Even being a stay home mom I work with clowns…

I was sitting down minding my own business editing when I was needed to run to the store really fast to grab a few things for dinner. I left all my editing stuff out (although I did take my phone with me).  Leaving it all out might have been a mistake.

This is how it looked when I left…

One computer has all my writing (I don’t have internet on it), one has a dictionary/ thesaurus open, and one is just for research. I know I could have windows open for the research and thesaurus, but I didn’t want too. Also I had my phone next to me because I always get phone calls and texts when I’m writing or editing — not because of Facebook or Twitter or anything. I’d never waste time there. The binder is one of my beta’s with their notes and such, and the list on the binder is my “said list.”

When I returned home from my store run I found this…

Ok, one of these is broken, one is my oldest daughter’s, one is my husband’s, and then they put their cell phones on the high chair… *deep sigh*

Yep, I can’t get away from clowns in my work place. I guess I should be glad that they didn’t mess with anything important.

Note ~ My “said list” is a list of about 100-200 ways to say “said” so I don’t always say “she said” or “he said.” It reminds me to add the extra emotion and use words like words for example “she cried” or “he chuckled.” When I first write the story I usually write it so fast I just over kill the word “said.”

Pregnant Women and Toddlers vs. The Shoes…

The Similarities of Toddlers and Pregnant Women continues…

Both toddlers and pregnant women have trouble getting their shoes on — particularly matching shoes on. The reasons are different, with tots it’s that they are just learning and want to do everything by themselves and with us big bellied ladies it’s more of a contorting and vision obstacle issue. Trust me, when I get as big as I should be in the months to come I never mind getting a little help. Please and thank you.

Frankenstein’s Dinner…

There have been times, more than once, where I am asked my least favorite question in the world and had to come up with an answer, an answer that I had to make up.

Every mom (or dad) has a panic solution for when this question catches them off guard. Some order pizza, others play it cool and act like take-out was their plan all along, not me… I go into full freak-out- and-cook-now mood. I forage the fridge looking for a ‘green’, I hunt the cupboards in hope to find a wheat, I search the remains of the kitchen looking for the protein and iron food (normally a meat), and then pray a dairy will pop up along the way. That is when I make, what we refer to as, Frankenstein’s Dinner.

Just like the monster he created, Frank’s dinner is whatever we I could dig up all stitched together in one bizarre and freakish meal. Unlike Frank’s monster I do try to make sure this dinner is healthy and won’t chuck small children in the river.

Bon appétit

Note ~ (Frankenstein Spoiler) On the topic of Frankenstein, I know the book and movie are different, in the book he saves the little girl and in the movie he kills her. I need to read it again… it’s been so long.

Pregnant Women and Toddlers…

Now for some fun! Warning there is a little potty humor here today…

The other day I was at a friend’s house, we were drinking hot chocolate and letting the little ones play. Her two year old son (who is being potty trained) vanished for a few minutes. He reappeared cheering for himself and without pants. He wanted us all to go and view what he had just done. Yes, us ALL. I was not left out just because I was a guest. I’m sure you guessed it – he pooped in the potty! YAY!!!

My friend was a little embarrassed, but I understood and I let her know that the other day I announced (without the show and with pants on) to my family my bathroom accomplishments. She laughed and we went on to joke about how pregnant women and toddlers have a lot in common… a lot.

Before I was pregnant I would have never told even the closest of friend that I was constipated; now I chat with a few others due in July about how pregnancy has clogged us up, and I’ve never even met these people in person. We try to help each other with ideas from drinking hot cocoa to safe poo softeners to going out in the woods and eating twigs and berries. (The last one is a joke, don’t try it!)

This all left me with an idea of making a little bit of a blog series ~ The Similarities of Toddlers and Pregnant Women. So here is the first one…Note ~ This series won’t be every day or consecutively all the time, just when I get the chance to share a new one.

Note note ~ Being with child really does slow you down in every way.

Note note note ~ I might change the series name… I’m only good at naming kids and characters – not labels, titles, and such.

Q: Where did I go for two months? A: The bathroom…

One of the other reasons I’ve been out most of November and December.

When will this morning night sickness ever end? The doctor did say that it’s often an indicator that everything is going well.

As a lot of my readers know it took Richard and me 6 years to have our baby so this was an ENORMOUS shock, but we’re very happy all the same.

IF everything goes as planned…

In June I should have the fat feet that are bigger than the belly (and surprisingly I STILL cannot see them). The girls will paint my toes all kinds of crazy colors… hey, I can’t see them! My right arm (with the pinched nerve) gets way worse, but it’s worth it.  My hair losses its body because there is now more of it. I have ever pink cheeks… I really do glow when I’m pregnant. I’ll be a few sizes bigger than last time. And a very full belly, bladder, and heart… One that’s full of baby, one squished with pee in it, and one with love that just keeps growing as my family does.

In July I should have a little smaller belly, but full arms. The feet shrink almost overnight along with the pinched nerve that gets 100 times better. The hair starts to slowly fall out, so it gets some body back… as I start getting mine back. The pink cheeks and glow go from me to the little bundle of joy. The weight stays… oh the weight loves to stay, it even invites some friends over to my butt and hips. With the belly flatter and the bladder able to hold more, the heart has a little more room to grow even BIGGER as I see the baby open their eyes for the first time and water runs out of mine. Yes, I cry every time I see them open their lovely eyes. Silly, I know.

If the baby isn’t shy in a few weeks I’ll let everyone one know if we’re having our first boy or if we are going to get to be cheap and keep it pink. Either way I’m happy. The 12 year old wants another girl, almost demands it. The 15 year old is thinking blue — all the time. Hubby and I would like to just have a healthy little one… cute would be nice too.

I’ve had two ultrasounds already (I’ve been told that the baby looks great) and I passed all my 35 and over tests with flying colors. YAY!!!

I hope everyone is getting to share good news and happy times with their loved ones. I’m glad I could share this with you.

FYI ~ Most fertility books DO NOT tell the reader that ‘you are most fertile after you have a baby.’ This is something we learned on our own.

Shopping…

My oldest and I went to Target not that long ago. It was an interesting experience for both of us, but mainly her.

First stop MOM BRAS! Yes, mom needed a bra or two… My 15 year old didn’t handle this well at all.

At first I was escorted away from this area of the store while being told by my 15 year old child that, “You have enough bras at home. You don’t need any more.” She REALLY honestly said this to me. While shopping for other things I offered to take off my bra and show her how ratty and tattered it was. She didn’t like that idea very much and finally allowed me to pick one out (maybe two) if she could wait two rows over in socks. And I had to agree hide them under everything so no one would see them. Oh yes, and we were not allowed to talk about ‘them’ the rest of the shopping trip.

Next we were off to pick out a few shirts for my husband.

My daughter wanted to die for a brief moment when she witnessed an orange grizzly-man with his pants half on (or half off — depending on if you’re an optimist or not) trying on shirts in the middle of the t-shirt row. She told me after the ordeal was over that she expected that in Wal*Mart but not Target. LOL!!!

A few other things happened. We took a few pictures down the toy isles of gift ideas for her sisters. We even grabbed a few stocking stuffers, like lip gloss, and nail polish (although 95-97% of the stocking stuffers my hubby bought this year… alone – that’s a whole other blog post.)

After it was all done and we were in line getting ready to check out I was poked in the shoulder… Ouch!

The guy stepped back a little and apologized… plus…

I was polite and I did try to use my hand with my rings a little more when I was checking out. But he just kept flirting. It was so obvious that the casher gave me a few funny glances.  You know the type? The ‘girl-friend eye talk’ kind of glances — the ones that are screaming, “He is SOOOOOO hitting on you!!!” LOL! Anyway my daughter wanted to curl up and die. At least that’s what she said on the way out to the car. She also made a note that “Mr. Mom-Flirter” saw my new bras. And on the topic of bras — she was not pleased with my new bras either. She told me I could keep the white one but the black lace one HAD to go back.

I hope anyone out there shopping with their teen/s had a little better luck than we did. But hey, it gave me something to blog about.

In loving memory of my husband’s loving grandma…

When I was first introduced to Richard’s family I was sure most people felt he shouldn’t be marring someone who had already been in one failed marriage. I knew from what Richard told me that his aunt and uncle (on his dad’s side) would greet me with open arms, but he never said how his grandma would react. I also knew he had told her we were engaged before we went up there to see her for the first time.  I knew she was interested in meeting me, but that was all I knew.

When we arrived up there Richard called her to let her know we were there, his aunt and uncle had not arrived yet. She met us at the door. She stayed inside the apartment, moved her walker over to the side and said some of the kindest words I have ever heard spoken, and they were to my daughters. “I never thought I would live to see me great-grandchildren and here you both are.” She gave them each a big hug and said, “I love you both.” Then she invited us all in. She hugged me as I walked in and it looked like she had tears of joy in her eyes. She thanked me for coming up with the girls and told me how truly happy she was to meet all three of us. She let me know that she never thought Richard would get married, but she was very happy that he was going to be, and that she was extremely happy about the girls. We talked for only a little while before his other family showed up. I think it was the nicest meeting of strangers that there ever was. I walked away knowing that the girls and I were not just going to be part of their loving family but that we already were considered a part of that loving family. She made me feel very happy that day and when we left, the girls and I talked Richard’s ear off the entire way home about how perfect they all were.

When she saw the baby for the first time, the baby was a few months old (Grandma lived about a 2 hour drive away). I wish she could have seen her sooner. Anyway, her hands shook with delight as I placed the little pink bundle in grandma’s lap. Grandma’s eye watered again with tears of joy. And we took about 500 pictures. I think the sweet lady told us “thank you” and “I love you all” about a million times that day.

I feel so blessed that I got to know his grandmother. She was, and still is, loved by everyone in my home. Richard and I will keep her alive as best we can in stories to our children and any grandchildren we are blessed with. I make sure I do that with my grandma and grandpa on my dad’s side and my very wonderful aunt (who was my grandpa’s sister on my mother’s father’s side). Sadly none of the children got to meet any of them, I’m glad these three lucky girls got to meet this lovely lady.

Grandma Winters left us, with just a little warning, a week ago today. We miss her very much already and wished we saw her more than we did.

Note ~ Sorry there are no cute pictures or funny jokes with this blog and sorry I’ve missed the last month. Not everything going on in my life has been bad. Around Christmas I will HOPEFULLY share some great news with everyone. Hug those you love and tell them too. You can never say, “I love you” too much.

15 years ago today…

Warning ~ there are real pictures of my premature daughter here. She was very sick at birth and I was told that she probably wasn’t going to live past 3 days old.  She had a blood transfusion at 2 days, her first blanket was a little plastic tarp, and many other things happened that I’m just glad we are done with.

Sometimes you don’t want to hear that there is a need to stay in the hospital.

This little baby has taught me how to be brave. I watched her at 7 as she walked away from me to have eye surgery. After the event she cried tears of blood for 3 days. But she did it and she was sweet and kind about the ordeal.  She is one of the strongest and most understanding people, even as a baby (all but that nasty bit of colic).

My 15 year old girl loves pandas. Since she was 6 (and has never shifted) she said that she wants to be a vet. She is the most kind and caring teenager I have ever met. From as early as I can remember she has favored the color orange, but over the last few years she’s picked red as her new fav. She LOVES to text her friends. She has two besties. One is her best-best friend and the other is her best friend. She gets along with near everyone. She has mastered the almost smile that teens love to give.  Her long blond hair has never been cut (but bang) and goes down to her knees. She has a little cow-lick in the front that makes her hair poof there. She loves veggies and has her whole life. When she was two she used to ask for “baby trees” (broccoli) with every meal. She’s a very strong reader.  She calls herself a ‘grass picker’ when it comes to sports and she hates math.

The picture she picked out of the pandas I drew.

Note ~ People ask all the time why she was born early and treat me like it was my fault. I’m allergic to most antibiotics. I had a nasty bladder infection that turned into a kidney infection. Being pregnant they couldn’t give me just anything and there was only one that I could take while I was pregnant. The doctors stopped labor from happening so many times… they just couldn’t that last time.

His True Love…

After a stress filled night and a long hard day at work, full of anxiety.  My hubby hops in the car and races home going a little over the speed limit the entire way.  He knows his love will be there when he walks in the door. He’s checked on his true love many times over the last few days.

He rushes in the house and declares himself to the love he’s been waiting for…

He checks it over for any damages or harm. Once he sees that it is lovely and perfect. He shows it a little affection.

*Sniffle* “Isn’t she the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen?” He asks me.

I stare at him blankly and wonder off to phone the doctor only to find that he is out sick with the iPhone Flu.

Did anyone show up at work today? The only reason my hubby was there was because he missed a week this school year already

Note ~ The baby learned to say APPLE this week and my hubby wanted her to greet the delivery guy saying her new fav word. BUT when the man with the new toy showed up I was in a towel and felt that I should just let him take the paper and leave the phone on the doorstep. I’m sooooo glad I remembered to put the form on the door before my shower or it would have been a LOOONG unpleasant weekend or a very interesting new blog post… :-/

Still very happy…

I have to start months ahead of this day in my history… It was Valentine’s Day and my future husband and I had been dating since Oct. He had been planning a special date for us. I had no idea just how special it was going to be.  Days The night before I picked out an outfit, and I planned how I was going to do my hair…

What I envisioned was near this…

Unfortunately my throat was really sore the day before and by Valentine’s Day I was sick as a dog.  I could only breathe with my mouth wide open, my eyes were extra watery, my nose was like a faucet someone had just left on, and I was flushed with a light fever… I was not a pretty sight. I looked like a sick cat or bunny. Reality sometimes bites.

My wonderful man wasn’t upset. He comforted me telling me that the next weekend we’d go out, and he still came over to visit with his sick girlfriend.  He brought me a massive purple ape, roses, a “bored” game, chocolates, and heart candy.  I made sure he didn’t sit near me, I love him and didn’t want to get him ill. I felt so awful killing our plans, but my immune system just wasn’t strong enough to fight off the black plague deadly flu nasty cold.

While I was sitting there blowing my nose watching a movie (I can’t remember what movie) something landed on my lap…

I was shocked! Did he really mean it? I turned and looked at him and asked, “Are you serious?”

INCOMING! Another candy landed on my lap, but he did not speak.

Like a deer in the headlights I was frozen in shocked. I didn’t know this was “the big plan” I crushed. Two more candies landed on my lap, a “Yes” and a “No” I had to decide… I looked at him from across the room and said, “I need you to tell me, in words, that you really mean this and it’s not a joke.” I didn’t think he’d play a prank like that, but really this is THE BIG QUESTION.
He FINALLY spoke, “It’s real. I am really asking you.”
I ate the “No” and put the “YES” on the arm of the couch. He looked at it and smiled. Then I grabbed it to put with the rest to save. I wanted to smother him in kisses and hugs, but I did not want him to get sick. So I sat there happy, but still unable to breathe through my nose.

Today my husband and I celebrate being married for a very long time. Ok not THAT looooong, but still it’s been a few.   My love for him has grown with every day of our marriage.

Happy Anniversary, to the man I picked to spend the rest of my life with. Thank you for sticking with me through the sicknesses as well as the health, all the great times and the hard times.  I hope that when death separates us we find each other on the other side. I also hope that’s in the very far future.

Note ~ Later on when we told others about the event I found out that because I was so sick he was unable to tell, at all, if I was happy, sad, or just plan shocked by the whole event. Poor guy, I was very thrilled.

Note note ~ Yes, I once had short hair and wore ankh necklaces. Hey, I was young once too.