Impressions

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work.....

Unconditional Love

He loves sick days... cuddling and snoozing with a fevered, nauseous, coughing child is one of his favorite things.... He loves warm bodies, vomiting is part of his daily routine (right after he visits the neighboring horse pasture to grab something to eat), and the coughing just gives him the opportunity to reposition.  He excels where I am lacking, he is their best medicine.

He destructively emptied the chocolate from the bottom two rows of our family heirloom Christmas countdown calendar.... twice.  He threw up on the couch three times last week (and once on the kitchen floor).  He's constantly letting himself in and out of the house, leaving the doors open behind him.  And I'm too embarrassed to tell you what he does to the sweet neighborhood folks who walk past the house.

But I know he'll always enthusiastically want to be with me (and maybe even I him), even after I've scolded & shooed him out of the kitchen and bed, let his food bowl go empty & unnoticed for a couple of days, allowed Abe to use him as an impromptu vacuum (who picks him up by his back legs and pushes him around the house), watched as he tolerates the rambunctious attention from nine four year olds on a weekly basis, and laughed as he patiently endures being toted around by three affectionate boys.

No matter our temperament, our condition, or our past and current flaws, he loves us!  Dogs are the perfect example of unconditional love.

Call Him Sensitive

I guess you could call him sensitive.... he is going to cry if he doesn't win at musical chairs, he will sulk over a mean comment someone said to him at recess.... two days ago, he does remember and dwell on sad dreams days after their occurrence (they aren't real Sol).  He leaves me baffled and bemused on what to do, how do I reason with my ever vigilant headstrong six year old?????

After exhausting all other efforts, I can only hold him and flood him with compliments (I keep telling Monte I think this might work for me too!)..... 'My sweet sweet Sol, the sweetest boy I know.... My smart smart Sol, the smartest boy in all the first grade, My handsome, handsome Sol, the best looking boy in his whole class....' at this last comment he'll stop me... 'No Mom... that's not true... I saw Truman yesterday, and he definitely looked more handsome than me.'  Oh why did I remind him!  Darn that Truman!  I guess sometimes I just can't win. 

Impressions

There was yelling, there was threats, there was tears, and then..... the perfect book.... all is well.....

Joining Mamabyrd & From the Land of Cotton in their weekly impression posts.

Impressions

All I want for Christmas is my two (or three) front teeth!

Joining Mamabyrd & From the Land of Cotton in their weekly impression posts.

Impressions

There was a full 12 seconds of sweet reverential silence while they thought what they were thankful for..... then someone made a fart sound and someone else told me I had stinky breath.... Oh I am so thankful!

Joining Mamabryd and From the Land of Cotton in their weekly impression posts. 

Impressions

His teacher sent me an email.... 'the best Dress and Tell I've EVER seen.... so great I sent him to present it to the rest of the fourth grade classes.'    There is no better person for him to represent.  My boy is a Genius.... maybe I should stop worrying about his spelling.....

I have no problem deciphering his words, but for those of you who do:

'The important thing is not to stop questioning.  Curiosity has its own reason for existing.' 
                                                                                                                                 -Albert Einstein  

Joining Mamabyrd and From the Land of Cotton in their weekly impression posts.

Impressions

Clearance bulbs, a value copy of the complete 4th season of House, and a spectacular find at a favorite second hand store (already put to good storage use)..... all I need now is a King Size KitKat for dinner.  

Flowers, the perfect gift, dinner and a movie..... I really do throw the best parties.

Joining Mamabyrd & From the Land of Cotton in their weekly impression posts.

Halloween 2014

Halloween is great.  It's like a step back in time while I chase my children from house to house as they enjoy each haunted doorstep.  I love living in a small town where a trunk or treat is unheard of, and local picked apples are still given in my children's goody bags.   

Whether your costume is homemade, store bought, skin baring, multi-layered, expensive, or just your mother's old skirt, your  mission is all the same.... to collect as much candy as you can.

 

I once heard that from a health and dental perspective it's better to eat all you Halloween candy at once, getting it over with quickly (that's what I kept telling myself as I downed another Kit-Kat), so I felt somewhat justified in letting my children eat Baby Ruths and Snickers for dinner, I knew the 'Ghost' soup I'd already prepared would go untouched.  

I found each boy passed out amongst candy wrappers on the front room floor, I guess the sugar eventually wore off.  But as I tucked them into bed I'm sure they had extra sweet dreams of our evening adventures in gathering goodies while..... manuevering our way through a spookified hedge maze, trembling through the numerous homemade spook alleys, visiting the local bar where they hand out full size candy bars, and stopping at the town BBQ joint for popcorn, hot chocolate, and friendly conversation & candy hall comparisons with other local trick or treaters.  

Even after all that fun we still made it home in time for Jonas to do plenty spooking of his own on our haunted front porch.  I think this is his favorite part of Halloween. 

Yes.... Halloween is great. 

Impressions

It's drafty, a 150 years old, has numerous code violations, some might even call it dangerous, not exactly the ideal space for 9 little ones to join me three times a week.... but I'm certain if houses had a face, mine would be smiling right now. 

Joining Mamabyrd and From the Land of Cotton in their weekly impression posts.   

Fall Fun

Fall is my favorite season..... well... summer is amazing, and spring and all the reappearances, and what about the holidays, they just wouldn't be the same without the blanket of white sparkly snow....

Fall is one of my favorite seasons, especially the month of October.  No other month can you see your surroundings change so much from one day to the next.  No other month are things like leaf jumping, wearing costumes in public, and consuming unhealthy amounts of goodies totally the norm.  No other month so easily describe with one simple word.... FUN! 

In fact, it's this month and it's fun traditions that remind me so much of my mother, and of her example to live life to the fullest, never taking things too seriously (I mean, I haven't known too many 60 year old women who make their Halloween costume their number one priority for the month).

So in following her example we are happy to celebrate life in the fun form of..... backyard festivals, broom flying, bobbing for apples, hayrides, pumpkin carving on the beach, corn mazes, witches brews, doughnut eating contests, spook alleys, face painting, and boogieing with friends at a Monster Mash (sometimes the dance floor just isn't big enough).

 

 

So much fun and the month isn't even over yet.....

Impressions

Maybe I'm just going Batty, but I think I'm Reaping the benefits of being a Mummy.

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Seconds

There are plenty of things we'll take seconds of....... dessert, a back rub, a trip down the alpine coaster, a long weekend at a favorite camping spot......

Our family has matured this summer, and with it's growth comes a fair share of growing pains.  I think I'm struggling the most to find where I fit in, the more I see where I'm not really needed, the more needy I become.  However the best medicine for those growing pains seems to be spending time together.  So with only a matter of days before the boys loose their father to 60 hour work weeks again we packed up and headed south for a second trip to Boulder, Utah.

 

I remember a time when Monte mocked camper camping (I didn't remind him), but with age and growth comes a realization of what really is important.  A camper addition seemed to slow our pace, allowing us to enjoy our journey, we even lingered at each bathroom stop and lunch break.  There was no arguments about the fire and setting up camp.  No lectures about bringing dirt into the tent.  And no worries of bears snatching my children in their sleep.  In fact I know I've never had a better view while making dinner.  

The boys loved their 'upstairs' sleeping arrangement, gas mileage was a pleasant surprise, Monte's birthday candles easily stayed lit, and Monte and I found that with a bit of extra bedding the backseat fold out isn't all that bad.  And what about the c.d. player, and it's excuse to dig out our old c.d. collection.  

BNL.... maybe a little, Midnight Oil..... more than I would have liked, interesting mixed c.d. creations.... yep those were the c.d.s with the most requests.  Now I'm no Nicole Kidman, nor Ewan McGreggor for that matter, but I could crank the Moulin Rouge love song montage and captivate 3 sets of eyes and 6 little ears, and for those 4 minutes I was a rock star... I'd even exit the stage with a seat belted ovation and demands for several encore performances.... maybe I found my niche?????     

  

When I crawled into our foldout backseat bed that last night I was surprised how tired my legs were.... what had we done over the last couple of days?   

We'd hiked out to that small lake at our first bathroom break, and what about the time spent climbing and scooting around those red rolling mounds when we stopped for lunch.  

There was the couple of hours we spent exploring those white hills, that's when I was able to sneak some alone time with Jo to work on our rock shaping skills.  

 

 

And what about our scenic hike to the waterfall.  It was almost unbearable to sit by it was so cold..... until we found the sun just a short distance to one side, how quickly clothing was discarded. 

 

And almost immediately after the 6 1/2 mile hike there was the other two and a half mile trek for a quick visit at our favorite swimming hole, all the while Sol was belting out his favorite line from the Moulin Rouge sound track..... 'We could be Love Birds' (He came up with his own version of 'We could be Lovers', he sang with such passion I didn't feel the need to correct him).  

And I'll always remember Abe and all his animal antics while climbing each mountain trail... jumping like a frog, creeping like a cheetah, howling like a wolf, scampering like a mountain goat, screeching like an owl, roaring like a lion, hissing like a snake..... I'm sure it was all his creature actions that kept the real animal threats away.  

 

So now that I'd thought about it for a second..... even with our slowed pace..... I guess we'd done plenty over those couple of days to justify some tired legs.