Well, I made it to yesterday with the goal to get up and get myself presentable first thing in the morning. I even put on lipstick and eye-liner every day. That's pretty big for me because I don't wear makeup most of the time. I actually kind of enjoyed having the goal and doing pretty well at it but the part where I go into the closet and select something from the over-size shirts and panel pants for pregnancy was a bit of a downer.
Yesterday I was just too miserable to make it out of the pj's. By the time I went to bed last night I had heartburn so bad I felt like a dull spoon was digging into my chest. I tried naps, snacks, TUMS, and just waiting it out but the tummy problems of the morning just got worse all day. So, I didn't make it into real clothes until late afternoon when I had to take Kylie to dance class. No makeup.
Today I got up, got dressed, and got going but since I didn't get a single thing done around the house yesterday I was confronted with the depressing amount of housework that can pile up in a single day around here. I'd like to hire someone to come in once or twice a week and help me out (one of my under-employed siblings or a teenager on the block) but having anyone see this mess is so embarrassing and I'm too far gone to do the crazy-clean-before-company-arrives thing at this point. SIGH
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Sorry about the pajamas
I find myself still in my pajamas later and later every day. I got to 4 pm today (time to drive Kylie to dance class) before changing. This is becoming something of a problem and I'm having some serious guilt. I've got lots of good reasons, the pajamas just fit my distorted pregnant figure better being the main one but it's kind of making me feel all frumpy.
The problem starts in the morning when I have a good chance of waking up feeling crummy and often nauseous. I grab some breakfast, take care of any immediate kid issues (their breakfast, clean diapers, etc.) then I tend to curl up in a ball on the couch or the bed for a little while while the kids watch something on TV and I wait for my stomach to settle. Pajamas are nicely conducive to curling and settling.
With all the kids awake it is almost dangerous to get in the shower for even the 10 minutes I have learned to live with. There will be faintly heard shrieking over the sound of the water and I don't dare shut the door all the way or it's just asking for trouble, kind of a Murphy's Law thing. So no shower, no real reason to change clothes...
I get some housework done, chase the kids, then it's time to fix lunch. With my belly sticking out in this awkward shelf there's like a 80% chance I'm going to spill something down my front. So I don't want to be wearing the good maternity blouses because I hate buying maternity clothes. Pajama top with some slight staining seems like a much less bothersome laundry issue than expensive maternity tops made of fabric that always seems to stain more easily and then show stains so much more prominently across stretchy belly fabric...
After lunch I can drive Kylie to kindergarten without being seen outside of the car so I sometimes don't bother changing out of the pj's for that one either. Nap time for Andrew and April comes next and that's about when I can sneak in a shower, handle a few things and sometimes even take a bit of a nap myself. More and more often I just can't get up the energy to do more than flop down and watch Sesame Street with April until we both pass out on the couch and then I wake up to the sound of the school age people returning and demanding snacks, help with homework, and the usual other stuff.
It's getting kind of pathetic. I don't really have a reason to get dressed until just before Jared comes home. It's kind of nice to know I still at least want to be out of my pajamas for my husband but it's also discouraging in that on the days when I have really been miserable, sick, tired, and uncomfortable all day to the point where I didn't bother getting out of the pj's he doesn't notice.
So yeah, frumpy mom is settling in more and more. I've never been a big primper and high-maintenance type but when even the jeans are too much effort I know I'm on the wrong end of a slippery slope. I'm starting to need one of those "mommy makeovers" they give to the women like me.
The problem starts in the morning when I have a good chance of waking up feeling crummy and often nauseous. I grab some breakfast, take care of any immediate kid issues (their breakfast, clean diapers, etc.) then I tend to curl up in a ball on the couch or the bed for a little while while the kids watch something on TV and I wait for my stomach to settle. Pajamas are nicely conducive to curling and settling.
With all the kids awake it is almost dangerous to get in the shower for even the 10 minutes I have learned to live with. There will be faintly heard shrieking over the sound of the water and I don't dare shut the door all the way or it's just asking for trouble, kind of a Murphy's Law thing. So no shower, no real reason to change clothes...
I get some housework done, chase the kids, then it's time to fix lunch. With my belly sticking out in this awkward shelf there's like a 80% chance I'm going to spill something down my front. So I don't want to be wearing the good maternity blouses because I hate buying maternity clothes. Pajama top with some slight staining seems like a much less bothersome laundry issue than expensive maternity tops made of fabric that always seems to stain more easily and then show stains so much more prominently across stretchy belly fabric...
After lunch I can drive Kylie to kindergarten without being seen outside of the car so I sometimes don't bother changing out of the pj's for that one either. Nap time for Andrew and April comes next and that's about when I can sneak in a shower, handle a few things and sometimes even take a bit of a nap myself. More and more often I just can't get up the energy to do more than flop down and watch Sesame Street with April until we both pass out on the couch and then I wake up to the sound of the school age people returning and demanding snacks, help with homework, and the usual other stuff.
It's getting kind of pathetic. I don't really have a reason to get dressed until just before Jared comes home. It's kind of nice to know I still at least want to be out of my pajamas for my husband but it's also discouraging in that on the days when I have really been miserable, sick, tired, and uncomfortable all day to the point where I didn't bother getting out of the pj's he doesn't notice.
So yeah, frumpy mom is settling in more and more. I've never been a big primper and high-maintenance type but when even the jeans are too much effort I know I'm on the wrong end of a slippery slope. I'm starting to need one of those "mommy makeovers" they give to the women like me.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Mothers Day
Here we are. Andrew on my lap, April in the blue shirt, Kylie in the pink shirt, Krista in the white shirt. We played outside for a while in the afternoon while Jared made dinner for my mom and I and the rest of the family. It was a pretty good day. I got flowers and chocolate and a couple of nice cards.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Banana Bread
Cream together:
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
Beat in:
4 eggs
Add:
4 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
6 mashed up bananas
1 cup nuts (optional)
Pour into greased loaf pans filling as many as it takes half way up the side. Bake at 350 for 50 min or until golden brown on top and a clean knife stuck into the center comes out without banana goo on it.
Just made two loaves and the whole house smells so nice. My kids love this stuff and it's the same recipe my mom made for our family so it's got comfort food appeal written all over it. I've seen my sister use applesauce for part or all of the shortening and it comes out pretty good but I don't know the conversion for it. Oh, just a note, those are 6 normal size bananas, if you put in 6 Costco size bananas it makes a mess of banana pudding/bread.
1/2 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
Beat in:
4 eggs
Add:
4 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
6 mashed up bananas
1 cup nuts (optional)
Pour into greased loaf pans filling as many as it takes half way up the side. Bake at 350 for 50 min or until golden brown on top and a clean knife stuck into the center comes out without banana goo on it.
Just made two loaves and the whole house smells so nice. My kids love this stuff and it's the same recipe my mom made for our family so it's got comfort food appeal written all over it. I've seen my sister use applesauce for part or all of the shortening and it comes out pretty good but I don't know the conversion for it. Oh, just a note, those are 6 normal size bananas, if you put in 6 Costco size bananas it makes a mess of banana pudding/bread.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Ham and potato casserole - write down what you did
My mom has this thing where she makes lots of recipes with little alterations or completely from her imagination and if it turns out well we laugh and say "You should write down what you did!" but we don't usually get it written down and the next time it doesn't turn out quite the same.
So last night I made a casserole that the family all liked. Only problem, I used a recipe from a cookbook as a guideline and threw in substitutes where I didn't have the right ingredients and then threw in a few things from the back of the refrigerator just to use them up.
So it went something like this:
7 medium potatoes, peeled, diced, boiled for abt. 25 min or until tender
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 cup (approx.) left over frozen hash browns maybe a tiny bit freezer burnt, thawed out
1/2 cup mayonnaise because I was out of sour cream
1 Tblsp of the Costco dried onion flakes because raw onion always makes me feel ill when I'm pregnant
2 big handfuls of grated cheese, I'm guessing that makes a cup and a half to two cups or so? with my kids the more cheesy the better
2 cups (approx.) of diced ham left from Sunday dinner so only slightly aged
I put everything but the boiling potatoes into a bowl and stirred until well blended, then I drained the potatoes and put them in a 9x12 baking dish then poured the mixture on top and kind of mashed/stirred it together. I looked for the potato chips or corn flakes to sprinkle on top but since the kids had finished off both of them I gave up and put the pan in the oven just like that for 25 minutes at 350.
Everyone said it was really good. Andrew ate it with both hands (he eats everything that way though so I'm not sure it's a good indicator).
Jared asked how I grated all that potato into it, I rolled my eyes over that one. I'm not sure if he knew we had hash browns or they would probably have been eaten already.
So last night I made a casserole that the family all liked. Only problem, I used a recipe from a cookbook as a guideline and threw in substitutes where I didn't have the right ingredients and then threw in a few things from the back of the refrigerator just to use them up.
So it went something like this:
7 medium potatoes, peeled, diced, boiled for abt. 25 min or until tender
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 1/2 cup (approx.) left over frozen hash browns maybe a tiny bit freezer burnt, thawed out
1/2 cup mayonnaise because I was out of sour cream
1 Tblsp of the Costco dried onion flakes because raw onion always makes me feel ill when I'm pregnant
2 big handfuls of grated cheese, I'm guessing that makes a cup and a half to two cups or so? with my kids the more cheesy the better
2 cups (approx.) of diced ham left from Sunday dinner so only slightly aged
I put everything but the boiling potatoes into a bowl and stirred until well blended, then I drained the potatoes and put them in a 9x12 baking dish then poured the mixture on top and kind of mashed/stirred it together. I looked for the potato chips or corn flakes to sprinkle on top but since the kids had finished off both of them I gave up and put the pan in the oven just like that for 25 minutes at 350.
Everyone said it was really good. Andrew ate it with both hands (he eats everything that way though so I'm not sure it's a good indicator).
Jared asked how I grated all that potato into it, I rolled my eyes over that one. I'm not sure if he knew we had hash browns or they would probably have been eaten already.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Andrew's summer haircut
I helped Jared give Andrew a haircut just before we put him to bed this evening. So far we have just been trimming his hair here and there. My sister Lois has done the most trimming for us because she has a steady hand an a pretty good eye. This time Jared and I decided we would go for the full buzz all over type cut and try to shorten and even the whole mess up. Andrew has sort of wispy hair still but it's filling in enough that it looks shaggy if it gets too long.
We got out the clippers, trapped Andrew on the counter, and went to work. Poor Andrew did not enjoy the experience at all. Jared did a pretty good job under the circumstances and I held Andrew's hands so he couldn't slap at the clippers and hurt himself. We used the 1 inch attachment to stay way on the safe side and the clippers don't make too much noise, just a kind of soft buzz, but something about the thing being run over his head set Andrew off big time. He was so mad and upset by the time we were done. I intended to take pictures but I had my hands too full of angry, crying, squirming toddler.
He looks pretty good, a lot different, but good. With practice I'm sure Jared and I will do okay with the occasional cut and we'll send him to the barber with dad when he's a little bigger.
We got out the clippers, trapped Andrew on the counter, and went to work. Poor Andrew did not enjoy the experience at all. Jared did a pretty good job under the circumstances and I held Andrew's hands so he couldn't slap at the clippers and hurt himself. We used the 1 inch attachment to stay way on the safe side and the clippers don't make too much noise, just a kind of soft buzz, but something about the thing being run over his head set Andrew off big time. He was so mad and upset by the time we were done. I intended to take pictures but I had my hands too full of angry, crying, squirming toddler.
He looks pretty good, a lot different, but good. With practice I'm sure Jared and I will do okay with the occasional cut and we'll send him to the barber with dad when he's a little bigger.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
More spring in my yard
The lilac bush is blooming!
It may seem like a small thing but it makes me happy even if I am allergic to the bush. I like the way it looks but between the kids and the dogs next door this bush tends to struggle. It rarely blooms like this and I'm not sure what the magic combination of sunlight, water, and attention/leaving it along really should be. I was just thrilled it bloomed like this so Kylie and I took pictures while we worked on the yard yesterday. The other kids took a load of stuff to the green waste dump with Jared.
The tulips look pretty good again this year. Here's an open one to update the pictures from a few days ago of the ones that hadn't opened yet. We just have red ones. I would kind of like to have a few other colors eventually. I like the pale purple ones but they would clash a bit with the red maybe? So yellow and white or whatever I can find in the next few years.
Kylie helping me weed the tulip beds. She found a few bugs and that made her nervous and then Jared came out with the weed whacker and between the creepy crawlies and the noise she fled the scene.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Spring in my yard
The daffodil that's the new corner picture is one of the few that came up this year. I used to have a lot more of them but I think maybe the bulbs have given out. I don't know how long they are supposed to last or if they reproduce somehow and these are actually new ones.
I get just a couple of hyacinths among the tullips. April is particularly excited about the "blue flowers" and wanted to make sure we got a picture of one of them posted here. Now she's wandered off to watch Clifford.
These are blossoms on my pear tree. The tree produces amazing tasty pears and I bottle some every other year or so because one tree makes so much fruit we don't eat it fast enough to put up that many jars every year. We end up giving away fruit to friends and neighbors. Good stuff.
Here are some of the tulips. We've got quite a few, all of them are red. They are just getting ready to open. The brown stick things around them are the ornamental grape vine that we have been trying to kill for a couple of years now. No matter how much we chop off, cover up, dig out, or just think really mean thoughts at, it comes back huge every year. It's got roots that go under the fence and into the neighbors yard (they don't think much of the vines either) and so taking out the fence is the only way to get to them. Cost prohibitive, sigh.
We also found a hollow egg. I don't know what kind. Small and rather oblong. My camera needs to charge before I get a shot of the egg so I'll just leave it at this for now.
Even though I'm going to have to pull these before they start spreading seeds, the dandelions are kind of a favorite of mine because they're the ones the kids bring to me. They're so very cheerful even if they do sort of make a nuisance of themselves.
I get just a couple of hyacinths among the tullips. April is particularly excited about the "blue flowers" and wanted to make sure we got a picture of one of them posted here. Now she's wandered off to watch Clifford.
These are blossoms on my pear tree. The tree produces amazing tasty pears and I bottle some every other year or so because one tree makes so much fruit we don't eat it fast enough to put up that many jars every year. We end up giving away fruit to friends and neighbors. Good stuff.Here are some of the tulips. We've got quite a few, all of them are red. They are just getting ready to open. The brown stick things around them are the ornamental grape vine that we have been trying to kill for a couple of years now. No matter how much we chop off, cover up, dig out, or just think really mean thoughts at, it comes back huge every year. It's got roots that go under the fence and into the neighbors yard (they don't think much of the vines either) and so taking out the fence is the only way to get to them. Cost prohibitive, sigh.
We also found a hollow egg. I don't know what kind. Small and rather oblong. My camera needs to charge before I get a shot of the egg so I'll just leave it at this for now.Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Play Ball!
Andrew and the girls play a game where they throw a squishy ball up the stairs and watch it bounce back to them. Andrew thinks this game is very funny and will play with anyone who will toss the ball.
He's been kind of like a golden retriever with balls and a few other objects since he got himself mobile. One of his first words was ball and now he's added catch, kick, and run-run-run to his vocab.
So anyway, we were playing ball today and the ball made it all the way to the top of the stairs and rolled out of sight. Andrew turns to me and pointing commandingly says "Get it!".
First two word sentence and dang funny. Usually it would be his job to fetch a ball that went out of bounds but I did indeed go get it for him; although I'm going to have to make a point of retrieval being his responsibility in the future.
He's been kind of like a golden retriever with balls and a few other objects since he got himself mobile. One of his first words was ball and now he's added catch, kick, and run-run-run to his vocab.
So anyway, we were playing ball today and the ball made it all the way to the top of the stairs and rolled out of sight. Andrew turns to me and pointing commandingly says "Get it!".
First two word sentence and dang funny. Usually it would be his job to fetch a ball that went out of bounds but I did indeed go get it for him; although I'm going to have to make a point of retrieval being his responsibility in the future.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Playing With Photoshop
I had so much fun doing the mossy rock thing for the top of this page that I started playing with other pictures. I emphasize the word "playing"; my sister can put the ears back on someone cropped out of a picture and make it look real, I can barely match the edges on two pictures that are exactly the same.
Anyway, I downloaded the recent picture of my brother-in-law and his family and somewhere during the download it turned kind of overly red so I thought I would tinker with it.
Original is on the left, the one I messed with is over on the right. I think I helped the composition but may have done bad things to the color settings... I tried black and white but then the windows were a huge focus. I could not find the sepia button that the computer assures me is under one of the tabs called profile. I would love to take a class on this kind of thing one day.
One day being that imaginary time in the future when I get to decide what I do with my own time, as opposed to present day when I have a one year old with a terrible odor tugging on the back of my shirt. Gotta go change a diaper.
I need a new tent.
Kylie, April, & Andrew are playing under the air hockey table with a sheet draped over it.
April crawls out and comes to talk to me:
April- I need a new tent.
Me - Why?
April - This one too small.
Me - What kind of tent do you need?
April - Giant big, big and big. (she does hand motions like exploding stars in front of her then crawls back into the existing tent)
April crawls out and comes to talk to me:
April- I need a new tent.
Me - Why?
April - This one too small.
Me - What kind of tent do you need?
April - Giant big, big and big. (she does hand motions like exploding stars in front of her then crawls back into the existing tent)
Thursday, April 15, 2010
El Azteca make me feel better.
When Krista was little she had this funny thing she would say when she had hurt herself or was sad about something, "treat make me feel better", she would say it in this plaintive kind of voice and it was so cute and pathetic that it won me over most of the time.
So this afternoon, when I was feeling a bit discouraged about a number of things, including the weight gain measured at the doctor appointment today, I had a "El Azteca make me feel better" moment and went and bought myself lunch.
Yeah, I know, making myself feel better with food is not so much a good idea when I'm gaining weight this fast with this pregnancy but I've got to be realistic about it, the only way to control the nausea is by constant small snacks and there is just nothing I can do to "diet" until some time in October after my 6 week post-baby appointment. Besides, with this kid I crave protein. I'm not a big red meat eater and I don't like fish usually but right now I'm all about a nicely cooked steak or some hamburger or a shredded beef taco... whatever I can get my hands on. So a chicken enchilada, a beef taco, and the combination of beans and rice that form a perfect protein did indeed make me feel better. They also seem to have pleased the "tummy baby" who is doing happy little wriggles now. I resisted the impulse to buy a churro to go with lunch.
I've added El Azteca to the pages I am a fan of on my facebook.
So this afternoon, when I was feeling a bit discouraged about a number of things, including the weight gain measured at the doctor appointment today, I had a "El Azteca make me feel better" moment and went and bought myself lunch.
Yeah, I know, making myself feel better with food is not so much a good idea when I'm gaining weight this fast with this pregnancy but I've got to be realistic about it, the only way to control the nausea is by constant small snacks and there is just nothing I can do to "diet" until some time in October after my 6 week post-baby appointment. Besides, with this kid I crave protein. I'm not a big red meat eater and I don't like fish usually but right now I'm all about a nicely cooked steak or some hamburger or a shredded beef taco... whatever I can get my hands on. So a chicken enchilada, a beef taco, and the combination of beans and rice that form a perfect protein did indeed make me feel better. They also seem to have pleased the "tummy baby" who is doing happy little wriggles now. I resisted the impulse to buy a churro to go with lunch.
I've added El Azteca to the pages I am a fan of on my facebook.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Girl!
Since I haven't been posting very regularly I thought I should get this in here now.
Baby Stone #5 (as far as the ultrasound could tell) is going to be another girl.
Yes, I'm happy about this. Andrew is a one-of-a-kind little boy and I'm not going to test my luck on getting another one quite like him. It would have been kind of nice for him to have a brother close to his age but with four sisters he will never be bored.
As for names... Jared says he really likes Jessica. I would like to go with another girl named after a grandma and do Beth or Anne or Anna maybe so we're still playing with names and ideas. Kylie told me we should go with Chrysanthemum (I don't know if I can even spell that correctly) because of the Kevin Henkes book we just read. The girls also like Tia from the Princess and The Frog or there was another one from a movie but I can't think of it...
My parents always have outlandish suggestions from the family pedigree...
I really don't know very many Jessicas so it doesn't have a gut reaction attached. I tried to find out why Jared likes the name but he's pretty vague so I'm going with the belief that he had a crush on a Jessica in the 4th grade, LOL.
Baby Stone #5 (as far as the ultrasound could tell) is going to be another girl.
Yes, I'm happy about this. Andrew is a one-of-a-kind little boy and I'm not going to test my luck on getting another one quite like him. It would have been kind of nice for him to have a brother close to his age but with four sisters he will never be bored.
As for names... Jared says he really likes Jessica. I would like to go with another girl named after a grandma and do Beth or Anne or Anna maybe so we're still playing with names and ideas. Kylie told me we should go with Chrysanthemum (I don't know if I can even spell that correctly) because of the Kevin Henkes book we just read. The girls also like Tia from the Princess and The Frog or there was another one from a movie but I can't think of it...
My parents always have outlandish suggestions from the family pedigree...
I really don't know very many Jessicas so it doesn't have a gut reaction attached. I tried to find out why Jared likes the name but he's pretty vague so I'm going with the belief that he had a crush on a Jessica in the 4th grade, LOL.
Milk, Eggs, Bread, Cheese, Donuts...
April turned 3 last week. Lots of fun. She's a busy cute little kid with a tendency to do what she wants even if mommy sort of said not to.
We kept asking her what she wanted for her birthday and it was pretty easy to see she really wasn't getting the concept. She told us more than once that she wanted milk, eggs, bread, cheese, donuts, and other grocery items. Her big sisters thought this was very funny and had lots of suggestions on what we could get her instead.
On her birthday I thought, 'why not?' and went with her to Toys R Us to the aisle where they keep the pretend kitchen stuff. We found a great set of food and a nice toaster to go with it. Now she has an incredibly well stocked play kitchen that had a pile of tea party set stuff before we got the new food.
We kept asking her what she wanted for her birthday and it was pretty easy to see she really wasn't getting the concept. She told us more than once that she wanted milk, eggs, bread, cheese, donuts, and other grocery items. Her big sisters thought this was very funny and had lots of suggestions on what we could get her instead.
On her birthday I thought, 'why not?' and went with her to Toys R Us to the aisle where they keep the pretend kitchen stuff. We found a great set of food and a nice toaster to go with it. Now she has an incredibly well stocked play kitchen that had a pile of tea party set stuff before we got the new food.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Bunny Cake for Easter
Because I got a kick out of these I thought you might as well. The kids and my sister decorated the traditional cake this year. It's easy to make. Two 9 inch circles and you cut one of them so you get the ears and the bow-tie out of it. Freeze it, frost it, use random candy and frosting to create a unique-every-year look. Eat rabbit on Easter :o) .
This year we found that the bunny had nicely mobile eyebrows that made him a very expressive little guy. Got a couple of pix of the "faces of the bunny".
This last one is my favorite!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Morning Sickness
Yes, I'm pregnant. Again.
I hate being pregnant. I feel sick, tired, miserable, and get a little crazy.
It's kind of huge to think I will have five kids. Four kids keep me completely outnumbered.
I tend to vent on this site, maybe I should give up blogging as it doesn't seem to bring out the best in me. This mostly stems from me sitting down at the computer when I am the most fed up and need a little "me-time". Now I'm trying to decide whether or not to go with the flow and post cheery little updates about my kids antics. There are lots of antics. Andrew is currently wearing a dress his sisters put him in and Kylie wants to make a sculpture out of shaving cream and glue (I'm keeping a close eye on her).
Lasagna for dinner tonight. The kind out of a box. I did make the bread though and I will make the salad.
I'm not wearing any shoes. I put on maternity pants for the first time this pregnancy when even my fat pants would no longer fit. They're a bit too loose but I know that won't last long, sigh.
I hate being pregnant. I feel sick, tired, miserable, and get a little crazy.
It's kind of huge to think I will have five kids. Four kids keep me completely outnumbered.
I tend to vent on this site, maybe I should give up blogging as it doesn't seem to bring out the best in me. This mostly stems from me sitting down at the computer when I am the most fed up and need a little "me-time". Now I'm trying to decide whether or not to go with the flow and post cheery little updates about my kids antics. There are lots of antics. Andrew is currently wearing a dress his sisters put him in and Kylie wants to make a sculpture out of shaving cream and glue (I'm keeping a close eye on her).
Lasagna for dinner tonight. The kind out of a box. I did make the bread though and I will make the salad.
I'm not wearing any shoes. I put on maternity pants for the first time this pregnancy when even my fat pants would no longer fit. They're a bit too loose but I know that won't last long, sigh.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Never Send A Man...
I love freecycle, especially around this time of the year when people are more generous and when there is a greater need for generosity. I like to fill a few wanteds here and there even if it means spending a few bucks.
There was a woman on freecycle asking for a mermaid costume for her daughter, the only thing her little girl had requested for Christmas was an Ariel dress up costume. I happen to have two of them, one my mom made that I wouldn't part with and another one from Costco that one of my kids used in a performance and had very little sentimental attachment. So, since I had two, I sent this woman a message telling her to come pick up the costume. The only catch; DO IT QUIETLY, as in don't let my kids know what you're up to. With a costume that has hung in the back of a closet for months with no interest shown by the children, the sure way to suddenly make it a priceless treasure is to say you're giving it away. So I didn't say that. I just packed it up quietly. I put the costume in an empty cereal box and propped it on my front porch where it looked completely innocent and this woman could just pick it up and go.
I made very sure the woman understood how this needed to work. Come to my house, take the cereal box, go. No contact needed.
So what happens this afternoon?
Her husband comes to the door, rings the bell and my kids get it. He has a piece of paper in his hand that he is reading and he asks for someone named Shelly (sorry, none of those at this address) well, he's supposed to pick up an Ariel Mermaid costume from Shelly at this address.
THANK YOU MR. IDIOT!
Then he looks at his paper again and says something about possibly a basement apartment. I'm thinking he must be completely dense to be announcing this in front of my children who are now quietly talking amongst themselves about why he wants an Ariel costume. Grrrrr. I am positive that his wife told him what he was supposed to do and he just glazed over on the instructions. My husband does the same thing. Apparently he is a typical male, won't ask for or follow instructions. Thank you for making my afternoon that much more difficult.
So I go out on the front porch, shut the door behind me, and point to the box still sitting in plain sight against the wall. He's like, "Oh, the box?" I'm like, "Yeah." He takes it and leaves. I go inside and tell my kids he had the wrong address for someone name Shelly (that part was true.)
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Turtle Pancakes
Turtle shaped pancake. One of an entire family of turtle shaped pancakes that I made for my kids. Use your imagination. This wasn't the best of them but it was the only one left by the time I found my camera to take pictures. LOL. I just get a kick out of it. Usually, I take request for balls, balloons, happy faces (chocolate chips are involved in those) or the occasional Mickey Mouse-type head. Turtles are a little trickier. Saturday mornings are pancake breakfasts at my house. With four kids my husband and I have lots of practice with the pancakes.
Deserving Children
I heard an ad on the radio a few minutes ago where a woman spoke excitedly about getting her children the new computer they deserve.
This made me cranky.
Just the perky voice made me pretty sure I was supposed to picture a couple of perfect kids who would use their new computer only for the good of mankind.
Yeah, right. I know too many people who teach school.
Instead I'm picturing lazy, internet addicted, selfish kids with a well-enforced sense of personal entitlement.
It's not easy to raise kids who understand they don't deserve to have "stuff" but that they need to earn it, just like their parents have to earn it. I don't mean sending them out to a 9-5. Not until they're teenagers and need some good hard work every day to keep them out of trouble. I mean age-appropriate jobs. A two year-old can put a liner in a garbage can and set silverware on the dinner table.
It makes me sick to see kids who are close to twelve and can't make their own bed or clean up a toy room, let alone cook a simple meal like spaghetti with sauce from a jar.
I know people who felt deprived as children and have made a point of not letting their own children ever feel that way. Kids who get everything value nothing and turn into adults with issues about values and problems with entitlement and learning to work.
Here's a clue people; there is very little in this life that any of us deserve!
I do believe every one of us deserves to be able to work for what we want and keep what we earn (the current tax code is crappy, but that's a post for another day) so I teach my kids to work, to budget, to save, and to respect the property and hard work of others. My kids do not deserve a new computer but I would be thrilled if they worked and earned one.
Need an idea of how to motivate your kids to earn something? I print off a spreadsheet with 25 cent increments for an item like a CD or a DVD my kids want but don't need. For each job they accomplish (sweep a floor, empty trash, set table, etc.) I let them cross off a square. For bigger jobs they can cross off more than one square. When they have filled the sheet to the purchase price of the item we go pick it up at the store. My kids rarely bug me about buying them frivolous items and they take pretty good care of the toys and things they have.
This made me cranky.
Just the perky voice made me pretty sure I was supposed to picture a couple of perfect kids who would use their new computer only for the good of mankind.
Yeah, right. I know too many people who teach school.
Instead I'm picturing lazy, internet addicted, selfish kids with a well-enforced sense of personal entitlement.
It's not easy to raise kids who understand they don't deserve to have "stuff" but that they need to earn it, just like their parents have to earn it. I don't mean sending them out to a 9-5. Not until they're teenagers and need some good hard work every day to keep them out of trouble. I mean age-appropriate jobs. A two year-old can put a liner in a garbage can and set silverware on the dinner table.
It makes me sick to see kids who are close to twelve and can't make their own bed or clean up a toy room, let alone cook a simple meal like spaghetti with sauce from a jar.
I know people who felt deprived as children and have made a point of not letting their own children ever feel that way. Kids who get everything value nothing and turn into adults with issues about values and problems with entitlement and learning to work.
Here's a clue people; there is very little in this life that any of us deserve!
I do believe every one of us deserves to be able to work for what we want and keep what we earn (the current tax code is crappy, but that's a post for another day) so I teach my kids to work, to budget, to save, and to respect the property and hard work of others. My kids do not deserve a new computer but I would be thrilled if they worked and earned one.
Need an idea of how to motivate your kids to earn something? I print off a spreadsheet with 25 cent increments for an item like a CD or a DVD my kids want but don't need. For each job they accomplish (sweep a floor, empty trash, set table, etc.) I let them cross off a square. For bigger jobs they can cross off more than one square. When they have filled the sheet to the purchase price of the item we go pick it up at the store. My kids rarely bug me about buying them frivolous items and they take pretty good care of the toys and things they have.
A Moment Of Silence
I took all four of my children to the grocery store with me. It's an adventure every time. By the end of the trip I am in desperate need of either a dozen doughnuts or a bottle of Jack Daniels. So far the doughnuts have won out every time.
After the muzac, the children, the noise of the carts and the other shoppers, the crying and whining of kids who don't get to pick out multiple treats or rent a Redbox, there's a single moment I can look forward to.
Other moms may recognize this moment, I know for a fact my own mother took advantage of it as often as she could.
It's the moment after all the groceries have been loaded into the car and all the children are safely strapped into their carseats and you shut the car door and it gets quiet. Silent, for just a moment. It's blessed relief and for just a minute all the tension eases off enough to take one deep breath of slightly smog filled air as you push the cart to the cart return cage. Alone with yourself for less than a full minute it's still enough to gather the shredded bits of your patience together for the next round about to take place.
I used to wonder why it was my mother took so long getting into and out of the car. Sitting in a hot car on a warm day it seemed like she would take forever to just walk around and get in. Then, when we parked in the carport she was always the last one to make it into the house from the car, sometimes sitting in a trance-like state for minutes before gathering herself to climb the stairs and join us in the house. When my children are all grown enough to walk into the house themselves I plan on using those minutes too.
After the muzac, the children, the noise of the carts and the other shoppers, the crying and whining of kids who don't get to pick out multiple treats or rent a Redbox, there's a single moment I can look forward to.
Other moms may recognize this moment, I know for a fact my own mother took advantage of it as often as she could.
It's the moment after all the groceries have been loaded into the car and all the children are safely strapped into their carseats and you shut the car door and it gets quiet. Silent, for just a moment. It's blessed relief and for just a minute all the tension eases off enough to take one deep breath of slightly smog filled air as you push the cart to the cart return cage. Alone with yourself for less than a full minute it's still enough to gather the shredded bits of your patience together for the next round about to take place.
I used to wonder why it was my mother took so long getting into and out of the car. Sitting in a hot car on a warm day it seemed like she would take forever to just walk around and get in. Then, when we parked in the carport she was always the last one to make it into the house from the car, sometimes sitting in a trance-like state for minutes before gathering herself to climb the stairs and join us in the house. When my children are all grown enough to walk into the house themselves I plan on using those minutes too.
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