He told me this morning,
"Happy is the new Grumpy, Dear."
So clever, that Derek. 🙂
I really think yesterday’s rant helped!
Or maybe it’s that it’s Friday and we have a fun long weekend ahead.
My dad and stepmom are coming today. We have a pool party with friends on Monday.
Now if I could just convince Jacob that it isn’t necessary to wake up every morning at 5:55 a.m. because school doesn’t start until 8!!
Not to be confused with Oscar. And I’m not talking about Mayer.
I’m a big fat Grouch lately. Have been all week. Maybe it’s the changes going on with back-to-school. Maybe it’s hormones. Maybe it’s fatigue. Maybe it’s just that I’m grumpy. Like so grumpy, that I overheard Caleb saying to himself last night, "She’s not being nice." Yeah…it’s that bad.
So in an effort to get rid of the grumps, I decided I needed to do some blessing counting.
Here’s the start of my list…
1. I’m thankful I don’t live in Hollywood. They all seem messed up there.
2. I’m thankful that, so far, none of the toys we own have been on the recall list because they were made in China and have deadly lead in them. So far…
3. I’m thankful that I have an easy baby.
4. I’m thankful that my local Walmart has a gas station, because I realized I was below E after shopping at Walmart this morning.
5. I’m thankful that the eye infection I have is just a stye and not pink eye.
6. I’m thankful that I only have one more week of both boys having soccer practice on the same night, at the same time, in two locations that are 15 minutes apart from each other.
7. I’m thankful that I don’t work at IKEA, because I’m telling you that I LOATHE that place. I went there yesterday and had a tantrum when I left. Their catalog sucks you in to a vortex that feels like quicksand in the middle of a black hole. I will never go back. NEVER.
8. I’m thankful for BIZ, the stain remover. Because Jacob has managed to spill yogurt on every piece of new clothing he has this week, first thing in the morning. Our new policy is "have breakfast in your pajamas".
9. I’m thankful for return policy’s. Because I have a stack of returns.
10. I’m thankful for large frozen bags of chicken nuggets. It seems that is the best I can do for dinners this week.
WOW! I feel better already.
I’ll try to think of a more serious list tomorrow. 🙂
In the hall near my bedroom, I have pictures of Jacob and Caleb each one week before they turned 8 months. They only have a diaper on and they’re in black and white. I love them. It started when my Aunt Lisa took some of Jacob at this age. And then I decided to replicate it with Caleb. And this weekend, did the same for Samuel. Now I have him on my wall too…and it makes me happy. I love this age…I just want to squeeze him all the time. And kiss those cheeks. And blow on his tummy. And smooth his fuzzy hair. And hold his chubby hand. I love this baby!
He got a little teary as he hugged me, looked around and said, "I’m gonna miss this place." Ever the one for dramatics…you’d think he was going off to college or something. He’s so proud of his collared shirt, camo shorts and Tony Hawk shoes. I let him pick his own new school clothes this year (within reason, of course), which thrilled him. I love this tender, sentimental kid. I’ll miss having him around all day. But school is so good for him. And for me. 🙂
What a summer it’s been for us…
the beach
the mountains
the lake
soccer camp
golf camp
swimming lessons
friends
family
water fun
a 5th b’day
library visits
playdates
I do believe it’s probably one of the best summers of my life…just pure fun. And now I’m excited to get back into a schedule. To get some cleaning and organizing done. This week starts soccer practices for both boys, and regular piano practices. And 2nd grade. And soon for Caleb, 3 days/week of preschool. Life is moving fast, but it’s so good.
Jacob is racked with nerves tonight. He cried when I hugged him good night, "I’m going to miss my family! 7 hours is so long to be separated." It was so genuine, and so sweet. I remember that feeling…And to some extent, I’m thrilled that he feels it. I’m glad he’ll miss us…it means we’re doing something right.
And because every good post needs a picture. Here is one I took of Caleb yesterday…he was helping me make strawberry freezer jam. Yuuummmmmyyyy!
One day of waterpark fun + One day of lake fun = A very tired mommy
We’ve had LOADS of fun the last two days. Met some friends at a local water park (Hawaiian Falls) yesterday. One friend watched Sam while I went on some rides with the kids. Jacob and I got adventurous and did the "half pipe"…no one warned me that I needed to raise my behind out of the raft while going down the treacherous slide. I am black AND blue. But, we had a great time. No pictures from that outing…I didn’t dare take the camera.
Then today we went with our neighbors/friends to the lake, and rented a ski boat and a jet ski. What a blast! Four families total. Me and Caleb whizzed around on the jet ski, Jacob and Caleb both had a turn kneeboarding (and did fabulous…I was so proud of them), I tried my hand at skiing (it’s been awhile!) and then we all had a turn on the "tube". One one of my falls the ski hit my shin and now it’s black and blue too! Yikes! Samuel was a champ, as always…not a PEEP…not one! He hung out with everyone on the shore all day long (over 5 hours). We were so sad not to have Derek with us…he’s in Cali for some important meetings. But the other dads were awesome and everyone pitched in and helped with my kids. It was a really great time.
All of this fun does have its price, of course….my HOUSE! It’s a mess. Must clean before school starts, or maybe not. There’s only a few more days of summer, and we will suck every last drop out of it!
Trying to bribe Jacob to share some of his trail mix with him, Caleb said,
"I’ll buy you a new video game if you share with me."
To which Jacob replied, "Nope, It’ll have be something more special than that."
Caleb’s response, "A gun?"
For a GOOD laugh, with this one.
When we were at the Pioneer Village in Utah, one "stop" was the photography shop. It held old cameras and lots of old photos. And the woman there could take your picture, digitally impose your faces on an old 1800s photograph and send it to you via e-mail.
I had to try it!
And the result is HI-larious.
Are you ready?
WE decided not to smile…
The woman suggested I might want to send them out as Christmas cards.
I think NOT. 🙂
I put the baby on his stomach, and was trying to encourage him to roll over (which he still is not very interested in doing). Caleb walks in and very matter-of-factly said,
"It’s a good thing you’re teaching him how to roll. ‘Cause one day when he’s a grown-up and there’s a fire, he’ll know what to do."
Hadn’t thought of that one! Thanks, buddy. 🙂
On our way home from Utah, we passed through the SW corner of Colorado, headed for Santa Fe. I was driving and all of the sudden we passed one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen. A HUGE field of sunflowers. It was beautiful! I felt like we were in Tuscany. And I told Derek, if I see another one, I’m pulling over for some pictures. About 3 minutes later, we did…and I did.
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