Future Astronaunt ??

J loves getting into our kitchen cabinets and pulling out all of our pots, pans, and Tupperware. (Come think about it, he apparently loves getting into our bathroom cabinets as well hence the poison control phone calls with the Burt's Bees hand salve and my Lady's Speed Stick deodorant within the past few months.) Anyway, this is a Tupperware container that I have for my lettuce. It is a "lettuce crisper", although I really don't know if it keeps lettuce any "crisper" than not using it. J got out the top of it and put it on his head. I laughed, so of course he had to keep doing it because he LOVES to make people laugh. I think he likes being the center of attention. Have no idea where he gets it.

Give Me A Break!

Does anyone think it's ridiculous to have Kelly Ripa as the spokesperson for the Electrolux washer and dryer?...Have you guys seen that commercial? I find 2 main problems with it:

#1....We ALL KNOW that Kelly Ripa does not do her own laundry! That is just absurd! (Just like she doesn't pick out her own clothes, fix her own hair, run carpools, put on her own make-up, ...the list could probably go on and on)

#2...We all know that you don't look like that when you do laundry! Show me a mom with dark circles around her eyes, dirty yoga pants on, hair in a messy pony-tail, a stained t-shirt and a less than pleasant look on her face, and THAT's a better depiction of an average woman doing laundry.

I better get started on mine!

Just One of Those Days

I was very busy today, consumed with entirely too many bankruptcies to process and mounds of laundry that has yet to be done. On top of that, K stayed home from school today sick and I had to fit in a doctor's appointment for J, because HE IS SICK TOO! Ughh. You get the point?

As I was working feverishly on the computer today, I was interrupted quite a bit with the usual requests, "Could you please put on another movie?", or "Can you get me some juice?" (I know, I know..."ANOTHER movie"..but give me some leeway, I had a lot to get done!) At some point, the interruptions become a little annoying and they start running circles around me on the computer...tugging at my pants leg, grabbing at the mouse, striking the keyboard.

"Ok, listen guys. Mommy REALLY needs to get this work done. I have a lot of work to do today, Ok?" I pleaded with them as I herded them in the other room.

K responds back (slightly sassy tone) with, "I KNOW MOM, and I have a lot of t.v. to do!"

I think I will have to think of something a little more educational for her to do while I work from now on. On the flip side, because of ALL the t.v. she watches I get great presents, just like my SNUGGIE I got for Christmas this year. Oh, yes I did...I got the SNUGGIE! You know your jealous.

A Mother's Worst Fear

My best friend and I often discuss our worst fear is that something would happen to one of our children. I know it is pointless to worry because we know that God is in control, but as a mom it is hard not to. My friend has had several good friends in her town struck with bad news lately of sick children. Her, along with my own, heart breaks for these families, these moms, these children. We know all too well how devastating it would be to find out one of our children was extremely ill.

The latest news she has received is of a close friend's seven year old little boy, Brennan, that has just been diagnosed with leukemia. The news comes as an obvious blow to that family and all of their friends. During the course of the next few days they will test to see if it has entered his spine, along with testing his siblings to see if anyone is a match for his bone marrow. They have a long road ahead of them with chemotherapy, illness, discomfort and sadness.

Would you join me in praying for Brennan and his family? I realize that you, along with me, do not know this boy or his family, but I feel I can do my part by praying for them during my quiet time, just as I pray for my own children. I have personally witnessed the camaraderie of Christians here in the blogosphere and I know that the power of prayer works. I also know our great God is still in the business of performing miracles. I also know that he can comfort those that need comforting in a time of sorrow. So, if you would, say a little prayer for this sweet, young boy and his family this week as you thank God for the health of your loved ones.

Granny In the House!

I have to say, even though I didn't personally vote for our new President, I am optimistic about his run as President. I am especially glad to see young children in the White House. Malia and Sasha couldn't be any cuter! Truth be known, I always wanted to live in the White House myself, and as a child thought it just might be possible since my father was a politician, however I (well, HE) never even made it to the governor's mansion, much to my dismay.

We actually had a good laugh the other day when I called my Dad to say, "I would've looked cute in that pink and orange little coat next to my Dad on inauguration day." And since, my mom's mother lived with us most of my life, I could also see my Granny moving right into that White House with us, just as Sasha and Malia's grandmother is doing. Talk about "Hillbillies come to town"...that would've been that story in my case. My Granny was notorious for calling everyone "Hickey" because she just couldn't recall their names, so I guess the White House Butler would have been referred to as "Hickey" as well. She also, being southern baptist, was opposed to drinking alcohol, so we could assume that she would have informed everyone around, "Well, ya know, hun...we don't need to have any alki-hol around here." I'm also pretty certain she would have been outside in the White House gardens bending down and pulling weeds with her butt up in the air.

(God rest (and bless) her soul. I say all this in good fun, because I certainly loved my Granny. She was a character, though, and embarrassed you easily with her sayings or doings. She was a good woman...she loved her family and loved Jesus.)

Oh well, enough of me and my White House dreams, but ya never know....I might just be that mother or mother-in-law that moves in later with my son or future son-in-law.... And would probably embarrass the heck out of my kids! Looking forward to it!

Can't EVEN think of a title for this post!!

Last week, in fact, did turn out to be a great week and I was so relieved that I didn't "jinx" myself with my last post. To follow that week up with a long weekend was divine. Today, it is back to the grind with work, laundry, dishes, homework, dinners, baths and bedtimes, but after re-charging my battery, I feel ready to take it on.

I have to admit, this week isn't looking quite as promising for getting ahead and having extra time. First of all, we started off our week on Sunday by calling Poison Control (Again) because J decided it would be good to eat a small chunk of my Lady's Speed Stick deodorant. Luckily, there was no real threat of danger and he didn't seem to have any effects from eating it. Today, I have wasted most of my day watching the news and all the inauguration festivities because I didn't want to miss such a historical moment for our country (and I didn't want to miss Aretha Franklin singing....What was up with THAT HAT!?...Only Aretha can pull off a bow bigger than her head)

So, after watching history take place and the true American Dream being lived out, I have the household chores to tackle this afternoon. But in the words of our new and 44th President, "....challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, (America)-they will be met..." I can relate this to even my work here at home , so in MY words....I'll get it done, but it ain't gonna be easy!

(Better stop blogging and get it done!)

My Five Senses Tell Me This Week Is Going Good (so far)

I know it is only Tuesday, so I should probably hold my breath, but my week is going so good so far. Yesterday I had 11 bankruptcies to prepare, which normally could take close to 4 or 5 hours, but I completed all of them in 3 hours! The extra hour or so, gave to time to breathe, and therefore be productive in getting laundry done and spend some one on one time with the kids. On top of that, I actually managed to go to bed with no dishes in the sink last night...a big deal in my house because it always seems once I have started the dishwasher, someone comes along and puts a few dirty dishes in the sink.

Today, has also been a good day so far and I even found more extra time so I used it to exercise! (My husband probably just fainted after reading that one!) Honestly, I have been struggling with how to fit in time to exercise during my day without getting up at 5am (because I'd rather just be flabby than to get up in the middle of the night!) or without exercising after 8 pm when the kids go to bed (because, well, that's just to late to get adrenaline flowing!). So, to actually find the time in between today was not only needed but welcomed.

But by far the best part of this week so far would be what K just brought me home from school. She brought home her little book from pre-school titled "My Five Senses" where apparently she just recited her favorites to the teacher. I found each page cute and funny because she picked something pretty off the wall that was her favorite, but the funniest part is that on each page there is a picture cut out of a magazine and glued on it. You would THINK that the picture would correspond with the item she listed, but NO, it didn't AT ALL. I found humor (and a little confusion) in that so I was giggling my way through the book....that is until I came to the last page and that's when my laughter turned into sweet tears. Here is what the book says:





And the last and sweetest page:


That will probably remain the highlight of my week!! She is such a little sweet thing...or maybe she is just buttering me up for a new toy or something. Whatever...it's working!

K Update/Determined Boy

K's doctor's appointment didn't go exactly the way I had hoped. I had taken the time to write down everything before we went and had planned out in my head how the conversation/appointment to go. Anytime you have expectations, you usually get disappointed with the outcome. Our pediatrician never gives me the "warm and fuzzies", which is fine, however, I would have liked a little more time talking rather than feeling like I was being rushed. Basically, she suggested that we see a pediatric gastroenterologist. Probably a good idea, but now I am just thinking, "Did I make a mountain out of a mole hill?," and I'm going to find out that my child is just constipated!? I'm just second guessing myself now, thinking I tend to be way too overprotected of her and worry most about her because she is my "sweet one"....I mean, really, she is an angel child. I will investigate a little more, but at the same time I am going to try to be level headed about it.

On a different note,(AND COMPLETELY RANDOM) I was shocked, and somewhat amused to be honest, about the six year old little boy in Virginia that drove himself to school after he had missed the bus! First of all, I thought, "Wow, I wish my kids were that motivated to go to school." Second, I can so see that about boys....sheer determination (even though mine is only 15 mths). Lastly, he apparently told the police that he had learned to drive from playing GRAND THEFT AUTO and MONSTER TRUCK video games, and that lead me to think (after we have spent hours playing the new Wii) that all my kids are learning is how to bowl or ride a cow and knock down scarecrows!

I can see that 6 year old right now...cruisin' in the Taurus, hat on side-ways, windows down, music cranked up, with his gangsta lean on!

Bear With Me

I can't get my background and colors right here on the blog. Nothing is pleasing me lately, so I will probably change often until one suits me. Be patient with my changes and pardon my work in progress.

Tomorrow Will Be Here Soon Enough

It's raining here again today. There is nothing like a depressing movie on the weekend followed by several days of rain and gloom to keep you down in the dumps. It also didn't help my mood much when I awoke an hour late today, the first day back to school....Not EXACTLY the foot I wanted to get off on this day/this week/ this year! What's done is done. I can't rewind the clock to set a slower pace for the day, and I can't stop God from giving our ground a good drink of water, I can't undo what is already done. I CAN try to do better tomorrow. Tomorrow is it's own day. I also can choose to have a different mood. After all, it might not be the best of days or the prettiest of days, but HE created to be just like this.

Tomorrow I will (hopefully) start my day at the right time, get M to school without rushing, then I will take my sweet K to the doctor. K has had a number of symptoms for 6 months now (all getting more frequent), that could or could not be related. Nevertheless, I am a worried mom and I want to make sure my child is OK.

Just to give a little history, K complains of abdominal pain quite a bit(here lately), she has a loss of appetite and therefore has lost weight, she is tired often. It's funny because all these together in that sentence look so obvious that there is something wrong, but actually it hasn't been so obvious, especially the weight. She has grown so tall lately, that her thinness seemed to be explained. She also has always been a little picky with her eating, and since I have been trying to not feed her chicken fingers and fries every meal, she has been more reluctant to eat what I have made... so the loss of appetite/ weight might be just that. In addition, my husband was very thin, tall, and a picky eater as a child.

I guess I just want to know everything is OK. In other words, I don't want a doctor to tell me it's not a big deal, or everything is fine, when they actually DON'T know if that is true. Let's test for it and then they can tell me it's not that. I realize that a doctor can't order a test for every possible thing it might be, but we certainly can get started and rule out some of the obvious ones like issues with iron or glucose to vitamin deficiencies.(Here is where I am going to leave out all the horrible possiblities that I have already googled and worried myself sick about) I'm going in there tomorrow prepared and I hope to get us started in the right direction. Prayers are welcomed.

Now, enough about tomorrow, because it's still today.

A Family's Best Friend

We went to see Marley and Me this past weekend and I came home so depressed. Yes, I knew the outcome of the movie before we saw it, but I wasn't expecting to relate to it as well as I did. First of all, T and I look so very much like Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson, well, not exactly, but I am a female and he is a male, so we had that in common. All kidding aside, the movie hit really close to home, for you see, we have a Marley here in our house, only her name is Casey.

Casey is our first "child" and has been a loving and loyal dog for 10 years now. Yes, she has stained our carpet a few times and been punished, she's been yelled at a few times as she barked when a baby was napping, and she has been caught more than once getting into the trash. More than that, Casey has spent 27 months laying on my pregnant belly, she has grieved right along side me as I had two miscarriages, she has seen every one of my children brought home from the hospital, and she has had too many days of toddlers pulling her floppy ears and them trying to ride her. I can't say for sure that she has enjoyed all of this, but I do know she knows she is loved. I'm also pretty sure she feels special since she gets to sleep in our bed every night for 10 years now, occasionally even with her head on a pillow and under the covers!

Here are a few pictures of our Casey, a chocolate brown, fuzzy, lovable, cocker spaniel over the years: (I realize the quality of these are not so great, but this was pre-digital camera days)

Baby pictures of Casey:

I think she later got stuck in this pudding cup!

Wrestling with a french fry that is about as big as she. (Clearly, we don't stick to the "no table food" rule)

Casey as a teen:


And here is our pretty girl now, loving us even though we made her pose for this corny picture. Our beloved Casey just might run away if she sees this one:


Doesn't that picture remind you of something?....

Christmas In a Nutshell

Well, it has come and gone, and even faster than the year before. We had a very busy, exciting and fun holiday spent with lots of family. For the first time in years, everyone was home at the same time. A lot of energy was spent buying presents, cooking food, and traveling from one house to the other. Here are some pictures of our Christmas this year.

M and K hosted a Christmas tea party for 2 cousins and 2 neighbors. It was a lot of fun, and I think might just become and annual tradition.




Then there was cousin time:






There were many presents to be opened and played:















And 2 more pictures of the people that bring me so much joy.



I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and I wish everyone a prosperous and healthy New Year. Happy 2009!