Wishes, Moods and the Sort

It feels like it has been a long week. Ben is battling a cold, and it appears as though the cold is winning. Tissues are being needed right and left. Will has a double ear infection with a side of pneumonia. K. and I have been taking turns sleeping with him since he is so miserable. For the last few mornings he has declared at 4:30 am that he is "readytogetout" and wants a "cold drink and waffles". It is hard to negotiate with a 2 year old. "No no the sun is STILL sleeping. The moon is STILL out." Needless to say, we are a bit tired over here under the Sycamore. A lovely friend of mine with 3 children under 5 (Ages 4, 2 and 4 months) coined the new mantra for me, "I wish I were a better tired person." So true! Though as sweet as she is I can only imagine that her tired person is not as grouchy as my tired person. It seems so bizarre to me that I can take life in stride and be calm and patient one day and then bark out orders and demands with little to no patience the next. All the players are the same, but somehow the tide has turned. Not that the bad mood isn't enough, I then beat myself up for being in a bad mood at all and feel guilty because I can't be happy go lucky all the time. My question is this: Is anyone really happy go lucky ALL the time?????? Please say no so that I can feel normal and move on.

Best Thing

Ethan made this racetrack the other day and declared it "The Best Thing I Ever Built". It was indeed pretty cool, until it was destroyed by an unnamed party.

Pretzel Art

Ben created this during his favorite time of the day...."Afternoon Snack." He has titled it "The Letter A Painting a Picture."

He went on to eat his work with little to no remorse.

Interesting Reading

Whilst taking an extra long shower (aka hiding from the children) the other morning, I had some time to kill and decided to look for some reading material.

This is what I discovered on the back of K's shampoo bottle (or Manpoo as he calls it).

Really darling? You don't need manpoo to get girl approved hair.

Really? You had me at "I do."

PS I'm pretty impressed with myself for using the word "whilst". It reminds me of when Will chanted as I vacuumed yesterday "Go mommy go mommy!"

I Came I Sewed I Created

After seven going on eight years of taking care of small children (gulp! Where does the time go?), I finally started a task and completed it. Actually two!

With the help of sewer, oops, seamstress D.T. (my lovely sister) I took two classes and have these two bags to show for my labors. I must admit I am pretty proud. Mostly because I have something concrete and pretty to show for 10 hours of work, as opposed to housekeeping where you could work for 10 hours and the house STILL looks like a mess. It's a black hole.

So watch out because apparently I am coming back into the world of productivity or at least last week I was. For me it is a slow process of re-entry. Concrete productivity report for this week....the jury is still out.

New Member

Look who just joined the "I lost my first tooth" club.

Irish Lunacy

Perhaps the Leprechauns affected the rational side of my brain.

Perhaps they have been slipping "shamrock juice" into my morning tea.

Maybe it was due in part to genes linked to my paternal grandmother who was Irish and a wee bit goofy.

Who knows, but for some reason on St. Patrick's Day 2011, I lost my part-Irish mind. I decided to do a labor intensive (though incredibly cute) baking project with a 2 year old and a 5 year old.

The beginning of the project was all happy go lucky. Times were good. The cake batter was mixed. Turns were taken. We were all smiley, lovey and St. Patricky.

Then Will, a/k/a Mr. No Mine, started becoming possessive of the batter bowls and wouldn't let anyone stir. Then, he decided he wanted to eat all of the batter raw. Try talking rationally to a two year old about salmonella.

The boys enjoyed putting the food coloring in each bowl and mixing. The purple layer went pretty smoothly. By the blue layer, they were bored and done. I finished alone as they found other creative outlets for their energy.

Around the yellow layer, the Irish bitterness started to rise in my veins. Really? What was I thinking? I found the project in a Family Fun magazine. This is what they don't show you...the after effects of the project a/k/a the horrific clean up.

All in all though, they turned out pretty well.

Irish insanity aside the boys enjoyed eating a rainbow.

Happy Pi Day

Today is March 14, Pi Day, Pi as in the mathematical term which equals to 3.14 blahblahblahblah

K's campus is celebrating with their annual Pi Day Competition where students from high school come and solve engineering problems which are graded and the winner gets.....you guess it PIE! (And also a slight amount of fame and recognition)

I suppose for supper tonight we should have had all things round. Quiche. Pie. Pancakes. Perhaps next year I'll have some creative juices left to throw in that direction.

In honor of Pi Day, I would like to unveil my top ten list of reasons to marry a mathematician.

10. Joyfully handles monthly bill and checkbook duties.
9. Has helped many a niece, nephew or friend of a friend out of mathematical dilemma.
8. If doubling a recipe and can't figure something out, he's your man.
7. Can accurately calculate distances and ETA using road map and key.
6. Actually offers to keep score during Scrabble, Rummy 500 or other games.
5. Doesn't matter if calculator batteries are dead when you have your own personal Rain Man.
4. If having difficulty falling asleep, can explain imaginary number theory to you.
3. Future built in help for boys' Jr high and high school mathematical courses.
2. Willingly figures out tip percentages after dining out.
1. He just adds up. :)

And that's all I have to say about that.

Chuckle of the Day

Even though it offends me on several levels, I had to laugh at this joke on our calendar.


A blonde wanted to buy personalized license plates, but she couldn't afford them. So she changed her name to JKM345.


I'm sure she wasn't a natural blonde. Right?

No Longer Feared in the Botanical World

I love plants. I admire other people's plants...their pots, their leaves, the interesting stories about their origins. Our neighbor has a plant the "Night Blooming _______(something)" that blooms only at night and you are supposed to throw a party in anticipation of the event. Pretty cool.

Somehow over the years, though, plants have become one more thing that I have to take care of. They mock me and pressure me to remember to water and talk to them. Because of this over the last 7 years I have certainly become the talk of the botanical world. "Have you heard about Spidey? Yea, poor sap is doomed now that he lives with those people." "Drink up fellas because you may not see water again for a month of Sundays." "Oh, is that what the lady of the house looks like? Haven't.....seen..... her.....in.......awhile." All this said in weak and dehydrated voice.

I am proud to announce that I have turned over a new leaf. I have become a thoughtful waterer and nurturing caregiver to three (count them) three houseplants that are not only alive after several years but THRIVING.

Meet Spidey II also known as Spidey the Sequel, Revenge of Spidey or The Empire Strikes Back. This guy is a fighter. He takes a licking and keeps on ticking. When his leaves are too long and knocking the kids in the face, I grab my kitchen sheers and trim away with no rhyme, reason or any preconceived plan. He hides his head in embarrassment for a few weeks, then returns in full flourish and even sports a flower or two. He rocks! He is currently in desperate need of transplanting as his lower region seems to be rotting away the pot in which he currently resides. How embarrassing!

In the background you may catch a glimpse of Long Necky (named by Ben) who is an Angelwing Begonia. Long Necky is a high class Begonia. She is a full breed and has her papers to prove her pedigree. The story goes that Long Necky's ancestors shed a leaf that was then sent through the mail in an envelope and transplanted by the sender's relatives. Needless to say it survived and went on to procreate Long Necky. Long Necky was given to me by these friends because like a good full breed Long Necky just keeps on producing offspring. Long Necky can be described as long and necky. She is very, very tall requiring limb supports of a stick and paint can stirrer. She reminds of a kid in junior high whose legs are a bit too long for their body. But check her out.....

And last but not least, Christmas Cactus or Thanksgiving Cactus or as we call him Ash Wednesday Cactus named for the holiday around which he blooms. He is a welcome addition to the family and his self-watering pot is much appreciated because it is nearly impossible for the waterer to over water and have the overflow make that annoying drip on the wood floors.

So there you have it. You CAN teach and old dog new tricks. Maybe someday soon we will be THE place to be. We will become a haven for plants of all shapes and sizes. We will be the home where sad and deprived plants will go for revitalization and rejuvenation. We will be a botanical day spa.

Next on my adoption list...Return of the African Violet.

Will What on Earth?

(She says as he sqeezes the living daylights out of his pierogies placed ever so carefully by the mother in the bowl.)

Loving my children today, however, would also love to have them shipped off for a week. WHEN WILL THE SPRiNG WEATHER GET HERE?

(Pierogies thrown throughout kitchen.)

Apparently SNOW again tomorrow.

Despise the groundhog...that lying little rodent got my hopes up.

(Pierogies in hair and throughout fingers.)

Look away. Just look away.

Benefits of Running Family Infirmary for Week

1. A lot of together time
2. Not a lot of time spent on wardrobe selection. Most have been in pajamas.
3. Week free of attention to hair or make up details.
4. Bland white menu easy to plan and prepare.
5. Cable TV finally worth weight in gold for new versions of children's favorite shows.
6. Gas saved from cancelled trip to Ohio.
(At least our reservations at K's parents were used by K's brother and family)
7. No time to argue with spouse as we pass one another like ships in the night attending to the infirm.
8. Almost miss defiance and normal daily bad mood swings of healthy child.
9. House is in pretty good shape for spring cleaning because you are wiping things down with lysol every 15 minutes.
10. Renewed appreciation for good health.

Desperately looking for a silver lining. :)

oops

just saw i spelled imminent wrong........

And Then There Were Two

Only Ethan and I are left untouched by the stomach bug.

I have opened the doors and windows in hopes the virus will float out with the hint of warm spring breeze.

Ben, Kevin and Will lay in their pajamas watching video after video and craving water.

Yikes.

Major bummer: Our spring break trip to Columbus is thrown to the wayside. But as I told my mother-in-law, "No worries. This is what I signed up for."

Life with little ones surely is an adventure.

Cure for the Common Cold Immenent

Uncle Ben's Tried and True methods for curing the common cold include but are not limited to the following:

1. Spend as much time as possible horizontal.

2. Rousing game of Ants in the Pants

3. Video viewing in horizontal position.

4. Stick a lot of stuff in your pants.

Best Valentine's Day Ever

Since my husband and I abhor Valentine's Day (too many years single), we don't shower one another with gifts and chocolates. This year, however, my eldest son wrote me a letter which read:

Dear Sally,

You are the best mom in the yunvrse.

I love being your sun.

Have a supper Valentine's Day.

Love,

First name and Last name

Read it and weep sisters. You've got to soak up those fuzzy parenting feelings when they come and store them somewhere in hopes of retrieving them on the harder days.