Thank you cucumber. You have my undying gratitude for saving my grocery shopping trip when my 2 year old was in melt-down mode. You endured being called Larry and repeated renditions of the "Veggie Tales" theme song for 15 minutes in the extremely long Wal-mart checkout line. Please don't be mad about the bite marks...
Thank you Choco Puffs. You are second-best to your cousin Cocoa Puffs, but it doesn't seem to matter. I have you hidden away from prying children's eyes and hands (and mouths), since the 2 year old in me doesn't want to share you. You make my day as a guilty nap-time snack.
Thank you dishwasher. I didn't realize how much I missed you until getting you back in my life. Deep down I feel that your plastic-ware melting heat makes my dishes that much cleaner. Even though you sound like a hand saw for the entire wash cycle, you make my life so much easier.
Just some random thoughts of gratitude for the day...
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Kid Quotes
Funny things my kids have said recently:
Me to Clark: "Okay Clark you have 5 more minutes."
Clark: "No, no, 4 more minutes."
Me: "Okay... 4 more minutes."
Clark: "Is 4 more minutes a long time?"
Me: (Thinking about putting Clark down for a nap...) "Yes, 4 minutes is a long time."
Bruce to Clark, who just snagged his pretzels: "Clarkie! You spit that out right now!"
Sorry Bruce, but you probably don't want it anymore. It's the thought that counts I guess.
Clark to Mom: "Mom, I want to go with Grandma." or "No, Mom, I want to sit by Grandma."
He's got it figured out already. Grandma is a softy.
Bruce, while sitting on my lap: "OH! The baby bumped me!"
Me to Bruce: "What should we name the new baby?"
Bruce: "Thomas the Train."
I don't think she would be to happy with that one when she got older...
Clark, after grabbing a toy from Bruce and being scolded: "But Mom, he didn't want it anymore."
Is that right? Nice try mister!
Me to Clark: "Okay Clark you have 5 more minutes."
Clark: "No, no, 4 more minutes."
Me: "Okay... 4 more minutes."
Clark: "Is 4 more minutes a long time?"
Me: (Thinking about putting Clark down for a nap...) "Yes, 4 minutes is a long time."
Bruce to Clark, who just snagged his pretzels: "Clarkie! You spit that out right now!"
Sorry Bruce, but you probably don't want it anymore. It's the thought that counts I guess.
Clark to Mom: "Mom, I want to go with Grandma." or "No, Mom, I want to sit by Grandma."
He's got it figured out already. Grandma is a softy.
Bruce, while sitting on my lap: "OH! The baby bumped me!"
Me to Bruce: "What should we name the new baby?"
Bruce: "Thomas the Train."
I don't think she would be to happy with that one when she got older...
Clark, after grabbing a toy from Bruce and being scolded: "But Mom, he didn't want it anymore."
Is that right? Nice try mister!
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Wrestling
Seriously? Wrestling? I feel like my house is WWE Friday Night Smackdown every day (growly voices included). Wrestle on the couch, on the floor, anywhere or nowhere in particular once the mood strikes them. I have to say I prefer the couch, since it takes longer for the inevitable injury to occur.
Really, I'm not exactly sure where they got the idea, since Caleb is not really a wrestling-type Dad. It doesn't matter because it's like the flu and they've already caught the bug. I have assumed the roll of the nagging mom all day. We are constantly trying to limit injuries as well as bumps and thumps on the floor (for the benefit of our downstairs neighbors, who have already developed saint-like patience). It's possible that we are worse than the base-thumping-music-type neighbors, but that may be up for debate. That's apartment living I guess.
The most nerve-racking move I have witnessed would have to be when someone climbs on top of some piece of furniture (like in the corner of the wrestling ring) and jumps on the other participant. Is that called a body slam? Usually, this follows by an eruption of laughter (thankfully), but sometimes a boo-boo. I feel like they are going to start smacking their elbow for a "flying elbow drop" any day now. So, I apologize in advance to other mothers. I hope my Wrestle-Mania hopefuls don't pass this bad habit along because there is no turning back. Just to let you know, we're working on it (for probably the next 10 years).
(sigh)
Also, don't keep scrolling for pictures. We still don't have our camera, although I'm sure you would love to see my little wrestlers in action.
Really, I'm not exactly sure where they got the idea, since Caleb is not really a wrestling-type Dad. It doesn't matter because it's like the flu and they've already caught the bug. I have assumed the roll of the nagging mom all day. We are constantly trying to limit injuries as well as bumps and thumps on the floor (for the benefit of our downstairs neighbors, who have already developed saint-like patience). It's possible that we are worse than the base-thumping-music-type neighbors, but that may be up for debate. That's apartment living I guess.
The most nerve-racking move I have witnessed would have to be when someone climbs on top of some piece of furniture (like in the corner of the wrestling ring) and jumps on the other participant. Is that called a body slam? Usually, this follows by an eruption of laughter (thankfully), but sometimes a boo-boo. I feel like they are going to start smacking their elbow for a "flying elbow drop" any day now. So, I apologize in advance to other mothers. I hope my Wrestle-Mania hopefuls don't pass this bad habit along because there is no turning back. Just to let you know, we're working on it (for probably the next 10 years).
(sigh)
Also, don't keep scrolling for pictures. We still don't have our camera, although I'm sure you would love to see my little wrestlers in action.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
At Home Today
We have one car in the family these days, so we try to plan as much as we can in order to get out of the house (and keep my sanity). I have to say that sometimes it's good to have an at-home day the whole day. With doctor's appointments and other errands keeping us busy lately, today I felt like I accomplished something just by not getting out of the house. Really just regular stuff that I had been putting off (like folding laundry and organizing).
As I was sitting folding the boys' clothes and thinking about how much laundry those little bodies produce, I was watching Bruce trying on every single pair of Clark's (clean) underwear one by one. (Sorry Clark, but in my defense he was wearing a diaper.) It made me laugh and think that being busy is fun, but this has been a good at-home day. And I love being a Mom to these cute, silly, energetic little boys.
Sorry about the blurry pictures, but these were taken with my phone (since we may never find our camera).
Hangin' out with our buddies J. (behind Bruce) and S. (on the left) the other day. Please excuse the mess...
As I was sitting folding the boys' clothes and thinking about how much laundry those little bodies produce, I was watching Bruce trying on every single pair of Clark's (clean) underwear one by one. (Sorry Clark, but in my defense he was wearing a diaper.) It made me laugh and think that being busy is fun, but this has been a good at-home day. And I love being a Mom to these cute, silly, energetic little boys.
Sorry about the blurry pictures, but these were taken with my phone (since we may never find our camera).
Hangin' out with our buddies J. (behind Bruce) and S. (on the left) the other day. Please excuse the mess...
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Coming and Going
We have had a few changes since my last post. Well, I should hope so since it has been almost 3 months since I've written anything on this blog. Which may be a disappointment to the 2 or 3 readers who were brave enough to check, but have since stopped checking, on whether or not I would break my silence...
To my defense, we have had some major changes in this time. I'll try to catch you up without writing an entire autobiography.
1. I'm pregnant. Like really pregnant (27 weeks I think). I'm due at the end of April and we are looking forward to having a girl this time (if the doctor was right). I still have my doubts in the back of my mind as to the accuracy of when the doctor says its a girl versus a boy.
2. We've moved! No, we haven't moved out of Florida, but back closer to the grandparents and other family members (which we have really enjoyed especially over the Christmas/New Year holidays). We get to hang out with our relatives a lot more often and still get to sleep at home at night. Awesome! We also have almost double the square footage of our last apartment, which has done wonders for my sanity since Caleb has our one and only car every day at work. On the down-side, we pay almost double the rent since we were living in campus family housing which is really cheap. Also on the down-side is all the cool people we don't get to see so often anymore. We miss you guys! Clark keeps trying to convince me that we haven't moved that far away, so we could go back and play with some of his friends. Hopefully we'll be back soon to visit when we get our car fixed (which has been plaguing us this week with problems).
3. Caleb graduated from UF with a BA in English (with honors). It was pretty cool all around and I appreciated that there were no long speeches from anyone. I seem to remember my graduation being boring (as graduations tend to go), but I was really excited to see Caleb walk across that stage. Caleb was smiling pretty big the whole time. I was and am very proud of him and all his hard work. I would post a picture, but he has also misplaced our camera... So, no pictures for now. Also, Tim Tebow was graduating in the same ceremony. That was pretty cool, even though I'm not really a football fanatic. I feel I have put up with enough game-day traffic to appreciate it.
4. Caleb got a job! I know you were all wondering, since he was an English major. :) He is working for a railroad signal engineering company and doing well. (Nope, not writing a novel or teaching high school.) After 2 years as a full-time student, we are very relieved he is gainfully employed again at a job he feels has a good future. So, next time you're stopped at a railroad crossing you can think of us. (Or sing Thomas the Train songs, like we usually do. Either way.)
5. Bruce has turned 2 years old! This is a little bit of older news, but nonetheless it has happened since my last post. He usually seems older to me because he speaks pretty clearly for his age, but then he has a meltdown and I remember that he is only 2.
He is such a creative little guy and always saying funny things. He stood up in his booster seat the other night at dinner with his arms stretched to the side exclaiming, "I'm a sword!" I have no idea where that came from, and I couldn't help but laugh. I made the mistake the other day of hoping for a repeat performance (since it was so cute), but when I said "Brucie, are you a sword?" I just got poked in the eye by a very fast finger.
We were also talking about eating things that were good for us (eating vegetables at dinner) and how the things that mommy eats, the new baby eats too. Bruce thought about this for a minute and then said, "Mommy, the baby says, Oooh! That's Hot!" He had just burned his mouth on his food a minute before. I'm constantly amazed at how content he can be playing by himself and the funny things he comes up with in his creative play time.
Bruce is still enamoured with his brother and is so excited when Clark wakes up. Sometimes he'll even hug him and say "I love you, Clarkie!" (This, of course, is contrasted with plenty of the sibling struggles that are common to 2- and 3-year-olds.)
6. Clark has moved up to the Sunbeam class (3-year-olds) in Primary at church. He seems to be doing well and enjoying being a "big boy" now. He even has a cute tie to wear (just like Daddy). I get to see him during singing time since I teach the 4-year-old class now. He loves singing and is quick to learn the songs, but is still learning how to stay in his seat. Bruce has been distraught by this development, since Clark no longer plays with him in Nursery class (18-months to 3-year-old class). He was so upset this last Sunday that he had to sit with Daddy in his class for a while and calm down, but was coaxed back by the promise of snack time and did just fine after that.
Well, Happy 2010 to everyone. I'm looking forward to catching up on my blog reading now that we have the internet again! Hopefully, it won't be so long before I post again.
To my defense, we have had some major changes in this time. I'll try to catch you up without writing an entire autobiography.
1. I'm pregnant. Like really pregnant (27 weeks I think). I'm due at the end of April and we are looking forward to having a girl this time (if the doctor was right). I still have my doubts in the back of my mind as to the accuracy of when the doctor says its a girl versus a boy.
2. We've moved! No, we haven't moved out of Florida, but back closer to the grandparents and other family members (which we have really enjoyed especially over the Christmas/New Year holidays). We get to hang out with our relatives a lot more often and still get to sleep at home at night. Awesome! We also have almost double the square footage of our last apartment, which has done wonders for my sanity since Caleb has our one and only car every day at work. On the down-side, we pay almost double the rent since we were living in campus family housing which is really cheap. Also on the down-side is all the cool people we don't get to see so often anymore. We miss you guys! Clark keeps trying to convince me that we haven't moved that far away, so we could go back and play with some of his friends. Hopefully we'll be back soon to visit when we get our car fixed (which has been plaguing us this week with problems).
3. Caleb graduated from UF with a BA in English (with honors). It was pretty cool all around and I appreciated that there were no long speeches from anyone. I seem to remember my graduation being boring (as graduations tend to go), but I was really excited to see Caleb walk across that stage. Caleb was smiling pretty big the whole time. I was and am very proud of him and all his hard work. I would post a picture, but he has also misplaced our camera... So, no pictures for now. Also, Tim Tebow was graduating in the same ceremony. That was pretty cool, even though I'm not really a football fanatic. I feel I have put up with enough game-day traffic to appreciate it.
4. Caleb got a job! I know you were all wondering, since he was an English major. :) He is working for a railroad signal engineering company and doing well. (Nope, not writing a novel or teaching high school.) After 2 years as a full-time student, we are very relieved he is gainfully employed again at a job he feels has a good future. So, next time you're stopped at a railroad crossing you can think of us. (Or sing Thomas the Train songs, like we usually do. Either way.)
5. Bruce has turned 2 years old! This is a little bit of older news, but nonetheless it has happened since my last post. He usually seems older to me because he speaks pretty clearly for his age, but then he has a meltdown and I remember that he is only 2.
He is such a creative little guy and always saying funny things. He stood up in his booster seat the other night at dinner with his arms stretched to the side exclaiming, "I'm a sword!" I have no idea where that came from, and I couldn't help but laugh. I made the mistake the other day of hoping for a repeat performance (since it was so cute), but when I said "Brucie, are you a sword?" I just got poked in the eye by a very fast finger.
We were also talking about eating things that were good for us (eating vegetables at dinner) and how the things that mommy eats, the new baby eats too. Bruce thought about this for a minute and then said, "Mommy, the baby says, Oooh! That's Hot!" He had just burned his mouth on his food a minute before. I'm constantly amazed at how content he can be playing by himself and the funny things he comes up with in his creative play time.
Bruce is still enamoured with his brother and is so excited when Clark wakes up. Sometimes he'll even hug him and say "I love you, Clarkie!" (This, of course, is contrasted with plenty of the sibling struggles that are common to 2- and 3-year-olds.)
6. Clark has moved up to the Sunbeam class (3-year-olds) in Primary at church. He seems to be doing well and enjoying being a "big boy" now. He even has a cute tie to wear (just like Daddy). I get to see him during singing time since I teach the 4-year-old class now. He loves singing and is quick to learn the songs, but is still learning how to stay in his seat. Bruce has been distraught by this development, since Clark no longer plays with him in Nursery class (18-months to 3-year-old class). He was so upset this last Sunday that he had to sit with Daddy in his class for a while and calm down, but was coaxed back by the promise of snack time and did just fine after that.
Well, Happy 2010 to everyone. I'm looking forward to catching up on my blog reading now that we have the internet again! Hopefully, it won't be so long before I post again.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Funny Things
Just a couple of random quotes:
"Mom, is that guy beating his dog?" by Clark while watching a jogger and his dog running. Get it? Beating him in a race? I know, it took me a second to process and respond to his question.
"I'm going to beat you up!" by Clark while racing up the stairs to our apartment. He does say this while racing when we are NOT on the stairs and it cracks me up. Is it wrong if I don't correct him?
"HI FRIENDS!" by Bruce with a big smile to a crowd of strangers in our parking lot. They did respond similarly to his greeting. The enthusiasm of little children is undeniable.
"Mom, is that guy beating his dog?" by Clark while watching a jogger and his dog running. Get it? Beating him in a race? I know, it took me a second to process and respond to his question.
"I'm going to beat you up!" by Clark while racing up the stairs to our apartment. He does say this while racing when we are NOT on the stairs and it cracks me up. Is it wrong if I don't correct him?
"HI FRIENDS!" by Bruce with a big smile to a crowd of strangers in our parking lot. They did respond similarly to his greeting. The enthusiasm of little children is undeniable.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
A Little Incentive
Clark has been giving us a hard time about bedtime in a typical 3 year old way. I need to go potty, I need a drink, climbing into his brother's crib to wake him up, etc... He has been such a good sleeper until the "big boy bed."
It really only took a bribe (ahem), I mean some "positive reinforcement," to help out at bedtimes around here. (Thanks for the idea, Dad.) Besides the excuses, he was doing a pretty good job of keeping himself awake while he was in bed (until 11pm and sometimes later). I don't know how he does it. Put me in a quiet, cool, dark room with a fan and I don't stand a chance.
It wasn't until he decided he wanted to go to bed, with a promise of reward the next day, that we have really had any success. We've been going for 2 nights now without any incidents of bedtime resistance. The power of a lollipop in the eyes of a child. He insisted on an orange one (his favorite color), but settled for a cream soda when I couldn't find orange.
Brucie is enjoying the rewards for good bedtime behavior, too. It's kind of a given since he falls asleep pretty quickly. He ate his lollipop today and about half the stick (well, it was pretty well chewed).
Just in case you were wondering, they still have root beer flavored Dum-dums. For some reason I always remember getting that flavor as a child. Ah, good memories.
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