Things That Make Me Happy Today

*Beautiful weather

*The way Chase scoots into my lap.

*Ian's dandelion hair when he wakes up in the morning.

*Bryan's safe motorcycle ride to work.

*Chasey's awesome teachers at school.

*A first aid kit in the van for when Ian biffs on the sidewalk when we are out shopping.

*Bruesters Ice Cream shop for giving free baby cones even when you don't buy anything else.  Ice cream does wonders for a boy with a skinned elbow.

*New skinny markers to write with.

*Yogurt smooties.

*The way Gavin dances when Ian or Bryan talks to him. 

*New maternity shirts.

*The way Chase gets up off the floor and walks straight to me with a wide grin on his face when I pick him up from school.

*The way my hips don't hurt in the morning as much as they do in the afternoons.

*Time to get painting done in Gavin's room while both babies are asleep.

The First Rehearsal

For the boy band we'll be starting in the near future.

Special thanks to Grandma Mary and Grandpa Doug for such a cool present!!

And yes, Ian is wearing his tie again, and Chase has a balloon clipped to the back of his shirt.

The Ted Haggard Interview

Our church hosted Ted and Gayle Haggard for a live interview this Sunday.  It was controversial and a little intimidating for us to attend.  There were interviews on Fox News Rising, and 2 articles in the paper about it.

I love that our Pastor is not afraid to talk about issues such as this.

I think the Pastor's wife, Holly, expressed the feelings of the day really effectively in her blog today:  

I hope at the end of the day people walked away from our church knowing that sin is serious, God hates it, and there are terrible consequences for our sin.  I also hoped that people walked away knowing that we are all sinners who need the love and forgiveness of God and each other.

If you are interested in watching, it was truly an amazing show of triumph over hurt, anger and betrayal.  Good stuff.

You can get it here.

More Accessories.

This is Ian at church this Sunday.  I picked out the outfit...he chose the hat and tie :)

Sometimes I can't stand all the cuteness there is around here.

Ian at Soccer

He is by far one of the shrimpier little guys on the team...and some of those older kids can RUN!  Ian spends the majority of the game near the back of the pack, chasing the soccer ball from one end of the field to the other.  He has gotten in a couple of kicks at the ball, but lacks follow through, because as soon as he connects with it, he looks over at Bryan and I, BEAMING, wondering if we saw him!  

It is, by far, one of the most adorable things he has done.

Here are some pics :)

Oh Happy Day!

Ian just tried to blow up his Whoopie Cushion for the millionth time today, and Oh No! it has a hole in it!!  

I am very, very broken up over this.  

(happy dance.  happy dance.  happy dance!!)

Accessories Tie an Outfit Together.

I pick out Ian's clothes, but Ian has chosen this very spiffy tie to accessorize the last two days' outfits.  Thanks to Tristan for passing it on to us!!

Thanks.

To whoever brought Ian the Whoopie Cushion last night.

Really.  I will return the favor someday.

Happy Birthday, Chase!!

Oh, my sweet boy.  You are TWO today!!

You are a happy, funny, silly little dude.  You tip the scales at 23 pounds, and look like such a peanut when you toddle around the house.  Yes, you toddle.  You started walking last month, just when I was about to give in and let you crawl for the rest of your life.  Stubborn.  That's what you also are.  You will try anything...as long as it is your idea.

You are a climber.  If there is a chair, or a table, or a ladder, or stairs, or a slide...or anything else that has any kind of surface within your reach...you will monkey your way up.  

You are also a giggler.  And when Daddy or I tickle your belly, you wrap your legs around our arms and laugh and laugh and laugh.  You think your big brother is hilarious.  Actually, if anyone is laughing around you, you will join in.  And when you laugh hard, your eyes close :)

You have your own agenda.  You have favorites.  You love books.  You will pick them out and bring them to me one at a time, then scoot over to sit in my lap and listen.  You love Goodnight Moon, Baby Faces, Farm Friends, Kitties, and 5 Green and Speckled Frogs.

You love music.  You do a funny dance while you are sitting, where you kind of scoot and sway to the beat.  You will continually push the radio buttons on your door toy to make it sing.  You know the hand movements to Twinkle Twinkle, Wheels on the Bus, Happy and You Know It, Row Row Your Boat, and Itsy Bitsy Spider.  Your favorite is Happy and You Know It- you make me sing it over and over again.

You can't go to sleep in your crib unless we give you Green Frog, your bunny, and your paci (don't tell your speech therapist!).  You will sign for any of these things if we forget!

You are curious.  You point at everything and ask, "Dis?"  Like you want to know what this is, and what this is, and what this over here is!  Daddy is very good about answering all your questions.  

You give raspberries and kisses, and hugs with pats on the back.  You wrestle with your dad and your brother.  You slide and swing outside, you sign up a storm, and you are just beginning to say the beginnings of some words.  Speaking of words, your favorite ones to say are "Hi" and "Dada".  Even if I ask you to say Mama (which you can), you smile at me and immediately say, "Dada."  (twerp)

Happy 2nd birthday, my sweet Chase.  You are loved so much, and you bring us such joy.  You are a blessing to our family, and fill a space that no one else could.  

Love,

Mommy

Music Sample

I just found this blog this morning, it is from one of the staff members at our church.  He posts lots of videos from the services.  I just thought this one was cool because it gives a good sample of the music that they write/play.  The muscians there are really an awesomely talented group, as are all of the creative people there.

It's definitely not your peaceful/meditating/traditional songs that you grew up with.  And part of me misses that, too.  But the music at Elevation is still inspirational, celebratory, and spiritual.  

Anyway.  Check it out :)

(You have to go to the link because I can't figure out a way to post the video on my blog!)

Mommy, Did You Miss Me?

It seems that my sweet Ian has come out of hiding.  

Things yesterday got a little better, so I took the boys out to run errands and picked up some Chik-fil-a for dinner and promised that we could have a picnic outside with it.  Well, to Ian, apparently that meant that he could fool around on the swingset and not eat his dinner, and also terrorize Chase by pushing him off the swing and also sliding into him when he was clearly standing at the bottom of the slide.

So we went inside.

Crying.

And he proceeded to play around and not eat.

So I put the rest of his dinner in the fridge and took him to bed.  Crying.

Again, he turned it around, we read a story, we had a 'talk', things are going to be better tomorrow...and he fell asleep in probably 2 seconds.  He was a tired, tired, boo-boo.

When I finally dragged myself upstairs to bed that evening, I went into his room, laid next to him, and told him that I loved him so much.  He stirred a little, but not much.  He looks so angelic sleeping.  Much more so than the demon child he was when he was awake today.

He called for me at 5am this morning, and in his sweet little voice, he asked me to put his big covers on because he was a little cold.  Then he said, "Mommy?  Did you miss me?"  Like he knew that he was a different child yesterday, but all was ok because he was back.

I think cuteness must be some sort of defense mechanism or survival instinct.

Math

2 1/2 hours and counting = the time it has taken Ian to clean up the playroom

10 minutes =  the time it would have taken me to do it

15 = the number of items I originally asked Ian to pick up off the floor

3 = the number of times Ian asked me for a "play break"

26 = the letters of the alphabet song that he keeps singing over and over and over again

Over 500 = my blood pressure.  At least.

8 = the number of jelly beans I've had to consume to resist marching into the playroom to holler at him

1 = Twix bar that I have eaten for that same purpose

6:30 = the time that Ian will be going to bed tonight

Honestly.  I don't know whether to stand my ground on this one or to cave.  I orginally asked him to pick up the toys on the kitchen floor so that I could sweep and mop.  After an hour of waiting for him to freaking pick up the 15 items that were on the floor (after countless reminders and endless nagging) I finally did it, and then told him that his punishment was that he had to clean everything off the floor in the playroom.

Needless to say, that was almost 3 hours ago.  And I am ready to beat myself over the head with a Gator Golf club.

It makes me so frustrated, because both William and Chase are down for a nap, and we could have been doing something cool together for the last 2 hours.  But instead I've been a freaking harpie, and he's been **oh, the names I could fill in right here right now!**  

And you know what?  Except for the fact that he can't go outside and play with the neighbors right now, he is not really fazed by any of my tactics.  He doesn't seem to care in the least that it's beautiful outside and Mommy had time to spend with him, and he totally wasted it.  I am the only one that is ready to bury myself alive in the tent full of stuffed animals rather than spend another minute on this issue, it seems.  

SERENITY NOW!!!!

8 Things Tag

Mandi tagged me for this...and since it has been a while since I did mindless stuff, and also because it is a quiet morning here at the loony bin, I will participate :)

8 Things I’m Looking Forward To
1. Chase's 2nd birthday party!
2. A new baby boy and those little teeny swaddlers diapers.
3. Not being pregnant soon (Margaritas, anyone??)
4. Weekends when Bryan is home.
5. Finishing the nursery.
6. A date night in the near future.
7. Taking Ian to cash in all the coins that he has been diligently rolling.
8. Cake for dessert this evening :)

8 Things I Did Yesterday
1. Dropped Ian off to school (I usually don't do that, but it's fun to go in his classroom so he can show me all the stuff that he's working on!)
2. Visited with my aunt and uncle :)
3. Stained my shirt with blackberry juice 5 minutes after I ironed it and put it on.
4. Pushed my kids on the swings in the backyard.
5. Participated in Play Therapy and Speech Therapy with Chase.
6. Ate really well (spinach salad packed with veggies, nonfat cottage cheese with pineapple)
7. Topped off my "good food" with 2 servings of cake.
8. Wasted time on the computer.

8 Things I Wish I Could Do
1. Have enough time and energy to work out (or at least walk like I am supposed to)
2. Take the clothes out of the dryer before they all need ironing.
3. Figure out a way to cook dinner without making a mess in the kitchen.
4. Teach Ian how to mop the kitchen floors.
5. Remember to set my coffee pot to automatically turn on in the mornings.
6. Find a balance between working and being a mom.
7. Move somewhere closer to Bryan's work so he wouldn't have such a long commute every day.
8. Do that cool flippy-turn-around thing that the real swimmers do.

8 Shows I Watch
1. The Office
2. Scrubs
3. America's Next Top Model
4. Hell's Kitchen
5. House
6. Random morning news-ish shows
7. Sid the Science Kid
8. Clifford

8 People I Tag 

No pressure :)  Who has some extra time?

Whirlwind Weekend

I feel like every Sunday evening I look back over the weekend and wonder if we could pack very much more in.  I mean, I enjoy the things that we do.  But it would be nice to laze around the house one day, especially with this awesome weather.

Saturday:  Bryan put together this ginormous event through the bank for the town of Ayrsley, with a balloon guy and a bouncehouse.  Many of the businesses from town participated-- and there were restaurants giving away free food, which is always a bonus in my book.

We went back home from there to gather ourselves for an hour before going to a picnic for his leads group, which was held at this guy's house.  He has an outdoor creations business, so his entire yard was landscaped beautifully, with a waterfall and a giant playground, and room for a game of bocce to boot.  We had the picnic on his patio with the outdoor kitchen and enormous fireplace-- so jealous.  Especially because he had really cool swiveling Adiorondak chairs in front of it.  The boys had fun, and Ian knocked several whiffle balls out of the yard with his iron man swing on the t-ball set.

Sunday: Coupons and church, plus making a yummy yummy cake for another picnic in the afternoon.  We went to the Gaston County DSAC picnic, even though we are an hour away from Gastonia, because Bryan is a board member on the DSAC and we were representing :)  Which is fine, I really like the people there, and the park that it was held in has a cool castle playgound...but still.  We are a little picnicked out.  Again, the boys did have fun.  Chase ate some dirt, climbed lots of stairs, and pretty much amused the crowd.  Ian learned how to climb into a tire swing without biffing.

Bonus:  There is still half a cake left, which I will be eating against my doctor's advice this week.  ("If you find yourself a little less active than normal, you MAY want to cut the calories a little."  That sounds optional, right?)

Anyhoo.  To bed with me.  Hope you all had a restful weekend!

Disturbing Trend

This is the second morning this week that I've gone in to get Chase when he wakes up, only to find that he has blown out his diaper and has a poo-covered crib.  

What a way to start the day.  Even before coffee.

So that is why, at 8:30 today, Chase has already been bathed, the crib has been changed, and there is a load of laundry already started.

And don't suggest bigger diapers.  He just moved up to the next size.  I think I'll just stop feeding him after 5pm.

Me and B

Remember when I said my girlfriend, Becky, from forever ago (3rd grade was 19 years ago!!  Ack!) had a quick visit on Easter?  Here we are:

Here is also a view of my enormous self right now.  30 weeks.  Obviously, I have trouble gaining weight during pregnancy.

It doesn't help that Becky is Miss Fit and Toned, I-run-marathons-and-sail-for-a-living.  (still love you in spite of that, though!)

Easter Photos

Back to Ian

He's back to normal today.  Being sweet.  Asking too many questions.  Trying to finagle more Easter candy than he needs.

No more name calling.

Ahhh.  Feeling so much better than last night.

The Eastermath.

Someone (I can't remember who, so sorry for stealing it to any0ne who recognizes it!) talked about the Eastermath...the aftermath 0f Easter weekend.  We definitely have that here.

I feel like I ran a marathon this weekend.  

Saturday we went to a birthday party, messed up Chase's nap schedule to no end, and ran errands all.day.long.  Bryan is on a kick to make homemade soap, so we went all over creation trying to find ingredients and utensils and such.  I thought (foolishly)  that Chase would sleep in the car, but he adamently refused.  Taco Bell for dinner.  Early to bed with the boys.  Oh, no, nevermind.  We WANTED to send them to bed early, but forgot that we still had to dye Easter eggs!  Ack!  So Chase went to bed, and Ian stayed up for egg dying.

After the boys went to bed, the Easter bunny got the bag with the baskets and plastic eggs from the attic...and found MOUSE POO all over everything!  Gross!  Gross gross grossgrossgross!!!  So the freaking Easter bunny had to go to Harris Teeter to buy new freaking baskets, grass, and eggs at a late hour of the night.  Not to mention that the Easter bunny is also concerned about what else up there has mice pellets in it, and how does one get mice out of the attic without poisoning them and then having to smell out decomposing mice bodies later on.

Sunday morning, the boys had an awesome time hunting for eggs.  Chase got the concept of searching for eggs and putting them in his little basket.  Ian, for the first time, realized that he could hunt the eggs first, and eat them later (instead of eating everything inside each egg as he discovered them one by one).  We volunteered at church at the 8:30am and 10am services, so we had to hustle out of the house with hard-boiled eggs for breakfast. 

Papa and Gaga went to the 10 o'clock service with us, and I think it weirded them out a little.

Easter dinner (brunch?) was Bojangles (insert redneck joke here) and we came home to crash.  Well, Chase crashed.  Bryan shot off a rocket with Ian, I cleaned a little, and then played outside with the boys while Bryan took the motorcycle to pick up my friend Becky from the airport (who had a layover here).  

Becky and I have been friends since the 3rd grade-- we catch each other in person every once in a while, so it was super fun to spend some time with her.  We ate take-out Chinese and Bryan and I let her kick our tush in Space Munchkin before shipping her back to the airport.

Today (Monday) the kids have sugar highs, both haven't had enough sleep in the last 2 days, and it's rainy here.  I feared that we would all kill each other if we stayed in the house all day, so I took them out to the mall today.  We did at least 2 1/2 laps around Concord Mills (I really wish I knew how long that actually was, because I would like to count that as serious exercise), and both boys, again, are exhausted and overtired.  Chase went to bed without dinner, and Ian pestered us until we sent him upstairs to his room because we couldn't take it anymore.

******Best parenting moment of the day:*******  

Ian was tired of shopping, I was trying to get him to leave a store without throwing the damn bouncy ball he got from Old Navy across the aisle for the hundredth time.  I said something like, "We won't have time to play on the playplace if you can't listen to me right now and stop what you are doing,"  and he replied with a loud, "You're an idiot, Mom!" that echoed across the shoe store.  Ohmygosh.  He has NEVER EVER said anything like that to me or Bryan or anyone else as far as I know EVER.  I was SO PISSED.  And embarrassed.  And shocked.  Mortified.  At that point, what would you do??  I was very very close to giving him a whack on the butt right there in the store, but couldn't quite bring myself to do that in front of a store full of people.  I did, however, reduce him to tears with a stern talking to, removal of said bouncy ball, and the punishment of no time on the playplace.  We had several more conversations about how to talk to Mommy on the way home, and I instated the eminent threat of if-you-EVER-talk-to-me-or-anyone-else-like-that-again-there-WILL-be-a-spanking-afterwards.

Is this karma for when I yelled, "GET ME A BOOK DAMNIT!!!" to my mom in a quiet library when I was little??

Chase Reading!!!

Peep Research

In honor of my second box of Peeps, courtesy of my neighbor, Tiffany, who does not care about my health (nor that of my unborn child who will be arriving in 9 weeks on a sugar high), I bring to you the best Peep Research site there is out there in Internet World.

You totally have to check this out.  It's worth it.  I come back every year.

Peep Research

Gullible

I was totally ready for April Fool's day.  I had my guard on.  But not high enough, apparently.

I read the paper like I usually do...amused by the article about the "Spabeque"- a hog farm turned beauty spa near Raleigh.  Bacon fat facials and smoked bourbon coctails rimmed with bacon salt don't really appeal to me, but hey!  Who am I to criticize anyone's tastes?

Ha.  I found out it was a joke.  Der.  It was a good one, at that, though!  Read the article.  It's really funny now (go ahead, I give you permission to laugh at me for my gulliblity), not just amusing.

Say

I watched The Bucket List tonight-- loved it :)  But at the end, they had this song with the credits.  I know I had just recently heard it, and then I realized it was from church this week.

The sermon was about 'taming the tongue'...which kind of piggybacks on the Spread the Word to End the Word campaign, but goes even farther than that.  I don't think anyone could have escaped that sermon without feeling a pull to tame their tongue.  How many times have I gossiped, jabbed, or cut someone with my words?  How many times have I not said something that needed to be said?  How many times has my silence hurt someone else?  How many times have I NOT said what I need to say?

It was kind of sobering.  I mean, I don't think that I go through day to day life with the intent to speak death instead of life to anyone...but it happens.  I'm careless.  So is everyone else.  

I have a feeling it is going to take a long time, but I mean to work on truly speaking life...to my family, to my kids, to my friends...heck, to strangers.  Maybe we all need to say what we need to say more often.

My Peeps

For those of you that don't know...I have a certain unhealthy afffinity for Peeps.  

So today's Mother Goose and Grimm comic made me giggle :)

Happy almost Easter!

Fire Walking

Bryan is always one for trying something new.  The first and only time I ever skipped school (I promise, Mom and Dad!) was to go watch him skydive when I was a senior.  He has been known to car-surf, he will waterski with 2 bad knees, and he rides a Harley to work.

But even witnessing all of that, I didn't believe him when he said he wanted to set fire to the yard this weekend and walk over the hot coals in his bare feet.  I thought he was joking. 

 

He was not.  Seriously.  He watched a Mythbusters episode that proved it could be done (it also had a 'Do Not Try This At Home' disclaimer, but who really listens to those??  And Pam did it on The Office, too, so it must be safe, right?

So last night, my daredevil of a husband made a giant fire, and walked over the coals.  And he convinced his friend, Mike, to do it.  Yeah.  They are both nuts.

Here is the proof:

The picture is a little grainy, but it was dark out and I tried to adjust the color and this is what I got.  But it's proof all the same!

He went across 6 or 7 times.  He got a teeny tiny faint burn from a sharp ember, but other than that, he did it!  Do you believe it?  Wonder what stunt will be next?

Chase signing

Bryan followed Chase around and got him to show off some of his signs. I was kind of surprised at how cooperative he was! I don't think he shook his head NO the whole time!

Proofs from the Preschool Photos

I love all of these :)  Enjoy!

More Chase Walking

Chase is walking!!! (and a bit wobbly too).

Playing Pretend

Leah is over here playing with Ian for the morning.  I'm just eavesdropping on their pretend play.

They are playing Mommy and Daddy.  Both of them have babies in their bellies.  They will go to the hospital to get them out.  Ian just gave birth to a boy baby elephant.  (He knew it was a boy because the baby was playing with his 'worm'.)  Leah has not yet had hers, but Ian keeps checking his watch for her.

Leah had her babies.  Yup- twins!  A boy (Chase) and a girl (Erin).  They just left the hospital and went home to their cardboard house.  Leah asked Ian to open the door for her since she had two babies in her arms.

And now they are off to something else.  Apparently actually raising the babies is no fun to pretend about!