I woke up today and pinched myself

For starters it feels like summer except without the burning sand. The temperature today was about 78 with a nice breeze. The pool heater didn't have to work quite so hard. Thankfully, I was enjoying the pool from the sidelines, taking pictures. It's my favorite place.

Stella loves the pool also as does every kid I'm sure that's stepped foot in this house.

We went back to the beach today and it proved that yesterday wasn't a freak occurrence. No one cried and toes got wet.

I have so few pictures of Brooke with her looking at the camera. She must have been feeling extra generous today and threw me a bone. She'll be sad when she looks at our scrapbooks and then I'll say, "I tried to tell you...". She's very pretty when she's not scowling at the camera.

Do you see Stella's hair blowing in the breeze? It's getting a little ridiculous that her hair is still so short. A year and a half and that's it? Grass grows faster than her hair for pity's sake!

Speaking of pity, Sister Sue wasn't getting her way. That's what I call her sometimes "Sister Sue and her __________ too." It's quite catchy and the blank can be filled by many, many fun things. The possibilities are endless.

Sometimes I let Brooke try her hand at taking pictures but today for a change I let Luke have the honors. He was pretty good for a first timer. We have our heads which is more than I can ask for.

I could eat them up! I want them to stay little forever, but be less annoying and not lock doors and grab forbidden things off counters.

It's me... by Luke. If he's this talented as a three year old imagine the possibilities if he had some training. I could sit back and still have pictures to scrapbook. I might be on to something.

Sister Sue and her sweet smile too. She says "Cheese" for me when I point the camera in her direction. Finally, someone who's on board with the photo sessions!

Grandma Kathy advert your eyes! Stella was being naughty by running on the couch, but in her defense, my mom and Mark were laughing at her only making it worse.

In this family, the kids (and mom) love to be tickled and scratched. Brooke's sad face no doubt is her impatiently waiting for her turn next. When is my turn I ask you? Although I can't complain because being on vacation hasn't been too taxing with Mark here to swim in the pool and my mom to fix dinner. It's a glamorous life I lead, if you ignore the two weeks a month I'm left for fend for myself. I'll stop and save the whining for when we get home....in another whole week. For now we are spoiled and I'm loving every minute of it!

Many Thanks

If you prayed for our safe and peaceful travels, thank you. I am happy to report that God answered our prayers in the exact way I hoped. Stella was patient and content riding in the car for 6 hours on Tuesday and then on Wednesday.

To pass the time we did school work, watched movies, ate candy, and listen to books on CD. I did none of that of course, but what I did was try not to be carsick sitting in the middle seat entertaining Stella and granting the many requests of my children. I felt much like a butler... at your service.

My parents were traveling with us. We met them at our halfway point in Lexington, VA. Virgina is a beautiful place and if it weren't in the middle of nowhere without an airport in sight, I might consider moving. The Appalachian Mountains are so pretty in the daytime. It's been years since I've seen them in the daylight.

Our hotel plans were to swim, have dinner (which we did at Ruby Tuesdays across the street from our hotel) and then put the kids to bed EARLY since none of the them had a nap. I can't count Stella's 25 minutes snooze in the car as a nap because, well, it was only 25 minutes and baby's need much longer naps. Just ask her mother. Luke was totally exhausted as you can see his face.

After a little bed jumping and book reading, Mark and I planned on tucking the kids in and then relaxing in my parents' adjoining room next door. That was the plan. It didn't work quite the way we had hoped. In fact, much like kids left unattended in a classroom, as soon as we left they went a little crazy. I thought with a few stern "lay down and go to sleep" lectures we'd be good to go. Not so much. I decided that I would lay with them until they went to sleep, but the situation went from bad to worse and before I knew it I was sleeping with Brooke and Mark with Luke. Meanwhile, Stella is pacing her pack n' play, yelling "uh,oh!" when her blankets hit the floor. While this is going on, Luke is flipping in the bed like someone was trying to fry him in a skillet. He had a few "run in's" with the law and then an hour and 10 minutes after we put our precious angels to bed, Mark and I (unaware of each other's thoughts from across the night stand) were thinking that maybe we should pack our punks back in the car and get to the beach in the wee hours of the morning where we could isolate their monkey butts and possibly get a decent nights sleep. I had to check myself and my anger because when I glanced at the clock it was all but 8:05 PM. I swear it felt like 10 or 11. Maybe that's because Mark and I got up at 5:30 AM to workout before we left. Whatever. And if it weren't for Brooke's feet in my back, Luke's snoring, and Stella crying out in her sleep at 3 AM, I might have had a really good sleep. Except I didn't.

But none of that mattered when we got to Grandma's beach house. Sadly, my mother-in-law couldn't come with us this year due to her bum knee that's stubbornly recovering. When we pulled in Luke wondered out loud if Grandma was here. It was very sad.

You know how different houses have distinct smells? I love the smell of this house. It makes me feel like I'm home, even though we only visit here a couple of times a year. I love the view even more. It makes all the driving and the restless night of sleep all worth it because were HERE....and we love it.

The weather wasn't as warm as this picture would lead you to believe. It was only 73 degrees or so, but thanks to the pool heater, we were able to enjoy the pool. Brooke's swimming lessons have paid off. She was able to jump in off the hot tub and swim without a life jacket. Very exciting for our water oriented family.

Even more exciting than swimming without a life jacket is the fact that we played at the beach today without anyone crying. Not a soul. If you know my kids at all or have been reading my blog since last summer, you'd have already heard me complaining about my kids not liking the beach. Imagine my surprise when the kids walked on the beach without fussing and complaining.

Stella was unbelievable. She took to the beach like a fish to water. After the initial shock of having sand on her feet, she was down with the whole experience. She plopped herself down in the sand and sat, contently for 20 minutes at least. She picked up sand with her hands and put in her bucket. I asked her if she liked the beach and she shook her head in agreement. I knew one of our kids would like the beach one day. I just didn't expect it to be our youngest.

She even LOVED the ocean. A girl after my own heart.

She liked the sand, the shells, and the ocean water. I couldn't believe my good fortune!

I love this time of year because it seemed like we had the whole beach to ourselves. There were good shells everywhere, every one prettier than the one before. Brooke bravely came to the water's edge and collected a few. The next thing I knew, she was letting the water wash over her feet! In the years past, she'd tolerate the ocean, but made sure she stayed a safe distance from the edge unless Mark carried her in and held on to her for dear life. I was proud of her for being so brave. It was funny to see her running like kids should, in and out of the little waves, laughing and splashing. The water was cold, but not painfully freezing.

I love that Mark would be an accomplice in my quest for fun photos. He willingly agreed to jump off this little cliff on the beach. He's so agile and handsome. Wouldn't you agree?

I have said that when you go on vacation with kids, you are just doing what you do everyday, but in a different location. It's true. There are still meals to be made, diapers to change and baths to give. But what I love is doing all that with this view. I love the beach. It makes me feel so peaceful. I don't even mind the sand in pants, in the bed, and between my toes. I prefer sand over grass from our yard which is usually what we have on our feet and on the living room carpet.

And last but not least, Stella is still Stella, even at the beach. It should be a really fun week!

The Death of Me

Stella is a lot like Curious George: She's a good little girl, but always very curious. One day the mom with the spare tire wanted her to take a nap. But Stella wondered what it would be like to play in her bed instead.

So while she was supposed to be napping, she was taking her pants and diaper off. Imagine my surprise when I peak at our video monitor and saw her buns sticking up in the air! After 2 hours of not napping, we got her out and then she was in bed for the night at 6:10. I looked in not 5 minutes later and she was fast asleep in the same position we left her in. Wtih her pants on.

We are leaving tomorrow for the beach. Please, if you're going to ransack the house, do me a favor and hit up the counter tops, the living room couch, and scare the rabbits out of our garden. Thanks.

Gotta go finish loading up the car and gathering up more crap. It's a never ending process, but I need to get to bed before midnight. Please if you think of us in the next two days, please pray that Stella will be content and take a loooong nap in the car. Oh, and I forgot the part about 5 of us staying in one hotel room tomorrow night in Virginia. That's always a hoot and a holler. Hopefully, no one will be vomiting this time. On second thought, add that to your prayer list also. :) I'll get back to you when we get to the beach.

Highs and Lows

A few years back we were introduced to a mealtime game called "Highs and Lows" by our friends in Houston, The Barrys. We thought it was cheesy at first, but it turns out it can be a great way to make conversation, beyond asking your kids yes or no type questions.
We've adapted it a little to include "Mediums" which can swing to the low or the high side depending what kind of day you've had. Brooke yesterday at dinner said, "My low is that I'm having a hard time and that you're (meaning me) a little frustrated with me." A little was an understatement, but I let that slide. It's fun, you should try it.


In the spirit of "Highs and Lows" my low has been shadowing Stella around the house pulling her from one activity of mischief and then another. All day long. It's been really exhausting and finally yesterday I concluded that especially while Mark is gone, I will have to consider putting her in her crib with a few toys so that I can make dinner without her hurting herself or me killing her. Pictured above is Stella in "Time Out" in the dining room. I had to move it from another location on the other side of the room because her arms are so long that she can either pull the table cloth off or the artwork hanging on the bulletin boards. I've had to get creative and move the curtains to one side and prop them out of her reach with a chair. She's a piece of work.

My high today is this over the door shoe organizer that I bought for $15 from Target. I got a library book about organization and the author recommended hanging one of these near the place where you enter and drop all your junk. My dryer is thanking me and Brooke and Luke were so excited that they were trying to find things around the house to put in their pockets. Kind of defeats the purpose, but I appreciate the enthusiasm. I might go extra nerdy and get my label maker out and label the pockets. I haven't decided if I have the energy for that or not. Probably not, but it is still keeping our laundry/mud room less cluttered.

One of my lows lately has centered around home schooling. Brooke's attitude (and possibly mine) has gone down the toilet. It's a little reminiscent of the beginning of the year when we she struggled to accept our new routine and all the hard work that went along with it. It all went downhill when the weather started getting warmer. It's more convenient for me to work with her when Stella is asleep, but her attitude is awful the later the day gets and then I want to strangle her even more. I have been researching new curriculum possibilities for next year. I really liked our experience with Sonlight but am looking for something a little different to teach her phonics, reading, and writing. A friend from our co-op lives in our neighborhood and she was so sweet to let me borrow books I'm interested in ordering for next year. I love that I don't have to buy new stuff without being able to look at it first. It should save me a lot of money too!

This is something relatively new we've been trying...marble jars. It's an incentive/reward system to encourage Luke to dress himself, not to cry in the bathtub (ridiculous!), call us to be wiped after he uses the bathroom, washing hands without complaining, having good manners and good attitudes. He already earned breakfast at IHOP for filling up a jar in about 2-3 weeks. I thought I'd try to be positive to shape good behavior. You're probably wondering if it has been working. Mostly would be the best answer I can give. Rome wasn't built in a day. I don't take marbles out except for bad behavior in the car. Disciplining in the car is a tricky issue, even if you do follow through when you tell them you're going to pull the car over. We've done that many times, but taking marbles out of the jar or just the threat is so much easier. It hushes the "Luke looked out my window", "Did Not!", "Did too!" arguments.

Forgive me for being negative, but another low has been Luke's sleeping habits. I have in my mind that once you get past that waking in the middle of the night phase with infants (0r one year olds at our house), that everyone will just sleep soundly. Not so much. This punk is waking up a couple of times a week and coming into our bedroom saying something about how something hurts. It's all a bunch of bull, and I'm so tired of it. There are many variations to this drama, and some like last night end with his monkey butt in the basement guest room. I told him this morning that if he comes into my room in the middle of the night, I'm taking him right down into the basement. Period. I'm mean when my sleep is disturbed but hopefully this will encourage him to learn to put himself back to sleep like three year should.

Brooke wanted a marble jar too so I figured it couldn't hurt. She is notorious for doing something helpful and then saying in the sweetest voice imaginable, "Excuse me mom. Since I did __________ (fill in the blank) without fussing, may I please put two marbles in my jar?" It could be something so ordinary as blowing her nose and she still asks. My original thought was to reward/encourage a good attitude during school work, but we haven't really gotten there yet. Four weeks of school left and counting....

A definite high is that next week we are going to my in-laws beach house in Nags Head, NC. We been every May since Brooke was 7 or 8 months old. It's such a crap shoot because the weather can be very summer-like or it can be 40 degrees with 40 mph winds. Needless to say, I pack shorts, pants, and warm jackets. Thankfully the pool is heated and if the sun is out, Mark will swim in it with the kids. It's nice to have someone that takes one for the team like that. I'm glad he's mine.

Speaking of my clever, handsome, and witty husband, I can now add "fit" to the list. For the last 6 weeks Mark's been exercising with his new boyfriend, Tony Horton, the P90X trainer. It's a set of DVD's that he's doing at home and on the road. It's extreme. He works out home or away, 6 days a week. Sometimes he has to exercise in the hotel at 10 or 11 at night while he's on the road. It's crazy hard. I cry a little every time I catch a glimpse of him doing it at home. It physically pains me to watch the love of my life sweating and straining so much, but he's committed to the program, so it's working. I heard him say during one workout, "I wish I had one less beer in college." I think one less wouldn't have mattered, but cut out his whole senior year and that might have made a dent in his spare tire. Love you honey!

My next low in that I have to go make dinner for my children. Luckily, cheese omelets are not too taxing. I hope Stella is as well behaved while I'm cooking as she was the whole time I was writing this. Add that to my list of highs because after this, it's all down hill until I get them in bed. :)

The Zoo..Again

The nice thing about having a membership to anywhere is feeling like you don't have to stay the whole day to get your money's worth. With little kids it's so nice to go just for a few hours and be home by nap time (my second favorite time of the day only surpassed by bedtime which is my absolute favorite). Also if we didn't pay out the big bucks for the "Gold" membership, we'd have to sell one of the kids to be able to afford train rides, carousel rides, and parking. Lately, we'd probably sell Stella.

I love not riding the carousel. Doesn't Mark look like he's having a blast? I prefer to take pictures instead and not feel like I'm going to vomit.

What a handsome guy! I made Luke pose in front of the yellow tulips because as we've known since he was a year and a half, yellow is his favorite color.

I asked Brooke to take our picture and she was THRILLED. She wanted to "pose" us differently and moves the camera all around. Wonder where she got that from? :) What I didn't post were the pictures she cut Mark's head off in.

Stella was content to ride in the stroller after she took her shoes off and was able to put her feet in her mouth when she pleased. I don't think I was ever that flexible. Ever.

While Mark took Stella and the stroller down the elevator, I took the Brooke and Luke for rides on the escalator. Loved it!

My baby was tired and couldn't wait until we got home for her nap and even though she slept for 20 minutes in the car, she went right back to sleep for two hours when we got home! That sort of makes up for the days this week when she didn't nap at all. Sort of.

It was so cute when the trainers took the elephants for a little walk around their habitat and the one held the other elephant's tail. I thought they only did that in the circus.

I'm in more pictures from one day at the zoo than probably the last 6 months. Just for the record, it's because I asked to be photographed. No offense to my sweet, handsome, clever, manly husband, but he just doesn't think of these things on his own.

After we fed the zoo keeper a dollar, Brooke got to feed the giraffe a cracker. It better at least have been organic for that price!

Brooke and Luke insisted that they ride together without Mark or I to cramp their independent style. It's little things like this that happen that allows me to imagine a day when I won't have to cut their food or check their teeth when they brush.

Hopefully, we'll make it to the zoo a few more times before it's too hot for me to spend a day walking around on asphalt. Every party has a pooper and that would be me. What's new?