Our Five Ring Circus: June 2009

Tuesday, June 30, 2009

The Jesus Store

Dylan conned my mom into an impromptu shopping trip at the candy store, today.

He has been desperately trying to explain a drink to me for the past week. This drink is small, looks like a big, beer bottle, and is colorful. Hmmmm...couldn't figure that one out.

It figures that my dad immediately knew what he was talking about. Dylan wanted those wax candy bottles with juice inside.

Why, of course! Why didn't I think of that?!?!?

So off we went to get those wax candy bottles. We pulled in behind the candy store, and there was a huge statue of Jesus behind the building. Lexie immediately started pointing and waving. "Look! Jesus! Hi, Jesus!"

My mom pulled her out of her car seat, and said, "Where are we, Lexie?"

Lexie replied, " The Jesus store!"

We were laughing so hard that when we walked in, one of the ladies who works in the store, and knows my mom, asked what we were laughing at. Pretty soon, all the ladies working in the store were laughing.

Lexie quickly figured out where we really were, and didn't hesitate in picking out a candy necklace and bag of gummy lifesavers.

Dylan had his bag filled with wax bottles in no time...and a light up lollipop...and candy bugs...and a gummy snake...and flying saucers...and candy legos... Lexie, however, was happy with her two items.

I, of course, picked up a few things for myself and the hubby. For some reason, I can't stop snacking on my watermelon gummies as I type this.

The candy was forgotten the second she stepped out of the store. She began dragging me across the parking lot. "See Jesus, Mama!" So we went down to look at the Jesus statue.

She held my hand and stared at the statue, and then looked up at me with her ginormous brown eyes. "Mama, I hug Jesus?"

Seeing as the path to Jesus was blocked with gravestones on display, I told her to blow him a kiss, instead.

So she did.

From this day forward, our candy store will be known as "The Jesus Store. "

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Monday, June 29, 2009

First Big Boo Boo

Let me tell you something about my two year old. She may be feisty, but she is cautious. She's not much of a daredevil.

That is, until today.

We were playing outside, and Dylan and Lexie decided they wanted to ride their bikes. They were riding around in our backyard, and Dylan asked if they could ride them in the driveway. When I said yes, Lexie took the opportunity to push off down the hill that leads to the driveway.

I watched in horror, running just a few steps behind her, as she gained speed down the hill. I couldn't stop what was about to happen, and knew she was going to get hurt. It was just a matter of how much she would get hurt. Sure enough, Lexie's tricycle hit the rock wall at the bottom of the hill, and I swear, my heart stopped, as I watched her sail over the handlebars, fly several feet through the air, and land with a thud, in our driveway.

All I can remember is screaming, "OH MY GOD!" as she landed. I was expecting the worst, because it looked terrible. I thought for sure she was going to be knocked out, bleeding profusely, or have a broken bone or head injury. I have never been more relieved than I was when I heard her cry. I know several people witnessed it, but I was oblivious to them, and just scooped her up, and ran into the house.

It could have been a lot worse. I'm not quite sure how she didn't get hurt worse than what she did. I thought that we'd be rushing her to the hospital.

I am so thankful that she is okay.

Lexie continued to cry for several minutes. Her entire left arm was scraped up, and her cheek was rapidly turning purple. I stuck her in the tub, so I could rinse off the dirt, and assess the damage. My poor baby had "road rash" from her shoulder to her wrist...the worst scrape was on her forearm, where all of the skin was torn off. I am cringing as I write this, because it looks so painful. At first, I didn't notice her cheek, because it was just red at the time, but it started turning black and blue, and is now swollen.

Luckily, she bounced back quickly, and was ready to go back outside in 20 minutes. Nothing appears to be broken, but she is complaining of the scrapes on her arm hurting. I'm sure they do!

I took some pictures, but they aren't the best quality. The lighting was poor, and...ahem...I have yet to figure out Photoshop. It's been on my computer for a week, and all I really know how to do is crop. These were taken shortly after the accident, but she looks a lot worse now. I'm particularly worried about the large scrape on her forearm. It is really swollen and bruised.


I am feeling horribly guilty that I couldn't reach her in time to save her from the pain. When I look back on the situation, I remember the look on her face as she coasted down the hill-she was oblivious, happy, and having fun. Little did she know what was going to happen several seconds later. I know boo boo's are a part of life, but as a mom, I just wish I could shield my children from pain.

At least she waited 2 years before she got an injury. Dylan started at the age of 1, and never stopped!

I hope my baby girl heals quickly!

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A Girl and her Horse (Part Two)

(If you missed Part One, you can find it here.)
I have been meaning to post more pictures of Lexie with our horse, Cherokee, since I took them back in, oh...March.
She still loves going to the stable to see Cherokee. It is definitely one of her favorite places to go. She doesn't call Cherokee her "baby" anymore. Now she simply refers to him by his name. In toddler-speak, that would be "Ker-ah-Key."
When we first get to the stable, I take Lexie out of her seat, and put her on the ground. She immediately runs to find her favorite barn cat, who always comes out to greet us. If we didn't already have 3 bad cats, I would bring that cat home in a heartbeat!

Lexie pets the cat for a few minutes, and when she hears Cherokee whinny, she tells the cat to "follyow me!"

Cherokee now responds to hearing Lexie's voice. I don't say a word. Even though he can't see her, he can hear her, and he strolls up to find her.

They have the same ritual at every visit. Lexie excitedly calls out to him when she sees him. "Hey Ker-ah-Key! Hi!" He walks over to her and sniffs the top of her head.

She reaches up to stroke his nose as she talks to him.

She says, "Kiss, Ker-ah-Key, Kiss." He obliges by lowering his head.
After Cherokee greets Lexie, he walks over to see Dylan and I. I used to be his number one gal, but Lexie has taken over that spot. We take Cherokee into the barn, and give him a good brushing, and tons of treats. Dylan and Lexie love to help brush him.

Whenever we finish, we lead him back out to the pasture. Lexie stands next to him and watches him as he eats.
...and then glances around at the other horses....until he gets her attention again.
When I tell Lexie it's time to leave, she refuses to say goodbye. Instead, she asks, "Ker-ah-Key come home too? " I try to explain that I would love for Cherokee to come home with us, but he wouldn't have a place to stay.

Doesn't work too well. She walks away, saying, "Come on, Ker-ah-Key!"
She desperately tries to let him out of the gate before I reach her.

When I say that it's really time to go, she glares at me. And Cherokee-boy just stares pleadingly at me.
It's the same at every visit. I took these pictures back at the end of March, and we still follow the same routine.

I wish that Cherokee could live at our house. I've wished for that every single day since I got him at the age of 12!

The bond between Lexie and Cherokee has grown so much since I posted Part One. Cherokee is getting older, and I dread the day that we will have to say goodbye.

I am so grateful for the fact that my children have fallen in love with my horse, and get to experience stable life. I can't wait to see how the bond between my girl and her horse grows even more.


Not Me! Monday



Happy Monday! It's time for a weekly therapy session, hosted by MckMama! This blog carnival is the reason I love Monday!

It wasn't me who spent two, glorious, child-free hours in Old Navy, on Saturday. I did not browse around the store, try on about 100 items of clothing, and leave the store with a week's worth of outfits and a new swimsuit for $115! Thank you Old Navy sale!

Shopping did not totally calm me down and make me feel refreshed and human again, after a very rough morning, caused by two, angry adults.

I did not learn a very valuable lesson this week: If your child has an unknown substance on their ankle, do not use your finger and spit to wash it off. It most likely is crap. Lesson learned. I did NOT learn this by tasting something odd in my mouth and then smelling my finger.

I am not ridiculously excited that Lexie has a real ponytail. It only took her 2 years, 4 months to grow it! ;)

Speaking of Lexie, she did not find her daddy's beavis and butthead figures, and take them to the grocery store with her. Nor would I let her.

I am not still in shock that my sister, my most anxious sibling, is in China! I'm not jealous at all!

I'm not the lucky gal who cashed $26 in checks, has a $20 check and $50 gift card to Old Navy on the way, received two awesome, very useful products in the mail to test, and has 4 bzzcampaigns going on. I do not love taking surveys and testing products.

I did not purchase the ringtone, Kryptonite (aka "The Superman Song"), just so I could watch my kids dance around when my phone rings. I'm really not that lame.

My lips did not rival Angelina Jolie's after Dylan hit a baseball straight into my mouth. I am not terrified to play baseball with him now.

As I was holding my best friend's absolutely adorable, but very hungry newborn son, I did not ask her if she wanted to go inside to eat her baby. She did not look at me like I was nuts, until I realized my mistake! He's pretty darn edible though! ;)


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Friday, June 26, 2009

Where were you when?

It has been a long, surreal day.

At least it began and ended with happy news. My day began with a call from my dad, telling me that his cancer scans came back clear! YAY! The scans and treatment will be a several year long process, but it's great that no new tumors have popped up!

I was unable to get online all day, because our wireless network was acting up. I was so annoyed, so I slammed the laptop shut, and walked away...at least until my hubby came home at 10 pm (work function kept him late), and fixed it!

I felt so out of touch with the world. Grant had to text me the news that Farrah Fawcett died. I felt horrible about it, but it was expected.

While I'm on the topic of things that frustrate me, let me mention this one. I can't play baseball with my son anymore. He hits the ball too hard. In the past 2 weeks, I've been hit in my stomach, on the side of my face, and as of today, in the mouth. I have some Angelina Jolie-like lips to prove it. At least I didn't have to dish out hundreds of dollars for them. Thanks, Dylan. Time for mommy to buy a face mask...make that full body armor...so I can play baseball with you.

My sister brought three of my nephews over for a playdate with my kids. We attempted to stay outside, despite the unbearable heat, but of course, the boys made their way to Dylan's room. Where they proceeded in dumping out every. single. bin. Why they do that is beyond me. Dylan doesn't do that unless he's with them. I guess it could have something to do with the fact that they are 4-and-5 year old boys.

I spent 3 miserable hours cleaning up toys today.

Right after my sis left, she sent a text telling me that Michael Jackson was in cardiac arrest. Shortly after, I turned on the tv for some reason (I don't watch during the day), and watched the news develop that he died.

Now that was a shocker. Regardless of how weird MJ was, he was incredibly talented. It's crazy that two big celebreties died in one day. Very sad.

In our generation, his shocking death is the equivalent to what Elvis dying or JFK being shot was to previous generations. Some day, people will be asking, "Where were you when you heard Michael Jackson died?"

Regardless of whether people liked him or not, this will be a day that people remember forever, due to him being "The King of Pop."

So, enough about Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, my anger at my previously non-working computer, and my gigantic fish lips....

Congratulations to my friend, Stephanie, who welcomed her new baby boy into the world tonight! A new blessing is a great way to end the day!

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Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Pet of choice

Ever since the Mr. Toad incident, Dylan has been wanting a pet.

As if our Great Dane, Chihuahua, 3 cats, fish, and horse aren't enough.

He wants one of his own.

Dylan has become frog-obsessed lately. He would absolutely love a frog, but I'm not so sure that's a good pet for us.

So...he decided he wants one of these:

It's a pet. Really. The June issue of Parents magazine said so.

If you have this issue sitting around, remove it, before your son flips through it and decides he wants a strange pet bug.

I suppose the Madagascar hissing cockroach would have been worse.

But....really, Dylan? You pick that?!?!? What happened to guinea pigs, rabbits, parakeets, and hamsters? "Hey, meet Dylan's new pet, Rodney. Why, yes, it is a bug!"

Where do I even find one of these?

I say it again...should have just kept Mr. Toad.

Wish me luck as I try to talk him out of this one.

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Monday, June 22, 2009

I Heart Faces...Let's Hear It For The Boys!



The theme at I Heart Faces this week is Let's Hear It For The Boys!

I have been waiting for several weeks to use this photo in one of the weekly themes, so this week is perfect! I took this picture of Dylan, in May, and I instantly fell in love with it. He had just found a baby toad the day before, and was refusing to set it free. I told him to play with it outside before letting it go, and I found him snuggling "Mr. Toad" in his play house. He did eventually let "Mr. Toad" go, but not without shedding a few tears.

This is my entry for the Kids Category:




Visit I Heart Faces to see some other entries!


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Not Me! Monday



I love Monday's for one reason, and one reason only...MckMama's blog carnival. I'm sure you all know who MckMama is, but if not, head over to her blog and check it out!

This week, I did NOT go through computer withdrawal, while ours was being fixed. It was not torture to be without computer for 40 long, miserable hours.

While my computer was gone, I did not:
Go to bed by 11 pm. And not fall asleep until 2:30 am, because I'm so used to my online time after everyone is in bed.
Have to figure out where the weather channel is on my TV, because I rely on my homepage for my weather forecast.
Obsessively clean my house, because there was nothing else to do when the kids didn't want to play with me.

I am not finally admitting that Lexie's eyes are just as incredible as her brother's baby blue's. I do not often get lost just staring into her eyes.


My husband did not yell at me for having 24,000 pictures, when he backed up my stuff on the external hard drive. Is 24,000 that bad???

I did not get a raging case of baby fever, after holding my best friend's newborn. Said baby fever did not disappear rather quickly, in the presence of my exhausted kids. Baby fever will not return the next time I get to hold adorable Baby B! (Congrats J & T!!!)

I did not hang out the car window, taking pictures of a huge Pittsburgh Penguins poster hanging from a building, and of the Arena. I am not that dorky.

I did not tell Lexie that spiders would eat her ears if she took her earrings out. She does not walk around telling people, "Spiders eating my ears!!!"

While we're on the topic of torturing our children, I did not make Lexie cry twice yesterday, by fake crying. She is not so attached to me, that a few seconds of my fake tears would cause her to sob uncontrollably. I do not find this slightly amusing.

Last night, Dylan did not ask me, "Mama, what is Breasts?" He did not mistake the word Breasts for the word Brunch. Phew! Glad I got to the bottom of that one before having to explain!

Happy Monday!

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Friday, June 19, 2009

Computer Withdrawal

I have been without my computer for over 24 hours. Our laptop is being wiped clean as I write this. I actually had to come to my parent's house to get my internet fix. ;)

It should be back by the end of the weekend. And even better, it will have my Photoshop program on it, which has been sitting around my house for many months, not being used. I'm nervous about using a new photo editing program, but I know it's going to work much better than the one I have.

So what have I been doing without my trusty laptop? Well, I actually went to bed before midnight last night! And my floors are so clean I could eat a meal off of them. I even washed my baseboards. Need. Computer. Back. Now.

I'll be back to blogging on Sunday, hopefully!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

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Thursday, June 18, 2009

Lovin' Laundry

Time for my strange confession.

I love doing the laundry. Love it.

Please, don't send me to an insane asylum just yet. Let me explain...

You see, doing laundry relaxes me. I'm a bit (my hubby would say a lot) OCD, and I love the organization and routine of laundry day.

Yes, I said day. Doing a load of laundry every day just wasn't cutting it. So I save it all for one day a week, and then I have full loads. This works for us, because frankly, our closets are packed with clothes. (Side note: Does Lexie REALLY need 47 dresses?)

I love sorting the clothes. Oh-and do I sort! I read every clothing label, and sort it according to how it needs to be washed. Cold lights, Cold darks, warm lights, warm darks, jeans, towels, bedding, and whites. I do sort every night so it doesn't pile up and for some reason, I can remember the washing instructions on every piece of clothing (but where in the world is my camera manual-why can't I remember THAT?), so it goes quickly.

Ahhhhh...feeding my OCD. It's a good feeling.

Come winter time, all of Lexie's stuff gets washed separately, in a special detergent, because her eczema gets really bad. That tacks on a few more loads, but I can't give up the delicious smell of my detergent and softener.

The smell...I love it. I could spend a half hour in the laundry aisle picking out detergent and softener. I love clothes that are soft and smell great! I am a laundry product junkie.

Stain remover is a necessity in this house! I will never understand how kids can destroy their clothes after wearing them just one time! Stain remover has saved many clothing items!

I like to sneak in a few minutes of magazine reading while I'm waiting for the washer to finish. *Sometimes* I head downstairs before the load is done. ;)

I love folding the perfectly clean items and putting them into neat stacks, one for each family member. (Just for the record, I hang dry about half of our clothing.) The folding motions lull me into a deep state of relaxation. It's like my own form of meditation!

*I realized after I uploaded this picture, that I subconsciously stack the clothes in piles going from oldest to youngest. Maybe I do need help. Or perhaps I need help because I actually took pictures of my laundry?*

When laundry day is over, and the last item of clothing is put away, I feel a deep sense of satisfaction. I accomplished something huge, and there's not a dirty piece of clothing in the house...at least for another 12 hours. Unlike my floors, which need cleaned every 5 seconds...

I realize I'm an oddball when it comes to this. Maybe 1% of the world's population are with me on this. Even my very OCD mother, who "trained" me to be like this, thinks I'm nuts for loving laundry. Perhaps I am...but really, it keeps me calm and sane in this house filled with chaos!

I wish my love for laundry transferred over to other housework. Laundry is the only chore I love to do. I loathe everything else!

If I could, I'd hire someone to clean my house. In a heartbeat!!!

But I'm not giving up laundry duty!

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Tuesday, June 16, 2009

I Heart Faces-Sepia Toned

The theme at I Heart Faces this week is Sepia Toned.

I wasn't planning on entering I Heart Faces this week, because I'm so indecisive, and couldn't decide on a picture to use. Today, I was playing around with my camera, and playing with the sepia format, and when I uploaded them to my computer, I came across this one. For some reason, my eyes kept wandering back to this picture, so I figured I'd toss aside all the ones I was considering, and just use this one!

So here's my photo for the I Heart (Sepia Toned) Faces, kids category.

Alexandria...27 months and full of sass!
Check out all the entries at I Heart Faces!

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I Heart Faces-Sepia Toned


This weeks theme at I Heart Faces is Sepia Toned.

I chose this photo for the kids category, because


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The Lion Sleeps Tonight

In the jungle, the mighty jungle, of Pennsylvania...

my kids are dressed in Halloween costumes.

In the spring.

But rest assured...

The Lion Sleeps Tonight.

And in the morning, she'll awake with a mighty roar. Or just a "Mommy! MOMMY! I'm up! Get me out of bed!" That's a big enough roar for me.

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Monday, June 15, 2009

Not Me! Monday

Another Monday has come around, and today I am on the edge of my seat, trying to pass time, as I wait for the news that my best friend has delivered her second baby! A Not Me! Monday, hosted by MckMama, seems like the perfect way to pass the time!

I did not finish Angels & Demons in 48 hours. I do not think it is one of THE best books I have ever read!

I did not steal fistfuls of cotton candy out of the bags that my mom bought for the kids. I did not justify it by thinking that it was good for their health that I was eating most of it. Hehehe.

I am not madly in love with doing laundry. A post about that is not coming soon.

I was not beyond thrilled to win Carebear's 100th post giveaway! I never win anything, so it was a pleasant surprise!

I did not let Lexie wear her "rina" (ballerina) nightgown for 48 hours straight this week, just because she loved it so much.

Speaking of clothes, my fashion conscious son did not dress himself in khaki shorts, a button down dress shirt, and a tie, and tell me it was because he wanted to be handsome.

My hubby did not drive crazy speeds to get us to The Ordination of Deacons on time, on Saturday. I did not find myself near tears several times during said mass, just from the absolute beauty of it. My hubby did not fear that he would burst into flames if he shook the bishop's hand. You're not that bad, honey!

Dylan did not hit my face with a baseball today, leaving a bruise. The force behind his hits is NOT incredible. I'm not secretly thinking he could probably hit better than some of the players on the Pittsburgh Pirates. Ha!

I was not ECSTATIC when the Pittsburgh Penguins won the Stanley Cup. I am not thrilled that we were the Super Bowl Champs and the Stanley Cup winners this year! Go PITTSBURGH!

Oh-and I am not incredibly anxious about Baby Braden's arrival!!! Come on, baby! I want to meet you!

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Saturday, June 13, 2009

Saint Paul Cathedral

We spent the morning in an absolutely gorgeous church, Saint Paul Cathedral, in Pittsburgh.

Our very good friend, whom we affectionately call "Father" Rob, became a Deacon.

In typical Grant and Stefanie fashion, we were running late. We made it to the city in record time. My hubby SO DID NOT drive ridiculously fast so we could make it in time. We parked our car 4 minutes before it began, and raced to the church to get in on time.

The Ordination of Deacons was absolutely beautiful. I was so honored that Rob thought to include us in his special day.

I am a baptized Catholic, but didn't grow up in the church, but I was moved beyond belief by the mass. Words can't really describe how amazing it was to experience.

Lots of love to Deacon Rob as he continues on this journey.

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Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Little Picasso

At 27 months old, Dylan first drew all over the walls in our hallway. It just so happened to be the day we brought Lexie home from the hospital. What a mess that was!

After that incident, there were only a few "mishaps." He drew a few lines on the sunporch walls, and colored on Lexie's first baby doll.

It seems fitting that at 27 months old, Lexie has become quite the little artist. I've found a few scribbles here and there..mainly on her toys. Then, tonight, as I was setting the alarm clock, I noticed the numbers looked really fuzzy. Upon closer inspection, I realized that she had colored all over the display, as well as the sides of the clock. NICE one! I'm afraid to inspect the rest of the house!


What is the best "masterpiece" your children have created...and not on paper? ;)

Guess it's time to hide the crayons!

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