Time to Move

It has been quite a while since I've last blogged but today the mood hit me to take a few minutes out of my day and write. Because we are an Army family it's no surprise, we're moving!

This current tour we are on was only supposed to be for 2 years so we knew it was short term. We have only been here a year and a half, but that's typical. It's okay with us this time because we get to go back to Oregon where we have a home, family and friends. So for that we are so thankful and excited.

Whenever you get to a new place it seems like it takes at least a year for it to feel like home. You move, have some great family time because you don't know a soul, and then you start to create a life. I think this process is sped up some for military people because we don't have time to take friendships slow, we have to embrace each other and make the best life we can, while we can.

Every time we have moved, I have had mixed feelings. We are always ready for the next adventure, but it's hard to leave our new friends. Now that we have three kids, it's even harder. The kids have one set of grandparents in Oregon so they are really excited to be near them again, but I don't think it's sunk in yet, that they will miss their friends here.

For me there are days I'm so thrilled I can't stand it, and then I think of some of the wonderful people we have met here in Colorado, and I am a little saddened. I guess you always miss your military family, but the truth is that they will eventually move also, and they understand.

The ones that tear at your heart are the friends that are not military. They have a life in this community and they have let us into it. For me there is some guilt, and sadness about it all. I know that my oldest son's friends will miss him, and he will miss them too.

It's a blessing to have such wonderful people who embrace you and your kids for the time you are here. We will stay in touch with as many of our friends as possible and look forward to our new adventure back in Oregon!

Now let the madness of moving begin!

And I was just thinking I had nothing to blog about!

Honest to God, yesterday I was just thinking that I hadn't blogged in a while because I hadn't had anything really nuts happen to me. Well I jinxed myself because today, while not my worst day ever, it was just shitty! I had some drama at my son's school this morning with his teacher. She is strict and some of the parents wanted to talk with her about it, but it was tense and not comfortable this morning. Then it was on to the principal's office to take up concerns with her, so needless to say I was mentally spent by 8am.

Then after going back home with Ella and Ryan, I tried unsuccessfully for a half hour to get them dressed, so we could walk the dog and go to the park. A poopy diaper and a very crabby 4 year old stood in my way! After our walk I really wanted to load the kids up and go to Target to get a few things, but both kids are crying about Lord knows what. So I decide to feed them and put them down for a nap!

Ryan only slept a little over an hour and he woke up the same way he went down.......crying! That went on for another hour or so. In the mean time Ella woke up and came downstairs. She had a foul look on her face so I tried to give her a hug and she immediately started bawling. When I asked her what the problem was, she screamed that Ryan had made a mess of her dolls and she just cleaned them up. Now this is funny because Ella doesn't clean up anything, she is very good at acting busy while her older brother does all the work.

Then the repeated requests for candy, and gum keep coming at me. She knows I'll say "NO" and then she can cry some more. AHHHHHH! Then I load the two crying kids in the car and head out to get Aubrey from school.

I no more go two blocks and the MP's (military police) pull me over. I'm thinking they have the wrong person because I wasn't speeding! The officer asks if I know why he's pulled me over, to which I reply "no". He goes on to explain that I rolled through the stop sign before turning. He then tells me that the guy behind me was clocked at 37 MPH in a 30 MPH zone but that since I turned in front of him and ran the stop sign (which I didn't), that he had to pull me over instead.

Are you freaking kidding me! I started to laugh a little because this is just the story of my day. I'm thinking that a speeder should get pulled over before me. Then he proceeds to look at my military ID, driver's license, and registration, and berate me for pulling out in front of that truck that was 2 blocks away, and putting my kids in danger etc.
n
I mean I've been driving for like 21 years and I've never had a ticket before! And furthermore I wasn't putting my kids in danger, I mean the guy driving 37MPH in a residential was putting kids in danger!

Okay so I calmly breathe and after all this mental abuse he lets me go with a "verbal warning", more like a "verbal lashing". So that does it, the perfect end to my perfect day.....and it was only 2pm. I still had to get Aubrey from school, help him with his homework, make dinner, get them all out the door by 4:45 to get to Ella's dance class, get to Target and get home to bathe Ryan. OMG I'm so tired I could almost fall asleep writing this. Oh and I didn't mention that Ella was such a crab because she was up half the night telling me she couldn't sleep and then crying on and on.

Who's idea was this to have so many kids anyway???? I for one, thought it sounded great over margaritas! But when tucking the little beasts in, I looked at them all and thanked God that they are healthy, smart, loving, and all mine!

What the what?

Talk about a reality check, my husband and I spent 5 days in Austin Texas for a National Guard Convention this past week and had a fabulous time. It's a work trip for my husband but for me it's all fun! So imagine my surprise when the morning after we arrive back home, I wake to find the laundry room full of poop!

Our miniature poodle and rescue dog, Hailey has a tad bit of a stomach problem. My diagnosis is that she has irritable bowel syndrome. None the less, about once a month or so she has a blow out for no apparent reason. I've had her to the vet and they've done tests and given her antibiotics, but they have found nothing wrong with her. So after spending most of my morning cleaning the mess up, while trying to get my oldest ready to go to school, Hailey goes poop all over the patio outside.....I sigh and think to myself "welcome home".

Then our oldest son screams, "Ryan has poop on his blanket", I say "what?", and then I see my husband picking Ryan up to give him a hug and I scream, "ahh put him down". Out of Ryan's diaper is a boat load of crap, literally. So Ryan's bed sheets were trashed, and there was poop on the stairs. My husband was about to head out the door to work and he says, "so I'm going to go to work......I have a feeling this is going to be a shitty day" and he laughed. I, on the other hand didn't find the humor in it!

So after all the doggie clean up, now my 2 year old needs a major clean up and I have to leave in 5 minutes to get Aubrey to school. The only saving grace is that my mom is still in town and she was able to finish up the clean up so I could hit the road and we barely made it before the bell rang. Whew! what a day and it's only 7:15am!

Then after I get Aubrey to school my mom and I, Ella and Ryan all head off to the post office, Payless Shoes, TJ MAx, and Target to get a new dog bed, tutu, tights, tap shoes, & ballet shoes for Ella's class tonight. So many errands to do and I debit something at the post office and realize that I can't remember my pin number. I'm dead serious, I absolutely couldn't remember it! I think there is something seriously wrong with me that I can't remember a pin number I've used for years. So after many hours of frustration with myself, my pin number finally came to me.

So the day ended by feeding the dog white rice for dinner which is supposed to help stop her up, taking Ella to her dance class with my mom and the other two, and wondering if this is what motherhood is all about? OMG I'll never make it! And then I reminded myself that this is an opportunity to BLOG!

New wife to the Army Life?

I met a great lady about a month ago at my kids Tae Kwon Do class. She had seen my husband in his Army uniform, so she knew I was military. One day, as she says, she got up the nerve to talk to me. She is painfully shy and had seen me for several weeks before striking up a conversation.

She is a mother of 4 children, all ages 6 and under. She is 41 years old and her husband just joined the Army a year ago. After he went through basic training he went to AIT (army school), and then they got stationed here in Colorado. Two months after they arrived, he was deployed to Iraq for a year.

By the time she introduced herself to me she had been here 4 months and really had no idea what is available to her, or anything at all about the Army. Talk about culture shock! When I married my husband, he had been in the Army for 6 years already. I knew nothing, but at least he did and we didn't have any children yet so it was just me I had to worry about whenever we moved. She not only is in a strange place, but she has 4 kids knows nothing about this strange life we call The Army.

So after briefly talking to her, I asked her for her phone number and email and I told her I was going to get her some more information. I spent about a week emailing back and forth and that gave her a good start. The Army has several helpful programs for new families: You can request a sponsor when you get to a new duty station. It is the sponsors job to come over and meet you, and give you lots of information about the area, and the Army Post you are living on.

There are also Family Readiness Groups (FRG). The FRG is extremely important especially when your husband is deployed because they are your link to what is going on in country (Iraq in this case). They hold monthly meetings and it is a good way to meet others in your spouses unit. Sometimes the FRG gets a bad rap for being a gossip center, but I have always found it comforting to be in touch with them. I was a coordinator when my husband was in Iraq and again when he came home. It's a volunteer job and needless to say not all FRG's are created equal but I'm a big supporter of them.

Then I let her know about militaryonesource.com, which is the place to go. They are 24/7 organization put in place by the Federal Government since the wars started. It is free to all military families and they can be of great help. They do everything from giving you a packet of information on the area you are moving, to getting you free counseling sessions if you or your kids need it. They also now have online classes for the military spouse which help teach you about the Army, including the world of acronyms!

There is federal funding available for spouses to get certification/training in portable careers. I believe it's up to $4000 in schooling. Many sports/activity programs for kids, including a hourly daycare center. That comes in really handy if you have a doctors appointment or you just need to go rest for two hours. When your husband is deployed you really need some alone time!

As I was helping my new friend navigate this new world, she was starting to feel better about the entire thing. She had no idea who her FRG person was and no one had contacted her,(that's not supposed to happen). So after about 2 weeks of not getting anywhere with that, I made a call to my husband and asked for his help. He found out who her husbands Battalion Commander was and emailed him to let him know about the situation. She received several calls by the next day. The Army takes these programs very seriously, and if someone falls through the cracks it will be rectified immediately. The commanders are all evaluated on their FRG programs, so it's a big deal.

I guess what I learned from this experience is that I have become so used to the Army lifestyle that I know where to go to get an answer that I don't have, but I've been reminded that it's a scary world for a new military spouse. It truly is a different world. Once you're in it, you don't realize that no one outside the military knows what you are talking about. I used to tell my husband to "speak English" when we were first married and that's exactly how my friend feels.

I have also realized that I love the Army and all it has to offer. There are really tough times and lots of sacrifice for sure, but overall I love it. It's not for everyone, but I feel great about helping someone get to know the great things the Army has to offer, and really does have a lot to offer families. So let's all try and help out our new families, because we all had to go through that transition at some point, and it's much easier with help! I had great people along the way help me and I want to pay it forward!

What a day

Today started out how many of my mornings have been starting lately. I wake up to let the dog out, and she has had diarrhea all over the mud room. I feel bad that the dog is not well, but I'm thinking she has irritable bowel syndrome because we've had the dog for 8 months or so and she does this a few times a month. My husband tries to be helpful and pour me a cup of coffee but by the time I can drink it it's cold. He does get the kids cereal so I can tend to the poop patrol.

Today I had had it, so after an hour of cleaning up poop and neglecting my children, I bathe the dog and I'm off to the vet. On the way to the vet we pass a garage sale and I spot a bookshelf. I do a u-turn and head back. I have been looking for a small bookshelf for months and there is one for $10 and in decent shape.....score!! Then back in the car to and to the vet.

We drop her off and head to Target to get a few things. Well, two pretzels, and 3 apple juices later the kids are still acting terrible. I bribe them to behave and tell them they can go look at the toy section if they behave. So after I shop we go to the toy section, which is never good. They keep telling me what they want to buy (as if they have any money) and I keep repeating "you are not getting anything today, just looking". Apparently their hearing has gone bad because that didn't stop the constant begging. Ugh, we leave and go home.

Then we get here get settled and the vet called and said the dog could be picked up. Well a long morning, and $98 later, the dog has nothing wrong with her. They want me to give her antibiotics for a week just in case, but she seems fine. So I make the executive decision to change the dogs food to Purina's Lamb & Rice. It was good enough for our German Shepherd for 12 years, and it will be good enough for our miniature poodle. We've been feeding her this expensive overpriced stuff because she was eating that when we got her, but enough is enough! I think she has IBS and I'm taking matters into my own hands.

After this post I'm off to do more laundry, and attempt to clean up the play room, get the kids to Tae Kwon Do, and make dinner........ have I mentioned that I really want a maid!!!

When a Soldier Cries

I was on my way to visit one of my oldest and dearest friends who now lives in New Jersey. My husband took 5 days leave from work, and I was off to have a vacation from my crazy life and jump into my friends very exciting life for a week. So you can imagine my spirits were soaring as I'm waiting near my gate at the airport.

I saw several soldiers in uniform sitting with their wives. This means they are most likely headed back to a deployment in Iraq or Afghanistan somewhere. If they were on vacation with their wives, they wouldn't be in uniform. So in a moment I was taken back to my husbands 18 month deployment to Iraq in 2003-2005.

Being an Army wife, you feel connected to all of the other wives and family members of soldiers. It's hard to explain the connection, but you can actually look at them saying goodbye to their soldier, and you feel their pain. The soldiers board the plane first. And as I'm standing there watching the women hug their soldiers goodbye, I can hardly stand it. Here I am off to get a vacation from my family, and they have to say goodbye to theirs. It's a mixture of guilt, sadness, and sympathy.

After the soldiers give their boarding passes to the attendant, they turn around for one last look and wave. It's hard to see a soldier cry. They are tough, so to see them so fragile, so human makes everyone in the airport cry.

I am starting to tear up and I have to look away. I see the women crying as they turn to leave the airport. One woman had a toddler with her, and I wanted to run up and hug her. I almost did, but I thought I might really freak her out, or start to have my own PTSD moment and send her over the edge. I stood their silently looking at her and wanting to hug her and make it better for her.

One of the many sad things about having your soldier in a war zone, is that no one can make you feel better about that. Friends can try and offer support, and try to understand what you're going through, but when all is quiet at the dinner hour, and you are home alone, or with your children, you are just a lonely worried Army wife and mother.

I had a fantastic time on my vacation to New York, but I spent much of the time in the city reflecting on why we are in these wars in the first place. Being in New York City where it all started on United States soil, and seeing the affects it is still having on the families of the Military puts everything in my life in perspective. Hats off to our soldiers, and the families who love them!

This stuff really does happen to me!

Today has been a busy one. Every mother knows what it's like have a list a mile long, so my day started something like this.
I got Aubrey to a basketball camp at 9am, Ella's swim lessons at 9:50am, then down to Aubrey's school to get scrip for his uniforms. They were out of scrip....bummer......but they have a table of giveaways (clothes that other kids have outgrown) and I got a few items....score! Then we stop at the consignment shop I sell my tutu's at, and I find out I've sold all but one,....score! Then we go home, cram in lunch, get back in the car to go pick up Aubrey from camp at 1pm.

Oh I'm tired just writing this. Then Aubrey starts to tell me about the coach lady that made them do push ups on their elbows and knees because some kids were throwing their food around. He said "she called them suicide push ups", and then I told him that that meant you kill yourself, to which he replied "I know, she's trying to kill us". And then I replied, "son, then that would be murder".

He's tired because he went to bed too late last night but that's just not right. I mean this is NOT basic training here, this is a camp I paid money for so that my kid could have fun, and instead he's been traumatized. I try not to loose it because Ella and Ryan are so tired they're melting down too. We get home and I put the younger two down for a nap, and try and talk to Aubrey. He says he doesn't want to go back and then he gets invited to a neighbors house and he's out of here.

Then it's back in the car to a cub scout picnic at 5pm. Wyatt has to work late so I think to myself, "self this will be fun". We get there and haul all four chairs, sippy cups, my purse, and the kids and we get set up. They have a great time playing in the sand, and on the toys, and then they have a water balloon fight. Then the clouds start looking foreboding but hey there is pizza and watermelon and the kids are having fun. It starts to rain lightly so we continue to eat. Then it starts lightening, thundering, and pouring. And as if it couldn't get any worse the wind started kicking. We are all soaking wet and the car is so far away. So the 20 of us try and huddle under this pavilion that is quite small.

My poor sweet 23 month old Ryan is yelling, "done, done, all done". Ella is crying and hunkering by my legs and Aubrey is running around in the storm with his friends like maniacs. So we decide to run to the restrooms to hang out for a while until it passes. The bathroom has poop smeared all over the wall (I kid you not) and then a girl comes in to use it(it's a one stall), so needless to say we're back outside in the rain. Thank goodness for the kind people there to help me carry my chairs and Ella, while I'm carrying Ryan and the other chairs as we run through the mud and muck to the car.

Now it's drama central, there is crying, and "I'm cold", and all kinds of drama on the drive home. The radio says there is flash flooding going on in our area, no shit! I was driving through two feet of water much of the way home. Wyatt calls to tell me he is home and see if we are alright, to which I reply, "no we're not alright, we are soaking wet, the kids are crying and I've had it".

So we stripped everyone of their clothes and gave them all a bath and put them to bed, and now it's 8:30 and they are still getting out of bed saying their hungry! I swear motherhood is NOT for the weak! So I sit here on my computer enjoying a glass of wine and trying to laugh about all of this. After all I started this blog for therapy and today is one of those days I need therapy! Oh and we're out of milk so Wyatt went to the store...........HELP!

Our Family Trip to South Dakota

Well friends, my husband decided it would be a great idea to take a family trip to South Dakota, since we are only 8 hours away. And as he put it, "We probably won't be this close to Mt. Rushmore again." So even though I had nagging voices in my head saying "don't do it", we decided to proceed.

The trip there was relatively uneventful, we stopped often, had a picnic lunch somewhere in Wyoming, and overall the kids handled it pretty well. In two days we saw Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse Memorial, Rushmore Caves, Custer State Park, and a few other fun little places along the way.

Since we were touring around, the kids never got more than a 20 minute doze in the car, and they were up most nights until 9 or 10pm, so you can imagine that they were getting pretty tired. I decided to include in this post a few hilarious/exhausting moments:

1) We were driving along and Ella and Ryan took off their shoes in the car. Out of nowhere, Ella says "it smells like toe jam in here!". We busted out laughing!

2) Ryan waves at a helicopter and says "hi Gigi". It's so funny because my mom left a week and a half ago and he thinks she's still on an aircraft somewhere in the sky. Super cute for a kid that's not even two yet!

3) We are at a park when Ella runs to swing on her stomach, and goes over the swing and does a nose dive into some pea gravel. Needless to say she is scraped up on her nose, upper lip and chin. She is bawling and bleeding everywhere. We tell Aubrey (7) and Ryan (23 months) that we need to go because Ella is hurt. Aubrey says, "what, we've only been here like 5 minutes". That didn't go over very well since we were all exhausted, and Ella was hurt! So the next day I told Aubrey to look at his sisters face, and that's why we had to go home, to which he replied, "I hate myself for it". And he was serious, Hilarious!

4)The last night we were there we went to Mt. Rushmore for the night time ceremony which meant we didn't get back to the hotel until 10:30. Everyone was borderline delirious and Aubrey was acting so horrible. I finally told him to stop acting like a jerk. I know, I win mother of the year for that, but he was acting like one. So we all go to bed and I had forgotten all about that remark I made, but Aubrey didn't. He told me the next day that he forgave me for saying that. All I could do was laugh and explain that we all say things we don't mean sometimes. Talk about humility!

So that about covers it, we had a good time but came home exhausted. We have great pictures to prove to the kids that we did take them to South Dakota because I'm sure Aubrey is the only one who will remember it. So needless to say it will be a while before we willingly take another road trip, but I'm glad we did it!

A great husband

On June 30 2010, my sweet husband Wyatt had the day off. The movie Eclipse was coming out and, for those of you under a rock, it's the third installment in the Twlight Saga. Well you could say I'm slightly obsessed. I read the books a few years ago and now have seen all of the movies out so far.

Sorry, I digress. I wanted to go see the showing at midnight on eve of the 29th, but they were sold out so I bought tickets online for the 10am showing on the 30th. Wyatt had the day off and my mom was still in town, so I asked Wyatt to go with me. He not only said he would go with me, but waited in line for over an hour while we waited to get in to the theater.

Needless to say I was much more excited about the movie than Wyatt, but the point is, he went with me and didn't even complain. I love you husband!

Upon further reflection I have humored him a time or two. Take the time I was 8 months pregnant with my oldest, and living in South Carolina. He drug me to a Bad Company concert outside in August! I was battling hypertension, and my ankles were, well, cankles! While he was hooting and hollering I was sitting in a chair hot as heck and making lots of trips to the not so clean bathrooms. And then there was the time that we went to a Metallica concert because they gave free tickets to the military. Not only was I wearing ear plugs and still it was too loud, but all of the husbands there said, "oh my wife refused to come". Great!

So while I don't want to take away Wyatt's kudos for accompanying me to the movie Eclipse, I guess all is fair in love and war!

My daughter said what??

My mom is in town for a couple of weeks which is so fabulous! It's like having a wife, she cooks, she cleans, she changes diapers and plays with the kids. Yesterday my sweet, newly turned 4 year old daughter Ella was full of vinegar.

It seemed like it was going to be quite a day with Ella. She started off the day by getting frustrated that she couldn't cram 10 things into her small makeup case. She uttered this sentence, "I can't close the damn thing"! I told her that she couldn't say that word, and helped her fix the problem with the makeup case. Then my mom told me Ella couldn't open up something in the play room, so she said "what the Hell?". My mom told her that was a bad word, to which she replied "I didn't know Hell was a bad word".

We all went to Target yesterday afternoon and my mom bought each of the kids a $5 gift at Target, much to my dismay, but none the less. So on the drive home Ella kept teasing her brother with her doll, and poking him with it. After the 5th time of asking her to stop teasing Ryan, I grabbed the doll and tossed it on the floor by my mom's feet. Well, Ella was ticked after that and she decided to take her anger out on her Gigi (my mom).

Here is what happened next. Ella says out of nowhere, "Gigi, I hate your shirt". My mom didn't miss a beat, and said "oh thank you". Then Ella said, "no, I said I hate your shirt", and Gigi said again, "I know, thank you".

I was a little shocked at her nastiness to her Gigi and I asked her why she would say something like that and she said "Ryan told me to". Ryan is not quite two years old yet, and although he can say many words, he could never say that!

Then my mom said "Ella why would you say you hate my shirt"? to which Ella replied "because I hate you". At this point I had no words, it was clearly a case of her trying to shock us and it was kind of funny, but so inappropriate that I had to address it.

My mom then said "Ella, what you should do is say that you are sorry for being rude to Gigi". Ella then replied "I'm not going to say that". At this point I told her she was going to time out when we got home. After the time out I told her that it was NOT okay to talk to people like that and asked her what she should say to Gigi instead. She replied "tell her I'm sorry". I told her that was a good idea but she ignored the advice and didn't say anything. So after a few minutes I had to force her into it! AHHHH!

So we had quite a day yesterday. To follow up, she did get up this morning and tell Gigi that she didn't hate her shirt. What will the high school years bring? I guess one day I'll look back and laugh at all of this.....I hope.......oh and my mom just informed me that Aubrey said the other day he was half Italian and half Southern.....does it ever stop?

Tae Kwon Do

I haven't blogged in a while and it is NOT for lack of material but lack of time. There is so much I could talk about, our flights to and from Mississippi for our family reunion.....lots of material there. All the sicknesses we've had over the past two months, or all the craziness that surrounds our weeks, but I've decided to skip ahead of all that to this past Friday.

It was a busy day, Aubrey was in cub scout camp all week from 9-4 which sounds like heaven, but it's an hour and a half round trip drive, and that alone is painful when Ella and Ryan are so over it! The back story for Tae Kwon Do is that the kids have been taking lessons since April. You are supposed to attend class at least two times a week. Well, I went and lost my mind the day I signed them up and paid all that money. With baseball, cub scouts, summer camps, swim lessons etc. we don't have the time to get them there twice a week. So after cub scout camp all last week and baseball two nights that week I thought that we should try and get them there for Friday's class.

I make a, not so nutritious meal, get them dressed in their outfits, and have Wyatt come home from work early to get them there by 6:15. Some little voice in the back of my head told me to double check the schedule...........to what do my wondering eyes do appear?? The schedule says that on Fridays it starts at 5:35. At this point it's 5:40, so we missed that class! Ugh!

Then I decide to get them to the North school which is about a half and hour away on Saturday morning. I had it all planned out, Aubrey has a baseball game at the Air Academy, (same direction as the Tae Kwon Do center), so we get breakfast early and head out the door at 8:30am. We get there with extra clothes for everyone because it's raining, cold and nasty and Aubrey's baseball game starts at noon.

We pull in the parking lot and there is only one car. I figure something is wrong here because the lot should be full. Wyatt looks at the note on the door and it says there is no class today because there is a black belt spectacular event. I just sit there wondering if I should laugh or cry, all I can do is throw my hands up and say, "come on"! We are now on attempt number 2 to get them to class, my intentions are good and I just can't seem to make it happen!

We are a half an hour from home and three hours away from the start of Aubrey's game, and I have to pee. So my husband decides to makes lemonade out of the lemons. "Let's just go up to the air academy and tour the chapel". It's a good idea since we haven't seen it, and even though it's crappy weather I decide it's probably the best option.

So we end up touring it with the kids, stopping by Burger King (only option on base), and off to Aubrey's game to freeze our buns off! All in all it turned out pretty well, but I've discovered that with three kids, less is more. I really need to stop over extending us. I guess this frustration is just life and as long as we have three kids at home and are involved in activities, this is our life! So today I welcome it with open arms. I will take a day at a time, and today is My sweet Ella's 4th birthday and I will enjoy this day! Now we're off to swim lessons, home to make brownies, decorate, and then her party is here at 4.......it never ends! At least gigi ( my mom) is coming for a visit on Wednesday and I will have some extra help! woot woot!

Can this all happen to me you might wonder......YES it can!!

Today started off like most days, the rush of getting Ella and Aubrey ready for school and out the door. The dog jumped on Wyatt's leather chair and promptly puked. Luckily she missed the chair and it hit the floor. Ahhhh it's finally quiet.....relatively quiet because Ryan is hollering at me and I'm not sure what language he was speaking in, but "me no understand" so he continues to holler.

Never the less I decide to enjoy my cup of coffee which is by now cold. So I get a refill and prepare to sit down. I set the cup on the kitchen table and turn my back to get something, and Ryan reaches up to grab the handle and proceeds to dump it all out. I guess the silver lining is that I put so much cream in my coffee, it wasn't very hot so he didn't get burned but it made quite a mess. It dripped down in the cracks of the table, and all over the floor, wall, and chairs. Major sticky mess there, so I take a deep breath and tell Ryan "don't touch mommy's coffee it's HOT", and then clean it up.

Then among my errands I drop the dog off at doggy daycare so she can get used to this new place before we board her. After picking up Aubrey from school we swing by to pick the dog up for the day. She's excited to see us, but clearly Po'd that we left her there all day. We get home and the kids stay in the car so I can let the dog go outside before our play date in ten minutes.

I watch the dog to make sure she goes to the bathroom. I wait and wait and finally Hailey (the dog) squats, and squats, and squats some more. She never went but was trying to reach her bum, so I knew what I was in for. I go outside and see that the damn dog has managed to get smashed poop all over in her hair. OMG at this point I've got Ryan screaming in the car, a play date to be at in 5 minutes and crap all over the dogs bum!!! I have to give her back half a bath in the laundry room sink so I grab the gloves. I set the dog down for a brief moment and of course she hops on the blanket on the couch and taints that, so I grab that and throw it in the washer, and get the dog in the sink. At this point Aubrey comes in to investigate why we aren't leaving.

Then we go to my friends house to "relax" while the kids are playing. Hahaha, that is funny, the kids were so nuts today we didn't get much time....okay any time to talk. We were interrupted by crying, Ryan hollering at me while stuck at the top of their play structure, and Aubrey crying because he and his friend super soaked the girls and they were crying. It was a mess! My friend said it best when she said "well, we tried". There were 3 women including me, and 7 kids and we all agreed we need to go out next time.........without the kids!

Domestic goddess.....I say YES!

I know that all moms tend to be overachievers. Not because we necessarily want to be, but because we have to be! There are days that I'm more productive than others, but some days the only time I sit is to write this blog. This morning Ryan woke me up at 5 am, which is an improvement from the all nighters lately due to his ear infection.

So I'm up,....oh no cramps! Great! I look on the bright side that I can get it over with before our trip. I get everyone breakfast, , and Aubrey and Wyatt out the door. Then I realize that since I'm going to Costco today I really need to order some pictures online and pick them up. So with all of the bickering between Ella and Ryan, it takes a while. Then it's upstairs to get them dressed. I gather up all of the things we need just to leave the house, diaper, wipes, water for the kids, snacks, and keys........found em! Then I smell something not so good, so it's upstairs to take Ryan's shoes back off, and change the diaper. He is on antibiotics for his ear infection and that is apparently making for some soggy poop conditions....ahhhh!

Back downstairs, into the car, and off we go! Stop at Target to pick up a birthday present for Ella's friend's party on Saturday afternoon, black shorts for Aubrey for his track meet on Saturday morning, and off we go to Costco! Costco is the usual zoo, so I make a detour into the liquor store attached to Costco because I'm out of red wine and that is a crisis! Here in Colorado you can't buy wine at the grocery store, you have to go to a liquor store. Then Ella asks "mom is that all your getting"? I kind of laugh because I've got three bottles in my cart and maybe she expects me to buy more....

Then Costco here we come, pick up the pictures which are done early, whew! Then off to get the groceries, sample a few things, listen to some fussing from the kids, sample a few more foods, and check out! Then Ella starts in asking if she can skip the nap. Yesterday she went to the zoo on a field trip and then Tae Kwon Do last night after Wyatt pinched her leg in the car seat buckle and we had major screaming going on....needless to say she was exhausted last night and still is a bit tired today. I know my sweet Ella and when she's tired and you can"t tell her in a public place that she CANNOT skip the nap she starts to wail. So I simply say "we'll see" and change the subject. I saved the "You have to take a nap today" speech for once we got home.

On the drive home I call the husband to see if he wants me to pick him up for lunch, my secret plan being that he can help unload the massive amount of groceries I have in the car. Of course today of all days he can't because his co-worker is out of the office. "Fine" I say.

So the kids are running wild, the dog too and I'm unloading the groceries and trying to put them away, run out and pick up dog poop so the kids don't step in it, and get the kids lunch so we can get to the nap. Then I pick Ryan up out of the high chair and there are two brown butt prints on the chair, and I realize he's had diarrhea AGAIN and it's through the shorts and everywhere.....so off we go to change everything out again. Then change out the laundry for the 2nd time today, include the newest poopy items, pick up all of the million little pieces of paper strewn all over the house (Ella's new hobbie, paper everywhere). All of this before I have to head back to school to help coach track practice!

I realize that it's after one o'clock and I haven't had lunch, a shower, or anytime to myself. And then there's me already thinking of what I'll cook for dinner tonight, the baths I have to give the kids, the homework that Aubrey will have,.............and then one more thought is in my head.........Will I complete all of these tasks in time to watch the season finale of Grey's Anatomy and have a glass of wine tonight? I surely hope so because I am a domestic goddess!

Oh and the husband just walked into the house for lunch and said "where's my food woman"? He's kidding of course but if looks could kill!

The guitar recital

Tonight was Aubrey's ill fated guitar recital. So to do this story justice I must share with you, that this arts night/recital was scheduled to happen in April. So last month after shoveling in a frozen pizza, and getting everyone dressed up, in the car and down to the school, we arrive to find no one there? Wyatt jokingly asks if we have the right night. So Aubrey and I knock on the music teachers door and she says that it was rescheduled because of the snow storm north of us, and asked Aubrey if he heard the announcement on the loudspeaker after school. Okay I have a first grader, he rarely listens to me so I'm sure he missed that one. Instead of being mad we decided to take the kids out for ice cream which was fun, and later Aubrey said "mom, I'm glad it got canceled because if it didn't then we wouldn't have had ice cream". To which I replied "this is true son".

Fast forward to tonight. I pick Aubrey up from school and announce that we have to get home, have a snack and head to
Tae Kwon Do, and then off to the arts night recital. He says he has a stomach ache and can hardly move his stomach hurts so bad. So I ignore it and when we get home he uses the bathroom and then lays on the couch moaning and groaning. So needless to say we don't go to Tae Kwon Do.

I make pancakes for dinner because I haven't been to the grocery store yet and we're out of everything, then it's off to stop at the Class 6 (convenience store on base) and it's NOT so convenient. We have to pick up cookies for tonight (I had only remembered an hour before we had to leave) and the line is really long. So finally we're off to the school for the reschedule of arts night. Also known as "the ill fated guitar recital".

We get there and Aubrey is getting tuned up and ready to go, Wyatt, the kids and I are looking at the art in the hallway waiting for the musical part to begin. One of the teachers told me that Aubrey is going to be quite the musician because he headed back to the guitar room because "he didn't want to pop a string before the concert". She said he even had the lingo down.

So we are waiting in the gym for the show to begin and we watch the show choir, classical band, a soloist, and finally the guitar band comes out. I'm trying to keep Ryan from cracking his head on the bleachers and Wyatt says "Aubrey doesn't have his guitar". "What"? I reply. Then I see that he's sitting in a chair without his guitar. So as the music teacher is talking to the audience I head up to the gym floor to ask what is going on and she sees me. She then says "oh Aubrey let me get you my guitar". Aubrey mouths that his guitar is broken. I'm thinking he "popped a string" but then Wyatt says that the teacher would let him play with one broken string, so then I'm worried about the condition of the guitar.

A little back story on the guitar, Wyatt and I bought it at the school auction and then had to go trade it for a smaller one that he could play better and now three months later it was all for not.

Back to the story, so after the concert the music teacher came up to us and said that she wasn't in the music room at the time, but some parents were and she didn't know what happened exactly, but that the guitar was no longer with us. I'm in a bit of shock, but she explained that Aubrey was so upset. She told him he could play her guitar, and that helped, but he looked upset so I tried to remain calm.

Aubrey said that one of the older kids (he doesn't know their name) knocked his guitar off the table it was on, and then a little later he picked it up and then dropped it and the neck snapped off. So needless to say, Aubrey "hates himself" as he put it because he broke his guitar and now he can't take lessons. He was also very upset that the older kids laughed at him, he's so sensitive that it broke my heart.

So I am sad about the lost money, the broken guitar and my son's disappointment but at least he wants to play, so I'm trying to look on the bright side! For this is the life we have chosen to share with our three kids who break the hell out of all of our stuff!

Ground hog's day

You would have to read the previous post for this one to make sense, but this morning I woke up to a big poopy mess in the mud room from our lovely dog......again! Oh do I wish it was mothers day again so I could have avoided all of that. Our dog is not well although after cleaning up that mess, and giving her a bath she seems perfectly fine. I will pray tonight, and I will pray hard that she does not give me a toxic mess like that again I just can't take it! ugh!

A Mother's Day Surprise!

My husband had told me yesterday that he wanted to cook me breakfast for Mother's Day, now my husband doesn't do much cooking but I won't look a gift horse in the mouth, so of course I agreed. He woke up today about 7am. I laid in bed a few more minutes then thought I should get a shower as long as he's cooking this morning. After my shower I go downstairs to find the pancake batter made up, but the rest was undone and a mess. Now it had been a little over a half an hour since I started getting ready so I was a bit confused.

The story from my husband Wyatt goes something like this: He would have had breakfast ready before now, but when he got up and went into the mud room to let the dog out, she had crapped all over the place. He cleaned up that nasty mess, and then tried to get breakfast going again. Then low and behold the baby woke up and started crying so he went upstairs to get him, only to find him covered in poop coming out of the diaper. After he cleaned up that mess he came back down and tried again to get things going for breakfast. So the Mother's Day surprise was really for my husband.

At this point I'm so happy that I missed all the poop adventures this morning and thankful that I knew nothing of it while I enjoyed a long shower! So I don't want to get in his way when he's trying to prepare a meal for me because it's so rare, but after he burnt the 8th pancake I had to step in. I decided the best thing to do was to make more batter and throw away the burnt ones. Needless to say, I have to give credit to Wyatt for dealing with the messes this morning and even though I had to take over breakfast and get the kids ready, it was a valiant effort!

Then we went to church and the kids were a little on the cranky side, so all I kept thinking was get me home so my Mothers Day gift to myself can begin! Yes, this year I requested no gifts. All I really wanted was to go shopping by myself! So I was out of here around 12:30 and I didn't get home until after 4pm! It was so wonderful, it was just me and my thoughts! I saw all of these moms shopping with their husbands and their kids.....now what fun is that? You know that the kids and husbands were miserable. I just thought I'd spare everyone and get out on my own! It was wonderful and I really enjoyed my day after all! It started out a little bumpy but it got better, and even though the kids were still cranky when I got home to cook for them, I realized that I am really lucky to have such a great family.......and I vow to appreciate them everyday! Well, most days........well when I'm not livid at them!

So Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there! I know I appreciate my mom so much more now, then before I had kids!

The Babysitter debacle

Is it really that hard to find a good babysitter these days? Apparently it is! Since we are military and in Colorado where my babysitting options are limited I was so excited that there are two girls ages 13 and 17 that live a few houses away....or so I thought. The names have been changed to protect the GUILTY!!!! Sorry, I digress, anyhoo, I have had both of the girls babysit a few times and the oldest girl,( we'll call her Daisy), was scheduled to babysit for me about two months ago when my husband was out of town. It was a Saturday and I had to get all three kids to my son Aubreys' cub scout Pinewood Derby race from 9-12. Then I scheduled Daisy to watch just the baby Ryan for a couple of hours while I took the other two to a birthday party from 1-3. The party was at a crazy loud place called Itz. It's like Chuck E Cheese for older kids. Anyway, I called her to tell her we were on our way home from the scouting event and she told me she totally forgot about it and wasn't at home. OMG, I let her know I wasn't happy and never asked her to babysit again.

The younger girl, (we'll call her Dixie), has been a good babysitter, and seemed more responsible than Daisy. So I asked her to babysit Ryan so I could work on a school function from 1-3 on Friday. I asked her this last week, and she said YES.

So this week I call her to see if she could possibly stay until 4 on Friday in case Wyatt was running late. She hummed and hawed a bit and then asked me to call her back in five minutes. A little strange, but they are STRANGE so I said, "okay", and I called her back. She said she didn't have any information for me yet, but she was going to a sleep over that day and wasn't sure what time that started, etc etc. So I'm thinking that she can babysit until 3 but not later. I asked her to call me back that evening. Well that was Monday night and today (Tuesday) I still hadn't heard from her. She is home because she is home schooled. I said Dixie, you didn't call me back, to which she replied "oh I totally forgot", and I said "so what is the deal for Friday"? She said that she talked to her mom, and her mom said she could go to the sleepover so she would rather do, that and she was sorry but she couldn't babysit for me.

What the hell? I mean I don't know what came over me but I lost it. She is only 13 so I kept it clean but I was very firm with her. I told her that I really liked her and her sister, and I liked it when they babysat my kids, but she could tell her sister, that I would not have either of them babysit for me again. I told her that when you make a commitment to do something then you stick with it even if something better comes along. I also told her that I asked her to babysit a week ago so I would be sure I had coverage to work on my sons' school event. Then I said the only possibly inappropriate thing, and told her I was screwed for Friday because of this. I told her, her sister had let me down and now she had and I was very unhappy about this.........

About this time I realized she had said nothing, so I said "well have fun this weekend"! and she said "okay bye". So that does it! I guess I felt this girl needed some schooling because the home schooling her mother is doing is NOT working! When I was a kid, my parents taught me that if you make a commitment to babysit for someone you honor it, even if something better comes along in the meantime. Is there no respect and honor in this world? I mean Dixie just told me she would rather go to the sleepover, to hell with the fact she told me she would watch my kid!! AAAAHHHHH!

So my wonderful husband will be taking a half a day off Friday so I can keep my promise to my son Aubrey and the school. It's time for us Generation Xers to school these young pups!

What a Sunday!

I'm certain that my kids want to drive me nuts on a daily basis but today was over the top. It all started out so ambitiously by going to church as a family. Our baby Ryan was really tired, recovering from a cold all week and just crabby, so Wyatt ended up taking him out of church for the last half hour.

Then we head to McDonalds ( a Sunday treat for the kids if they're good in church) and then home. Everyone ate lunch, and I decided to head to Whole Foods during the one hour I had before we had to be at a friend's house for a play date. I get home at 1pm, the time we're supposed to be at the friends house, and the husband is playing the Wii, Aubrey and Ella have no socks on (it's snowing outside in May!) and the house is trashed! So I'm unloading the groceries, telling the kids to hurry and get ready so we can go. We get to our friends house and knock on the door in the snow, and no one is home. I figured that my friend and I had our wires crossed on the time, and tell the kids to get in the car. My oldest starts half-crying and saying it's not fair, blah blah blah. I say, "I can't help that they're not home and we'll just wait and see if they call". On our way down the street they are getting home from church.....phew! Now we can avoid the near meltdown and let them go play.

So after I pick them up, they are a bit tired and crabby but my mom want's to skype with the kids, so we do. That can sometimes be disastrous because they all start hollering that it's their turn, and Ryan always wants to see the screen so it gets ugly.

We get through that mostly unscathed, and I swear all Hell breaks loose. All at once all three of our offspring are bawling. Aubrey wants to play the Wii and thinks I've said "no", and Ella, slipped on her sweater, and Ryan has been crying for over an hour for no apparent reason.....oh wait a minute, he wanted to vacuum. We got it out for him and then he kept crying because he couldn't make it work and we put it away.

I was trying to get dinner ready and I swear they all kept bickering, crying, hollering, and more crying. Wyatt tried to take Ryan outside to distract him, but he would not be deterred! So after my loosing it just a bit and telling them all that after they ate dinner, they would be going to bed, etc etc etc......I ate in silence and just tried to go to my "happy place" and wait for them to finish their dinner.

So when all was said and done, they were all in their beds by 6:30PM, a new record! Ella is the only one that came downstairs because as she says "I want to tell you something", but she always does that, so all in all it's been quite a Sunday!

Here's to hoping tomorrow is better, I for one need it to be!

Sleep evades me!

Usually one of my three children wakes me up in the night, it varies nightly but it's almost always one of the three. Last night it was my fourth child.....AKA my husband! He's had a sore throat for a few days and last night it got worse, much worse. He made himself a hot tottie before bed but not even the bourbon could cure what ails him.

I was so tired last night and I have been fighting off a sore throat myself so;

I settle in for a long winters nap.........
When what to my wondering eyes did appear?
But my husband up out of bed all night, I do fear!

So with me trying to sleep, and him up with a snap
Gargling, and clearing it brought upon me a tear
So straight to the doctor you go my dear!

Now we wait for results with my computer on my lap
And hope for drugs to make this crud disappear
For how can I handle having four kids here?

Another opportunity to Blog!

Today everyone is feeling good, but Ella did wake up in a bit of a funk. She was sleepy on the way to take Brother to school and she didn't say much except that her leg hurt.

We had to take our dog to Camp Bow Wow for her "meeting" with other dogs and then I had to fill out a bunch of paperwork for when we need to board her this upcoming year. The kids did okay there, so I had to go and push it and head to the BX (base exchange) to look for a book I'm supposed to be reading for a new book club I've joined.

Well, as soon as we got into the BX, Ella saw the Starbucks and asked if she could get a vanilla milk. Occasionally I get one for the kids as a special treat but today I just wanted to run in and see if they had the book and get out......haha, Ella had other plans for me. She proceeds to start bawling, I mean all out bawling, so loud all within a mile radius can hear us.

So I ignore her and keep saying, come on Ryan, come on Ella while we make our way to the book area. Of course I forgot the stroller in the garage today so I had to let them both walk.....ugh! Then I must have heard no less than 100 times "mommy can we get the milk". I told her that I already said the answer was no, so stop asking, and then she would launch into more very loud obnoxious crying fits! Then her tactic changed to "mommy, can we get some licorice?". Now I'm not sure what world she's living in, because I don't give in when the kids are acting like they've lost their minds, so I have no idea why she keeps asking, but I"m just trying to comb the books and find the darn book! I did find two other books I wanted, so I grab those and just told the kids "come on , we are going home!".

This is already a little embarrassing that Ella is still bawling but I ignore her and try to make our way to the checkout stand. I turn around and Ryan isn't behind me so I briefly panic and start looking for him, he's two check stands down taking out the box of m&m's and bringing it to me..........aaaahhhhhhhhhhhh! Can't a girl just stop in the store and get a damn book????

So we get to the checkout lane and the lady asks "what's wrong?" I say "good question" and then she asks "did she(Ella) want something".......I mean can't she just mind her business and check me out? NO we have to play 10 questions and explain why my 3 year old is having a fit in the store! But I politely explain my daughter didn't get what she wanted and she's having a fit. Then she says "oh, honey, you can't have everything you want". I totally agree with her but I just really want out of there. Then we walk back past Starbucks and Ella really starts to wail, and this really elderly couple looks at us and kind of smiles at me. They either understand or just feel sorry for me, or the kids?....well anyway.

Then out to the parking lot (still bawling I might add) and an old man says "who's making all that noise?", I say "good question, she is disturbing the peace!". A few other soldiers look at me and kind of laugh. I guess I must have just looked exasperated.

So on the brief drive home I laugh and say out loud, "well it's just another opportunity to blog". This blogging AKA therapy must be working because I kept it together even though I wanted to freak out. Ella cried all the way home and now is taking a nap! ahhh! Without my family, what would I have to blog about?

OH and as I read this to my husband he reminded me that I didn't mention that the dog chewed up another book! hahahaha (please refer to blog entitled "DOG STORY") The husband says our talk didn't work! LOL

The Pukes

So I'm feeling much better today after a very nasty Sunday! My daughter Ella woke up at about 6am yesterday and said her tummy hurt. I put her in bed with us and then she started making a gagging noise, so I said "are you going to throw up?", I yanked her out of our bed and to the toilet. Then after I got her back to bed, I started thinking that my stomach didn't feel very good either! So to make a disgusting story less disgusting, I was sick all day long! We had so many plans for our Sunday, none which included me on the couch in misery all day.

So it's only 9am and I'm on the couch with Ella laying beside me because she still doesn't feel very well, and the other two running wild. My husband announces he's going to church. To my horror I say "you're going to church?". Nevermind that I'm dying over here!!! So he leaves all three kids with me, goes to church and when he comes back he says "feeling any better?".
Are you KIDDING ME???? In my husbands defense, I don't think he knew how bad I was feeling and how sick I was. So for the rest of the day he was in charge which mostly meant handling the kids in between playing super mario brothers......I swear if I have to listen to that game another minute I will go insane! He did however, run and get us some ginger ale, chicken noodle soup, gatorade, and he made dinner for the kids because the smell of food was enough to send me back to the bathroom!~ So Hooah to my Army husband that is so very capable of taking care of things when I'm down!

I did have a reminder yesterday of how wonderful it is when you are healthy and you feel great! I mean even today when I'm still not completely back to myself, but I feel 100% better than yesterday, it's a great day!
To quote The Zack Brown Band, "Life is good today".

Dog story

So we adopted a miniature poodle a few months ago and she is great! She is so sweet to the kids and loves me, but to my husband on the other hand......she used to bark at him all the time, then he was alone with her for the week while the kids and I were out of town. They briefly bonded and now about a month later she is avoiding him again.

So the husband loves the dog.....well, likes the dog would be more accurate. She is a year and a half old and hasn't really done much chewing on anything, she's so sweet but lately she has decided that she is a puppy, and started slinking off with the kids toys. I am thankful for this because maybe we can manage to throw out some of the kids crap around here, especially if it has chew marks in it.

A few days ago my husband comes down the stairs and he's holding something and has a look on his face like he is furious.....He says "I'm livid right now!" So of course I ask why, and he shows me a book that he had sitting on the floor in our bedroom that has been gnawed on a bit. I can't help but laugh because we have 3 kids and things are always getting trashed, but he is so mad about this book. The book probably did cost a fortune because my husband will spare no expense on his book collection. So he stomps off to take a shower. I have the giggles about this which I know is making him more mad at me so I come up with an idea.

I take the dog (Hailey) upstairs and while holding her I tell my husband that I had a talk with Hailey and she feels really bad about chewing up his book. (I'm cracking up again thinking about this conversation, hahaha), anyway, he says "I'm sure she does". I laugh some more and tell him "look, that's what happens when you have kids and dogs, your shit gets trashed so be mad, take a shower and get over it" He said "yeah, I guess you're right", laughed a small laugh and hopped in the shower. When he came down he was over it......well mostly over it! hahahahahaha!

Just another day in Paradise

Well today started off crazy enough, last minute doctor appointment for the boys who have had some ear issues. I was convinced that Aubrey had an ear infection or some wax build up since he was complaining on the flight a few weeks ago and he has been getting in trouble at school lately for his "volume control", or lack there of. Ryan has been pulling on his ear so I thought I should have his checked out too. Needless to say their ears are fine, so no excuse to blame the volume on, but none the less I'm glad they are okay. Ella was due for a vaccination shot so I decided to knock that out too, but OMG she screamed beforehand and then I had to listen all day to her drone on about how her leg hurt. What a day!

I did get in my exercise today and for the past week. A friend turned me on to a 20 minute workout by trainer Jillian Michaels from the "Biggest Loser". It's a great workout and the best part is it's only 20 minutes so lately the kids have been doing it with me,kind of. Then it was off to get Aubrey from school. That's always when the drama begins. Now yesterday his teacher came out to let me know that she had a lot of trouble with him and that he kept getting out of his seat and talking etc. I kind of went blank because Aubrey's not one to get into trouble at school...... In the car I tried to set him straight about his actions and guess what he said? His friends keep asking him to come over and see whatever blah blah blah is all I heard............"Seriously son" I say to him. Is there no personal responsibility?? Anyway, he had to apologize to his teacher today and have a better day which he did....whew!

My oldest son begged me to go to the BX(Base Exchange, AKA store on base), after I picked him up from school today and I agreed.........I know what was I thinking? So it went reasonably well until I looked back to see what was taking Ella so long, and I ran right over Ryan.......He fell down and kind of looked mortified. He didn't cry but as I picked him up over the glare from a woman who saw it happen, he just laid his head on my shoulder and fought back tears. Yep I get mother of the year!

So I get the three items I needed (a bottle of wine was one of them). Then I let them look at toys and had to pry them away from the toy section and telling them we weren't there to buy toys, we got in line for a couple of items I was buying. They started taking candy off the rack and asking to buy it, while Ryan was chanting "down, down, down". The lady at the adjoining counter said "hey what's the problem kids"? I said "good question, they are all loosing their minds at once". We always make a scene wherever we go so why would this be any different?

Then on the way out of the BX Ella asked to ride the carousel..........then Aubrey asked.....no begged. Then I said "we are going on a ride, in a MINIVAN! We headed home.

Now the dreaded dinner hour. For some reason my kids loose their minds at dinner time. They start bickering, hollering, & crying. My husband had a meeting tonight so I had to handle this. Now my mom was in town for two weeks and left yesterday so they were a little out of sorts today. The kids didn't eat their dinner, complained that they were hungry, and fought during dinner.

I decided to put on a song that makes me laugh by Phil Vassar called "Just Another Day in Paradise". Very fitting I think! It puts things in perspective when I'm loosing it.........so I played it three times, drank a glass of wine while cleaning up the dishes and ignored all the chaos! And this is "Just another day in paradise"!

a few verses from that song as I remember:
Kids screamin, phone ringin, dog barkin at the mailman bringing that stack of bills, overdue, good morning baby how are you? gotta a half hour, quick shower, take a drink of milk but the milk's gone sour, my funny face makes you laugh. Twist the top on and I put it back.....there goes the washing machine, baby don't kick it, promise I'll fix it, along about a million other things well
Chorus: It's okay, it's so nice, just another day in paradise, well there's no place, I'd rather be! Two hearts, one dream, I wouldn't trade it for anything, and I ask the Lord, every night......oohh for just another day in paradise!

Tuesday

So no major news here, but one thought......as I'm driving the kids to school this morning I realize that I forgot my cell phone on the counter, I didn't put on my watch, and the radio on my car is not working ( I think it's blown a fuse). So I panic a bit because I realize that I have no idea what time it is. Then I kind of laugh to myself because I remember the days when no one had cell phones, and how nice it is to be "unavailable" sometimes. And then I laugh even harder because, even if I knew what time it was, it wouldn't matter if we got stuck in traffic or something. My kids would still be late for school......so what is the point of the watch, clock, or phone then?

Yes all of these "deep thoughts" go through my mind on the drive to school because I had no radio to tune my thoughts out......maybe it's a good thing to have some quiet time when driving........haha now I"m laughing at myself because the kids were in the car and it was anything but quiet...........hahaha!

Wednesday Morning!

OMG so mornings are usually hectic but today it hit me......My oldest son Aubrey is just like his father!! I love them both dearly but I swear my husband is so scatter brained at home. Now, he can command over a hundred and thirty men in combat, but having him remember to get his coffee mugs from work, keeping up with his keys, or baret are another story.

Aubrey has also now lost his water bottle and sweatshirt at school. I guess we'll have to do the daunting task of picking through the lost and found......AGAIN! So with this little tidbit being said, our daughter Ella woke up about and hour and a half ago and never went potty. She does this a lot and of course I remember that she hasn't gone to the bathroom yet as she's walking out the door to get in the car with the husband to go to preschool!

The husband had the nerve to tell me that when he gets her up in the morning he takes her straight to the bathroom so "he doesn't have this issue". "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?" I say "I have to get three kids up, dressed, breakfast, pack lunches", (never mind making sure he is ready too) and he has the nerve to say that!! Then I say "why don't you get everyone ready then, and why don't you remember your coffee mugs once in a while!" Wyatt did laugh at that because he must know that I have a point!

So off they went and as he was getting in the car I said "I'm going to blog about you today"! It's just so therapeutic! Let's raise those coffee mugs because here's to having a great day!

trip home from Portland

Now this trip went pretty much like the flight from Denver to Portland, except we only had a 15 minute drive to get to the airport and they did put us in the very last row in the plane (damn that attendant)!! You know how hot it is back there and it smells like a combo of sewage and funk. Those seats don't recline and since I had a baby on my lap, and the lady in front of me reclined her seat all the way back, we were trapped with about 6 inches of moving space.

After about the 4th stare from the lady in front of me, I stood up and said to my oldest son, "Aubrey, this lady in front of me does not appreciate that I'm sitting here with your brother so could you please change seats with me!" Needless to say she didn't look at me again during the flight! Ahhh just another rude person in the friendly skies!!!

So the only real drama other than exhaustian and the realization that I will NEVER fly with the kids alone again, was getting our baggage. We had three suitcases, a stroller, and all the carry on stuff the kids insisted they needed! So I get it all and make the painful treck out to the curb. After standing there for about 5 minutes I realize that it's only for commercial busses, cabs etc.

OMG at this point I almost start crying and call Wyatt to tell him that we aren't even on the right level so we'll have to figure out how to get there, but I'm so hysterical at this point he says "I'll park the car and come find you". "NO" I say "we can do it just fine, we'll see you down there". Now after 13 years of marriage my husband knows me and my stubborness that I can do it all! So he did park and met up with us on the lower level at the curb. It was a B*#@% getting all the bags in and out of an elevator, and my sweet Ella who was just standing there blocking the door so we couldn't get out of the elevator........Oh it was fun let me tell you!

So we get in the car for a great hour and a half ride home. Now the plan was to stop for dinner somewhere in between with the kids but I think I was so crazy at this point I said "just drive" and we did! I had snacks for the kids and I just couldn't bare the thought of making them sit quietly in a restaurant for an hour or more! Home sweet home!!!

Spring break trip to Portland

Well I should have known this wouldn't be easy, but since when do I do things that are easy. So the husband is driving the kids and I from Colorado Springs to Denver to the airport and about a half hour into our drive, traffic comes to a hault! My husband hops out of the car to go chat with a trucker up ahead and get the scoop. We find out it's a 10 car pile up on I25 and the interstate is shut down........ahhhhh! So Wyatt, my husband is sure that he can find the way because the trucker showed him a map....Help I'm thinking and of course we forgot the GPS in my husbands car! So we back up off the interstate and proceed to a dirt road that has NO signs....I'm sure we're lost I'm saying in my head, because I don't dare say it out loud this is the only hope we have of making it to the airport on time!

To my shock and surprise we do make it in a round about kind of way, back to I25 however it's not without suffering because now the kids are hollering "are we there yet" and our baby has been crying for the past hour.

I'm pretty sure that I after the detour and total travel time of over 2 1/2 hours, that we are not going to have a good flight to Portland. So my husband parks in short term parking and we have to high tail it to the terminal. I'm not sure but I think it was about 2 miles away so now the kids are really aggravated with us. We get there with about an hour until wheels up. We check in and the agent asks if Wyatt would like to help us get through security......"yes he does" I say and off we go. After the usual security nightmare we get to our gate just in time to pee and then board! Did I mention that Wyatt is not traveling with us?

So I take a deep breathe and board the plane with our three kids in tow, ages 7,3, and 18 months..... WHAT WAS I THINKING??
The kids were okay most of the flight, I was already sweating from the travels just getting ready to board so now I really was sweating because our 18 month old was not wanting to sit on my lap and that was a challenge for 2 1/2 hours.

It really got ugly when we were about a half hour from landing though. My oldest was crying because his ears were hurting and so after trying gum I paged the flight attendant. She then went to get us some ear plugs, now I"m not sure what good those would do for us, I mean maybe for the people who have to sit near us, but for my son?? Well he thought they would work, so as I am trying to put them in his ears, our baby Ryan decides they look like candy and pops one in his mouth. "OMG" I say and start to pinch his cheeks together to get it out! Finally I do get it from him, but that starts the ball rolling for the never ending (I need a nap) crying fit he starts to have. So after about 25 minutes of that and many glares from the young business man in his polo socks across the aisle, he knocks out and sleeps on my shoulder for the last few minutes of the flight(it figures). Now I've decided that people who glare at you on a plane have NEVER had kids, or never traveled with them. It's not like I enjoy listening to the screaming and carrying on either! So we get all our carry on crap, and baggage and ahhhhh we're here. Let the vacation begin!! hahaha!

A Snow Day in the Life of Gina

Hello all who are reading this,
This is more therapy than anything and Charene convinced me that my day was so nuts that I needed to write a note about it! So I title it "A snow day here in Colorado Springs"

I've got my coffee, bathrobe and three kids while the husband is out of town for week!

At 8:30 am Aubrey and Ella my 7 & 3 year old want to go outside and play so I suit them up. They last about an hour which is great since it's like 16 degrees. I have to keep an eye on them because of course they want to play out front in the middle of the culdesac where the snow plower has stacked up 6 feet of snow. My neighbors are leaving for work so I'm watching the kids from the window hollering through the window once in a while to watch out for cars when another neighbor leaves.

They come in and watch some TV until I say enough is enough and force them to use their imaginations and actually play for a while.......well a miracle happens and for about 3 hours they make a fort, play "store & kitchen" and there is total sibling bliss! Then the 16 month old wakes up at some point and the fighting begins...........I try to be patient but it's just nuts so I decide to suit everyone up at 4pm and walk the two blocks to the mailbox. The process of suiting up takes about 20 minutes but off we go..........about a half a block into it I'm freezing my butt off, wondering what I was thinking, and the kids are running amuck! I just want to get to the mail box and get home, but they want to dive in the snow, throw it on each other and climb the snow hills the plow has made.

So finally we make it, an entire two blocks. I open up the mail box and we have not only two days worth of mail but a package! ugh........oh did I mention that the wind is blowing like a mother........so I'm carrying a package & mail and trying to herd the "cats" and keep the baby from face planting into the snow. We get home and I take Ryan inside and he's bawling because he didn't want to come in. I call the other two but they won't come in. 10 minutes later, baby still crying, I call the other two again, it's getting dark and cold!! So I have to go out in the garage and holler at them a third time........Ella comes walking toward me bawling because it's freezing and she's tired and cold.........duh!! So I"m carrying her inside and as we open the door, the baby was standing right there so he gets a huge bump on the head from the door.....now I have two screaming kids! After all that drama, Aubrey comes in all crabby and cold.........ahh bliss! The news tells me that with the wind chill it feels like -22 below, crap no wonder everyone was crying!

Now for dinner......I make a great chicken stir fry and the kids promptly say "yuk, I"m not eating this"......OMG is this my life I say to myself!

So bed time is at 6:45 tonight cause' mom's done! I tell them to read a book in bed and don't come out. Ella comes out with her face all red, it looks like a bloody nose that has been smeared. I ask her what it is and she says "her pillow did it".......HELP HELP HELP this is not my life. Needless to say I discover she's been into my RED lipstick and put it on her eyelids, face bed etc. So after that cleanup I say "don't come out of bed again!!!!" I proceed to pour myself a drink, put on a dvd and relax (well fold laundry). Aubrey my oldest sleep walks sometimes, and tonight was one of those times. I get up to escort him back to bed and knock over my glass and it breaks everywhere..............."shit" I say. I walk Aubrey to bed, come and clean up the glass mess, sit down to relax and Charene calls and I tell her this entire story.............thus leading me to this rant on FB!!! Hope you all get a good laugh because this little drama is my life!!!!! HELP!