The Right Regrets: Kids

Showing posts with label Kids. Show all posts

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Shhhh....

Don't say anything. It might end abruptly.

It's QUIET here.

Camryn had a sleepover party last night and the girls left around 10:30 this morning. Since then it's been very calm around here.

Camryn's been working on the laptop.

The boys are playing (together!) with Legos in their room. So far (knock on wood) there hasn't been a major disagreement. Definitely no hitting or breaches of personal space. A miracle.

Even the fish are swimming happily.

The cats are sleeping.

I have cleaned off my desk and am sitting here playing Word Hunt on Facebook (it's a newfound addiction...)

WHY is it so quiet and calm?

Lillian spent the night with Nana last night.

She's due home any minute.

I'm going to enjoy this serenity while it lasts.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Ahead... and Behind

I AM AHEAD OF THE GAME:

On Saturday I asked each of the kids to write out a Valentine message, then I took these pictures and uploaded them to Snapfish. I ordered one copy of each photo for each person in each of the kids' classes. I'm going to attach the pictures to paper and these will be the kids' Valentine cards. Easy Peasy. (Not my original idea... one I stole from one of the many scrapbooking magazines I read...)

So I'm way ahead of the game there. V-Day isn't for another 19 days! Woo hoo! Go Mommy! Go Mommy!

AND YET I'VE FALLEN WOEFULLY BEHIND:

Aiden celebrated his 8th birthday yesterday.

What? Huh? What's that you ask? What kind of party did he have?

(Hiding my eyes behind my hand as I mumble incoherently...)

None.

Bless his 2,921 day-old heart. All he wants is to have all the 2nd grade boys over for a movie party. All I have to do is pop some popcorn, buy some movie candy (in the boxes like they have at the cineplex) and rent a movie for the boys to watch.

For some reason I can't get past making the guest list. I got nothin' else. What's holding me up, you ask?

Creativity.

Sure, I could slap together a Word document and mail it out to the boys. They don't care. But for some reason, I do. If I make it, it has to have all the bells and whistles.

I ain't got nothin' clever in the way of boys movie party invitation ideas.

And thus the reason my son will celebrate his January birthday in, say, March? Sound good?

Saturday, December 06, 2008

About Yesterday...

December 5, 2008: Not a day I want to repeat.

I shared in yesterday's blog about my desire to find Oliver a new home. Camryn has been fighting Oliver's departure ever since we told her that him staying with us was impossible. There has been much weeping and gnashing of teeth, as you can imagine. I think I was hoping something would magically click and all would be right with the cats and their relationships with one another, but alas, it did not. The last straw for me came yesterday.

I came home from dropping off Camryn and Aiden at school and went around checking everyone's rooms for laundry that needed to be done. I was also closing the bedroom doors behind me to prepare to let Oliver out (there seemed to be less likelihood of Beeson and Annabelle pooping and peeing in protest of Oliver if the bedroom doors were shut.)

In Lillian's room I was straightening her comforter when I found a big, dried cat pee spot. She's been sleeping under a dried up cat urine spot for who knows how long. I lost it. Quinn's comforter had suffered a similar fate earlier in the week and I'd had to wash it for the umpteenth time (it seemed to be a favorite target!)

I threw the comforter in the washing machine and starting crying hysterically. Stress reliever, I guess. I never let Oliver out of the bathroom. I was too mad at him, even though I knew it wasn't him that had actually done the peeing. I also knew at that moment that yesterday would be the last day with Oliver. I was determined to find him SOMEWHERE to be by the end of the day.

My husband finally got in touch with the vet tech that had promised to take Oliver if he ended up not working out for us. She told him to have Oliver at the office by 6 pm and she'd foster him and find him a new home (that's what she does). Hubby and I agreed that Camryn would need to say goodbye before he went, so I put him in the cat carrier and took him with me to pick up Quinn and Lillian, then I checked Camryn and Aiden out of school around 2:30.

Camryn knew something was up when I showed up before 3 pm. I didn't know how to tell her about what was about to transpire, so I just blurted it out on the way to the car. She, of course, starting sobbing. I let her hold Oliver on the drive from the school to the vet's office, and then we all sat in the car, crying, and said goodbye to Oliver.

I knew it would be a hard, hard thing to do, and I knew Camryn would be so very heartbroken, but what I didn't expect was Aiden's reaction. He was crying almost as hard as Camryn was, except he was doing it quietly in the back seat. I was so focused on how Camryn would take the news that I never envisioned how Aiden would take it. We were a sad, sad sight sitting in the van in the parking lot.

Finally Camryn summoned the courage to get out of the van. She and I walked Oliver into the office and waited to see April, Oliver's new foster mom. She told Camryn that she is very picky about the people she lets adopt her foster kitties, and that she would find Oliver the perfect new family. I know that soothed Camryn's heart a little, but it still hurt so badly to say goodbye. I was trying to be tough, but I was choking back sorrow, too. As we left the office, Camryn starting crying loudly. Man, it was a dagger to my heart. She hasn't cried like that since her Harry died last February, and I hope I never hear that kind of choking sob from her again (but I know I will, and it will most likely be a B-O-Y that makes it happen. I hate him already.)

Before we left yesterday April did mention that she has a few orange tabby foster kittens that are around 6-8 weeks old. She said she'd consider it a fair trade if we wanted to come back next week and take home one of the kittens. Camryn's eyes lit up like light bulbs. I'm hesitant, but April said a kitten will more likely to be accepted by Beeson and Annabelle. Oliver was just too old and had too dominant a "personality" to fit into our kitty family. She encouraged us to try again, and after discussing it with my husband it was decided that we will.

Yeah, I know.

Thursday, October 02, 2008

Free Edutainment!

Thursday, August 28, 2008

So Far

We're at Disney World right now. Today's our 2nd day.

So far on this trip we've seen:

a meltdown (who could blame her!?! It's hot as blue blazes down here! Florida, hot in August? Who knew?!?)

A sisterly heart to heart after the meltdown:

A lost tooth ("Does Tinkerbell leave the money if you lose a tooth at Disney?")

Growth (since our last trip, in December, when Lillian was too short to ride Test Track):

A ginormous couch chair thing:

Devotion (Lillian just could NOT walk another step, so Camryn carried her all the way to the boat dock):

And just plain old family fun (Aiden is in the shell with me, so he didn't make it into the picture):

Good times, good times, as Lillian would say. I think this vacation ROCKS so far, and we have five more days ahead of us!

Wish you were here!

Tuesday, August 05, 2008

Kodak Moments

I call the following series of pictures, "What Happens When Your Kids Get Ahold of Your Camera".

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

I Need To Buy Stock In Lysol

I don't know which company makes Lysol, but I need to buy stock in whatever company it is. I've used so much of it this summer, I should start buying it in bulk. I wish they made Lysol bombs (like flea bombs). I could set one off and the whole house would be sanitized. Maybe I should e-mail the Lysol people. That's a brilliant idea.

I was watching Big Brother 10 last night when Camryn came into the den clutching her stomach. Yeah. You know the rest. She snuggled me on the couch for about an hour (and when I say "snuggle", I mean she moaned and groaned and whined while I stroked her hair...) When the clock struck 11 pm, I told her to get up and go to bed, 'cause that's where I was headed and I didn't want her staying in the den alone. She shuffled off and I thought maybe she would be okay. I was turning off lights, TV, etc. when I saw a flash and I knew instantly it was her, in the bathroom.... I couldn't even go in there. I was frozen. I felt like the world's worst mother, because I should've been in there holding back her hair, but I couldn't go. It was too close to my own experience. I knew if I stepped into the bathroom there would be two of us fighting over the throne. I wet a rag and waited for a lull in the action (if you know what I mean). I helped her get cleaned up and tucked her into bed and prayed with her, and then I went to bed, hoping that was the last tango for her and the stomach yucks. Maybe so. Maybe not. I feel like the JoBeth Williams character in "Poltergeist", screaming for the aliens to leave my children alone. I'm so ready for this cloud of sick to go away already. Seriously.

On another note, the most amazing thing happened yesterday. I helped the boys tidy their room and closet, and once we were done we had a whole bag full of trash. Things were organized and put away and the floor was clean. Best of all, their entire Lego collection was safely tucked into 2 boxes. No stray Legos in sight. Miracle of miracles. But the best part was that neither boy touched a Game Cube controller or a computer keyboard, nor did they ask to play the Wii. All afternoon long they built with Legos and then used their green plastic Army men to have a battle in their floor. Even more surprising was that the fighting was done solely by the green Army men. I didn't have to break up one skirmish between the boys themselves. It was a niiiiiiiiice treat.

Aiden loved his Lego setup so much, he asked to borrow my camera to capture his work. Below are the photos he took. Reminds me of the time I borrowed my dad's Topcon 35mm camera to take fashion shots of my Barbies.

(A note about those headless Lego guys in the photo above... they're not really headless. Aiden says those are the diving suits that the guys wear when they have to get in the water... just so you know....)

It looks like these guys rumbled, and the one on the ground didn't fare so well. Nice to see that guy on the right is still smiling, though.

Doesn't look like the kind of Lego you want to meet in a dark alley... Look at the size of that blaster!

Battle over....

Monday, May 26, 2008

Berry Frustrated

My husband is home from work today. My children are home from school today.

What does that mean?

It's time for a Caventure!

(definition: 1. noun. an adventure that usually goes awry simply because we are the ones embarking on the adventure. SYNONYM: Misadventure)

Camera? Check.

Sunscreen? Check.

Hats with wide brims? Check.

GPS? Check.

Adventurous spirits? Check (x 6).

It was gonna be a great day. We (well, really, um, I) decided that our Memorial Day would be spent in the strawberry patch. I read an article about Strawberry Hill USA (Cooley Farms) in the most recent issue of Southern Living, so we (well, really, um, I) thought that strawberry picking sounded like a fun family activity. After all, it was only a short drive from our house. Why not?

Famous last words.

Halfway to our destination Lillian got oh so grumpy and started yelling that the movie playing in the van was TOO LOUD. We turned it down a hair. "IT'S STILL TOO LOUD!" This went on for about 10 minutes. Finally, my hubby stopped the car, turned off the kids' movie and started back towards home. See, once Lillian gets sleepy grumpy, there's no dealing with her. He decided he'd rather try again another day than have to endure her whining. It'd be a LOT easier.

After the groaning and crying and pleas to please turn around Daddy! died down, Lillian fell asleep. Miracle of miracles! We turned the car around and made our way back to the strawberry patch. Lillian awoke refreshed and ready to pick some strawberries.

We drove around this complex of red roofed buildings, but couldn't figure out where we could select our own berrylicious treasures. My husband finally went inside and asked for some instructions, but he was told that the only "picking" we could do was in the market part of Strawberry Hill. You can choose this bag or that bag, but you can't pick 'em out of the ground.

Hmph.

We bought 2 huge bags of strawberries and a large bag of peaches, sampled all the samples there were to sample, and got back into the car. So much for our strawberry picking dreams.

After all that driving and whining and grumping, you know the funniest part?

There's a freakin' "You Pick 'Em" strawberry patch a mere 3.7 miles from our house. Take a right turn out of our neighborhood, drive 1.7 miles, turn right, drive 2 miles and THERE IT IS.

You know how far we drove to Strawberry Hill for what amounted to the world's most expensive strawberries (once you factor in the cost of gas)?

60.2 miles round trip.

The berries are good, though. Sweet and ripe. Perfect for cobblers. Just not worth all that time and gas money.

Next time I'll just pick up a pound for $3 at the grocery store. And I need to cancel my subscription to Southern Living. It costs way too much.

(I did get some great photos. See below! Click on them to see larger versions.)

Oh, and if you own Photoshop and can make Quinn appear in that photo above, I'd be your best friend. He was in the car peeing in a cup when it was taken. Classic Quinn.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Reading is Fundamental

Yesterday after lunch (Welcome to Moe's!), my husband took my two younger children to spend the afternoon at his mother's house at her request. He offered to pick them up on the way home from work yesterday evening, so I didn't have to go get them.

Works for me.

I picked up our two older children from school and decided to spend the afternoon with them, since that's not something we get to do often. We stopped at our favorite gas station/restaurant/bait shop/convenience store and got some junk food, then drove down to a book store my daughter has been begging to visit. The books were supposed to be cheap, and I'm all about cheap!

When we got there, I felt safe letting the children go to the kids' book section while I browsed the adult books. I told them they could spend $15 each, so they took off in search of literary treasure.

We met back up about 30 minutes later, arms laden with stories to be explored. Together we chose books for the little ones, since we couldn't leave them out.

The car was quiet on the drive home. Each of the kids had his or her nose in a book. I love the silence created when the kids are reading. I love that they enjoy diving into stories and learning things only books can provide. LOVE that.

Last night after everyone was in pajamas, I was cleaning the kitchen and noticed it was somewhat quiet in the house. I peeked around the corner of the kitchen and saw this:

and this:

My three youngest children, who live for that last 10 minutes of computer or Wii play before bedtime, were sitting on the couch, together, TOUCHING, reading that Star Wars book. Well, Aiden was reading it, but Quinn and Lillian were sitting QUIETLY, enraptured while Aiden read.
Amazing.

That's the power of words, y'all.

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Life is just funny...

I love funny. It's true that a day without laughter is a day wasted. I just love to laugh.

Yesterday was my birfday. I turned 35. I don't feel 35, but there it is.

As is custom in our house, the birthday person gets to choose the restaurant for the birthday meal. I just happened to get a coupon from Red Robin for a free birthday burger. I love freebies just about as much as I love funny, so Red Robin was my choice.

Earlier in the day the mister had picked up our children from school and taken them to Target to shop for my presents. They each had every bit of money they had earned in previous weeks, and they were determined to try to spend as little as possible on Mom so they could have some money left over to buy themselves something. Hey, it's the nature of the beast. I totally get that.

When we sat down in the booth, the kids were very eager for me to open my gifts. Judging from the packaging, I thought I was going to make out pretty well in the present department. Little did I know...

I opened the first gift.

Hmmmmmm.....a Mission to Mars Lego set. From Aiden. Curious.

I opened the second gift.

A Star Wars Transformer. From Quinn. I'm seeing a pattern here.

The boys had purchased things for me..... from the dollar spot. The Legos and Transformers were given to me as well, in hopes that I would return them to their purchasers if their behavior warranted such generosity.

Gotcha.

The girls gave me gifts that I did not have to return to them. From Lillian I received a magnetic notepad, and Camryn gave me some bath salts and a some Dove chocolate hearts attached to a stuffed bear (She ate half of the chocolates last night in the car, and I'll probably give her the bear...)

Here is where life gets funny, though. This is the part that made my night.

The gifts were sitting beside me on the booth. The waiter jokingly asked if those were my gifts. I joked back that I loved Legos, and Transformers were way cool.

After the Red Robin and staff sang the birthday song, the waiter brought out the ice cream that birthday celebrants receive. He sat it down in front of Quinn, my 5 year-old.

I started laughing, and I said, "It really is *my* birthday!"

Then I had to explain the Legos and Transformer.

Poor waiter. He was so embarrassed.

I am still smiling about it.

Life is funny.

I love funny.

Monday, January 28, 2008

Farts are Funny!

This was the conversation going on in our van on the way home from school today:

Camryn (practicing spelling words for the upcoming bee for which she qualified): Mommy, spell "in fot u a shun".

Me: What? I've never heard that word. (It didn't sound like any word I'm familiar with!) Spell it.

C: INFATUATION.

M: Ohhhhh! Infatuation! Goodness! It sounded like you were saying "infahtuation" like you had a British accent. (Then I proceeded to attempt to speak like someone from Britain, and I accidentally said, "infaRtuation"...)

C: Bwahahahahaha! Mommy! You said INFARTUATION! What is that? Being in love with your poots?

Aiden (from the back of the van): I love MY poots! I don't like other people's poots, but mine smell goo-hoo-hood! Ahhhhhhhh... When I poot, I sniff, sniff, sniff so I can smell them!

C: If I poot when I'm under my covers, I lift the covers and fluff them so I can smell the poot.

A: Underwater poots are the best!

And the conversation went downhill from there until we were all coughing from laughing so hard.
Farts ARE funny!

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Double Up

Change always comes bearing gifts.
~Price Pritchett

Ah, change.

I found a quarter, a dime, a penny and a Chuck E Cheese token today. Know where?

My younger son's old room.

"Old room?" you say. "Why do you say, 'Old room'? Did he move out?"

Nope (he is only 4, after all...)

It's because we're changing.

We used to live in a 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath house. Our boys shared a room there. All 4 kids shared the one bathroom that was designated as theirs.

We needed just one more bathroom, so we moved into a 6 bedroom, 4 bath home just under 2 years ago.

Every child now has his or her own bedroom. The girls share a bath; the boys share a bath.

That was the way it's been since April 2006.

Several months ago we started hearing rumblings, whispers, subtle remarks. Something was afoot. Change was coming.

The boys wanted to share a room again.

"Nonsense!" we said. "Why do that when you each have your own room now?"

The rumblings settled. Whispers were silenced. Peace reigned throughout the land.

The subject was recently raised again.

This time, I listened.

I thought. I planned. I fantasized. I began to see how this rearrangement, this change, this altering of the status quo could benefit ME.

After a month or so of shopping for a bargain, we bought a set of bunk beds and brought them home. The mister and I assembled them in our older son's bedroom, because his room is a wee bit bigger and his closet will hold all of the boys' clothes.

And now we have an empty room. And what do you do with an empty room?

You fill it with something! And I have plans. BIG plans.

The time has come to move my scrabooking stuff upstairs. I'm not getting anything done with it being downstairs. I have no motivation to go work in there at night, because my husband stays upstairs. It makes much more sense to have the room upstairs where the kids are.... where the laundry is... where dinner can be cooked and stirred without a trip up the stairs... where the kids can watch TV in my room while I work... where our LIFE is.

I'm not going to paint the room, because I suspect that this room sharing thing will only last 5 years or so. By that time I'm hoping that the playroom will no longer be needed and I can take over that room. Then I can paint. But for now, I'm going to move into a new room, set up a new configuration that fosters my creativity, and I'm going to LOVE it.

Change does come bearing gifts. And I can't wait to open this one!

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

It's the thought that counts...

My sweet husband bought me this box of Godiva chocolates over the weekend. (One of the perks of his attending meetings at a hotel connected to a mall is that I get nice treats like that when he goes. I also got a new watch, which I desperately needed!)

I ate about 4 pieces of the chocolate the night he gave it to me, shared one with my sister, and then put the box in a safe place in the car for the 5-hour drive home from Birmingham. Even when we were stopped in traffic on I-20 for 2 extra hours due to a bad car wreck, I pushed away the urge to eat the entire box out of frustration...

When we got home, I put the box on the kitchen counter instead of hiding it. I was tired, but I should've been smarter about the placement of the chocolate. I should've been thinking that it was quite possible, NAY, probable, that my kids would get into the box.

Sure enough, the next day my children came to me with chocolate breath. I thought they had gotten into their Halloween candy. It wasn't until I found the box with its ribbon removed that I realized what had truly occurred.

When I found the box, there were two lonely pieces still in place.

I'm at a loss for words. Yes, they were punished, but I don't think it sunk in. I secretly hoped that they would get a very bad stomach ache, but alas, they did not.

Sigh. At least I still have the ribbon. I can use that in my scrapbook, but it ain't chocolate.

I guess I didn't need the extra calories anyway.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Woo Hoo

Rule #1 of parenting: Never promise your kids anything. Always leave yourself a way out. DO NOT COMMIT.

Rule #2: Never forget Rule #1.

Rule #3: Always do your homework if you're going to break rules #1 and 2.

The Sims games that the kids have been playing all summer are very innocent. The Sims families swim, cook, listen to music, swim, sleep, swim, and go to the bathroom (all "parts" are blurred). Nothing really bad ever happens (unless you count the people catching on fire in the kitchen. Our kids think that's funny. The little pyromaniacs.) The Sim families shop and work and are, actually, fairly boring. I don't get the kids' fascination with them.

Being the good mom I am (ahem) I went to Common Sense Media to check the reviews for Sims 2 before I forked over $40 for it . It seems that the Sims 2 game is a bit more mature than its predecessors. Who knew?

From Common Sense Media:

This is definitely not a game for younger players. Characters can have sex with limbs poking out under the covers (or out of the hot tub) -- and even their make-out sessions get pretty steamy. And the characters can be cruel or materialistic, too; a romance-driven Sim may want to have multiple partners, and upset a partner when she gets caught in bed with another, while a fortune-driven Sim might be obsessed with buying an expensive dining room chair or getting the kids into private school. Mature players, though, will surely spend many hours developing cleaning and cooking skills, attempting to win over the headmaster -- or luring a lover under the covers.

The Sex is called "Woo Hoo"on the game, taken from the words that appear in the bubbles above the Sims' heads when they're in the middle of their afternoon delight.

Yeah. I don't think that's coming to my house ANYTIME soon.

The kids were disappointed when I tried to explain why we couldn't get the game. There was whining, and a few choruses of "BUT YOU PROOOOOMISED!" I took 'em for Bruster's ice cream and that seemed to make up for their loss. A single scoop of Cotton Candy Explosion in a sugar cone covers a multitude of disappointments.

(I hear you out there. You're mumbling that I probably shouldn't be eating ice cream. Well, little do you know. I had the sugar free mango sorbet and it was DEE LISH US, thankyouverymuch. I was GOOD.)

Yesterday evening, my hubby brought home games more suited to the kids' ages and interests. He's such a good daddy.

The boys got a cool train simulator game. They can build their own tracks and run trains. My boys think trains are da bomb. They've spent today telling me every.little.thing their trains can do. It's really a cool game. I just don't need to hear about it EVERYTWENTYSECONDS.

Camryn got a veterinarian game. It's called Pet Vet or something like that. She has decided that she wants to go into veterinary medicine when she grows up, so this game is perfect for her. She's learning about animals and how to earn money and spend money and save money all at the same time.

On her game you have to buy veterinary equipment and medicines, and if you don't have enough cash to buy the things you need, you can go to the bank and take out a loan. Not Camryn. She has learned so well that credit is not a good thing. She won't even pretend to borrow money from the bank on the game. She's saving her cyber-money and paying cyber-cash for all of her cyber-office purchases. How COOL is that? She's NINE and she GETS IT.

Who needs the Sims? We don't need no stinkin' Sims!

WOO HOO!

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Cel-e-brate Good Times, C'mon!

It's funny what a little motivation will do for children.

My kids have become enamored with "The Sims" computer programs this summer. Their daddy used to play Sims games all the time (before he got really busy at work). The kids found his old CDs and loaded them onto the computers and now they're hooked on The Sims.

They've downloaded (free) things to spice up their games and discovered cheats to help them make more money and keep their Sim families healthy. Now, of course, they want more Sims games.

Seeing as how it's so close to Christmas, I suggested that they put the desired Sims games on their Christmas lists. Won't work, I was told. Their Christmas lists are already full (they only get 3 items each for Christmas, and I guess they each already have their top 3 items on their lists...)

So a plan was hatched. My 9 year-old gets the "Plan Hatcher of the Year" award. She's a great hatcher of plans.

"Mommy? If we clean stuff up around the house today, can we earn money to buy Sims 2?"

I ain't no dummy. I'm all over getting out of household chores. Sounded like a plan to me.

I gave the kids a long list. I expected about half of it to be done before they pooped out. It was enough to exhaust even me.

The list?

Empty dishwasher.
Put up dishes.
Wipe down kitchen counters and table.
Vacuum house.
Straighten up den.
Clean bedrooms.
Make beds.
Clean basement (included vacuuming, getting toys, books, etc. out of the floor, and putting up a bunch of stuff that was on the big table down there)
Empty dryer.
Empty washing machine.
Put up folded clothes.
Clean up the playroom (this was a BIG job)

They presented their initial request to me around 8:30 am. It's now 11:45 am.

They're done with every chore I had on the list. They didn't fuss, fight, scream or whine. They've been super nice little worker bees.

Camryn is now cooking lunch for all of the kids.

I'm searching Amazon for their game.

Aiden said, "I bet this is the best day of your life!"

Pretty close, son. Pretty close!

Monday, July 30, 2007

7/30/07

My Day (7/30/07)

9:15 am Awakened by my hubby's "gotta go" goodbye kiss
9:30 am Finally awake enough to roll out of bed. Used the bathroom, got dressed, brushed hair. 9:35 am Hung up 2 loads of laundry and put a 3rd load into the dryer
10:15 am Finally made it into the kitchen. Grabbed a chocolate fudge Pop Tart and a glass of Splenda tea (how's that for a balanced breakfast?!?)
10:16 am Aiden said his Buddy Browser wasn't working and asked if I could fix it.
10:17 am Told the boys to unload the dishwasher while I try to fix the computer (I can fix a computer as well as I can fly the Space Shuttle, but my kids don't need to know that!)
10:25 am I tried to fix the Buddy Browser. I'm not a member of the Geek Squad, so I placed a call to my husband and rebooted the computer while waiting for his return call.
10:40 am The doorbell rang. It was my sweet mail carrier laden with packages and a People magazine! Good mail day!
10:42 am I cleaned off the desk in the kitchen. Looks good! All decluttered and stuff. While cleaning, I spotted an index card with the words "conveyer belt of death" written on it in my 9 year-old's handwriting. Oddly enough, the first thing I thought was, "Hmmm... she almost spelled it right!" I guess I should've been wondering why she's writing about conveyor belts of death (turns out it was the name of a puzzle she created on one of the games on Buddy Browser.) 10:45 am My husband called and said, "Check the internet connection." He's really short and to the point when he calls like that. No, "Hey! What's up?" He's usually in between patients, so he just cuts straight to the chase.
10:48 am The computer finally finished rebooting (yeah, it takes awhile for this dinosaur to get there...) Internet connected. Buddy Browser works. I'm a GEE-NEE-US.
10:50 am Called Aiden back to the computer. "It's fixed!" Hugs all around!
10:57 am I put up the dishes the boys emptied onto the counter and reloaded the dishwasher. Checked the fridge to see what we can have for dinner (Dream Dinners Chicken Tetrazzini to the rescue!)
11:00 am Set the kitchen timer for 30 minutes and told the boys that’s all the time they had left to do computers.
11:15 am Cleaned all the sippy cups out of my kitchen cabinets. Lillian’s done with those. Some of those cups are 9 years old!
11:30 am Started onions sautéing for my lunch. I’ve been craving smoked sausage on a hoagie topped with onions and sauerkraut, so that’s what I’m having. The kids are having turkey and cheese sandwiches with plain Lays. Timer went off. Boys left computers without complaint. Huh. How 'bout that?
11:34 am Helped Lillian put her underwear and pants back on after a self-instigated potty trip (Yea!)
11:45 am Finished making the kids’ sandwiches (which changed to PB&J). They sat down and ate while I finished making my lunch
12:00 pm Sat down to eat. Watched a guy (who came back to fix our pool light) pee in the woods in our backyard, clearly visible from my kitchen window. I previously warned them that WE CAN SEE THEM when they do that, but I guess they don’t care. (I DO.)
12:05 pm Put 1/4 of my lunch in the trash. It didn’t hit my spot. I used the wrong sauerkraut (plain instead of Bavarian style). Didn’t taste like I wanted it to. Oh, well.
12:06 pm Put dishes in dishwasher.
12:09 pm Started opening the 2 boxes I got in the mail. Inside? Scrapbook supplies, natch. I got my big order from Frugalities. Love that place!
12:11 pm Helped Lillian put her panties and pants on again. Gave her potty candy (a mixture of M&Ms and Skittles. She gets about 4 if she pees, more if she poops.)
12:12 pm Realized that I haven’t had to settle an argument between the kids today. Whassup with that? Can’t be far away, though. Boys are playing GameCube together. It’s a matter of minutes.
12:30 pm Started checking e-mail and my daily internet sites.
12:39 pm Put Lillian’s panties and pants on again (she went poo this time, and her panties are still dry! Can I get an “OH YEAH!” ?)
12:50 pm Said my first, “Hey! Guys!” to the boys when they started yelling at each other over the GameCube game they’re playing.
1:30 pm Put Lillian down for a nap.
1:34 pm Showed my kids (on allearsnet.com) where we’re staying at Disney World during our December trip. Can’t wait to go!
1:59 pm Sat down to watch a Travel Channel show on Disney World’s Animal Kingdom with my 6 year-old son. The 4 year-old and 9 year-old soon joined us.
2:05 pm While watching the show, made a ride height requirement spreadsheet for our December trip so I know which rides Quinn and Lillian can/cannot ride.
2:50 pm Watched “Hannah Montana” with the kids. Say whatcha' want about Billy Ray Cyrus, but I think it’s a funny show. The kids and I enjoy watching it together. (“Teenie Meanie say what?”)
3:10 pm Watched Food Network challenge: Disney Princess cakes (can you tell we’re killing time until Lillian awakens from her nap so we can go swimming?)
3:12 pm Enjoyed a chocolate pudding snack. Considered going to unload the dryer. Decided against it.
3:17 pm Started playing Webkinz.
3:29 pm It’s thundering outside. Pooshaw. No swimming this afternoon.
3:45 pm Lillian’s awake, and her diaper is dry! Yesssssssssssssssss!
4:14 pm Still raining. And thundering. And lightning.
4:35 pm I have GOT to get up off of this couch and (1) get Lillian potty candy and (2) go to the bathroom.
5:00 pm Started making dinner. Boiling spaghetti noodles to go in the tetrazzini mix.
5:10 pm Sat down to read over the Birnbaum Disney 2007 guide while I wait for noodles to boil. 5:15 pm Remembered I have a tube of Pillsbury brownies in the fridge that would be perfect for dessert.
5:20 pm Got Lillian more potty candy. She’s STILL dry!
5:24 pm Noodles are done. Mixed them with the tetrazzini mix and put it all in the oven.
5:25 pm Wrapped the garlic bread in foil and put that in to cook, too.
5:50 pm Took brownies out of oven. Would anyone notice if I just stood there and ate the whole pan myself? Ehhhhhhhh.... probably.
6:10 pm Took tetrazzini & bread out of the oven. Hubby should be home any minute.
6:35 pm Hubby still not home. Fed kids anyway so food didn’t get cold.
6:45 pm Hubby walked through door.
7:00 pm Dessert time!
7:15 pm Kids wanted to swim. Hubby took them outside.
7:25 pm Finished cleaning kitchen. Turned satellite to 80s hits and sat down on the couch with the People magazine I got in the mail. Lindsay Lohan on the cover. She's killin' herself. Somebody needs to step up and be an adult and HELP HER, already. That same somebody needs to take those kids away from Britney, too.
8:28 pm Kids still out swimming. Finished the magazine. Surfed the ‘net again.
9:00 pm Kids and hubby came in from swimming. The timer for the pump cut off and they decided it was time to stop swimming. I think they’d still be out there if the pump was on.
9:06 pm Put Lillian’s diaper and jammies on. Told her to wake up and go potty in the morning. We’ll see.
9:15 pm Put Quinn to bed. Love doing the nighttime routine with that kid.
9:24 pm Peeked in on Aiden and told him goodnight. He was watching “Unwrapped” on Food Network. He loves that show.
9:28 pm Changed into my pajamas and went potty (TMI?) Did not give myself potty candy.
9:32 pm Started a load of laundry.
9:36 pm Poured myself a tall glass of Splenda grape Kool-Aid on ice. Livin’ on the edge.
9:38 pm Sat back down at the computer to finish what I was doing when the kids came inside.
9:41 pm Hubby started the DVR recording of “Hell’s Kitchen”. Had to watch.
10:12 pm Hubby cracked up at the commercial for a new movie called Superbad. I didn't get what was so freakin' funny, even after he rewound it and watched it again. (Something tells me the title says it all.) We'll probably end up renting it from Netflix.
10:30 pm NO NO NO NO NO! Jen is gone? What was Chef Ramsey thinking?!? (I can tell you what he's thinking WITH, if you get my drift. Ain't no way Rock is gonna win, and Bonnie doesn't deserve to win over Jen.) C'mon, chef!
11:03 pm I’m done. Headed to bed. (Well, not really, 'cause I gotta edit this and post it.)

Friday, July 06, 2007

Formula For Success

What does it take to get 4 kids (ages 9, 6, 4 and 2) to sit still and quiet for about 2 hours?

Here's my formula:

3 boxes Mike & Ike candies (2 grape, 1 tropical)
1 box Junior Mints
1 box Rainbow Nerds
1-16 oz. Dr. Pepper
1-16 oz. Diet Dr. Pepper
1-16 oz. Dasani water
1-16 oz. Coke
1-16 oz. Mello Yello
1 empty bottle for the 4 year-old to pee in so you don't have to leave the theater during the flick (It went unused! Wahoo!)
1 large purse for hiding all the cheap snacks from Dollar Tree (Thanks, Elaine!)
5 tickets to the 11:30 am showing of "Ratatouille"
1 large tub of popcorn
5 seats on the very back row of the theater

Mix altogether and enjoy.

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

It's In the Genes

Organization must be in the genes somewhere, 'cause my 9 year-old daughter has the gift. It has been passed on to the next generation!

For most of the kids' lives I have struggled with getting them to clean up after themselves. Only my oldest was diligent about tidying up after playing. She's a natural organizer, and being the oldest, quite eager to please her clean freak of a mother.

I was quite frazzled with the children yesterday. The kids and I spent 2 days last week cleaning the playroom after Hurricane Lillian (my 2 year-old) went through there; everything (shelves, chairs, toys) was turned over and dumped into the floor. It was a huge mess, and therefore a huge task to take on, but we got it done.

The only problem with cleaning the playroom and reorganizing it is that it's just going to end up messy again. That's why we put it upstairs above the garage (so I wouldn't have to see it unless I purposefully went up there!) So anyway, the boys and Lillian messed everything up again, despite Camryn's efforts to control the clutter and get everything put back when they were done playing. She was frustrated, and so was I. We just couldn't get the boys and Lillian to commit to cleaning after they played.

After threatening to take away the toys in the playroom if they weren't cleaned up appropriately, I was at the end of my rope. Good thing Camryn knows how to tie knots. She came up with a brilliant solution, all by her 9 year-old self.

Her answer?

Centers.

Just like the boys and Lillian have at school.

She's a frickin' genius!

Now in our playroom we have a car center, a kitchen (home living) center, a baby center, a train center, etc. Somehow this has made it easier for the kids to clean things up and put things back when they're done. Now they know where things go, and they happily play together. There is no screaming at clean-up time.

And the playroom is clean.

My daughter deserves a medal.

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

We made it!

We made it to the scrapbook store and back without incident. The children were very, very well behaved in the store. I'm now $120 poorer, but it was fun. It was a "caventure" as we say around here. I even splurged on shakes and sundaes at McDonald's.

It was a good day.

Friday, June 08, 2007

Journey

I have had these lyrics floating around in my head today:

I get the joy of rediscovering you
I'm forever yours
Faithfully

It's from "Faithfully" by Journey and while it's not about the relationship between a parent and child, I feel like it applies to me lately.

I feel like I've rediscovered my children. I've always been involved in their lives, but I decided to make a conscious effort to interact with them more during our days together this summer. I've fallen in love with my babies all over again. Who couldn't love faces like these?

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

We've been watching home videos together over the past few days and nights, and I have to admit, there are a lot of those moments I had forgotten. When you're so accustomed to seeing your kids in their present states day after day, it's difficult to remember what they were like when they were younger. That's why I've loved watching the videos. I have been reminded of how awesome my kids are because I see how far they've come since they were tiny and how precious (and unprecocious) they were when they were small.

I love those kiddos. Love 'em, love 'em, love 'em.

I'm forever theirs....

Faithfully

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