Aim High, I Say

Safety Boy and his trustee sidekick Crazy Girl were coming upstairs from the basement where they were doing Safety Boy's chores. It's his job to empty the all bathroom trash and to bring the recycling downstairs and Crazy Girl goes along for the fun of it all. When he finally reached the top step he said to me,

"Mom, I don't know if I want to be a garbage man or a recycling man."

I replied that yes, since both were such noble professions that it would be a tough decision but he had plenty of time to figure that out. I don't want to offend anyone but they say you want better for your children that what you have and I'm thinking that might not be in the right direction. Thank goodness I have 12 years to work on this. One less thing to have on today's to-do list.


They insist on wearing their rain boots when they do the chores. I think it makes them feel more official.

Say What? ... Gee, Thanks!

There was definitely some conversation at dinner tonight that left room for thought. Crazy Girl decided to add to the discussion, "Daddy's bum is this big", holding her hands 8 inches apart "and Mommy's bum is this big", with her hands as wide as they would go. Really, well thank you for that useful information that I will ponder as I decide who Santa will be generous to this year. Hmmm. He know who's been naughty and who's been nice and I think I know what list Crazy Girl's on.

On top of this, my old and spiteful dog is causing civilized adults to yell at my house as they walk by. Here's the history. Since our other dog died last November, Old Dog howls and barks incessantly when we leave the house. I know this but there is nothing I can do. She is twelve years old and a bitch. Well, she is a female dog so enough of the tsk, tsking for the foul language. Well, yesterday while hard at work, Husband tells me during a phone conversation that our neighbor has seen people walking by and yelling at the house. Honestly, I have much bigger things on my mind now, like how am I going to shrink my huge bum so that Crazy Girl doesn't announce to her class on the first day of school, "you should see my Mom's bum, it's huge!" Mind you, this is not the first time that the size of my body has come up in conversation with her. For goodness sakes, I feel like the big Stay Puff Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters.

He's Growing Up?

When I arrived home from work the other day Husband told me that he let a neighborhood boy mow our lawn and he paid him! In my head I am thinking, "Where did my husband go?" First, he is too cheap to part with his money and secondly he loves to mow the lawn. It's his therapy like laundry is mine. But before I could say anything he told me to watch a video he took. It was of Safety Boy mowing our backyard. I couldn't believe it. He's only 5, soon to be six, and he's a small five as in he's in the 10th percentile (if he's lucky). But he mowed the whole lawn by himself and loved it. It amazed me because there are so many days that I think to myself, when is this kid going to grow up a little. Maybe I need to let go to let him grow up and give him more responsibilities. He does some chores around the house. Being a control freak that I am I'm not sure what to give up. I guess I need to think about this one and if anyone has any suggestions, I would be happy to hear them. Regardless, I was so proud of him and obviously he was very proud of himself.


Here is a picture of Safety Boy with a
friend on her tractor that was
taken last year.











Here are some other things going on in our home.

Here is angry rocker girl with her new guitar.

"No, we are not going to have a party in the potty!" Yes, I had to say these words to my darling children when I heard Safety Boy exclaim from his seat on the throne, "it's a party in here." After they evacuated the site, this is what was left.

It's A Conspiracy

I worked yesterday and Husband stayed home with the kids. He took them to his Mom's pool and they went for a walk. I think he's crazy to be doing anything physical in the heat but what do I know. The thought of sweating on a walk just grosses me out. If I am going to sweat it is going to be after a hard long hour at the gym sans kids. I digress. When I walked thru the door after a long hard day at work (not really hard but it sounds better when I say it that way), the kids started. I guess they had been a little grumpy all day but who wouldn't be in this heat. Can you tell I am not a fan of this oppressive weather, unless I am on a float in a pool with a nice cold drink in my hand of the alcoholic kind. So I come in and they start crying and yelling. Just what I want to come home to. Why didn't I work a 12 hour shift and come home right a bedtime. Anyway, Husband and I were hanging out and talking after the kids went to bed last night. His quote, "they wait to get all wound up until it's the end of the day and they know WE are exhausted." Men crack me up. It's always about them. So I looked at him with a look of confusion and replied, "Oh, you mean it's all a conspiracy?" To which he answered, "yeah." Well that clears it all up then. That goodness we have that problem solved. So what do we do now? Since it is obvious he is the expert on child development I will let him figure that one out. Until then I will just accept the fact the kids were exhausted and leave it at that.

This is what I would love to come home to. You may not be able to see them, but the kids are there too. They are playing in the water.

A Job Change

I finally switched roles, at least on a part time basis. Last week was the start of my new job at the hospital with a weeks worth of "training". I had to sit for 40 hours and listen to people and learn the computer system the hospital uses. I went from being a stay-at-home mom and part-time student to 40 hour work week woman and mom. Kuddos to all the women out there who do it all the time. I got thru it just fine because I knew it was temporary, I was extremely organized and I have an amazing husband who took the first three days off from work to be with the kids. Oh and of course my BFF Amy took the kids the other two days. Have I mentioned that she is amazing and my kids love her like a second mother. That being said I wouldn't want to do it permanently. It was lot of planning, prepping and worrying about it all working out.

I never understood all the hype about stay-at-home moms vs. working moms. Probably just the media making it up anyway. I'll be honest and just lay it on the line. I love to work outside of the home. I did it occasionally before I started this job and I enjoyed it. I think it makes me a better mom. It gives me the break I need, intellectual stimulation and adult interaction all of which does not revolve around my kids. As you can tell from my previous posts I think my kids are great and I love them so it's not that I am running from them, though there are days I wish I could. It just seems to me a good thing for them to see me work. Most women I know of that work say they think they are better mom for working for all the reasons stated above. I am glad I have the option to do it part-time since it just seems like the perfect balance for me.

Nonna

In my kids' life they have a Nonna. Just like my Nani was, the kids' Nonna is everything you could want in a grandmother. She's loud just like everyone else in my house (not that she lives with us). Although, Husband would disagree that he is loud. He refers to the kids and I as "the Louds". Okay, so I have always been a little on the boisterous side and that must be where the kids get it but being loud isn't so bad. However, if you tend to be a quiet person or one not accustomed to loud children then you would find my house a bit deafening and would quickly find the nearest escape exit. Fortunately none of our guests have done so. As a matter of fact I think we are a fun bunch. Anyways back to Nonna, because it is always about her. Like I said she is loud, fun, affectionate, compassionate and in absolute love with all of her grandchildren. Even though I have never mentioned him, I do have a brother. He is the quieter one but still fun nonetheless. Between the two of us we have procreated (separately of course!) six children and Nonna has so much love for all six of them. So I just wanted to give credit where credit is due and say THANKS. Nonna does it all and does it with tons of enthusiasm.

Here are the kiddos and Nonna having fun with Crazy Girl's new bubble wand. They had lots of fun chasing the bubbles.

We're Back

So did you miss the kids? I bet. Well, the weather was beautiful and we made the most of it. The kids had lots of fun swimming in the pool, riding bikes, playing at the playground, running around the beach and just plain hanging out. Truth be told, we couldn't keep them out of the water so there was a lot of time spent at the pool and beach.

The floaties didn't last long on Climber. They were off in less than five minutes. He just wanted to swim without them in Daddy's arms. There was plenty of SPF applied to that body. Don't you don't just love a toddler's round belly.

Climber and a friend enjoying a snack.

Crazy Girl and Daddy on the way down to the beach.

Safety Boy loving every minute of the sand and surf. Honestly he looks so old in the this picture, to me anyway. I can't believe how grown up he looks.

The Fun Just Never Ends

We are leaving for our place in Maine tonight and the time can't come soon enough. At least up there it is so small that the kids have nowhere to go but outside and there is much less to destroy. Oh and it's a lot of fun.

Color is a wonderful thing. Sure when you're talking about paint, flowers in a garden, matching clothes. You get the picture but it is not a wonderful thing when your 17 month old colors his face everyday during craft time.
A squirrel, who shall remain nameless, ate thru my wicker table on the patio just to get to the birdseed that Husband left in there. I love this set.
And finally we have a hole and torn piece of wallpaper. Safety Boy pointed this out but pleaded innocence. In his defense, "you didn't even see me Mom, so it wasn't me." I really have no idea who did it and no one is confessing, not even the 17 month old. The thing is I can't stand this wallpaper so maybe we need to use this as an excuse to replace it. What do you think, Hon? I am guessing since he'd be the one doing the work I am going to get a big NO.

Just more items to add to the list of things to do/replace. Happy home ownership!

We're having fun

Well we've been pretty busy around here so haven't had the chance to post. I've been busy working out the details of the job. Have I mentioned how excited I am to be entering the workforce again. Another phase has begun. Another yippee from me. Of course the kids keep me busy which I'll show pics of later and we had dinner guests on Saturday which was a lot of fun.

They are friends from Husband's office and they brought their significant others. I really try to keep in mind the 10 commandments found on this site. If you haven't checked it out you really must. She has a great attitude about entertaining and some wonderful ideas. Well, I suppose if you don't like to cook or entertain then forget it but I love it. My BFF and I went out shopping in search of blue plates and I have to give her credit she found them for me. I had certain requirements to be met. Not only have we had fun lately on our weekly outings shopping around (at our leisure and not with kids!!) but we laugh the whole time. I look forward to our next trip out.

Back to dinner. Here are some pictures to showcase the night.

Me in my new apron getting ready to start the celebration, before the guests arrived.

Climber hunkering down with a friend.

Pictures of our guests who I think had as much fun of a time as we did. Plenty of talk, laughter and good food.

If you are wondering where the other two were, they were in front of the tv watching a new movie, Dinotopia. They gave it a thumbs up and so does Mom and Dad since it kept them occupied for an hour and a half. That's my trick when we have dinner guests over, especially those without children. I rent a new movie they haven't seen before and it usually works (except for Climber who isn't interested in anything to do with the television).

I know most of you that read (which is most likely family) want to know what's going on with the kids so here's an update. Safety Boy and I had date night and went to see Kung Fu Panda. What an entertaining movie. Would highly recommend it as would Safety Boy. It was so good that it renewed his love of karate and he is now back at it. Here is an old picture when he was testing for his yellow belt.

Crazy Girl, well still crazy but here she is enjoying her morning "coffee" (really her orange juice) on the front porch with Climber.

This is what happens when you leave Climber alone for 5 minutes. He managed to climb the stairs, go into the bathroom, grab the tp and come back half way down the stairs to have some fun. Must be a texture thing.

This is what happens when you have an older sister. You learn to love doll strollers and dolls. He is always in that doll stroller either hanging out or being pushed around by one of his older sibs. Then there are times we find him alone in the playroom feeding one of the dolls. He is such a good caregiver and will make a great daddy, in 30 years.

Yippee!!

I have a job! I start the first week of July at a small community hospital on the telemetry floor. During my physical with the nurse practitioner at employee health, she told me that a nursing career is a journey. I just hope it doesn't lead me to this.

Sunny Days and Rainy Days

This past weekend was spent outdoors in the beautiful sunshine and yesterday was spent indoors avoiding the rainstorm. Either way, the kids had fun.

Only Safety Boy was daring enough the slide on the slip 'n slide. The other two cautiously walked down to enjoy the water.

Just back from a birthday party and new bubbles from the party bags to blow. Who knew there was such a thing as scented bubbles?

I finally found something to hold Climber's attention for more than 5 minutes. Play-doh was thing to do yesterday at our house. It was the first time he didn't try to eat it and enjoyed playing with it more than tearing it into a million pieces and throwing it around. Yeah!!! That boy is growing up.

Look What We Did

We went strawberry picking today and saw some goats too. I preferred the picking and the kids (ha, get it - "kids") preferred the goats. We, or me I should say, picked 6 pounds of strawberries at a very rapid pace. Climber was asleep in the stroller, Safety Boy helped pick for 5 minutes and quickly got bored and Crazy Girl couldn't be bothered with the manual labor. Why do it when you've got a willing mother? She was probably thinking, "don't they have these all packaged in the grocery store so we don't have to do this?" Within 20 minutes of picking I heard the tune "I have to go to the bathroom really bad" in a whiny pitch. Music to a mother's ears when she is on a mission to pick as many strawberries as possible. For whatever ridiculous reason I am very competitive when it comes to fruit picking. Whenever I see someone else with more fruit than me I feel the need to get more so it did not sit well with me I left with only 6 pounds. If anyone is interested I'll be heading out again before strawberry season is over. Cherries are the next fruit and will be ready in a couple of weeks. Mind you I have never had a cherry in my life and don't normally buy them but I feel the need to pick them.

Anyway fun was had by all. After our morning of picking we had lunch with Husband during his lunch time. Thankfully we ate early and didn't disturb too many diners at Joe's American Bar & Grill.

We are off to a birthday tomorrow afternoon and then our plans are subject to the weather so we'll see.

A quick pose in the strawberry field before said potty break.

A little bit of sibling love during our snacktime. All in the nameof making Mommmy happy.

I Admit It

I hide from my children and I did as recently as yesterday morning. I am not ashamed to admit this and neither should you be. You know who you are. Mothers with young children. I never thought I would be one of them, one that hides but I say, "do whatever it takes" and for me that is hiding. Go ahead and call me a coward. That's okay, I can take it. I'll tell you why I hide from these monsters. Did I just say that on the outside? Anyway, back to why I hide. Usually it is because I have something really good to eat and I don't want to share. Most likely it's chocolate. I could live on chocolate alone. It's a good thing Husband doesn't like chocolate because it's less that I have to worry about sharing.

Okay so the other reason I hide from my kids is well, sometimes I just need a break. By 9am yesterday I was done. Yes, you read that right, 9am. The kids were throwing wet cereal on the floor for the dog which wouldn't have been that bad except she is going blind and can't see most of it. Then Climber dumped the dog bowl of water, proceeded onto the dining room table where he dumped my display (silly me for having one), then climbed onto the fold down computer desk and finally pooped as we were walking out the door to drop off Safety Boy at school. In the meantime Crazy Girl was having a fit over something and just couldn't cope and Safety Boy was throwing toys and didn't feel like picking them up. Believe me I know that I am blessed to have 3 healthy beautiful children that we waited a long time for but yesterday was one of those mornings it was hard to remember that. So I went into hiding and called my Mother on the phone and had a good pity party for myself (and a chuckle at the thought of my hiding). It was a good 5 minutes before they found me. They thought it was a game and tackled me. Wouldn't it be great to live through the eyes of a child.

What Chu Want?

Every now and then Crazy Girl wants to know "What chu want". For you slow learners, that's "What do you want?" in English. After a trip out for breakfast one morning Crazy Girl became inspired by the wonderful world of waitressing. So now she writes our order at a feverish pace. If we try to order anything but juice and coffee she is out of it. Thank heavens she didn't pick up on the tipping part or we'd be broke.

I'm Done

No, I'm not done blogging because I have too much to say. "I'm done" is in reference to my two older children. Do your children do this? They scream "I'M DOOOOOOOONE" from the bathroom which is supposed to be a signal to Husband and I that they need assistance in the bathroom. This drives me nuts. Really, this is the least favorite part of my day as I am sure it is for anyone with children who can't reach the tp. However, I have tried to explain to them that given we do not live in a large house, a mere 1600 sq. ft., I can here them from anywhere. I have threatened, punished with time outs, made them wait and tried to handle it calmly but nothing works. It's all fun and games when you are in the bathroom. Once we found one of them, who shall remain nameless, putting a tub toy in the toilet. What more can I say, eewww!! Listen, "get in and get out." It's not a time for leisure play. I am hoping that one day my children will read this and finally get it but by that time they won't need me anymore. At least I hope not. Maybe I should look into a call bell...

It's Been a Long Time

Or as my Mother would say it has been 30 some-odd-years and some very odd years they have been. 38 to be exact. Yes, today is their anniversary, Flag Day. Those 38 years have resulted in 2 children, 2 apartments, 2 houses, couple career changes, 1 boat (that they still enjoy), and 6 grandchildren. They will be with their kids and grandchildren tonight having a cookout at our house. Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!

Picture is from my Mom's senoir prom.

Spree Day

Yesterday was Spree Day at Safety Boy's school. I went with Crazy Girl and Climber for half the day to hang out with Safety Boy's class. It was a lot of fun. His school year ends on Wednesday and I will miss his teachers and his class. They are a wonderful bunch of children and they are always having a lot of fun, just as they did yesterday. Here are a couple of photos from the day.

The above picture is of Safety Boy and his Cousin M who also happens to be in his class. It's nice having them in the same class and they have grown to become good friends.

Little did I know my child likes to busta' move. For the life of me I can't remember the name of the song they were dancing to but it was one that everyone does the same thing. When the DJ put on the song kids all over the field were doing it.

Here are a couple of the kids having a freeze pop break.

I Am So Lucky

to have a daughter. Let me begin by saying that when I imagined having children I assumed I would have all boys and in fact wanted all boys. I was petrified to have a girl for all my screwed up reasons. I will reveal it all in a tell-all book I discuss with Oprah at some later date. Anyway, when I found out I was having a girl I had a lot of mixed emotions. I didn't know what I was going to do with her. I know what you are thinking ... you are a girl dummy. But, boys are easy in a way that girls are not. See, girls are dramatic. I am not. I don't like drama nor do I do drama. Well, let me tell you I got drama but it's not so bad. As a matter of fact my drama is wrapped up in a beautiful 36 inch package with a lot of power, craziness and love. Little girls are amazing. So much emotion in the form of love, laughter, tears, anger and feistiness has been put in my life. Sometimes it has sent me to the brink of insanity but then brought me right back with laughter. I am so blessed.


The reason I write this is because my Crazy Girl loves to be in the kitchen with me. For that I am grateful because to know me is to know that I love to cook so to have her with me is incredible. My own little cooking buddy. Below is a picture of her from this afternoon making soup in the crockpot (too hot to use the stove). What makes it so cute is that she is wearing a skirt (always does) and her apron that some friends gave her as a gift one year. My idea of comfort, jeans or shorts, is her idea of discomfort. I love that she has her own opinions unless of course, they are different from my own. Just kidding.

Next is a picture of Crazy Girl with her BFF CC which is my BFF's daughter.

Holy Cow It's Hot!

Let's hope it stays this hot by the time I make it to the beach this summer. In the meantime the kids are making the best of it. Safety Boy and Crazy Girl are hanging out at their friends' house, Buddy T and BFF C (aka the house of Gomma and Cow).

We also did another ice cream run, of course. I just can't get enough. Honestly, I think it satisfies all the food groups including dairy, meat since it's from a cow and has protein (just work with me), carb when you add brownie to it and fruit when you have bananas in it like in a sundae. See I've got it all figured out. We went out to a place that ia out in the country and is not really close but I love the drive there. The kids love it because they get to see the cows and goats. The smell when you pull into the driveway is one not to be missed. Eventually your senses adjust and you are still able to comfortably enjoy that great cone. We all had cc cones, that's chocolate chip for all you beginners out there. I love it and maybe some of you have been and can figure it out. It's in a small town to the north of us and situated, obvoiusly, on a farm.

And because this is the only picture I could get of Climber sitting still I thought I would add it. It was just a bonus that it would drive Husband crazy that his picture is on here. He always complains about how he looks in pictures. Oh well, it's my blog. It is a great picture of them having a moment.

The Ants Go Marching Two by Two

Boys (including Safety Boy's Buddy T): Look what we got (with much excitement)

Me: Wow - you must be going on an expedition

Boys: No, we're looking for ants

Me: In the house?

Boys: Yes, cuz we found food ... crumbs and ants like that

Me: Oh, okay I better vacuum it up

Boys: NNNOOOO!!!!!

Five minutes later heard from another room

Crazy Girl: Look an ant!!!

After which I go running, ready to squish the lights out of it.

Me: Where?

Crazy Girl: Just kidding
Gotta love 'em

Just Another Day to Report

I had one of my nieces over today. Crazy Girl was so excited since we hadn't seen her in a little while. They played great together but my only problem was trying to get a picture of them all together. She just wouldn't go for it. So here's one of just the girls at the table doing puzzles.

Today was a cloudy and rainy day here so we just hung out in the house, except for the brief trip to the library after school. One of the things we do to pass the time is dance. It's fun to watch each of them. Climber dances just the way Safety Boy did at that age, must be Husband's genes that gave them that rhythm.

She is a fashion icon.

Safety Boy dancing with Dog.

Climber just being himself, curious.