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.

Everyday

Growing up is about moments.  Knitted together the moments make memories and a childhood.  This morning we had an extra 12 minutes before we needed to leave for school.  Instead of begging to turn on the TV, the kids played with dominoes.  I didn't demand that they played nicely together, they just did.

 Last night, our night lacked the sunshine and roses.  Kevin left for work and I was on my own.  One kid flooded the bathroom.  Another sneezed right in my open mouth.  Another seemed to be unable to complete a task without arguing with someone.  My throat hurt from yelling (Bad mommy).

 When they aren't fighting over whose turn it is to breathe. Or who sat in the chair first.  Or what day it is.  When I stop and take a look, discarding the list, allowing for imperfection.

Then we have moments of peace.  Just simple, boring, happy peace.  And I will always be thankful for that.

Pinterest Fail (yeah thanks.)

I'm thankful for failure.  Humbling failure.  There is nothing like failure to remind you that easy things aren't always easy.  I have a way of underestimating the skill, time, and resources needed for a project.  Failure (if you are really willing to look at it, square in its ugly face) also acts as a cautionary tale, a guideline for how not to do it. 

I'm not always willing to stare at my failure and analyze my missteps.  I would prefer to keep moving forward, no looking back. My recent Pinterest Fail I threw in the garbage and didn't tell anyone.  I was trying to make the cute DIY tank top from an old t-shirt (Source: Rabbit Food For My Bunny Teeth). 

Cute right?  That's not the one I made.  The one I made and put in the garbage can looked like a mock turtleneck.  I'm the only person in the world who sets out to make a cute tank from a t-shirt and manages to make a (lopsided) turtleneck.  FAIL.

I never examined the reason I failed at that Pinterest project.  Maybe I wouldn't have failed again if I had actually considered why my tank top failed.  But I didn't, so when I set out to make these pretty yarn balls (Source: Hostess with the Mostess) for my mother-in-law's birthday party.....

I ended up with this utter failure!

During the 24-hour drying period my balloons exploded at random intervals.  Do you know what happens when a balloon covered with glue and gunk explodes?  It sounds like a gunshot AND the gunk tends to fly all over the place.  Thank goodness I read the instructions and set the project up outside!  That was about the only thing I did right.  

I overinflated the balloons so the stress and weight of the yarn and gunk was too much.  I also attempted to accomplish this project while dealing with my littles.  Parenting with your hands covered in glue and yarn isn't really parenting.  It's screaming from the garage and then running down the street trying to grab your child without  using your hands. * parenting fail and crafting fail.  

The balloons didn't start popping until later that night.  And I just laughed.  There was nothing to do but laugh.  It was a ridiculous failure and I owned it.  I knew I had messed up.  I texted my sister-in-law and she laughed too.

This is me.  Perfectly imperfect and grateful for that.

Keith's Laugh

I am so thankful for people who remind me how awesome my kid is and what a wonderfully intoxicating laugh he has.  He laughs and you can't help but smile and laugh too.  I've been in the classroom and seen a room full of kids fall out because Keith started laughing.  He's not laughing in this picture, he's totally pouting.  He's pouting in the way that only he can pout.

Mom, you made me the middle child because you love me the most?

I agreed before I really understood his question.  Keith, our middle child.... sigh.  He needs to be loved in a whole different way.  I'm not always good at it.  I'm tired and can't field another question or listen to another argument.  I beg for quiet and get a tidal wave of noise in return.

Mom, there are cross-country kids. They go across the whole country and back.

And I create my own noise.  I ask him to make his bed three times and the fourth request is a (loud) command and he still doesn't do it.  I give him complicated instructions and wonder why he doesn't complete a task.  My voice is white noise. My voice is mostly ignored for his flights of fancy.

Mom, I was laying in bed, did you hear me talking to myself.  I made a really good "ch" sound CH-CH-CH-CH-CH

People wonder how he is doing in school and I totally get what they are really saying.  There were moments this summer when  we wondered how Keith would possibly survive Kindergarten.  He's surviving, he's thriving.  He holds on for 3 and a half hours and reserves his worst for me.  But I get his best too.  I'm his soft place to land, his respite after a long day, his scratching post, his book buddy, his mom.  We unwind and laugh and dance and sing.  I slow down and stare into the eyes of the baby boy in the pictures on my wall.  Yesterday I was ready to give him away, today I will keep him.  He is a part of me, the laughter of my heart and for that I am thankful.

Halloween Wrap Up

 For the first day of November and the first day of a month of thankfulness, I am thankful that Halloween is over.  I know, I have certainly said it before... not my favorite holiday.  Halloween is a special annoyance when it falls on a Wednesday.  Who planned that? 

I do try to get in the spirit for my kids because they love Halloween. We started on Tuesday with a trip to the pumpkin patch with a hundred or so kindergarteners.

 Keith's first field trip!  They got to ride on the bus and pick a pumpkin right out of the patch.  And there were port-a-potties!  Plus it was blazing hot and dusty!  I jest (sarcastically) it really was a good time.

Just to show you that I'm not the Grinch who Stole Halloween, I even made my kids a special Halloween breakfast.  I didn't do anything else on my Halloween Pinterest board but I did this:



The rant continues....I dislike Halloween costumes.  They are cheaply made, but WAY overpriced.  If you have to do more than trick or treat, most costumes fall apart. 

 Patrick makes up his mind about his costume the year before.  In fact, we even bought his costume last year!  Keith wants to be every ridiculous thing under the sun.  It changes daily in the months leading up to Halloween.  So!  When I asked him to pick his costume at 8:30 in the morning, I thought we would have enough time to sort it all out before the Halloween party at 11:00.  If Aunt Rachel hadn't come to the rescue, Keith and I would still be arguing about the costume.  Keith was rocking the best costume ever.  And it was super durable too!

 Keith and his buddies at school. 

 The double bonus was that my pumpkin patch entry fee came with a pumpkin too.  Considering the lack of time and energy devoted to Halloween, those pumpkins came in handy (because we had zero).   I did try to convince the boys that we didn't have to carve pumpkins.  Kevin was working and that is his thing (I'm the pumpkin carving photographer and wine drinker.  He's the pumpkin carving supervisor.).   
 They wouldn't hear of it.  So we carved pumpkins on Halloween... at 4:40.  The kids were great.  They couldn't wait to get in their costumes after dinner.

 Patrick did his own makeup.  Keith is stabbing himself with a pitch fork.  Lauren is making an elephant sound.  These kids make Halloween really fun.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Second Birthday to LoLos

Dear Lauren,
My sweet Baby LoLos...  Happy birthday to my beautiful and smart girl.  TWO! This is the year that core of you is coming so clearly into focus. You are a wonder.

 You are changing and becoming YOU.  Our fearless girl is suddenly terrified of zhu zhu pets and fake mice.  You don't say much but you know how to say "2!" and TEITH (Keith) and It all gone. Oh and of course, "It Dada!"  You worry when anyone is sad or hurt.  You love to hug and kiss our crazy dogs.   You love to give hugs to humans but you aren't always sure about receiving them.  You wag your finger at anything and anyone misbehaving.  You are learning to jump off of things.  You love your daddy.  You have the BEST facial expressions.  You figure things out.

Who moved my step stool?  No problem, canned beans work too.

Who stole my comfy chair?  No problem, we have lawn chairs in the garage!

The distance between One and Two seem vast today.  It seems like it has been so much longer than 365 days.  You are a busy little girl and you keep us going every minute.  You understand EVERYTHING and say nothing.  You have specific ideas about the way things should be and challenge my parenting skills on a daily basis.  Because you are my third and final installment, I take more time to watch things play out with you.  I watch you play and color and consider and plot.  And when no one else is home I let you climb on the counter just so I can see what you have planned.




When Grandpa gave you new hair clips you hid them all under the couch.  You are also interested in lining things up for me. 

At the end of the day when we get on the sleepy train to go to bed, I am worn out.... blissfully tired.  Today you love me and I love you in a simple way that can be explained by the tightest sweetest hug and the lopsided "I love you" in sign language.  Tomorrow you will make me laugh, smile, and groan and I will love you even more.

Love,
Mama Lou

And so it begins.....

My little baby is turning 2 in just three days.  Last week, when left in the care of her father for an hour, she learned how to climb out of her crib.  Now I'm not blaming my husband but she didn't do it on my watch!


The tide started turning about a week before.  She (in truly spectacular Lauren style) climbed into her crib several times.... to retrieve her pacifiers.  My original plan was to keep her in the crib until Kindergarten.  It looks like that isn't going to happen.


She is growing up.  She even demands to use the toilet.  Not a lot of talking from my little, just a lot of demands.  And so it begins.