That Boy

Sixteen years ago, I met a boy.  He was just finishing up the police academy and he wanted nothing more in his life than graduate from the academy and become a cop.  This is not that boy.... that boy graduated from the academy and went down a different path and became the phenomenal man pictured above.  He married me, earned a bachelors degree, became a father, turned out to be a darn fine police officer, earned a masters degree, and went back to the academy.  

Life has a circular nature.  Sometimes the roundness of life is disconcerting, other times it is comforting.  In this case it is immensely rewarding.

Kevin went back to the Police Academy this fall as a Recruit Training Officer (RTO).  His job is to mentor, encourage, discipline, cajole, evaluate, and support the police cadets.  He's an awesome cop, but he absolutely shines as an RTO.  And he is doing this in addition to his regular job!

Two weeks ago the kids and I attended the academy graduation and then Kevin and I went to the celebration banquet that night.  I love this picture because at that moment I saw my husband through new eyes.

He gave a speech at the banquet, an unscripted speech and he totally rocked it.  If you knew that boy, you would be surprised that he could get up in front of hundreds of people and give a speech.  He's not that boy, he's this man who gives out his cell phone number to two dozen recent cadets. He's this man who teaches and leads.  He's this man who makes a difference in the lives of these future cops and that makes a HUGE difference in our world.

  

And he makes a huge difference in my own little world.  He will return as an RTO for the next class and we may not see him much but we sure are proud of him. 

Over-employed

Today I taught Lauren the sign for work.

Source:Lifeprint.com

Lauren doesn't say much but she does say, "Where Dada? He gone."  This morning, after working  many days without a day off, Kevin overslept.  Going between night shift and day shift, some days without an actual break in between (that's 24 hour shifts), and today was the first day he overslept.  I doubt he was late to work, he just got there 20 minutes later than his regular early time.  

So the kids saw Kevin this morning for a few minutes (which is unusual) and then Lauren started with the question.  She thinks she's funny so at first she was pretending that he was sleeping, shushing her brothers.  "Where Dada?  SHSHSHSHSH!"  But she's a quick study and I don't know why I hadn't taught her the sign before (except that I am pretty slow on the uptake).

I am so grateful that Kevin is over-employed and happy to take care of and provide for his family.  If hard work was easy, they would call it easy work.  We make lots of sacrifices and we will reap the benefits at some point.  Until then the limited time we have together is cherished.  We are blessed.

A Grateful Heart- Days 2-8

I conveniently missed the last seven days of gratitude.  I already knew that Day 2 was going to be dedicated to Kevin.  As it turns out, he's getting the entire week.  Seven reasons I'm grateful for Kevin:

• When he fills in for me, I have confidence that the kids are not only loved and fed but on their schedule too!
• He's sentimental. He loves dreaming as much as he loves
• He is my biggest fan. Especially now that I am a runner (haha.). He coaches me and cheers for me.  I look forward to sharing my accomplishments with him.  I run for him.
• He happily helps me cook and clean.  And although I've gotten better at asking for help, he's awesome at reading my mind.
• My kids adore him.  He's their superhero.
• He fixes my tire at 6:00 am.
• He gets up early and works hard for us.  Sometimes this means little sleep and no time off. Then he turns around and puts a Halloween costume together.

Thursday

My favorite day of the week is Thursday.  Thursday hints at the potential of Friday and the weekend still seems like a sprawling promise.  Thursday is the cusp of what might be.  And let's face it, Thursday is always the best night for television viewing (even if 99% of the tv we watch in the evening is recorded now and I couldn't tell you what program is on Thursday or any day for that matter).  So, I decided that this point of the summer is my Thursday.  Almost July 4th and still lots of potential for the remaining weeks.  At this very point, the summer holds lots of promise.

And, this little nester has accomplished a few things already!  I thought we would tick another major project off our list last weekend.  Floors for the baby's room!  Kevin kindly agreed to devote his weekend to laying floors in the nursery.  My pregnant self didn't see any other option so it was good of him to agree.

Here's the nursery/sweater drying room before.... AND THE BIG REVEAL!!!

Here's another angle....

Kevin fell ill halfway into the project (that's the hallway filled with nursery furniture).  He caught the stomach flu the boys had shared amongst themselves during the week.  He went down hard Saturday night, Sunday morning he forced himself to power through some more work to get to the halfway point.  Now we wait for days off.  Hopefully this is a one-day finish because there aren't many more open days in our summer full of potential.

Although I have had a few queasy days, I haven't gotten sick yet.  But really, I don't have time for that silliness... I have girl clothes to buy, scrapbooking to complete, day trips to plan.......  Please Lord, let me stay healthy.

Our Everyday with Daddy

In Kevin's line of work you have to learn how to roll with the changes... or they will roll right over you.  It has been a super-exciting couple of weeks at work for Kevin.  So exciting, he needs to change his schedule to accommodate all of the excitement.  How exciting?  35 hours of OT on top of his regular schedule.  See, exciting.

The good news is that now we get weekends with him. Well, weekend evenings because the days are spent studying and writing and mastering his degree.  But we will happily take the weekend evenings... yummy dinners, Wii battles, wrestling, story-time.  We missed this, we really did.

As an added bonus, we "watched" (I was working on taxes and he was writing a paper) the Golden Globes together.  So much more fun than watching it alone.  I was on the E! page making the most of the East Coast spoilers.  I won every bet.

Let's Save Some Babies

This morning on the way to school there was an accident about midway between school and our house (we really should walk, it isn't that far.  unless you factor in Keith and high heels, then it is 17 miles).  Clovis PD was out there blocking the street and the tow trucks were loading the cars on flatbeds (more than a fender bender).  Patrick commented: "I hope there weren't any zero-year olds in those cars!"  Always concerned about the babies.

THE FOLLOWING IS AN OPEN LETTER TO THE MOMMIES IN MY HOOD

Dear Crazy-Driving Mama,
I am writing this because I don't know you but I am sure that I like you.  This note is a warning, more than likely a FINAL warning.  You see, my darling husband is at the end of his rope.  You have blown passed him doing 50 mph in residential areas.  You have allowed your small children to not only sit in the front seat but sit in the front seat without a seat belt.  You routinely speed passed stop signs as if they're suggestions and not requirements.  You seem to believe that your SUV has some kind of special powers that will generally keep you from plowing over innocent children no matter how horrible your driving.

So much can happen in the short commute between our houses and school, as my boys and I witnessed this morning.  I cannot promise that the next time you illegally pass my husband (utlizing the sidewalk as your passing lane) that he won't follow you to school and/or your house, write you a ticket, confiscate your vehicle, repeal your parental rights for the balance of the week and arrest you.  YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!! SLOW IT DOWN LADIES!!!!

And you may think that my husband is a jerk but he is the jerk that is saving our babies.  What's your excuse?

Love,
Mama Lou

Like I said, he rocks

Is it Fall yet? Not pretend Fresno Fall, I mean full-blown Autumn. MMMM...... Autumn. The air conditioner broke in one of the 4 zones in our house. It just happened to be the boys zone (wing).

Usually, our air conditioner is very Johnny-on-the-Spot with the cold air. The boys and I are known to cuddle under blankets while the air conditioner is working to get the temperature from 83 degrees to 81 degrees. Anything cooler than 81 and you have to put a sweater on (and a beanie and mittens). So when the boys' zone was holding steady at 84 even though I had the air set at 81 I knew we had a problem. Kevin didn't (want to) believe me. For some reason the air conditioner would work when he was there and as soon as he went back to work it would stop working (just like the mechanic).

The point of the story is I finally convinced him that the combination of the non-functioning air conditioner and the (close to) triple digit forecast for the weekend meant we had to call the air conditioner guy.

He came, he saw, he charge a hundred bucks. A hundred bucks to guess that the problem was a faulty flapper (how very 1922). A hundred bucks for a guess, I'm definitely in the wrong business. How about another $420 to actually fix the (hypothesized) problem? Sure. I know the economy is bad because 4 years ago we would have just bought another house. Instead my man climbed up into the attic and started banging around (with the help of one of his buddies via iPhone).

I was his Tool Girl, running up and down the stairs (luckily I can use the climb), bringing tools and switching from one zone to another. And I discovered this real estate right above my closet. Just what I need, more storage.



Anyway, after seventeen trips up the stairs. A number of adjustments. He fixed it!!!!! for now

Kevin really is amazing. He will still have to replace a part but he just saved us hundreds of dollars in labor at the very least.

How about this for music to my ears:
"Is there anything else you want me to take care of?"
"I'll do some laundry."
"I already took care of it."
"It is all put away."
"I made you coffee and packed you a snack."

Father's Day Kid Interview

There is a certain level of fun that is only achieved when Daddy is around.

I have a couple of very lucky kids, they have a really great dad. Yesterday Patrick proudly told our neighbors that his dad is the boss of our house. True.

Happy Father's Day, I love you.

Kid Interview : Patrick 4 ½

1. What is something Dad always says to you?

When I come downstairs and I say to him do you want to play Legos with me sometimes he says no or yes.

2. What makes Dad happy?
When I be a good boy for him

3. What makes Daddy sad?
That I be mean to him.

4. How does your dad make you laugh?
When he tickles me when we wrestle.

5. What was your dad like as a child?
Being good boy all the time.


6. How old is your dad?
20

7. How tall is your dad?
20 pounds

8. What is his favorite thing to do?
Making trucks with me out of little legos.

9. What does your dad do when you're not around?
He studies and works

10. If your dad becomes famous, what will it be for?
What does that mean?

11. What is your dad really good at?
Making wheels for my biggest truck.

12. What is your dad not very good at?
Making little trucks because there are not enough little legos.

13. What does your dad do for his job?
To take bad guys to jail.

14. What is your dad's favorite food?
Pizza

15. What makes you proud of your dad?
Doing all the stuff he wants to do for me.

16. If your dad were a cartoon character, who would he be?
Batman

17. What do you and your dad do together?
Play legos

18. How are you and your dad the same?
Because we a little bit have the same hair

19. How are you and your dad different?
Because we have different skin.

20. How do you know your dad loves you?
Because he makes me proud of him and I think in my brain I always love him.

21. What does your dad like most about your mom?
She’s a good chef.

22. Where is your dad's favorite place to go?
Disneyland

Santa Came Early. He didn't leave anything for you.

Merry Christmas to us, 25 days early. Several years ago, way before kids Kevin and I bought a Chevy Camaro. The car was named Buck and we loved it. It was loud, masculine, impractical, and fast. Then we had kids and graduated to the SUV lifestyle. Recently our car situation changed again (no we didn't sell the kids). Lately I have been the primary driver of Kevin's beautiful Honda Ridgeline truck. I mostly drive the truck for three hour stretches to Sacramento, SF, LA, and Oakland. The truck is fine but not exactly a commuter vehicle. And can I just say, it was clearly not designed for the females, there was no mirror on the driver's sun visor. How am I supposed to know what is going on with the coif? So I now have this:

It even has a light! So dreamy!
BUT WAIT THERE IS MORE! She's a beauty.

We have been car shopping for a long time. All around town test driving, debating, negotiating.... small SUVs, luxury SUVs, huge SUVs (even another Expedition), sports cars, sedans of all shapes and sizes. Finally it seemed pretty clear that what we both wanted was a car that we could have fun driving and keep until our kids graduate from college.

Believe it or not part of our motivation was to save money (gas and car payment). And we were successful on both fronts.


I didn't drive the car until we had pretty much closed the deal. Kevin loved driving it (I closed my eyes on a couple of the turns), his ear to ear grin had me sold.

Our pretty little 525 doesn't have a name yet (the second thing Patrick pointed out after he noted how much he liked the car because it is clean) but it has a space in the garage. Up until last night we were one of those families with a three car garage that only fits one car. All we needed was a little motivation.

I drove the car to work today, it only took me seven minutes to remember how to turn it on!

WE'VE GONE GREEN!!! well yellowish green

As promised....our going green blog.

Despite what I said before, I really do love the Earth. If nothing else, God loaned it to us and we need to return it in the same or better condition when we are done. I just hate it when hypocritical people try to tell me what to do and how to do it. That being said, I ended my anti-save the Earth revolt pretty quickly.

I was busy working one day and watching bad television (shocking revelations up in here). Specifically, Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane. Geez even the title is annoying. She is so odd and unreal. Enough about her (really, enough, cancel that show, put me out of my misery). On this particular episode Kimora Lee Simmons gets her carbon footprint assessment. ***This is just the kind of stagey reality tv that annoys me (this reality show brought to you by SmartCAR).***You remember Little Ms. Carbon Footprint from the Al Gore hypocrisy. It is basically a report of your impact on our planet (Earth that is). Anyway, a few days later I decided to figure out what my carbon footprint was. It wasn't good. I got a recount, it still wasn't good. Near as I can tell most of my issues are due to: the size of my house, the diaper situation, and the amount of air travel I suffer through. I even took the challenge to reduce my footprint and guess what? There is no way to fully negate the effect of flying cross country 3 or 4 (okay 6) times a year. I could replace all of our light bulbs, shut down our garage fridge extravagance, and walk to work...Yep still a gigantic footprint.

There are certain trappings of motherhood that I like, my plus-sized SUV is one of them. I can bring home $354 worth of Costco purchases without rearranging anything. I can add extra kids to my haul without a second thought. AND the thing has an incredibly impressive turning radius. Plus it is paid for. We are seriously considering investing in a smaller more fuel efficient car to replace the truck. See, yellowish green. Score.


Kevin has become quite the Recycle Master, The King of Recycling....
The Recycle-nator. The City blessed us with a brand spanking new mixed recycling bin. In my head I call her Big Blue. The weeks that Kevin is in charge of garbage Big Blue is full and happy. I was so embarrassed the other week when it was clearly my garbage week (we don't assign weeks we just pitch in and the other person gets out of the way) since Big Blue was nearly empty. Every other week...SCORE


We are promoting the concept of conservation with Patrick. It is hard for me to believe that there may not be water automatically coming out of the faucet so it is definitely difficult for Patrick to grasp. We sing the Dan Zanes song a lot, Reduce Reuse Recycle. I am trying to teach him about buying locally grown food. What a drag, no imported out of season berries.

Some of this green movement is ridiculous to me. For example, throwing out all of your cleaning supplies, makeup, etc. in favor of green products. DUH! And some of it is confusing. For example, am I supposed to run the dishwasher or wash by hand? Should I buy the organic food transported from across the country or the local fertilized food? I need someone to take notes for me.

The Recycling King and I never had a conversation about trying to be kinder to the Earth. Even though we (okay, it is mostly me) are way above (okay, below) average with the footprint thing, we are making changes. Here is the biggest deal....we reduced our electric bill by 45%. Imagine if we actually knew how to work the programmable thermostat!

My Carbon Footprint is bigger than your Carbon Footprint!

The Day That Never Ends

My husband officially rocks. On Friday he spent the whole day with the boys before he went to work at 6:30 pm. Because he has FTO school next week, he had four hours to make up for the pay period. This meant that he was supposed to go back in tonight. Instead, he worked a 12-hour shift and then he worked an extra four hours so he could have more family time.

Kevin normally gets home around 7:30 am on Saturday morning and heads to bed. He didn't get home until 11:30 am this morning and he stayed up. He was so chipper and humored the boys with their mid-day activities. Patrick got clearance glue at Target ****We made a side trip to Target in the morning. Can someone please tell me how it is possible to spend $200, okay $300 at Target. What is it with that place?**** and he was busy "scrapbooking" and learning about "a little dab will do ya". Kevin ohhed and ahhed over the scrapbook pages Patrick created for him. Keith was having lunch (applesauce, mac n cheese, and sweet potato fries) and wanted to feed his dad. Kevin ate about three bites before I confirmed that yes Keith had mixed applesauce with the mac n cheese.

Patrick and I picked up sandwiches from Full Bull and a large Mt. Dew for Kev. This got him over the first hump. We had rescheduled Mommy and Boys Friday Night Movie Night so Kevin could join us. I wasn't sure if he would make it. Make it? My man had dinner, sitting next to both boys (translation I sat next to Kevin and no one else. Dinner sitting straight forward, what a concept), and then he vacuumed the entire downstairs and the staircase!

We popped popcorn, got the M&Ms out of the deep freeze, prepared all of the pillows and blankets, and settled in for "An American Tail." You know Fievel Mousekewitz.....Little Russian Mouse goes to America where there are no cats and the streets are paved with cheese. Patrick loves movie night. Keith likes popcorn and loves M&Ms. I wasn't parting with my chocolate so he was climbing up and swiping Kevin's. ***This is also a rare occasion that Keith is actually wearing PJs. He was so excited about his monkey PJs.****


If you are keeping track, my darling husband's day started on Friday at 7:00 am when Keith woke up and as of now (Saturday night) has yet to end. The boys and I are so excited to have Sunday with him tomorrow. Family time is the best.

Kevin and the Case of the Dead Grass

Lately the only thing growing at Serenity are boys. Everything green is brown and crunchy according to Patrick. We planted new butterfly bushes that are all dead. Our grass in the backyard has been regularly tortured by Murphy and Marley and seems to have given up the ghost. And perhaps most disturbing the front yard is struggling too! It is a bad sign when your lawn is starting to resemble the foreclosure yard.

In late Spring we had new concrete poured in the front and back. So we turned off the sprinklers....and forgot to turn them back on. It wasn't a big deal because the rain was still taking care of business. But even after they were turned back on Kevin was constantly having to test the sprinklers because the lawn was still dying.

Half a dozen triple digit days later, Kevin cracked the case. Someone had cut the wire for the sprinklers for the lawn in the front. Who would do such a thing? We don't know but we want him prosecuted!!!

So grass+water=GREEN GRASS Happy Callahans, we live happily ever after right? Wrong! On a trip to the zoo with the boys and his dad, Kevin was recounting the case of the dead grass to Pat. He told him that someone had clipped the wire. Patrick (God Bless Him) chimes in with, "Daddy, I clipped the wire. Remember yesterday (anything that isn't right now is yesterday to Patrick so he was talking about months ago) I had your clippy things and we were clipping so I clipped the wire."

Case closed. Now we just need to find out what is wrong with our gimpy tree and dead butterfly bushes.