Saturday, July 28, 2007

Tons 'o Fun

We have had company for a few days. Some friends were visiting from Western Kansas, so we took in several of the local sights. The kids all had a great time. I did too. We had lots of laughing, catching up, eating and roller coaster riding. Not necessarily in that order. For the most part Mals had lots of fun with only one complaint. While at Worlds of Fun we decided to take in a musical show, which was an extremely loud and somewhat pitchy performance. It was obvious the long, hot day was taking its' toll on the performers. After leaving the theater I bent down and asked Mals if she liked the music. "Huh?" I repeated the question. "What? I tink my ears is boken." lol.

The big girls went on ride after ride. (It was actually a first time roller coaster experience for a couple of our guests.) The lines were relatively short. They went from one end of the park to the other, over and over. I, on the other had was relatively content to sit on a bench eating my kettle corn and people watching. Even though I am exhausted I know if I had tried to keep up with the girls all day I would be dead, literally. There is nothing like pushing a stroller up and down hills all night to remind a person how extremely out of shape they are! lol










So our friends have left and now it is time to get back to real life. Cleaning, paying bills and ("ugh") watching what I eat.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Daddoo Come Home Please!

Several times today when the phone rang Malsy would pipe up "It's Daddoo (aka Big Brother) tell him to come home right now. I miss him". Sooo, Devin if you are reading this........somebody very special misses you a great deal. When Devin was gone for three months last summer I was afraid Mallorie would need to get to know him again. (She was only a year and 1/2.) But no, she had absolutely no problem. We met him in Topeka and she flew right into his arms. So this summer I feel confident the scene will be repeated. Her big brother and big sisters adore her and I have to say feeling is mutual.

Monday, July 23, 2007

Long Weekend

Hello everybody. I don't have much to share, not that I ever do anyway. I have been under the weather since Friday afternoon. I have spent a great deal of time on the couch this weekend. I bought groceries Friday because I could feel it coming on. I have barely been out the door since. Poor Mals wore the same PJ's all day Saturday and Sunday(I did too). I have yardwork that needs done and I have company coming Wednesday and the house has seen better days. I am afraid to look in Devin's room. When he left for the summer I simply closed the door. I have been trying to stir up the courage to venture inside ever since. Once I go in, I may not come out.

In other news, Malsy has made it her job to congratulate Kinz when she goes to the bathroom. McKinsey said she waits outside the door for her the with big eyes, "Did you go potty? High Five! Let's get you a sticker! Do you want to move a ticket?" She has not done it to the rest of us. I think she is confident in our potty skills. I'm sure she feels McKinsey just needs a little encouragement and she will get it right. lol

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Short and (I Wish, More) Sweet(s).

I did not eat the cupcake. I went to bed. Don't be too impressed. I have been eating a lot of this.
It seems like the girls and I eat a lot of eggs for dinner anyway, so I thought I would try to shake things up a little bit. Though Mals is sticking with her fav, good 'ole scrambled eggs and you guessed it...... ranch dressing. Ugh!

We spent the morning at the pool today. It was great. The forecast called for rain and there was enough of a cloud cover to keep the neighbors away. So we had it all to ourselves. McKinsey found a frog in the drain. We decided we had to rescue the poor guy so I grabbed a small net and proceeded to save a life. I lifted the cover off the hole and scooped (I use this term loosely. For the most part I shoved the net until I hit something solid then did an upward motion similar to throwing a granny ball.) right in McKinsey's direction. Of course there was a lot of running and squealing. The girls managed to make some noise too. lol Mals decided she had enough. She walked to her chair, toweled off and sat in the wagon until it was time to go. I guess she wasn't going to take any chances on finding another frog in the pool.

I better get. I am told Mallorie has been dipping her granola bar in...........ranch dressing. She is now throwing a small tantrum because Kinz told her "That is just gross!".

My insides are crying "Calgon, chocolate cupcakes. Calgon, chocolate cupcakes." Although Krispy Kreme does have a whole wheat donut now. Hmmmmm. I am sure it must be better for you. Shhhh, please don't unravel the little lies I tell myself. Sometimes they are all I have.

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

You Might Want to Look Away

I probably should not be posting anything at this time. I have severe PMS and am practically incapable of stringing a sentence together. I feel extremely anxious and keep finding myself searching out yummy treats like this decadent cupcake. I keep telling myself if I give in I will undo in 5 minutes what I have worked very hard to do in the last ten days. Which is getting harder to justify. I have exercised everyday, drank tons of water and really tried to watch what I have eaten and NOTHING. I realize my system is in shock. " What the heck? Are you trying to starve yourself? I can hear it speaking to me right now! So I am sure it (my system) is trying to hang onto every pound it possibly can. Will I give in? I don't know. It is quite the inner battle and my double chin is beginning to grow on me, which is leaning me in the "yes" direction. So we shall see. Maybe I will just eat a boiled egg white and go to bed.

BTW, Mallorie just heard the egg timer and yelled. "Ohp, time to go potty gen!" She just went ten minutes ago. But now that I have been setting the timer every hour as a reminder, she has become trained to go every time she hears that sound. lol

Devin started his new job yesterday but was really disappointed when the guy decided to give him $2.00 less per hour then initially promised. I think it was kind of a dirty trick and know that Devin is worth far more then that. I am not sure if he is going to stick it out, I admire the fact that he went back for a second day, but at the same time think he might want to move on.

I am job hunting as well and honestly trying to do that while PMSing is not the best of experiences. But, on the plus side. I have not burst into tears, sobbing "I'm the worst mother in the world!" So maybe the whole watching what I eat thing is showing positive results after all. But man, what I wouldn't pay to be able to eat that chocolate cupcake with no consequences right now!

Sunday, July 15, 2007

Picture of Success

She did it! Yeah! Mals managed to stay dry for well over 24 hours. She is well on her way to her a second day with a well deserved reward. She has chosen the to go to the play park if all goes well. So my faith is restored. I am becoming more positive that she will not be wearing a pullup underneath her gown at her high school graduation.

In other news, we drove to Topeka today to pick up a street bike(motorcycle) for Devin. I am not sure who is more excited, father or son. Devin has not seen it and probably will not for awhile. He is still as Grandpa's. He has a new job at a motorcycle shop in Garden City, so I do not know when he plans on coming home. I think the only person he misses right now is Mal. That will probably be the biggest draw to come back to KC.

Ernie brought 5 HUGE zucchini home the other night. I thought I would make zucchini bread to take to the hospice house. I wanted to try out my recipe first because it has been ages since I have used it. I was VERY disappointed and think I will end up scrapping it all. Aaah, the project took me like two hours and now I feel like it was a major waste of time. I hate that, and to think with that two hours I could have been taking a nap. Looks like the hospice house will be getting good old Toll House Cookies instead.

Time to go. Supper to cook and laundry to do and of course we have a playground to go to!

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Potty Chart

Mallorie has helped to create her own potty chart which has gone into effect today. She is very proud and so far she has managed to stay dry. I do realize the day is only half over. But, the criteria is not dry drawers all day. The objective is to sit on the potty as much as possible. She gets to move a ticket after each attempt. At the end of the day when all tickets have been moved she gets a reward. Today her reward choice is ICE CREAM. I'm thinking.... if this is successfull I may have to put in a special request for Starbucks tomorrow. She has been thrilled with her accomplishment and high fiving all over the place. Let's hope the motivation will continue to build. I don't think this will take long. She was basically potty trained until the big changes took place. Please note the green boots as mentioned in a previous post. To be continued........

Popcorn

Mallorie and I began our usual Saturday morning routine. We are always the only ones up until at least 9:00. (Unless I insist otherwise.) I was in the laundry room starting a load while Mallorie was in the family room watching Jo Jo's Circus. (This was always a sure bet to buy myself 5 minutes to do something. You know the luxuries like going to the bathroom, scrubbing the toilet or getting my clothes on, alone. Not anymore!) I must have taken longer then I thought. Here comes Mallorie walking in with a fresh and perfectly popped bag of popcorn.

"I tan't eat it yet. Too hot! Open it, pleeeeez."

"Mallorie, where did you get that? Who popped that for you?"

"I tan do it. I pushed the buttons."

So as you can imagine the horrible images that begin to flash through my mind. On the moderate end of these thoughts is the mental picture of her sitting in front of the microwave with her forehead plastered to the door watching the popcorn go round and round. Can you say brain damage, radiation poisoning. "Aaaaaah! Calm down, don't hypervenilate." I say to myself. At least her tiny fingers show no signs of burns and she did bring the bag to me unopened. At the moment she is blissfully eating her popcorn. Once again this is the child that is NOT potty trained. BTW, this morning, as usual I asked her if she wanted to sit on her potty and read books. Her response.... "No tanks, I don't have time right now." No time? Is her schedule that pressing? I think NOT. I quess I am learning you can lead a kid to the potty but you can't make 'em pee. The other lesson learned today? Mallorie will be my laundry assistant from now on!

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Day at the Park

Disclaimer: This post starts out sweet but gets rather bitter by the end. If you wear lipstick to the park I do not reccoment reading any further.

We spent what should have been a blissful three hours at the playground today. The temp was a moderate 82 degrees with a slight breeze. I sat back simply enjoying the day. Then...... I fell into the mommy trap. Or rather the mommy trap fell into me. I scouted the playgound. Always checking for another mom who appears relatively normal and looks as though they could be relied upon to deliver some decent conversation. When we arrived this afternoon there were none to be found. I took a seat under a tree and prepared to soak it all in(I might add there are MANY shade trees at this play park.) Just as I became comfortable the "Lipstick Mommies" arrived. You know the ones that always look perfect. Hair done and of course lipstick with liner even. I wear lipstick, all the time as a matter of fact. I just don't wear it to the playground, on nature walks or to ball games. Boy did I feel sloppy in my t-shirt, shorts and ball cap! Silly me. Of course as they began walking my way I just had to make eye contact. Stupid, Stupid, Stupid! The small talk began pleasantly enough. "How old is yours?" 2 1/2 " Wow, what percentile is she in? She's so small. Does she eat?" this was said with raised eyebrows and head cocked to the side even. I really did not think it merited a response. If you want to know the truth I could not think of a sarcastic comeback. Boy do I have some good ones now! Ha! The talk soon turned to gossip and I quickly glazed over and withdrew into myself for a mini nap. I'm pretty sure after going so many nights without sleep I have learned to compensate. Somewhat like a dolphin by letting half my brain sleep at time. This was a golden opportunity. After they left I was able to reflect for a bit. You know what? Who cares if I don't jog 5 miles a day. So what if my only idea of exercise is doing 20 minutes of yoga with my two year old three times a week? BTW, she is always impressed with my "Pose of the Dancer". Who cares if my hair has not seen a blow dryer or curling iron in two weeks? Who cares if my suburban has 6 months of cookie crumbs under the car seat? (That last one was not brought on by the Lipstick Moms, it just makes me feel better.) At least I know I can go home and proudly say I have not said one bad thing or gossiped about anybody in a very long time. Well, until now. D--n those Lipstick Moms!

"Ode" To Craigslist

Look at this awesome slide I picked up off of craigslist.org for ten bucks. E and D were always shopping on Craiglist and finding motorcycle parts etc. Until about 6 weeks ago I had no idea the jewels it contains. I am incredibly addicted now and there seems to be no end to the great finds. It is better then any garage sale. Once you click your major city all you have to do is enter the item you are looking for. The matches are pulled up with the corresponding suburb. Love it! Ernie listed a mower for sale. He had ten emails in the first two hours and it was gone by that afternoon.

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Another Long(short?) Night

Unfortunately I have had another sleepless night. I am operating on fumes at the moment. I am simply trying to stay awake so I can keep Mals up as long as possible. Last night she was up from 2 until 4. She did have a tummy ache. Once the little belly was rubbed and all tooting was over she was able to relaxe and fall back to sleep. At 6 AM I awoke to my arm being pulled like a rubber band. "Mommy, it is time to wake up now! Get up! Get Up! No sleeping all day!" I groaned loudly as she opened my eyelids. I leapt out of bed as she stuck her finger in my mouth and pulled on my cheek. That did the trick! I managed to stay awake all day, although I think I may have dozed off briefly while checking my email this afternoon. lol I woke up mid sentence and was not really sure how I got to that point!

Anyway, Wednesdays are a highlight around our house. My girls and I love the show Ghosthunters. We are normally not at all drawn to this genre, but I find Grant and Jason oddly irresistable in a creepy brotherly sort of way. Prior to this I wouldn't even let my kids watch Casper. I am intrigued by their investigations. So on Wednesday evenings there is no talk of an after dinner walk or sipping iced tea on the back deck. We are all about watching our show, then the conversation is something like... "What do you think?" I don't know. What do you think?" "I don't know." Deep thinkers, aren't we?

Since for the moment I am not allowed to talk about the teens, I will not mention the dozen red roses and teddy bear that Mo Mo received via FTD this afternoon. Pssst...... All of you with her email address be sure to sharply quiz her about it.

At the moment Mals is sitting on my lap with her feet on the desk singing "Yellow Submarine" at full volume. Maybe I should rethink that after dinner walk. Anything to get this girl into a relaxed state and ready for a FULL nights sleep.

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

What Time is Bedtime?

I am completely exhausted this evening. We did not do anything today. We lounged by the pool and in the afternoon I managed to drag my rear end around the block for a walk. But, oh yes! Now I remember! Malsy woke up at 3:30 AM ready to face the day. To me, that truly is before the butt crack of dawn. As she faced the day with a smile and a skip, I warmed up coffee from yesterday in a feeble attempt to become human. Didn't help.

She has been waking up in the night quite often. Fourth of July, pre-dawn she came to me shaking like a leaf, claiming there was a worm in her bed. Being the wonderful mother that I am, I burst into laughter. "Did the worm talk to you?" response, "Yes him talked to me. Him said I scare you" So any of you planning on staying for the night anytime soon. Beware. We have an infestation of talking worms.

In other news the potty training has come to a complete halt. We have had several major changes at home lately and Mals has totally regressed. I will ask her to go potty. "No tanks. I is a baby now. Get me a diaper. K?" Yeah, I know exactly what you are thinking. I am the mother of three children who were completely trained before their second birthdays. But, as noted in the prior post, I was much more rigid then. Anyway, I have decided to completely back off. We do stroll down the big girl undies aisle at Target at every visit. "Look at those pretty undies! Don't you wish you went potty on the toilet all the time so you could have undies like that?" response- "No tanks. We can buy Blues Clues Diapers. K?" She changes them herself for crying out loud. lol Oh well, for now I will let it ride.

Disclaimer: For the record, I do NOT favor Mallorie any more then my other children. I realize she has been the topic of all my posts thus far. Unfortunately the content regarding my teens is being closely monitored and scrutinized. Therefore leaving me sparse information to share with the general public. As their general interest in my blog wears off, I plan to share all areas of their lives that I deem blogging material.


Monday, July 9, 2007

Froggie Rain Boots

These are Malsy's favorite shoes. This pair of boots has traveled many more places then we have had rainy days. She sleeps in them and I have to say they do go very well with Dora night gowns. This simple pair of boots help Mallorie to display her personality for the world to see. Often she snubs the brightly colored Stride Rite sneakers in lieu of her lovable boots. I have to say they symbolize something for me as well. When Mal's brother and sisters were little, I NEVER would have let them wear these boots unless it was raining and they coordinated very well with the perfectly matching outfit they were wearing at the time. Now, I simply grin with pride at the independent soul that is marching down the sidewalk in her green frog boots, mini skirt, and tangled hair that has not seen a pony tail holder in ages. I know the older kiddos are well balanced and theoretically did not suffer because they did not have green frog boots. (I do remember Devin wearing shorts and cowboy boots to the grocery store once.) I still wish I had let them be freer in spirit. Hmmmm, I wonder exactly what sizes these boots come in......

Day One

I have been greatly inspired by several friends and family members, who are dedicated bloggers, to follow suit and begin a blog of my own. I have been failing miserably at the whole nightly diary writing and think this will be therapeutic for me as well as insightful for my four children (upon reaching adulthood) as to why they have been sending Mom and Dad therapy bills for many years. HA! So for now I plan on dwelling, whining, rolling in the stench of self pity and otherwise detailing every non-exciting moment of my life as a mommy of four. My life may not be thrilling but it is rewarding because so far(crossing my fingers, that is the key to parenthood, you know) I have three amazing teens and one ridiculously beautiful two year old. Speaking of who, Malsy(not her real name) is currently sitting under my computer chair drawing on my legs with a pen. Yeah! I can wear shorts today. I was feeling a bit self concious about my vericose veins but it seems that has been taken care of for me. Well, better go! The day has begun, we are still in our pj's and there is much to do today. I have been off work for a week and managed to procrastinate to the fullest extent.