Do those break?

Isabella came into the office the other day and was trying to tell me something. I asked her what was wrong, and she said,

"I 'boke' my head"!

Not sure how a toddler breaks their head, but it seemed like such a funny thing to say.

Today Emilee was hanging on the grocery cart, and when she stepped off, I nearly ran over her feet. I asked her not to do that again, I didn't want to hurt her feet. Then Bella piped up with,

"Ow, mama, ow. My socks hurt!"

Feeling hot?

We keep a box in our house, a place to write down the funny things that the kids say. I wish now that I had started it sooner, but I think the oldest quotes are from when Jonathan was about 4-5 or so. Many of the quotes I list here will also be listed and kept in the box. The rule is that the quote can be on ANYthing you can find to write on, a receipt, sticky note, whatever, just save those words!

Isabella just had her first quote added to the box. She woke up the other day, and seemed warm, so I went to take her temp. She asked what the machine was, "What's dat, Mama?"
I said, "Oh, that's a thermometer."
She said, "Oh, a mama-better??"
Seems to me that she got it pretty close!

Moose?

Something I wouldn't ever think I would hear my son say, " Good news, Mom, my moose is pregnant!"
"Um, good news honey!" I think.
He likes to play ZooTycoon lately, and is obsessed with the building and productivity of his zoo. Doing different things will increase your revenue and visitors. He can set up different size spaces, and is working on managing the numbers of each animals in the pens. He is figuring out that putting 2 males in one cage isn't always advisable. When the mamas have the babies, there is a "poof", and a little burst of light, and "WHAM-O" the zoo population has just increased. If only things were that easy in real life!

Bad associations...

Conversation with Grama on Sunday. (She is very sweet, and will be 95 in July)

My brother called to remind me that Grama's 2nd son was celebrating his birthday this weekend. I told her we could call him after dinner.

Later:

Me: Let's finish this up and then we'll call Uncle Al.

Grama: Ok, and you just let me know how much that call is (long distance), and make sure I pay you back.

Me: Don't worry about it Grama, I have unlimited long distance so I can call my friends in Colorado, Missouri, and Alaska. You could talk to him for 24 hours and it wouldn't cost me anymore.

Grama: Well, if you're sure about that. I should get that on my new phone line when I move (in 2 weeks). I don't know who I have now.... is it VIAGRA?

Me: No, Grama, I think you have Verizon!!

Happy To You, Bizz

Dear Isabella,

Happy Birthday, Little One. Or, as you have been saying, “Happy To You.” We celebrated on Sat at Grammy and Papa's house since we were in Ridgecrest, and last night at scouts since it was your actual birthday. We will have another party this weekend when friends can come over and swim.

YOU have taught me alot in your 2 little years so far. First and foremost, that I wasn't done with the birth of your sister. Daddy did, in fact, have a good idea when he thought we should try for one more baby. Never mind, of course, that it meant more surgery for me, and he was a wimp.

You were a fairly easy pregnancy, compared to my pregnancy with Emilee. You were my easiest recovery, we went home a day early from Providence. You were my only spring baby. You never lived in snow in Alaska like your brother and sister. I was, however, big and pregnant with you while living in the snow, and yes, I did fall down. (Sorry about that, honey.)

You were pretty good right from the get-go, and unlike your big sis, not too confused about days and nights. You didn’t HAVE to sleep next to me like she did, but you didn’t mind it too much either

You have followed really consistently in their milestones, and walked at 12 months of age.

You love whip cream, and your first real food was a raspberry Popsicle on my lap.

You are a good traveler, coming to CA when you were just 1 month old, and again at 2 months. By the time you were 4 ½ months old, you were officially a Californian. You were a breeze on those flights, and a trooper through being “homeless” while waited on houses to close.

You were baptized on my Papa’s birthday, July 9^th. What a treat. Maybe that is why you have his hairline… or lack of hairline!! You wore your Great-Grandmother’s gown, just like Emilee.

Just tonight you pointed to a picture of your brother, and called him “Jonson”. You can call your sister by name too, you say, “Eeeemmmmmmiiieeeee”














You are sweet to your Grandmas, and recently took a snooze with Grama Apple on the couch.




When you used to smile, your eyes would disappear behind those big sweet cheeks.











You have taught me the love of "pasa".



You have taught me that putting piggies in a baby's hair CAN, in fact, be a two-Mommy job. Thanks, Auntie Ce



At one year of age, you were ready to fly.




You have taught me the love of "cakecakes".



On this day, you taught me to eat birch leaves.



You have taught me that finger paint doesn't taste good.


You have taught me how cute a bee can be.

You have started your terrible 2’s. A LONG TIME AGO. You are like me, a wee bit opinionated and sure of yourself. You are not afraid to try something new, jump too far, or love too much.

You LOVE LOVE LOVE your blankie. You will share a rub on someone’s nose with it, just in case it will make them feel better. You throw your blankie around in a pattern until you find just the right corner, and rub it under your nose for comfort. You call that thing Bankie Bankie.

Last week when you couldn’t find your Hippo, I asked you where she was. You replied, “No, no. Hippo Hippo!!??” Like, “I don’t know”, and called her by name as though she would answer.

You are sweet with your baby dolls, and say “ssshh sshh sshh” and rock and cuddle them.

In short, you are some things and nothings like your brother and sister. You have bits and pieces of your mom and dad in you, but mostly you are just Bizz. 100% 2-year old Bizz.

Happy To You, Baby.

I love you.

Mama

Leaving so soon?

Emilee: Mom, pretty soon I will be 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. THEN, I won't be with you anymore because I'll be MARRIED!!

Me: You can't get married when you are 10! Jonathan is almost 10, do you think he is ready to be married?

Emilee: Yes. Well then, how long do I have to wait?

Me: At least until you are 18.

Emilee:OK, then I will be 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, THEN 19, then I will be married. AND, that will be ok.

Me: Well, I sure am going to miss you...

And I thought I left early to get married. She might have me beat by 8 years!

Pool.... water...?

So, tis the season. We went swimming last weekend. It was a wee bit chilly, but if you just take the plunge, the numbness starts right away. Give it a good 3-5 minutes and you can't feel your feet anyway. THIS weekend, however, not only will it be cooler, but the pool will be empty.

We take our water samples to the pool store, they run the tests and tell us how much of what chemical to add, and we do it. My "pool boy", as hubby refers to him, told us that the calcium is getting to high, and we will soon have to drain the pool. I knew from the previous week from a visit with another pool boy, (ssshh... don't tell my guy), that the levels were high. He was telling me that we could go all season and change at the end. My regular pool boy was saying that we could do that, but the levels will get worse over the season, and will make it really hard to keep my chemicals in check by the end of the season. I am opting to change sooner rather than later, so that we don't have a week without the pool in the blazing hot August.

So, we got the pump out, and have it running. (Note to self: remember to shut off the auto-filler on the pool so that you aren't filling it just as fast as you are emptying it).

What you see from the front yard is a water hose, seemingly left on full blast, over our driveway. Yesterday Jonathan decided to create a dam out of little rocks, and soon enough we are playing in the water on the driveway.

They all had a blast, and got a wee bit wet, as witnessed below. I should be done with the emptying today, and it is AMAZING how much faster it fills than empties (one autofill, 2 hoses, 25,000 gallons of water). Seriously, I don't want to leave the house when I have it filling just so it doesn't overflow.

Reviewing the past

I was cleaning off the bookcase the other day, and getting rid of books we don't, or aren't going to read. Came across The Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy, Daily Diary. I flip it open, and can see where I have written dates from my pregnancy with Jonathan.

During the first trimester, 236 days to go, my entry reads:

"Had a late night with class. Brought home 2 home pregnancy tests. The first was a disaster. The second was better, thanks in part to a shot glass. POSITIVE! Ran to the store for another test. POSITIVE!" The next day refers to the trip to the hospital on base for a blood test, and reading the following day. "PREGNANT! Joe called about 20 minutes after I found out, he was so excited."

I would never have remembered the part with the shot glass (!!), I guess diaries are good for some things. Maybe some things are better forgotten, though?

While I won't be keeping the book, it is fun to review those entries. I won't be keeping it simply because those are the ONLY entries I ever put in there! The girls? They didn't even get a book....

Spellcheck, please

Conversation with the boy today:
J: Mom, where is the Middle East?
M: Well, it is overseas, by Africa, on the Persian Gulf. It is made up of Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Kuwait, those countries...
J: Well, why does Iraq not have a "U" on the end of it?
M: I guess that maybe in their language they don't need to put Q's and U's together.
J: I bet they speak the same language as us, they just don't know how to spell.
M: I bet you are right, Honey.

It's like crack....

Ok, this addiction is like crack.





EXCEPT I can stop anytime I want to. Anytime. IF I wanted to.



Fun. Addicting. But I can quit, I just don't want to. But I could.

Corn tree?

Emilee: Mom! I dist saw a corn tree!!





This tree blooms for just a short time. For those with allergies, I am sure that is great. I kinda like the little bugger though...

Getting old...?

Today Emilee was brushing her teeth before bedtime. She had been playing in the mirror, came out and announced to her dad:

"Dad, I have cracks on my eyes like Mommy!"

When I heard about the cracks, I tried to get her to elaborate, but couldn't get much more that for her to repeat the same comment. She says such funny things.

Life is NOT fair

Rewind 15-18 months ago. Jonathan was getting to be REALLY good friends with 3-4 boys from Anchorage. We played together, swam with one, played baseball with 3, and went to school with all. He had, for the first time in his life, a BEST best friend. It was really sad when we left for Cali, one of his last nights in Anchorage was spent with said best friend. When we got here, he transplanted into the 1st grade, though never made another BEST friend there. He started 2nd grade, and has made a good friendship with our neighbor, Z, though they are about 2 1/2 years apart in age. (Z is younger). 5 months ago, he started 2nd grade with a wonderful teacher, and made a new BEST friend. This one is an identical twin, and he can tell them apart because said Best friend has black shoes, and his brother has white! So, after 1 month, we talk to his teacher about moving up to 3rd grade. He should be there by CA school age standards, and was leaps and bounds ahead of the other 2nd graders. It was decided that he would do that, and so in Sept he started 3rd grade. He was placed next to another gifted child, a new friend named "T". T was a great addition in Jonathan's life, and wouldn't you know it that within 2 months, they are Best Friends. They have taken to calling each other a few times, talking mostly about armpit farts and Star Wars. (!!). Today he got to go to T's house for the first time, and he stayed for a couple of hours. When I went to pick him up at T's house, which is just 3 blocks from home, I chatted with T's mom out back while the boys played. She said that the house is a rental, and they will be moving a mile away when their new, bigger house is complete. They will then be switching schools for T and his siblings. I don't know how soon that move will come, but I am so bummed for Jonathan. He FINALLY has something that we thought he could really hold onto after a partial year in both 1st and 2nd grades. He is where he needs to be, and making a new friend, and now as soon as he gets him, he will be leaving. Early elementary years shouldn't be this way, and this is unfortunately a side effect of moving that I DID NOT anticipate. It breaks my heart for him, and fortunately, at this point he is still on the "friend high" and not really identifying what will happen when T has moved along.

Poor Jonathan, he is such a good kid, and tries really hard in all he does. He deserves a long term friend that he can see as soon as he gets to school in the morning. You know, so they can talk about armpit farts together.....

Things are looking up...

Today, after 15 long months, I made the last payment on our move here! We were able to do the last year at 0% interest, and that surely saved us a bundle...

Woohoo! We can stay! Alaska can't repo us now!

Being sick is no easy task

Emilee: Mommy, when Papa was sick, he was green, then blue, then purple, then red, then pink. And now, he's all better!!

I was finally early

So today was a busy day. Normally I don't work on Mondays (well, you know, the kind of work that PAYS). But, one of my clients had some things to take care of, so I went in today instead of tomorrow.

I worked until 1:10 or so, then I needed to make it home to grab the kiddos from the sitters' across the street. After grabbing a samich at home, I went over, and rushed the kids out the door to get Bella off to the doctor. She had a follow up appointment for an ear infection. I knew the appointment was today because you know, it is on holiday Monday at 1:40. As I get there and I am signing in, admittedly, 4 minutes late, I get half-way through her last name and realize that today is not the 18th, but rather the 11th. There are 2 holiday Mondays this month.

Yes, that's it, I wasn't 4 minutes late, I was 10076 minutes EARLY since her appointment is NEXT MONDAY!

See what happens when you make me work?

How many?

Emilee: Mom, how many mommies and daddies do I have? Oh! I know! It's 2 mommies and 2 daddies.
Me: 2? Really? Who are your mommies and daddies?
Emilee: OH, my mommies are Grammy and you- Brooke.
Me: Oh, ok. Well then who are your daddies?
Emilee: My daddies are Papa, and what is daddy Joe's end of his name?
Me: Huh? Do you mean (last name)?
Emilee: No, the other end of his name..
Me: Oh, do you mean Joseph?
Emilee: Yes, and daddy Joe-fus. That's my other dad.

Headaches... again...

OK, so I am really tired of headaches. I get them every month, and have been for about 5 years now. The reason I started seeing a chiropractor in Anchorage was because I wanted to have Emilee, but couldn't do the meds for migraines.

Anywho, I have been doing a little bit of reading on headaches. I have been taking Tylenol, but finally threw it all out because it didn't do enough for me. I have ibuprofen now, and that helps a pinch more. Typically, once they start, they are here or 2-3 days. Sleeping can help but only because I am asleep, not because they go away when I wake up. I did buy some Excedrin Migraine recently.

WHO-BOY! So, I thought I escaped the headaches this month, but I was mistaken. On Tues morning, when Joe was up at the crack of dawn, he asked how I felt. At that time I felt fine. An hour later when it was time for me to get up, I DID have a headache. I followed the directions, took Excedrin, and started the day. What would otherwise have been a doozy of a headache, didn't materialize at all. Joe asked again at lunchtime how I was, and I told him my head was fine. My heart, on the other hand, was alive and well. I asked what my heartrate SHOULD be, because it was beating fast. I had to make sure I was eating so that I didn't feel lightheaded from the meds. All in all, it wasn't a bad episode this time, and I kept myself busy enough with a racing heart that I got alot done! I am going to continue watching the headaches and seeing what I need to do to keep everything at bay.

One day at a time.

Sticky Notes

Today I went to church to pick Emilee up from Preschool. While we were there, I thought I would fulfill my wifely duty of scheduling hubby’s appointment with Father, for his RCIA program. I went to the lady whom hubby said I needed to call (I was onsite, seemed silly to call from home), and she said I needed to go to the office, and schedule with someone else, so I did. I waited in line patiently, as she was already seeing someone who works there. I would hope that if I were waiting to see her, it would be because she is discussing work/church things. They were discussing tough love that the lady was applying to whom I am assuming is her daughter. Don’t really know. Anywho, I finally get in there, and tell her who I am and why I am there. She tells me they have an appt for next Wed at 4pm, I try to get something later in the day, but they don’t have anything until the end of the month, and even then it is only at 5pm. Sorry, honey, gotta take it next week. Before I leave I confirm the date and time, and as I see some sticky notes, ask her if she minds if I write it all down so I don’t forget. She glances over her glasses and says, condescendingly of course, “Are you serious?”
Yes, yes I am serious. Of course I am serious. What does she think? I tell her I have a lot to remember, and wouldn’t want hubby to miss his appointment. Just today I am thinking about: Preschool, teething, diaper rash, earaches and frequency of, tired of at least one kid being sick for last 3 months, work for 3 clients, tax season clients and personal tax return, birthday of Mother/her twin, niece’s birthday, 2 bro-in-law birthdays, church class tonight, hubby’s scout commitment, voting, headaches and frequency, new camera, daycare, vacation, house cleaning, laundry, pool repairs, hubby’s lunch hour, spilled coffee, plates for Valentines party next week, Valentines in general, remodeling kitchen… etc. Do you really think it is a big deal that I ask for 1 little sticky note to write out an appointment? Now, I realize that we aren’t supposed to judge (especially at CHURCH!!), but, c’mon, SHE STARTED IT!

Whatta boy!

Just to set the scene….

I am sitting on the pot preparing to take a shower, thinking to myself, “I should move my coffee off of the end table (in the family room), before the baby gets to it…”

Emilee comes to the bathroom door, and says, “Mom, Bizz (Bella) spilled your coffee…” So, of course I come down to see the damage, expecting to maybe see it spilled on the couch. Instead, she walked with the coffee down the hallway, and I can see drips all the way from the table to the hallway where I can only assume she was bringing it to me. (She made it ½ way, spilled the majority of a ½ cup, and then set it down in the hallway.) I picked it up and started cleaning the floor. Jonathan opens their restroom door there in the hallway, and Emilee immediately says, “Jonathan, don’t walk in the hallway, Bizz spilled mom’s coffee.”

He says, “Oh, no wonder it smells so good out here!”

Some secret club...

This was a picture I took of Jonathan's artwork outside. He was playing with our little neighbor friend, and they were creating a clubhouse outside. As you can see, WARNING! NO GIRLS ALOUD!

And fairness for all

So I have been thinking a bit about the differences in girls and boys. Beside the obvious physical differences, of course. I have been thinking about the way things work in schools and playgrounds and the way we are bringing these children up in this world. It used to be that boys had the ‘advantage’ at school, and then girls are boosted up through Title 9 (most commonly thought of as equalizing sports programs in schools), and general equality in the classroom. Now, given a chance, the girls are passing the boys in most areas of school. They are generally “pleasers” when it comes to teachers and adult authority, and tend to be able to sit still longer. We hear reports of boys struggling with delayed reading, lower scores, fewer recesses which allows time to run out the wiggles. (We can attest to the difficulties that brought Jonathan)

What dawned on me was the way our kids’ rooms are decorated. Seems simple, really.

Our girls’ room is filled with

Sugar and spice and everything nice

His room is:

Books and a desk, and maps in thrice

Are we paving the way for success for a son, and failure, or at the very least, LESS advantage for our daughters? Do we not think it matters what adorns the walls of their room? We are more likely to buy for our son the things that we really wanted but never got out of childhood. (It doesn’t help that I would be more likely to want “boy toys” than girls toys as a kid) For me, that would be all of books, a desk of my own in my room, and maps on the wall. Our girls have a dollhouse-ish bookcase, and a dresser that accommodates clothes enough for 2. What will happen to the space when we don’t have a crib to contend with, and the girls are generally older?

We are at the point where Jonathan is 8 and the girls are 4 and 1. They have a lot of books, age appropriate to each child. The girls aren’t at the point of wanting or needing more extravagant toys. Jonathan, for some time, has had things like a science kit, and recently, an energy kit. He has built things for scouts and just for fun with Dad. Emilee has a kit to make foamy sticker crowns, and other art supplies. She also enjoys puzzles and coloring, dressup, dolls and stuffed animals. They both enjoy their bikes, scooters, and balls outside. They all enjoy swimming, and they all go on walks with us. I hope we are giving all our kids the things, equally, that they will need to do well in school and life. I hope that we aren’t ever making the girls feel that that they are just cute, or sweet. They all need to know that they are smart, and capable, and deserving of the best that this world has to offer.

While I don’t think they will be getting giant maps on their wall, maybe we can get desks squeezed into the girls’ little room… and globes… that are pink, or purple…

Note to self...

Just a note to self... When outside, cleaning the pool that is covered in silt from the storm, do not knock the glasses off of your own face! It took me about 7-10 attempts of scooping the deep, dirty end of the pool before I finally was able to get them out of the water!

Oops!

Those poor children

Today I am sharing a pic from Jonathan's church class. He is in a weekly class, we used to call it CCD, now they call it ERE. This paper came home last week from class.

It says, if you can't tell from the pic...
FOR THOSE WHO ARE POOR, WE PRAY TO THE LORD.
FOR THOSE WHO ARE SIX, WE PRAY TO THE LORD.

I cannot imagine how terrible it must be to be six....

Sleeping like a ... saint?

I went to check on the kids the other night before I went to sleep. As I always do. Nothing out of the norm in Jonathan's room, he had turned on the constellation desk light even though I told him to stay in bed. Into the girls' room, where I found Emilee sleeping only half-dressed, in a "habit." (And, referencing the last post, she had Cleo with her.) I HAD to take the picture, she was too cute. It makes me wonder if this is how saints sleep.... ?

A new friend...?

Our oldest 2 kids have favorite toys, "lovies". But, Bella doesn't yet so I have been searching for something for her. I really wanted her to love Winchester, the stuffed donkey that we bought for Emilee. I love Winchester because with his red stitching, he reminds me of a baseball. For Christmas, I looked at several places for lovies, hoping that she would love one that I had previously "pre-approved" of. We got 2 puppies and an orangutan. Today at Cost Plus, we found this new critter, and she reached her hands out to him. I don't yet know what to call him. The other lovies are Dora (Jonathan's cat), and Cleo (Emilee's lion she calls Key-lo Ma-leelo Fa-leelo). I hope the love sticks because he is really cute.

Mr. Magorium.... on the cheap

Got to experience our local Dollar theater, getting 3 of us in for $4.50. That definitely appeals the my cheap side. We went with our local cousin and had a great time watching Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium. We took Jonathan and Emilee, the baby stayed home with Daddy because toddlers in movies are NOT fun. I LOVED it! I am a huge fan of toy stores... but not just any toy store. I like stores that are classic, full of wooden toys and things that inspire more than just Toys R Us. This movie was set in one such toy store. I think it will be one that I buy for our house, for me.

The main character is Molly Mahoney, who is affectionately called "Mahoney" through the whole movie. When I came home and told hubby that, he beat me to the punch when he said, "You loved that, didn't you??" I did, I have to admit it. I love names that should be last names.... is that surnames as first names?


"Mahoney", cute.


To rename my son Jonathan, I have said that instead of the classic, biblical name, I would name him "Maguire." LOVE IT.


Hubby's Grandma suggested "Makenna" for our #3 baby, Isabella, instead of the classic name she has... LOVE IT. If she had been a boy, she was going to be "Callahan."


I cannot say what I would have done for Emilee, baby #2 to make her different. We were going to name her Benjamin Douglas, after 2 great grandpa's, one from each side. Jonathan said that he didn't like that name, and he would call her "Scooter".


Mahoney.... Maguire.... Makenna....Callahan... and Scooter....

Let's begin... shall we?

So I am at home tonight with the Girls, Son is off snowboarding with Daddy. 10 years in Alaska, and we NEVER did that. Now we scramble off to start the search at Target (of all places) to get some snow gear. In AK, we would never have dreamed of getting our gear there. REI, yes, Tarjay? No. (Never mind that we didn't have a Tarjay there, we still wouldn't have done it.) Being in So Cal, we couldn't even find gloves for him at 2 stores. We could get him some swim trunks with waves or flames on them, but no gloves. The gabbing stocking ladies at Wal-mart gave me some crazy look for wanting to buy gloves in January. The absurdity... I know.