Pink in the Midst of Blue

Our New Journey

2011-06-06T17:13:00.000-07:00

Before the kids were born, the hubster and I tossed around the idea of homeschooling. With neither one of us feeling like the smarty-pants type of parent that you must be to accomplish such a task (successfully), we decided not to think about it. Aaaaand to the backburner it went.

However, it didn’t stay there. It kept nagging at me. I tried to pretend the horror stories of our failing public schools in the media didn’t affect me. That’s not in my state... I live in a small town, that doesn’t happen here... I tried to persuade myself into thinking that it’s not as bad as it seems. Truth be told, it probably seems better than it is.

With Kindergarten behind us, I have been forced to make a decision. My son’s school has been shut down for the next school year as the budget has been cut yet again. More teachers have been laid off and classroom sizes are growing. My son, Mr. Sensitive Ears, did not do well at the beginning of his Kindergarten year. That is, until they split his class into two different classes. He excelled with far fewer classmates. He went from needing an extra reading class to reading an entire book by himself in a matter of weeks.

As parents, we were quite proud of our little scholar and fond of his teacher, Mr. Teacher, but there were still problems. Jaedon complained that he hated school and the only thing he liked about it each day was recess. I noticed that his schoolwork didn’t change much, even though he had mastered the worksheets, he was still doing the very same ones week in, week out. I believe Jaedon became bored of school because he was not being challenged. He still loves to do “school work” at home - so at least I know it isn’t learning that he hates. Yet another issue: bullies. Jaedon does not know how to handle bullies and the school is apparently full of them. I’d hear stories from my son nearly every week about a mean kid.

I don’t want anyone to feel like I am blaming schools or teachers for failing our students. I admire so many teachers, Mr. Teacher being one of them. There have been a handful of teachers in my life that have really inspired me.

For my family, homeschooling is the path we will be taking in the coming school year. I am very excited - today I have put in my order for the supplies we will need for next year. I just hope that a year from now I am not ripping my hair out.

Rambling, Ramble, Rambler.

2011-03-07T15:05:00.000-07:00

It's been nearly a year(!) since I last blogged. Nothing dramatic happened to make me run for the hills, I guess life just took over for a while and the blog was at the bottom of my list. If I had a list. Man, I really need to start making lists. First on the list, get organized! Maybe tomorrow...

What's happened lately?
Jaedon is in Kindergarten, Trevin will soon be three (yippee!), Andrew's store is closing, I'm thinking of changing my major, we are moving to the valley, Emma is the sweetest dog ever, and I don't care what the rules are, I like to use run-on sentences. Well, I do care about the rules, they just don't apply to me. Okay, they do... I just don't know the rules well enough to follow them. I have no idea what I am talking about anymore. We bought a car.

Today I gave both the boys a haircut. The fact that Wednesday is class picture day gave me the motivation to do something I had been putting off. Jaedon has been wanting to grow his hair out a bit - and I'm fine with that until it's long enough to put in a ponytail. It was no where near being that long, thank goodness! However, today he was ready to go short, but not too short. Next came the dread of cutting Trevin's hair. He hates to have his hair cut, but hates to have it washed even more. I like to keep his hair short during this phase so I can just use a rag to wash his hair. To my delight, he did not mind the hair chopping one bit. My baby is growing up!

I hope you all are enjoying this day with your loved ones as much as I am with mine.

No Choking, PLEASE.

2010-03-16T22:12:00.001-07:00

I thought that once Spring Break rollled around that I'd finally have time and energy to pour into my blog. I miss my blog. I really miss getting everything out. Instead I have found myself preparing for Trevin's 2nd birthday party. This year I decided to make everything myself. Every last decoration & party favor - all made with my two hand and a glue gun. My glue gun is my new best friend. I've had a lot of fun with it and my boys are so excited about it & want to play with everything... But they CANNOT. At least not yet. I wish I would have taken step by step photos. I was just busy trying to keep my little one from "playing" with the glue gun or sewing needles. I will post photos after the party of all the decorations & little diddies. The party isn't for another month so don't forget about it, mmmkay? Here is a little sneak peak...

Little monster magnet favors.... I just love 'em!

My only snag with this party planning is trying to figure out the menu. I don't want to serve a full meal, mostly just finger foods. I was thinking mini pizzas.... But what to serve along side of that??? Green and orange are the colors I am repeating the most with the decor, however this is a party for 2 year olds & they choke (mine does) on carrots & celery. How perfect would that be, though? Not the choking, but the color combo?

Speaking of choking...

Trevin did choke really bad the other day on a pretzel. It scared me. Usually I don't get scared when the kids choke, but this time I did. He went pale and started to blue. I was beating him so hard on his back I just knew he was going to have severe brusing (he didn't). He was still able to cough here and there so I knew it wasn't time to give chest compressions. It was just a week before this happened that I took a CPR class (I think God likes to show off sometimes). I just told myself that it didn't matter if I hurt him, but it certainly would matter if he died. Finally, we got it out. It was a joint effort, me pounding him, him puking it up. He nearly swallowed the thing whole. It had one bite taken out of it (one of those mini heart shaped pretzels). Jaedon thought it was disgusting the way Trevin had puked all over me. I thought it was beautiful. Ah, mommyhood.

On a Sunday

2010-03-01T07:05:00.000-07:00

March 1, 1992 I was dusting our big old vintage TV. It was Sunday and we were doing our usual Sunday ritual. Dusting, vacuuming, cleaning here and there. I loved dusting that big old TV. Something about watching all that built up dust wipe away in an instant to reveal a clean, shiny surface was just fun for me. We were listening to music in the background. I was carefree and having fun. I had no idea how soon my life would take a complete change.

Who wouldn't want to clean that big beast of a TV (the bottom one)?

The phone rang. So many times throughout the past 18 years I have wished that that phone call never came. My mom answered, and I remembered it had to have been something serious because everything else stopped. Somehow our neighbor, Tracy, was there. She and I were standing there, staring, waiting to hear what the call was about.

I remember my mom saying, “You’re dad has been in an accident.” She stayed clam and suggested I do the same, since we didn’t have more information there was no use in worrying. People have accidents all the time and most of the time they just have minor injuries, right?

Well, I was seven. I couldn’t control myself. I never thought of my parents being able to get hurt, let alone die. But all I could think from that point on was that everything was not going to be alright. I started to tremble, tears filled my eyes and I just started screaming. It seemed like only seconds before the second call came. I was holding onto all hope that this call would bear good news.

Dead.

How could my dad be dead? Just like that, so sudden. How could he be taken away from me like that? I couldn’t even remember the last time I hugged and kissed him. Or if I told him I loved him the last time I said goodbye to him. Does he know that I love him?

Every night for years I cried myself to sleep. I was too young to even comprehend death and I had no idea how to deal with (even as an adult still I don’t know how). I prayed, wished on stars, obsessed on finding a way to make things right enough with God that he would bring my dad back to me. As I grew a little older that obsession turned into depression. I knew and finally accepted the fact that my dad was never coming back. I wouldn’t get to wrap my arms around him ever again. Never again would his pokey mustache tickle my lips when I gave him a kiss goodnight. I wouldn’t get to see his goose bumps anymore either. I remembered sitting on his lap one morning commenting on the goose bumps, “Daddy, are you cold?“ “No,“ he said. “Why?“ “Because you always have goose bumps!” He just smiled and replied, “I do?” I’ll never hear his voice again.

All I wanted to do was be back with my daddy again. So much that I was constantly thinking of ways to kill myself. I believe this lasted from the age of 10 till I was 14. There were a couple of nights, after everyone had fallen asleep that I’d walk into the kitchen and grab a knife and just place it against my skin. I always ended up sobbing on the floor, not ever having cut myself. I think I was too afraid of how mad my mom would be if I had actually gone through with it. Whatever the reason, I know God was there watching over me. Even though I didn’t know it at the time, He was allowing me to cry on His shoulder.

I thought I was doing my dad’s memory justice by being so lonely and sad and shut off from the rest of the world. I was 14, sitting on my bed, crying over my dad when it hit me. And I mean I literally felt something hit me, though I was all alone in my room. I realized that this wasn’t the life my dad had hoped for me. I realized that all he ever wanted was for me to be happy and to live my life. He lived his. Why on earth did I think he would want anything different for me?

My life changed again from that point on. A few people actually gave me the nickname of “smiley.” Not everyday was easy. I wish he was there to see the birth of his youngest child. I wish that he could have been there to see me before prom. I wish he was there the night I got engaged. My wedding day. For the births of my children. I wish he was there for all the important moments in mine and my brother & sister’s lives. But mostly I wish he were here to enjoy the day-to-day nothing-ness. Like moments when my son says something out of the blue, “This (crackers) isn’t what I was expecting. I was expecting real food.”
I wish he were here so I could just throw my arms around him and squeeze him tightly. I wish I could tease him about his goose bumps again.

I used to wonder if he was proud of me and the choices I made. But now, I am at ease knowing that if he were still alive, he would be. I know that, because I am happy. I am married to man who loves me. I have two kids that bring me such joy (when they aren’t two year olds… Just being honest!). So much around us and in our lives together has gone wrong or failed. But the important things, those that mean the most, that’s what we have going right in our lives. I’d like to think that that would make my dad really happy to know.

I am so thankful that I did have him in my life for those 7 years. He was a loving father. I have so much more to say, but so much of it is difficult to put into words. I love my dad. It’s been 18 years and I still miss him. And it still hurts. But, I am happy.

I'll always your little girl. XOXO

Because, Sometimes, You Have to Have Pancakes for Dinner

2010-02-12T21:23:00.000-07:00

I have gone back to school full-time. For me, it's only 2 classes plus a lab this semester. Monday, Wednesday and Friday I have my CNA class. It's in the morning & so far Andrew's been able to arrange his schedule to watch the kids. Tuesday & Thurday I have my math class in the evening. My wonderful MIL watches the boys for me & feeds them dinner. Most nights, it is pancakes. Mmm... Pancakes.

Well, of course hubby was getting a bit jealous (and so was I to be honest). So the other night we had these beauties for dinner:

Whole Wheat Favorite Pancakes

1-1/4 cup whole wheat flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 cup milk

2 tablespoons oil

Mix all dry ingredients together in one bowl & all wet ingredients in another. Combine until a consistant pancake batter*. Pour onto heated iron skillet or griddle. I really don't think I need to go through all the steps here, do I?

*I did have to add quite a bit more milk for a thinner consistancy & more even cooking. This is a great base recipe. Play around with it, add chocolate chips, cinnamon, brown sugar, sweet potatoes (maybe use less milk if you do), etc.

I doubled the recipe & had plenty leftovers for breakfast the next morning. Score!

Hearts

2010-02-12T20:53:00.001-07:00

I dread the weekends. Usually I spend Friday & Saturday nights all alone once my boys go to bed. At 7:00. I have a lot of time on my hands. Time that I don't spend wisely. It would be a great opportunity to get organized, get crafty, catch up on some reading, exercise, or even study & do my math homework. I don't ever do any of that. I don't waste my time on TV since we don't have cable. Nothing good was ever on during the weekends anyway. Gosh, why am I so lame?

However, tonight I did do a teeny, tiny, little craft project.

Now if only Andrew were in town & didn't have to work all weekend.

Not ready to catch up just yet...

2010-01-13T21:36:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. I haven't been writting very much. And I'm still not going to. I will say this; today was my first day back to school & I think it's going to be a great semester! Oh, and by the way, I'm going back to school. Didn't I mention that? Oops.
I am determined to become an RN. This semester isn't too heavy a load, but I'm super excited to be back & even talk to some adults. Yes, there are youngin's (hahaha, as if I'm old) in the classes (some high schoolers, even), but most are my age & even have kids. Score!

What? It's 2010?

2010-01-07T21:35:00.000-07:00

I've been away and it seems the year has already changed.

The boys and I spent sometime with my family in Safford. It was so nice to spend so much time with my mom, sister, niece and aunt. What wasn't nice? Trevin screaming anytime I wanted to stand up and not hold him. Both the boys getting sick. The boys giving Layla their cold. Trevin waking up 2-5 times during the night. Missing Andrew. The last one was the worst. New Years 2002-2003 was when Andrew and I shared our first kiss.

Trevin decided to keep up with his screaming on the drive home. For 3 hours. That was fun. Oh, and guess what? He hasn't stopped yet. Not really. Sure, there are moments (sometimes long moments) that pass by with out a screaming fit, but mostly all day long each and everyday, he is screaming. It's because I'm so mean and won't let him play with the outlets, or pull the dogs tail, or let him have candy, or I have change his diaper.

I'm finding it rather difficult to keep my sanity and not scream out uncontrollably. My urge right now is to run out the front door and keep running until I pass out. Or lock myself in my room and cry into my pillow.

When he is screaming, I usually don't hear God telling me to "pray" and so I don't. Once he is in bed I finally hear it and now I want to kick myself in the rear end for going all day long with a miserable teething toddler making everyone else miserable, when, if nothing else, prayer would have calmed me down, given me the strength to handle my poor hurting child, and the patients to sit down all day and do nothing but hold him if that's what he needs. Is that what he needs?

It's funny how with your first child you go through all the phases and, yeah, there were times that had been bad, but it was mostly good so you think "I've got this parenting thing down!" Then baby #2 comes, and up until 12 months old, we still thought we had it down. Now we have absolutely no idea. Is it 2013 yet?

DISCLAIMER: I will never run out on my children. I love them to the depths of my being and will always be here for them. However, I am allowed to daydream from time to time.

The Week in Pictures

2009-12-17T21:20:00.000-07:00

Had to take practice family photos before taking family photos:

My wonderful little models

So weird.... I have more photos! For some reason I cannot get them to load properly onto blogger and I don't much feel like playing around with it long enough to figure it out. Read previous blog & you'll have an idea as to why.

Loony Territory

2009-12-17T21:03:00.000-07:00

I have not been sleeping much this week.

When I don’t get enough sleep I become this walking zombie, unable to take care of the things of home. I look at my kids as easy prey. I don’t have to cook, I can just eat my young. Somehow, there is just enough conscious human being left in me to resist the urge. However, no where near enough to accumulate the motivation to clean house.

And of course Jaedon got sick. Thankfully, it was only a fever that lasted a day and a half, but now he is suffering from a cough. I blame the lady who sat next to me in the pew at church, practically dying from her cough and whatever other ailment she was suffering from. Ugh.

Needless to say. Our apartment = horrifying. I don’t know where my kitchen disappeared to, and we seem to be missing a couch. All bodies have been accounted for, however the dog is looking at me rather weird. Like she sees a big T-bone steak, rather than her master. Hmmm… I better go make sure she has food.

The Week in Pictures

2009-12-09T22:18:00.000-07:00

We made crazy faces...

We decorated Gingerbread cookies...

Jaedon's Cookies

My Cookies

Trevin's Cookies

Of course there were other activitites, but I'm finding I have to remind myself to take pictures each day for "The Week in Pictures," and Sophia not so good and remembering.

Unrealistic Marriage

2009-12-09T21:55:00.000-07:00

Tuesday was so wonderful. My Andrew gave me an extra 30 minutes to sleep in the morning. After the crazy storm we had the night before, which kept me up most of the night, I needed it! He then had a conference call that lasted about an hour and a half so the kids and I ate breakfast and watched some Phineas and Ferb.

Once Andrew was off his call, the four of us went into the kids room to play. First we started off by going over a few songs that the boys will be "performing" at church in a couple weeks. Trevin was singing along and making faces similar to Stevie Wonder (I really hope he does that on stage at church!), and Jaedon was trying to mimic Andrew's deep singing voice. It was quite hard for me to hold back my laughter. After "band practice" much tickling and rough housing ensued.

Later we headed over to Wal-Mart, and I sent all my boys out of the store for their incredibly bad behavior. No, not really (not this time). I sent them out so I could finish buying Trevin's Christmas gifts. It is such a wonderful feeling to have all the kid's Christmas shopping done. We have set a 3 gift limit in our house. That's the amount of gifts Jesus received from the wise men. If it's good enough for the Lord, it's good enough for us! It also helps to prevent us from overspending and keep us focused on the true meaning of Christmas.

On the ride home from Wal-Mart, Andrew and I were talking and joking around about who knows what, when Jaedon piped in, "Hey, everyone, just calm down!" He must of thought we were fighting. He has been doing this lately and to be honest with you all, Andrew and I don't fight. We do have disagreements from time to time, but we just talk it out. We never yell or scream at each other. We just are not passionate about fighting. We are passionate when we are playing around with each other... Like in the truck. I guess our voices were raised a bit and that must be why Jaedon figured we were fighting instead.

I reassured Jaedon, "Mommy and Daddy aren't fighting, honey." And then an old article popped into my head about kids and fighting in marriage. I added, "Mommy and Daddy are setting you up with the expectation of an unrealistic marriage." I don't remember which magazine it was or the title of the article, or much of anything. What I do remember is the article stated that couples fight in healthy marriages and they do so in front of their kids (as long as it doesn't get out of control). Now, if my kids do decide to get married when they grow up, of course I don't want them having some skewed image of marriage. But why does fighting have to be normal? Why is that "healthy?"

Andrew and I have not made all the right choices. I'm sure we will keep making wrong ones from time to time. We are really paying for the bad choices we made in our first few years of marriage now. We both came from divorced parents. The divorce rate when we got married was at 50%, even higher for those couples who got married before age 25 (we were 18). The rate increases for couples whose parents are divorced. We'll go with a 3% chance that our marriage will be a success. Many people supported our decision to marry, but others suggested we try living together first, give it a "test drive." Others still, voted against marriage completely, or at least for another year or two.

We were stupid about many things, but marriage wasn't one of them. I had grown up with only bad marriages as an example. My mom was wonderful - she told me the things she did wrong while married to my dad and advised me not to do the same. We lived with my grandparents for most of my childhood, and their marriage was the picture perfect loveless marriage. Andrew's parents never talked about the divorce, so he did not ever know about it till sometime afterward. However, he did grow up in the church and had been taught the Biblical marriage. Andrew and I talked about EVERYTHING before we got married. How many kids? Two. Agreed. Who gets the remote? Me. Agreed. Who cleans the toilet? Him. Agreed. Political views? Agreed. Moral Views? Agreed. How will we raise said two kids? Mostly agreed, will compromise when the situation presents itself. How often did he/I expect "relations" once married? And sooo many more topics. I'm telling you, if you are not yet married, leave no question unasked. There is no need to be afraid. You need to know these answers before you take the plunge. If your significant other gets angry with you for asking such questions, well... Then ~~leave the stooge and never look back~~ I'll just say it's better you find out before you do get married. And know that there will be times when it is really difficult, and you must choose to love your spouse. Love is not always a feeling, but you get through the tough times and you do feel it again, much more deeply than ever before.

I love my Andrew.

Interview with Jaedon

2009-12-06T19:16:00.000-07:00

What is your favorite Color?
Uh… Brown!
(That was such a random answer)

Favorite food?
I like the Vegetables. I like the fruit. I like apples and salad and carrots! And I like broccoli!
(Now I think he is just trying to make me look good)

Favorite animal?
A dog.
(Okay, this one sounds about right)

Favorite thing to do?
Play!
(It's so true!)

Favorite toy?
Transformers, Transformers, Transformers, Transformers (in a robot voice).
(Okay, he doesn't have a whole lot of those,
but he thinks they are pretty cool)

Favorite game?
Candy Land
(Indeed. He could play over and over
and over and over and...)

Favorite show?
Elmo.
(Hmmm... Okay?)

Who is your favorite person?
Titus
(Oh my. Somedays all I hear is Titus this,
Titus that. Will Titus be at church today?
Lol, it's cute that he has his first best friend,
but sad because he recently moved)

What do you like about being a big brother?
I like having Trevin, because he is my little brother.

What don’t you like about being a big brother?
When Trevin hurts me. That isn’t nice.
(Not nice at all!)

Where do you like to go?
McDonalds and the park.

What do you like to do?
I like to take walks and draw. I LOVE to play soccer.

What do you think of girls?
I like you mommy.

What did you like about Thanksgiving?
I love Thanksgiving, because I like Thanksgiving.

What are you most excited about for Christmas?
Presents.

What is something you learned recently?
I love learning about Jesus. Like Christmas is about his birthday.

What do you like to do with Mommy?
Take for walks.

What do you like to do with Daddy?
Take walks, too.

What do you like to do with Trevin?
Play with him. Like when we chase each other.

What is the “best”?
Chocolate Milk!

The Week in Pictures... (A Bit Late)

2009-11-30T21:55:00.000-07:00

Please forgive me, it was Thanksgiving week. =)

The boys one morning taking Emma for a walk

Jaedon decided to dress Trevin

These boys love their Grandma

Boys hiding in the "tent" they made

Peeking out of the tent =)

Jaedon helping with dinner

They like to wrestle

Just hangin' with some cousins on Thanksgiving

Jaedon enjoyed his S'mores after the feast

Trevin is not a fan of marshmellows

Saturday morning, my neice Layla helped decorate the tree

My handsome hubby doing the Dad thing

Goodbyes are so sweet. The boys miss their Nonnie!

Bye-bye, cousins!

Jaedon & Aunt Darrah - too cute!

Trevin trying to sneak off in Nonnie's car

There Were Smiles

2009-11-22T22:51:00.000-07:00

Thanksgiving used to be my family’s holiday. We never really got to celebrate holidays growing up, but Thanksgiving was usually special… Probably because it centered around food & family. This Thanksgiving will be the first one spent at my in-laws. While I am still so very excited, on the one hand it is a bit depressing. One year ago on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, my uncle past away. Lost his battle with cancer, but also ended his pain and suffering here on this earth.

My mom and sisters were very close to him. Especially my youngest sister. He was “Dad” to her, as he was always the one there for her, doing the things dads do with their little girls. My relationship with him was quite different. I’d almost say that at times, he seemed more like a big brother to me.

When I was much younger he came to live with my mom and my sister & me. My brother was living with our dad at the time and my youngest sister was not yet in the picture. Uncle Wes used to be sooo mean to me, or so I thought. His intentions were to be funny, but somehow I missed out on the joke. Even as I got older, I did not seem to develop the same sense of humor, but humor was one of his greatest qualities & he was always laughing. I remember his laugh very well. You would too, had you ever heard it.

However, the time of my life that he lived with us did not leave me with many fond memories. But there is one memory that I cherish. One that I love him for so dearly. One that I am so happy to have had lived under the same roof together.

It was the day my dad died. There was a phone call informing us that my father had just been in an accident. My mom told me not to worry. I started to tear up. Then I cried uncontrollably. Moments later came the second call. He was gone. I screamed. I wailed. I couldn’t stop. But I knew the person comforting me wasn’t my mother. Instead it was our neighbor and good friend Tracy. And I thought to myself why isn’t my mother holding me? That was the moment I was able to open my eyes just enough to see my mom in the kitchen, crying just like me. My uncle was holding her. She needed comforting as well. Uncle Wes was there for her. Had he not been with us, she would not have had anyone to lean on. I thought that since my parents were divorced my mom no longer had any feelings for my dad or, to go even further, hated him. She never talked ill of him so I don’t know how I came to that conclusion, but I was seven.

Wes was always a caregiver. He was so full of love and gave it freely. There were never any strings attached with him. He was always a great listener and gave wonderful advice. He was always there for us. All of us, whenever we needed him.

On my darkest day, he was the strong one. I tried to follow his example last Thanksgiving. At the last minute we decided to still have a low-key turkey dinner. I wanted it to be good for everyone. I wanted to provide some sort of comfort, even if just for their taste buds & tummies. Everyone chipped in and made it all possible, but I didn’t want anyone to feel any stress about the meal or for it to cause more grief for anyone. I did what I could. Though it was a somber meal, I was amazed by all the smiles.

Forever in our hearts

The Week in Pictures

2009-11-19T20:29:00.000-07:00

I'm starting something new. Since I am new to blogging, it's all new. But this will be a "thing I do" here on my blog. Something that will be here for updating each and every week, even when there isn't much to tell. A picture is worth a thousand words, right?

Trevin just itching to get out and help Jaedon find acorns

Jaedon and Trevin canvassing their finds

Jaedon, quite proud of himself.

Me on a typical day. Hair undone, no make-up and... not scarry!

Yes, it is WHOLE Wheat Bread, but it shouldn't come with huge HOLES in it! If only I had the super power to know the difference from the "worth my money" loaf of bread from the "so not worth it" loaf.

Flying Flip Flops!

2009-11-10T20:53:00.000-07:00

Nearly everyday Jaedon tells me "I still don't know what I want for Christmas." I think he may be worried that if he doesn't figure it out before the big day comes he won't get any presents. Mom and Dad must already be clueless to what kids want/need/are going through these days. Is it a completely different world today than it was when I was growing up? Che-yeah! The kids these days have waaaaay better toys!

Don't worry, Jaedon. Mommy and Daddy have you covered.

He didn't start obsessing over this until after watching a Curious George Christmas movie. It's really not the part of Christmas that I want him to obsess over. I'd like for him to focus more on the Christ aspect of Christmas... You know, the whole reason for it. I think it is time for me to investigate. Find a really great Christmas movie that is actually about Christmas, not the store bought presents. I'm up for the challenge!

Have I yet mentioned what a hugger Trevin is? My goodness, this kid could win a gold metal for his hugs. He just loves to hug. No wimpy hugs from this kid. Nice tightly wrapped arms around your neck, not too tight, just right. He will also stroke your hair or pat your back. It is just so sweet coming for such a little human. Sometimes he is also in a kissing mood, but usually not. I try to guilt him into giving me a kiss by pretending to cry. It worked at first, but this kid is too smart to be fooled. Now when I fake cry, he mocks me! He does his fake cry right back at me. The nerve! It makes me laugh, which makes him ecstatic, so, he hugs me. Still won't give me a slobbery kiss. *Sniff, sniff* Bahahaha!

Andrew had a midnight release of some fish game last night, so, today I took the boys to the park to play a little soccer while Andrew napped. Jaedon just loves going to Green Valley Park, now that I've taught him how to roll down a hill. He does well at first, but then somehow starts to roll sideways along the hill. He loves it. Trevin tried to climb up the steep hill to retrieve Jaedon's lost sandal, as it had flown off his foot mid-roll. Poor little guy was dedicated to helping his big bro out. After trying for a couple of minutes he finally reached the flip flop and like a good little ~~dog~~ brother, placed it at Jaedon's feet. We plan to return tomorrow for a whole family adventure. Hopefully I will remember to take my camera and come back home with better quality photos. The ones following are pretty bad (from my mobile), but I had to post them, they are just too funny.

LOL Looks like someone threw him off from up top.

(I swear I didn't!)

Notice the missing sandal?

Now stare at the sun and say "Cheese"

Jaedon swooping in to steal the ball. Nice move!

Isn't It Pretty? And Shame On Me...

2009-11-06T19:42:00.000-07:00

I really don't have much to say today. I just blogged the other day, and well... Around here not much changes in the day-to-day. So I'ma gonna ramble a bit.

Two days ago I was having a bit of a rough morning. Kids were being kind of difficult and I'm not sleeping well again. We went to the store early. And by "early" I mean before lunch time. Any way, I found a parking space and as I was pulling into it, the car next to me started pulling out. I was driving a pickup truck. It's big enough for a bat to see. But she didn't. She would have hit me had I not swerved out of the way. Grrrr. We soon left to head back home and crossing the intersection, another bad driver pulled out right in front of me. "Are you kidding me?" Oh, but this time, it made me happy. Nameless bad driver also cut off a police officer. He honked repeatedly at BD, and I saw him yelling in his car. I thought to myself-okay, maybe outloud, "Finally there is a cop and he isn't going to do anything." ~~Grrr. It just so isn't my morning.~~ Andrew, my beautiful husband pipes in, "Oh wait. No, he just turned his lights on. He is pulling BD over."

I know I shouldn't be happy, but I am. Shameful, I know. Sometimes it just seems like no one gets handed any justice in the world, but now I know... Sometimes they do. Ah. I hope BD only got a warning, but that cop sure did not look happy.

Tonight, Jaedon is staying over with Grandma, and while that is exciting (Ahoy, me-time!?), Trevin went to bed about an hour and a half early because he refused to nap. I did not plan for my me time. I especially did not plan for so much of it. Why did I not save those movies Andrew brought home for me to watch? Why did I not pick up a new pretty color of nail polish? Why did I not buy some Chocolates? I am not ~~much of~~ a planner.

OH! But I am so excited about my new pretty blog layout. Don't you just love to look at my blog now?

Smell It Now?

2009-11-01T21:20:00.000-07:00

My brain is now mush. Trevin started waking up between 4 and 5 o’clock in the morning. It went on for over a week, maybe two. It just so happened that first week we all got sick as well. And it would have been too simple for us all to get sick on the same day. Oh no, no. In our family we take turns. =)

Sunday/Monday, I was sick with the ugly stomach bug. Monday/Tuesday Trevin was sick. Tuesday/Wednesday, Jaedon. Wednesday/Thursday, Andrew. That was mine & Andrew’s birthday week - half a month ago, and I’m still trying to catch up. I’m spent, but I think things are getting back to normal.

Andrew was very thoughtful this year with my birthday presents. He gave me a new bed set (chocolate brown), and some crochet and knitting supplies. And he actually wrapped all the presents himself! Aww. I barely know how to crochet, and I’m trying to learn how to knit. But, wow, was I surprised!

It is almost impossible to get Andrew something good for his birthday. He likes games, and nothing new (or good) comes out until November, and games are expensive! However, they just released the seasons of THUNDERCATS on DVD! I bought the first set for Andrew and also got him a nice frame with a picture of the two of us on our first date since………. Never mind. I cannot finish that sentence. I don’t know how long it has been. Ah, and to top off his gifts, some nice chocolates from the Sugar Shack. I think he was pleased.

Trevin had his 18 month check up, and good news! He is finally ON the charts! Woo-hoo! For most of his life he has been below the chart for his weight and just around the 25th percentile for his height. It’s never been an issue, my boys are just smaller than the average kid, but always healthy. I was just so proud of my boy for finally making the charts.

He is really starting to talk now and it’s exciting. You can tell he will be one of those kids that love to talk to anyone who is willing (or not) to listen. He says “love you” and “thank you” as well as a few household names (Daddy, Jaedon, Emma). I’m still not hearing “Mama” but Andrew swears he calls for me when I’m not home. But then again, he will say anything for Daddy. Daddy is Trevin’s favorite person in the world. Who could blame him?

Jaedon started going to AWANA a few weeks back and he loves it! He is doing wonderful with his scripture memorization and is almost always excited to learn the next one. He is doing this really funny, but sweet thing where he has to yell across the room, “I LOVE YOU (Mom, Dad, Grandma, Papa, etc…)!”

Oh, and just to let me know he is still all-boy, the other night the both of us were in the living room. He, standing to the side of the coffee table and me sitting on the floor in front of the couch 5’ away. “Excuse me. I farted.”-J. “You’re excused. Thanks for being polite.”-Me. “It stinks. Smell it?”-J. “Ha ha,. No, I’m way over here.”-Me, and now thinking politeness didn‘t last long.

A moment later he walks over to me, turns his back to my face and leans forward. “Smell it now?” -J.

My First Time (Posting)

2009-09-22T21:36:00.000-07:00

My day has been spent listening to super-heroes and super-villains. Much like every other day. Jaedon, my 4 year old son, is very much into the Supers. He spent the morning protecting his little brother (Trevin) from bad guys while I was blessed with a kid-free moment to get ready. Jaedon does everything super. He runs super fast. He is super strong. He is a super brother. He is super sweet. He is super, very tired (even when he is not). With my hair brushed and a little mascara on, the boys and I ventured out to the dreaded Wal-Mart.

Ugh, I despise Wal-Mart. Not because of my kids, they usually behave while shopping. And not because it isn't high quality, designer products. No, my aversion for Wal-Mart really is due to never being able to find what it is that I am needing. Like when my younger son runs out of diapers, I head on down to Wally-world to find they have every size of diapers, fully stocked, except for the size 3 that I'm looking for... Unless I want to drop the money for the expensive brand. I ponder letting him run around the house naked. Something Trevin would whole-heartedly agree to. No, no, no! I don't want to step into any presents he might like to leave for me. I reluctantly buy the expensive brand. You see, I don’t really have a choice, we live in a small town. One Wal-Mart and two grocery stores. Jealous? Ha ha!

We still have fun, even though I don't want to be there. I try to make ordinary, everyday routine events fun, or at least enjoyable. We don’t have money for vacations, or for anything really. So, we go to the toy department and play with all the toys. Jaedon is fascinated that there is red suit and black suit Spiderman toys. “Mommy! Look! Look!” I look, pretend to be just as fascinated as I was two days ago when we saw the same thing. I love that his excitement does not wane. All Trevin wants to do is taste the toys. He becomes quite upset if you don’t let him. Trevin is also upset because he has now soiled his diaper. We must leave FAST!

We pay for our things and (Yay!) I managed to keep it under $20, though for only buying diapers and dog food, I sure wish it was less than that.

We rush to the truck so that I can change Trevin’s diaper before his diaper rash becomes worse. I still have to go to Bashas’ for milk before going home. It’s quick, although not quick enough for Jaedon. “I want to go home, Mommy. My stomach is hurting.” The new excuses he is testing out to get out of doing things he’d like to not be doing. “Just a few more things and we’ll be done, honey.” I assure him. I came in just for milk, but they have some great sales going on for frozen vegetables! We pay for our things, and again, I’ve spent less than $20. Woo-hoo! I’m feeling quite good about myself!

By the time we arrive home and get the groceries put away, it is time for lunch and Trevin’s nap. For the life of me, I can’t remember what I fed them for lunch. Oh, boy I need to catch up on sleep. After the mystery lunch, I set Jaedon up watching a Superman movie while I get Trevin to nap. He falls asleep in my arms, and as I try to lie him down in his crib, he so sweetly opens his eyes and puts his palm on my cheek. My heart melts a little and I decide to lie down with him “Just for a minute” on Jaedon’s bed. That minute turned into an hour and a half. I still kept an eye (and ear) our for Jaedon. He raided the fridge and snacked on some yogurt, played with his Batman toys as well as his loud dump truck.

Trevin wakes up just a little fussy, but, Super Brother Jaedon comes to the rescue to diminish all grumpy and ill feelings! No cry babies can withstand the humorous rawr-ing powers of Super Brother. They play and I can finally go to the bathroom!