More kid stories

Kid stories - aren't they the best?  Their innocent remarks and questions make me smile.  That is why I have to document them and save them so I can always remember how sweet they were as kids.  I will be re-reading these stories many times throughout their teenage years to remind myself of the smiles and joy they brought to me before the hormones came around.

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I made Carson a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch and sat down to join him.  As he was eating he was looking at the sandwich and I could tell there was some pondering going on in his little head.  He looks up at me and and asks, "Do you know where peanut butter comes from?"  And before I could answer he responds, "from peanuts."

"Yes, Carson very good." I say.

"And the jelly comes from jelly beans." he continued.

"No, guess again." I reply.

"Jelly fish?" he questioned.  "No, it comes from grapes.  Now what about the bread, where does that come from Carson?"

"Trees."

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Luke has started this new thing with me.  Whenever I drop him off at school or the child care at the gym he will wave at me and give me a wink with his eye.  Lately, he's also been doing it at home.  So in response I have been doing it back to him, but when I wink I always do it with my right eye, habit I guess.  This apparently isn't the way to do it because he gets frustrated with me and says, "No mom - the other eye."  

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I am usually pretty good at giving the kids time updates for when we have to do something.  For example, I will tell them they have 5 more minutes until it's time to clean up for dinner.  Carson is starting to understand the concept of time, but not always.  I have found him asking me if that means there is a lot of time left.  

The other day I said to the boys that we will be leaving for the gym in one hour.  (I don't know why I felt like I had to give that far in advance of a reminder, but any-hoo...)  Carson asked, "Is that a long time?"  And in response I put it in terms that a 6 year old could relate to.  I said one hour is as long as it would take you to watch 2 Spongebob episodes.  He understood.

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I started the boys bath and went downstairs to finish up some laundry.  I told the kids to get in the bath and I would be right up.  They listened alright, but when I came back up to see what all the laughing was about I see them in the bath with their swim trunks on.  Carson looked at me and asked, "Are you going to blog about this?"

What a difference.

When we first moved to Ohio I had to find a pediatrician right away.  The kids had to have updated doctor forms filled out in order to be registered for school.  Not knowing anyone, I had to rely on my own decision to pick a doctor.  I searched online for doctors within our insurance plan and played enie-meenie-miney-moe carefully choose one that seemed good. 

Note to self - never choose a doctor because their name sounds normal.

I have to give this doctor some credit, she was very friendly and nice and was able to get this out of Luke's nose.  But other than that, I don't think there were any other qualifications to make her fit into the doctor category.  

For example, I took Carson in because I thought he might have had pink eye the beginning of the school year.  I sat down with Carson next to me and started explaining his symptoms to the doctor; red eyes, goopy stuff on them, itchy, a minor cough, runny nose and so on.  I didn't want to leave any details out but my main reason was to get something to help him clear up the pink eye infection.  

The doctor without even looking at Carson whipped out her prescription pad and started writing scripts.  As she's writing she started talking about herself and her kids that are now grown up.  It was like social hour at the office.  I interjected and asked if she wanted to look at his eyes.  And she responded, (while still writing prescriptions) "nope - whatever he's got this ought to get rid of it."  

I kid you not.  

She handed me 3 prescriptions and started to get up to leave.  Before she walked out I asked what each one was for and if I really needed to fill all 3.  

One was for eye drop antibiotics to treat the pink eye - good.  

The 2nd was a liquid antibiotic to treat "whatever he's got" - what a way to narrow it down Doc.

And the 3rd was a cough medicine.  This is the one that got me - I mentioned he had a minor cough, but went into no other detail about it.  So I really didn't feel comfortable giving him that one and asked yet again if it was necessary.  And you know what she said, "It can't hurt to give it to him."  

On the way out the nurse handed me a 12 pack trial of Delsym cough medicine.  I walked out of that office and vowed never to return again.  I can't stand over medicating my children - it's borderline negligence what this doctor was doing.  It's like she had to hit a certain quota of med sales in order to make a living.  Wrong, so very wrong. 

So in the meantime, I got to know my neighbors with kids and wised up.  I called a few to find out who they use as a pediatrician and if they were really happy with their doctor.  I got some names and this time made an educated decision. 

Fast forward to this week:

A few days ago, Carson had a low grade fever and I thought it would be a good opportunity to get established at the new doctors office.  I made the appointment and we got in that day.  This new doctor was also friendly and nice, but the main difference was she made eye contact with me, talked to Carson, LOOKED in his mouth and ears and listened to his breathing - you know, all the things a normal doctor should do!  

And the outcome?  Most likely a viral infection which will clear up on it's own without medication.  

AMEN!  

I did ask her what she recommended for his cough thinking she would say Delsym or some other otc cough syrup.  And surprisingly, she said the best cough "medicine" is honey or you can dilute even parts of honey, sugar and water.  Plus you can give it to your child every hour if needed since it's food.  

Double AMEN!  

I heart this new doctor.

No one's perfect.

Here's your laugh for the day.

I saw this video posted by a friend on Facebook and I got such a laugh out of it.  I never realized how funny (even though it was unintentional) former President Bush was until I saw all these clips put together.  

Works for me Wednesday - Hiccup Remedy

It's been awhile since I have had a case of the hiccups.  In the past I would normally follow this remedy which was pretty fool proof.

I have also tried holding my breath, taking deep breaths, eating a spoon full of sugar (which never got rid of the hiccups but did give me a bit of a sugar high), and having someone try and scare them out of me.

But the newest method that a friend told me about is to drink water through a straw while plugging your ears.  It seriously works!  

I was going to post a video demonstration, but when I started recording, my hiccups went away.  So there is yet another way to clear up your hiccups - videotape yourself!

That works for me.

For more WFMW head on over to the new location at We Are THAT Family.

Rock On!

I saw a post similar to this on another blog and thought it was a great idea.  I have listed all the live concert events I have been to in my life as much as I could remember.  Some of them I am ashamed to admit, others just plain rocked.  It's funny how much my music choice has changed over the years.  I'll list them in chronological order:

Alanis Morissette (1995, and 6 other dates if not more)

Nine Inch Nails (1995)

David Bowe (1995)

Filter (1995)

Everclear (1995)

Silverchair (1995)

Q-101's Twisted Christmas 2 (1995)

• Alanis Morissette, Weezer, Porno for Pyros, White Zombie, Oasis, Silverchair, Tripping Daisies

Jars of Clay (1998)

Kings X (1998)

Tori Amos (1999)

B-96 Summer Bash (2000)

• I think Usher was there, but I don't remember any others.
  

Smashmouth (2000)

Matchbox Twenty (2000)

Edwin McCain (2000 and 8 other dates if not more)

Tonic (2002)

The Rock Boat (2002 and 2004)

• Pat McGee, Sister Hazel, Will Hoge, Cowboy Mouth, and so many more.

Mary J. Blige (2006 - Oprah Show taping)

John Mayer (2007 - Oprah Show taping & Crossroads Fest.)

Crossroads Festival (2007)

• Sheryl Crow, Eric Clapton, Vince Gill, Willie Nelson, Steve Winwood, Buddy Guy, Jimmie Vaughan, The Derek Trucks Band, Los Lobos, and many others.

Concerts I would love to attend (just to name a few):

• Beastie Boys
  
• Lenny Kravitz
  
• Michael Buble
  
• Justin Timberlake
  
• Pink

What about you?  Do share.  What was one of the most memorable concerts you've been to?  

March for Babies - Team James & Jake

Click here to help me reach my goal!

This year I will once again be honored to be a part of Team James & Jake for the March for Babies event being held on April 26th.  

To learn more about Beth's team click here.  You can make a difference by either joining this team and walking or supporting a walker/runner.  

Beth is such a dear friend to me and I feel this is something that I can do to honor the memories of her sweet baby boys, James and Jake.    

I hope you can feel it in your heart to donate to this amazing cause.  

Only Carson

While in the van Carson looked down at his hands and asked me why there were cracks on them.

I told him because they probably were dry.

He told me he thought his hands looked old. 

I responded by saying he just needed to put on some hand lotion and that would help them feel and look better.

He responded, "Does grandma use lotion?"

(Sorry Mom!)

Good news and bad news

***Update***

Sure enough - I was right again.  HH (hooker-hamster) had another set of babies today.  What am I going to do?!?!?  This is ridiculous.  I am living in hamster hell.

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I have some good news to report.  Remember this post?  And then this one.  Oh yeah, one more.

Well, I am happy to report that we are half way into adopting out these critters.  There are only 3 more that need to find new homes.  When they reached 4 weeks of age we separated the females from the males to the best of our knowledge, and I feel 95% sure we got it right.  

So now I bet you're wondering what the bad news is, right?  

Well, that other 5% makes me feel like we didn't do the separating soon enough.  

It appears that Momma-Sniffer may be "with rodent," as in expecting, aka pregnant.  Who knew we bought a hooker-hamster?  Seriously!  

Be on the lookout for birth announcement #2 in the near future and an eviction notice if this continues.

Sigh.

Wrong lyrics

There have been times when I am listening to a song and I start to sing along, but realize I may have the lyrics wrong.  

Has this ever happened to you?  

Sometimes, it's obvious such as the song "Higher Love" by Steve Winwood.  When I was younger I always thought that he was singing, "Bring me a pie of love," instead of what he was actually singing, "Bring me a higher love."  I am not joking as embarrassing as it may be.  

Or how about this one.  "Too Legit to Quit" by MC Hammer, which I thought he was singing, "do the jerk, do the jerk at work."  Cut me some slack, I was young.

Other times the lyrics that I hear and what's actually being sung aren't as obvious.  Which brings me to my latest mistake.  

I was watching American Idol and first can I just say someone needs to throw some hot wax on the caterpillars that are overtaking Paula's forehead?  Did I miss the memo that thick eyebrows are the new fashion?  No thank you. 

Sorry I got sidetracked.

During the show (or maybe it was at the end) they show a clip of the next weeks contestants who are dancing around like kids on a sugar high.  The song they are dancing to is "When I Grow Up" by the Pussycat Dolls.  I've heard this song before on the radio, but I was a bit shocked that Idol would use it to promote the singers, especially the guys.  

You might be scratching your head right about now.  Let me explain.

Here is what I seriously thought the lyrics of the chorus were:

When I grow up
I wanna be famous
I wanna be a star
I wanna be in movies
When I grow up
I wanna see the world
Drive nice cars

I wanna have boobies

Yep, I thought the Pussycat Dolls wanted to grow up and have boobies.  Isn't that every girls dream?  So you could understand that it was a bit odd for me to see a guy dancing to that part of the song (well, most of the guys).  I come to find out that I had the lyrics wrong, surprise, surprise!  

They actually sing, "I wanna have groupies."  Ah-ha.  That makes more sense.  It's still a stupid song, but at least now I won't be going around singing about ta-ta's.      

Naportunity

Yesterday was an overcast, dark and dreary day.  It rained on and off most of the day here in this part of Ohio.  On cold rainy days I can't think of a better way to spend my time than taking a nap.  And I got a whole 5 minutes of sleep.  It was just enough to make me tired the rest of the afternoon and evening.  

Luke has pretty much stop taking naps altogether since before the holidays.  And that really stinks because he's 3 (almost 4) and he could really benefit from them.  Who am I kidding?  I could really benefit from him taking a nap.  It's really a win-win situation.  Little grumpy boy gets much needed rest and cranky mommy gets much needed sit-in-front-of-the-TV-and-veg-out time.  

So I suggested that Luke and I take a nap together in mommy's bed.  He was actually all for the idea which made me happy.  We got cozy under the blankets and I could feel myself drifting off, but at the same time I could feel his breath in my face.  I open my eyes to see Luke staring at me inches away from my face.  I reposition him to get the much needed distance and start to drift again.  This time I am startled with a sweet little kiss on my forehead.  Finally we both seem to get comfortable and I feel sleep overcome my body.  My nap was then interrupted five minutes later when my oldest came home from school and started yelling for me.

My naportunity failed.

Works for me Wednesday - Oven Preheat

I can honestly say I have never (officially) participated in a WFMW (Works For Me Wednesday) post.  Sure, I have done my fair share of offering some tips and tricks, but to actually join the online community for the whole world to see has not occurred.  

Yet.  

But today I change all that and take a step forward with my brilliant subpar knowledge.  

And although this tip may not be earth shattering, it can shave a few minutes off your dinner preparation time.  

Let's say you have a regular conventional oven that may be a few years old, or maybe older.  If it's anything like mine it takes way too long to preheat, which drives me crazy.  Now if I was a bit better prepared I would remember to start the preheat cycle when I start getting dinner prepared, but remember folks, I have 3 boys, enough said.

Therefore, when it's time to cook my meal I have to sit around and wait for my oven to warm up to the appropriate temperature, and I am not a patient waiter.  

But here comes the tip, are you still with me here?  Bless your hearts.  

Instead of preheating it to the temperature you need to cook with, preheat on the broil option.  It takes much less time and you can have your dinner cooking sooner than later.  

One more tip - don't forget to change the temperature back down to the appropriate level before placing your dinner in the oven, otherwise you'll end up with some char-broiled chow.

And if that happens, my next tip is to have your local pizza delivery chain programed on speed dial. 

The ever important phone book.

What do they call the age that we live in right now?  The information technology age?

To me that signifies our reliance on the mighty computer and the world wide web.  We have so much information right at our finger tips with the click of a mouse.

If that is the case, why in the world do they continue to mass produce and mass distribute thick productions of a phone book?  This I truly do not understand.  

It seems like every month a new book is delivered to my door.  And it's not just one company - there are several that print and deliver their own versions.  It is madness.  

So what do I do with my collection of white and yellow pages?  It's not like I'd actually use them for their intended purpose.  I give them to my kids to play with - makes perfect sense, no?

They make great booster seats at the kitchen table and wonderful step stools to reach the candy that mom put way up high.  They are also fun to stack up like hurdles and incorporate them into an obstacle course through the house.  If you angle them just the right way and get a good running start they make fantastic indoor surf boards across the carpet.  You can also line them up for a game of hopscotch or leapfrog.  

But in the end, where they really belong are in the recycle bin.  Sorry kids, the fun is over.  Mommy had to recycle your toys.      

But don't fret, I am sure a new delivery is getting ready to hit our doorstep any time.

(And yes, those are the majority of the phone books that have been delivered to our house in the past 6 months.)

Kids Sayings - I've lost count.

I have done so many posts about the funny things my kids say that I have lost count.  So without further ado, I bring you the next installment.  Enjoy.

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It was one of the first warmer days after the snow melted a week ago and I took Luke outside to ride his scooter.  He took a deep breath and said in a very excited voice, "Mom, do you smell the world?"

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After a few 50 degree days last week all the snow melted.  Then a few days later it started to snow again.  We drove past a pond and I pointed to some geese that were in the water.  Carson asked, "Are they skating?"

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The other day we were driving in the van (keep in mind that the month is February).  Carson asked if I would turn on the Christmas music.  I told him that I didn't have any.  He replied, "Yes you do, just push that snowflake button."  He was referring to the air conditioning button that he thought would play Christmas music if you push it.  LOL!  Now I don't feel so silly about what I thought that button was for back when we first got the van. 

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We have one of those GPS navigational guides and sometimes it's hard to understand the words that it says.  It will slur and combine words when there should be enunciation.  We were on the interstate and the GPS announced for us to "take ramp ahead."  Luke started cracking up and we couldn't understand what was so funny.  GPS lady said it again and Luke laughed even harder and said, "take Grandpa head."  We realized that "take ramp ahead" sounded just like it was saying "take Grandpa head."  

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Luke had a few guitar picks in his hands and came up to show me.  He said, "Look Mom!  I've got pickers!" 

Luke language:

prayers = purrs

piano = pwano

envelope = enemote

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I am currently doing a bible study by Beth Moore called Esther: It's Tough Being a Woman.  I taped a copy of the schedule by the rest of our schedules which includes the kids school calendars and my gym work-out class schedule.  Taylor was looking at it one day and started laughing.  I asked him what was so funny and he thought it was funny that my workout classes at the gym were given funny titles.  Little did he know, he was reading my bible study outline.  Here are some of the titles:

• A Royal Mess
• A Contest for a Queen
• A Raging Passion for Honor
• If You Remain Silent
• What Goes Around
• Where is the Man? 
• The Right to be Ready

I guess I can see how it could be confused for aerobic classes.  I especially thought the "Where is the Man?" was a funny one because it's sort of true.  Not many men take cardio classes.  

Uncovered treasures

My spring cleaning kick is still going on.  A few days ago I cleaned the dining room and office carpet, which helped a little, but the carpet is still drab.  I would love to finish these rooms with hardwood - ah, a girl can dream.  

The boys, I think, have also gotten a taste of this cleaning trip I'm on.  Yesterday Taylor asked me if he could switch rooms with Luke because he thought Luke's room was bigger.  In reality it is only a few inches bigger but looks larger because he has less stuff in it.  Therefore, I declined his request.  Thus, Taylor got busy deep cleaning his room, especially his walk in closet.  He had piles of stuff out in the hallway of things he no longer wanted (or at least didn't want them stored in his closet.)  

I love it when I see my boys keep their rooms clean and organized.  They sure know how to make their mom happy.  

I was sorting through the piles of closet loot and came across a binder of old projects and papers from when Taylor was in kindergarten.  I hadn't seen these in 5 years and I enjoyed looking back and comparing his work to Carson's who is in kindergarten this year.  There is a huge difference - shocking.  Taylor's work was very neat and orderly where Carson's is full of explosive color that fills every inch of the page and the writing is chaotic.  It's amazing how opposite they really are, but I think it's precious.

I came across some really cute and funny papers that I have to share.  This is back when Taylor was learning how to spell phonetically - see if you can tell what he wants to be when he grows up:

It says When I grow up I want to be a . . . . Veterinarian because I like animals, although it could be mistaken for a vegetarian because I lick animals.   

This next one cracks me up too.  These fill in the blank papers are the best.   The kids were asked to complete the sentence, "I will say NO when . . ."  Here is what Taylor put.

"when someone tells me to shut-up while I was in Summer Bible Study."  

This is a little disturbing on a few levels.  First, what kind of kid goes to church and tells other kids to shut up?  Look at their faces - the one on the right a.k.a. the "bully" is all smiling and happy and the other three have shocked expressions on their faces.  Such detail for a 5 year old.   And second, what kind of church has a purple disco ball hanging from the ceiling?  I'm not sure what else that could represent.  I just wonder what was going through the teacher's mind when she was writing this down for Taylor.  

I am so glad I found these treasures - I'll be sure to hang on to these for a long time.

Heart day

Yep, today is Valentine's Day or ValentiMe's Day if you ask my two younger boys.  

This morning I got up while the boys were still sleeping and placed their gifts in a row like I do every year.  But for breakfast I thought I'd try my hand at being creative.  Instead of making regular old pancakes I threw in a twist and made them heart shaped by doing it freehand.  Don't get too excited - they looked a bit squished, but it's the thought that counts.  The look on the boys faces was really cute and that was all I needed to see. 

I was a good girl and made myself eggs and a bagel.  Now we're off to the gym.  Such grand plans, eh?  

The rest of the day is open.  The kids will probably go outside and play in the snow, which is a huge difference from a few days ago when they had on t-shirts and were riding their bikes in the 60 degree weather.  

Enjoy your weekend and have a Happy Valentine's Day! 

Heartbroken

I feel like a complete failure.  I want to kick myself in the face for being an impulsive and emotional person.  My follow through sucks and I hate living with regrets.  

But it looks like I just did all that.    

Regretfully, I am taking Carmen back and it breaks my heart into pieces.  Without going into details, it just isn't working out with every family member and if we're not all on the same page, then it is not going to work. 

Why do I have to get so attached and have a huge heart for dogs?  Why can't I just be content with what I have?  I think I am most frustrated with myself and dragging everyone else into this.  But it's something that I have to live with and learn from I suppose.  I hate being in this situation.  It sucks - big time.  

My Valentines' wish is that I can pick up the pieces of my broken heart and somehow put them back together.     

Reminiscing

I have been enjoying looking back and reading older posts on my blog.  I also found this really cool speech feedback tool on my macbook.  If you highlight any text and click the appropriate key it will read it aloud to you.  The boys, especially Carson, were getting a kick out of some of the old stories of things they had done when they were younger.  

Carson saw the pictures of when he was 2 years old and had climbed halfway into the microwave.  I highlighted the story and played it out loud.  After he heard it, I asked him if he remembered doing that.  And he said no.  

This blog has been great for keeping track of those special and unforgettable moments.  I am so grateful that I started this.  And it's all thanks to Beth. 

Here is a post that I completely forgot about, but made me laugh out loud.  Kids are the best comic relief.    

A doggie update

Things are starting to settle in pretty good with the new dog.  Thankfully.  

The first day I had that strange sensation in my stomach - the kind that makes you wonder if you made the right decision.  Because honestly, having a new dog is similar to having another child.  I didn't say the same, I said similar.  Believe me, I am not one of those wackos that compares having animals to having kids.  Huge difference.  And since I am a mom I can point that out very clearly.

But my point is that you have to get used to the new routine and constantly keep an eye on the dog to figure out how it is going to behave, and watch for its signs that they have to pee, etc.  I was happy with one dog, yes that is true.  But a part of me just wasn't satisfied, hence the weekly trips to numerous animal shelters since we moved to Ohio back in the summer.  It was a part of our weekly routine, but I would call it 'visiting the dogs' and not admit to finding a new dog to take home and become part of our family because I didn't think that would actually happen.  It had to be the perfect fit.  I guess having that mind set made me not settle for just any dog because I could have easily done that.  It took me 6 months to find my beagle and when I laid eyes on him I just knew he was the one.  

We took him out of the kennel and played with him and tried to get to know him.  All the while in the adoption play room he would keep wanting to get on my lap.  When he got up he would put his front paws on my shoulders and nuzzle his nose under my hair like he was giving me a hug.  Then he would look at me with those sweet brown puppy dog eyes and burp.  I kid you not.  This dog burps.  It's very comical.  Carmen the burping beagle.  

When we got him on Monday I had him with me outside when Carson got home from school.  Carson looked at the dog and said, "Who is that?"  

I told him it was our new dog.  

Then he asked in his normal voice, "Did Sasha die already?"  

"Uh, no." I replied. 

"Then why do we have two dogs?" he asked.  And at least 5 times a day he continues to ask me that question.  I think my husband secretly put him up to it.  I am sure he's asking the same thing.  But not me.  I love having two dogs especially two that don't mind each other and that are so lovable.  

We're still working on getting the dog's name straight.  Yesterday I went through three names before I got it right.  "Sasha, Carter, Carson, no Carmen!"  Luke keeps coming up to me and asking, "Now, what's that dog's name?"  If the dog was younger I would consider changing its name, but he's already 3 years old and knows his name.  I just wish it didn't sound like Carson's name.  They both come running when I call either of them. Oh well.    

Today will be the first time that Carmen will be left alone in the house.  I am going to use the crate, but I have a feeling he is not going to like it.  I set it up yesterday and tried to coerce him to enter it but only on his terms so that I don't freak him out.  He walked in, got the treat I threw in, and walked right back out.  But today I have no choice.  I am crossing my fingers that it goes well.  Wish me luck! 

 

As if I didn't have enough to do

I go and add this to my plate of responsibilities.

Meet Carmen a.k.a. The Beagle.  And the reason I say "the Beagle" is because none of us can remember his name so Carson just calls him The Beagle which I think is quite cute.

And although he's full of cuteness and sweetness, it's a little hard to sleep when you have a dog that wants to lay across your neck.  He is such a lover and snuggler, which is great and all just not when I am trying to sleep.  It makes it a little hard to breathe. 

He's so good around my other dog, Sasha and they get along perfectly.  Plus the kids love him and he is wonderful with the boys.  Beagles have great personalities.

There are a few things that we need to work on besides the neck strangling sleeping arrangements.  He keeps marking his scent around the table in my dining room.  That is making me very irritated.  I need to research some potty tips and get this figured out.  Thank goodness for Kids 'N' Pets carpet cleaner. 

So if you don't hear from me as consistently as I have been on this blog, you'll now why (I've been smothered by The Beagle.)  

And in the meantime, if you have any good dog training tips send them my way.  I've invested in a crate, which I hear is one of the best things for a dog.  Thanks!

School pictures

Every year I send out the kids school pictures with our Christmas cards.  This year was no different with the exception of one of the boys.  Luke.  His pre-school waits until February to take school pictures.  Why?  I don't know.  So, I had to send out the cards without Luke's sweet face in them.  I did, however, include a little piece of paper explaining why there were only two of the three boys pictures included.

So now it's February.  I had taken Luke to get his hair trimmed a week or so before picture day.  He was all cute and ready to be photographed.  And then the morning of picture day, he wakes up with a fever and can't go to school.  

No problem.  I figured we'd just have it done on retake day, but when I called the school to let them know, I was informed that today is the only day to get pictures taken.  There are no retakes.  

Seriously?  

Yep.    

So now I am stuck with having to get them done on my own.  I wonder if any of these would work?

I guess I'll start looking around for some good deals.  Any suggestions?  

You know you want one.

Or two.

I know I do NOT want 8 (EIGHT!) dwarf hamsters!!!  What am I going to do with all of these?

I put an add on Petfinder and had Taylor ask a bunch of his friends if they would like a pet.  And I was hopeful for awhile.  He had 3 friends who were interested.  And all of their parents said no.  What?  I don't get it?  

So here I am begging, pleading, on my knees - please someone have pity on me these sweet little creatures who need a loving home.  

Ever wonder?

I've seen this email going around before, but it's just too good to not post.  Thanks for sending it to me Laura.

Only in America ......do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front.

Only in America.....do people order double cheeseburgers, large fries, and a diet coke.

Only in America.....do banks leave both doors open and then chain the pens to the counters.

Only in America.....do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage.

Only in America......do we buy hot dogs in packages of ten and buns in packages of eight.

Only in America.....do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering.

EVER WONDER ... 

Why the sun lightens our hair, but darkens 
our skin?

Why women can't put on mascara with their mouth closed?

Why don't you ever see the headline 'Psychic Wins Lottery'?

Why is 'abbreviated' such a long word?

Why is it that doctors call what they do 'practice'?

Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavor, and dishwashing liquid made with real lemons?

Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker?

Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour?

Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food?

Why didn't Noah swat those two mosquitoes?

Why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections?

You know that indestructible black box that is used on airplanes? Why don't they make the whole plane out of that stuff?!

Why don't sheep shrink when it rains?

Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together?

If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress?

If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport the terminal?

I'm a random type of girl

I have all of these random thoughts and topics in my head.  That's nothing new.  But when I go to make an actual post out of them they go nowhere - hence - a random post.  Enjoy the bullets.

• I don't know about you, but I am glad that American Idol is back to one-hour episodes.  Being on eastern time has us staying up later than usual anyway, and add to it a 2 hour show - well it doesn't go so well with sleepy little boys.  
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• This house has too many matchbox cars. Carson had them all nicely lined up by the front door, then they somehow got scattered, but I won't name a particular little brother's name.  I didn't bother cleaning them up before bed.  I figured if a burglar were to break into our house through the front door, our matchbox cars would provide a good security system or at least buy us enough time to call the police while he is lying flat on his back.
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• I never completely finished answering all the questions I was asked a week or so ago.  The last one comes from sscrunner and asks: What is your favorite type of work-out? How many times a week do you work out and for how long? What is your favorite type of red wine?
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• Those are my two favorite topics - wine and working out - what a thoughtful question!  
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• I work out 5 days a week taking Wednesday and Sunday off.  Usually my workouts are for an hour sometimes an hour and a half.  
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• Currently my favorite class is called Turbo Kick.  It has awesome, pumping music which is the key for me and it is choreographed kickboxing with a hint of dance to it.  I seriously want to get certified to teach this class.
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• Red wine - yum!  I've mentioned a new find called Black Opal.  We go through our fair share so I must be conscious of price.  Some good wine at a reasonable price in our wine rotation include, Beach Dogs, Woodbridge, Frontera, Marcus James, Crane Lake and Gallo.  I'm up for any suggestions as I always love trying new wines. 
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• Bagels that are not pre-sliced drive me crazy - call me lazy.
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• In a post last week I mentioned I was going to a new hair stylist, but I never followed up with pictures.  Everything went fine, my hair looks good without any major changes.  I figured it would be pretty boring to post a picture of the way my hair always looks so I didn't.  One thing I didn't like was the cost.  Luckily I had a coupon for a free cut and style otherwise it would have cost me $60!  Yikes!  
• 
  
• I am about ready to rip out the carpet in our office and dining room because it's nasty.  I would rather walk around and look at plywood than the stained carpet we currently have.  I shouldn't give myself any ideas - I tend to turn minor projects into major ones.  More on that another day, but it has to do with a fireplace in our first home.  
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• I have already started spring cleaning and by that I mean getting rid of clutter and crap that we have no purpose for.  For example, I have had this box of cords and chargers that half of them I have no clue what they go to.  Why keep something that you have no use for?  So I pitched them.  I went through the kids "art" supplies and downsized there too.  I have been organizing every drawer in the house.  And I also deep cleaned the refrigerator removing every drawer and shelf and washing it down.  It needed it so bad.  Once I get going there is no stopping me.  
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• I can't wait to have a garage sale and unload all the stuff (and make some extra money!)
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• This is getting long and out of control.  
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• Have a wonderful weekend - what are your plans?

The purse is boss

I have seen this "meme" floating around on other blogs and I love the idea and seeing all the awesome handbags that us bloggers are carrying.  I must be honest, I used to not be a "purse" girl.  But having a fashion-diva-mother-in-law has gotten me excited about the latest purses on the market.  And my newest addition is da bomb! I never officially got tagged for this, but I am playing along anyway.  You see, I like to play by my own rules.

If you care to join along here are the "official" rules of this game:

1) Post a picture of whatever bag you are carrying as of late. No, you cannot go up to your closet and pull out that cute little purse you used back before you had kids. I want to know what you carried today.

2) I want to know how much it cost :) And this is not to judge. This is for entertainment purposes only. So spill it. And if there is a story to go along with how you obtained it, I’d love to hear it.

3) Tag some chicks. And link back to this post so people know why the heck you’re showing everyone your diaper bag/non-diaper bag.

  

I bring you the ever gorgeous and yet always classy Coach and her accessories because how can you carry a stunning coach purse and use your $6 Wal-Mart wallet?  You just can't - that is very wrong.  I feel like a million bucks when I carry this baby around.  And as far as price, I don't know and I don't care to find out.  It was a Christmas gift to me.  But for those of you who are nosy curious, I am sure you can click around on the coach website to find out.  

It's a good thing I didn't do this meme before Christmas.  Then I would have had the humiliation of admitting to you that I have been using a quilted Vera Bradley knock-off $9 purse.  Seriously.  But, in my defense, it was really cute and you could have never guessed it came from one of those dollar stores.  Maybe when you looked close at the quality and saw the 'Made in China' tag, but then again you shouldn't be looking that close at someone's purse.  How rude!

So, let's see, who can I tag that hasn't already showed us their goods?  Let's try: 

OHMommy at Classy Chaos because I am completely curious - she's a class act herself.

Dawn at Baby Addiction because she's a cool gal and would like to learn more about her and her purse preferences.

And one more, how about Lisa at Take 90 West I am curious to see if she bought a matching purse to go with the furry boots she recently posted about.  Now that would be a sight! (If you want a funny read, go check out that post - hilarious!)