Amazonesia

Amazonesia: A condition where you order so many things from Amazon that when the package arrives, you can't actually remember what you bought.



I picked up Max from school a few days ago and when we got home there was a package on our doorstep. I had ordered a bunch of stuff from Amazon over the weekend, so I wasn't surprised to see the package.
I went to the front  porch and tried to pick up the medium sized package, and it was so heavy! I picked it up and lugged it into the house, wondering what on earth I bought that would weigh that much!


I opened the package and......

Weights. I bought weights.

Look! It's a bird! It's a plane!........... No it's a bunch of donkeys flying around!!

So apparently I kind of miss blogging.

I could go on and on with excuses of the reasons why I haven't written anything on here for such a long time, but nobody wants to read excuses.

Since it's November 1st, I decided I could try for NaBloPoMo.

Yeah, we'll just see how long this lasts. Any guesses?

To start it all off, I think I'll do a top 10 list.

(drumroll please)

Top Ten perfectly believable reasons* why I haven't written a blog post in over a year.


10. Got stuck in a check out line at Wal Mart

9. Abducted by Aliens.

8. I forgot my google password **

7. Got stuck on a level of Angry Birds.

6. Been training to be a cage fighter.

5. I can't get on the computer because the children are always using it for their homework ***

4. Spending all of my time waiting around for the UPS guy to actually deliver a package instead of a nice little note saying that he couldn't deliver the package because I wasn't home to sign for the package even though I was actually home so if he had actually rang the doorbell I might have come to the door and signed the thing so he could leave the package.

3. Obsessing over my stat counter, trying to determine how many people ended up on my blog by doing a search for a picture of a spleen****

2. I just woke up, and all of last year was a dream.

And the number one reason I haven't written a blog post in over a year.............

Netflix.



*Notice how I use the word "reasons" instead of excuses. Reasons are legitimate.
**I blame the aliens for this one
*** And if you replace "homework" with "YouTube videos" or "Pinterest" this one could be rather accurate.
****It's much higher than you might think.



So there you have it my first post in a long while.
I'll be back tomorrow.

Or not.

Technology kills productivity........

Earlier today I was helping Brielle make a double batch of sugar cookies using my grandma's super delicious sugar cookie recipe.

Once the dough got too stiff for the mixer, I dumped the dough into a larger bowl, got out the large wooden spoon and stirred in the last of the flour.

"I just remembered why I don't like making sugar cookies" I said "I really don't like having to stir all this dough by hand."

Brielle said "I bet your grandma didn't have an electric mixer to mix the dough in the first place. Was she a very patient person?"

"Yes she was, in fact, she nursed twins until they were 18 months old, and during that time still managed to take care of her two other small children, make bread, do laundry, keep the house clean, make breakfast, lunch and dinner, take care of a garden, can vegetables from the garden and she even crocheted a queen size bedspread!"

Brielle chuckled and said "Obviously, she didn't have Facebook."

The mystery of the Christmas Eve ghost dog

Every year at Christmas, especially when we are up very late on Christmas Eve we hope that our children will let us sleep in a bit on Christmas morning.

This, however, has rarely been the case.

For example, the year when Brielle was 5. I woke up Christmas morning around 4:45 because the light from the living room was shining down the hall into our bedroom. Knowing that we had most definitely turned the light off, I got up to see Brielle dancing around the living room in her new pink bathrobe, with all of her other Christmas gifts scattered around the living room.....

She had obviously been awake for quite a while.

This year, however, was different. My husband woke me up at 7:00 to tell me that the kids were ready to see their Christmas gifts. Fortunately, he was awake when the kids came upstairs, and made them sit in the family room until I got up. I was very surprised that we needed to wake up Max also, because he had been so excited the night before, and had even gone to bed really early so that Santa could come to our house without fear of being caught by him.

As the kids were opening their gifts, I thanked them for letting us sleep past 5:00 and Brielle told me this story.

"Mom, I actually woke up really early this morning, around 4:00. I layed in bed, trying to go back to sleep until about 4:30, when I decided that I really needed to go to the bathroom, so I got up and opened my bedroom door, and I heard what sounded like a really big dog panting loudly in the hallway, so I hurried and slammed my door, jumped back in my bed, pulled the blankets over my head and stayed there until 7:00."

We don't nor have we ever had a dog, so I was trying to think of what could have been making this noise when CJ said "Really? I heard that same noise several years ago on Christmas morning when I was about to get up really early!"

So there you have it. It seems that we have some sort of ghost dog that shows up early Christmas morning, to scare our children back into their beds so that we can get a little sleep.

Now the question, why?

My older kids have a theory that the previous owners had a dog that died on Christmas, and he comes back every year at this time.
Max thinks that Santa was still in the house.

What do you think it could be?

Some things are just more difficult for some people

Due to the lack of content in my brain combined with the late hour, and the need for me to post something before the clock strikes midnight and my computer turns back into a pumpkin, I will post for you, a picture.

Leave me your favorite blonde joke in the comments.

Or any joke.

Unless you don't want to, then fine! Don't.

If you prefer, you may mock your least favorite celebrity.

This totally counts as a post, doesn't it?

Hi, my name is Jill and I'm sleep deprived

I am not a morning person.

I have decided that the only sleep that really counts for me is what I get after 5:00 a.m.
My husband, on the other hand, is quite the morning person, he wakes up on his own around 5:00 a.m. and is actually awake!
This is a strange phenomenon to me, because my mom raised us to be night owls, she liked to stay up late, and let us stay up late too.
I remember one time in high school when on the first day of class one of the teachers had us fill out a "get to know you" questionnaire, then we went around the classroom, and everyone read their papers.
One of the questions was "What is your favorite TV show?"
Nearly everyone in the class said that M.A.S.H. was their favorite show (one of the local TV stations was airing it about 4 times a day at that time) but I answered "Late night with David Letterman"
The teacher looked at me in shock and said "YOU'RE UP THAT LATE???"

Honestly, it didn't seem that strange to me, at that time, Dave came on at midnight, and watching his show was what kept me awake long enough to do my homework.

Anyway.......

School started this week for Brielle and Aaron, (who I have decided are not morning people either) (pretty sure it's genetic) (from my side of the family, obviously)
The problem is that my alarm goes off at 7:00 a.m. (and again at 7:10. 7:20, 7:30..........) and I wake them up again, and again and again.

It would probably be easier to wake them up if they weren't awake so late at night, however, my husband doesn't get home until nearly 7:00 p.m. and after we eat dinner, watch the current reality show on TV, make the kids do the homework that they didn't seem to remember they had several hours earlier, make lunches for the next day and wrestle Max into his pajamas, it's usually after 11.

Max will be starting kindergarten next week, and get this......................





I SIGNED HIM UP FOR MORNING KINDERGARTEN!!!!!




WHAT WAS I THINKING?????



I had very logical reasons for doing this (I won't go into detail, just be assured that I did) the problem is that he likes to sleep in until 10:00 or later.

School starts at 8:30.

I've had discussions with him about how he needs to go to bed earlier because it will be hard for him to wake up for school if he's up too late and he agrees with me until it's actually time to get the pajamas on.

He is the master of stalling.

So this week, we decided to have him go to bed a little bit earlier each night, to get him used to it before school starts. We had good intentions, but as it's turned out, he's actually ended up going to bed a little bit later each night.


This is going to be a long year.





p.s. I told Max that after taking them to school, I would come home and take a nap. He told me that I couldn't do that, because I would dream about missing him.

I seem to have fallen into a giant, deep, dark hole from which I may never be able to climb out

Yes, it's true............................











I've joined Facebook.

Aftermath of the afternoon nap

Today just before we arrived at home from our last activity for the day, Max fell asleep in the car.
It was after 6:00, and I should have known better, but I carried him in to his bed and let him continue to sleep.
I can hear you shouting at me "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? A NAP AT 6:00 IN THE EVENING? ARE YOU CRAZY???"
To which I answer, Yes.

On the other hand, I was able to fix dinner without any of Max's "help" which was quite refreshing.
I spent about an hour trying to figure out what to make for dinner before I threw something together the next while creating a delicious, well thought out meal for my family.
We sat down to eat around 8:00. Max woke up and came to the table, just a bit grumpy and refused to eat anything, but drank several glasses of milk. After a while Max said "I think I drinkeded too much milk"
"Why do you think that?" I asked.
"Because when I shake I can't hear the milk in my tummy so I must be clear fulled!"
Then he wiggled around in his chair to demonstrate that the milk could not be heard sloshing around in his tummy. "See? the milk is not makin' noise!"
After dinner was over and the table was cleared Max got the box of UNO cards and dumped them on the table. With both hands, he stirred the cards around for a while until CJ asked him what he was doing.

"Im shuffoling!"

He then insisted that CJ play a game of UNO with him.
Apparently, the game had gone on for quite a while because when I walked back into the room CJ said "MOM, I'm trying to let him win and it's not working!"
It seems that Max really enjoys collecting the cards instead of getting rid of them, and getting rid of them is pretty much the object of the game.
When he didn't have a card he could play, he tried to convince us that he should just be allowed to play any card he wanted even though it didn't match the top card on the pile.
Max: "Why I can't put this card down?"
CJ: "Because you need either a yellow card or a 5."
Max: "But I want to put this card down on the pile!"
CJ: "No, I can see another card you could use. See that red 5 card that you have? You can put that on the pile."
Max: "I not want to put that one on! I want to put THIS one on!" (as he waved a green 7 above his head)
CJ: "No Max. You need to put down a card that either has the same color or the same number on it, that card doesn't match either way. Use the red 5!"
Max: " I not want to put that card in the pile ! I want to put this card in the pile!"
He put the green 7 on the pile.
CJ took it off the pile.
Max drew another card. He now had about 13 cards. He then decided that he wanted to hold them in his hand, fanned out, like CJ was holding his cards, but he couldn't figure out how to get them that way and wouldn't let anyone help him. Every time he dropped a card, Max freaked out just a little bit more.

CJ finally ended up winning the game then Max went and got the Perfection game.
He had me explain to him how to play (set the timer, put the shapes in the correct places on the board, if you run out of time, the board pops and the pieces go flying) I helped him the first time, and when the timer went off, Max was startled and may have freaked out a bit.
He played the game two more times before he decided that it was more fun to dump the pieces on the board, set the timer and wait for it to pop.

Then, being the mean mom that I am, I told him that it was time to get his pajamas on.

He didn't want to get his pajamas on because "I not being sleepy!"

Then the races began.

Max stood against the refrigerator.
"Ready! Set! GO!!!"
Then he ran the length of the kitchen, through the family room then down to the end of the hallway. Next, he yelled "Ready! Set! GO!!!"and ran from the end of the hallway into the kitchen. He ran back and forth for a while, each time YELLING "Ready! Set! GO!!!"
He wasn't actually racing anyone, he was just running and yelling. From the other room I heard him say "HEY LOOK! I HAVE FAST FEET!!"

It is now after 10:00.
P.M.
I stopped him and took him into his room to get his pajamas on. He said he couldn't put on his pajamas until the ceiling fan stopped spinning. I was too tired to argue so I turned off the ceiling fan and we both sat there and watched it slow until it stopped.

Do you have any idea how long it takes for a ceiling fan to stop spinning when you turn it off?

A really, really long time.

or as Max would say "A reeollee, reeollee long time!"

The fan stopped spinning (finally!) and Max started to get his pajamas on. He took his sandals off and his feet were dirty from playing outside earlier in the day. He Yells "HEY LOOK! I HAVE STINKY FEET! LOOK AT MY STINKY FEET! THEY'RE STINKY! I NEED A BATH! I NEED A BATH!!" Then he waved one of his cute little feet in front of my face.
Dangerously close to my face

I finally got Max into his pajamas, then he ran some more solo races and drank more milk before I finally talked him into going to bed.

Tomorrow, I'm taking the nap.

Name that food Friday

Go ahead.

Guess what it is.

I dare you.

Please be very specific.



Because I'm so nice, I will answer yes or no questions in the comments.

Just try to make sense of this post. I dare you.

Not much happening around here as of late. (which should explain the lack of blog posting on my part)
Every once and a while I get a great idea of something to write about, but by the time I get to the computer, I forget. Yes, I know, I should write down my idea as soon as it pops into my head, and I would, IF I COULD EVER FIND A PEN THAT WORKS!

And paper to write on.

Actually, we have plenty of paper, it's piled all over my kitchen. It's mostly the lack of working pens in my house that keeps me from writing anything down.

I once wrote down a phone message on a nursing pad with a crayon.

(seriously, I did!) But that was a long time ago, and we haven't had a nursing pad in the house for years.

The main thing happening right now is that my tooth/teeth are really hurting. I've been to the dentist multiple times because of the pain in my teeth. I've had so many x-rays that I'm surprised that the left side of my face isn't glowing.

They can never find anything wrong.

So now I'm faced with a dilema. Do I rearrange my schedule to find time to go to the dentist and have even more x-rays taken, just to have him tell me once again that there's nothing wrong or just continue to tough it out with my Costco sized bottle of ibuprofen.

I'm a little concerned about the warning on the label on the ibuprofen that says you shouldn't take it longer than a certain amount of days. I'm pretty sure that if I exceed the maximum amount of days for the ibuprofen, I will probably grow an extra arm or something.

But then again, an extra arm could come in handy.

Think of how much more I could accomplish!!

I could type and eat at the same time!
I can talk on my cell phone, put on lipstick and still keep one hand on the steering wheel!

But I might look kind of weird, and I would start to see my picture on the cover of the tabloids as I wait in line at the supermarket.
But then I would get a phone call from the producer of the Jerry Springer show! They would fly me to their studio and I would get to appear on TV!
While on the plane, I could impress my fellow passengers by being able to buckle my seatbelt and put my tray table back into it's original upright position AT THE SAME TIME!

But then I would get to the Jerry Springer show and some guy with one tooth would rip off his shirt and throw a chair at me.

Maybe Oprah would have me on her show! I could jump on her couch and tell her how much I love having a third arm.
But what if it turns out that my extra arm is another left arm?

I'm right handed.

That could be a problem.



Last night, I made some cookies to help motivate the kids to finish their homework ("OK kids, get the first page of homework done and you can sniff a cookie, the second page, you can lick a cookie, but you must have all of the homework done before you can actually eat a cookie!")
When I took the cookies out of the oven, Aaron asked me "Will there be enough cookies left tomorrow so that we can eat them while we're watching "The Biggest Loser"?

(Now, I don't want to get any rude emails telling me that I shouldn't be using bribery to get my kids to do their homework. Bribery is such an ugly word. I prefer using the word "incentive" Instead of it being a situation where I say "'I'll give this to you if you do your homework" It's more "When you finish your homework, you may have this" See, it's totally different)



Today, Max asked me which finger he should use to put inside his nose. I told him he shouldn't put any of them in his nose, but eventually, we settled on his pinky finger.



Hey, I just realized that it's Wednesday!

Word Verification Wednesday!

I'm not going to explain how to play. Ask the other contestants.




(OK, look at the word verification code, and create a definition for it in the comments. Refresh the page as many times as you want)
(And remember, the only way you can lose this game is to not play)
(come on people, it's like a service project. You give me a funny or well thought out definition, and I laugh, thus causing me to forget the stabbing pain in my tooth)

And to my new lurker from Portland Maine.
Welcome.
I'll give you a nickel if you leave a comment.





I only had three hours of sleep last night, can you tell?

To shop or not to shop, that is the question

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!

Our dinner was great! Every year we get together with a ton of family. We eat at the church building so the kids can run and play in the gym and work off their excess energy after dinner.

Max only ate a roll.

I put samples of several things on his plate that I thought he might like, but he only wanted the roll. He wouldn't even try some of grandma's sweet potatoes (which by the way are FABULOUS! in a "you won't need dessert after you eat these" sort of way)

When Max got thirsty, he handed me his glass and said "Please I can have some more H2O?"
Then he drank some and said "Why is it also called H2O?"
I answered "Because it's two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen."
Max says "Oh. OK."

We took the long route home because Max started rubbing his eyes and we wanted him to take a nap. (However now at 10:30 p.m, I feel that allowing him to nap might not have been a good idea because at this very moment, Max is wide awake, singing a very energetic rendition of the Hokey Pokey)
This is a problem because I want to go to bed. I'm actually considering going shopping in the morning.

Because I'm crazy.

And Wal Mart is selling jeans for $8.00 a pair. ($4.00 for Max sized jeans)

The big question is, just how much is my sleep worth to me?
Or the bigger question, how much will my sleep be worth to me tomorrow morning when my alarm goes off?
Or the even bigger question, will shopping in the morning give me something really good to blog about tomorrow night?

Tune in tomorrow to find out what I decide to do!!

And now for the rest of the story.........

About 5 years ago, CJ had put a toothpick in his pocket and it somehow jabbed into his leg. He didn't bother telling us about it until several days later when it had become quite infected.

DH took him to the doctor, who upon closer examination, discovered a chunk of the toothpick still lodged in his leg.

The doctor removed the piece of toothpick and then used a special syringe with a large cup on the end to clean out his injury by flushing it with water and then put a band-aid on it and sent him home.

On their way home from the doctor, they stopped and picked up the antibiotic prescribed by the doctor.

As soon as they got home, CJ took his first dose of antibiotic, then went to his room.
A while later CJ came into the kitchen where I was fixing dinner.

He didn't look quite right. His face looked somewhat flushed, and upon closer examination, he had some sort of a rash on his cheek.

I didn't think much of it, and CJ got a snack then went back to his room.
A while later when we sat down to dinner, I looked at CJ again. Not only was the rash worse, but it had spread to the other side of his face, and there was a spot on his forehead and on his chin.

Since this rash had appeared and spread so quickly, we just assumed that it was caused by the antibiotic. We kept asking CJ if he was feeling OK, if he was having any trouble breathing or any other common symptoms of an allergic reaction to an antibiotic.

He just kept telling us that he felt fine. and other than the rash, he looked and acted just fine.
I then asked him if he had this rash anywhere else. He lifted up his shirt, and the rash was all over his stomach.
Now at this point I was way past concerned and bordering on panic. I was about to call the doctor, but asked CJ one more time if he had this rash anywhere else because I knew that the doctor would want to know this.

He slid up the leg of his shorts to show me the rash that was on his leg.


The rash had covered his leg. Big blotchy patches of red.



Then I noticed something peculiar about the rash. Around each blotch of red rash was a perfect red circle.


A circle the exact size of the cup on the end of the syringe.

Which he had just taken out of his pocket.


Yes, while I was freaking out, ready to take my son to the hospital for an allergic reaction to an antibiotic.................



My son was giving himself hickies on his face, tummy and legs with a syringe.

My kids are weird

That's pretty much it.

My kids are weird.

Conversations with a three year old

So, it's almost 2:00 a.m. and I'm still awake. Apparently, a diet Coke after 10:00 is not a good idea.

Today, we had some interesting conversations with Max.

#1.
Me: "Max, I thought I buttoned the buttons on your shirt. Why are they undone now? Did you unbutton them?"

Max: "Yes I did, because they were also FREAKING ME OUT!!"


#2.
Brielle: "Max, I'm going to help you clean up your puzzle, O.K.?"

Max: "No! Do you want me to FLIP OUT? I also going to FLIP OUT!"

#3
(I sit in the rocking chair with Max every night, and sing to him before he goes to bed. We have a glider rocker with a gliding ottoman.
Earlier in the day Max had moved the ottoman around so that it moved side to side instead of back and forth with the rocking chair.
I had the nerve to move it back.)

Max: "No, it also can't be that way! IT'S FREAKING IT OUT! THE OTTOMAN IS ALSO FREAKING OUT!"

(I think he's spending way too much time under the influence of his older siblings.)

Earlier today, Max was starting in with the questions again, and so I tried another tactic.

Max: "Why is this a stool?"
Me: "Why do you think it's a stool?"
Max: (Looking at me like I'm a complete moron) "Because it's a stool."

(duh!)

If only I had known earlier that it was that easy. At least now I know how to answer him.

On a lighter note, we had a bit of a victory today :0)

Max ate a vegetable!

O.K. it was just a small piece of lettuce and he did say that he liked it, however, he wouldn't eat any more, but hey, we need to start somewhere!

Reason 864 for why I'm so tired

The nine o'clock news has begun it's beginning.
The sun, it has long ago set.
The children are dressed in pajamas and slippers
But they can't go to bed...right just yet.

For they suddenly remember some tasks still undone,
that need to be finished tonight.
For some homework and projects are still incomplete,
it's a serious, sorrowful plight!

Earlier today, they claimed they were finished,
homework to do, there was not.
"Why didn't you do it earlier?" I asked.
And their answer "I simply forgot."

The math, OH THE MATH! It still needs to be done,
and I told them to start it directly.
Fractions and decimals and multiplications,
all deciphered and written correctly.

Only one project more for my young son to do,
One last project was left to be done.
A simple machine, a pulley with string,
and to make it, he thought would be fun.

He gathered the stuff that he knew he would need,
to finish his project quite nicely.
A shoe box he found and some string and a spool,
and a hanger cut rather precisely.

Then my youngest, my sweet little tot came to me,
and tried to climb into my lap.
("Why is he still up this late?" do you ask?
my answer, "A three hour nap!")

(and yes, I did know that I shouldn't have let him sleep that long, but I was just getting so much done, and it was so quiet, and he had been really cranky, and quite frankly, I didn't really think about the fact that he wouldn't be ready to go back to sleep at 9:00)

He's carrying a book that he wants me to read,
about pigs eating berries and cream.
I told him "Please wait, in a minute" I said,
And then from him, I heard a loud scream.

My other son looked distressed, and concerned
for the wire wouldn't stay in it's place.
"How can I make this stay put?" he did ask,
with a frustrated look on his face.

"Use the tape!" I declared, "It's inside of the drawer!"
Said the child "Oh no, it is not,
I already looked, there's no tape to be found,
it must be in some other spot."

I walked to the drawer, and I opened it wide,
with my tantruming tot right behind.
I reached down inside and pulled out the tape,
that my other son just couldn't find.

Then I took my cross tot, and I read him the book,
(and I read it to him really fast)
Then I sang him a song, and tucked him into his bed,
where he yawned and looked tired (AT LAST!)

Then my evening was over, the kids were in bed
each one of them sound asleep as a log.
And instead of me getting the rest that I need,
I wrote a poem about it on my blog.

The Stand off-Dirty dishes

Our children are expected to do a few chores around the house.
These include setting the table before dinner, clearing the table after dinner, taking the clean dishes out of the dishwasher and putting them away in their designated spots and then filling the dishwasher with dirty dishes.
(Actually putting dishwashing detergent in the dishwasher and turning it on is also an added bonus)
Sometimes, our children forget that these jobs are theirs to do, and so occasionally, they might require a gentle reminder.

Sometimes, the kids won't get the dishes done the night before, especially if they have a lot of homework. Understanding how important the homework is, (and knowing if they don't do it at that moment, that I will miss out on some of my sleep because I'll be staying up late giving them gentle reminders, and nudging them awake so they can get the homework done)

Last week was one of those weeks. Lots of homework. That combined with a few extracurricular activities made it easier for me just to do the dishes myself.

Friday after school, I took the kids to Tarzhay so that Aaron could spend the gift card that he got for his birthday. He couldn't find anything for under $10. I told him that I would lend him the extra three dollars that he would need for the item he wanted. He promised to do the dishes, and mop and clean the entire kitchen. (because he was just that grateful) (and he loves to clean)
When we got home, I again informed the kids that there were some dirty dishes in the sink, and that they should be getting them clean. I also reminded Aaron about the deal we made at Tarzhay.
Since it was now the weekend, and Brielle and Aaron were now officially "off track" from school for the next three weeks, I saw no reason why the dishes could not be done. I also wasn't feeling very well, and needed to rest (Aaron came home from school sick on Thursday, and must have shared it with me, because I felt lousy all weekend) (The way I felt probably contributed to the poor judgement I had concerning the loaning of money to Aaron at Tarzhay) (But in my defense, the kid really does like to clean, so I thought that he would probably keep his end of the bargain)

Friday when we went to bed, the dishes were still not done. Since I had done them several times during the week, there was no way that I was going to do them again.

"Hey kids, tomorrow morning, the dishes need to be done, and the kitchen cleaned up, Got it?"

"Yes, dear mother, we shall do as you ask!"

But alas, the dishes remained dirty, and were piling higher in the sink.

Saturday we had a family reunion to go to at the park. I needed to make a salad. The bowl and the serving spoon I needed were not clean.

I washed them by hand.

I again reminded my dear offspring of their duty to clean the dishes.

I also pointed out that we were now going to be late for the reunion because I had to take the time to wash the dishes before I could use them, and if they had done their job, we could have left 20 minutes ago.

They promised to do the dishes when they got home.

We went to the park and had a lovely time visiting with family. (Right up until the point where we were leaving and Max had a complete melt down because he had only been down the slide 234 times, and I wouldn't let him go 235. We hauled him out of the park kicking and screaming "Pleeeeeeaaaaaaase!! Pleeeeeeaaaaaaase!! Pleeeeeeaaaaaaase!! Pleeeeeeaaaaaaase!! I ALSO GO ON THE SLIDE ONE MORE TIME!!! Pleeeeeeaaaaaaase!!" which I knew wouldn't really happen, because the last 8 times he went down were supposed to be the "last time")

When we got home, I again gently reminded the children that they had a job to do, and also showed them that there were now more dishes to be done and they would either have to run two loads in the dishwasher, or wash some by hand.

That evening after dinner, the dishes still weren't done. I pointed out to the children that we had used the last of our clean plates, and we would need those to be washed so we could eat off of them for dinner the next day.

Sunday after church, I took a nap, but first reminding the kids to do the dishes.

When it came time for them to set the table for dinner, they put out paper plates and cups.

I, on the other hand, needed to hand wash two pans (one for spaghetti, one for sauce) and the garlic press, which is more easily washed in the dishwasher.

After dinner I again reminded the kids that the dishes needed to be done. They agreed. It was Sunday evening. CJ did have some homework to do, but the other two rugrats are out of school for the next three weeks, so homework was no longer an excuse.
I don't know where they went to hide. I'm quite sure it was the huge pile of dishes in the sink that frightened them away.

They finally won.

I did a load of dishes. I was just so tired of reminding them, and besides, I needed clean dishes.

This morning, I again told the kids that they needed to get the rest of the dishes done. Again they agreed.
This afternoon, I again told the kids that they needed to get the rest of the dishes done. Again they agreed.

I did another load of dishes.

Brielle and CJ must have felt a little bad, because they started doing the dishes after dinner, but were distracted, and I finished them.

For those of you keeping track, that's load #3

Now here's the deal.

For the rest of the week, whenever they ask me to do something, I will say:

"Sure!, I'd love to do that for you!"
or,
"Absolutely! I would love to take you there!"
and
"That sounds like a fabulous activity! Sure we can do that!"

And then...............................


Nothing.


They want to do fun activities while they are out of school. They want to have friends over, they want to go to the fair (which would probably be a great activity so we can show Max what kind of animals really live on a farm) They want to go to a movie.


Too bad.


Now I have two more things to say.

1. Please don't leave me a mean comment about my style of parenting, I will just make fun of you on my next post. (Plus, remember, I was sick all weekend)

2. My children will probably not remember the events of the last few days exactly the same way I did. They may even laugh at the phrase "gentle reminder" however, I would like to point out to them that I did do 3 loads of dishes, while they did not (except for Brielle and CJ who emptied part of the dishwasher) and also, this is my blog and I can write whatever I want.

Are missing spoons a matter of national security?

Yes, I'm still here.
I just realized that it's been over three weeks since I last posted.
After quite a dry spell, I finally got some work for my home business (YAY) and I've been so busy with actual work, that I didn't have time to write an actual blog post. (Except for this one where I guest posted)

During the last few weeks, I've had several brilliant ideas of what to write about, but of course now as I'm sitting here at the computer, do you think I can remember any of them?

Yes, I know, I know, when I get an idea, I should write it down, and then I can remember it later, but that would mean that I would need to find a pen or pencil, and then some paper , and by the time I have been able to identify those two items, because I can't ever seem to find them easily, I will have forgotten my idea anyway.

That's just how my memory works sometimes. Not that I have alzheimers or anything, because I'm pretty sure I don't.
Or I think I don't ..............or.................shoot, what was I talking about?

Anyway.....................

Even though I haven't had the time to write, I have taken a moment now and then to look at my site meter, you know, just to see if I've been forgotten, and I've learned some interesting things, such as.................

There are a ton of people going to google and looking for "Thou shalt not whine" and variations on that phrase.
Thou shalt not whine sign
Thou shalt not whine plaque
Though shalt not whine
Thous shall not wine

Come on, it's called spell check people, please use it!

Several people googled "How not to whine"

Other strange keywords leading to my blog were;

Toilet whine on flushing
Puverty
What is the biggest item that can be flushed and not get stuck in the toilet
Fix stuck liquid soap dispenser
Hey do you want to split a

But my all time favorite keyword inquiry is....

(drumroll please......)

How to force your Daddy to buy you want when he's already about to not buy you one because your whining too much

What????

I would be interested to know what it was this kid wanted, and I certainly hope that their Daddy didn't buy it for them, because whining should not be rewarded.


I also really enjoy finding out where the people live that are reading my blog. I always get a kick out of seeing where in the world my blog is being read.

However, I've discovered someone visiting my blog lately that concerns me a bit. Quite a few times I have seen..............

Arlington Virginia. The host address is from The Pentagon.

Yes folks, someone from The Pentagon is reading my blog.

Now I have to wonder why anyone from The Pentagon would be interested in reading my blog. Seriously, do stories of butt ugly homemade bread and tales of potty training failures have anything to do with national security?

Or, are they studying me trying to learn different methods of torture from my children?
(I feel that whining is indeed a very effective method of torture)
Are they trying to find out how long the average stay at home mom can listen to four children whine before completely losing it?
Are they trying to learn which items can and can't be flushed down the toilet successfully?

And why would they need all this handy information?

Are they the ones who took all of my missing spoons? Am I part of some twisted experiment where they take various forms of flatware from people to see how long it takes before they buy a new set? (We bought a new set last month. I think we're already missing a few spoons.)
And why just the spoons? Why are there no forks missing? Especially that enormous serving fork or the butter serving knife, (like anybody really uses those anyway)

Are they at all confused by the last paragraph that I typed? (because, seriously, I am.)


Or is it just some cleaning lady that works at the Pentagon, sneaking on to the computers during her break time to read blogs?

This subject has me rather perplexed.

So, Pentagon blog stalker, comment.

I dare you.

What do you all think?
Why is the Pentagon taking such an interest in my blog?

Antibiotics anyone?

Have you ever felt like your head was going to explode?

The pressure behind your eyes is so great, and you feel that at any moment, your eyeballs might just pop right out of your head and shoot across the room?

And you thought that you might actually feel better if they did?

Two words........... "Sinus infection."

I felt pretty crummy all weekend, and still managed to get the kids to their various activities. I even managed to make it to my nephew's birthday party (so I could eat some chocolate cake shower them with gifts and eat some ice cream sing "Happy Birthday") and we also attended the wedding reception for my hubby's cousin.

Yesterday, however, I was so sick that I was unable to go to church and teach my sweet little Sunbeams.
I stayed home from church and tried to rest, and about 10 minutes after I finally fell asleep, the phone rang. I ignored it and went back to sleep, then my cell phone rang. About the time I got back to sleep again, my family came home. Max hadn't been able to play with my hair for three whole hours, and so he climbed in bed next to me and began twisting my hair around his hand.

Yep, that's just what I need when my head is pounding.
Every time I moved, it was a new experience in pain. And dizziness. And nausea.

This morning, however, I felt SO much better :0)

The sun was shining, the birds were singing, I got the kids to school on time (well, most of them) and my head felt almost normal. I even managed to get some of my regular work done!

Yay me!

In between my work, I managed to read a few blogs however, I may have spent too much time leaving comments for Sue. She wasn't feeling well today either, and I think I may have caught what she has. My ear hurts now, a symptom that I didn't have until I read that she had it.
Thanks Sue. And after all the nice comments I left.............

So, just be warned, I might be contagious also. You may want to wear a mask and laytex gloves while blogging, you know, just to be on the safe side.

Is hypochondria contagious?

(Is hypochondria a word?)

GOOD MORNING!

There is no alarm clock in the world that will wake you up better than a toddler can.

Because nothing says "Good morning" Like being poked in the eye by the finger of a small child.

"Hiyo mom................You wake?"

"Open eyes" (poke) "You wake mom?" (poke poke) "Open eyes mom." (poke, poke, poke)

To sleep or not to sleep.

This weekend, I was talking with some friends about kids birthday parties. The subject turned to slumber parties, and we all have the same rule about our kids not attending sleep over parties. 

Last year, CJ was invited to a slumber party, and we let him go to the party, but brought him home at 11:00 p.m.

What is your policy on this subject?

All the talk about slumber parties made me remember back to a few I went to as a child.

When I was turning 12, I begged my mom to let me have a slumber party for my birthday. She finally agreed, and I ended up falling asleep at 10:00 and my friends stayed up really late. In the morning, everyone was mad at me because they said I wouldn't talk to them. Apparently, I sleep with my eyes slightly open, and they thought I was really awake when they were talking to me, and just ignoring them.

When I was 8, my mom said I could invite my three cousins to sleep over at our house one Friday night. I saw them at school that day and invited them to come over that night. 

I started playing with one of my friends at recess and thought of how much fun it would be if she came over also, so I invited her too. Then I saw another friend at lunch............

I think you can see where this is going.

I'm not sure why I didn't mention anything to my mom about the extra 5 girls I had invited over. I guess my my 8 year old brain actually believed that she wouldn't mind having 9 giggly and squealy little girls sleeping at our house that night.

Imagine my mom's surprise when the first girl showed up at our front door carrying a sleeping bag and pillow.

Then the next one............

And the next one.........

Poor mom.

My favorite sleep over memory was when my cousin M invited me and our other cousin A over to her house. I think we were about 8. 

We thought it would be really cool to stay up all night. We watched the Friday night horror movie double feature. By the end of the second one, A had fallen asleep. All of the television stations had signed off by then, so me and M played board games to try to keep ourselves awake. 

We finally decided to check the clock to see how much longer it would be until morning.

It was 3:00 a.m.

We thought that was SO cool. We had stayed up until 3:00 in the morning!

That's practically all night!

It was SO exciting!

We were positive that we were the only kids EVER to have stayed up that late!

We couldn't contain our joy at this accomplishment, so we went upstairs and woke up my aunt to tell her that it was 3:00 a.m. and WE WERE STILL AWAKE!

I still remember the pained look on my sweet aunt's face as she opened one eye, squinting from the bright light of the hallway which was shining directly on her face as she said:

"WHAT?!............................... go to sleep you guys."

Apparently is wasn't as exciting for her as it was for us.