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Saturday, June 21, 2008

Three



I just finished a baking extravaganza. I made 2 loaves of cinnamon bread, 2 loaves of banana bread, a ham and cheese pizza, a 9x13 pan of stuffed blueberry french toast, and chicken tortilla soup.

Do you know how or why I was able to do this?

Because I actually had some spare time!

S is with Grandma this weekend, and the boys have played beautifully together all day. I cannot believe what a difference one less kid makes. It doesn't matter what kid. It is just that two four-year olds play better together than three.

No competition for each other's attention.
No bargaining about what games to play.
No leaving one kid out.
No ganging up on each other.

And B was in his glory, because he could ask as many questions as he wanted, and I actually had the time to answer him. I'll give you a small sampling of some of his best:
How come my peeny (male anatomy) is squishy?
How come it's grandmas' jobs to give you treats ALL THE TIME and mama and papas' jobs to give you treats only after you do your star chart?
How come Z's jammies are not cool and mine ARE cool? What makes mine cool? Are mine cool , or no? They aren't cute are they, because I don't want cute jammies?!
Did you know that you can't do flips on the swing like I can? I think it's because the baby would get sick.
How come it hurts when someone hits you with a stick?
Is this exercise (standing on one leg, then kicking up in the air, then falling on the ground on his face) or is it a trick?
But WHY can't I eat my boogers?

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Chicago






We have friends that live to Chicago. I like them. I like that they talk about sex. And butt cracks. And everything else. And I like that Colleen said, "Glen, we better get going, K and K are already FIVE babies ahead of us!" Who still remembers (or at least verbally acknowledges) that this kicking-my-ribs-as-I-type baby will be Baby #5? Thanks, Colleen. And I like that they came to visit us in our hotel at 11 o' clock at night, even though they'd both had long days. I like that Colleen made us get Garrett's Popcorn (cheese and caramel corn mixed). I like that Glen always calls Colleen "Beautiful" (I don't want you to do that for me, though, Keith), and that they carried our kids (on their backs, shoulders, legs, arms) for most of the time that we were in Chicago. I'm glad they did, because we wouldn't!

We stayed in a really nice ($189/room) hotel for $50. Although it was a beautiful hotel, I don't think that they should be able to take advantage of you, just because you (supposedly) have the money to afford a room like that. We couldn't do anything there that didn't cost A TON. The bar offered candy bars for $3.50 each. We had to pay for Internet access and PARKING! Um, I kind of expect that parking is going to be included in the price of the room! $20, even. Maybe I am cheap, but those costs sicked me out.

You would think our kids were from the back woods! (Oh, right...they are.) Everything was glass in the hotel, and our kids were amazed and perplexed:
"Hey! Wait! Come get me!", yelled S from the bottom of the entryway stairs. She refused to walk up the glass steps (you could see under to the next floor down) for fear of falling to her death.
"Wow, mama! Look at this!" Our boys spent many minutes staring at themselves in a mirrored glass table at the checkout waiting area.
"Wack! Thud!" Z actually ran so hard into a too-clean glass door that he flew back several feet, crying, his forehead already developing a big, blue bruise.

We spent the first day at the zoo. We stayed for three hours. When asked later what their favorite part of the zoo was, Z quickly answered, "The monkeys!"

Huh. That's weird, Z, because we left before we even GOT to the monkeys!

His answer, I supposed, was less surprising than S's, who told me that her "most best part was the men." I still have no idea what she is talking about. Is she a teenager already?!

The next day, we spent the day with Glen and Colleen, downtown. We played in the city water fountain, we played at a children's festival (crafts, activities, books), and we walked (alot). The thing is, it didn't matter what we did. We were just happy to hang out with our old friends again, and our kids enjoyed being carried and hugged and teased and spoiled by their new friends, "Glen and the Queen".

We ended our day at the aquarium, and while that was the main reason for our going to Chicago, we ended up getting lost on the way there, and having only an hour to rush through and see all there was to be seen. It was fine, and I think our kids had more fun with "Glen and the Queen" than they would have had seeing more fish.

We left (getting home at 1ish am), happy and content to sleep (and puke, as Z did, "from eating too much caramel corn") all the way to our little holler in the woods.

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

The Papa

Fifteen Things on the Fifteenth of June:




It's Father's Day, so here we go. Some stuff about Keith:
1. He makes breakfast for us almost every time he has a day off. Usually eggs and bacon.
2. When I tell him that B chose the "Spend Time with Papa (or Mama, but they always pick Papa) Alone" reward card, he responds, "NICE!" or "Cool!" I love that he genuinely likes spending time with our kids.
3. He empties the dishwasher, because it is the job I despise the most (he also cleans the tub/shower).
4. He read 15 of our kids' library books in a row yesterday. I love that he loves books. I hope our kids like reading as much as we do.
5. He gives away his personal spending money almost every week. He is way more generous than I will ever be. (I am trying hard to learn from him).
6. He hates pretending, and yet....he danced with Princess S the other day, (at the "Grand Ball"), twirling her and doing dips, oohing and aahing over her beautiful dress. He searched all over for her when she fled at midnight, leaving one of her glass slippers.
7. He wrestles with the boys almost every day. (I don't wrestle, even a tiny bit. Ever.)
8. He sword fights too,
9. which is why our kids think that the Papa is WAY more fun than me.
9. He lives out what he believes.
10. He doesn't get annoyed when I make him feel the baby kicking....AGAIN.
11. He never lets his work come before his family. Although he often puts his family (us) before himself.
13. He isn't picky. So, when I experiment by replacing whatever ingredient with the one I don't have, he doesn't complain when dinner sucks.
14. He loves me, even when I tell him that I just asked a high school a guy I used to know what his last name used to be. (I meant what IS his last name, because I think we used to know each other in high school). :) So, he loves me, despite my impulsive habit of not thinking before talking or acting.
15. He loves his family. He thinks his sister is one of the coolest people in the world (what guy admits that!?), and (despite the fact that he is a guy) he remembers to call his dad on Father's Day. (I haven't even called mine yet!)
While I am constantly thinking that I screwed up, again, in the position of being the Mama, I couldn't be happier knowing that our kids have been greatly blessed in having K be their dad.

The kids (and I) love you, K. Thanks for who you are.

Monday, June 09, 2008

I Got Nothin'







I have nothing to say.

Huh. Is that good? Our kids have been enjoyable, even.
And funny. I feel like I've been laughing alot, although I can't remember anything in particular that was said.

Besides the small breakdown (last post) last week, our lives have been pretty uneventful.

I can't force a post, so I will post some pictures.

Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Garbage


I just spent the last four days working on a table to put in my living room. I sanded it like crazy, then I had K primer it (because the can says it causes brain damage to babies), then I sprayed it.

And waited a day.

And sprayed it again.

Then, K turned it over, because he said there were parts that wouldn't get sprayed well unless it was upside down. The top of the table stuck to the towel and got all bumpy.

And we didn't have any more paint.

I sanded it again. And bought more paint. And sprayed it.

It was all bumpy anyway.

I sanded it again.

It was streaky after I painted it. I painted it again.

I sighed a proud breathe of fume-filled air, and began the clear coat enamel. I was on my way to the finish line!

The CLEAR coat enamel that I bought was actually white! WHAT THE HECK!?

Then I quick wiped it off and found some other clear coat enamel, but it was too old and it came out in chunks.

On my table.

So I quick tried to wipe THAT off, but it took the coats of paint off in places, right down the primer. So I sanded it like crazy and sanded it some more. Then Z was whining LIKE CRAZY about not being able to pedal his bike. And I yelled at him LOUDLY and told him to quit whining. And he cried and ran away. And I felt bad. And I sanded some more.

And decided it wasn't worth it. I threw the whole project in the dumpster.

Then I remembered how much work already went into the frickin' thing, and I fished it back out.

It was cracked already, from being thrown in the dumpster.

And the whole time I am all nervous and paranoid about painting anyway, because I am pregnant and paranoid about everything. What if I was causing brain damage to the baby with all those painting fumes?

So, now I finally just threw the whole table in the dumpster. Again. For good. (I actually stamped my feet. And whined.)

I also wondered why I spent $20 on paint for a crappy table anyway. And why I risked brain damage to our baby for a TABLE. And if it was worth yelling at Z for...

K's gonna have to paint the other table I have. I wonder why I didn't just let him the 1st time.

Sunday, June 01, 2008

A Conversation


Me: "What are you guys doing out here (on the porch, squatting in a circle, chewing)?"
S: "We're eating snowflakes!"
Me: (Gagging some) "Um, actually, you are eating blobs of bird poop..."
Z: "I thought it tasted kinda gross!"
S: "How come bird poop doesn't taste like snow, mama?"

Huh. Good question, I guess.