Mommy can't do everything

Jake wanted to show Lincoln and I that a plastic bug of his was not a glow in the dark bug. We were standing in his room at the time and he tried to turn off the lights. When he flipped the switch the lights came on. He didn't realize the only light in the room was sunlight. Then he pointed at the window that I was standing next to and asked "Mommy, can you turn that off please?". Sorry Jake, Mommy can't turn off the sun.

Okay, maybe it's a "no go" on the TV in the bedroom

From the New York Times:

"Children with bedroom TVs score lower on school tests and are more likely to have sleep problems. Having a television in the bedroom is strongly associated with being overweight and a higher risk for smoking"

My parenting philosophies have changed

Even though I had my own TV in my bedroom all through high school I have been adamant that my kids will not have TVs in their bedrooms. I'm now thinking that Hannah's 7th Christmas might be a good opportunity to break that rule.

What is good for the goose is good for the gander

The only way to watch a show with Hannah and Jake (especially Jake) around is for them to not be around....or gagged. They never stop talking. Of course, if it is one of their shows then they are as quiet as church mice but God forbid Lincoln or I try to watch something....then it's 20 questions every 30 seconds.

I just finished watching a TV show that I had started while no one was around but once Jake had entered the room he wouldn't shut up. As soon as I finished my show I started one of his for him and I asked him 20 questions every 30 seconds. Man on man, he did NOT like that. And it pissed off Hannah even more.

Sucks, doesn't it?

Big dreams

This morning we're doing a big deep cleaning of the house and everyone has to participate. The kids are doing great (so far) and Hannah just came in to tell me she thinks we need a playroom. Since we don't have any extra rooms right now I asked where she thought we should do it. As we were discussing this Jake said "let's fill it with balls to jump in".

Mommy: You want us to fill it with balls like a Playland?

Jake: Yeah. Can we? Pleeeeaaassse?

Another interesting mix of cultures

In addition to my Mexican beer that I drink in a Carlsberg glass stolen from Ireland I drink the Irish beer we sometimes get in my Efes Pilsner glass I got in Istanbul. But I didn't steal that one. I asked the lady in the restaurant if I could buy it and she said I could take it for free. If it's done with permission it isn't stealing.

Conversing with a 3-year old can be painful

Me: Jake, you're in charge. Mommy has to run upstairs.

Jake: Why? Why isn't Hannah in charge?

Me: Because it's your turn. I thought you liked to be in charge.

Jake: But why isn't Hannah in charge?

Me: Who do you want to be in charge?

Jake: Me. I want to be in charge.

Me: But I just told you that you're in charge!

(silence)

Me: Hey Jake.

Jake: Yeah?

Me: Wanna be in charge?

Jake: Sure.

Anatomy 101

Me (to Hannah): Hey there Baby Girl!

Jake: What's a baby girl?

Me: A brand new life, just starting out, that doesn't have a penis.

Rachel thinks I'm a good mom....obviously I don't tell her enough stories like this

Back in January 1997 I spent 3 weeks over in Europe and fell in love with a beer called Carlsberg. In 2004 Lincoln and I spent a long weekend in Ireland and everywhere we went the bars had these great beer glasses with Carlsberg written on them. I looked all over the place to buy the glass but couldn't find them. Unfortunately none of the bars that we were in were conducive to absconding with one of the glasses. Finally, on the last night we were there we stayed in an old castle turned hotel outside of Dublin. We went down to the hotel bar and they served my Carlsberg in one of these glasses. Lincoln and I decided to "explore" the castle while finishing our drinks and walked around the castle - right up to our room - where the glass was quickly washed and put in my suitcase. Every time we cook Mexican food Lincoln serves Dos XX to me in my Carlsberg glass. (Yeah, I'm not sure about the Mexican/Irish connection there.) Tonight we were having enchiladas and as I was drinking out of my glass this conversation took place:

Me: If either of you ever break Mommy's Carlsberg glass you'll have to save up your pennies to go back to Ireland and steal Mommy another one.

(Hannah perks up at this statement.)

Me: Actually, I didn't steal this glass so much as it accidentally ended up in my suitcase.

Hannah: Oh really?

Me: Yes, somehow it fell off the counter and into my suitcase and I didn't notice it until we got home.

Hannah: I'm not sure I believe that.

One more cute picture from the first day of school

He definitely has his mother's hair

Check out how much thicker Jake's hair has gotten in a year. He was bald for the first year or so of his life. These two pictures were both taken on the first day of school (last year and this year).

2007

2008

Our new home security system

Jake: If a monster comes in our house I will kick him in the crotch.

Pictures from the first day of 2nd grade

Today Hannah starts the year that marks her halfway point through elementary school and therefore the halfway mark to junior high. Wow. It's weird to think of it like that.

I guess I should try and keep myself in the moment. Here are pictures from today.

Getting her supplies together:

Hannah and the apple tree:

Jake & Hannah:

With her snazzy new coat, backpack, and lunch box:

Waiting for the bus:

Hugging Jake goodbye:

Am I a bad negotiator if the deal stinks but I got exactly what I wanted?

Hannah and I struck a deal today. I get to dress her and do her hair anyway I want on the first day of school and school picture day and she gets to do what she wants the other 178 days of the school year. This could be an interesting year.

Tomorrow is the big day

Tomorrow is the first day of the new school year. Hannah is pretty excited but I'm surprised that she's dragging her feet doing the assignments that her new teacher sent her last week. She's usually really gung-ho about those things. They have to write a list of 6 things they did this summer, write a letter telling the teacher about themselves, and bring in 2 pictures of themselves and a book they're currently able to read. Hannah is really dragging her feet on the letter writing part. I told her she had to do it tonight and I'd even script it for her:

Dear Mrs. Bomba,

My name is Hannah Snow and I am 7 years old. I have a little brother named Jake and we live with our Mommy and Daddy in a very messy house.

Sincerely,

Hannah

See how easy that was!

Keep an eye out tomorrow for "first day of school" pictures. When Hannah started kindergarten we planted an apple tree and every year on the first day of school we take her picture in front of the tree. Here are pictures from the past two years. You can also watch the progression of moss taking over that part of our front yard.

Kindergarten:

First grade:

Wish us luck

Jake is trying out the "big boy pants" this week. We're bribing him with underwear showing every single one of his favorite characters....Pokemon, Thomas, Spiderman, Kung Fu Panda....you name it, I bought it this weekend.

Character underwear is better than a purity ring

Yesterday my friend Tracy had a really bad day. Her boss had lost her fight with ovarian cancer and Friday was a very emotional funeral. Tracy's original intent was to go home and drink by herself but I told her to come on over and I'd drink with her. After all, a true friend never lets someone drink alone.

Tracy had her husband drop her and her son off so that Hunter could play with the kids and have a sleepover while Tracy and I sat on the pool deck and drank Leinie's. My kids absolutely ADORE Hunter and it's always a special treat when he comes over to play. While we were getting dinner ready the three of them and the neighbor kid were playing out front with the hose. They all got terribly wet and Tracy sent Hunter up to change his clothes in Hannah's room which is now on the front of the house overlooking the driveway. Lincoln noticed that Hannah and Hunter were doing a "reverse Romeo and Juliet" and while Hunter was up in Hannah's room he was leaning on the window screen and it popped out. Fortunately Hunter didn't fall through the window and Tracy and I both quickly gave him the "you never, EVER lean on a window screen" speech. His explanation was that he was showing Hannah is underwear. What?

Hunter: My underwear is white.

Tracy: So that makes it okay to show it to Hannah?

Hunter: Yes.

Tracy: Well, what if you had Cars on it?

Hunter: NO!

Obviously the key to keeping Hunter pure is to only buy him underwear with movie characters on it. If only having a teenage girl someday will be that easy to deal with.

Camping Out

Every summer our neighbor hosts a big camp out in his pasture. He no longer has horses so they have this great big field for camping. Lincoln thought that the camp out was tonight so he was all excited to take both kids up there to sleep in the tent and I was all excited to sit home all alone with a bottle of wine and couple of movies. Well, apparently Link got the date wrong and the camp out isn't tonight. Never fear though, he is currently setting up the tent in the backyard and he and the kids are sleeping out tonight. Thank God....because I wasn't about to give up my movie time just because he can't read a calendar.

And it begins again

Today was our first official PTO event of the year. Each year, right before school starts, we host a kindergarten playdate so the kids can all come and meet each other before the year starts. It's a lot of fun but it also signals that school is about to start. Where the heck did summer go?

This is what happens when I let Lincoln get the kids dressed

Actually, to be fair, Hannah dressed herself this morning and even if Lincoln tried to get her to change, she's pretty darn stubborn about "fashion" these days.

Today she was wearing a brown shirt with a gold airbrushed design, white shorts with light green and teal swirls (which you can't really see very well in the picture), brown and pink striped knee-high socks, and black shoes with glittery gold hearts.

This post brought to you by...

When I hurt my back earlier this week I wasn't able to get in to see my primary care physician so I ended up heading to the walk-in clinic. I've never been there before but it was a pretty decent set-up. I had to laugh because they obviously take every possible freebie offered by a drug company. To get to the patient room you have to walk down this long hallway. There had to have been 50 clocks on the wall and each one had the name of a different drug company on the face of the clock. If that wasn't funny enough, when I walked into the exam room this was the paper on the exam table:

Thank you Whitney Houston for this Public Service Announcement

Hannah was making the most random statements in the car today. The following conversation followed:

Me: What? What are you talking about? Are you smoking crack back there?

Hannah: No. I don't even know what crack is.

Me: It's a drug and if you ever touch it Mommy will smack you upside the head. Crack is whack Hannah.

Snack Royalty

Last week my mom and dad took the kids to Chuck E. Cheese. Or as Jake calls it, Chucky Cheez-its'.

Apparently 31 is the tipping point into old age

On Tuesday I was sitting at my desk and stretched my back. BIG mistake. I don't know what I did but something popped and it hurts like hell. I'm slowly regaining range of movement so for right now the doctor has said heat, rest, and drugs for now (fun prescription drugs). If it's not better by Monday I'll have to go back for some tests. Who knew that stretching could do you in? Luckily I've heard other stories about people throwing out their back doing the dishes or yawning or sneezing so I'm not the only idiot around.

God's hidden playground

I've been meaning to blog about our trip to Coeur d'Alene but ever since we got back I haven't had enough time to sit down and actually take the time to write about it and upload the photos. This trip was so great and I want to make sure I can describe it well enough.

We flew over to Spokane, WA on Wednesday morning on the 9:30 a.m. shuttle. For once we had such a "fly by the seat of our pants" trip planned that when we got in the rental car at the airport we realized we didn't have directions to our hotel and there was no map in the car. We figured that since Idaho is east of Washington we'd just hop on I-90 and hope for the best. Luckily we weren't on the road too long before we saw signs to Coeur d'Alene. After we passed the five exits for CdA without finding the resort we gave in and called the hotel for directions.

As busy as the hotel is I never expected that we'd be able to check in early but when we got there they said our room was ready so we headed upstairs to change into our swimsuits. The weather was beautiful - high 80's and sunny - so we headed out to go jet-skiing. Lincoln had actually never been jet-skiing but I knew he'd love it and he did.

After that we headed back to the resort and decided to go up to the top floor to the "fancy" bar. We had a few drinks before heading back downstairs. I had talked Lincoln into going to the spa with me for the evening. I don't think he was too opposed since jet-skiing is harder on the muscles than you give it credit for - especially in the legs. The resort spa focuses a lot on water treatments so we both did a TAG Signature flow-through bath and then I decided to do the Pure Essence shower which is a 5-minute shower with 19 shower heads pointed at you. It was heaven. After that we had a couples massage in a private room with a fire place and a view of the water. Between treatments we sat in the co-ed lounge that had a fire place and a view of the water where you can sit and relax and look out at the water while drinking water, tea, or coffee.

After the spa we went up to the room, ordered room service, and watched a movie in bed. The best part of that was that the movie included no animated characters and wasn't produced by Disney.

The next morning we got up and headed out to go kayaking. We actually had a seaplane ride scheduled for 11:00 a.m. so we only did a 30-minute single kayak rental for each of us. From there we got on the seaplane for a 20-minute/40 mile ride up the lakes in the area. It was a beautiful ride and we even got to fly over the floating golf green.

After that we headed out to lunch at a local pub. The hungover bartender (by his admission) that waited on us wasn't terribly happy when I ordered the BBQ Jalapeno burger with no BBQ sauce and hold the jalapenos but it was a delicious burger. What I wanted on it was the pepperjack cheese and zesty mayo. It was worth tormenting that poor man for such a delicious sandwich.

After lunch we went to the CdA micro-brewery and had a great little tour. The beer was actually really delicious and unfortunately they only have about a 200-mile distribution radius and they pretty much only sell their beer in kegs and not bottles. Otherwise I'd be on a quest for their beer like I used to be on a quest for Leinie's.

When we finished up at the micro brewery we headed back to the lake and rented a 2-person kayak for 2 hours. It was 93 degrees in CdA that day but no humidity. It was a beautiful day to be on the water. We kayaked over to some rocks on the side of the water where Lincoln had seen kids jumping off the rocks into the water. We rowed over to one of them that had a rope swing and Link got out to swim over to the shore and climb up to jump off. After that we kayaked along the shore a little more until we got to a small beach and another group of rocks to jump off of. Lincoln got out again and hiked up to jump off the rocks. After he did I decided I would give it a try but after climbing up there and hanging out with the teenagers for about 25-30 minutes I chickened out and climbed back down. I was mad at myself for not doing it - especially since the rock was probably only about 7 feet above the water - but the water was VERY clear and even though it was deep enough to safely jump into you could see every rock in vivid detail under the water and I just couldn't do it. After I hiked back down again we got in the kayak and headed back to the dock. Once we docked we headed back to the car and it was time to go to the airport.

If you ever want to take a fabulous vacation with all the delights of a Caribbean vacation without all the expense you should definitely go to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and stay at the Coeur d'Alene Resort. Check out the website here: http://www.cdaresort.com/ Even though there were lots of people there we never had any trouble booking a reservation or renting a kayak or a jet-ski. The people were friendly and the beaches weren't crowded.

Here are some pictures from our trip.

This is the view from the hallway while waiting for the elevator:

A full service dock: This dock was right outside the hotel. On it you could rent kayaks, book a dinner or sightseeing cruise, go parasailing, or get on a seaplane ride.

The famous floating tee as viewed from our seaplane:

A view of the resort from the seaplane:

Our seaplane: Link jumping off the rocks. The guy in red was one of the many teenagers up on the rocks:

Hard partier

This picture was actually taken last Tuesday after my birthday dinner. Obviously Jake partied a little too hard.

Happy Birthday to Me - Part 2

This morning was my first day back in the office since our vacation. Since I was out last week during my birthday this is what I came back to today. My most wonderful, delightful receptionist Jennifer did this to my office.

At least she's not in a wheelchair yet

Mommy: So, do you feel older now that you're seven?

Hannah: Not really. (pause) I have just as much energy as when I was six.

Hannah's birthday party

Hannah is turning 7 on Monday so we decided to have her birthday party out in Seattle this year while we're on vacation. She was pretty excited about it because she got to spend her birthday with her cousins Matt and Sam who she doesn't get to see very often as we only get out to Seattle once or twice a year.

She decided that she wanted to have her birthday party at Funtasia. It's a big indoor playland area with mini golf, fun zone, bumper boats, etc. The kids had a blast.

Here is Hannah mini golfing:

While Jake looks pretty guilty here he is not in fact cheating. He was pulling his ball out and already looking ahead to the next green.

Hannah in the ball pit:

Poor, poor, sad Jake. He was not happy that he didn't get any presents today (other than a VERY nice party favor he didn't yet know about). I zoomed in on him through the gifts as he pouted.

Jake helping Hannah blowing out the candles on the Wall-E cake which was actually 20 cupcakes pushed together and frosted.

And we're back!

We are back from Coeur d'Alene and we had a FANTASTIC time. I'll blog all about it later (along with pictures).

I just wanted to post that my friend Stephanie had her baby. Aidan Patrick Scott joined this world at 10 lbs. 7 ozs. and 22 inches in length. Congratulations Steph and Aaron!

Vacation within a vacation

Tomorrow morning Lincoln and I leave for our vacation within a vacation. Mom and Dad are watching the kids while we head over to this resort in Coeur d'Alene, ID: http://www.cdaresort.com/ I can't wait. We're supposed to have beautiful weather. We leave early tomorrow morning and come back late on Thursday night so you probably won't hear from me until Friday morning.


I had a lovely birthday today with spa treatments (facial and pedicure), lunch at McDonald's Playland with my kids, and dinner with everyone in the family at The Keg. It has been a GREAT day. I think the last time I spent my birthday with my family was 10 years ago when I turned 21 and we all met in Vegas.


Personally, my thoughts will be with Stephanie tomorrow. One of my closest friends from Arkansas will be giving birth to a beautiful baby boy named Aidan Patrick. Her and her wonderful husband Aaron have been anxiously awaiting this day and she is scheduled to be induced tomorrow (provided she hasn't gone into labor sometime today). I wish her all the best and just want to say: "Welcome to Mommyhood".

Stating the obvious

Jake: Mommy, I didn't like that shower. It got me ALL wet.

Happy Birthday to Me

Here are some pictures from my early morning birthday celebration.

Why Jake is Mom's favorite grandchild (for today at least)

Grandpa: I'm the boss around here.

Jake: No you're not! Grandma is.

Who knew I was so much like my mother

This morning when I came downstairs there was a lovely chocolate cake on the table with 31 candles in it. When Dad came down stairs and we told him we were going to cut it into it as soon as Lincoln got back from Jamba Juice this conversation took place:

Dad: We're having cake for breakfast?

Mom: Sure. How is that different than having a chocolate donut?

Check him out!

Grandpa actually got Jake to take his shirt off out in the hot tub today. Mom and Dad have set their hot tub to 97 degrees so the kids think the hot tub is just a really small, warm pool. They've having a blast playing in there. When I got Jake dressed today I tried to talk him into going swimming without his shirt on but he really is a little prude. I went in the house for awhile and left Dad alone in the hot tub with the kids. When I came back Jake was very proudly sitting there shirtless. I'm so proud of him. We'll make a man out of him yet (although check out that pale and pasty stomach).

The Aquarium

Aunt Debbie had suggested that we take the kids to the Seattle Aquarium yesterday and I have to say, it was an inspired idea. The kids loved it. Especially Jake. He would run from exhibit to exhibit screaming "Look at this! Look at this one! Did you see this!?" while Hannah had more fun taking pictures in the wooden cutouts. We couldn't get many photos of Jake posing because he was too excited. In the one of Jake and Hannah with Aunt Debbie and Uncle Mark you can barely see Jake because he was crawling behind them to look at the fish.

Here are some pictures of our day:

Pictures can be deceiving

These pictures look like we had a nice peaceful trip from Providence to Seattle. Instead I just got so excited the kids whenever the were quiet for more than 5 seconds that I would snap a picture of them.

At the airport:

On the plane:

When you come full circle you just end up biting yourself in the butt

We just got back from church. I haven't gone to church in years but Mom and Dad really wanted to take Hannah and Jake to show them off to all of their church friends. Hannah didn't want to go because it's "boring" but I told her how important it was to Grandma and Grandpa and that I'd sit there with her the entire time. Lincoln got to run around with Jake in the back of the church because there was no way in Hades he would have sat still the entire time.

But then Hannah got restless and insisted on finding Daddy and there I was, all alone in the pew with Mom (Dad was ushering). I tried to do a good deed by getting Hannah to sit through church and all I did was end up going myself.

I have to say, it's scary how all the things they say week after week after week in the Catholic Church come right back to you no matter how long you've been away.

We made it!

Well we finally made it to Seattle last night. Our first flight, from Providence to Detroit, was late getting in due to some crazy thunderstorms although the same storm that delayed us delayed our connecting flight so it wasn't too big of a deal.

The crazy turbulence coming into Detroit was pretty bad though. I have to say it was one of the worst flights we've ever been on. Lots of bouncing back and forth, jerking around, and plummeting in little air pockets. Not fun. It didn't affect the kids though and I'm just glad Mom and Deb weren't on that flight as they are not the best fliers. Jake actually almost fell asleep during the worst of it. It was like a giant rocking chair.

Like I said, our 2nd flight was also delayed due to the weather so we didn't get in until about 10:15 p.m. last night. Both kids slept pretty much the entire flight so that was nice. Then we met Grandma and Grandpa at the airport and came home to bed. The kids were up bright and early this morning so we're already well into our day. I think the plans today are church, brunch, and the aquarium with Aunt Debbie and Uncle Mark. I'm sure I'll have pictures to post later. I actually got a cute one on my camera phone from last night that I'll have to post.

More later...

Today is the day

Today is finally the day we head to Grandma Dena and Grandpa Dan's house for vacation. While having a late afternoon flight instead of our usual early morning one is great for Lincoln and I it is killing the kids. Lincoln and I have been finishing packing and also cleaning up the house before we go. The kids have spent the morning saying "When are leaving for Grandma Dena's?"

Since we're leaving at 4:30 p.m. and only have a 55 minute connection in Detroit I know the kids aren't going to get much more than snacks on the fly for dinner tonight so we're planning on having a huge lunch to hopefully get us through the day. I told Jake we were going to go out for a big lunch on the way to the airport and asked him where he wanted to eat. His answer? "At Grandma Dena's". It's going to be a long day.

The funny thing is, as I've blogged about on here before, Jake firmly believes that Grandma and Grandpa live in hotels. This morning when I was packing our bags he asked me "are we going to need sunscreen when we get to Grandma and Grandpa's hotel?" I explained we weren't going to their hotel and he was quite befuddled. I told him "We're going to Grandma and Grandpa's house" and he gave me the funniest look. It's not that he's never been there before - he was there in January of this year - but to be fair, he sees them in hotels a lot more than he sees them at their house.

Alright, I'm off to finish more packing. The next time you hear from me hopefully we'll be in Seattle.

Melissa

It was pointed out to me today (by Melissa, who discovered my blog this afternoon) that I never blog about my friend Melissa. Melissa is my most long-term, and I might add, oldest (sorry Melissa, you asked for it) friend at work. When I first started there almost six years ago Melissa and I shared an office....a very, very small office. I remember on my first day thinking "this girl and I are never going to get along." Luckily we became good friends. Over the years I've noticed that Melissa never likes anyone right off the bat so I have to say I'm grateful that she warmed up to me. We no longer share an office but she and I still have a lot of fun. Part of that is because when the company expense report process switched over to a new computer program she was too lazy to learn we struck a deal that she would pay me in wine to do her expenses.

Over the years we've had a lot of fun together. When she was detained in France as a terrorist (due to an expired passport) Paula and I hung all of her beloved Sharpie's from the ceiling in a mass suicide (long, long, looooonnnng story). Years later she retaliated by joining with Jennifer to send me 3 bags of personalized M&Ms that say "your the best!" on them when she knows the your vs. you're thing drives me INSANE!

Anyway, the point of my rambling is:

Are you happy now Melissa? I'm blogging about you!!!

Cranky Lincoln

My husband is a saint. He puts up with me, which automatically qualifies him for sainthood, but he also loses his cool FAR less than I do with the kids. But Jake has finally worn him down. Jake has been such a terror these last few days that even Lincoln is starting to have visions of gagging him and locking him in his room for two or three years. Tonight is my birthday dinner, as well as our anniversary dinner, and I've been looking forward to it for weeks so this was our conversation this morning:

Me: Not that you don't deserve a chance to be cranky but can we leave "Cranky Lincoln" at home tonight when we go to dinner?

Link: Sure. I'll leave him home with Jake.

Poor Shani. She's in for a looonnnng night of babysitting.

Only here

Only in this industry can my receptionist come to work, possibly still a wee bit intoxicated, having not showered, with her left breast bearing the autograph of an aging, has-been rockstar (Bret Michaels), and have it not be seen as a bad thing.

Like mother, like daughter

I love to read. I always have a book or magazine with me. I keep a magazine on the front seat of my car for long red lights. I always have a book in my purse in case I get stuck waiting somewhere. I have even read my book while blow drying my hair (which isn't easy, I must admit).

So I was incredibly proud when I sent Hannah in to brush her teeth last night and when I went to check on her she was doing this:

Anniversary gift

As many of you have been reading on the blog, I have a newly rediscovered obsession with Super Mario Brothers 3 lately so I found it very endearing when Lincoln gave me this t-shirt this morning as an anniversary gift.

9 years

Nine years ago today I met Lincoln for the first time at a 2-year olds birthday party. We've accomplished a lot in those 9 years. We met, married, had two kids, built a house (even if the garage is still a work in progress), and traveled quite a bit. We've already made it to 3 continents - Europe (3 times), Asia (twice), and South America (once). Considering that my "dragging him around the world on a moment's notice and a click of the mouse" was in our wedding vows I think we're doing pretty good.

Breaking it down

Tonight Lincoln made us a fabulous homemade pizza. Lincoln, Hannah, and I were all at the table eating and Jake was still goofing around in the living room. We had probably already called him to dinner at least a half a dozen times when I finally said:

"Hey Jake. Butt. Chair. Pizza. Now."

It worked.

Good listening

Jake talks all the time. And I mean ALL the time. For those of you that know me, that think I talk a lot, I look like a mute compared to Jake. And since he talks all the time we often tune him out. And then he repeats things. Over and over and over again until someone acknowledges him. This morning he came into the kitchen and asked me for a drink and I said "Sure" the first time. This is something that doesn't usually happen since his conversations usually go something like this:

"Mommy, where are we going today? I want to go to Grandma's. When are we going to Grandma Dena's? Is it going to be a long plane ride? My papa says it's a long ride. My papa knows how to fly. He taught me how to fly. My papa showed me how to fly. Where is Grandma's house? Can I have a drink?...Can I have a drink?....CAN I HAVE A DRINK?"

See! We've usually tuned him out by that point so he doesn't often get an answer about the drink on the first try.

Now, back to this morning:

Jake: Mommy, can I have a drink?

Me: Sure.

Jake: Now that's good listening.

He picks up on hints really, really well

Yesterday morning I asked Lincoln if we had any Coke. I don't drink coffee so sometimes I drink Coke instead in the mornings. The previous night we were up until 12:30 a.m. working on Hannah's bedroom and then I was awake at 5:30 the next morning so I really, really needed some Coke. He told me we didn't have any and offered to get me something else instead. I said "how about water.....with coke flavoring?" That didn't work but he did bring me a big bottle of Smart Water so I was happy (enough).

Last night when I got home from work, lo and behold, there was a nice, cold 12 pack of Coke waiting for me in the fridge. I just love that man of mine.

Jake is starting to finally become responsible (sort of)

Jake was rooting around in the fridge a few minutes ago while I was working at the kitchen counter. Then he walked into the living room and the next thing I know he comes tearing back into the kitchen crying "Don't look! Don't look! Don't look!" As I turn around to see what he's talking about I notice him shutting the fridge. He must have left it open when he went back into the living room. I figured Lincoln must have been getting on him earlier to shut the fridge but Lincoln said he wasn't. Maybe Jake is just trying to be more responsible. Yeah, right. He's probably just trying not to get in trouble for once.

What a polite little girl

Jake: Mommy, I want to sleep with Hannah tonight.

Hannah: No thank you.

Potty Humor

With Hannah, the frustating point of potty training came when she would pee in her Pull-Up and then, with very little help from us, take it off and put on a clean one. I mean, come on already! Just learn to pee in the potty.

With Jake, it's the pooping. Not to be gross with you folks but most of the people I know that read this blog have kids so you know where I'm coming from.

Jake will go in the corner, poop in his diaper, and then come over and say "Who's going to change my poopy?" Once again, COME ON ALREADY! Can't you do that in the toilet? Obviously you know what you're doing!

I have to say, the funniest moment though was when Jake pooped in his diaper and both Lincoln and I were busy doing other things. Neither of us could change him right away and he kept going back and forth between the two of us asking who was going to change him. Finally he walked up to me with the most desperate look on his face and said:

"But I'm going to get a really bad rash!"

Having a son is turning me into a watering pot

When I was pregnant with Jake, even though I didn't know yet that I was having a boy, I started bawling one day while I was driving to work. What set me off? Certain lyrics from "Should Have Been a Cowboy" by Toby Keith.

Go West young man, haven't you been told
California's full of whiskey, women, and gold

I don't know why that makes me cry...it still can on occasion. I think it's the idea of young men setting out on their own and exploring the West, leaving everything they know behind. I know it's cheesy and Tracy never lets me forget it, but I blame it on the pregnancy. They say your body knows what you're having, boy or girl, even when you don't. Add in the hormones and you're screwed.

Tonight I was listening to Pink's "Dear Mr. President" song and once again the tear ducts went into overload, during the wartime lyric:

How do you dream
when a mother has no chance to say goodbye?

All of a sudden I had two visions in my head. The first one of Jake, sitting on the steps in all his naked baby glory with his sunlit curls, and the next of men in uniform coming to inform me my son was gone. I bawled like a baby.

There are lots of songs about daughters and their daddy's but it's the ones about mothers and sons that just kill me. Not that I don't get teary-eyed with the daughter songs but man, I really lose it when it comes to moms and their sons. I don't think there is anything equivalent for mothers and their daughters. If so, please send me song and artist. I'm always up for a good cry.

Jake is such a love

Every night when I get home from work Jake comes running at top speed from wherever he is screaming "Mommmmmmmyyy!" and gives me a great big hug. Last night when I walked in the door he was in the kitchen (right by the door I come through) and he took off running in the opposite direction. I thought that was kind of strange until he turned around and came charging back at me. I realized that he loves the running to me as much as I love the hug when he gets there.

More pictures from the pool

I meant to get these still shots up yesterday from our weekend in the pool but I didn't have time. These are my favorites from Sunday. I love taking pictures out at the pool. Nothing quite since "childhood" like laughing and playing in the pool on a hot, summer day. Although as you can see by the fact that they're both wrapped up in towels it definitely cooled off by the end of the afternoon.

How sad is this?

Someone stole 2,000 gallons of heating oil from Memorial School in Upton. That's the elementary school that has Pre-K through 4th grade.


http://www.necn.com/Boston/New-England/2000-gallons-of-oil-stolen-from-Massachusetts-school/1216215266.html

Yes, we pumped them full of sugar first....orange kool-aid to be exact

Last night we finished taking down the tape in Hannah's new room and moved out the rest of the furniture so that we could vacuum and then shampoo the carpet before moving her stuff into the room. The kids LOVED the empty room and put on a dance show. I have to say, Jake at the 27 second mark is the best part of the entire video. Other than that, it's just a lot of them running around and "dancing" in the loosest definition of the term.

Haircuts

Yes, I know that both of my kids need a haircut. I'm surprised my mother hasn't said anything to me about Hannah's bangs lately. Hannah is in the process of growing them out so they're really long and in her eyes but she hates to pin them back. They're a constant annoyance to me but I much preferred when her bangs were long instead of short so I'm not going to complain about them now that I finally talked her into growing them out again.

As for Jake, I knew I wouldn't be able to post those naked pics of Jake without Mom commenting on how long his hair looks in the picture. She says that at some point we're going to have to accept that he's not a baby anymore and cut his curls off. "Never!", I believe, was my reply. When I related this conversation to Lincoln was just as disturbed at the idea of cutting them off. His basic reply was "let him enjoy it while he has it!". Considering baldness runs on both sides of the family, Jake is destined to be bald someday. Let's let him enjoy the long, flowing locks he has while he can.

Grandpa Dan would be SO disappointed

Back in high school it became a running joke between my friend Stephanie and my dad about the fact that he never wears a shirt. The second he comes home it comes off. It made me laugh back then but it makes me laugh even more now because Jake is the TOTAL opposite (contrary to the naked baby pictures below). Jake HATES to have his shirt off. He gets very embarrassed. When I took him to work with me last month I made him take his white shirt off while eating pizza and he cried "WHAT IF SOMEONE SEES ME!?!?!?!". Tonight he was very upset that I took his shirt off while eating spaghetti. It was just the four of us but he kept whining and begging me to put it back on. He always says "But I promise to eat over the plate! See! See! I'm over the plate. Can I put my shirt back on?". I totally blame this on the fact that Old Navy sells really cute swim tops that go with their swim trunks for little boys. Not only do they keep him warmer but they keep more of the sun off of him. On the downside, my son is a total prude!

Videos below

For those of you who checked out the videos earlier when #3 wasn't working, I just wanted to let you know it's finally active and you can check it out.

Pool videos

Here are some videos from this past weekend. Unfortunately, when the sun was super bright there are some annoying lines on the video but you can get the idea.

This one is of Hannah showing off her somersault skills in the pool. And yes, I realize that she does 3 somersaults....not 2 like I say in the video. (oops!)



This one is of Hannah swimming the entire length of our pool underwater. It's hard to believe she used to be afraid of the water. She's a little fish now.



Poor Jake. It sucks when the younger kid is a boy and has to deal with hand me downs from his big sister. His pool ring is Strawberry Shortcake. But here is a video of him "swimming" across the pool.



Jake loves to do cannonballs off the side of the pool like his big sister Hannah. Of course his cannonball has slightly less effect since he's held up by Strawberry Shortcake. But you'd never know that from his yell.

More painting

Yesterday Lincoln, Hannah, and I finished painting the rest of Hannah's room. Hannah is actually only allowed in the room for about 5 minutes of painting because of the fumes but she loves any amount she gets to do.