not to brag or anything...

i really think that if my kids weren't mine and i were to run into them on the street... i really think i'd still think they are the cutest little things. EVER.

like even if i had other kids of my own... it would be sad, but my real kids would still be cuter than any other kids i have that don't even exist.

anthony took the kids to the symphony last night. yes, that's just the kind of cultured people we are...

...the kind that take free tickets when we can get them to experience the finer things in life.

so they got all dressed up, and went to dinner, and then went to the symphony. they really enjoyed it and they did really well and got complimented by everyone they saw (of course).

oh, and what did i do? ahhh... it was almost heavenly. mason went to sleep around 7:30. i finished my labor of love (which happens to be the 2008 chronicles of our family ... made into a book on blurb. it is a very cool website that makes fantastic books. you can even turn your blog into a book here.) made brownies, and watched pride and prejudice. i really don't think i will ever tire of that movie. ever.

weekly random tidbits: awww... you're welcome, NOW GO PEE!!!!

1. the other day i was changing bennett's diaper and he grinned at me and said, "thanks, mom!" i've been changing diapers pretty much daily since '04 and i don't recall ever being thanked. its nice to be appreciated.
   
2. ohhh... yeah, diapers. so about that potty training. lets just say maybe we are on some sort of hiatus from it this week. i'm not sure if its because i'm tired of changing my son's wet choneys 10 times a day, or that the experience is turning into somewhat of a nightmare and i certainly don't want bennett to associate this "big boy" thing with his mom getting frustrated and threatening him (no, i don't really threaten him... but i feel like it and i'm on the verge). its just that, seriously. you know how to do this bennett, so why does it include an argument every. single. time. "bennett, if you go you can have a penny!" "i don't have any pee-pees in me!!!!" and repeat a dozen times in one sitting. and then i finally let him off the toilet because mason is screaming or some other emergency has arisen and 3 minutes later i'm changing him into dry clothes. enough is enough! maybe next week... or maybe before kindergarten...


3. anthony took the kids to a memorial day celebration. i thought that was a great idea. (and not just because i got to stay home with mason in the hopes that his nap was long and i could get things done which it wasn't and i didn't so whatever.) but i want my kids to know that memorial day is about more than bbq's and just a long weekend where daddy is home an extra day.
   



4. they did so well, they got jamba juice (also known as a "fanny face") (no, i don't know why. its just what ella started calling them a couple years ago and naturally, the name stuck.) while enjoying their treat, they called me and told me all about the guns and the flags and the nice, lucky man who became the recipient of ella's handmade thank you card.
   

hair we go...

i did it. i chopped off my hair.


(and i know these pictures are a little small and blurry. that's not such a bad thing)

i've been debating it for a while now. i was worried that cutting off 7 1/2 inches of my hair would sorta scream out "MOM!" but then i realized the 3 children and the minivan are pretty much a dead give away for that.

and really, i'm not trying to hide the fact that i'm a mom, you know. i'm just saying.

i think i just tend to like long, luscious hair. on others, of course. because my hair has never been luscious. but i can dream.

or i can just let it go and cut my hair and simplify my life. and then i can just stop talking about it, especially around my impressionable little girl. because she tends to be picking up way more than i would like from this superficial world around us.

"There comes a time when a woman needs to stop thinking about her looks and focus her energies on raising her children. This time comes at the moment of conception. A child needs a role model, not a supermodel." ~Astrid Alauda

*ella also got her hair cut. she was so excited. she wanted to get all dressed up and bring her new purse and everything. she had so much fun. but it was just a trim for her. i might cut MY hair off, but i'd cry if she chopped hers. yes, its a pride thing. but i justify it since its not personal pride. and simply pride in my daughter, you know. :)

weekly random tidbits: long live sleeping beauty

1. sleeping beauty still lives. from time to time, bennett will excitedly point at the fish bowl and exclaim, "sleeping beauty DID NOT DIE!"
2. i know i recently said mason is sleeping so much better. i take it back. and hopefully soon, i'll be taking back my take-back. stay tuned.
3. bennett has been wearing his choneys the last couple of days. diapers only at bedtime. do you care, i ask myself. probably not.
4. ella memorized all of psalm 100. fantastic little memories those kids have. her brain is a little sponge. i love it. and i'm jealous. her reward: an ice cream cone at "old mcdonalds." some may call that bribery. call it what you want, i say. i will use whatever means necessary to make my kids excited about memorizing the bible.
5. and i sometimes think i could take a bite out of my son. isn't he scrumptious?
   

man shall not live on caffeine alone

the sleep deprived mind is a dangerous thing. i'm quite certain the altered mental state of not sleeping should really be on the list of "un-fit" mothering and is far more serious than intoxication or minor recreational drug-use. (not that i would actually know this personally. its just a safe guess.) if my kids could be removed from my care if i were in a constant state of drunkenness, then you should certainly come get them now. because i'm sure this is worse.

ok, so i'm a tad dramatic and please don't report me to CPS. my kids will be fine. nothing a little elmo/excessive snacks/do-whatever-craft-you-want...here-are-the-scissors-and-glue-and-whatever-else-you-ask-me-for/make the house a mess/more snacks/watch a movie/sure you can jump on your bed/computer games/forced nap time... won't fix.

its just that its only 7:30 so how do i make it to nap time?

and how much coffee is too much?

actually, i don't really even like coffee. but i LOVE my morning latte. the espresso machine is by far my favorite appliance (not counting our washing machine/dryer because i don't have to haul our clothes down to the crick, the crockpot that makes dinner for me, the microwave which heats up bottles/lunch/everything i need, the fridge... ok. so i can't pick just one. but i can't live without my coffee.) and the reason i love my latte has more to do with vanilla carmel creamer. and because i sense it isn't appropriate to solely drink creamer, i put some coffee in too. so i don't know if its caffeine or a sugar high that wakes me up. but i don't really care. i just need my eyes open and my mind thinking somewhat clearly. somewhat.

unlike the day a couple weeks ago when i backed into my stroller with the minivan.

or when i found the gigantic container of costco formula in the microwave. (yes, i put it there. but not on purpose. i don't know why. this is my point.)

and i've made a few observations this morning. first, i think you can guess the kind of night its been by how many mostly empty bottles are scattered about on the floor around mason's rocking chair. and second, the loyalties of a 4 year-old are a bit fickle. when ella calls for daddy this morning, and then is clearly disappointed to see my face instead and then when she brushes past me with disdain as i lean down to give her a little morning snuggle hug, i recognized how childish it would be to point out that it was indeed me and not daddy who was up with her at 3 am while she was scared. and it was me, not daddy, who laid down with her until she fell asleep.

oh well... enough about that. time for another latte...

i thought i had a pile of laundry to wash...

and i recently noticed some giggling coming from the bedroom... not a good sign.

weekly random tidbits: RIP spiderman

1. my dear friend tressa came over last night and cleaned the fish bowl for me! love that girl. and fortunately, before she left, i happened to notice spiderman floating lifelessly. so she also transported him to the toilet for me. i thought the kids might be pretty upset. i was wrong. ella said, with an edge of excitement, "maybe sleeping beauty will die before daddy comes home!" yeah, probably a pretty good chance of that... its kinda what happens when you invest in 12 cent pets.
2. ella asked, "why don't i have skinny cheeks." WHAT? you are 4! how can you notice these body image issues already? "what do you mean?" i ask her. "like the girl in my sunday school class. it was her birthday. and she has skinny, shiny cheeks. i don't have skinny cheeks." i just want to know, how do you keep your child convinced of the fact that God made each of us exactly the way we are and we are special to him, when the competition in our society to that very fact is so intensely fierce?
3. mason has been sleeping really well at night. (although NOT last night) but thank you, God! because yes, there is more to life than sleep, but sleep sure makes things SO much more enjoyable.
4. ella now calls me "teacher" more often than she calls me "mommy." sometimes its cute. sometimes its annoying.
5. we saw the boy in the striped pajamas. and i must say, getcher self down and pick that movie up. its moving, compelling, and real good. (notice i said "real good" and not "feel good.")
6. mason decided to choose the week daddy is gone to stand in his crib. the only problem is that anthony of course does all the crib-lowering-type-things around here. i mean, i'm sure i could figure it out, but i just don't have the time or energy to actually apply myself to that right now. i'd rather just blog about it.
7. and every day, numerous times a day, bennett looks around and says, "where's daddy?" he misses his favorite parent. we all do. love you, honey!

introducing...

our new goldfish. spider-man and sleeping beauty:

fun daddy's idea this weekend and the kids are THRILLED.

i give 'em about 4 days to live.

why? because fun daddy is going out of town this week. and that bowl ain't gonna clean itself.

before you report me to PETA, please know i have every intention of cleaning it. not because i want to, mind you. but because i don't want to explain to one my kids why their superhero/princess fish is floating belly up. i really don't have the energy for the tears.

its just really nasty. i don't much care for fish. well, the cleaning and caring for that is. like most pets. maybe its because i just have plenty to do cleaning up after those in my family actually worth cleaning up for. the ones i love:

but this is how they really felt about taking mother's day pictures:

so we bribed them with candy.

and off we went to lunch. (we kept calling it brunch because ella really hates that word and we love to tease her.) where mason chewed on the table...

and was a good sport while his brother and sister fed him.

then we went for some gelato. (ella asked, "are we getting ice cream?" "no, gelato." "but... does it have sugar in it?" "yes." "ok!" (that's my girl))

but the highlight of my mother's day was a very sweet list presented to me: "reasons why we have the best mommy in the whole world." and i'll spare you from all of them because i don't want to make you feel bad about yourselves... you know, since i'm so perfect and all. but i had to share just a couple of my favorites (and even though i feel like each of them merit a bit of explanation, i'll refrain and just let you wonder):

14. she doesn't spank us anymore

17. she drives us around in her minivan while we watch movies

20. she gives us pennies when we are really good

and really, my favorite (because it falls into the "this is what its all about" category):

7. she teaches us bible verses.

happy mother's day... break a leg

my mom tells of when she was a child, her mom made being sick so much fun. there was the special "sick blanket" which was satin and gold and green and super cozy, food served on a tray, laying on the couch... my mom talks with such fondness of getting sick. there was even a time when grandma told her, "you better start walking straight. or you'll get pigeon-toed and you'll need surgery. they'll break your legs and you'll have to lay in bed for weeks." my mom thought that sounded splendid and even started walking bad on purpose. how much fun would that be? weeks and weeks of laying on the couch being doted on by her mother. grandma has that knack for always making each one of us feel special.

i have learned a lot from my mom, and my grandma. one of those things: be the kind of mom that makes my kids want to break their legs.

happy mother's day, mom. and grandma darlene. and all you other fun mothers out there...

where is that mop...

mason is crawling. all i have to say is: watch out. seriously, watch out. i have a feeling there is no stopping this one.


it is very 3rd child syndrome by the way. with ella, i'm pretty sure i have hours upon hours of video tape just waiting for her to make her first crawling move. poor mason. i just looked down one day and thought... hmmm, where did he go? oh wow, he must be crawling. (ok, it wasn't quite that severe. but pretty close.)

also, this means its time to mop. uhh... i mean, yeah, umm... of course i already mop. twice a week. maybe more. and anytime something spills. yeah, my house is totally spotless.

what's with the clock?

when i checked on bennett the other night, i found him sleeping like this. he had tucked the blanket around him and cuddled up with these stuffed animals.

what a snugglebug. i love it. i could just eat him up...

he did this for a few nights in a row. then randomly one night:

hmmm... yeah, i don't really know...