You know you are the mother of boys if.....

you open the lunch box (for the weekly systematic sanitizing) and find this...


And knowing that this is a "treasure" you leave the contents undisturbed (after you make sure there aren't any bug carcasses as part of the loot).

Tomorrow I buy powdered milk.

I have systems in place to guard against Extreme Bad Mommy-ness. I might forget that it is St. Patrick's Day, but we always have toilet paper! Friday is shopping day, I know I at least have to buy two gallons of milk for the week, and I usually buy a loaf of bread (you should see our freezers, stocked with the bread). This morning I poured Keith the last cup of milk. Friday is shopping day, today is Thursday! WHAT!?!?!

Of course since today is Thursday and Friday is shopping day, I forgot to stop by the store on the way home. We probably could have gone after dinner but we went on a walk instead.... Post-bath: I met the milk deficit problem head-on. I did what every Bad Mommy would do, I poured him a nice big cup of Half and Half. HE LOVED IT! He's going to be so disappointed when he goes back on the 2% tomorrow.

Oh, and also, you know you are the mother of boys when you are snapping these pictures AND you think they are hilarious.

He was looking for these, his new tech decks. Bad Mommy made a special trip to pick these Age 9 and up toys for Keith's birthday. He was thrilled.

This is the year he grows a personality

This is the year he finally talks.
This is the year he runs and jumps.
This is the year he rides a scooter.
This is the year he swims in mud puddles.
This is the year he chooses Grandpa over everyone.
This is the year he makes goo goo eyes at strangers.
This is the year he loves babies and dogs.
This is the year he masters the art of the mess.
This is the year he learns comedic timing.

Keith- May 2007
One month old.

He was born to be a little brother. He was born to be a Keith. He was born to be Kevin's mini-me. He was born to be loved by this mama.

Dear Keith Fox Callahan,
You, my son are truly a treasure. You brighten a room with your charm and your smile. Disciplining you is a practice in self-control. Daddy and I laugh over your head as you pout and growl and display your trademark antics.

Sometimes people think I am exaggerating about the extent of your personality. Until they meet you and then they are floored by you and everything you offer.

At night as you sleep you usually call out my name. Sometimes it is a question, other times it is a statement, often it is just a word. My ears automatically turn to hear the problem, the request. But I only hear a sigh. I think of it as you reassuring me that you still need me, because even though you learned how to say "self", you also know how to say "help." And that my little kamikaze sums it up. I will always be here to cheer you on when you do it your "self" or step in when you need a little "help".

I know your independence all too well. Your fearlessness is a bit foreign but the independence I totally get. As long as you remember to use your smarts before your charms, I'll be happy. Happy 2nd birthday my little wonder boy.

I love you.
Mama Lou

It's Friday and I'm Frugal

The last time I paid full price for clothes I had a little (major) panic attack in the middle of Express. It was 2000 and I was purchasing a silk leopard print shirt for $58 that I could ill afford. In the end it was worth it, I rocked that shirt at Speaker Hertzberg's Swearing-in Gala the same year. And I still have it hanging in my closet, nine years later. You don't get rid of silk, silk you hang onto.

One of my favorite Mommy Bloggers, OhMommy swears by the quality over quantity rule. High quality classic pieces that can last a lifetime. And of course if it has a label that makes you giddy, even better.

I have a price point, it is $5. I would buy just about anything for $5. Like this watch...
I came back two weeks later for this watch.
But in general, I just love a deal, a really good deal on high end goods makes my day.

A few months ago my friend Jennifer and I were power shopping at Off Saks. I was lucky enough to meet this darling. She's perfect for a beach vacation, she's the maxi dress of my dreams, and she's mostly silk (no relation to the full-priced silk shirt). To top it all off she's DIANE von FURSTENBERG.
I may be the only person to appreciate the beauty of this dress but I really don't care.
Insert beach and beachy cocktail (all available on polyvore, I'm sure), and sigh.

Back to the deal.... I am completely annoying because I could talk about shopping and clothes all day. Poor Kevin has to play the "what was Lindsay's deal" (Heh) game all the time. How much do you think I spent on this? What do you think the original price was? Now you can play...Make your guesses?

Original price: $425, marked down to $254.90. To me, there isn't a big difference between those two prices. I would have to wear this dress to work every day to justify either price.

SALE PRICE: $147.99---- This my friend's is the reason I have not owned a maxi dress. This is how much these things cost!
But I paid.... $35.18 plus $2.73 in sales tax to the fine people of Folsom (sorry shop local people, my bad). Let me comp this for you, you can't get a poorly cut, all man-made material dress at your leading retail chain for less than $40. No comparison. Sigh.

27 Pants

Just like the movie, only funny and cute.

My baby is turning two. Some days he acts like he is 6, other days he is content to let me hold him in my lap (just like a baby). He is a fantastic little boy but that is not the point of this blog post.

Because Keith is turning 2 and warmer weather has arrived (with a thunderstorm or two, but whatever), I decided to bust out the 2T boy clothes bins. There were 3, I think. I washed and folded all of the 2T clothes handed down from Keith's brother and cousin.

As I was folding, sorting and stacking the pile of pants (not shorts, that's another tale) kept growing and growing. Keith Fox is the proud owner of 27 pairs of pants!!!!! He could practically wear a different pair of pants every day of the month. Except for his attraction to mud puddles, which generally requires 2-3 a day, which means he could wear a different pair of pants for two weeks. But still, that is an impressive wardrobe accomplishment for a nearly 2-year old.

At first I thought that I should blame my sister.... That didn't work, I could remember purchasing almost all of the pants for Patrick. And then it dawned on me today.... Potty Training. Potty training requires extra undies, extra patience and lots of extra pants. I guess we are ready to potty train. (MY BABY!)

Now where the heck am I going to put all of these pants!?!?!

Life change: Daddy Robert Style

Tomorrow I will get the best birthday gift EVER! And I didn't even ask for it... well except for HERE and HERE.

My dad's first day of retirement is April 1, 2009. 32 years after he became my father, 29 years, 7 months after he started his job as Dean of Students, he is hanging up his suspenders and racking his bullhorn for the next great adventure.

The ceremony the college put on for him was called, "The End of an Era." For me it could have been called "A reminder of who you are, where you come from and where you should be going." Every morning before we left for school my dad would make sure he told us, "Always remember you're a Fox." We knew what he meant and what was expected. Listening to all of the accolades from so many people (and I know there were more pouting in the back because there wasn't time for them to speak) drove a lot of things home to me. Not the least of which is that I owe my dad so much. Like so many of the students said and wrote, I would not be where I am today if it was not for the leadership and mentorship my father has provided me my whole life.

Because of my dad I strive to:
Focus on the right things (namely the students!)
Innovate the heck out of everything
Set big, clear goals that are imprinted on everything I own
Expect that high achievement and high expectations always go hand in hand

To say that my father is passionate about students and learning and higher education would of course be an understatement. I don't know how many lives my dad changed during his tenure at Fresno City College but it is easily in the thousands. I think that all of those students would agree that Natalie Merchant said it best in Kind and Generous (this just happens to be the father/daughter dance from my wedding, thank you very much).

You've been so kind and generous
I dont know how you keep on giving
For your kindness, I'm in debt to you
For your selflessness, my admiration
For everything you've done, you know I'm bound
I'm bound to thank you for it


Oh, I want to thank you for so many gifts you gave
The love, the tenderness, I wanna thank you
I want to thank you for your generosity, the love
And the honesty that you gave me
I want to thank you show my gratitude
My love, and my respect for you, I want to thank you

Somebody call Guinness

The world record people not the brewery.

Today I sent Keith outside to amuse himself. I was really proud of myself because I got a couple of shots of super toddler on his (his brother's) scooter AND I remembered to spritz him with the SPF 5000. Bad Mommy nothing.

I was feeling extra generous so I not only opened the sandbox, I also put water in the water side. SPF face + wet sand + eating sand =

But that ain't the half of it.... LOOK AT THE SIZE OF THAT BOOGER! And of course he is getting ready to eat it (grosser than gross).

But wait, there's more. After all that fun he got his daily birdy bath in the laundry room sink.

Can we take this freak show on the road?