Signs of growing up

We had some excitement at the house today, Connor lost his first tooth! It was so funny because he had no idea that one of his teeth had fallen out. He was eating his snack this morning and I noticed his bottom teeth looked funny so I made him open his mouth and show me his teeth. Sure enough he was missing one of the bottom front ones. I asked him if he knew his tooth was gone, and he said no. So then the next question is, where could it be. I thought he probably swallowed it which was very unsettling news for him. He just looked at me with the panicked expression asking me what was going to happen to him. I explained that he would just poop it out, but he kept grabbing his stomach like he could feel the tooth in there. He was so unhappy about the whole thing he kept asking me not to talk about it.

A couple hours later I found the missing tooth on the bathroom floor. Connor was very relieved to hear that there wasn't a tooth inside of his stomach anymore. And the kid made out with $6, so he should be happy about losing his tooth.

The Trip to Bauman Farms aka A Not so Proud Mommy Moment

Today the kids and I went with a group of friends to visit a great place called Bauman Farms. It is a wonderful farm that has mazes, a pumpkin patch, tractor rides, a playground, animals that the kids can pet and feed, and so much more. We had a fantastic time and because today is Connor's 5th birthday he thought it was a party for him, which is great because his actual party isn't for another 2 weeks. Here are couple of shots from our day at the farm. When you look at these pictures you will realize why I don't take pictures of my children more often. They just don't get the concept of smiling at a camera. And don't even tell them to say cheese, it doesn't work.

"Liv, look at the camera."

"No, Livvie, smile at the camera."

 

 

 

"Olivia, pay attention! Look at the camera!"

 

 

My big five year old. He makes my heart happy. 

 

Saying cheese.

 And by now you are probably wondering what my not so proud mommy moment was. Well, let me just tell you I had a panic attack in the dark corn maze. I seriously almost layed down on the floor in the fetal position and waited for someone to come rescue me and my two children. The only way into this dark maze was down a huge slide. Connor went down first and then I forced Olivia to come down with me. The minute we landed at the bottom of the slide I knew I made a huge mistake. It was pitch black in there and all I could feel were walls all around me and no way out. So I did what any responsible mommy with two kids depending on her would do...I started screaming at my friends. I could see my friend Kelly through a small crack in the wall so I started yelling at her, "I can't see anything! I am panicking! My heart is pounding! Get help! Did I mention I am panicking!" So my friend Jodi came into the dark abyss and saved us. If it wasn't for her I am not sure what would have happened to me. We were able to feel our way out of the maze. I crawled through part of it until Jodi asked me why I was crawling because it was tall enough to stand up and walk through. (Sometimes I do ridiculous things.) Jodi is now my hero, I even hugged her when we got out of the maze.

I had a feeling before I even went down the slide that this was going to be a bad idea. It was probably the Holy Spirit warning me not to go in there, but I didn't listen. "How dark could it be?" I thought. Next time I will listen to those warnings since now I am afraid to even blink my eyes. I also had to apologize to my children for taking them in there, I should have known better. But I have to say they handled the whole thing better than I did. They held my hand and calmly walked through the maze while I just kept praying that I wouldn't pass out and have to be drug to the end. So my friends, make sure you listen to those little warnings even if what you are going to do doesn't seem like a big deal, you may find your self in a situation you are not able to deal with.

New Pets

Now those of you who know me are probably thinking to yourselves, "Amy has a pet?! I thought after that whole psycho cat fiasco, and the guinea pig that shrieked like a bird all hours of the early morning, and the puppy that made her wear two mismatching shoes to work and made her stand in her yard in her bathrobe at two in the morning so the darn thing could go to the bathroom and then it wouldn't go until the minute it stepped back in the garage made her decide she never wanted pets again." Well, my friends I have found the perfect pet for me, Mexican jumping beans. I am not sure they are technically Mexican, or shall I say Hispanic, since they came from Dallas, Texas but whatever. Scott actually brought them home for Connor but once he found out that he couldn't eat them (he thought they would make him jump higher) he pretty much lost interest in them. I however think they are kind of cute and they are really easy to take care of. I don't have to feed them or walk them. If I am feeling really adventurous I will let them out of their little plastic case and let them roam around the counter for a little while, I just have to make sure they don't jump off the counter and land on the carpet. I would hate to accidentally vacuum one up. The only draw back is that they don't show me any affection whatsoever and the clacking sound they make while they are in their little cases is kind of annoying. But other than that they are wonderful pets and a great low maintenance addition to the family.

The Orange Flag

So I know this blog is supposed to be about my kids, but they have not been very inspiring lately so here is another story from my childhood.

I am pretty sure I had the most protective parents EVER when I was growing up. If I wanted to do something but there was the slightest chance I might get hurt, there was no way my parents would let me do it. They pretty much stomped any adventurous side I had to the ground, which is why I am probably the least adventurous person ever. White is a daring color for me. And me being the obedient child that I was would never do anything my parents said not to do. Although there was that one time when I was at my grandparents house. My mom wasn't there and my cousin wanted to go to the store, WITHOUT ANY ADULTS. And we had to cross the street to get there. I rebelled. We crossed the busy street and went to the Plaid Pantry. I was so afraid when my mom came to pick me up that it would somehow come out that I went to the store with my cousin. I felt guilt for many years every time I saw a Plaid Pantry. It was just a few years ago that I fessed up to my mom what I had done. Of course we laugh about it now, but if I had to do it over again I would have stayed at the house. So not worth the self imposed guilt. But I digress.

As parents we know that there are some things that you just have to let your children do even though they might have some risk involved, one of these things is riding a bike. This is something that was not taken lightly in my house. Before I could ride the bike I had to have the proper equipment and safety training. First, was the bicycle safety video. Yes, my friends, there is such a thing and I pretty much have it memorized to this day. The video had kids on it singing different songs that teach you bicycle safety. To this day I can't cross the street without first singing,
"You gotta stop, stop, look all about. Wait til the road's clear and then move out."

The next step of the bicycle safety was the helmet, of course. Gotta keep my brain safe. This is one of the reasons I don't ride a bike today. I don't want helmet hair, but it has been so ingrained in me that if I don't wear a helmet while riding my bike I will surely crash and die, that I am afraid to ride without one. I will just avoid the whole thing and walk or better yet, drive.

So, we have the bicycle safety video, the helmet, the reflective clothing, the bell to warn cars that there is a small bicyclist around; I thought I was good to go. Then one day "it" arrived. "Gee mom, what is the giant orange flag for? You gonna put it in the back yard or something?" "Why no Amy, we are going to strap this 10 foot tall orange flag to the back of your bike." Well if that won't make your friends laugh at you nothing will. Yes, everyone one in the next county could see that little Amy was riding her bike around. I am sure you could see it from space. And yes, my friends did make fun of me. It kinda took the joy out of riding my bike.

The orange flag is still a tender subject. Anytime I bring it up to my parents they say, "well, you're alive aren't you?" Yes, I am a live. I may be a little emotionally scarred and I my eye might start twitching at the sight of orange flags, but yes, I am still alive. Although they never made my brother or sister ride with an orange flag on their bike and they are still alive. Hmmm. Explain that one Mom. I guess I should just be happy that they cared about me so much, or maybe they really just liked laughing at me and my orange flag.

The Jesus Bandaid

Hello friends, it's been a while but I am back. I have no excuse for my absence so don't expect one. Here is a little story from my childhood for you to enjoy.

I can't remember how old I was when the "Jesus band aid" incident occurred, but I was young enough to still think band aids were awesome, but old enough to remember this incident and therefore be scarred for life. I was at home with the babysitter, I can't remember who it was. I have tried to remember her face but it's all blurry in my mind, I must have blocked it out. I was playing and somehow had gotten a little owie on my arm. I remember thinking to myself, "Yes! Now I can have a band aid!" Don't you remember when you were a kid and you would walk down the band aid aisle and see all the wonderful different band aids there were; and you just couldn't wait for the opportunity to get to wear one of those cool band aids? Please tell me I am not the only child who thought this way. Moving on.

So I go bounding to the babysitter to show her my owie and get my well deserved cool band aid. So she takes me in the bathroom and cleans up my little, pretty much insignificant owie and then says something that will forever change my life. "Do you want one of these band aids or a Jesus band aid." Wait a minute, what in the world is  a Jesus band? Those certainly don't sound cool to me. Don't get me wrong, I love Jesus, but my little child mind just couldn't picture a Jesus band aid having anything really cool on it. I mean really, it would probably just have praying hands or maybe sandals, or Jesus' face on it. I'm sorry, but when compared to rainbow brite it just doesn't compare! So I sat and thought for a moment, but I just knew I had to choose the Jesus band aid. I didn't want my babysitter to get mad at me, and I certainly didn't want to upset Jesus that I didn't choose his band aid. "I guess I'll take the Jesus band aid," I said. So she looks at my owie and says, "Okay then, you're all done." Wait a second, what about my band aid? Apparently a Jesus band aid is no band aid at all! It's imaginary or some such nonsense. I sat there in the bathroom feeling tricked and betrayed. I have a genuine flesh wound and I don't even get a band aid for it. I should have chose the rainbow brite or whatever band aid it was. I may have had guilt for not choosing Jesus, but at least I would have had a band aid! And I am sorry, but I don't think Jesus would like his name attached to this kind of trickery. Now I would have to wait until the next time I got hurt to get a band aid and who knew when that would be. My situation was hopeless. And now anytime the word band aid is mentioned I think of the Jesus band aid that was really no band aid at all and I feel the despair all over again.

So my dear friends, please heed my warning and always choose the other band aid, even if it's just a plain old boring beige one.

I think I may need therapy.

Have great day my friends and consider yourself warned.

It's time to do it yourself

My darling son is going to be 5 in October and I have been realizing that it is time for him to start doing things himself. Things like wiping his own bottom, which makes me excited to not have to do anymore. He told me recently that he didn't want to learn to wipe his bottom until he was man. I just looked at him and thought to myself, "if you don't start wiping your own bottom now kid, you won't live to be a man." So this is something we have been working on. We got off on a rocky start. He didn't think wiping was necessary the first time and just pulled up his pants and told me he was all done. I was pleasantly surprised that he didn't even ask for help, until I realized he skipped the whole wiping thing. Back to the bathroom we went. Sometimes my kids really gross me out. The next couple attempts were better and also quite comical, especially when he had toilet paper hanging from his rear and had no idea.

The next thing we have been working on is getting himself dressed and putting his own shoes on. I realized it was time for him to start doing this when I noticed that his 2 year old sister could put her shoes on by herself. This fact didn't seem to bother him much, he would much rather me do it for him. Too bad. This has been going smoother than the whole wiping thing but his style is something that concerns me.

Yes, he picked his own outfit out this morning. At least the legs of his boxer briefs aren't coming out of the tops of his shorts like they usually are.

Life is good when your at Grandma's

This has become the ritual when we get to grandma's house. The kids sit on the porch swing and enjoy a bag of "cheeps" as Liv calls them, and throw back a cold one...don't worry it's just a capri sun. My mother's house has pretty much turned into Disneyland since I had kids. They have a sand box, a bouncy house, pool complete with inflatable slide, a play house and a little climby thing with a slide. And that's just the outdoor stuff.  It's a wonderland compared to when I was a kid. Back then it was like, "mom, can I have some toys to play with?" And she would be like, "here, play with this plastic bottle."  It's just not fair, but I am over it.

I got some live action nature shots of a killer whale in action the last time I was at my parent's house. I warn you these shots are not for the faint of heart.

Ferocious killer whale. Those are his fins behind his back in case you were wondering.

 

 

Killer whale at play

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The mighty killer whale spots a pink dolphin....lunch time!

Pink Dolphins are no match for killer whales!

This dolphin won't go down without a fight

And the fight is over. It's all fun and games until someone gets water in their eyes. The safety glasses were left at home. 

In case you were wondering yes, it looks like killer whales are the next phase. It really is quite funny to see him act like a killer whale on dry land. So if you see my son thrashing on the ground with his arm behind him and his finger poking off his back, no, he is not having a seizure, he is just being a whale.

Do other kids do this too?

Sometimes I look at my children and I wonder to myself, "are my kids strange or do other kids do that stuff too?" It seems the most often time I ask myself this is when they decide to play sleep. Yes, they like to play like they are sleeping, and this pretty much happens everyday. They will drag their blankets, pillows, favorite stuffed animals and babies of every shape and size and lay on the living room floor and pretend like they are sleeping. They just lay there with their eyes closed and a smile on their face like it's the most fun in the world.  I most often find this strange when they decide that the grand fort I just built in the living room for them to play in would make a really great place to sleep, and out come the before mentioned sleeping accessories. It kind of bothers me because I did not spend all that time finding blankets and dragging the dining room table into the living room and listening to Connor tell me the best way to make the fort, so they could sleep. This also happens when I bring the Thomas the train tent and the princess castle tent  into the living room. Everything is a bed for them.

Sometimes they will be in Livvie's room and I will wonder why it's so quiet back there and think that they must be doing something they shouldn't be doing, but no, they are laying on the floor, pretending to sleep. I just don't get it. I don't think I ever played "sleep" when I was little. This has to be my fault because they must hear me talk about how much I love to sleep and how I treasure my naps. They probably think that if mom loves to sleep so much then it must be the thing to do. I guess I should just be happy that they aren't terrorizing my house.

The big girl bed

Monday night we said goodbye to the crib and hello to the big girl bed.

 I was unsure how the transition would go, but after only about 2 hours of crying, Olivia finally adjusted and things have been going smoothly. She was very excited that she could get in and out of her bed all by herself, which made me wonder if we were going to have escaping issues,  but so far she has stayed in her bed until she is told she can get up.

Room time has been a little bit interesting though. She is no longer behind bars for room time and can freely roam her room. She tends to forget that room time means she has to stay in her room and play, and is often found wandering into the living room, or being pushed out of her brother's room, by said brother. I also have had to go over and over again that room time is for playing with her toys, not pulling all of her clothes out of her dresser and trying them on. The package of diapers is also now out of reach, those aren't toys either. Since the dresser was off limits she decided just to try on the clothes in her dirty clothes basket. I let her have that one. But she mostly spends her time trying on her 14 pairs of shoes. She is such a girl, and I love it!

Connor was feeling a bit left out I think so he asked me to take a picture of him in his really big, big boy bed. I am warning you that again, he is only wearing his underwear.

My baby girl is all grown up

Okay, maybe not completely grown up, but she did just turn two. It seems just like yesterday that she looked like this :

 And now look at her:

 Gone is the little baby and in her place is a little girly girl that loves to have her mommy make her hair pretty and dress her in pretty dresses. She also already has a shoe fetish. Her favorite thing to do now is fill up her play shopping cart with her shoes and bring them into the living room and try them all on. And might I add she has 14 pairs of shoes, which is more than I have. Yes, I am jealous. If only we wore the same size. She also loves her hats, you will rarely ever see her without one on. She has about 10 different ones and sometimes has trouble deciding which one to wear, so she will just wear two at a time. She would sleep in them if I let her. And take my advice and don't ever try to remove her hat...she is very protective of them and can tear you to shreds if provoked, just ask Connor. Moving on.

Her birthday party was great fun even if she didn't really understand what was going on. The day of her birthday she kept saying, "happy birday mom!" Connor felt his purpose that day was to keep reminding Olivia that since she is two now we will be throwing her pacifier away. She seemed very confused about that and kept reassuring Connor that her pacifier was safe and sound and not in the garbage like he kept saying. 

Even though half of her presents weren't wrapped (this would be because she has a phlagmatic mom and grandma) and there were no candles to blow out (this would also be because of the phlagmatic mom who is not good with details) she seemed to have a lot of fun at her party.There was a bouncy house and fun friends to play with. Here is the birthday girl jumping with her very grown up 7 year old friend Grace, or "grapes" as Olivia calls her. She just loves to play with her and copied almost everything Grace did the whole time they were together.  And Grace was so sweet to play with Olivia and let her tag along.

And we can't leave out the most important part of any birthday party....the cake. Thank you to my wonderful mother for making the fabulous cupcakes!

 Tomorrow Scott is going to get the toddler bed out of the attic so she can move out of the crib and into her big girl bed. And then the next step will be potty training and before I know it she will be wanting to wear makeup and will like boys and will want to drive and then she will want to get married and leave me. Well, I already have Connor convinced that moms get to go to college with their kid so the mommies don't get sad about their babies being gone, so I guess I better start working on Olivia now. They aren't getting away from me that easy.

Does that make me old?

1. I love Neil Diamond
2. Secretly would love to go to bed at 8:00 when my children go to bed.
3. Loud music makes me tense
4. I love Neil Diamond
5. Am mostly afraid of technology
6. Love to watch reruns of Matlock
7. I eat lunch at 11
8. I refuse to miss my afternoon nap
9. I love Neil Diamond
10.Will watch Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune willingly
11. I love sayings like: "Here's lookin at you kid" and "It's the bees knees!" I don't know what that last one means but it makes me think of tiny little knees on tiny little bee legs. So cute 
12. Would eat dinner at 4 if I could get away with it.
13. Enjoy putting puzzles together
14. I would rather listen to Frank Sinatra than listen to the top 40
15. I love Neil Diamond

Downfalls of being a phlegmatic

If you have been thinking that I must have been really busy because it has been so long since my last post, think again my friends. The real reason is that I have a problem....it's called being a phlegmatic. "What is a phlegmatic?" you might be asking yourself. I like to describe it as being a person with really great intentions but those great intentions rarely turn into actions once we see the work that is involved to make those intentions actually turn into actions. Let me just give you a few examples and you will see what I mean.

Example #1- My blog. I started out with great intentions of posting all the time. We can all see how that has turned out.

Example #2- My mom (also a phlegmatic) and I threw a garage sale almost a month ago. The fact that I am just now getting around to writing about the garage sale could be an example all on it's own. But if you would have seen us setting up the garage sale and then trying to price everything you would would really have gotten a good idea of what it is to be a phlegmatic. At one point of setting up I wanted to crawl under the tables and lay in the fetal position because I felt so overwhelmed with the work we had ahead of us. And trying to price everything, I think, is highly over rated.

Example #3- My kids' baby pictures, or lack thereof. I know some day when my kids are older they will ask me why there are hardly any pictures of them. The truth of the matter is that in order for me to take a picture I have to open the drawer the camera is in, pull it out of the camera bag, turn it on, change the batteries because it seems like they are always dead, and then try to take a decent picture of my "having their picture taken challenged children." It's just a hassle.

Example #4- My workout habits. I start the day by planning on working out before the kids wake up, and then it gets pushed back to room time, which then gets pushed back to working out during nap time, which then turns into after the kids go to bed for the night, which then brings us right back to working out in the morning before the kids wake up. It's a vicious cycle.

Another wonderful trait we phlegmatics have is the inability to make a decision, which was proven several times while I was out with my mother yesterday. I saw the look of panic and confusion on my mother's face while at Costco when the checkout person asked her if she wanted a box for her groceries. Now, this may not be a big deal for you, but for a phlegmatic to have to decide if they want a box or not and answer in a timely manner is no small feat. Sure we are use to the "do you want paper or plastic?" question, but to throw a curve ball like "would you like a box"? in there can completely derail you. After much contemplation she decided to go with the box. We later regretted that decision.

We then decided it was time for lunch and after a long conversation that consisted mostly of -

"Where do you want to eat."
"I don't care. Where do you want to eat?"
"It really doesn't matter to me" "What sounds good to you?"
"Oh, I am okay with anything." (Sounds alot like those vultures from the Jungle Book doesn't it?)

We decided on Olive Garden, where we were met with more very difficult decisions that had to be made. We ordered the soup, salad, and bread sticks. When our server asked us if we wanted our soup with the salad or after our salad my mom and I both just stared at each other, both of us hoping the other person would make a decision. We started asking each other what we should do. After an uncomfortable amount of time spent debating, we still didn't know what we wanted so I just blurted out that we would have the soup after our salad, which we later regretted and asked our server to please bring our soup out before we were finished with our salad. Then came the big, do you want cheese on your salad question.Will the questions never stop! I was ready to not have to make any more decisions for the rest of the day after that meal.


Not only are phlegmatics not very motivated or good at making decisions, but we are not very detail oriented. Which would be why all the posters hanging on my sons wall are crooked. And why I assembled a fake Christmas tree upside down and didn't notice. Or why when I go shopping with my mom and my sister (also a phlegmatic) we can never remember where we parked the car until after much wandering around the parking lot with lost looks on our faces.

So now you have been given a look into my life and the things that I have to work through. I have become better at being not quite as phlegmatic as I used to be now that I am married and want to keep my husband and children happy and fed. But some days, it takes alot of pep talks with myself to get that laundry done and that dinner made.

He's got a sensitive side....

and I am not talking about Scott, although he really does and I am pretty sure he cries more than I do, but those are stories for another time. Today I am talking about Connor. I started to see the sensitive side of my son when one day we were watching the kids movie "Meet the Robinsons" with my mom and sister. The scene came on where it shows the mom leaving her baby on the door step of the orphanage, and I happen to look over at Connor and his eyes are filled with tears and I can see he is trying his hardest not to cry. I barely managed to ask Connor what was wrong before I burst into tears myself at the sight of my four year old so broken hearted that a mom was leaving her baby behind. He looked at me with giant tears in his eyes and said, "mom, why is the mom leaving her baby? She is not supposed to leave her baby." My mom and I were both in tears and trying to compose ourselves so I could explain to him what was going on. He still didn't get it and just continued to cry. Talk about and emotionally draining Disney movie. We will never be watching that movie again.

Then today, my mom brought over Charlotte's Web that she had just bought at a garage sale. I put it in for the kids and they seemed to like it. Then came the part where Charlotte was about to die. Connor looks at me worriedly and asks what is wrong with Charlotte. I told him that she is going to die. I didn't think he would be so concerned about the fate of this spider. He looks at me panicked and says, "Mom, turn this movie off right now. Please, mom right now! This is too sad!" So I turned it off right before the end. This is probably another movie that will never be watched again. I already know that Old Yeller and Where the Red Fern Grows are movies that will not be watched in this house. I can just imagine the shattered pieces of my sons broken heart those movies would cause. We will just stick with the natural disaster movies, apparently he can handle those ones. 

The Adventures of Translucent Boy and Fancy Hat Girl

Because it got quite warm today I decided to put the sprinkler out for Connor and Olivia. Connor loved it, Olivia did not. She kept yelling "It's waining" (raining) and cried when she got wet. She is such a prissy girl, I have no idea where she got that from.

I documented the sprinkler adventures for your viewing pleasure. I am warning you, Connor is wearing only his underwear. Be glad he has that on, if he had his way he would have been naked. Olivia however, would not leave the house without her lady hat on. 

I am translucent boy, the sprinkler is no match for me!

washing the "digger" otherwise known as a shovel.  He doesn't like the water getting in his face. Only my child would play in the sprinkler with one hand covering his face.

washing the "scrape" otherwise known as a rake

"Dang, how am I going to get those without getting water in my eyes?"

 Side note: I did turn the sprinkler off so he could get the shovels, but being the mom that I am I turned it back on right as he grabbed them. Olivia and I thought it was hilarious, Connor, not so much.

Fancy hat girl with "scrape and sidewalk chalk" Note, the whale on the patio. Yep, I drew that, I know impressive huh?

The solution to the water in the eyes: safety goggles from the play tool set.

Night and Day

That is how different my children are compared to each other. Olivia is enthusiastic about everything, even if it is something brand new. Connor likes to ease his way into things and usually can't do anything new without first letting me know how nervous he is about it. Olivia practically dances all day long. She can't even walk down the hall without bobbing her head back and forth and shaking her little booty. Connor, well, we are still trying to get him to bend his knees while he runs, it's great entertainment watching him.

This morning I made the kids something new for breakfast. I asked them if they would like to try cinnamon toast for breakfast. Olivia of course shouts "YA"! She doesn't care what it is as long as it's breakfast. Connor is concerned about having to try the cinnamon toast. I have to explain what it is a few times to him. I assured him he would love it and was really wanting some myself, but no, I have to eat a stupid egg because it's healthier. I am just a little bitter. Olivia dived right into her toast and yelled "Yum!" after every bite. I had to make Connor try his. Olivia was asking for seconds before Connor even took a bite. While I am making Liv more, Connor tells me he is done with his toast. The only part he ate was the crust. The crust! Who eats the crust on cinnamon toast? The best part is the middle with all that butter, sugar, and cinnamon. I just can't believe it. Oh, and while I was making them breakfast I was singing the song about the ant trying to move the rubber tree. Olivia just bobbed her head back and forth with a huge smile on her face enjoying the song, while Connor stared at me confused. I knew I was going to have to interpret the song for him. Sure enough,  "Mom, why is the ant trying to move a tree? Is he looking for food? Is it a sugar ant? Can ants really move trees?" Oh my. I was already tired of having to explain things and it was only 7:30 in the morning.

It just makes me laugh how different they are, but I just love each of their personalities. They keep me busy and make me laugh every day. They do have some things in common, but the most important thing is that they both love to snuggle with their momma.

Desperation is a dangerous thing.....

Especially when scissors are involved. My hair has really been bugging me lately. It was at the perfect length that it always got in my mouth. I kept finding food in it. It was like I was a three year old that constantly had sticky stuff in their hair. So last night I stood in front of my bathroom mirror with chunk of my hair in one hand and scissors in the other for fifteen minutes asking Olivia if I should cut my hair. I kept saying, "should I do it? It's really bugging me! Should I just go ahead and cut it?" And my darling daughter answered me every time with an enthusiastic "Ya!" while she went through my makeup drawer and put on my chapstick. So I took my almost two year olds advice and cut my hair. And then panicked! When Scott got home he cut the other side of my hair that I was afraid to finish. I can't believe I let my husband cut my hair. If that doesn't say trust I don't know what does. Okay, trust really had nothing to do with it. I was just desperately hoping he could help me fix what I started. It didn't turn out too bad, but don't examine the cut too close. Tucking my hair behind my ears really camouflages things.

I sent my mom four pictures and she never got them and before I could get any trusted outside opinion on my hair it was time for me to go to church. I actually got a few compliments on it and my sister approved. I know she would tell my the truth.



If you are wondering what is wrong with my face, it's a no makeup day. Will I ever cut my hair by myself again? Probably not.

 On a different note, I made the best banana bread I have ever had yesterday. It has a delicious sugary streusely crust on the top. Here's the link. You can thank me later. http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/breads/extra-special-banana-bread/

Payback

Last night my son got me back for all the times that I have scared him, and he did it without even trying.  He likes to listen to music at night which I am okay with until it is time for me to go to bed. I have to have it really quiet in the house or I just can't sleep. Connor's room is right across the hall from ours so I can hear his music quite clearly. I usually sneak into his room when I am headed to bed and turn his music off. Last night I snuck into his room and was just about to turn his music off when I realized that he wasn't asleep, but was sitting up staring at me. Scared the living daylights out of me! I am suprised I didn't scream. Do you know how creepy it is to see someone sitting up and staring at you in the darkness? He just looked at me and said, "What are you doing in my room mom?" When I recovered enough to talk, I just told him I was checking on him. I just wanted to make sure he was doing okay. I am not sure he really believed me. I tried to sneak back in his room later to turn off his music but the kid was still awake. Why was it taking so long for him to go to sleep? Maybe he was waiting for me to come back in. I eventually just went in and told him I had to turn his music down, it was driving mommy crazy. I think next time I will send Scott in there, he doesn't scare as easily as I do.

What a weekend

Scott's parents came down to visit this weekend. It is always fun when Grandpa George and Grandma Micki come down to play. I know Olivia loves having "fresh meat" to work her charms on. We are all pretty much numb to the sweetness she tries to use to get her way, but not Grandma and Grandpa W. About 5 minutes after they were here Olivia had Grandpa George wrapped around her tiny little finger.

We didn't do much Friday. On Saturday George and Scott went to work at the church and Micki and I took the kids to the library. Saturday night we had dinner at my parents house. I made potato soup and it was delicious thank you very much. Sunday was just a lazy day and Monday I thought I was going to die of exhaustion.

We didn't really have any plans for Memorial Day but that quickly changed. I started out the day by going on a four mile walk to try to burn off the delicious dinner at Stanfords I had the night before and all the sugar I consumed while drinking their delicious cofffee. I love the coffee at Stanfords but it is a little strong for me. I practically told our server to just bring me a cow and sugar cane for my coffee so he didn't have to keep bringing me those tiny packets of sugar, of which I consumed more than I am going to admit to.

We decided at about 11:00 to take the kids up to the Portland Children's Museum since we had never been there before and it would be indoor fun. So we ate a quick lunch, packed in the car and headed into Portland. Olivia sang Ginkle Ginkle lil saw (Twinkle twinkle little star) and the ABC song ALL the way up there. I guess it's better than crying. The first thing Connor said when we pulled in the parking lot was "this makes me nervous." Well too bad, we drove all the way here, you are going to have fun! He did warm up to it.

Being forced to play

At the water table. He started warming up to the place at this time.

If there is a train, he is going to find it.

Grocery shopping

She didn't want to leave. Or maybe she heard us say we were going to the zoo now and she was afraid for her pacifier.

Yes, we went to the zoo afterwards. Connor asked me abour 4 times as we were walking in where Sissy's pacifier was. When we walked in the zoo and he saw the goat exhibit, he asked if that was the goat that had Liv's pacifier. He kept tabs on it the whole time we were there. Do you kow they actually have signs that say to not drop food or pacifiers in the zoo exhibits? Guess I wasn't the first one.

On the way home Olivia sang Ginkle Ginkle lil saw and the ABC song the whole way. We really have to teach that girl some new songs. I don't know why they didn't sleep on the way home, I sure wanted to. We finished the day at McDonald's with happy meals and ice cream and crashed when we got home. I am definitely feeling the four mile walk from yesterday and all the walking at the zoo and museum but it was all worth it.

New night time ritual

My son is a snuggler and wants me to cuddle with him in his bed every night after I tuck him in. His bed is more comfortable than mine so I don't have a problem with this. Lately he has been wanting to play "spiders" while we are cuddling. Let me give you a demonstration: 



These are 2 tarantulas from the north of eastern (wherever that is) and are also found in Mexico. (My hand is the one on the left in case you couldn't tell.)







I am the unfortunate spider that is not going to escape this encounter with all its legs. I never get to be the winning spider.

I have survived the fight but have lost a leg in the process. (I would appreciate my family not leaving any comments regarding my thumbs.)

Besides losing at least one and sometimes all of my spider legs, I usually get injected by some kind of spider poison that leaves my little spider hand all shriveled. All I have to say is if I have to play this little game every night I would like to just once be the winning spider. Oh well, there is always tomorrow night.

The Mighty Bug Hunters

It was nice outside yesterday so they kids and I decided to spend some time out of doors. It was more the kids begging me over and over to go outside than me actually deciding. I am more of an indoor gal- less bugs.  So we grabbed the sidewalk chalk and headed outside. Once we go outside Connor informed me that he and Sissy were going on a bug hunt. "Oh, this will be good," I thought to myself.



The pre bug hunting stretches





Armed with sidewalk chalk. A must have when hunting bugs

Any bugs over here?

Off to the wildest regions of the back yard

Yikes! We found some! Run away, run away! (It was very much like watching Monty Python: Search for the Holy Grail, just without the coconuts and British accents)

Connor wanted me to take his picure by the little fly that was on the see-saw swing next to him. While his focus was on the fly another bug flew by him on the other side. Thus the "What was that?" look on his face. He thought it was an ambush. He was about done with the great outdoors after that.



What to do, What to do?

We are out of milk. Well, we are out of 1% milk which is what I like to drink. We have whole milk but that is for Sis and I just can't drink that stuff. Connor was afraid he was going to turn back into a baby because he had to have whole milk this morning, I assured him that I would in no way give anything to him that would make him turn back into a baby, I just wouldn't punish myself by doing that.

So the dilemma is, do I pack up the kids and run to the store for milk or just wait until Scott gets home and see if he will do it for me. If I go I could get myself a latte, but I don't have any makeup on and didn't do anything to my hair and I am wearing my holey sweats and I don't think I can bring myself to put on jeans this morning. At least I am wearing a bra. Do I risk going to the store and having people I know see me and think to themselves, "Wow, Amy has really let herself go since she became a stay at home mom. Poor Scott." Or do I not worry about what people think and just walk in as I am? Do you see the dilemma I face? I know you feel bad for me. I told Scott we just need to get a cow and put it in the back yard but he didn't think this would be a good idea, seeings as how a puppy was too much work for me and we ended up giving it back to the person we got it from after a only a week. I am not big about animals peeing on my carpet and when I saw a flea it was all over. I need a clean, potty trained, lazy pet. But I don't have to potty train a cow so I don't see what the big deal is. It's a good thing Connor never peed on the carpet when we were potting training or I would have had to get rid of him too. He did pee on the wood floor but that was actually kind of funny, or rather his reaction was funny. I had just put big boy underwear on him and I said he wasn't allowed to go potty in his underwear. A little bit later I hear water splashing on the floor. I look over and he had this look of panic on his face. "What is happening to me?!" he says. He was used to his diaper catching everything for him and was shocked to discover things just gushing out of him and all over him. Scott just kind of stood there with a look of bewilderment on his face. I asked for his help and he looked at me helplessly and said, "What do I do? I don't know what to do?" Oh that husband of mine.

Anyways. Do I go, or do I not? I think I may be able to set aside my pride for a white chocolate mocha from starbucks. 

Watch your phraseology

Well my husband is watching a documentary about World War II airplanes right now and as much as I just love learning about jet propellers, the P51 mustang and the German Luftwaffe's I thought I would just blog instead. Yes, I was being sarcastic about loving to learn about that stuff. In the first part of our marriage he drug me to two different air museums and spent what felt like eternity drooling over every airplane and telling me everything there is to know about them. It was still early on in our married life so I pretended that I loved every minute of it and even had him take my picture while standing next to the airplanes. What I was really wondering was how long would we be there and I was pretty sure I saw ice cream in the gift shop. Sadly we left the museums without any ice cream. Now that we have been married seven years I no longer have to pretend to like the documentaries and I will just go get my own ice cream thank you very much.

So here I am blogging instead of learning and I am okay with that. The kids and I took a walk around our neighborhood today on the hunt for garage sales. This is actually something I don't enjoy doing. I never find anything good at garage sales. My mother however is the queen of finding great stuff at garage sales and I don't think she ever pays more than $2 for anything. She has the gift. Sadly I do not. My mom has made my son a lover of garage sales as well, so when I gave him the choice of going to the library or going on the hunt for garage sales, he chose the latter. So we packed up the suburban (double stroller) and we were off on our hunt. We (I) walked for almost an hour and a half up and down the sidewalks, up steep driveways and around garbage cans that people still have on the sidewalks even though garbage day was Thursday. It's Saturday people, put your garbage can away! But I digress. Sadly the most exciting thing that happened was Olivia getting her foot caught in the wheel of the stroller. Took a few minutes but I managed to free her with her foot still being intact. It was sketchy for a minute there. Connor was very disappointed that we didn't find any toys. I bought a veggie tale video for a dime and a Tinkerbell dress for Sissy for a dollar. Big spender, I know. Connor complained about all the walking making him hungry which is interesting since about 2 minutes into our adventure he decided he wanted to ride in the stroller instead of walk. I almost kicked him out of the stroller and had him push Olivia and I home, but I had to work off the chocolate chip cookies I had after lunch.

When we were about home I said I was pooped. Connor jumped right on that. "What Mom, you pooped! Where did you poop Mom, I don't see it. Show me where you pooped Mom!" Thank you son for making all the neighbors think I pooped outside. I will be watching my phraseology around him from now on. And in case you didn't know "Watch your phraseology" is a line from the Music Man. If you haven't seen it then you need to stop reading this right now and go watch it. Watch it until you know every line of "76 trombones" and until you can't here anyone mention Gary, Indiana without bursting into song. My husband loves it when I sing that song to him. Okay, not really but if I have to hear about the evolution of the fighter plane then he gets to hear me sing "Marianne, Madam Librarian."

Works for me!

Lately Connor has been interested in the clock and wanting to know what time it is. He would look at the clock when I would put Liv to bed and then ask me to show him where the hands on the clock will be when it's his bed time. Liv goes down for her nap at 1 and Connor at 1:30. This gives us a little extra time together where it is just the two of us. So I told Connor when the big hand points straight down it is your bed time. Since I told him that he has been the one keeping his eye on the clock and telling me that it is time for him to go to bed, and then he will go get ready for his nap. He is very concerned that he will be late for nap time. He is the type of kid that doesn't want to break the rules. He likes to keep the instructions to his toys and look at them so he knows the right way to do things.

I have enjoyed the fact that he is so interested in making his naps on time, but the best part has been that he has been putting himself to bed a half an hour early at night. Liv goes to bed at 7:00 and then when the big hand points straight down Connor thinks it's his bed time. His bedtime is actually 8:00 but who am I to tell him he is wrong. Scott tried to say something the other night about it not being bed time yet but I quickly gave him the, "keep your mouth shut if you know what's good for you" look and Connor still doesn't know that he is going to bed a half an hour early. I know someday he will learn to tell time but until then mommy gets an extra half hour to herself.

The Deadly Dozen

This is my sons new favorite show. No matter how many times I try to get him to watch the new Rapunzel movie, he always chooses this one. It's an animal planet documentary that we have on Netflix that has 8 different episodes and each episode is about the 12 most deadly animals in 8 different places around the world. I now know 8 different places that I will NOT be traveling to thanks to this show. I have learned a lot of interesting facts about different animals. Like did you know a hippo can run 45 miles an hour. That's on land! They are among the deadly dozen so stay away from them. Oh, and Jellyfish, don't even get me started, just take my advice and stay out of the water.

Connor's favorite episode is the one about Australia, but the only part he wants to watch is the spider part. Shocking, I know. It's about the red back spider and the funnel web spider. Both are extremely deadly and he is just fascinated with them. Did you know that the funnel web spider has fangs that are so long you have to pull the spider off of you when you get bit? It can bite right through your toenail! I can hardly type that without getting the goosebumps. I have had to put a stop to watching this show because when I lay in bed at night I totally psyche myself out and think I can feel spiders crawling on me. It takes me forever to fall asleep and then I dream about funnel web spiders being stuck in my toenail. It's awful.

I was snuggling with Connor the other night in his bed and he says to me, "When are we going to Australia mom so we can see the funnel web spider?" And I of course responded with a "Well son, that would be never." But he wasn't upset at all. He says, "That's okay mom, Grandma will take me." And you know he is probably right. I don't think there is anything my mother wouldn't do for her grandson, and that includes trips to far away places to see extremely poisonous spiders.

I can't wait for him to get over this spider kick. I am going to continue to push that Rapunzel movie. It's so cute and there isn't any spiders in it. Why don't my children want to watch those fun disney movies? I grew up watching them and I loved every single one. I made Connor watch Robin Hood not too long ago and he said it made him nervous. It's just not normal! Robin Hood makes you nervous but you are completely okay with deadly spiders? What can I do though, this is the world I live in. I can only hope that with all the tornado, hurricane, and spider shows we watch that he will grow up to be some kind of scientist and make his momma lots of money.

No soliciting!

I really need to get on of those signs for my door. When we first moved into our house in town I didn't think we really got that many solicitors, but that is only because I worked all day and they came when I was not at home. Now that I am home all the time it seems like they are always knocking at my door. There timing is horrible. It seems like they always come during nap time or on a day that I  haven't taken a shower yet or am not wearing a bra.

We have had some very interesting people come to the door wanting us to buy there stuff. Here are a couple of things they should know before they knock.  If I open my door and you look like you are living on the streets and don't have any teeth, I am not going to let you in my house.  If you can't remember what company you work for, I am not letting you in my house.  If you come during my kids' nap time, you are keeping me from taking my nap and that will not help your sales one bit. Mama needs her nap!

On saturday we had a guy selling vacuums come to the door. The first mistake he made was coming to my door at 8:00pm. The second mistake was coming when I didn't have my bra on. Have I mentioned how much I hate answering the door when I am not wearing a bra? When I opened the door he was all cheery and handed me a container of clorox wipes. He then said he was with a new company and would get $35 if he would let me do his demonstration. I said I wasn't interested. He started whining and begging and said I was his last house of the night. I asked what he was selling and he said vacuum cleaners. I said nope, not interested at all and he got mad at me and rudely stuck his hand out to take the clorox wipes away from me. He then tried to leave but the back of his shirt got stuck on the handle of my screen door and he couldn't move. It was a very awkward situation. Do I shut my door while there is a strange man with clorox wipes hanging on my screen door, or do I keep it open until he gets himself free? I started closing the door right as I heard him about to say a naughty word, and then I started opening it again because I just wasn't sure what to do about him, and then I remembered how rude he was and I just shut the door and hoped he would free himself before we went to bed. Just a minute later I saw him angrily stomping to the next house. There are times I really don't like that screen door but that night I appreciated it very much.

I think I may just write a letter to all solicitors and hang it on my door.

Dear solicitors,
I am probably napping and may or may not be wearing a bra. Do not bother to knock, just continue on to the next house.
Thank you

Just a few new things

1. I am afraid that Connor's new interest might be blood. He has been mentioning it a lot lately just completely out of the blue. He told me yesterday that he couldn't drink his juice because it made his blood ache. He also told me that his sister had an owie in her toe blood. I hope this phase is a short one, and I guarantee you he won't be watching movies with blood in them.

2. Easter is just around the corner and this has led to some interesting conversations with Connor. First of all he really wants to get "James without the bees on his face," in his Ester basket. (if your house has not been over run with thomas the train and friends and you don't know what I am talking about, James is the red number 5 engine on the island of sodor. "He is vain, but lot's of fun.") My mom said she would get that for Connor when he was done singing his song in the Easter choir. Might I mention that she told him this weeks ago and everytime we practice his song he asks me for "James without the bees." Thanks mom.

Connor asked me a few days ago when the Easter bunny guy was coming. I tried to explain to him that Easter is about Jesus dying on the cross and raising from the dead. He just stared at me like I was crazy and said, "Ya, but when is the bunny bringing my basket?" We will keep working on the true meaning of Easter.

3. Olivia's new favorite word is "why." Connor has been the victim of her "why" questions several times now. He will say something to her and she will respond with "why." So he will try to explain again what he just said and she will again respond with "why." This goes on and on until Connor finally gets frustrated and says, "Sissy, can you just stop saying that?!" And of course she responds with "why." Oh, it makes me laugh!

And I will leave you with this picture of Olivia.She chose the outfit herself, except the mismatched jammies. Scott did that because he knows how much it bothers me when the kids' jammies don't match.

I'm sorry it is so dark and small, I am  not technical enough to fix that. But she is wearing her jammies with a beanie hat, her white dress shoes, and her safety glasses. The girl is ready for anything.

"Not even if he was the last man on earth"

Yes, these were the words I said about my future husband.  The summer of 2003 we started out just hanging together with a group of friends. I really was not interested in him then. I thought he was old. There is an eight and a half year age difference between us. Might I also mention that two years before we stared dating, he was one of the chaperones at my senior prom. A chaperone! An old chaperone!

But that summer we started seeing each other almost everday. In my mind we were just friends.But, I knew something was up when I would come home from work and he would be hanging out with my family. I tried to scare him away by telling him that I thought of him as a big brother, but the man is stubborn and kept coming around. I just couldn't resist his charms.We got along so well and I really just loved being with him. I started liking him more and more and before long I knew that I didn't just like him, I LIKED him liked him. I fell in love with him despite his quietness and his dislike for musicals and showtunes and his hatred of Taco Bell. The last part was almost a deal breaker, who doesn't like Taco Bell? We worked it out though.

 We became an official couple on September 9th, my sister's birthday. My birthday is just a week after my sister's. To celebrate my birth day my best friend Beth, her now husband, and Scott and I went to Multnomah Falls. Scott tried to kiss me there, but I wouldn't let him and believe me I have not lived it down. I try not to mention water falls around him, he has not gotten over being rejected. We did eventually kiss though for crying out loud! He keeps saying he is going to take me back there so he can get his kiss, but me being the hiker that I am do not see that happening.

We were engaged on December 2nd of that same year. I was sent to the store (rather rudely I must say) for pepsi and when I got back to my parents house the Christmas tree was filled with my favorite roses and there was a beautiful diamond ring around one of them, which I spotted from the kitchen. It was wonderful! We were married April 17th and now here we are 7 years later. It feels like we have been together forever, and I mean that in a good way. He is my BFF (best friend foreverver) and I always want to be with him. (I am a quatlity time person, sadly he is not).  I can't wait to see what the next 97 years has for us. (He is not getting away from me before then. Mwahahahaha! Is that creepy?) I am so glad I decided to marry the last man on earth. Happy Anniversary Honey! I am so glad I chose you and not Bond, James Bond.

I'm so glad he got me to change my mind, it would have been sad to miss out on this.

I am disgusted

Tuesday I go to get Olivia up from her nap and find her playing in her poopy diaper. We had an emergency bath and I tried to tell her how disgusted I was by making icky faces and saying no, no over and over. Connor thought it was all great fun. Today I go to get her out of her crib from room time and she has poop on her hands and on her shirt. I said "Olivia, is that poop!?" and she shows me her hands and says "awesome." No, this is NOT awesome.  Again, Connor thought this was all great fun. I caught her early in the act before she got it every where so I just decided I would change her clothes and wash her hands in the sink. The minute I put a squirt of soap on her hands she starts freaking out and yelling "eww, yucky!" Really? The poop is awesome and the soap is yucky? I don't get it. Hopefully the washing of the hands with soap was traumatic enough and she will keep her hands out of her diaper.