Feeling a Wee Bit Lost

Not much new to report here except that life has kept us on our toes. I am still computer-less and relying on using my other/better half's work computer at night. It really is too bad that it's not lent yet because this truly feels like a sacrifice. How in the world did I ever look up recipes, phone numbers, directions and stay in contact with people pre Internet?? Honestly, I don't remember.

Here's to a comfy and cozy end to the weekend and a brighter week ahead with less things getting broken. ;)

PS Stop by Amanda's and congratulate the family with the birth of Peter- he was only like 2 months overdue!

When Is It Winethirty?

When you clean your house for hours to have no house showing.

When your child falls on your laptop and breaks it.

When your child's book report that is due tomorrow is on said laptop and is non-retrievable.

When you try to run to the drugstore and your car battery is dead.

That is when you know it's time to end this very long day and get into the wine.

Tomorrow can only be better.

The Sounds of Dinner

Sometimes we pop up the travel table in the kitchen for convenience. We don't have a "kitchen" table- just a dining room table. Dining room means turning a corner and eating on carpet. To sum it up, we don't dine fancy most meals.

The other night the portable table proved most portable (meaning it didn't get locked into place) and a visit from the dog sent the entire table to the ground.

Oops.

Bad news- I lost one of my brand new plates. A few glasses and salad bowls, too. Oh and most of dinner was a flop.

Good news, though - our daughter saved daddy's favorite brewery glass. Cheers to that!

I swear I wasn't on the phone (of course I wasn't-it's not legal here). Nope, I was in full awareness but it just sorta happened. The sidewalk alongside the freeway entrance seemingly leaped out at the van and robbed my tire.

Later in the day my honey sent me an an email stating I owed him 10,000 kisses and this was attached.


He's a keeper!

Lyrics. To Each His Own.

Come on moms, you know this one.

There was a man lived in the moon, in the moon, in the moon...

Remember the part about eyes? His eyes were made of meatballs, meatballs, meatballs...

There is a new lyricist in town- you know the Star Wars junkie.

Loud from behind my car seat today he yelled "NO MOM! His eyes were made of death stars, death stars, death stars..." Oh how hard it is for me to embrace this dark side.

Cramming It In

I wanted to do so much over break. (Aren't breaks for relaxing??) So on our last few days we tried to cram it in. We spent New Year's Eve at the aquarium hanging with the fish. It was a miserably rainy afternoon and the city was getting more and more congested as time went on. We got a great phone call that our college friends were on top of the space needle so we met up for some cheer before my husband had to take off for a very busy night at the firehouse.



To finish off the weekend we hit the slopes for some sledding. But blah it was a sledding in sleet adventure. No light flurries for us, it was wet! Although my toes were like glass after a few hours, the kids were having the time of their life. That's what we parents strive for, right?


We threw in a Princess and the Frog showing at the cinema with licorice and chocolates and just like that *, break was over. Do you know how much I heard about homeschooling on Monday morning??

Scizzor Time

"I don't need a haircut", he claimed.


I had to show him that indeed it was time but I didn't expect him to like this style so much. And for a side note, you should have seen the wince his dad made upon seeing this new hairdo. If only the camera was nearby...

Keep It Going

Because there are truly twelve days of Christmas, I am not too late in wishing a Merry Christmas to blog readers. Our day was crazy and fun. It all comes and goes too fast, though. So much prep and excitement and there is always a sentimental sad person at the end of Christmas day (sometimes even me). This year it was both my big kids, wishing it would never end.

And even though my husband and I made the "no gift" pack, he still surprised me with the best gift yet.



Me: "It's a...bar mop towel...am I getting a new bar??"
Him: "Well honey, you see, when you sit this close to Bono, he does get pretty sweaty."

Scream. Scream. Another scream and a big hug. Tucked inside were awesome seats to the sold out concert. I LOVE the "no gift" pack!

Aspirations

Sitting around the table tonight and trying to ignore a small boy humming Star Wars incessantly, I asked what the kids wanted to be when they grew up. My middle man said, "Mom, I already said on the microphone at graduation". To clarify I needed to confirm that he was indeed talking about preschool graduation three years ago. And he was. He said then he wanted to be a doctor and that is still what he wants to be. Or work with Bill at Microsoft if the med school stuff doesn't pan out.

Not surprisingly my big fish said a marine biologist. And just like her brother, she had a fall back...a bird breeder. Tweet.

So last I came to the hummer. And good thing I was sitting when he said he wanted to be a spider. At least we'll save some college tuition, right?

Annual Date With My Clara

My growing way too fast girl and I had our annual Nutcracker date this weekend. We couldn't remember if this is four years or five. Regardless, lunch was special, the ballet was wonderful (except for the lady who narrated the ENTIRE show to her toddlers behind us- thanks lady!) and putzing around after the show was fun, too.

I wonder how many more years I can pull this off?

Time to Breathe

It's been a busy few weeks here in our town, how about you? We have had band concerts, Christmas pageants, doctor visits, last minute projects, endless errands, too many house showings (grrr), colds, parties (not complaining there) and daily life on top of it.

Now that the kids are out of school and most of the gifts are procured, wrapped and shipped...I am ready to breathe. It's so good to be in jammies late and not rushing around. Bring on that long awaited baking!

Check Out Green Snail

A very nice woman sent me an email last month wanting to spread the word that she has opened up an online children's consignment shop. In the spirit of going more green with Christmas gift giving, you too should check it out.

Christmas Rush

Here we are amidst the daily grind adding just a few too many things to do...I say every year that I won't go there. I won't get in over my head so that I forget the focus, but it's happened again. I have always been busy but when you forget to give your kids lunch for school...that's pushing it. Perhaps blogging only twice a month reflects the loss of control at the home front as well.

So as I count down the days until we can all be together with nowhere to go (and wishing for that "you have no choice but to stay put" snowstorm... here's a shot of my new little chef who begs me every single day to let him get busy in the kitchen.

Thanksgiving Thoughts

We headed up to see our good college friends on Whidbey for thankful day. We were thankful for so much (everyone kept adding to the list throughout the day). Here my little guy isn't so sure about something...I haven't a clue because he seemed content to wait out the ferry ride helping mama crochet a hat AND he got to relieve himself in a Starbuck's cup. I mean you have to feel better after that.



And this I love- the view of the water from the kitchen.


A right arm perhaps to wake up to that view every day. Wait, nevermind, not an arm- I'm thankful for my arms. How about a car? I'd give a car to wash dishes to that. And I swear my kid isn't drinking an ale! A six pack of root beer made a very happy crew.

So while I was so thankful for a delish dinner, good friends, too much wine and the fact that Josh and I whooped the adult Trivial Persuit players...the next morning sent agony. First I thought it was the wine. Then the stomach flu. Now we think it was a gallbladder attack. Throwing up in the car for three hours ain't my cup of thankful tea. And to be weak and in pain for the remainder of the weekend downright stunk.

But today...I am good, I still have a gallbladder, and for that I am thankful.

Holy moly, it's been a long time since I've been here. So much has been happening over here and now it's the first day of Advent already! I went underground to get things done with a visit from my mom. I've been fighting sickness again and again. I've been working on keeping everyone in check and being where they're supposed to be. So, it sounds like just about every one of my friends with busy lives.

I'm so very happy to say that my husband is now officially a certified EMT- after three months of no husband on Tuesdays or Saturdays I am so happy to have him back. It is so very hard to stay on track and organized and regenerated while sailing the ship on your own. Single moms- you're darn tough.

And on a completely different note, Old Navy has a fun Rock Band set up to entertain your children (when they can get the drum sticks away from mommy) while you shop. Here's a photo of one singer, two drummer and some seriously bad music.

Up and At 'Em

The alarm went off this morning at 4:50 am. Ouch.
39 degrees, wearing bike shorts and a super cold car. Double ouch.

But here's the good news. I LOVED teaching a spinning class early and getting a killer workout in at the crack of dawn. What a way to begin the day- dripping sweat and done by 6:30.

Wednesday might be my new favorite day. You have a good one, too.

PS Many blessings and thanks to all the vets out there. Thank you!

Sutra

I went to dinner the other night to celebrate a running friend's birthday at a vegan restaurant in Seattle. I won't drop the overused "amazing" although that would fit perfectly. This intimate, cozy and unique restaurant was such a treat. You have to check out the menu, whether you're a veg or not- it's the bomb.

It's Good to Go Out

Even if you don't win the golden ticket or get to bid on the trip to Hawaii that you want. It's good to put on a dress and drink champagne even if you have laryngitis and feel like a recycle bin. It's good to escape the daily chaos for a few hours with your honey even if the Sea Bass makes you run to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Yes, I really did have fun.

Date Day

I love outings with a singleton. My son and I took advantage of a beautiful day together and went to a fancy lunch and headed into the city. I was going to surprise him with renting a kayak and heading out on the lake. But my poor planning backfired on me- they don't rent out boats from November to January. Dang it.

So instead we walked hand in hand by the water, climbed some walls and headed to the nearby mall to window shop and get a melt in your mouth cookie.

Wanna know how well this date went? I got about three hundred and sixty two "THANK YOU's" on our way home. Now on to the next kid.

Down

What could be a bigger bummer than laying on the couch the day before Halloween feeling as if you're gonna blow any second?? "We're" home sick today. I know "we're" sick because there are totally fun festivities at school today that "we" just can't get to. I've never had a sick child for Halloween- what, oh what, will we do if we miss it?

And by the way, James and Giant Peach is a really freaky movie.

Bootcamp, Sleep Style

I would so much prefer teaching a good solid boot camp workout instead of what we're enduring over here. My child turned four last week. Four is so far away from the usual sort of boot camp that we're doing. Typically bleary-eyed moms and dads do this with babies and here we are years later...

Last night was our second night of hour after hour reassuring a small person with outrageous fears that all is well and that he needs to stay in his bed. I took night one, last night was daddy's turn. Daddy reported that he and the worry wort were awake from one am to four am. Ouch.

So you can imagine the amount of whining and frustration both the little one and mommy will have today. It's going to get better. It's going to get better. It's going to get better.

Right?!*
Launching rockets off the stairs in jammies. I think we'll skip swim lessons this morning and stay low- in jammies all morning long.

*Update: Night number three has been the worst so far. I may crash and burn big time today.

Gearing Up

A major rager fifth grade party last Saturday got us trying out the costume. And she said her boots looked like garbage bags....come on.

I Heart Fall

I get seriously bummed at the end of summer. It must be our location and the fear of dark, gray days. And then I remember just how perfect the fall is- short and sweet.

Last weekend a very smart family from school found a nearby pumpkin patch to host a carving party. From trick or treats in the hay loft of the barn to the jumpy jumps to the candle lit garden (doesn't it just look like the Secret Garden??), we enjoyed our afternoon immensely.

Fall, I love ya!

The Human Calculator

Have you heard of this guy, Scott Flansburg? He's noted as the Human Calculator for a reason. The math maniac can tell you what day it was on any given date in history. He can quickly tabulate any problem you give him. He is serious about teaching math and even more serious that math can be easy for everyone. When I'm done with this book...I'll be able to help my fifth grader with homework! ;)

Rainy Days

This is what it looks like on a rainy afternoon at our house.

A soon to be four year old insisting he can read chapter books. (Because Hank is really funny).

You don't actually need rain to find this girl curled on the couch reading but those Legos in the background will tell you that there have been hours of building while stuck inside.

The Force Will Definitely Be With Us

I have to admit, my children are junkies. It started over the summer and it hasn't died down one bit. All three of them are obsessed. In fact there will be a Leia, Luke and Darth out and about in full costume this Halloween. We will be celebrating our little guy's birthday tomorrow -can you even imagine their excitement when we go see this one night event? (You must click on the link and watch this clip!)

So Long

Do you know how long I've waited for this sticker? Almost four years ago we gave in to better judgement and bought a treadmill. Why? Because I was having a baby and I didn't want to look like it. So as soon as little bear made his way to our house, I plugged in the machine and started to go. Not long after, I excitedly ran into the kitchen to announce to the chef that I had just ran (more like slowly jogged) five whole miles. "Great job" said the handsome cook. "I know" I added, "and someday...I'm gonna train for a marathon!"

Well, training came and went. Injuries have come and gone and came again. But I did it. Cross that one right off the list because I DID IT. But you know what? I want to do it again. And again. And all these people in my life think I'm ignorant and nuts to keep injuring myself but the truth is- I love to run. I love to race. It's an awesome, awesome feeling. And hopefully one I won't have to wait months to feel again.

I have admitted already that I shouldn't have tried to run injured. It was stupid, it caused a lot more damage. But think about how many souls over those 26.2 miles I offered up that suffering for. So while I recover from a mysterious pelvic pain, I am going to try to focus on the good (really hard for my type). I'm going to remember I'm blessed to be able to do this. To reflect on how much I adored Portland. To know that I accomplished something big (why oh why can't that be enough?) and to of course realize that I am capable of so much more than I ever knew.

In A Crowd

Last week was our big kids first CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) cross country meet. They did their runner-wanna-be mommy proud. (I'm a wanna-be until I complete my first full marathon- it's self-inflicted this title, don't ask). So, clueless as I am, I was informed that Bill Gates was walking around this meet with his son. No helicopters, no security, no fanfare- just a dad cheering on his kid.

Wow, I thought, that's pretty cool but then again I wouldn't know Bill Gates in a crowd, let a lineup. So with people like me around I guess his cover is pretty safe.


Mine is on the right- just like her mom, she doesn't want anyone stealing her thunder in the end.

Pears, Huh?

I've been trying to figure out what kind of weird apple tree is on our new property...It finally came to me at the fruit stand up the street yesterday- those aren't apples. I sure have a lot to learn- like now what to do with the bags and bags full of these things.

Brotherly Breakfast

Sissy was gone all weekend camping and so these two bonded. Sometimes a change in family dynamic brings out the best. Or maybe it's just the big finger.