Down in front!

Sometimes we give T3 the option to sit with us in ‘big church’ until kids time OR the whole time. Typically he chooses to leave for Sunday school but sometimes he likes to stay with us. And at 6 years he’s pretty good about sitting still.

So this past Sunday, we offered and T3 chose to stay with us the whole time.

He colored and drew for a bit and then started to get a little fidgety. He didn’t want to leave though.

I’m not sure what I was thinking or what came over me, but I pulled up Bejeweled on my phone, turned down the volume and gave it to T3 to play.

It was a hit! It was quiet and a 6 year old has to pay attention and there’s not much interaction that requires talking.

So T1 and I are listening to the sermon and our pastor starts to lead us in prayer. This is typically the congregational prayer that leads to the Lord’s Prayer so that point we are only listening to her reverent words asking the Lord for his mercy and grace. It’s quiet and solemn. We had almost forgotten that T3 was there with us and playing a video game. Almost. Until he evidently made a good move and the silence was shattered by the loud hiss of

“YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!”

Dear Lord,

Please forgive us

Sincerely,

Tracy

Boot.Camp

Once upon a time there was a girl. When she was younger she didn’t really think about calorie consumption and exercise…primarily because she was young and healthy without much effort on her part. Then one day the girl got married and had a baby. That baby made her get so fat. J But eventually she was able to buckle down and lose that weight…vowing to either not have any more kids OR be more disciplined. On the VERY DAY she reached her lowest weight since that baby, she found out she was pregnant again. The hormones eventually took over and she went crazy and gained another 60 lbs. So now having broken both vows she tried to happily embrace her new ‘fuller’ figure. But one day she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror (not her own because that mirror made her look okay). She was sad and again vowed to lose weight. She signed up for a BOOT CAMP and excitedly counted down the days. Then on June 1st she got up bright and early and headed to boot camp! 5:30 a.m. sharp. And then she died.

~ The end ~

Okay, so she didn’t actually die in the literal sense BUT she was in such bad shape she got tendonitis in her Achilles tendon and can’t go back. The doctor recommended physical therapy – isn’t that a form of boot camp? :-)

He's got a way with words.

TK likes to watch Phineas and Ferb. It's a pretty cute-ish cartoon about two kids that do the impossible and drive their sister crazy. Phineas is smaller and sort of the leader. Ferb doesn't talk much andwhen he does it's with a crazy British accent. I don't watch it much and I couldn't remember if Ferb actually talked or not. So I posed this question to TK.

"TK, does Ferb even talk?"

"Um, he can talk, but he's really more of an action man.".

"Ohhhhhhhhh."

Like a rowboat for the flood

Captain's Log
Stardate: Saturday, Feb 28
The Mall

I got ambitious and took the kids to the mall Saturday. Alone. It had to be done. The big one needed soccer cleats and a new nosepad for his glasses and Todd was in Houston.

Soccer store: Success (if you don't count the little one screaming SOCCER SHOES, SOCCER SHOES, SOCCER SHOES until we handed him one to hold)

Lenscrafters: Success

Lunch: Er, well. The kids chose to have Sonic. Remember my Sonic post from back when? Well, they wanted Sonic and it seemed like that had matured enough to have Sonic cups :-). The first thing the big one does is poke a hole in his with the sample toothpick from Rollerz. While I'm getting a new cup the little one jams both thumbs through his Sonic cup. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

I tried to get him out of his stroller and the puddle of Watermelon slush the back-heavy stroller dumps over backwards and the slush puddle goes flying, the stoller crashes and my diaper bag lands with an ungraceful thud on the dirty mall floor. The lady sitting at the table next to us with her 5 (I'm not even kidding) clean kids, offers me a sympathetic smile and a napkin.

I get it.

Really, I do.

But from my sweaty point of view with the soaking baby on the hip it was so absurd that I couldn't even be gracious...

Thanks mall. We'll see you in about 10 years...

I'm okay!

You'll have to excuse my shrill voice - concrete floors in the house will do that and you'll have to excuse the dim lighting. It's because it's SO DIM that Todd even allowed me to share this video.

Of course, I'm proud that the little one RIDES A SCOOTER at 22 months, but that's not the funny part. You have to suffer through watching the little one "throw" the soccer ball to hear Teeks in the background crash and yell afterwards. It's so funny that I die laughing every time I listen. Comedy genuis... Oh and the little one riding a scooter is pretty cool, too.


I'm Okay! on Vimeo.

After I re-read "Hey Tracy" I realized that perhaps I came off all American Gothic and preachy - but I was raised in the South...and I am just partial to good manners. :-) AND I think that if a 6 year old calls me by my first name the boundaries of authority are somehow blurred...that's all.

Hey Tracy

"Hey Tracy!"

Something I hear at least 20 times per day. And it doesn't phase me one bit. Unless the voice is pre-pubescent and coming from a child in TK's class or from our neighbor across the street.

The first time our 1st grade neighbor said "Hey Todd" we both fell out laughing...and then Todd said "Um, it would make me feel better if you said Mr. Todd or Mr. W. Would that be okay?" "Sure Todd."

I have never thought of myself as old-fashioned and I still don't think I am, but there's something about kids calling adults by their first names that really bugs me. Is it too much trouble for you to teach your kids to use respect when addressing adults? At age 6 you are not my peer...I've got a few years on you.

Things

Just some things - in no particular order

• If you aren't a coach, please don't wear coaching shorts. Especially if it's *obvious* you aren't a coach. Coaching shorts are barely acceptable for real coaches.
• TK asked me last night what "government grants" were and "what did qualify mean and how do you do it". Time to turn the TV off, son.
• I never went to sleep last night. Unfortunately, it wasn't because I was out having fun - it was because I took a Sudafed 24 hr at 11:00 pm. I'm still not tired.
• I'm not surprised that my relatively new camera is broken and being held together with black duct tape. You might be a redneck...
• I have a 6 year old. Last night I was watching the kids eat dinner with no assistance and I started crying. I think it's because they are growing up so fast. Todd quickly said "That's how my cousin ended up with 6 kids - you need to dry your tears, like right now - we don't have room for 6 kids" :-) He's right - but it's sad.
• TK - my kindergartner has a school dance this Friday night. Yes, a dance. K-2 brings cookies, 3-5 brings drinks. I'm laughing just thinking about it. TK told me this morning to "watch his sweet dance moves" and proceeded to have what looked like some sort of seizure...

That's all for now. The drama happens around the clock here now so it's hard to figure out what's worth blogging about :-)

TTFN!

The negotiator

I can't remember if that was the movie with Kevin Spacey or not, but that's not "The Negotiator" I'm referring to. No sir, I'm referring the littlest member of my family - whom I affectionately call "Bitty".

So, a few nights ago Todd was in Arlington and I was home alone with the boys. Bitty had his bath first and TK was in the playroom playing. Bitty heard TK in there and said "See Ty-luh" (we are working on two and three words together). So I said "Yes, you can go see TK for ONE MINUTE and then it's off to bed". He looked at me very seriously and said "Fi minits". I said "No, ONE MINUTE" to which he replied "NO FI MINITS".

I take issue with a 21 month old that negotiates time with me. He's growing up so much faster than TK did. I know it's because he has a big brother to watch - and copy - leading to the following...

• He tells me to "Be ca-ful" when I get him out of the tub
• He says "Nah" when you ask him to take medicine. As in - will you take your medicine? Nah
• He rides a scoooter. Really. He pushes off with his left foot and balances on his right leg and rides - down the hill, up the hill, around the house, across the street - it's the only way to keep up with TK
• He demands "Ee-me mac" if he's in the mood for Easy Mac
• He can "buckadeen". That means he likes to buckle his own seatbelt.
• And lastly he like to talk on the phone to anyone that will listen.

Todd and I like his independence, but sometimes a mama just wants her 21 month old baby to be a baby.

"Nah"

The computer is fixed

I'm sure I have some stories to tell, but it's been so long I have probably forgotten them. Stay tuned.

Tree issue

It was just a plug...

Todd originally thought it was a plug, but wasn't about to dig around in there. All those glass balls hovering over concrete floors...it was bad enough with the little one. I'm still vacuuming up glass from the rug.

I'm not totally happy about it. I was hoping it was catastrophic so that I could talk Todd in to a new white tree for next year.

Nope.

Oh well.

Tolerance in not in their vocabulary

Todd, TK and the little one, that is. For some reason they don't like it when I sit on the computer and expect them to play nicely together in another room, without my attention and my adult supervision.

Todd, for some weird reason, doesn't like it when I get on the computer after the kids go to bed. I don't get it, but it's something about 'our only two hours of the day we get to spend together'?? Whatever.

So, because of my attempts to pacify their sensitivity I have been slow to update.

I will, though. I will.