Merry Christmas!

I can't believe another Christmas Day has passed, in the blink of an eye. I am sad to see it go...I love the holiday season so much! We had a wonderful day yesterday, filled with:

Brotherly Love


Handsome boys ready for church on Christmas Eve (with Evan singing in the choir!)


New family members

Celebrating Christmas Eve at my Mom's house... It was nice to be together, but also much harder than I thought it would be without Dad there. It was so hard to not have him with us, but we made it through one more "first". We made it through together, as a family.


More new family members...this is Lindsey, my brother's infinitely awesome girlfriend. She feels like she has been my sister forever. There are so many things that make her fit into our family perfectly, and it feels like God sent her to us as a gift.


Christmas morning Christmas Trees...


Boys ready to open gifts


...and Hot cocoa and Christmas cookies for breakfast

It was a good holiday, and we felt surrounded by family and love. If you celebrated Christmas yesterday as well, I hope that you had a wonderful day! I count all of you that come here to read my little corner of the blogosphere as one of my Christmas blessings. THANK YOU for spending time with me here at the Sole Woman!

The 23rd

December 23rd is so bitter sweet.

So much excitement over the events of the next two days, but sad to see the season coming to a close. This is truly my favorite time of the year, especially with my boys, and I am so sad to see it coming to a close.

This is the year that Charlie and Sammy are 3 for Christmas, and everything is magic for them. They are anxiously awaiting Santa's arrival, services at church, and going to Grandma's house. I love watching everything through their eyes.

Evan, despite being 11, is just as excited. I love that he is helping me to pass traditions on to his little brothers.

We are forecast to get over a foot of snow Christmas Eve into Christmas Day, but I think we will at least be able to sneak in church and my mom's house on Christmas Eve before things get too bad. And then we will snuggle down in our warm winter beds and wait for reindeer hooves to sound overhead. I've bought steak for a special Christmas Day dinner, and we will celebrate snow bound with our own little family.

I hope all of you have a very blessed Christmas, and that you are safe, warm, loved, and surrounded by family.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Blizzard!

In the wee early hours of Monday morning, it snowed 2.5 inches here. It was just enough to make everything look festive, and to make driving a bit tricky. We still had school on Monday though, and the kids were full of snow excitement.

Monday night, the snow started coming down thicker and faster. By the time we woke this morning, our driveway had a fresh 3 inches on it, and school had been cancelled. So, we spent the day snuggling on the couch and watching movies.



Even the cat.

We went outside to shovel and play around 11 o'clock. The driveway was now covered with about 6 inches, so I put a shovel in everyone's hands. Evan is getting to be pretty good, but lets just say Charlie and Sammy were *not* very helpful. The boys had a great time zooming down the slide in the backyard to land in the huge pile of soft, new fallen snow underneath. We were very chilly when we came back in, but it was nothing a good hot bowl of mac 'n cheese couldn't handle.

After lunch we all got down to the business of napping under our electric blankets, and when we awoke, this is what it looked like outside:



Snow, snow, and more snow-still falling quickly in thick, busy flakes. And this is my driveway, only 3 hours after I shoveled it:



Can't even tell we were out there, can you? And even though it is only 4:00 in the afternoon, school has already been canceled for tomorrow as a result of the blizzard warning which will take effect at 9 PM. That's right-the snow is expected to start falling in even heavier amounts. I may give up on the whole shoveling thing until this is over.

Thank the Lord Jeff was able to work from home today, so I didn't have to spend any of my delicious day worrying over his safety.

I think tomorrow I am going to lay in another batch of sugar cookies and make the boys help me decorate. One of the best parts of being a teacher? SNOW DAYS!

Fall and...Snow?

On Friday night we went to a small, family run pumpkin patch. There is a HUGE patch here in Omaha that is more like am amusement park, which is fun but also super expensive. We were excited that our daycare (who planned the outing) chose this smaller, more family friendly venue.



I am in love with this picture. I know next to nothing about photography, and my camera is anything but fancy, but once in awhile a picture comes out that amazes me.

The weather was perfect. Temps were in the low 50s when we arrived, giving the air a fall crispness, and making it too cool for the bees to be much of a problem. The kids had fun checking out baby chicks:



Visiting the petting zoo:



getting their faces painted (Sam and Charlie both went with John Deere tractors, and Evan with a traditional pumpkin):



and riding horses:



Charlie and Sammy's favorite was the trike track where they sped around with their friends, pretending they were in the Indy 500. It was actually pretty momentous, as it was the first time both boys actually mustered the leg strength to actually pedal a bike, instead of doing a Flintstone push. As a result, we were forced to spend over an hour here so they could practice their new found talent.



For Evan and I, our favorite part was taking the hay rack ride and picking out our pumpkins. I got some great shots of the kids.






My Mom and Charlie:



Strangely enough, when we woke up the next morning, this is the scene that greeted us:



Yep. That's snow. On October 10th. We got roughly 4 inches of the stuff overnight. So Saturday morning as I processed our 30 pounds of apples, made homemade applesauce, and baked apple pie, my time clock was very off. It should have felt very much like fall between the pumpkin patch and the apples, but instead I felt like I should be pulling out the Christmas decorations. Very unsettling to have your seasons confused like that.

At least we got both trips in before it froze!!

Laid Back

We are thrilled to have a laid back weekend ahead. It drives me nuts when I have to spend the whole weekend running from one place to another, cleaning, doing laundry, and catching up on the work I can't get done during the week. The worst part of going back to work in the fall is giving up our relaxed family time on the weekends.

I have some me time planned tomorrow, and I am going to have my hair done. There is nothing more relaxing to me than having someone do your hair. Evan and I are going to church just the two of us on Saturday, and just me and the boys are going out to breakfast on Sunday morning. I am promising myself to spend as much time as I can on Sunday hanging out with my kids. I am going to soak up their sweetness.

My Mom always had a plaque hanging in whichever room was the nursery at the time that had a saying on it that went like this:

Cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow
For children grow up, we've learned to our sorrow
So quiet down cobwebs
And dust go to sleep
I'm rocking my baby
And babies don't keep

I always pish poshed it in my mind as a child, back when time stretched on forever, and moved at a snail's pace. Now I feel time burning at my heels, and I want to bottle up my kids, keep them forever at a size where they will fit in my lap and in my arms. I wish I could make them stay an age where they will always let me plaster them with kisses.

I don't have forever, but I do have this weekend. And I am going to use it.

Ouch!

Last Friday we went to see Dr. B, our pediatrician, to get Evan all fixed up when he had strep.

On Monday we went back to see Dr. B when Charlie needed stitches.

Today I took all three boys to see Dr. B after they all woke up this morning with croupy coughs, wheezing and asthma symptoms, headaches, and runny noses. (All three are now on antibiotics and steroids.)

Tomorrow we will go back to Dr. B's office so that Charlie can have his stitches removed.

That's FOUR-count 'em-FOUR trips to the pediatrician in one week. Sheesh.

I'm thinking of applying to be the poster family for healthcare reform for President Obama. It's going to be raining medical bills around here any minute!

School Days

This past Monday marked the end of the summer for us, as I went back to work. No students this week, just meetings and getting my classroom ready to roll for another year. Evan just went to after school care, as his first day of 5TH GRADE!!! won't be until Tuesday. It amazes me that he is just weeks away from 11, and now in the upper grades at school. Just yesterday I was walking the floor with him in the middle of the night, singing lullabies, and trying to croon my colicky baby back to sleep.

It was the first day of preschool for these two cuties though.



Charlie has moved up to the pre-k group, aka "the Busy Bees". Sammy had his first day with the big kids, as he moved out of the toddler room, and into the 3 year old preschool group, aka "the Lucky Ladybugs". Both were excited about their new and improved status at school. When Jeff asked Charlie how his first day of school went, Charlie replied, "It was so super! I was the busiest bee in the WHOLE WORLD Daddy!" It doesn't get much better than that.

It was hard to get back in the swing of things for me, much more so than the kids. I have always been a person who needs a LOT of sleep. In the summer I get a good 9 hours a night, plus a 2 hour nap every day. Not getting more than 7 hours anyday this week made for a lot of headaches. Today I got out at noon, and Sammy and I crashed together, and we all had a loooong 2 1/2 hour nap. I felt SOOOO much better! Maybe I can convince my first graders to nap with me every day.

I've been missing my kids like crazy all day every day this week, but I've also been reflecting on how much good that comes out of the kids going to preschool. We are very blessed that my school has an on site daycare for the children of staff members. The teachers there are outstanding, there is very little turn over in staffing, and it is a small environment for the kids at the daycare. There are under 30 kids in the entire center this year, which is birth to 5 years. The boys learn so much while they are there, they love interacting with the other kids, and seeing their friends. They get to visit the residents of a nursing home across the street once a week (they affectionately call them "the Grandmas") and they have various special events every single month. So while I ache sometimes to not be the one to tuck them in for nap or fix their lunch, I have to admit that they are gaining a lot, and it is a good experience for them.

The real deal starts Tuesday, and I get to meet my 29 new first graders. I am excited to get to know the people who will be my family for the next 17o school days. It's always an adventure, and I am antsy to get started.

A Post Full of Pictures

I finally got around to uploading all of the pictures I've been wanting to share.


My cutie patutie Evan at his last swim meet of the season. You can't see it, but his swim cap matches the team swim suit. I had no idea swim teams had uniforms before this summer!


Evan is the one in the middle of the picture, standing up, getting ready for the 25 meter freestyle.


My cute boys on the 4th of July. We celebrated at my sister's house. This is when we were watching the fireworks. Notice the sweatshirts and jeans! It was COLD and rainy the whole day-low 60s and a mist the whole time. Crazy weather for July in Omaha.


Charlie enjoying the privilege of being allowed a can of pop.


My birthday cake I treated myself to on my birthday Tuesday.


At the beginning of July, The Sweet Tooth Fairy bakery in Provo, Utah held a fundraiser for Nie Nie over at The NieNie Dialogues in honor of her birthday. I was super excited that I was able to participate long distance, as the bakery was willing to ship me an order of VaNIElla cupcakes. TO.DIE.FOR. Seriously. I could have ate all 15. But I didn't, just for the record. I had to fight my family for them. Don't they look yummy?


The pretty box the cupcakes arrived in.


An impressive lego city built by my aspiring young architects.


And finally, a precious shot of Sammy enjoying a cup of coffee and the morning paper. He loves to do everything just like his Mommy and Daddy. Adorable, no?!

Hope you are having an enjoyable summer too!!

Random Updates

I haven't been around this here blog for a few days, and it makes me sad. As I sat waiting for Evan to be done at eye therapy this afternoon, I thought about why. And the biggest thing I can come up with is that Evan's schedule is ruling our lives this summer, God bless him. I love the effect that his activities are having on him, but between swimming practice four days a week, a three hour swim meet every Wednesday night, once a week eye therapy at the doctor's office and daily home therapy sessions, Vacation Bible School, and Hummel Day camp-we hardly ever have a day to just putz around. And putzing? It's my favorite summer time activity. And you know what's scary? What will this be like when Charlie and Sammy have things to do too? Will I ever leave the car?!!!

At any rate, here are some random life updates, and I promise to try really hard to be here more often.

After the debacle last week of not finding the pool, Evan attended his second swim meet tonight. He placed second in the 25 meter butterfly, did pretty well with his first attempt at diving off the blocks, and helped his relay team to come in third by catching them up from last place as the final swimmer. Swim meets are something else. The pre-meet practice is from 5:15 to 6:00, with the actual meet taking place from 6:00-8:00 PM. Which makes for almost three hours of sitting in the blistering heat (and here in Omaha it has been close to 100 for the last three days) for the toddlers and I. Today, after only sitting about 15 minutes, Charlie and Sam were completely drenched in sweat and red faced. I starting getting worried about the safety of having two small children in severe heat for 3 hours, so I stripped them down to their shorts minus the undies and put them in the baby pool which was next to the main pool. Other parents soon followed suit with their small fries, and the mothers all stood with their feet immersed in the water as we cheered on our swimmers. I have seriously never sweated so much in my life. It was torturous. I love the boost to Evan's self confidence, the vastly improved swimming skills he is achieving, and watching my kid be a star, but let me be honest. I hate swim meets. Period.

I tried putting Sammy in undies the last three days. He just pees and poops whever he is, and happily goes on about his business with completely disgusting pants. I am giving up for now. He could care less. Yet again, I am stuck in a situation where this is fine with me, and daycare is going to throw a fit when school starts again. Yet another reason I would love to be a SAHM.

Charlie has been throwing huge temper tantrums again the last three weeks. I am at my wits end. I have talked with his pediatrician, and I am following his advice, but I may need an IV of valium to get through this stage. Maybe Super Nanny would take pity on me.

Jeff is back this week after a week long trip last week to Sacramento. Nothing shows just how much I love and appreciate my hubby as a week without him. MAN, I love that guy. SOOOO glad he is back!!

And also? I woke up this morning with a HUGE spider bite-on my rear end! First of all, YUCK to spiders in bed with me! I am completely disgusted by these horrid things. Second, it itches like the dickens, and you know, that's just not a good place to have to scratch. And lastly, it is swollen up to the size of a golf ball. Which makes sitting oh so fun!

And finally, here is a completely random thought. I wish that the micro scrubbing beads that they put in facial cleansers were colored instead of transparent. That way, when it gets in your eye and you are exfoliating your cornea instead of your pores, you could actually see it to remove it. Let's just say my left eye looks like hamburger meat after a bad experience this morning.

I promise to try and be back here more often so I don't have to do any more of these crazy random posts.

First Movie

We got back a bit ago from taking Charlie and Sammy to their very first movie. Evan earned being able to see a movie for one of his rewards in eye therapy, and I had promised to be the one to take him. I feel badly always asking my mom to babysit, so we bravely set out for the theatre this afternoon with two toddlers in tow.

I took Evan to see his first movie (Monsters Inc) in the theatre when he was Charlie's age (3 1/2) so I felt pretty good about Charlie, but Sammy is such a wild card. At home, he is my patient, loving, and agreeable guy, but get that kid into a public place and you just never know what he is going to come up with. And the hard thing about Charlie and Sammy together lately is that they are TOTALLY at this awful preschool humor stage. Anything from poop to eyeballs can be funny, and they can get each other completely out of control in 3 seconds. Once that happens, they want to wrestle, and then the testosterone starts flowing. Raising one boy is SOOOO much easier than three. Sometimes Evan and I both miss the good old days of just us.

Anywho, we went to see UP! I love Disney/Pixar movies, and this one was great as always. The story line wasn't what I expected, and a little sad in spots, but the humor was great. We laughed all the way through. Luckily, there were only three families in the theatre, including us, which took a lot of the pressure off. We found a row with exactly four seats next to a railing which helped to pen the little guys in place. Charlie and Sammy ended up spending most of the movie in the same seat though, since neither were heavy enough on their own to keep the seat down. I got a jumbo bucket of popcorn for everyone to share, which helped to hold their attention as much as anything. My kids think popcorn is the best treat ever for some reason.

The best part for me, aside from seeing the amazement on their faces when the movie started rolling on the huge screen, was the feeling that just maybe this is starting to get a bit easier. It's so nice to think that maybe the little ones are finally big enough to do some things, and give us an opportunity to relax in public.

Social Buterflies

We have done more in the last two days than we have in forever. It's been a fun start to the weekend! Getting out of the house was just what the doctor ordered as a Mommy pick me up.

Yesterday we met our friend Christi and her children Alyssa and Joel (who is also my ADORABLE Godson) at the park for a picnic. After some fun in the sun, we went home for a quick nap, and then went out again for my aunt and uncle's 50th anniversary party. Don't they clean up well?



It was a beautiful party for so many reasons. It is an amazing thing to see a couple who have dedicated their lives to each other, surrounded by their children and grandchildren, glowing with love for each other and their family. My grandpa used to say, "It's amazing how much trouble two people can cause!!" And it's true.

This morning we packed the kids into the van and headed down for a day at the zoo. This was no small thing for me. Don't throw tomatoes at me for saying this, but I really do HATE the zoo. Looking at animals has never been too exciting for me. And the Omaha zoo? It has so many hills in it, it feels like they built it into the side of a mountain. When you have to climb up and down those things while either pushing 80 pounds of kid in a double stroller or with older children hanging on you saying "It's hooooot. I'm thiiiiiirsty. Can I geeeeet something?" it ends up being a workout for your muscles and your patience. But the kids love it, so I sucked it up and we went. And it was fun to watch the delight on their faces. So I watched my kids instead of the animals. That's what made it fun for me.

We grabbed lunch at BK on the way home (big treat for the kiddos!), took another quick nap, and then we headed over to my sister's house. My brother in law just got his masters degree, so they were having a shindig. I am in awe of him for accomplishing such a feat with two small children.

And here's a picture just because it's cute. Charlie and Sammy love to listen to tunes with Daddy. They especially love Johnny Cash and the Beatles.



*sigh* I love my boys! Aren't they all just deliciously adorable?!

My Thursday

Want to know what I did today? Sure you do! Thanks for humoring me.

Woke up at 5:30, got myself and three boys to school and/or daycare by 7:00. Worked a full day until 4:00. Went home, did eye therapy with Evan, made dinner, cleaned up after dinner, mowed the yard, gave the toddlers a bath, pretended I am a nurse while treating the case of hives Charlie broke out with after playing in the backyard, did 2 loads of laundry, and put the boys to bed. I did all that by myself. Jeff, God bless him, is having a busy end to the fiscal year at work, and didn't get home until 8:00.

I'm tired.

I just read a book by James Patterson called Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas. (Soooo good, but soooooo sad. If you read it, get a large box of Kleenex ready). In it, he compares life to juggling 5 balls which represent health, family, work, and 2 other things I can't even remember. All the balls are made of rubber except for family and health. Those two balls are made of glass. If you drop the work ball, it will eventually bounce back. But you can't drop family or health, because it might be damaged, and it might shatter, and it's almost impossible to fix after that.

As a working mom, I am having a hard time balancing things. I so want to get the most out of our time together in the evenings, but it seems to go by in a blur of things that need to be done- like eating, dishes, homework, and bathing. Even so, there is so much I am not getting done around the house, that weekends end up being marathon sessions of a mile long to do list to keep the family moving smoothly.

Once the boys are in bed and I exercise for the day, I am left with about 45 minutes of down time for myself for the day, if I am lucky enough to not have school work to do.

I feel like I am dropping all five balls a lot of the time, doing a halfway job with everything. I am hoping I am not cracking the glass balls as I do.

I am craving more time with my kids lately. I have been praying a lot about being a stay at home Mom. Jeff works so hard to make our family stable financially, and he does a great job. I trust his leadership completely in finances, as he can turn $5 into $500, whereas I would use that same amount to put us into debt by $5000. Jeff thinks it would be best for me to continue working at this point, so I am praying to have a gentle spirit on this front, and follow his lead. I am also praying that God will lead me into whatever role he wants me to be.

If I am meant to be a Mom and a teacher, I'm okay with that. But I wish I had a clone. Or an instruction manual. Or maybe a maid? Right now, I am stretched way too thin. And I love my babies, all three of them, to the moon and back. I just want to do the very best I can for them. I just need to figure out how to accomplish that.

Missing Blogger

This is the longest I have gone without posting in FOREVER! And it is mainly because of things like this...the following is a snipet of the conversations I have had in the last half an hour...

Me: Sam! Don't lick the cat!! (Spent 5 minutes wiping hairball out of two year old's mouth. Apparently one lick can get you quite a bit of hair).

Charlie: Moooooom! Sammy put a car down my pants!

Sammy: Outside! Kitty went out the door!!! Ray kitty is GONE! (Spend 5 minutes in the backyard coaxing the cat to come down from the eaves of the deck).

Charlie: MooooooM!! Wipe my bottom! Me: You are a big boy now, you can do it yourself. Charlie: NOOOOOOOOO! I HATE POOP!!!!! (Repeat this about 10 times).

Evan: I HATE DECIMALS! WHO THOUGHT OF THIS! I am NOT going to do my homework!! I wish school was over RIGHT NOW!!

Sammy: Mommy!!! Charlie poke Sammy's eye out!!!! (Scream and wail).

And they wonder why we had chips and leftovers for dinner!

Hopefully the natives will settle down enough for me to post a bit more regularly around here...

Back in the Saddle Again

Until last night, our family had only been to church with all members present once. We tried at Christmas Eve Mass 2007, when Sam was just a little over a year old. It did not go well. Charlie spent most of church with Jeff in my classroom, and Sammy and I hung out in the foyer. Luckily Evan was in the choir, because nobody was left in the pew.

Charlie has been going to church regularly since he was about 20 months old. Despite being my kiddo who throws a world class tantrum, he has always had a great command of "the whisper voice" (a must for church going children) and he's always done very well sitting still and entertaining himself during the service.

Sammy, who is in most other situations very calm and well mannered, goes nuts as soon as you put him in a church situation. He has one voice level, and it is nowhere near a whisper.

We thought we'd throw caution to the wind last night though, and we all went to the less formal Saturday night service. True to form, about 25 minutes in, Sammy was talking loudly, trying to run from the row we were sitting in, and was trying to steal colors from the children in front of us. I took Sammy back out to the van where we had a "come to Jesus meeting". He was enraged about not being included on something Charlie and Evan were doing, so I took him back in for one more try. Luckily, he let me hold him for the rest of the service, and he didn't say another word.

Even though it was interrupted, it was so nice for us all to go to church together again. It's been so long!! I didn't realize just how much I'd missed it until last night.

And a Good Weekend Was Had By All

We've had a splendid time around here the last couple of days. Friday was rather excruciating for me, as I had to help with a Book Bowl competition at school. The event itself was fun to help with, but days where I don't get to see my kids for more than the half hour it takes to get them dressed and to school are just plain awful for me. Sometimes I am tempted to go into their room and wake them up to play when I get home. It also meant I got a late start on my laundry, which is never a good idea around here.

We made up for it Saturday morning though when we went Boingz! for our cousin Bryce's 2nd birthday party. All three boys had a great time jumping in the bounce houses.

Saturday night was pure pleasure. Jeff and I had date night together, the first time we have been out in months. We went to see Bill Cosby perform live at the Orpheum Theater in downtown Omaha. I am such a big fan of Mr. Cosby that I seriously would have been happy if he had just came on stage and sat down and said nothing. Just to be able to say I was in the same room with him was enough for me.

He came out in sweat pants, a hoodie sweatshirt that said "Hello Friend" on the front, and blue crocs. Wouldn't that be great to be so comfy while you are on stage? The only thing on stage was a chair and a table, and he sat in the chair and talked to all of us as if we had always been friends. He told HIGHLARIOUS stories for 2 hours and 15 minutes, and I am not kidding you-my stomach hurt when it was all over. I have never ever laughed that hard for that long.

We went out to dinner at Red Lobster afterwards for Lobstah fest, and I totally indulged and had a lobster tail and garlic jumbo shrimp. TO DIE FOR. I have 2 extra inches on my hips to prove it.

My totally awesome father in-law came down to watch the kids, and they just are over the moon in love with him, so the boys had a good date night too. The only downside is that Papa John never comes empty handed, so he had loads of junkfood loot with him. This morning I opened my fridgerator door to see a bag of Peanut Butter M&Ms staring me in the face. THERE IS NOT A YUMMIER CANDY!!!! This will not help my diet. So far I have avoided them. I will be pushing them on the boys for desert tonight in self preservtion.

What Money Just Can't Buy

Yesterday, Beth, over at I Should Be Folding Laundry asked her readers to leave her a comment telling her what they would buy if money were no object. I told her I would go out right this very minute and get a tummy tuck. I so envy people who have babies and then immediately are able to put their normal jeans back on. My ten pound babies stretched my skin to the limit. That, combined with my wickedly slow metabolism, German background (Good strong, big boned women!!), and poly cystic ovary syndrome left me with a lot of stretched out left over skin that will not return to it's normal shape no matter how much weight I lose, or how much I exercise and do crunches. It blows.

But, there is something I yearn for even more than that, and unfortunately it isn't something money can buy. What I really want? Is to be able to go somewhere like a doctor's office, a church, or a grocery store, and to think nothing of it. To be able to have each of these events be a calm experience. One where you are not trying to constantly keep your kids quiet. Where your heart is not pounding because you are just waiting for one of them to loose it, and then have to deal with it like it is really no big deal and be utterly calm about the whole thing.

Yesterday Evan had to go in to the eye doctor for a 6 week progress check. I took Sam and Charlie with me, as it was right after school and we would have to fly to get there in time, and also because I hate having to ask my mom all the time to watch the kids. Big mistake. Let it suffice to say that the doctor actually asked me not to bring them back for any of Evan's other appointments. I can kind of see her point, as it was hard for Evan to concentrate on what she was asking him to do, and I wasn't even able to talk with her about his progress because I could tell they were aggravating her. A lot. On the other hand, our appointment was at 4:00, and the tech didn't even come into the room until 4:45. The doctor didn't arrive until 5:10. Toddlers don't do well stuck in a small room for over an hour. I was so embarrassed I wanted to cry. I don't think their behavior was all that terrible, they were just being toddlers. I guess there are just certain situations that toddlers don't mix with.

Now I am in a pickle though. Evan goes to weekly therapy sessions, and check ups to this doctor every 6 weeks. That's a lot of time that the babies won't be able to come with us. I have no idea how that will work out.

I did dish out some tough love afterwards though. I had told the babies that if they were very good at the doctor we would go to McDonald's for dinner. Since they obviously didn't cut the mustard with their behavior, I bought dinner at McD's for everyone but them. They had a microwave pizza instead, and we made a huge deal out of how yummy our fries were, and how sad it was they hadn't made better choices at the doctor's so they could have some too. It made a BIG impression. Hopefully one that lasts.

My Guardian Angel Deserves a Raise

On Thursday we had Service One come out to the house to do their annual furnace inspection and cleaning. The technician found some interesting things.

Since we were at work while he was here, he left his note about the work he did on the kitchen counter. Next to the note was a pile of 6 bottles of acrylic paint, 4 paint brushes, a battery, and a plastic ball. He noted that he dug all of these nifty items out of the BURNER COMPARTMENT of our furnace. Now, I don't know about you, but the words BURNER COMPARTMENT bring to mind images of fire. Probably not a good place to store your paint bottles, eh?

I was especially impressed when I noted that on the sides of the bottles of paint, it said "Highly flammable. Do not store near open flame." All the more reason to STORE IT IN YOUR FURNACE!!!

My box of paints is stored in a box in the top shelf of our shelving units in the storage room, so I have no idea how they found themselves inside of the furnace. My guess is the cat. Or I suppose the herd of boys running around these here parts.

I can just see the look of disgust on my guardian angel's face. She's probably totally disgusted she ended up with me for an assignment. Living with boys equals living in a danger war zone.

Fun and Excitement!

Have you ever tried to help a 4th grader with double digit long division at the same time you are cooking dinner at the same time you have two whining toddlers hanging on your legs?

It is the most fun ever, let me tell you.

It is so much fun, I sure hope I don't get to do it again tonight!

Am I bald yet? Because I am pulling my hair out...

This was our night last night:

I had a meeting after school last night that went a little late. By the time we left school it was 4:30. Not good for our schedule, that's for sure! We rushed home, I got the toddlers settled with a video, and by 5:00 Evan and I started on eye therapy. It was already 5:40 by the time I was able to start cooking dinner. Which meant that the natives were getting restless. When Charlie and Sam get hungry, they have the intense urge to wrestle each other to the floor and bite each other. Perhaps they are envisioning eating their brother for dinner? I don't know, but it happens every time.

Meanwhile, Evan has now gotten a VERY late start on his regular homework, which GOD BLESS AMERICA! included ALGEBRA. Cue the scary music. I swear to you, I was in 7th grade before a teacher uttered this dreaded word in my presence. It is no joke when you hear a teacher say they are pushing down the curriculum to earlier and earlier grades in order to cram in all the info kids need to have before high school graduation. Needless to say, Evan was not able to do this assignment on his own, and now began begging for help. All the while I am trying to get dinner on the table.

We made it through dinner somehow, but afterwards I managed to dump an entire glass of sticky orange juice on the floor. At the same time Sammy took his own diaper off (which was full of poop) and tried to sit down on his potty chair and got poop everywhere. At the same time Evan was crying through his after supper chores because he had so much homework left to do.

I had to excuse myself for a time out in my bedroom. I worked on finding something to be thankful for while I was in there. IT. WAS. HARD. I tried hard not to cry. It didn't work.

Somehow we got through the rest of our night. The miracle, and not a small one either, was that I was able to still greet my husband with a smile and a hug when he got home, instead of wrathful anger because he was home late again. So at least we didn't top things off with a fight. Instead, Jeff noticed things seemed to be in a bit of disarray, and he cheerfully helped me to restore order. And then we all felt better.

I am REALLY hopeful though that tonight is better. Because tomorrow? My baby turns 3! I can't believe Charlie will be officially leaving toddlerdom behind (I am hoping he leaves the temper tantrums behind too!!) and is becoming a preschooler. But, we are going to welcome this new age in with a big party and a CELEBRATION tomorrow! Charlie and I can't wait!

I am SOOOOO over Walmart

Due to a horrific experience we had this morning. All three of the boys were in the car with me this morning as I drove through the Walmart parking lot, looking for a free space. This is gripe number one: THERE IS NEVER AN OPEN SPOT CLOSE TO THE DOOR AT WALMART BECAUSE IT IS PACKED AT ALL HOURS. EVEN 2:00 IN THE MORNING. I unwittingly drove into the middle of an argument two cars were having over a parking spot. I didn't want their spot. I was just cruising by. But a woman in one of the cars thought she owned the pavement, gave me the finger, and shouted the F word at me. Did I mention my kids were in the car? A second car started honking at us as we passed this mess. I don't even know why, really. When we finally parked a couple of rows down from the crazy people, a car full of teenage boys stopped right behind our van and started honking and yelling obscenities at us. Did I mention that my kids were in the car? I really and truly don't even know why they were upset. I just drove up and down the aisles, and parked.

Which brings me to gripe number two: THE WALMART PARKING LOT IS FULL OF RUDE, SCARY, GRUMPY PEOPLE. By this time, I was getting nervous. I was alone with my kids, with a loaded car of angry men behind me. I wanted to cry, but I didn't want the boys to get scared, and I could tell Evan was already nervous. Luckily for us, God was keeping us safe, and the car of crazy teenagers went on their way shortly. I looked at my kids, smiled, and said, "I think this is a good day to go to Target!"

In the past, I was willing to put up with the parking lot being crowded, the store being crowded (gripe number three: WALMART IS ALWAYS WALL TO WALL PEOPLE, BUT NONE OF THESE PEOPLE ARE EMPLOYEES WHO CAN HELP YOU FIND THE ONE THING ON YOUR LIST YOU CAN'T LOCATE.) etc, for the lower prices. But now that I don't feel safe there? I am all about Target. Where, by the way, the parking lot had lots of open spaces, there was a friendly employee to help me find the lamp shades, and no one tried to scare the crap out of my kids and I. Totally worth the extra pennies.