From Point A to Point B

It’s interesting to me how one thought can lead to another thought and then another thought and before you realize, you miss your hometown and the fact that you haven’t taken your children for a long enough visit to their maternal grandmother or the city you grew up in.  This sounds oddly specific doesn’t it?  Well, it is.

This morning it began innocently enough with a blackberry yogurt for Rogan.  I was trying to entice him a bit as it was a switch from his regular vanilla, and I explained that his favorite jelly is blackberry, and that there are even ice cream flavors like blackberry and black raspberry.  Suddenly I thought of Graeter’s Black Raspberry Mocha Chip, and the fact that my boys have not had it yet.  Nor have they been to the Cincinnati Zoo, nor have they been to the Museum at Union Terminal, nor have they been able to spend any quality time at my Mum’s house.

You see, the current issue with my Mum’s house is this: her only full bathroom on the second floor is relatively out of commission.  She’s been having it remodeled for what seems like 3 years now, and many times she has had to interrupt progress because of some other money-requiring emergency that can’t wait.  She has a shower in the dark, creepy, dungenous basement, 2 floors away, and she has a working 1/2 bath on the first floor, and I may sound like a spoiled brat, but when you throw kids into the mix you have to really think about bathrooms and stuff like that.  If it were just me, I wouldn’t really give a damn.

So I called my Mum and shared my sadness and the fact that I really want to get the boys there for a weekend, and surprisingly she has been planning to get that bathroom completely finished very soon.

The tentative plan is for a weekend in October.  And I can hardly wait.  Graeter’s, here we come!!

Brief Details

• At this very moment I am sitting in a very quiet, very empty house.  Mike took the boys camping with our friend Scott and their 3 girls.  The Dads and the kids HAD to vacate the premises because last night Gina and I hosted a Pure Romance party.  And you know what?  Despite the fact that only one other girl showed up, we had a great time.  I will refrain from going into details about what was purchased out of respect for those involved!
• Remember those pices of furnioture I pauinted for the fundraiser?  They each sold for $550.00 at the auction the other night…and the mini corn home game the kids painted?  $130.oo  I’m already planning what to paint for next year!
• Girls’ Weekend is slowly approaching…and I’m struggling with whether or not to go.  School starts soon and I hate that disconnected feeling I often have after returining from being away from the house and the kids.  It’s like I have a hard time getting bnack into the groove and that concerns me even more since school is starting.  Mike thinks I should go and I have not ruled it out yet.
• If feels like the summer temps have finally arrived!
• I’m extremely angry with my father right now.  Both my sister and I have told my father not to contact us until he goes to therapy.  He hasn’t.
• The boys are done with swimming lessons and they rocked it!!
• We got Rogan’s preschool papers in the mail the other day…he will attend on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 until 11:15.  We are both very very excited about this.
• Hang on, I need more coffee!
• Listen up!!!  I recently purchased jeans from BUCKLE.  They have so many freaking brands of jeans available and the sales associates are extremely helpful.  Granted the prices are a little high, however, I think we all know by now, great jeans are worth it.  Please be prepared to spend A LOT of time trying on jeans…we were there yesterday for about an hour and a half, and Gina came away with some HOT fucking jeans!!  It was worth it!
• The end.
• Goodbye!

Generic Clari*tin: My New Crack

I’ve noticed my readership is down.  Bwa-ha-ha-ha!  You know I can’t possibly be serious!  I just wanted to sound literary and important for a quick moment.  Did it work?

I’ve been absent from here, not really knowing what to write about.  All the usual is still happening…the kids fight a lot, Mike plays golf more, I still feel like I live at the gym, another freaking bladder infection!!  Same old crap.  I’ve spoken to my doctor again and she believes I don’t drink nearly enough water.  And I completely agree.  So in an effort to hydrate more efficiently I do hereby vow to carry water with me wherever I go.

It’s 5.29am on Thursday and I am awake for the day.  I had to take another 24 hour generic Clari*tin yesterday and I have a feeling it jolts me into complete alertness after 8 hours.  But seriously, I’d rather be awake at this time than the way I was yesterday before taking the meds!

The boys and I had just come home from getting some ice cream.  We sat outside, and all seemed well, even with the added drippage and stickiness that comes with little boys and ice cream.  As soon as we got home, my whole body just started to ITCH.  It was weird.  My nose became instantly stuffed up, I was ready to tear out my eyeballs, and my stomach felt icky too…although I’m not sure that was an allergic reaction to anything…I seriously could not get my watch off or my contacts out quickly enough.  I changed clothes and decided to take the allergy medicine despite the fact that the last time I took it, I felt felt all hopped up on um, crack maybe, or perhaps it was more of a symptom of withdrawal from crack.  I haven’t taken crack, but I sometimes talk like I have!!

The allergy meds kicked in thank gawd, but now I’m awake, and it is much too early to be awake.  I do see future opportunities for napping…we’re leaving today to head to the in-laws in Nicholasville, KY.  It’s about a 6 hour drive, and I get to not drive!  I’m looking forward to the trip!

Am I babbling?

I’m done for now, although I think I’ve just come up with a few more ideas for more blogs.

Hmmmm, perhaps this “hopped up” feeling isn’t so bad.  I wonder what else I can get done before the kids wake up!

Why I close my eyes when Rogan goes poopy!

When Rogan began potty training, I was willing to perform any little tricks that might have aided the process.

We tried reading books, singing songs, bribery with sweet treats, promises to call Spiderman, and “threats” of not being able to start preschool in the fall like all the other boys and girls his age.  It all finally paid off one wonderful day.  Where then might you be asking did the closing of Tanzie’s eyes come into play.

Well getting Rogan to pee in the potty was one thing.  Pooping on the potty, as we all know, is something very different.  On one occasion, I offered to leave the room so that he could, um, well…do his business.  That did not work.  Then I offered to stay in the bathroom with  him but offered to shut my eyes, in essence to provide him with the privacy that I though would result in success.  And it worked.

And this morning, as I crouched next to a pooping Rogan, with my eyes tightly shut, I thought to myself, “I have got to blog about this!”

The things we do for our children and their poop!

Lacking Literary Inspiration

So I’ll start with this:  As we were driving past a local pet supply shop, McKade pointed out a puppy,  he then says, “I think that’s one of those “poo-dohs”!  “Honey”, I say, “Do you mean a poodle?”  And he says, “Yes a poodle!”  I have to admit, I absolutely love it when, with all innocence, the boys say things wrong!  Oh, and he also asked me not to tell Gina about this because he didn’t want her laughing at it.  He didn’t tell me that I couldn’t blog about it!  Just to be on the safe side, don’t tell him I told you guys!

It’s been a busy week, and frankly, we are at home today trying to be lazy.  We did force ourselves to run for groceries which I have been putting off all week.  But today, luckily some funds were deposited into our account thereby lifting the ban on spending money.  Nice how that happens!

The boys have had swimming lessons all week, and they are kicking ass and taking names!  (Why would anyone “take names after an ass-kicking”?)  I just don’t get it!

I just finished a painting project I did for a local fundraiser.  It’s called Benchmarks.  They provide the naked pine furniture and volunteers then paint whatever piece they choose which then goes into a silent auctions to raise money for a local women’s care center.  Here’s a few pictures of what I did:

The top is découpaged.  This was my first experience with that art form and I really enjoyed it.  The auction is some time in August and between now and then, I think my piece might be placed in a local shop to draw attention to the fund raiser.  The boys also painted some mini corn hole boards.  And I just realized I forgot to take pictures before turning them in.  One of the perks of volunteering is that the artists receive two tickets top the function.  So I’ll be able to take pictures then!  I actually one more piece to work on.  It may not get done, but I can work on it all the way through until next year’s event!  This is a total low pressure volunteer project: the best kind!

OH I ALMOST FORGOT!!  I GOT MY BOOTS!!!!  I saved up and bought a pair and I am damn proud of myself for not using credit to pay!  I shamefully admit that these boots are fucking expensive!!  Here’s another picture:

It’s Friday and I am looking forward to spending some time with Mike this weekend.  It feels like it’s a busy week which did not seem to provide much time for couple time!

Well, that’s all I got!

I just can’t think of a title for this one!

I’m currently sitting in front of the computer reviewing Facebook and various blogs that I follow.  I can barely turn  my head even a quarter of an inch…apparently I’ve been doing some sort of pain-inducing activity while I sleep because for the last two days, I have woken up with what feels like a major case of whiplash.  I spent most of the day in an adhesive pain patch and a scarf!

Mike has been working late recently as they are engaged in union talks.  At one point he mentioned that they might need some help at the plant if the union strikes.  By “help”, he meant ME!!  And any other willing and/or able soul he could find.  This of course would us with a lack of childcare since I am the primary care-giver and we don’t have family around!  However, Mike is feeling optimistic that they will reach an agreement soon.  Like by midnight tonight!

I had a great birthday last Friday.  Which for me is a big deal.  You see, for the last um, 29 birthdays or so, I’ve set my expectations way too freaking high.  So high that in essence I set myself up to feel disappointed every damn year.  I finally made the connection and started lowering my expectations and taking control of my day.  Now I try to plan things with or without others, and then I hope for the best.

The boys have been fighting a lot lately.  Fighting while playing with imaginary toys!  And the question I posed recently on Twitter is this: If McKade and Rogan are playing with imaginary toys and McKade “takes” one, should he be in trouble?  Seriously, the arguing is wearing me down.

My Mum is headed up here this coming weekend and I am looking foward to spending some time with her.  In fact, after her last visit and the realization that we have the ability to make some improvements in our time together, I feel excited to confront the challenge.

The boys are playing Wii at the moment, and I gave them the 10 minute warning about 7 minutes ago, so I’ll sign off now and try to connect again soon!

Sperm Free Are We

Or should I say he is!!

Yee-freakin’-hah!

That is a savings of $35.00 per month in birth control as well as untold amounts of money towards therapy and antidepressants in the event we had been crazy enough to reproduce 3 children!

{hint-hint…you crazy people who parented 3 or more children}

Try To Picture The Grin On My Face As You Read This!

O my fucking gawd.  I re-instituted “quiet time” today, and at the moment, each boy is in his respective room doing whatever they hell they want.  And me?  I’m feeling a little more hope that this summer won’t be so bad after all!

Last summer, when Rogan was still napping and McKade was a raving pre-kindergarten maniac, we started quiet time.  It was a multi-faceted move on my part:

• Preserving my sanity
• Preserving Rogan’s nap time
• Calming McKade down a little as he was losing control towards the end of the day
• Eventually McKade started napping too and it became obvious that “quiet time” was even more valuable that I had originally thought
• Allowing the boys to have their own space, in a week-assed attempt to decrease the in-fighting around here
• Encouraging independent play…something my boys do not seem to know how to do
• And did I mention the preservation of my own freaking sanity?

So in conclusion, I strongly encourage EVERYONE to partake of the “quiet time” intervention!

Thank you for your attention!

ow. ouch. uh that hurts.

Started my workout at 8:30am and ended at 11:30am.  It wasn’t a solid 3 hour workout, but almost.

Why?  I taught the Friday Silver Sneakers class for a co-worker at 10:30 but started my normal workout at 8:30 and then needed to kill time in between, by you guessed it…working out some more.

I’ll pay the price later, I know it.  In fact my eyelids are feeling very heavy right now.  Damn, my toes even hurt.

It’s Friday and I am glad ’cause I’m missing my honey, and just as Anne mentioned in her blog, the guys are readying themselves for Indy week.  Which means no Mike for a couple of days starting this Wednesday.  I am excited for him to get away and enjoy some time with the guys.  I just hope he doesn’t scare any of them into not getting the vasectomies they have discussed!

My Mum will be coming up and spending some quality time with us while Mike is gone.  The boys are really looking froward to having her here for a while.  As am I!

By the way, Rogan is still peeing on the potty and doing so more and more.  In fact he now goes by himself while I stand back, truly fascinated and thankful for the changes in this little boy.

I hope you all have a good weekend…as soon as I pop some pain meds, I’ll be just fine!

My Little Math Magician

I’m using my blog as a means to brag about my son and his accomplishments.  Deal with it!

McKade won an award today!!  At one o’clock in the auditorium, members of the kindergarten and first grade classes were given awards for various achievements.

Attendance, being a good friend, and writing skills were among some of the reasons these kids were being honored.  McKade’s award was for being a “Math Magician!”

Of course Mike thinks this means that McKade has a future in engineering just like his Daddy.  And me?  What do I think?  I think my bumper sticker should say, “My kid counts better than your kid!”