So all of my (one of my?) loyal followers may have noticed that I have been absent from blog world of late. That's not the only thing I have been missing! Things have been insanely crazy around here and I am trying desperately to reign it all back in. I feel like I have 20 half-started projects laying around here and a list of 20 more that I need to start, not the mention the things I just WANT to do - no idea if or when I will find time for those.
I remember when I was a full-time working mom, outside the home, in an office downtown 40 hours a week plus bringing work home. I would hear stay at home moms talk about how busy and crazy they were and I thought "Are you kidding me?!" Now don't get me wrong, never for a second have I thought SAHM's had it easy - I just never thought it was harder than what I was doing.
Enter culture shock here. I willingly chose to become a SAHM, even though I swore for years I would never want to do it. But we simply reached a point in our lives where it seemed to be easier and just make sense - we had an additional child, we now had 2 children involved in activities, plus Brandon was traveling more for work. And I will say, I absolutely cannot imagine being where we are today with me still working full time outside the home. No way. I would have already lost my mind and been sent off to the loony bin. But that certainly doesn't mean this is easy!
In addition to the regular, every-day stuff like school and homework and cooking dinner and keeping up with the house and extracurricular activities... Brandon has been traveling even more. Like, A LOT. In the past 2 months he went on 5 separate trips. Plus it has been birthday season around here - all 3 of our kids' birthdays fall within a 2 month span. And then there are those little extra things you never think about or account for when you are making plans for the week... invitations to parties/events, school projects, extra work that you have to get done... So needless to say, I'M BUSY! It has been all about survival mode for the past few weeks. As long as I managed to keep up with 3 kids going in 3 directions and get everybody fed, that was enough for me. Forget a clean house and clean laundry and reading and all those other things I wanted/needed to do.
BUT... Brandon is home this weekend and should be for a while. And the weather is gorgeous. And we have absolutely no plans today that will take us away from our house. So we are spending the day planting our garden and pulling weeds and mulching and while we are doing all that our kids can play in the backyard. We are cooking a whole chicken on the smoker and will eat that tonight with a big, fresh salad and maybe a few adult beverages. After that we will throw our sure-to-be filthy kids in the bath and get them to bed where they will hopefully drift off quickly and peacefully because they are so exhausted from playing outside all day. And then I will sit with my long-absent husband on the deck and enjoy the evening air (and a few more adult beverages).
And so things will finally come back together and the chaos will subside for a while. We will accomplish some big things on our to-do list and our yard should look pretty darn good at the end of the day.
But the inside of our house... well, don't look in there! That's on the to-do list for another day.
(P.S. - For those not familiar, the title of this post is the title of a Toby Keith song that has been on my mind and in my head a lot lately. For those who know it I'm sure you can see why! For those who haven't heard it, take a listen - it's a good one!)
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Monday, May 7, 2012
The Past Week
As if this household needed more craziness... I think this past week about did me in! Last week we had the electrocution fiasco with Ella - a trip to the ER followed by a trip to Shriner's Burn Clinic. I am happy to report that she is healing quite nicely and all is going well with her.
So Tuesday I took the dogs to the vet for routine check-ups and shots. I was pretty certain Casey had an ear infection in her right ear so I made sure to tip them off on that when I dropped them off. By myself. Carrying a very heavy 14-month-old and attempting to control two 80+ pound dogs. I cannot believe we successfully made it in the door. The nurse even said as much. Turns out that Casey's right ear was indeed infected, as was her left and both of Rugby's as well (although not as bad). Awesome.
The week goes on and Joseph gets fussy. I finally realize on Thursday that he had 4 molars pop through last week, quite possibly on the same day. Poor boy!! That definitely explained the crabbiness and the yucky nose... or so I thought. By Thursday night he was not himself, very clingy and fussy and running a temp of 102. Gave him some Tylenol and hoped for the best in the morning. No such luck, so a call was made to the doctor and a visit scheduled. They diagnosed him with a sinus infection (the second in his short little life) and gave a prescription for Amoxicillin.
The weekend went on and he just did not seem to improve. His fever was gone and his nose wasn't so yucky, but he still was not himself. Sunday afternoon he had a slight rash on his face, we chalked it up to heat. But this morning he woke up with his face and neck covered. Ugh!!! At least it didn't seem to be bothering him. I already had Lucas' 4-year check up scheduled for today so I called the doctor (again!) to see if Joseph could tag along.
Lucas wakes up around 9:00 (super late for him) and walks out looking confused, telling me something is making his ear itchy. After further inspection, it looks as if his ear drum has ruptured. At least that was my diagnosis based on my vast medical knowledge. I've never actually seen a ruptured ear drum, but I couldn't imagine what else it would be. So tack that on to the already-scheduled-visit, too.
I fix lunch, put Joseph down for a nap and settle Lucas in for an afternoon viewing of Cars 2. While cleaning up I notice some water trickling down the kitchen faucet and think this might require some looking into. Open the cabinet under the sink and sure enough, water everywhere.
Have I mentioned yet that Brandon left for another business trip today? That's right, he is GONE all week! So what do I do? Pick up the phone... "Dad!!!" :) Yes, I called my Daddy and yelled help! I do not know the least little thing about plumbing and I wasn't going to pretend I did. Luckily my dad does not live far and has a fairly flexible schedule, so he was able to stop by and perform a quick fix for me.
Upon arriving at the pediatrician's office, they check Lucas and report his ears look perfectly fine. I am baffled. They really have no explanation as to what happened earlier. They examine Joseph and declare he is allergic to penicillin and his ears (which were perfectly fine when we sat in this office 4 days ago) have fluid behind them and look worse than Lucas'. So pitch the amoxicillin, buy another antibiotic and start Benadryl.
It's official - I am DONE for the week! Unfortunately it is only Monday, so that is not an option. So who has a bottle of wine for me???
So Tuesday I took the dogs to the vet for routine check-ups and shots. I was pretty certain Casey had an ear infection in her right ear so I made sure to tip them off on that when I dropped them off. By myself. Carrying a very heavy 14-month-old and attempting to control two 80+ pound dogs. I cannot believe we successfully made it in the door. The nurse even said as much. Turns out that Casey's right ear was indeed infected, as was her left and both of Rugby's as well (although not as bad). Awesome.
The week goes on and Joseph gets fussy. I finally realize on Thursday that he had 4 molars pop through last week, quite possibly on the same day. Poor boy!! That definitely explained the crabbiness and the yucky nose... or so I thought. By Thursday night he was not himself, very clingy and fussy and running a temp of 102. Gave him some Tylenol and hoped for the best in the morning. No such luck, so a call was made to the doctor and a visit scheduled. They diagnosed him with a sinus infection (the second in his short little life) and gave a prescription for Amoxicillin.
The weekend went on and he just did not seem to improve. His fever was gone and his nose wasn't so yucky, but he still was not himself. Sunday afternoon he had a slight rash on his face, we chalked it up to heat. But this morning he woke up with his face and neck covered. Ugh!!! At least it didn't seem to be bothering him. I already had Lucas' 4-year check up scheduled for today so I called the doctor (again!) to see if Joseph could tag along.
Lucas wakes up around 9:00 (super late for him) and walks out looking confused, telling me something is making his ear itchy. After further inspection, it looks as if his ear drum has ruptured. At least that was my diagnosis based on my vast medical knowledge. I've never actually seen a ruptured ear drum, but I couldn't imagine what else it would be. So tack that on to the already-scheduled-visit, too.
I fix lunch, put Joseph down for a nap and settle Lucas in for an afternoon viewing of Cars 2. While cleaning up I notice some water trickling down the kitchen faucet and think this might require some looking into. Open the cabinet under the sink and sure enough, water everywhere.
Have I mentioned yet that Brandon left for another business trip today? That's right, he is GONE all week! So what do I do? Pick up the phone... "Dad!!!" :) Yes, I called my Daddy and yelled help! I do not know the least little thing about plumbing and I wasn't going to pretend I did. Luckily my dad does not live far and has a fairly flexible schedule, so he was able to stop by and perform a quick fix for me.
Upon arriving at the pediatrician's office, they check Lucas and report his ears look perfectly fine. I am baffled. They really have no explanation as to what happened earlier. They examine Joseph and declare he is allergic to penicillin and his ears (which were perfectly fine when we sat in this office 4 days ago) have fluid behind them and look worse than Lucas'. So pitch the amoxicillin, buy another antibiotic and start Benadryl.
It's official - I am DONE for the week! Unfortunately it is only Monday, so that is not an option. So who has a bottle of wine for me???
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Lessons
The past few days have given everyone in our house a chance to learn some new lessons and reflect on those learned in the past.
Sunday night Ella was in the bathroom as she had just gotten out of the shower. I was cleaning up dinner and Brandon was playing with the boys. All of the sudden a scream from the bathroom. We didn't respond because Ella is a girl and a screamer - she is always screaming "just because." But then another scream, just as intense, so I dropped everything and ran. She was holding her hand out; two fingers and her thumb had streaks of something brown, I assumed dirt or some other (more disgusting) substance. After what seemed like minutes, but in reality about 30 seconds, I realized she had shocked and burned herself. The wall around the electrical outlet was black. She led us to believe that she had simply touched it while she was still wet and that did the job. After some prying (and finding a mangled bobby pin near the sink) she confessed to sticking the pin in one of the holes. This left 3 burns on her left thumb and first 2 fingers. Our neighbor the firefighter was gracious enough to come check things out and advised us to have her checked at the ER. So off we went, at 8:00 PM on Sunday. They diagnosed her with second degree burns, cleaned and dressed the wounds and gave us a referral to visit Shriner's Burn Clinic the next day. (In this process they also gave her Tyelonol with Codeine, which was the only funny part of the entire experience because she became so loopy and jabbered endlessly about the craziest things that I could not stop laughing.) On Monday afternoon we set off to Shriner's Hospital in Cincinnati for a follow up. Luckily the burns had already started healing on their own and the doctors at Shriners gave Ella the all clear. We are to apply Aquaphor several times a day and put bandaids on the burns and follow up in 2 weeks. If all looks well by then we can even cancel the appointment. Although we have asked several times, I don't believe we will every know why she did this. She still somewhat traumatized about the whole thing and after telling her story to all the medical professionals and all of her friends who keep asking I have just let it go.
So several obvious, painful lessons learned by Ella and a quite expensive lesson learned by Mom and Dad - don't just assume your children know not to stick things in the outlets; get in their face and tell them point-blank!
Two sad events led me to reflect on lessons learned this week as well. On Monday the world lost two great educators, one from my high school days and one from my college days. It wasn't until I heard of their passings and started thinking back that I realized how very similar they were. Mr. Bill Westerman was a religion teacher when I was in high school although I was never fortunate enough to be in his class. But I have to admit, in high school I was A-OK with that because that man scared me half to death! He came across as very gruff and I don't recall ever seeing him smile. But then as an adult I had the opportunity to serve on several retreat teams with him and really got to know him and the absolutely wonderful, amazing man he was. There are not enough good words in the English language to describe Mr. Westerman and I feel very fortunate for having crossed paths with him and for the small amount of time he spent in my life. The life lessons I learned from him on those long weekends at St. Anne's Convent will forever remain with me. Professor Art Chesler was an Economics instructor at KWC. He was as round as he was tall and only taught those dreaded early-morning classes. As a business major, those classes were on my list of requirements so off I went, sometimes (most times) half asleep. I'm not going to pretend I absorbed every single word he said and I'm an econ expert now. But it's funny now, how often I am able to think back and have that "ah-ha" moment where I realize that wonderful knowledge I'm applying is something I learned in his class. He too came across as very gruff, a professor who was just there to talk to whoever cared to listen and didn't care what else was going on with you or anybody else. But then there were the times I actually engaged him in conversation, or our encounters outside the classroom, or the concern he expressed when he learned something had happened. I remember being shocked once when he asked how a classmate was doing with sincere concern! Chesler is certainly a man I will never forget.
The obvious lesson learned here is the oldie-but-goodie "Don't judge a book by its cover." But from both of these men I also learned to pay close attention to what is being said and think on it, then apply it to my life. It doesn't matter that one taught religion and spoke about his strong faith and the other taught economics and spoke about its application in everyday life. In one way or another, everything these men said applies to my everyday life.
And on a some-what related note... I started writing this post yesterday morning. It is now 9:30 PM on Day 2 and I am finally getting around to finishing it. Lesson learned? Perhaps don't attempt to do anything with 3 crazy kids running around!
Sunday night Ella was in the bathroom as she had just gotten out of the shower. I was cleaning up dinner and Brandon was playing with the boys. All of the sudden a scream from the bathroom. We didn't respond because Ella is a girl and a screamer - she is always screaming "just because." But then another scream, just as intense, so I dropped everything and ran. She was holding her hand out; two fingers and her thumb had streaks of something brown, I assumed dirt or some other (more disgusting) substance. After what seemed like minutes, but in reality about 30 seconds, I realized she had shocked and burned herself. The wall around the electrical outlet was black. She led us to believe that she had simply touched it while she was still wet and that did the job. After some prying (and finding a mangled bobby pin near the sink) she confessed to sticking the pin in one of the holes. This left 3 burns on her left thumb and first 2 fingers. Our neighbor the firefighter was gracious enough to come check things out and advised us to have her checked at the ER. So off we went, at 8:00 PM on Sunday. They diagnosed her with second degree burns, cleaned and dressed the wounds and gave us a referral to visit Shriner's Burn Clinic the next day. (In this process they also gave her Tyelonol with Codeine, which was the only funny part of the entire experience because she became so loopy and jabbered endlessly about the craziest things that I could not stop laughing.) On Monday afternoon we set off to Shriner's Hospital in Cincinnati for a follow up. Luckily the burns had already started healing on their own and the doctors at Shriners gave Ella the all clear. We are to apply Aquaphor several times a day and put bandaids on the burns and follow up in 2 weeks. If all looks well by then we can even cancel the appointment. Although we have asked several times, I don't believe we will every know why she did this. She still somewhat traumatized about the whole thing and after telling her story to all the medical professionals and all of her friends who keep asking I have just let it go.
So several obvious, painful lessons learned by Ella and a quite expensive lesson learned by Mom and Dad - don't just assume your children know not to stick things in the outlets; get in their face and tell them point-blank!
Two sad events led me to reflect on lessons learned this week as well. On Monday the world lost two great educators, one from my high school days and one from my college days. It wasn't until I heard of their passings and started thinking back that I realized how very similar they were. Mr. Bill Westerman was a religion teacher when I was in high school although I was never fortunate enough to be in his class. But I have to admit, in high school I was A-OK with that because that man scared me half to death! He came across as very gruff and I don't recall ever seeing him smile. But then as an adult I had the opportunity to serve on several retreat teams with him and really got to know him and the absolutely wonderful, amazing man he was. There are not enough good words in the English language to describe Mr. Westerman and I feel very fortunate for having crossed paths with him and for the small amount of time he spent in my life. The life lessons I learned from him on those long weekends at St. Anne's Convent will forever remain with me. Professor Art Chesler was an Economics instructor at KWC. He was as round as he was tall and only taught those dreaded early-morning classes. As a business major, those classes were on my list of requirements so off I went, sometimes (most times) half asleep. I'm not going to pretend I absorbed every single word he said and I'm an econ expert now. But it's funny now, how often I am able to think back and have that "ah-ha" moment where I realize that wonderful knowledge I'm applying is something I learned in his class. He too came across as very gruff, a professor who was just there to talk to whoever cared to listen and didn't care what else was going on with you or anybody else. But then there were the times I actually engaged him in conversation, or our encounters outside the classroom, or the concern he expressed when he learned something had happened. I remember being shocked once when he asked how a classmate was doing with sincere concern! Chesler is certainly a man I will never forget.
The obvious lesson learned here is the oldie-but-goodie "Don't judge a book by its cover." But from both of these men I also learned to pay close attention to what is being said and think on it, then apply it to my life. It doesn't matter that one taught religion and spoke about his strong faith and the other taught economics and spoke about its application in everyday life. In one way or another, everything these men said applies to my everyday life.
And on a some-what related note... I started writing this post yesterday morning. It is now 9:30 PM on Day 2 and I am finally getting around to finishing it. Lesson learned? Perhaps don't attempt to do anything with 3 crazy kids running around!
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
You Capture - Sunshine
This week's You Capture topic wasn't quite as easy as you might think - the past week was rather gloomy in the Northern Kentucky area and sunshine wasn't exactly plentiful. This left me a little anxious at the end of the week. Lucas was scheduled to have his very first tee-ball practice Friday evening and he could not have been more excited. This kid has been a sports nut from day 1 and has been dying to play sports since he started tagging along at Ella's various games. However, Friday morning brought clouds. No rain, but it was just hanging there, with the feeling that it just might drop down at any moment. I did not have the heart to tell him that his practice he had been waiting for all day, all week, ever since sign-ups... might be cancelled. But lo and behold, just as 5:30 rolled around and practice was to begin, the sun came out! Lucas took the field and played hard for the entire hour and came off the field with a smile on his face.
Trust that there will be plenty of photos to come of Lucas in action, but this is one I just could not resist sharing. First, the obvious sun shining through the trees. Second, someone on the team yelled "Let's change the game to Kick Dirt!" And so 13 tee-ballers did just that.
A completely different take on sunshine... There is a peony bush at the corner of my front steps. It is one that I transplanted last fall and now I can see it through the front windows when I am in my kitchen or walking down the steps. I was super excited to see it start to sprout this spring and a couple of weeks ago we saw the first bloom. It is still the only one (although I have seen a few that are not too far behind). Every evening this flower closes itself up and every morning when my kids wake up, before the sun has hit the bush, they say "Our rose died!" Every morning I assure them it did not, it is just waiting for the sunshine. And sure enough, as the sun comes up over our front yard the peony opens once again to take in all the warmth it has to offer.
Aren't the colors just brilliant?!
That's all I've got this week! Check out more sunny photos at Beth's newly remodeled site.
Trust that there will be plenty of photos to come of Lucas in action, but this is one I just could not resist sharing. First, the obvious sun shining through the trees. Second, someone on the team yelled "Let's change the game to Kick Dirt!" And so 13 tee-ballers did just that.
A completely different take on sunshine... There is a peony bush at the corner of my front steps. It is one that I transplanted last fall and now I can see it through the front windows when I am in my kitchen or walking down the steps. I was super excited to see it start to sprout this spring and a couple of weeks ago we saw the first bloom. It is still the only one (although I have seen a few that are not too far behind). Every evening this flower closes itself up and every morning when my kids wake up, before the sun has hit the bush, they say "Our rose died!" Every morning I assure them it did not, it is just waiting for the sunshine. And sure enough, as the sun comes up over our front yard the peony opens once again to take in all the warmth it has to offer.
Aren't the colors just brilliant?!
That's all I've got this week! Check out more sunny photos at Beth's newly remodeled site.
Sexist?
Is it possible for a three-year-old to be sexist? If so, I think my son is just that.
I am VERY big on not imposing any sort of gender restrictions on my children. They are never told things are just for boys/just for girls or they can't have or do things because they are the wrong gender. I believe in letting them figure it out for themselves and see what happens. I love that my 7-year-old daughter loves her Barbies and dress ups and crafts, but she also loves to help her Daddy in the yard and garage and likes rooting on our favorite sports teams. My 3-year-old son loves sports and action figures and wrestling, but he is also my biggest cuddler and loves to help me in the kitchen and can be found on occassion playing in his sister's Barbie house.
I think we also do a good job around here of sharing household responsibilities, so our children don't make any assumptions of their own. The only job I have never done is mow the lawn. (I will not lie - I have no idea how to mow the lawn. I have never pushed a lawn mower in my life.)
So WHY is my son so against females in certain positions? And why does he designate things as "guy things"?? A few examples...
He has a female swim instructor. She is wonderful and motherly and older than I am with children of her own. Lucas likes her, too, but he is mad that he does not have a male instructor and he does not let us forget it.
I told Lucas I would have to keep exercising so I could get stronger and always be able to pick him up. He told me I needed to start picking up "those guy things." After further conversation I figured out he was talking about weights. I asked why they are guy things and why they can't be girl things. He said girls can use them, but they are still guy things. How very gracious of him.
We pulled up to the playground today and he only saw 1 girl, no boys. "Why is that girl out there?" I said because she wants to play. He said "I'm not playing with her." Lovely.
The examples certainly don't end there. He has also informed me that Daddy is smarter than me and stronger than me (on many occassions) and if he needs help and I offer, he will remind me that he asked for Daddy. He went through this faze as a baby, where he very much preferred men over women, Momma included. But he eventually outgrew it and I assumed we were done with it. Apparently that is not the case.
So as much as I remind him that girls can do certain things and he should be nice about it, I'm not sure it's doing much good at this point. I guess it goes back to certain traits being ingrained into people at birth, regardless of how they are raised. All I know is that he better get over this soon because he has a big sister and I'm quite certain she will not hesitate to put him in his place! And if she doesn't, this Momma won't let it slide.
I am VERY big on not imposing any sort of gender restrictions on my children. They are never told things are just for boys/just for girls or they can't have or do things because they are the wrong gender. I believe in letting them figure it out for themselves and see what happens. I love that my 7-year-old daughter loves her Barbies and dress ups and crafts, but she also loves to help her Daddy in the yard and garage and likes rooting on our favorite sports teams. My 3-year-old son loves sports and action figures and wrestling, but he is also my biggest cuddler and loves to help me in the kitchen and can be found on occassion playing in his sister's Barbie house.
I think we also do a good job around here of sharing household responsibilities, so our children don't make any assumptions of their own. The only job I have never done is mow the lawn. (I will not lie - I have no idea how to mow the lawn. I have never pushed a lawn mower in my life.)
So WHY is my son so against females in certain positions? And why does he designate things as "guy things"?? A few examples...
He has a female swim instructor. She is wonderful and motherly and older than I am with children of her own. Lucas likes her, too, but he is mad that he does not have a male instructor and he does not let us forget it.
I told Lucas I would have to keep exercising so I could get stronger and always be able to pick him up. He told me I needed to start picking up "those guy things." After further conversation I figured out he was talking about weights. I asked why they are guy things and why they can't be girl things. He said girls can use them, but they are still guy things. How very gracious of him.
We pulled up to the playground today and he only saw 1 girl, no boys. "Why is that girl out there?" I said because she wants to play. He said "I'm not playing with her." Lovely.
The examples certainly don't end there. He has also informed me that Daddy is smarter than me and stronger than me (on many occassions) and if he needs help and I offer, he will remind me that he asked for Daddy. He went through this faze as a baby, where he very much preferred men over women, Momma included. But he eventually outgrew it and I assumed we were done with it. Apparently that is not the case.
So as much as I remind him that girls can do certain things and he should be nice about it, I'm not sure it's doing much good at this point. I guess it goes back to certain traits being ingrained into people at birth, regardless of how they are raised. All I know is that he better get over this soon because he has a big sister and I'm quite certain she will not hesitate to put him in his place! And if she doesn't, this Momma won't let it slide.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
11 Years
Yesterday I celebrated 11 years of wedded bliss with my wonderful husband. We didn't plan anything for our actual anniversary this year (even though it fell on a weekend) because he was supposed to be between business trips. We decided we didn't want to cram something in, we would rather wait until we had time to actually enjoy ourselves and not feel rushed. So we went about filling up the weekend with other fun things like soccer games in the rain and work. But then his second business trip was cancelled and as it turned out, we could have planned something after all. Of course at that point it was too late, so we went about our day as planned, which was fine with us, knowing we would just make up for it later.
But that was NOT fine for a certain little girl in this house. She didn't like the fact that we weren't doing anything on our anniversary so she wanted to plan something fun and special. She got together with Lucas and Brandon and they cooked up quite a surprise that turned into the best anniversary celebration yet. While I was at my 31 party they got to work and here is what I came home to:
Lucas greeted me at the door as I came in from the garage. He was wearing "church clothes." (HUGE for him since this kid wants to live in sweat pants, t-shirts and no socks.) He said "May I show you to your seat?" And I saw "Awwww!!!!" in that embarrassing mom way, he got shy and giggly, covered his face and ran up the steps without me.
I walked upstairs and was welcomed by Ella, who showed me to my seat and handed me a menu for the evening. The table was set with a table cloth, wine glasses and fresh flowers. We even had place cards so we all knew were to sit and Ella graciously offered me her seat so I could sit next to Brandon.
My dinner was served to me in my seat (rather than me having to make 2 plates, cut food, then go back for my own along with whatever else the kids are demanding). Bacon wrapped filet, fresh green beans, steamed carrots and bread along with some red wine. A menu selected by my loves that included all of their favorites. (Steak for Brandon, fresh green beans for Ella, carrots for Lucas and bread for Joe.)
We had a wonderful dinner where everybody was happy and excited and remembered to use their manners and got along with each other.
After dinner we had family movie night. Popcorn for all the big people and golfish for Joe. We all put on our pajamas, squeezed side by side onto the couch together and watched The Muppets. The kids loved it for its silliness and Brandon and I loved it for the nostalgia factor.
After the movie the kids went to bed and Brandon and I finished off the wine while watching more movies.
We have never celebrated our anniversary this way. We always get a sitter and head out for a nice, "fancy," child-free dinner. But I have to admit - I LOVED THIS NIGHT! I think it is the best anniversary celebration I have ever had. I'm pretty sure I didn't stop smiling from the time I walked in the door until I dozed off to sleep. Everybody was happy and together and having a good time, which is all I ever wanted 11 years ago when I said "I do."
But that was NOT fine for a certain little girl in this house. She didn't like the fact that we weren't doing anything on our anniversary so she wanted to plan something fun and special. She got together with Lucas and Brandon and they cooked up quite a surprise that turned into the best anniversary celebration yet. While I was at my 31 party they got to work and here is what I came home to:
Lucas greeted me at the door as I came in from the garage. He was wearing "church clothes." (HUGE for him since this kid wants to live in sweat pants, t-shirts and no socks.) He said "May I show you to your seat?" And I saw "Awwww!!!!" in that embarrassing mom way, he got shy and giggly, covered his face and ran up the steps without me.
I walked upstairs and was welcomed by Ella, who showed me to my seat and handed me a menu for the evening. The table was set with a table cloth, wine glasses and fresh flowers. We even had place cards so we all knew were to sit and Ella graciously offered me her seat so I could sit next to Brandon.
My dinner was served to me in my seat (rather than me having to make 2 plates, cut food, then go back for my own along with whatever else the kids are demanding). Bacon wrapped filet, fresh green beans, steamed carrots and bread along with some red wine. A menu selected by my loves that included all of their favorites. (Steak for Brandon, fresh green beans for Ella, carrots for Lucas and bread for Joe.)
We had a wonderful dinner where everybody was happy and excited and remembered to use their manners and got along with each other.
After dinner we had family movie night. Popcorn for all the big people and golfish for Joe. We all put on our pajamas, squeezed side by side onto the couch together and watched The Muppets. The kids loved it for its silliness and Brandon and I loved it for the nostalgia factor.
After the movie the kids went to bed and Brandon and I finished off the wine while watching more movies.
We have never celebrated our anniversary this way. We always get a sitter and head out for a nice, "fancy," child-free dinner. But I have to admit - I LOVED THIS NIGHT! I think it is the best anniversary celebration I have ever had. I'm pretty sure I didn't stop smiling from the time I walked in the door until I dozed off to sleep. Everybody was happy and together and having a good time, which is all I ever wanted 11 years ago when I said "I do."
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
You Capture - Chocolate
Photography lesson learned this week - carry your camera at all times! But with trying to get 3 kids out of the house and into the car, one of them being incapable of getting himself down the steps and buckled into his seat, and also requiring his own bag, my hands are a little full and my mind a little preoccupied. On Tuesday I was doing some shopping and there was a mother goose with her 7 little gosslings strutting / waddling along the shopping center. So very cute - and I had no camera! I had to settle for what my phone could do because I just couldn't resist. Not terrible, but not what I would have liked.
ANYWAY... on to You Capture!
Donuts are a special treat for our kids and they only get them when Pawpaw Damon is in town and buys them or about once a month when we stick around after mass and join everybody for coffee and donuts in the church basement. But last Friday I had a late night run to Wal-Mart and they had Krispy Kreme donuts with chocolate icing and sprinkles marked down to make way for the next morning's delivery. For some reason I could not resist the sweet treat for my babes, so I indulged. Not only did they get chocolate donuts for breakfast, but they got to eat them at their little table in front of the TV watching Saturday morning cartoons. Quite a treat indeed!
The chocolate in this next picture is not nearly as sweet as the story behind it.
Since Easter candy made its first appearance on the store shelves I starting buying Dove chocolate eggs, in both milk chocolate and dark chocolate, and storing them in this glass candy dish on top of the microwave. Out of the reach of my children. It took them a few days before they finally noticed it and asked for a piece - I offered them a piece of their own (not-so-high-quality) chocolate instead. I love me some good chocolate and I was not willing to share it! My stash ran out two days before Easter and I figured I would wait it out and just start snagging candy from one of the several baskets each of my children receives. (We usually wind up throwing away half their candy anyway, sometime near the end of summer. They would never notice the missing chocolate.) At some point on Monday Ella pointed out that she had taken 2 chocolate eggs out of her Easter basket and put them in the dish. She told me the pink was for me and the blue was for Daddy and she wanted to replace some of our candy and she thought that was probably the same kind. SERIOUSLY?! How unbelievably sweet is this girl?! (And how absolutely terrible do I feel now for not sharing my original batch?)
That's my chocolate for the week! There's a lot more chocolate around here, but most of it is going into my mouth and I don't think anybody wants to see that picture. Instead, check out I Should Be Folding Laundry for more chocolatey goodness.
ANYWAY... on to You Capture!
Donuts are a special treat for our kids and they only get them when Pawpaw Damon is in town and buys them or about once a month when we stick around after mass and join everybody for coffee and donuts in the church basement. But last Friday I had a late night run to Wal-Mart and they had Krispy Kreme donuts with chocolate icing and sprinkles marked down to make way for the next morning's delivery. For some reason I could not resist the sweet treat for my babes, so I indulged. Not only did they get chocolate donuts for breakfast, but they got to eat them at their little table in front of the TV watching Saturday morning cartoons. Quite a treat indeed!
The chocolate in this next picture is not nearly as sweet as the story behind it.
Since Easter candy made its first appearance on the store shelves I starting buying Dove chocolate eggs, in both milk chocolate and dark chocolate, and storing them in this glass candy dish on top of the microwave. Out of the reach of my children. It took them a few days before they finally noticed it and asked for a piece - I offered them a piece of their own (not-so-high-quality) chocolate instead. I love me some good chocolate and I was not willing to share it! My stash ran out two days before Easter and I figured I would wait it out and just start snagging candy from one of the several baskets each of my children receives. (We usually wind up throwing away half their candy anyway, sometime near the end of summer. They would never notice the missing chocolate.) At some point on Monday Ella pointed out that she had taken 2 chocolate eggs out of her Easter basket and put them in the dish. She told me the pink was for me and the blue was for Daddy and she wanted to replace some of our candy and she thought that was probably the same kind. SERIOUSLY?! How unbelievably sweet is this girl?! (And how absolutely terrible do I feel now for not sharing my original batch?)
That's my chocolate for the week! There's a lot more chocolate around here, but most of it is going into my mouth and I don't think anybody wants to see that picture. Instead, check out I Should Be Folding Laundry for more chocolatey goodness.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)