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Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Rough Day

Last night we took the kids to the Big "E". Dylan has been anticipating this trip since last year. We saw Hilby, The German juggler who made quite the impression on him and he couldn't wait to see him again. He looks forward to catching bead necklaces at the Mardi Gras parade, going down the big yellow slide and his one corn dog of the year.

The rain held out all day until it was time for us to head to the fair. We warned him of the possibility of everything being closed due to the rain but he insisted he still wanted to go. So we went!

We arrived dressed in our raincoats and dawning umbrellas but our spirits were still high as we purchased our tickets. We noticed that the rides were not going but held at hope that they simply turned the big yellow slide with burlap sacks into a water slide. That was not the case.

So we filled Dylan up with corn dogs, baked potatoes and ice cream to keep him happy. As we approached the stage of the German juggler, we knew bad news was coming our way. The stage was filled with puddles that would be dangerous for Hilby to ride his unicycle while juggling things that were lit on fire, so the show was canceled. Luckily, Hilby stopped by on his unicycle and Dylan got to meet him and take a magnet home as a souvenir.

The lady at the gate assured us that the parade would go on rain or shine. So 1 out of the 3 wasn't horrible. Dylan still seemed to be having fun despite all the mishaps. We had just enough time to walk around and look at all the useless gadgets people buy before the parade started.

After escaping all the pushy salesmen, we started in the direction of the parade. A policeman randomly asked Dylan if he wanted a beaded necklace. To which I replied: "No thanks, we are going to catch our own at the parade." To which he replied: "The parade already went by."

I looked at John, he looked at me and we sprinted while dodging people with the stroller to where we thought we might be able to catch the end of the parade. We found all the floats parked in the back lot, waiting to be put away. Dylan got to look at them as we passed by. I saw a woman with a bag of necklaces, explained the situation and she was kind enough to give the kids a few.

With big puppy dog eyes, brimming with tears, Dylan looked up at us and said: "I had a rough day!"

My heart broke for him. I was so proud of him for handling it so well. There was no emotional meltdown or screaming fit. He just knew he had a rough day and I let him know it was ok to cry about it.

But in the end, he was able to look at the bright side. The rides were closed, but he did get to go through a fun house. He ate enough junk food to last him until next year. He was bringing home Mardi Gras beads even if he wasn't able to catch them himself. And best of all, we had a magnet of Hilby, The German Juggler to hang on our fridge!!! Really, what more could you ask for!

Friday, September 24, 2010

Animal Lover

I can already tell that Camryn loves animals. She gets excited to see them, uses a special voice to talk to them and is always gentle and kind to them. She is even nurturing to her stuffed animals.

While I was busy getting dressed this morning, Camryn was playing quietly in her room. When I went in to get her because it was time to go, this is what I saw:


I panicked when I saw the mess on the new carpet, but as I got closer I realized it was dog food. Naturally I asked her why she dumped Callie's food all over her floor and she said:
"Cause they yittle and eat yittle food!"

Sunday, September 19, 2010

X-mas shopping in September

I'm one of those people who shops for Christmas gifts all year long. If I see something that someone would like, I grab it and stash it away until Christmas. This has been very helpful in the budget area, because come December I don't need to dish out a ton of cash that we don't have. A little bit all year long doesn't get noticed as much as one huge chunk all at the same time.

The other day when Camryn and I were out shopping for Fall clothes, something caught my eye. In order to distract her from what I was going to look at, I grabbed a stuffed animal and handed it to her in the stroller. I pushed her far enough past the item so she couldn't see it. It was essentially a paper doll set, except it was wooden and magnetic. She could dress and undress her doll as many times as she wanted. It was perfect and better yet 30% off. Gotta love Melissa and Doug toys!

I made it to the cash register with the item slyly hidden atop the stroller and handed it to the cashier upside-down for extra assurance. Camryn was happily playing with the stuffed animal and hadn't taken notice to what was going on. The cashier rang it up, I paid and as I was putting my change in my wallet, she turned to Camryn and said:

"Here honey, you can take this home to play with." Handing her the Christmas item in exchange for the stuffed animal that apparently she thought I was going to steal.

I know I could have said nothing because really there was no turning back. Camryn had the toy in her hands and would definitely want to play with it when we got home. I realize the cashier was probably trying to make giving up the stuffed animal easier for Camryn, because she was in fact getting a new toy. But I was disappointed that an item I had already placed under the tree in my head, would be old news by the time December rolled around. So instead of holding back I said:

"Actually that was going to be for Christmas...but I guess now it's not."

She was immediately apologetic and now I was regretting my snide remark. So I left the store without a Christmas present or my previously happy demeanor. Maybe this year I'll change up my game and give Black Friday a try...everyone knows those are Christmas presents!

Saturday, September 11, 2010

The princess and the frog

Dylan can catch anything. Fish, worms and frogs to little boys running on the playground. He even caught one of those tiny really fast geckos on vacation! So whenever we stumble upon a usually slimy little creature, he needs to catch it.



To his delight, there was a frog in our yard and so the quest to catch it began. But it wasn't your typical backyard frog. It was RED! We've never seen a red frog, except for the ones at the zoo. So naturally John, Camryn and I wanted to get a closer look.

Camryn, however, does not like to hold these creatures that her brother catches. But she does love to look at them and talk to them in her quietess, most high pitched, how small creatures like to be talked to, voice!



But as Camryn got a little too close for her brother's liking, he yelled:


"Camryn, don't kiss it, it might be poisonous!"


John now wants him to accompany her on her first date, using those exact words!

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Household Chores

With all the construction going on in my house, I have to admit I've been slacking on cleaning because it just gets dirty again. I mean really, why mop the floors when they are going to be replaced? So I do the minimum: vacuuming and surface cleaning the bathrooms and kitchen.

But with the family coming over for Dylan's birthday party, I knew the house needed a good scrubbing. My husband has heard me complaining about the mess the addition is making and how unmotivated I am to even attempt to keep it clean. And not that he has many household chores to begin with, but his main focus has been working on the addition. So I have been left to do all the cleaning myself, I even took over mowing the lawn!

It was time for the "just because I stay home with the kids all day does not mean it's my job to do the laundry, make the food, do the dishes and clean the house!" talk. Let's face it ladies, we know we've all given the speech with little response. But this time it worked!!!

I was upstairs frantically scrubbing, dusting and vacuuming when I came downstairs to find my husband vigorously cleaning the kitchen. He had taken everything off the counter to wipe behind things, cleaned the inside and outside of the microwave and even removed the crumbs from the toaster oven!!!

But that's not all, the best part was he was sporting an apron...no, not to keep his clothes clean rather to show me how he would prefer I dress when I clean the house!



He may not be great at household chores but he can always make me laugh!

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

I'm the mom...

of a 5 year old!!!!

I can't wrap my head around it quite yet but Dylan is 5! I feel like 5 is such a huge milestone. The end of the toddler era. I don't know when it happened but I woke up this morning with a little man as my son!

The whole school thing and now turning 5 has really thrown me for a loop. I mean when did my chubby cheeked, only wanting mommy baby turn into such a big boy. I'm sure the transition has been gradual but all of a sudden it feels like he's a new kid overnight.

Every mother knows, they'll take care of their son up until the day he finds a wife to take her place! So this new found independence is amazing to me. This morning I sent him off to school with lunch packed in his bag, a birthday treat to share with the class in his hands and a huge smile on his face. He walks himself to his classroom, eats lunch with all his friends and I'm sure performs many other tasks all by himself.

He came home this afternoon with a birthday crown on his head and a grin from ear to ear. He told me his birthday at school was super great. They announced that he was turning 5 during the morning announcements, all his friends loved his birthday snack and he got to check out his own book at the library! He counted for me in Spanish and taught me some new songs!


I tried hard to make sure the tears welling up in my eyes never rolled down my cheek. It was a bittersweet moment, to see a glimpse of the amazing kid Dylan is turning into and to remember him as a little baby snuggled in my arms. It's crazy that after 4 years of hoping all the things you are teaching them are sinking in, they wake up one morning and prove to you that it did .

Saturday, September 4, 2010

There is a ringing

and it's not in my head.

This is the third night this week, I have been woken up in the middle of the night by a telephone ringing. Of course, when you hear your phone ringing in the middle of the night, you immediately think the worst. It has to be an emergency because my girlfriends know better than to call to gossip that late at night.

So in a panic, I run downstairs, yes we only have one phone, thanks to my kiddies dropping it in the dog's water bowl, and it is inconveniently downstairs, to find that it's not my phone ringing. It never fails, it always stops as soon as I reach the phone. So I check my caller ID and no one was calling me.

Confused and annoyed to have been woken up, I head back upstairs to my bedroom. The TV in our bedroom is off, so I can rule that out. Luckily, my husband is awake and I confirm that he heard it too. I lie awake and listen to his rhythmic breathing, jealous of his ability to return to sleep so quickly and effortlessly.

I, however, need to first calm my nerves and realize there is no emergency because no one was actually trying to contact me. And second, ponder what else could the noise have been. It's an unmistakeable telephone ringing. The kids have toy phones but I can distinguish between the singing sound of the toy ring and the actually telephone. Could it be our neighbors phone? How loud must their phone ring for us to be able to hear it with all our windows closed?

Not able to solve the mystery of the midnight telephone call, I finally fell back asleep! But it was the first thing on my mind when I woke up. I am determined to figure out what it is, so I can be spared the midnight dose of panic!