder when hearing yet ANOTHER tale of woe from one brother about another...
Nursing a baby while making dinner while talking on the phone while negotiating an argument over a toy while putting away the dishes while planning for the weekend while drinking the same cup of coffee that's been reheated 5 times in 1 day.....

It's been quite a busy day today, to put it mildly.

We spent a beautiful day at the park. P (hubby) did some fishing while I walked around with baby C on the Maya sling and watching the older 2, J and E, on the playground. GORGEOUS out. I managed to NOT freak out when the water snake was closer to me than I thought (what a nice mom I am), I managed to NOT shriek at J (7 years old) when he yelled at me over a trivial thing and marched him over to the picnic table to sit down and think about how he REAAAALLLLY does NOT want to talk to his mother that way. We are off to my sister's house tonight for some bbq and ice cream and to play with their kids as well.

I am trying to figure out how it is that OTHER people have such interesting blogs and mine seems so trivial! I guess I need to give myself some time to find my groove. But, as it is right now, I hear a diaper being filled (tmi) so I must go!

I wonder when/if I'll ever have anyone reading MY blog??? I SWEAR, I AM interesting. It just may take a while to prove it!!

I'm here!!!

I'm posting on a blog!!! I don't know what to write about... I'm suddenly speechless without much to write and not much time to be sad about it. BUT, after the monsters go to sleep tonight, I plan to try and wow someone with my intellect and wit. Right now, I have to wipe Mac and Cheese off of the floor before my friend's daughter arrives.

I feel so cool! I HAVE A BLOG!!