Tidbits

I've been a little pre-occupied with my new "baby" recently...I submitted this ad a couple days ago to an online publication...I'll post the link when it's live

And busy with my other "baby", Peanut Butter and Pickles. Come see me tomorrow over there, talking about my latest healthy find.

This week is our spring break; Alec is home from school and Marvin is home from work. We usually try to start a home improvement project during this time. This year it's a privacy fence along the back section of our yard, outdoor living space improvements/cleanup, and expanding our garden.

I have some sort of sinus issue; it's either seasonal allergies coming really early or the beginning of a sinus infection. My head feels like someone packed it full of cotton. The worst part is that I'm allergic to Advil which is the type of medicine for this type of pain. Tylenol won't touch it...

Marvin shaved off his facial hair yesterday in the middle of the afternoon without telling me. I was so shocked, I couldn't look at him for the rest of the day. I kept calling him "death chin" because his chin looked so white from being covered up with hair for so long!! He's gonna grow it back right away...

Still in the middle of the to/not to homeschool Alec next year discussion. We're pretty close to making our decision, I have one little issue left that needs talking about. I've also come to the conclusion that I want to be the one that teaches Benji how to read, and that will bring about a whole 'nother discussion because Marvin and I were initially pretty set on sending Benji to Kindergarten this fall.

I"m getting rid of the last of my baby paraphernalia, I said goodbye to my beloved Boppy pillow last week, and my favorite baby bathtub the week before. Now that all the stuff is gone, the next step will be my maternity clothes, and you know what they say- as soon as you do that, you get pregnant!! The boys would be thrilled; we actually talked about it at length yesterday (out of earshot of Marvin, of course!) and they both heartily agreed that a new baby would be great. Hm mmm...

Alec is turning eight at the end of the week. I've been a momma for eight years! Oh my! I still sometimes feel like my high-school self, plunked down in a house with a husband and kids and it makes me gasp!

I'm off to bed now, it's cold in our office and my cotton head isn't feeling any better!
Happy Monday!

Wordless Wednesday

Free-Circus

I'm kinda new to the whole "Freecycle" thing.

The last time I posted something, it was my 1950's stove from my old kitchen that no one would buy. I got like 100 emails immediately and made the huge mistake of telling the first person that emailed me back she could have it.

Then, I read the next one and it was someone who really wanted it because it was vintage and cool, not just because she needed a free stove. That's who I wanted to give it to, and then my ever-present conscience kicked into high gear.

I stewed about it for a whole day and Marvin got so sick of hearing about it. He finally said, "Why don't you email Julie (the one I wanted to give it to) and ask her if she's getting rid of an old stove and if she'll give it to Lisa (the one who responded first)?"
What a fansastic idea! I ended up coordinating the drop off of Julie's old stove to Lisa and the pickup of my stove by Julie. It was, shall we say, MUCH more effort than I had bargained for, especially since I got nothin' out of it except more space in the garage.

Last night, a woman came to pick up a toy that I had posted. I went out to the porch to get it for her and it had vanished. I interrogated everyone in the house, including my mom who had just arrived 5 min. earlier, but to no avail. Mortified, I told the woman I was terribly sorry and if it turned up I'd email her.

I racked my brain for the answer to how something like that could just disappear into thin air. Finally I remembered that another woman had said she was coming to pick up a Boppy that I had listed, but I hadn't set it out yet.

On a whim, I emailed her and asked if she had possibly picked up the toy instead. Much to my surprise, she said yes, and that she was willing to come back and swap! Ok, seriously, who mistakes a Fisher Price toy for a Boppy nursing pillow! Either this woman is majorly sleep-deprived or she sent a man to get it who hadn't got a clue!!!

So, the swap is completed. Apparently it's not a good idea to place more than one item on one's porch at a time for pick up. Since I didn't learn my lesson, I have two things on my porch right now, but they're very clearly labled with neon green post-it notes. If the women get it wrong this time, I refuse to participate!

Oh, the Terrible. . .

. . .Twos! Can't you see it written all over her face?

It's that conundrum of an age; totally and completely adorable one minute and totally and completely irrational the next.

When the dress she wanted suddenly becomes the wrong one because I handed it to her? When the word, "No" sparks an eruption that rivals Mt. Saint Helens. When the phrase "public tantrum" strikes fear into the heart of the most seasoned parent.

Yeah, I know it's a phase. Yeah, I've been through it twice before. Nope, that doesn't make it any easier. What does make it easier is when she runs up to me in the middle of the morning, hugs my leg, and says in her pixie voice, "Momma, I love you!" "I love you too, baby", I say. And the glare that had formed in front of my vision melts so that I can see her beautiful blue eyes looking up at me.

I'm dubbing the terrible twos, "Sweet and Sour"

Wordless Wednesday

{thanks, Britt, for your fabulous photo skillz!}

Got Real?

There's a dolly on my desk...and a space pistol...and a roll of packing tape...and some nail clippers...and some trash...and an empty bowl from the kitchen...and a magazine...and lots more!

I don't know what it is about an empty surface in our house, but it attracts clutter like it attracts dust. I love to look at empty surfaces, it calms me and makes me feel that all is right with the world. Unfortunately, due to the habits of my husband and children, I usually don't have that privilege.

Anyone else have real to share this week?

The Logistics a Domestic Engineer

Weekly laundry:

32 pairs of pants, 30-40 shirts, 70 socks, 35 pairs of underwear, 5 dresses, 3 pairs of tights, 10 towels, 14 washcloths/dishcloths

Weekly dishes washed:

105 plates, 35 bowls, 45 cups, 105 spoons, forks and knives, 14 pots/pans/skillets

Weekly trips in the car:

20

Weekly times I clean up the kitchen and load the dishwasher:

28

Weekly baths to give/nails to trim:

28/80

Ok, this is just staggering! Oh, and I ONLY have three children! No wonder I'm a wee bit tired and snarky at the end of each day...

This week I saw...

...a fluffy hawk land on the top of a telephone pole beside the highway


...the 1473th person and the 1474th person turn around on our street using our driveway. People love to use our driveway for some strange reason! It makes me crazy.


...the giant, swollen bruise on the inside of my lower lip after Ava cracked me in the mouth with her head while she and Benji were fighting. They fought like Democrats and Republicans all week. It breaks my heart!


...the wide-eyed look on the lady's face at the grocery store when I asked her for 4 pounds of chicken from the meat case. "Go shop" she said, "it will take me a while!".



...yet another shredded diaper strewn across the carpet to welcome me home on Wednesday



...two Bluejays and two Cardinals eating bird seed leftover from a Cub Scouts project that we scattered at the top of our driveway



...Ava singing , "A dream is a wish your heart makes...when you asleep...in dreams you loose your...heart" (from Cinderella) while she fed her eggs to the dog at breakfast

(Late and sort of )Wordless Wednesday

I caught him sleeping...

Thanks number 20! *grin* Do you have a blog? Can I come visit you?

I have 19 followers...who wants to be number 20? C'mon, you know you want to!

Hello Dolly!

This is my beloved girlhood dolly, Brenda, after she has spent about 10 years in our damp basement, in a cardboard box. She was such a pretty doll, when she tipped up and down she'd make a crying sound and her eyes would open. Something bad happened to her hair (can't remember) and my mom sent her off to a doll hospital and got a new "wig" put on her. I spent hours playing baby with her; when I unearthed her this weekend, she was wearing a very old, funny-looking disposeable diaper and a pair of plastic pants that I probably wore as a baby (my mom did cloth diapers).

I had high hopes that my little Ava, who is at this moment obsessed with babies and princesses, would fall in love with Brenda the way I had. Unfortunately, my severe lack of foresight has resulted in a floppy, mildew-y, cloudy eyed disaster that is completely un-playable! Being the purging junkie that I am, I actually put her in our kitchen trash can, took the bag out and tied it closed. Then I immediately untied the bag amidst Benji's horrified yells of, "No! Put the creepy baby back!", took her out, wrapped her back up in her moldy blanket, and nestled her down in her cardboard box again.

On rare occasion, I do succumb to sentimentality, much to Marvin's pleasure. So, this one's for you, honey! Have fun finding a place to store her box!