Tidbits

Tuesday Tidbits on Wednesday. Because I'm a slacker. ;)

Time to remember all the cute and funny things my kids say and do!

As we were walking into Costco, Lexie kept touching her nose. I asked her, "What are you doing?" She replied, "I'm taking the boogers out of my nose."



Dylan and I were working on rhyming words. He was having a hard time thinking of a word, so I gave him a hint: It's a place where a lot of animals live, and it has big fields. I was thinking farm. His response was, "Africa!"

Dylan is absolutely obsessed with Indiana Jones. It happened when he began playing Wii Lego Indiana Jones with Grant. He loves to dress like Indy!



Lexie's nickname for Dylan is DohDoh. It recently morphed into an, um, inappropriate word. I've got a great story in the works to back this one up!



Dylan must have woken up with a headache the other morning. He told me, "Mommy, my brain is moving around in my head!" Later, as we were driving, he asked me, "Mommy, when you were a little girl, did your brain ever move around in your head?" That would be a no!



Grant put on a Michael Jackson Live DVD tonight. Lexie was looking at the DVD case, and told me, "Mommy, I love Mika Jackson. Let's Rock and Rock!" "Rock and Roll?" I asked. "No! Rock and Rock!"

Dylan was telling me about something that happened in class today.
D: "Evan told Isaac that he didn't like him."
Me: "So what did you do?"
D: "I told them that we are all friends in this class!"
Me: "That's good! What did your teacher say?"
D: "She said, 'Dylan you're making great choices!'"
Indeed, you are!

Lexie got floating soap for Christmas. She told me, "Mommy, that pink soap is to wub our bellies. And to wub our legs."

Lexie walked out into the living room, wearing a pair of dress shoes, and holding a comb. "Mommy, I put on my shoes because I put on my shoes."

Dylan is more than ready for T-ball. He's been sporting his baseball gear since I asked him if he wanted to sign up! Lexie is excited for it, too. She walks around wearing a baseball hat, holding a bat....and wearing high heels.





They are the best of friends!

Kindergarten and T-Ball? Here We Come!

There are lots of big changes coming for Dylan! He has his Kindergarten preview and T-Ball sign-ups in February, and will be officially registered for Kindergarten in April.



He seems excited about Kindergarten, and is more than excited about T-Ball! He has been waiting to play baseball for years, and he's finally old enough!

I have to admit, I'm not so sure that I'm ready for this team sports endeavor! We get to add practices and games to our already overwhelming schedule, and I have to volunteer to do something for the team. He loves baseball, and is very good at it, so hopefully he loves it!

I can't believe the time has come for Kindergarten. At the preview, he will get to tour the school, do an art project with the art teacher, read a book with the librarian, and do activities in the gym.

And I will cry.

Really, I will.

I had Dylan's parent-teacher conference last Thursday. After the horrible morning that I had, I needed some good news. The conference couldn't have gone any better!

I knew he was doing well in school, and his teachers and classmates just love him. His teacher is always telling me how good and sweet he is, and he hasn't had any problems yet. I got the paper evaluation on Wednesday, and he was evaluated on over 75 things, and had mastered almost everything. There was only one thing where he was not up to par with: playing with rhyming words. The funny thing is, 3 days after, he began doing just that!

When I walked into the conference, I was so apologetic, after having to reschedule for 45 minutes later. (Bleeding daughter and missing babysitter, if you missed my post that day.) Dylan's teacher started off by telling me how sweet I was, and said that Dylan was just like me. She went on and on about how sweet, loving, friendly, polite, and well-behaved he is. She told me that Grant and I are doing an incredible job raising him.

I was completely flattered. I know we're doing the best we can, but it really helps to have someone recognize your efforts. Especially after a morning like I had! Dylan is an amazing kid, and I am so proud of him.

We didn't have much to discuss! He is ready for Kindergarten, academically and socially! She told me to keep working on his writing and cutting skills, and letter/number recognition, so he's completely confident and ready for all the work in kindergarten.

It really couldn't have gone any better. I'm so happy that he's having a great first year of school! Hopefully he does just as well in Kindergarten.

So, that's that. We're about to embark on our Kindergarten and T-Ball Adventure!

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After picking Dylan up at school, we spent a quiet afternoon and evening at home. A month has passed since Christmas, and Dylan and I finally got his room cleaned and organized.

It was a tough job, and we celebrated with a few pop-up Valentine's. A balloon pops out of those babies!




I couldn't resist posting a few pictures of my Teenie Weenie Lexie Beanie, in her sassy new outfit.




She's my mini-me.



And she rocks my world.



They both rock my world.

Countdown to Three

On Friday, my baby girl turned 35 months. In one short month Lexie will be 3! I seriously can't believe it. I know I say it all the time, but time flies! It really does.



Over the next few weeks, I will plan Lexie's Strawberry Shortcake-themed party, buy her birthday dress, buy presents, and take her 3 year portraits. It seems like we just welcomed her into the world! How can she be turning 3?!?

Also on Friday, Dylan turned 5 years, 2 months. I can't believe 2 months have passed since he turned 5! I love that my kids share the 22nd for a birthday.



They also share it with their Great Grandma Ross, who turned 71 on Friday!

Dylan's 5th birthday was hard on me, and Lexie's 3rd birthday will be the same. They are growing up TOO quickly!



I think of my kids as babies until they are 3. Three seems to be the age when they lose their baby look, and start turning into a big kid. I've been dealing with the baby/toddler stages for the past 5 years, and can't imagine not dealing with it. I have to admit, baby fever is really kicking in!

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Every year, I vow to start shopping for Christmas at the start of the New Year. I did this last year, but the goodies were so tempting that I ended up taking them for myself. ;)

This year, I figured I'd at least start shopping for the older kids on my list, and I did just that. I already have a gift labeled and set aside for one of my nieces! I'm going to attempt to keep this up so I don't have the usual financial burden at the end of the year!

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You know you're getting old when you choose to buy Valentine's Day decor for your house instead of something for yourself! I just really want new holiday decorations, so I'm going to try to buy a few new things for each holiday.

Lexie helped me shop yesterday morning, while Dylan was in school. I got 2 towels, a candle, 3 mini candles, a welcome sign for my door, and a cute "LOVE" decoration, all for $21!





Love is in the air!!!

*I HEART pink and brown. Yum.*

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I was feeling drained on Monday, but later in the week, I woke up feeling like I swallowed a fistful of razor blades. Unfortunately, I had a lot of stuff to do this week, so I couldn't rest. This morning, I was tired of being sick, so I vowed to spend another day, at home, in my pajamas. I did just that!

I hope I kick this cold and get my immune system back up to par! I've been sick, off and on, since November. Grant, Dylan, and Lexie hardly ever get sick. I am happy about that, but I hate the fact that I've felt crappy for almost three months. I know it's because I'm too busy, and don't get enough sleep. I'm always on the go!

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The one month countdown to Lexie's birthday has begun.

Apparently Time didn't get the memo: SLOW. DOWN.

Countdown to Three

Yesterday, my baby girl turned 35 months. In one short month, she will be 3! I can't even believe it. I know I say it all the time, but time flies!



In the next few weeks, I will be planning her Strawberry Shortcake-themed birthday party, shopping for her birthday outfit, buying her birthday presents, and taking her 3 year portraits.

When she turns 3, I will no longer have a baby. I know a lot of people may think differently, but I think of children as babies until they turn 3.

Yesterday, Dylan turned 5 years, 2 months. I couldn't even believe it the day he turned 5, and here we are, 2 months after the fact!

Guilt Trip

This morning was BAD.

I had to be at Dylan's parent-teacher conference at 11:45. His school is 3 miles from our house, so I can get there quickly. My dad was coming over to watch the kids while I went to the conference. Well...things never go according to plan. That's one of the first lessons mothers will learn.

I looked at the clock, and realized it was 11:30, so I threw on my coat and opened our garage door for my Dad to come in. As I was walking back into our living room, I saw Lexie stick her hand into the compartment of her new Easy Bake oven. Of course, it got stuck, she freaked out and yanked her hand out, cutting her finger in the process.

I ran her to the bathroom, rinsed her finger, and held a towel on it to try to stop the bleeding. I glanced up at the clock, and saw that it was 11:35. CRAP! The conference was in 10 minutes! Hmmm...my dad wasn't there yet.

I grabbed my phone, called my parent house, and GUESS who answered the phone? Yep. My dad. He lives 10 minutes away. At that point, I realized that I was not going to make it to this conference.

As I held my still screaming, bleeding daughter in my arms, with the phone raised to my ear, and my mouth hanging open, something broke inside of me. I. Lost. It.

For the first time ever, I flipped out on my dad. I'm almost 30 years old, and I've NEVER done that to him.

I couldn't control it. I just began shrieking and swearing for a few seconds, and hung up on him. My voice raised so many octaves that I didn't even recognize it. My dad has never let me down before, and at that moment, I was feeling very let down.

I took a deep breath, and called the school to tell them I had to reschedule. The school director was very sympathetic. Maybe it was the break in my voice. Maybe it was my daughter's shrieking. Maybe it was the dogs barking in the background. She told me it was perfectly fine, and rescheduled the meeting for 12:30.

It worked out, but I admit, I was feeling very frustrated for most of the afternoon. But as the day went on, I began feeling guilty for flipping out on my dad.

It was an accident. He is 70, and can't be expected to remember every little detail. It was actually my mom's mistake. I spoke with her last night and asked her to remind my dad about babysitting today. She wrote it on the calendar for Friday.

By the time evening came, I was appalled at my freak out. I felt terrible for talking to my dad like that.

So what's a guilty daughter to do?

Apologize.

I told him how sorry I was for freaking out on him, and that I was feeling really overwhelmed and let down at that moment. He told me there was no need to apologize, because it was their fault, but I needed to clear my conscience.

I'm glad I apologized, but I'm still feeling horrible for what I did. I'm the calm, sweet, polite, respectful, forgiving daughter. I love my parents so much, and always stand by them. What I did this morning was so out of character for me, and I have a feeling it's going to bother me for a while.

I'm going to learn from what happened:

1-Always have a back up plan.
2-Expect the unexpected.
3. Call an hour before you leave to make sure you still have a sitter!
4. Remember that nothing goes as planned when you have kids. They will hurt themselves and bleed all over you as you're getting ready to leave. They will most likely pee or spit up on you when you're running late, requiring you to change. They will need to use the bathroom after you strapped them into their car seats. They will forget things. You will forget things.

Yes. Lesson relearned.

P.S. I'm so sorry, Dad. I love you and am so grateful for everything you do for me.

P.P.S. Lexie is fine! She just has a nasty scrape on her finger that bled like crazy!

P.P. P. S. Dylan's evaluation was seriously perfect! (More on that later.) I am so proud of my boy!!!

Counting My Blessings

Over the weekend, a local boy died unexpectedly in his sleep. He was just 6 years old. A normal, healthy boy went to bed and never woke up.

When I first heard the news, I was shocked, and saddened. One thought immediately hit me. "This could have been us."

This morning was the funeral. The funeral home is just a block away from Dylan's school, and as I was driving home, I saw the family coming out. I immediately burst into tears, my heart breaking for this family. I can't even imagine the nightmare that they are living.

As I was driving, I cried for the family, cried for the boy, and prayed.

Today, I vowed to stop taking things for granted, because life can change in the blink of an eye. I vowed to savor each moment, and love my kids with every ounce of my being.

I made sure to hug my kids, look them in their eyes, and tell them just how much they were loved.

I chose to snuggle on the couch with Lexie instead of cleaning my floors. The floors can wait.

I chose to hold Dylan in my arms and read to him instead of cleaning up the dishes. The dishes can wait.

I chose to listen...to really listen... to what my kids had to say, instead of listening with one ear while doing something else.

Life is all about these moments. There will always be a staggering list of things to do, but what truly matters is your loved ones.

I choose to embrace each and every moment, good or bad, and be grateful that I HAVE these moments.

There will always be chores to do.

There will always be bills to pay.

There will always be work to do.

There will always be places to go and things to do.

People matter.

I vow to live IN the moment, and love them with all my heart.







I am blessed.

Tuesday Tidbits

Tuesday Tidbits is a day to remember all the cute and funny things my kids say and do!

Lexie may live in the Northeast, but she's a southern girl at heart. She has such a sweet southern accent. She calls Iced Tea "Oss Tea" and adds extra syllables to some words, like "cay-er" for care.

Dylan looked out the window this afternoon and said, "Look at all that foggy fog!" He thinks fog is called foggy fog, thanks to Dora.

I overheard Lexie singing the Happy Birthday song this week. To the TV.

I walked into the bathroom, to find Lexie peering into the toilet. She looked up at me with a scared expression on her face. "My poop looks like a monster or somethin'!"

Lexie loves Strawberry Shortcake and all her pals. She loves Raspberry Tart but just calls her Tart. So when she refers to her doll, she calls it, "The Tart." Everyday, she tells me, "Mommy, put this dress on the Tart."

Lexie had to use the bathroom, but had to wait. I asked her if she could hold it, and she did, indeed, hold it. ;) I didn't mean to literally hold it!

When I ask Lexie how to spell her name, she says, "DO56." When I ask her to spell Dylan's name, she says, "DY6L9." She may know her ABC's, but doesn't have spelling down yet!

I Declare Today...

...Pajama Day!



I declare today...

...a day to start taking pictures every day just because. No more saving the camera for posed pictures, holidays, events, and important days. A day to just start taking snapshots.



I declare today...

...a day to start the countdown to getting a new couch. Because the one we have is beat and I can't take another moment with it.



I declare today...

...a reminder that I need to wash my windows. Y. I. K. E. S.



Today, Grant and I were feeling under the weather, after our whirlwind weekend. Grant took a sick day from work, and we all stayed in our pajamas today. Well...Lexie still had on her dress from yesterday, with a pair of too big sweatpants underneath, and an absolutely fabulous side ponytail, since she fell asleep in the car last night!

We started off the day by watching "The Wizard of Oz." Then we had a yummy brunch. Dylan and Grant watched another movie and played Lego Stars on the Wii, while Lexie napped, and I cleaned up the brunch dishes, and went for a run. The kids and Grant wrestled on the couch after Lexie woke up, then they played with Playdoh and Moon Sand (nice and messy!) while I got dinner ready. After the kids were in bed, Grant and I got to watch another movie! It was a good, lazy day!



I didn't get to do the organizational projects that I planned to do today, but that's okay. I got to spend it with my family!

Not Me Monday

It's Monday! A day to air out our dirty laundry. A day to confess. It's refreshing and therapeutic!
Head on over to MckMama's blog to read more posts just like this one!

I did NOT terrify myself by throwing an empty container down the basement steps, in the middle of the night. That container did NOT sound like somebody running up the stairs at me, as it fell. I did NOT drop my cup and race out of the kitchen as fast as my legs would carry me.

I did NOT forget to wash my face, put on makeup, or brush my hair before leaving the house one day. I did not practically shriek when I caught a glimpse of myself in the bathroom mirror after using the bathroom. I did not yank out my purse and attempt to make myself look reasonable.

I did not have to unbuckle my seat belt, unbuckle Lexie from her seat, and take her to use the bathroom just as I was about to pull out of my driveway. I ALWAYS double check to see if she has to go before we get in the car.

The words, "Look, kids, a deer...no, a dog!" did not come from my mouth. I so did not think a dog was a deer. I am not thinking I need to put in a new pair of contacts. ;)

As I was plumping the couch cushions, I did not find a few crumbs on one of the cushions, and just brush them between the cushions.

I did not call my parents as I was riding in the car with them. I was not trying to reach my husband. On that note, I also did not send my husband a text that was meant for my sister. I. Am. Not. Losing. My. Mind.

Another Weekend Gone...

We had yet another insanely busy weekend. I'm used to them by now!

On Saturday, we went to a combined birthday party for these three kids:



As usual, we had fun with our friends!

After the party, we came home and had a late nap. We had to go somewhere in the evening, and I knew it was going to be a late night, so I wanted the kids to take a nap. Grant and I decided to take a nap, too! It was so strange to fall asleep when it was still light out, and wake up an hour later, when it was dark!

We spent the evening at my sister's house with her family, another sister and her son, and a friend. We had a great time playing Apples to Apples while the kids entertained us with their singing and dancing!




It was, indeed, a late night. Lexie allowed me to sleep in until 10:15 this morning, while Dylan slept until after noon!

We went over to Nannie's house today to have lunch and watch the playoff games. Afterward, we headed to another sister's house for our final family Christmas party!

My brother and his family moved about an hour and a half away, so we don't get to see them as much as we used to. We didn't get to see them on Christmas, and they ended up being snowed in two weeks ago for our first Christmas party. It was so wonderful to see my brother, his wife, and their five kids!

The kids snuggled with their Papa and cousin, Emily. Emily is just 17 months, and she is HUGE! I should mention that my brother is 6'6"! Poor Lexie was in a bad mood all weekend. She has been clinging to me since Saturday morning.




We had a yummy dinner, and then exchanged presents with my brother and his family. This is terrible, but we actually haven't seen them in a few months, so we had to exchange some birthday presents as well. We really miss them!



We left with two shopping bags full of presents. One of my sisters bought Dylan and Lexie a ton of art supplies, so we're going to keep busy with projects this week!

Lexie fell asleep on the way home, so I put her to bed. Dylan immediately put on his new robe, grabbed the new window markers, and began decorating the living room windows! They are in need of a good cleaning, anyway, thanks to my dog rubbing her nose all over them! ;)



I'm thinking I better hide them.

Dylan is off of school tomorrow, and we are staying home ALL day! I'm really looking forward to it!