A wondering mind is easy to waste

Is it really Thursday already? I hate to wait so long in between posts, but my camera needed recharging (I kept forgetting to do it) so the pictures from our Memorial day are minimal, and I really have nothing exciting to blog about. If you have something else to do, now's the time to do it.

Last Friday was not a good day for me. I think it all started with the allergic reaction to the trail mix bar I ate. Feeling like my throat had been taken over by red ants, I went on search in my office for someone who might have an extra Benadryl. The good news is that my friend Karen had a Benadryl, the bad news is that it expired in 2005. 2005 must have been a good year because in no time I was feeling better and it was time to head home.

I arrived home, threw a hissy about T not understanding my needs, yelled at Alyssa for being 2 and laid in the bed for an hour. When I finally got up, I threw another hissy about T not knowing exactly what I wanted to do for dinner, and continued to be irritated with Alyssa because she's, well, 2.

Once T told me to get my grouchy butt in the car and took me to dinner, I felt much better. I explained the allergic reaction and taking the Benadryl and I think he understood why I was acting like such a schmuck. We had ice-cream and you know, ice-cream always makes things better. I told Lissy that night that I was sorry and she deserved better. She kissed me on the cheek. All was right with the world.

Glad I bought this book a few months back. I saw it on another blog and I ordered it. I don't think that I have anger issues, but I do think that I can be a bit snappy when I want to be. Any how, I think it's time to start reading it.

The rest of the weekend was much better! Yard Saleing and boating. Couldn't ask for more.

Sunday, was the day that Alyssa became inducted into the world of the terrible twos. It's a very lengthy story, and I'm already falling asleep while writing this post, so lets just say that it involved pen throwing, Bible scribbling, throwing herself on the floor under the pew, kicking the pew, prying Communion from my hands, and spilling grape juice. I'm sure you guessed we were at Church and I can tell you this. I don't exactly know how/where this nursery is/works, but we are going to find it/out about it and her little butt will be there on Sunday.

Memorial Day, we visited the Westmoreland Berry Farm to pick strawberries and we finished the day with a few games of bowling since it started to rain. Kyle would bowl all day if we let him. I think at one point in the game he was actually beating all of us. I swear, he is a jack of all trades. He even helped Lissy bowl by putting her ball on the "walker" (insert technical term for thing that little kids use to push their ball down that looks like a "walker" with an elephant trunk). We ended the day with our strawberries on angel food cake topped with whipped cream.

Delicious.

Now the week is almost over (and thankfully so is this post) and we're supposed to go to the Zoo Saturday with Katie, Nick and Landon. Hopefully I will get lots of good shots and have interesting things to write about after this upcoming weekend.

And since I really don't like to post without pictures, how about a little shot from Myrtle Beach last year to get us excited about summer.




Ah, I love the summer. Pools, flip flops, and sun kissed babes eating chips in their bed after a long summer's day.



We still have 51 days until we leave for Myrtle Beach so until then, I have to settle for looking at these pictures and smelling my Sun and Sand candle from Yankee Candle to bring me comfort.

And if you seriously have never smelled it I urge to run and not walk to your nearest Yankee Candle and get it because it smells just like sand and suntan lotion and it will make you feel oh so good on the inside.

Friday's reason why I had kids Part 4

Because it's just not as funny when adults try to hide under the table with concealed after-dinner mints.

*Note: Technically Alyssa would be a 32 yr old adult concealing after dinner mints in this picture, since there is a minor issue with the date stamp. However, no one I know reading this blog (Karen) would have even noticed it because you are all are non-perfectionists who would have just let it slide.

Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend everyone!

Ninny Free

My baby girl is not really a baby anymore.

Friday night after dinner, we talked to Lissy about not needing her "Ninny" (aka a pacifier) anymore since she was a big girl now. I should mention that I personally am in no hurry to be gone with the ninny being as Kyle was 3 before he finally threw his in the trash without my interference. I just felt like it was the right time for her and since she mentioned it, I thought we would go with it.

She stared at us for a minute and then told us she was going to give them to Landon. Going on this theory, we decided to go through the house and find all the ninny's and since Landon lives in Baltimore, we were going to have to mail them to him.

So that's just what we did.

We gathered all the Ninny's, called Nana (Landon wasn't home) and bagged em up.



We put our shoes on.



We posed for pictures.



We walked down the driveway.



We put them in the mailbox.



We waved goodbye.



And then posed for more pictures.



She went to bed without a fight and (more importantly) without her ninny.

Saturday morning she was a bit evil grouchy and with tears welled up in her eyes she begged me to call Landon and please get her ninny's back.

It done broke my heart. And it took everything I had not to walk straight out to that mailbox and retrieve my poor baby's ninnys.

But I didn't and a few minutes later she forgot all about it. She's only mentioned it a few times but I do see her frustration when she has to calm herself down or when she gets tired. All in all, she's done a great job and I am so proud of her.

Potty trained and ninny free. Where has my baby gone?

Saturday we did some yard saleing in the morning and the sun finally came out around noon so we headed for the boat to catch up on some much needed relaxation.



Without being too gross I must confess another milestone in my young daughters life.

Ahem

She took a number two in the Luggable Loo.

Kudos to Daddy for handling that situation better than I did(I couldn't see past the tears of hysterical laughter) especially since we A. didn't have any toilet paper and B. didn't have any water in the Luggable Loo.

*Shudder*

I'm sure it was just like all the other dreams I had of Lissy while I was pregnant with her.

Reading her stories. Check.

Buying her first purse. Check.

Holding the Luggable Loo while she takes a number two. Double Check.

Tippy Toes

I'm not quite ready to post an update regarding the major milestone my baby girl has surpassed this weekend. I have some really cute pics to post with the milestone news, but I seem to be having technical difficulties, meaning I can't find the camera cord to connect to the computer. What I will do, is leave you with a little video of Landon that Katie just sent me that I will proudly title, "Tippy Toes."

Enjoy!

Friday's reason I had kids Part 3

Because it's always fun to make em' sweat a little.

Then and Now

Well Kyle's sickness came back again. Not so much the stomach issues as before, but the whole fever/achy/chills illness. Let's just say that as I was on the phone with his pediatrician making sure Kyle didn't have the Swine Flu, I was really regretting joking about me coming down with it.

I guess my payback was getting these awful leg cramps that started while I was at Landon's Baptism this weekend. It was enough to wake me up out of a dead sleep Saturday night with charlie horse pains.

Maybe the Swine Flu traveled to my thigh.

Anyway, it looks like a regular old virus for Kyle. Which is good because I tend to get a little nervous about those things, and I hate when the kids get sick. So the sooner he gets rid of this thing the sooner we can all go back to worrying about catching the Swine Flu again.

It was lunch time, the weather was beautiful, and Kyle was in a motrin induced coma, so we took advantage of the moment and decided to have a picnic outside. We grabbed a blanket and I went to work on creating the finest culinary cuisine for this special occasion.

On the blanket we dined on doritos's, cup of noodles, raisins and trail mix bars. We topped it off with a coke zero for me and a capri sun for the sick kid. I grabbed my camera and before I took a picture of Kyle outside on the blanket, I remembered our very first picnic and had an epiphany for a great blog photo then and now.

Then

Now



Five years later, this boy who once couldn't sit up without the support of a boppy pillow, or even engage in any time of conversation, sat with me on a blanket and had me roaring with laughter.

This same boy went with me today as I signed him up for Kindergarten.



We were a little early and it was the end of the school day, so we sat in the school parking lot and watched the kids head for their buses. He watched from the front seat of the car before heading inside, and I could tell he was intrigued by how old the kids were. Once inside, I watched as he kept staring into the cafeteria and he kept telling me how big the tables were. I put my arms around him as he shyed away from the teachers helping us register. I know he's just overwhelmed and he doesn't feel good, but I can't help but feel a little anxiety about this transition. I just don't think I'm ready to send him out into this world yet.

I had no idea when I took that photo, that it would one day stick out in my memory enough to blog about it. Not that I knew what a blog was then anyway, nor did I have this picture on the computer. No, I had to find it in the photo album. Scan it. Save it. Upload it, and then blog about it. Geesh, what a difference 5 yrs makes.

The point is, Kyle is going to do GREAT in Kindergarten. He will be apprehensive, yes, but once he settles in his routine he will be fine. He makes friends easy, is the funniest person I know, and has a kind heart. He is eager to learn and he catches on quickly. His heart is so pure and he sees no flaws. It's such a weird feeling to be heartbroken that your little boy is growing up, but excited to see his future, simultaneously.

And really, that last paragraph is just for me to read over and over again before September.

So here's to the Summer. 3 whole months to be a Mom with her little man before he heads off into this big scary world Kindergarten.

And just think, I haven't even made it through Pre-School graduation yet.

Baptisms, Blue Crabs and Mom's.

While Kyle was recovering from his stomach issues and Alyssa was just in the beginning stages of her ear infection, we traveled 2 hours north to witness the Baptism of our nephew, Landon. Or Langdon as my father-in-law with his southern drawl affectionately calls him. The pictures I took of all three of them together turned out not-so-good, so they got chopped, cropped, and separated.
Anyhow, here he is with my sister-in-law Katie, a.k.a Landon's Mom.

Here he is with my future brother-in-law, Nick, a.k.a Landon's Dad.



And here is the little guy after a much needed nap and bottle.



R-E-S-E-R-V-E-D?


That's what I thought is said.

Mother's Day was such a peaceful day. The weather was warm with a nice breeze and after eating breakfast, I opened up my Mother's Day presents with T and the kids. I've waited 5 1/2 years for the day when I would receive my very own Mother's Day coffee mug.

My daughter picked this out from the Daycare Mother's Day store and she was so proud of my her purchase. I don't drink coffee but she kept reminding me that "you dwink you coffee in dare, Mommy!" It was really sweet. Kyle knows me a bit better so I he gave me lavender scented hand lotion. My wonderful husband gave me beautiful hanging baskets for our porch, and it really made the porch come alive with colors. A little later that afternoon, Kyle and I headed to a Blue Crabs baseball game to meet up with my Mom, Nana, Pop, Sister, Uncle, and Nephew. Lissy was still feeling bad, so she stayed home to play with Daddy. It turned out to be okay because it's not to often that Kyle and I get to hang out together one on one. I almost forgot that he goes to the bathroom by himself as evident by him yelling at me to use my own toilet when I tried following him into his. I also realized while I was still in the stall and he was out washing his hands, that he is probably a little to old to be in the girls bathroom with me. I did send him into the boys bathroom by himself at the game but I got a little nervous as I stood outside as he was taking a long time. I was just about to go in when I saw him walk out with my nephew (who I had no idea was in there). It was at that moment that I realized that I am probably not ready for him to use the men's bathroom either.

I guess he'll have to Luggable Loo until we work out our bathroom issues.

Here's the family before the game.

My handsome man.



The handsome man with his Mom.



The Mom's Mom with the Mom's Sister.



The Mom with her Nana



The Mom's Uncle and Nephew.




You know, baseball is really not that entertaining for a 5 yr old, so about the 4th inning or so we ventured over to the play area so Kyle could have some fun.

We climbed.



We slid.



We conquered.



I laid in bed last night thanking God for making me a Mother. I'm humbled that God chose me to love them and take care of them. And how incredible, that this was his plan all along.

I also thanked him for all the wonderful women in my life. My Mother who always stands up for me, and my Nana who stands behind me. A Mother-In-Law who loves and supports me like her own daughter. A sister who is thoughtful and will make a wonderful Mother someday, and a sister-in-law who is a great Mother and best friend. Another Sister who is a wonderful Mother that I don't get to see or talk to nearly enough. And last but not least, a daughter, who brings me such joy and with who I share a bond unlike no other.

Hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day. I know I did.

Friday's reason I had kids part 2

Because it's nice to have a Q-Tip readily accessible.

14 useless pieces of information in numerical form.

1. I wear a tank top/undershirt thing every day and it doesn't matter if I am wearing a shirt or a dress. It hides my muffin top insecurities.

2. I played the Trombone for a better part of my life.

3. I have small black worms growing in my shower. Whatsupwiththat?

4. I go to Starbucks once a week and I always order a Grande Iced Caramel Macchiato with Skim because I enjoy sounding like a professional Barista.

5. I procrastinate. Why put off today what I can put off tomorrow?

6. I scrub my children's tennis shoes every night with 409 and a toothbrush.

7. I watch Jon and Kate Plus Eight and sometimes I actually enjoy it.

8. I drink an Ensure every weekday at 9:30am because I feel like it will help ward off the germs that my children bring home from Daycare.

9. I actually enjoy doing the laundry and I love folding towels. I don't think my Mother In Law

knows this, but, the only reason I know how to properly fold towels is because of her. I would

watch her carefully as she folded towels when T and I first started dating and I couldn't wait for the day when I would have my own home so I could fold towels like her.

10. We sponsor a child through Compassion and his name is Make. He lives in Burkina Faso, Africa, we pray for him every night, and my children know him by name. He also shares my birthday!

11. I grew up in Maryland and I have no idea how to pick a crab. I don't even like Seafood.

12. I love the beach but I don't get in the Ocean. To many small fishy/crabby/jelly/ things that can crawl between your toes.

13. Snorkeling would be my worst nightmare. I cant even imagine snorkeling in my head without getting the heebeejeebees.

14. I never finished College because I was too homesick but my Nana would tell you I was actually "lovesick." I guess it was for the best because I ended up marrying my disease.

15. I have set hair washing days (every other) and I rarely deviate. Unless it's a special circumstance. I try and make it set to the exact same days of the week so that my regularly scheduled T.V watching is not interrupted. It takes a long time to blow dry this mop.

I guess you are wondering why there are 15 useless tidbits listed and only 14 are useless? Or maybe you are already asleep?

Number 10 is very important and if you have some time today, stop by and read some stories of a group of bloggers who just traveled to India through Compassion and read their heart wrenching stories. Maybe, you could even sponsor a child of your own?

Purses and Birthday's

This weekend recap is a little late because I have to do these other things like working and being a parent, so it really tends to put a cramp in my blogging. It's also been raining for 4 days straight, and I think I'm coming down with the swine flu.

Friday we headed to the mall and did a little Mother's Day shopping. Not for me, but for our actual Mothers. On our way out we noticed a Claire's, and through the window I noticed lots of girly things that I thought Alyssa would enjoy, being that she is now at the ripe old age of 13 2. I headed for the purses and she headed for the lip gloss. We compromised on a Hello Kitty chapstick. And a purse. Although, I think I pushed the purse on her a lot little bit. I can't even begin to describe how happy I was that we were arguing over which purse I thought she should have. I kept pushing her to buy the tote but she was going for the clutch. Girlfriend just doesn't understand the endless storage capabilities that a tote provides versus the clutch. But I guess when the only thing you keep in your purse is your pacifier and a dried up fruit snack, you really don't see storage as a necessity.

She picked her purse and as we started to leave the mall, I made her stop so I could take a picture. I swear to you, I had to pull myself together because I felt like the tears were going to fall. There is something so wonderful about having a little girl. Before Lissy came, I lived in a boys world. My days were filled playing tractors, solders, and cars. Kyle would eat sand while I made pathetic attempts to imitate Monster Truck sounds. And while I enjoyed all those things with Kyle, there is just something different about a girls love for lip gloss and purses.



Saturday, we headed to Kyle's game where he lost 7-1. Whoo Hoo! I say "Whoo Hoo" because the first time they played this team, they lost 12-0. That is major improvement people. And, Kyle almost scored a goal!

Saturday's have been so fun for us lately! His games are usually in the morning so it gives Lissy and I just enough time to do some "Yard Saleing" before the game. I try to get Kyle to go with me but he would rather stay back and do "stuff" with T. Reason number 162 why I love having a girl.

That evening was Janet's birthday. We went to dinner and came back to her house to have cake and ice-cream.




Alyssa sat on Janet's lap while we serenaded her with the Happy Birthday song. All of a sudden, something went terribly wrong.



T said he feels that exact way when I sing to him.

Fortunately, she got over the meltdown in enough time to blow out some candles.



And eat some cake.



It was a GREAT weekend!

Friday's Reason I had Kids Part 1

Because something has to be done with left over bubble wrap and packing tape.