Tick or freckle?

My grandma wanted a smaller dining room table and I coveted her real wood (as opposed to my semi-fake wood one) dining room table.  It was a three day weekend.  So we swapped.  My dad loaded my dining room set up in his truck and my parents headed to my grandmas.  Me, the hubs and the kids loaded up in the family suv and went.  (Leaving a very empty space in my dining room)

My grandma lives about 3 hours away and in the country.  Well, she lives in "town."  Her town has less than 700 people, a post office and a gas station.  Everyone has lots over an acre and no fences.  There is no stoplight.  It is tiny and quaint. 

My grandma has a huge unfenced yard.  The kids looooved playing in it.  But they got down and dirty.  They're kids so there is technically nothing wrong with this.

The dog also loved being in an unfenced wilderness.  However, we kept her on her leash.  That is until 9 pm and the thunder rolled and the lightening began to strike.  And she wiggled her collar off, thus losing her leash.  And off she went.  The hubs was putting the kids to bed and missed it.  So me and my mom ran after the dog.  For thirty minutes in the dark and in the rain my mom and I chased after the dog through one backyard after another, through rough terrain in flip flops.  We lost sight of her.  The hubs got the car and he and I drove for an hour looking for the dog.  Finally we found her...she took off again and the hubs took off after her on foot.  By now it was pitch black and pouring down rain.  I took back off in car after them.  Finally the hubs wrestled the dog back in the car.

We drove home today, arriving before my parents.  We all sort of collapsed on the empty dining room floor.  And I spotted it...a TICK on my leg.  Ewww.  But completely warranted, I suppose seeing as I traipsed around the country.  So, we all stripped down, the whole fam, in the dining room and searched for ticks.   The game of "tick or freckle" ensued. Syd had one in her ear.  Now she keeps saying "Ah!  I have another one!" and is panicky.  Owen says "incsects!!!!"  Nonetheless, between the four of us we found 5 ticks.  Yuck.

I heart my grandma.

But I am seriously staying away from the country for a while.

Four years ago today...

I married:

My best friend
My soulmate
My baby daddy

*yes, this person is one in the same, I did not marry 3 people.

Uh, I was like totally 5 months preggers here, and I swear I weigh more today than I did in this photo.

Quote of a lifetime...

There are a million and one ways to parent well and only a handful to screw your kids up royally.

This resonated with me and hopefully with you as well.

Awkard Moments = Blogging Moments

So after a long day of dog shopping (more on that later) I realized I needed laundry detergent (because when do I not?) so I headed up to the Tar-jay (does referring to Target as "the tar-jay" annoy you as much as when people call bfast for dinner "brennner" annoys me?)...amazingly enough I managed to get up to the tar-jay without any kids.  It was a miracle.  And I intended to make full and complete use of my alone time.  After all, it is mother's day weekend and after all, I'm as narcissistic as any other blogger and will make any excuse to make it all about me... So, I got me a have it your way frapp from sbux with extra coffee and extra caramel and started to stroll about the clothes.  And I found a a 50's style Stepford wife sleeveless cream & orange shift dress on clearance in my size (well, relatively my size, I usually take 3 sizes into the dressing room and depending on what store/brand/day of the week it is one will fit me).  So, I took the dress into the dressing room and had the zipper (it was a side zipper) half way up and it stuck.  It just stopped half way up.  It wouldn't go up or down.  I tried in vain to tug it up and nothing.  I tried in vain to pull it down.  Nothing.  I tried to pull the dress up over my head, and it wouldn't go.  I tried to wiggle it down over my hips but no such luck.  I was trapped in this dress.  I poked my head out of the dressing room and no sales associate.  There was one other customer behind a closed door.  I tapped my foot impatiently until I saw the woman leave her dressing room.  I accosted her.  The woman, tall and blond, 40-ish, with a vague Eropean accent tried with all her might to pull the zipper down and she couldn't make it budge.  She did however track down a sales girl.  Finally, after 20 min trapped in this dress, a 16 year old sprite of a girl, quite literally cut me, with scissors, out of the dress.  Talk about awkward - standing in my skivvies in the target dressing room with a strange girl.  Such is my life...

I'm watching A Lion in Winter on TCM right now (w/ Katherine Hepburn and Peter O'Toole)...and I forget how fantastic this film is... all the sharp barbs and smart lines.  It brings back memories, of high school, when our school performed the play.  I was never much of an actress but I was one heck of a stage manager.  Well, the hubs, thinks I'm crazy watching movies made before my birth.

Okay, the dog... Well, I've never been a dog person.  Not out of fear or dislike.  Just because I've never really owned a dog.  We had farm dogs when I was small but they were farm dogs not house pets.  But the hubs adores a dog.  And for over a week now he has been on a dog kick.  So, we bit the bullet and adopted a dog.  We went the local humane shelter.  They had over 100 dogs and it was a bit overwhelming.  Luckily, we had my mom with us, who knows a thing or two about dogs and the kids s we could see how the kids and dogs interacted.  We adopted a beautiful 2 1/2 year old female Siberian Husky named Kona.  

We made a trip to Petsmart, were Kona was better behaved than the kids.  She also did well in the car.  She's been part of the fam for about 6 hours now.  She seems to adjusted quite well to the house and the family.  She likes the cool tile in the kitchen and playing fetch in the back yard.  She has been playful but not hyper.  Sweet and a little reserved but not scared.  I have even gotten over my uncomfortableness and let her lick me, lay on me and brush her.

Below is are a few pics from the hubs iphone.  

And happy Mother's Day to all the mama's out there!

 

Motherhood, y'all

Thursday evening...got kids juice boxes from the sbux at the front of tar-jay (b/c I am a seriously awesome mommy like that... and the juice boxes give them some preoccupation so they don't grab every single item off the shelves).... I was busy browsing for the perfect card to go with a wedding gift for my boss (well, sort of my boss)...and Sydney dumped her apple juice all over Owen, soaking him head to toe in juice.  And his head was tilted up, so it went up his nose.  Pure joy soared through my heart.  Either that or an anxiety attack...

Scene: still at target.  The kids remove their flip flops and place on the motorized checkout thing-y... the target lady was nice enough to "scan" the shoes and accept the kids pennies as payment.  She said bye to the kids and Syd yelled "BY-EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEe" at the top of her lungs, quite cheerily...making the "e" last the length of leaving the checkout until we reached the car.

In the parking lot I attempted to unlock the car door... my "dooot-do" (otherwise known as keyless entry but I call it a "doot-do") doesn't work so I have to manually unlock the car door.  I let go of the cart and lo and behold a gust of wind came up and pushed my cart containing two thirty pound children and probably another 10 pounds of items all the way into the main aisle.  I had to lunge for the cart.

Saturday afternoon, kids go outside with the hubs, return inside with dandelions saying "Mommy, I got you a flower!  Kisses!"

1 am Saturday, er I suppose Sunday, morning... both kids wide awake... I put them both in our bed, slide in the middle, kick the hubs to the couch to snore... realize I have no pillow because the kids have absconded with them all...I lay in the middle, with no pillow.  Syd snuggles up under my arm and curls next to my belly, Owen snuggles my back and makes sure his feet are touching me at all times...the three of us sleep in peace the rest of the night.

Sunday midday, I just finished mopping...O decides he needs chocolate milk, but tells no one... half a gallon of chocolate milk on the floor later... I am mopping again.

Sunday evening...picnic in the park and lots of swing, sliding, smiling, playing tag, climbing...

My dear sweet children...how I love your tiny bodies.  I am continuously amazed that you came out of my body.  With your sticky fingers, your hot little hands... your ticklish feet and underarms.  Your gap teeth and cheesy grins.  Your sweet baby smells...and your stinky sweaty post nap smells.   Your soft hair... your insistence to hug then kiss then give a high five every time I leave for work.  Your eager hugs.  Your smarty pants observations.  Your vivacious little laughs.  I could watch you running, barefoot, through the sprinkler, on a warm spring evening at dusk, with your mouths wide open, your eyes huge, your laughs hearty...the flowers in full bloom, the tree leaves green, the grass freshly mowed... I want to freeze these moments forever and never lose them.  You my children, my precarious and shy Owen, my vibrant and sassy Sydney...you are in full bloom, just like mommy's begonias.

That is motherhood, y'all.