Confession

I have a confession.  This is something that is going to be really hard for me to share.  I like my privacy.  I like to keep my faults to myself.  I think it is only natural.  But I have decided, based on a recent conversation with Kris, to expose a little bit more of myself here.  And so this post is going to be my confession.

I have a mustache.

That's right.  A mustache.  Please bow your heads in shame with me.

You know, it's really embarrassing.  And when my hormones are really out of whack (which is most of the time), it's darker.  While I would love to bleach it so that it's not as obvious, I have never had great success with bleaching.  Waxing?  Well...it's great for the first day or two, until it starts growing back.  My hair (head, leg, lip, etc...) is dark and grows back even darker.  It's just something I was cursed with.  And I hate it.  I'm actually really self-conscious about it.  Imagine my horror, when a month or so ago Katherine went to a friend's house and the mother tells me via Facebook that our daughters were in the back of the van arguing about whose mom had the darker mustache!!!  Oh and I should add that I was horrified by the young girls discussing it, NOT the mother telling me about it on Facebook.  I paid Katherine back on that one by assuring her she too would have a mustache someday!

I am telling you all of this because my dear husband decided to confront the hideous embarrassment that is attached to my face today.  You see, as if having the dark masculine thing were not enough, there is this ONE hair that is longer than the rest.  And very nonchalantly, Kris asks me how much laser hair removal costs.  Can you believe that???  Now, if you're sitting there thinking about how insensitive he is, let me assure you he really isn't.  We've talked in the past about my desire to start at the top and work my way down, as far as laser hair removal is concerned.  I've always told him that if we had money, I would want to get this done.  SO...while I am sure the comment was prompted by his disgust of my mustache, he was trying to figure out a way for me to do this.  I'm sure there is only a small part of him that hates that mustache as much as I do.  But me?  I loathe it.  It is a constant source of embarrassment and self-consciousness for me.  And Kris knows this and so he told me that when the bed is paid off, I can start the process and make payments on it.  The bed should be paid off in November/December and then we can start the process of making me look more like a woman!  I'm excited.  And apparently very vain.

A little bit of random

I'd just like to start out by asking WHY Facebook thinks that I should like Mafia Wars just because many people who like Big Bang Theory also like Mafia Wars.  I am familiar with Mafia Wars.  I am VERY familiar with Big Bang Theory.  And yet...I have NO desire to "like" Mafia Wars.  That's just stupid.  And just because I can, a few of my favorite quotes from BBT:

Sheldon: I made tea.
Leonard: I don't want tea.
Sheldon: I didn't make tea for you.  This is my tea.
Leonard: Then why are you telling me?
Sheldon: It's a conversation starter.
Leonard: That's a lousy conversation starter.
Sheldon: Oh, is it? We're conversing.  Checkmate.

Penny: I give up.  He's impossible!
Sheldon: I can't be impossible; I exist!  I think what you meant to say is "I give up; he's improbable."

Sheldon: Why are you crying?
Penny: Because I'm stupid!
Sheldon: Well that's no reason to cry; one cries because one is sad.  For example, I cry because others are stupid and it makes me sad.

I think everyone should read Inkheart, Inkspell, and Inkdeath by Cornelia Funke.  Young and old alike.  It is a wonderfully rich and fulfilling story!  And if you have seen the movie, whether you liked it or not, that is not enough.  You MUST read the series.

Ms. Piggy's Smokehouse in St. Ann, MO has NOTHING on Pappy's Smokehouse in St. Louis.  Totally NOT worth the money either.

I found (and bought) season 1 (or at least the first 6 episodes) of PUNKY BREWSTER for $5 at Target today!  I WILL introduce my children to Punky Brewster.  Anyone remember that show?

QuikTrip has this Peach White Tea that also happens to be sugar free, and I love it.  It's a great alternative to my favorite Diet Dr. Pepper and gives me a reason to still frequent my favorite gas station.

Kris and I have weird conversations sometimes and so in the near future, there will be a passionate blog post about Bridge and a not-so-passionate post about Google Maps and Kris' obsession with it.

Follow Me Chickadee

I love my blog friends that host Follow Me, Chickadee Friday.  If you are threatened or overwhelmed by the other blog hops where there are 500 blogs listed and you don't know where to begin, this is the hop for you!  This one is a little different, in that you check out the blog above and below you and "show them some love", as it appears everyone in the "bloggy world" says.




Check it out!
Moving on...
It has now been 48 hours without the kids and I am still alive and not too sad!  Today was a crazy day at work; Kris and I are chilling out watching the latest episode of Psych.  I'm glad tomorrow is Friday.  We're playing bridge tomorrow.  YES.  I'm 31 years old and I have been playing bridge for oh...about 6 years or so.  And I'm actually pretty good at it; at least what I know about the game.  There is so much  more I have to learn!  What is frustrating is that everyone that plays (with the exception of the couple who taught us) is 30+ years older than us, and sadly, they will most likely be dead by the time Kris and I can spend our retirement years playing bridge at the clubs.  That sounds incredibly selfish and horrible doesn't it?  It really is, isn't it?  Regardless...I would love it if more people our age would learn to play.  I know I will get a lot of harassment for my insistence that everyone needs to know how to play bridge...but you really have NO idea what you are missing!

Remembering...

Five years ago, on July 28, my perspective on the world changed.

On July 27, 2005 my friend Angi called me.  We hadn't talked in months.  I felt a pang of sadness that I hadn't gone to her party the month before.  We had plans that night and I had been unable to make it.  Hearing Angi's voice reminded me of just how much I had missed her friendship.  We spent the better part of an hour catching up.  I told her everything that was going on with my kids, and how ready I was to give birth to Olivia.  Angi and I talked about her longing for a baby girl.  You see, at the time, she had 3 amazing boys, and she was longing for a little girl.  We talked about her boys and her summer plans, how she had gotten them season passes to Six Flags and how she was looking forward to taking them that week.  It was just so great to hear her voice and catch up.  We made plans to get together the following week.

It was the last conversation I would ever have with her.

The next day, while waiting in traffic before the Six Flags exit, her van was rear-ended by a dump truck, whose driver failed to slow with the rest of the traffic.  The van caught fire and Angi, Josh, and Jacob, along with Angi's younger brother and sister were all killed.  In an instant, so many lives were changed.  I will never forget what I was doing when I found out.  I can vividly see the furniture I was sanding when the phone rang.  It was Kris, calling me.  He had gone to help our friend Andy.  I was going to ask him to bring home some sandpaper.  But then I heard his voice and all thoughts of sandpaper were gone.  Something about his voice just didn't sound right.

Suddenly, everything felt wrong.  I asked him what was wrong and I heard him say "Josh and Jacob were killed in that car accident today."  At least, that's what I THOUGHT he said.  Immediately I said "How is Angi?"  I mumbled something about how of course she wasn't OK, having lost her two youngest boys, but Kris cut me off.  He said "Jamie!", as if he needed me to pay attention.  Then he calmly said "Angi died too."

Completely confused, I said "No she didn't.  I just talked to her yesterday."  I was in shock.  I kept replaying what Kris had told me, sure that he was wrong.  And I kept insisting "But I just talked to her."  I could still hear her voice in my ear.  I could hear her joy bursting through, because that is just how she lived.  She was happy.  She made you happy.  She was bubbly and full of life, and I just couldn't quite grasp what Kris was saying.

Once I was able to process what Kris was telling me, the reality of what it meant began to sink in.  I knew that Alex had been at camp that week.  Angi had told me the day before.  So I knew that he was alive.  I also knew that Shawn was at work that day.  And immediately my heart began to break, as I started to imagine the horror of finding out that your wife and two youngest sons were dead.  The heart-wrenching task of telling your remaining son that his mom and brothers weren't coming home.  No one should ever have to endure that kind of pain.  NO ONE.

The next few days went by in a blur.  The funeral was awful.  By far the worst experience of my life, though the memories are bittersweet, as I will forever hear Shawn saying "They gave the best hugs."  I had never seen a child's casket and I never want to see another.  I will never forget the somber tone in the church that day, as five caskets were led out to be buried.  It was horrifying.

My mind kept going back to one thing: Shawn and Alex.  Who, due to reasons that only God knows, were left to carry on in a world that would forever be marred by that day. By July 28th.  They will never view summer the same again.  They will never be able to get through the birthdays and anniversaries without remembering what they lost.  They will not be able to drive past Six Flags without remembering.  They won't be able to pass that Steak 'n Shake without knowing that there are 5 crosses in front, as a reminder of the lives that were lost.  I know this.  Because I can't.  And I was not the husband or the son that lost a wife and sons, a mother and brothers that day.

Sometimes I am overwhelmed with grief.  And I feel guilty.  For feeling sad.  For crying and feeling so deeply.  When my life wasn't impacted in the way that theirs was.  And whenever I find myself thinking about *that day*, I remember Shawn and Alex.  I remember that their pain and sorrow is so much greater than I can even begin to imagine.  And my heart breaks for them.  Yes, they have physically moved on with their lives.  They had to.  Time doesn't stop.  It moves on, and we move with it.  But when I think that five years later I still replay that day in my mind, how much moreso must they?  Most of the time, I am allowed the luxury of pushing my grief down.  I don't have to deal with the reality of it every single day like they do.  For a year after they died, I refused to go to Kris' dad's house, because I couldn't bear the thought of driving past Six Flags.  It was too painful.  I tried to avoid St. Charles, so that I wouldn't have to see the Baue Funeral Home on the right side of the highway.  If I started to think about Angi and the boys and the accident and HOW it happened, and I started to cry, I immediately forced myself to think about something else, before the pain became too much.  Now, I let the waves of sorrow crash over me.  I realized a couple of years ago that the way I was handling my own small (in comparison) grief was not healthy.  I would replay how the accident must have happened over and over again in my mind.  I would think horrible, morbid thoughts, and this is why I forced myself to just not think about it altogether.  But after a while, I realized that I had to grieve.  I had to let the feelings and sadness come and I had to learn to handle them.

It was the beginning of healing for me, a few years ago, when we stopped at that Steak 'n Shake and went to see the crosses on the side of the road.  I had to force myself to go over there.  To bend down and look at their pictures and touch their names.  Many times throughout the week, even still, I find myself thinking about Angi and the boys.  Thinking about Shawn and Alex and wondering how they are doing.  I get anxious when I think about writing about it, which is why it has taken me five years.  I feel like I have no right to feel sorrow over their deaths.  After all, I didn't lose what Shawn and Alex lost, and my grief is so minor in comparison.

But I did lose my friend.  And I miss her.  So much.  And I miss Jacob, with his fiery red hair, trying to do things for me and clamoring for my attention. I miss Josh in all of his adorableness.  I miss just sitting and talking with Angi.  I don't have very many close friends.  When I think back to the people in my life that I have really opened up to and shared my whole heart with, I can count those people on one hand.  Angi was among them.  I hate that I let months go by in between our conversations, after we started going to different churches.  I regret that I didn't do more, or make more of an effort to maintain our closeness when we weren't seeing each other every Sunday anymore.  There are so many things I could have done differently.  I know that it is pointless to think that way.  It doesn't change what happened.

To this day, I do not know why Angi called ME that day.  Of all the people she could have talked to, why me?  And yet, I'm so thankful.  I am so very grateful that I had a chance to talk to her, to hear her voice and to laugh with her, one last time.  To catch up and be reminded of what an amazing person she was, and what a blessing she was to me.  I can remember how excited I was about seeing her again, as we tried to make plans to meet the next week.  She just had that effect on people.  Or at least, she did on me.  And I miss my friend.

If there was any one person in life that I could choose to model my life after, it would be Shawn.  His road cannot have been easy.  And yet, he endures and he proclaims God's goodness over and over again.  I am amazed by this.  He will never fully know the impact he has had in so many lives, myself included.  And some day, when God calls him home to reunite him with his wife and sons, God will welcome him with open arms and say "Well done good and faithful servant."

No kids for 10 days

We are blessed.  So very blessed.  You see, we have four beautiful, amazing children.  They are a handful, to be sure.  But we love 'em anyway!  We are more blessed because Kris' mom is in this area and they get to connect with her on a regular basis.  We are blessed beyond that because my parents, though they live four hours away, are willing and able to take on our kiddos for...get this...TEN WHOLE DAYS!!!!

For some reasons, I am usually ecstatic at the prospect of this.  They spent a week with my parents last year and I always look forward to anytime, even if it is just one night, that Kris and I can get away by ourselves.  And it isn't as if I am NOT excited at the prospect of no accidents, no 5 hour bedtime routine, no early risers, no middle of the night "I'm scared because you turned the bathroom light out...again..", no hungry mouths to feed (or rather to push aside and say "Eat whatever you can find and reach yourself!"  I'm relieved at the prospect of the little bit of freedom this little "vacation" will allow us.

But this year, for some reason, I find myself thinking "The house is going to be too quiet.  What if something happens to one of them and I'm not there?  What if they push my parents' buttons like they do ours?  Can I trust them to behave for 10 days?"  I miss them already.  We just dropped them off 2 hours ago in Nowhereville, IL and I'm already feeling a little anxious.  Not about anything in particular.  I trust my parents 110% and know that they can handle any nonsense my kids may throw at them.  And realistically, FOR THE MOST PART, I trust that my kids will behave.  And yet, I think "I won't get to see Livvy's crazy eyes.  I won't be able to see Abbey dress in her eclectic style.  I won't see Kaleb in his sweet moments, helping his sisters.  I won't get to have real, honest and downright fun conversations with Katherine."  And, really?  Am I really already saddened that I won't hear Livvy say "I'm hungry!!!!" seventy million times a day?  OK...I won't go THAT far!  But still...I finally feel like one of those normal parents that doesn't celebrate the time away.  What happened to me?  Can I finally be growing up a little?  ;-)

So, what did Kris and I do as soon as we left our four little blessings in IL?  Well, what would you do?

We did what any normal couple would do.  

GET YOUR MINDS OUT OF THE GUTTER.  

We went to work.  Yeah, we really know how to have fun, Kris and I.  We're real party animals.  We did pass a sign coming back into St. Louis for Lumiere Place (local casino downtown) and Kris said "Do you have any money?"  I told him I had twenty cents.  He had me check his wallet.  He had $1.  That wouldn't get us far...so we nixed that idea and decided to stick with the original plan.  Grab dinner and head back to the office.  And here we sit.  He working and me, well, writing.  It could be worse.  I could be working too!  But I think I will just stick with avoiding work until tomorrow morning.   Because I sleep with the boss and do whatever I want. Because I can.

Water parks and scary slides

Taking kids to the water park (or anywhere else for that matter!) always sounds better in theory. It never turns out the way I expect. Fun and relaxing? Well, sure. You THINK it will be. Is it ever? No. Not for me anyway.

Saturday we took the kids to a local water park/pool. We had 4 free tickets and wanted to use them before school started. We still had to pay $20 for two more kids' tickets! It is EXPENSIVE to NOT be a resident. Highway robbery! We made our way to some chairs and proceeded to make ourselves "pool ready". The place is small enough, and Katherine and Kaleb finally old enough, that we let them go off on their own. They quickly made their way towards the water slides. Of course, being the paranoid mom that I am, I worried that they would somehow be knocked unconscious, drown, or panic on the slides, and I wouldn't even know if because they were off on their own.

While the older two went off to die at an early age, Kris and I took the younger girls to the lazy river. This was going to be great. Set them in the inner tube, climb on the other side, and let the river pull us along. Completely relaxing, right? Not so much. BOTH girls (ages 7 and 4) started freaking out! Here we are, causing a line to form because our water-loving girls decided this would be a perfect time to find fear of water. Kris and I are thinking "What is wrong with these girls?" We FINALLY got them situated and started floating along. The first 5 minutes were fun. Then Olivia (the four year old) started squirming and trying to move around and fall into the water. Mom was just a little on edge! After three trips around we stopped and let the little girls play in the "baby" section. Abbey was immediately bored.

After a while, Kris tried to get me to go to the water slides. I told him I didn't want to. We discussed it, which led to him going off to find Kaleb, who he was hoping could force me to go on the slides. You see, I used to LOVE water slides. They were so fun and totally something I could just go and do. But for some reason, along with other fears that I cannot explain, I was terrified. My 8 and 9 year old kids were having a blast on the slides, and I sat there staring at them, wondering what happened to the person I used to be. Kris succeeded in finding Kaleb, who took my hand and led me to the slides. There were two of them together...one was open and one was closed. I told Kaleb there was NO WAY I would do the closed, dark one. I gathered all my courage and went down the green, open slide. It was OK. Totally NOT as fun as I remember water slides being. Kaleb was proud of me and then immediately tried to convince me to go down the dreaded blue slide. In a moment of sheer insanity, I agreed. What was I thinking????

I have never been claustrophobic. Never. But that slide...? Let's just say that I hated it and it took 10 minutes to beat back the panic attack that ensued. My heart was racing, and I couldn't breathe after being in that thing! 10 years ago I would have LOVED it! Needless to say, I did NOT go on any more slides!

All in all, while stressful and not as IDEAL as I would have liked, it was a good day. The kids had a blast and that was worth it all. Some of you are newer readers, so you may not remember the horrible sunburns that Kris and I got last summer in Florida. It was bad. Very bad. We had lathered on the sunscreen and figured that the reason we burned so bad is because we were in the ocean for 4 hours, and didn't reapply the sunblock. So, when we applied the SAME sunblock to ourselves yesterday and all the kids, we felt safe from the sun in Missouri. We came home only to realize the sunblock did not work. In fact, it would seem that this sunblock actually encouraged the sun to scorch us. ALL OF US. We were all burnt!! Abbey, Kaleb and Kris got it the worst. Kris looks like a lobster. It's almost as if the sunblock we were using was mislabeled and we were instead using something that encouraged the sun's rays to fry our horribly white skin.

To end the day, I took Katherine and my mother-in-law to see Ramona and Beezus. Katherine and I missed out on Toy Story 3 a few weeks ago because Kat was sick. So when I heard Ramona and Beezus was coming out, I knew it would be perfect for us. I read all the Ramona books growing up and introduced Katherine to them. The movie was adorable! It was entertaining and heart-warming. I cried. Four times. I loved the movie! And Ramona? JUST LIKE MY ABBEY!! She's a free spirit, with her own style. She's different and proud of it. I so wish I had taken Abbey with us! She would have loved the movie. I'm hoping that it comes out in time for Christmas.

Thoughts?

So, I'm going to go ahead and make a one minute video to submit for the Project Mom Casting. I'm PETRIFIED a little scared! BUT...here is my idea. Since my blog is primarily about my kids, I thought I'd interview each of them, asking a series of questions about my blog.  After each one has been interviewed, I will then take the best answer from each kid and make my video from that.  I know nothing at all about making videos but we do have a friend who entered the 48 Hour Film Project recently (and the video was AWESOME!), so maybe he can help me out.  What do you think?  What questions do you think I should ask them?  Here are some of my thoughts:

What is the name of Mommy's blog?
What is Mommy's blog about?
Do you read Mommy's blog?
How would you feel if Mommy was selected to be on TV?

I'd love to hear your suggestions!

Project Mom Casting

I realized something today.  In my attempts to figure out if I was really crazy enough to take a leap of faith and fill out the submission form for Project Mom Casting, I learned something about myself.  This blog is an extension of me, of who I am.  It's not just about my life with four kids, or my marriage to the most patient man ever, or my place to vent, or even my refuge.  It offers all of those, but it isn't just ABOUT those things.  It IS those things.  This blog is WHO I am.  It's the person I want to be.  When I write, I don't write as the timid, self-conscious girl that I am on the outside.  I write from my heart.  This blog shows the side of me that I have the most trouble expressing, because sometimes I forget that Jamie still exists.  I'm am taken aback at this realization.  This blog, and the way that I write it...it's that person living inside of me that I sometimes forget about.  I'm not JUST a mom.  I'm not JUST a wife.  I'm a real person, with real feelings, and fears and dreams.  And it is here that I get to BE that person.  What an amazing discovery for me!  And as I am writing and beginning to understand all of this, I know that I WANT to be a part of Project Mom Casting.  A reality show about bloggers?  COUNT ME IN!  

Here is my submission:

My name is Jamie and I am the author of a blog about clutter, chaos, children and a little bit of crazy thrown in.  My blog is called Little Bishop Chronicles because my husband and I have so many kids (OK, *only* four) that we can't remember their names half of the time; so one day we just took to calling them "Little Bishops".  After all, they are little clones of us and it's just easier to round them all up by saying "Let's go Little Bishops!" rather than trying to gather them individually and ultimately shouting "Hey, whatever your name is, get in the car!"  

I love to share the funny things that my kids say and do (four very unique little individuals allow for plenty of writing material), as well as sharing my dreams (currently it is going to culinary school).  I will also talk, from time to time, about my losing battle with adhering to a yeast-free diet, and my struggles with anxiety and depression, and how those affect my life as a wife and mother.

I write about my kids as a way to capture their lives.  It's a memory book of sorts for me, and ultimately for them to look back on after they have grown up and moved away.  They will move out someday right?

I write about my dreams so that I don't forget that I am somebody.  That I have goals and dreams and want to do something I am passionate about.  And let's face it...I love food!  Why not go to cooking school and work on one of those dreams!  That journey will begin soon...

I write about my struggles with weight loss because it is a reminder to me and others out there that we are not alone.  That our weight and how we look doesn't define us.  That even though we fail from time to time, we can get back up and try again.  I don't think that cooking school will help me win my battle...

I write about my personal struggles with anxiety and depression because people are too afraid to talk about it.  I'm tired of feeling like it's a bad thing, or that it defines who I am as a person, as a wife, and as a mother.  Others out there need to know that it's OK to talk about it.  It's OK to admit that you are frustrated or frazzled or ready to quit.  It's OK to admit that you take an anti-depressant or anti-anxiety medication because you need it to make it through the day.  YOU ARE NOT ALONE!

I may never have thousands of readers.  Mine will never be the most talked about blog on the internet.  But that doesn't matter to me.  This is my place of refuge and comfort.  It's a hobby, it's therapy and it is a part of who I am.

Never too old

If Rodney Dangerfield can do it, SO CAN I!

Can it be?  Can I really be contemplating going back to school?  I never thought I would.  Not traditional college anyway.  And I'm still running as far from that one as I can.  No, not running...just avoiding.  I have no desire for that, at all.  Not even a little.  Do I care that I was in college for 6 years and only got my Associates?  Absolutely not!  I had my first three babies in those 6 years and discovered that I didn't need any fulfillment from higher education.

HOWEVER...

Cooking school on the other hand?

Over the last year or so, Kris and I talked about what it would be like to someday open up a yeast-free bakery.  A what?  Yeah, you read that right.  YEAST-FREE.  Which would automatically mean it was gluten and sugar-free as well, since those are forbidden on a yeast-free diet.  I would never do it unless I had recipes that I knew were excellent.  But I'm scared to experiment.  I know next to nothing about food.  Sure, I love to cook and I can follow a recipe and for the most part, people enjoy my cooking.  But if it's that good now, think how good it could be if I knew what I was doing!  If I had the knowledge and skills that cooking school has to offer.  I said this on Facebook earlier...I don't care if the correct term is culinary school.  I'm plain and simple and my way of saying it is cooking school.

Kitchen Nightmares has pretty much proven to me that I don't have what it takes to own a restaurant.  Or rather, I don't have what it takes to own a FAILING restaurant whose only chance of staying alive is Gordon Ramsey.  But maybe someday I could see myself behind the counter or in the kitchen at my own little shop.  Just a small hole-in-the-wall local place with returning customers.  10 years from now, I think more and more people will be jumping on the "healthy" bandwagon...I don't think this trend is going away.  We're learning so much about what the processed and fast food can do to our bodies and while it may not be the quick food revolution Jamie Oliver longs to see in America, eventually we'll get there.

Right now, I don't have aspirations of having an illustrious career in a fancy restaurant.  I want to do this for ME.  For what I can gain and share with my family.  I want to be confident when I hold a knife.  Wait.  Put down the phones.  I don't mean that in a "I'm going to chop up my family" way!!!  Settle down people.  I hate chopping FOOD with knives (that does not mean that I enjoy chopping other things with knives).  It takes me forever to slice anything because I am terrified I will cut my finger off.  I want to learn how to hold a knife and use it properly.  That may sound silly to you, but I seriously do.  It's something that bothers me...that I don't know how to do it and that I don't have the confidence to learn on my own.  Maybe if I were forced (by it being required in a class) to do it, I can get over my fear and finally learn how to use a knife properly.  So that I can chop food, not people.

I was thrilled to learn that a college friend of mine has similar dreams, and she shared with me that she was toying with this very same idea.  And better still?  WE LIVE IN THE SAME TOWN!  So, with Kris' immediate "You should do it!" response (he's amazing, have I ever mentioned that?), and knowing I have a friend to maybe start this journey with, I am PUMPED!  I am so excited about this!!!

And completely terrified.

Have any of you ever been to cooking school?  What's it like?  Is it intimidating?  It's not like Hell's Kitchen right?  Because my skin is not tough, not even a little.  I want to hear what you know!

Southern Fried Snark

Southern Fried Snark is giving away an iPad and you should check them out at www.southernfriedsnark.com

Thanks to Kludgy Mom's Friday Flip Offs, I discovered Southern Fried Snark today!  One of the writers there commented on that post and so I've spent the last 30 minutes checking out her blog and Southern Fried Snark.  Oh how I love sarcasm!

Anyway, while I was there, I saw that they are giving away an iPad and while my husband hates all things Apple/Mac, I'm entering it anyway!  Sorry honey...I probably won't win anyway.  But if I do...well, I'll make it up to you somehow.  ;-)

My  mother-in-law has this odd obsession with buying my kids things for HER birthday.  I'm not complaining...just pointing out that it is unusual.  Yesterday was Cindy's birthday and she decided to take the kids shopping and bought them all new backpacks and an outfit each.  When Kris told me, I said "Did she buy them shoes?"

You see, I have this thing.

This...desire...

this need...

for my kids to start out the school year with two NEW things: backpacks and shoes.  Perhaps it is because I remember starting out my new school years this way.  Perhaps it is because they wear out backpacks and shoes so quickly that they always need new ones anyway once summer is over.  Perhaps it's just because I'm crazy a great mom who loves my kids and wants them to have the very best!

Kris on the other hand, well, he wants them to wear the same pair of shoes until they are 15 (Heck, he'd be happy if they just stopped growing up altogether!), whether it fits them or not.  OK, it's not *that* bad...but to him, it seems like I am always buying the kids new shoes.  I seriously am not.  But once I heard Cindy had bought them backpacks, I realized that problem #1 was solved.  Kris thinks "Well, they have 25 backpacks each by now. Can't they just use one of their old ones?"  Yeah Kris...Katherine will keep carting around the one that is down to one strap, even though I have duct-taped it together to make it last through this PAST school year.  We'll just put some more duct tape on there and she'll be good to go.    Abbey can keep using the one with all the holes that we also doctored with duct tape.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I learned they had new backpacks, because it was one less thing we would need to get them.  But I did give my mother-in-law a hard time last night for not buying them shoes as well!  Perhaps I should have blogged about the shoe issue prior to now, and she would have just known to buy them shoes instead of new outfits...because she's nice like that.  But alas, I did not.  So Kris, I'm sorry, but it looks like we'll be shelling out the $40 (TOTAL-our kids get the coolest looking $10 shoes we can find) for new shoes this year.

Friday Flip Offs

I wasn't going to participate, because some things I just can't "talk" about here, but something happened at work that I'm just furious about.  Need a place to vent?  Check out Kludgy Mom's blog and join in.

So here I go (though once my husband reads this he may make me remove the post on the remote chance that any of our vendors happen upon this post somehow)!

To the vendor who emailed "Please refer to our mail of July 1, in which we forwarded our first and final report.  Please refer to our email of July 9 in response to your July 8 status report.  At that time, we again sent you all of our documentation.  Now, for the third time, we are again forwarding the same documentation.  Please correct your records as this file is closed, and we would appreciate payment on our invoice.":

FLIP OFF!

First of all, that's no way to talk to your CLIENT.  Second, we never got your mail with your first and final report.  That's why we emphatically specify that you are to EMAIL your report.  Idiot.  Third, in asking you to close your file and send your invoice, we are not saying that you never closed it and sent your invoice.  In fact, we explicitly begin our email with "IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY DONE SO, please close your file."  Was it really necessary to send a snarky email because you don't like that we had to hound you to get your report to begin with, and now you are acting as if we are somehow troubling you because we want to be sure we are all on the same page???

What I'd really like to email back to you, but never will because my husband/boss would kill me it's unprofessional is this:

Dear Vendor,

Thank you for taking the time to ruin my Friday morning. I wanted nothing more than to come into the office and find that you are put out because I kindly asked you to close your file IF YOU HAD NOT ALREADY, so that we can ensure that everyone is happy and has a closed file. How on earth am I supposed to know that the invoice you sent with your report is your final invoice? For all I know, you're an idiot and still working on the file, doing things we didn't ask you to do, so that you can bill us more for it, then refuse to negotiate it when we confront you. Well you know what lady? I don't pay your invoice. My client does. Good luck getting that paid though! Don't expect me to cooperate in the efforts to collect your money though. Oh yeah...good luck getting future business from us. It's people like you, who don't know how to professionally deal with your clients, that we avoid. Guess I get the last laugh!

Friday Funnies

It's that time of the week again.  Time for me to share all the hilarious things my kids say and do.  Now this week, I barely saw my kids.  It has been insane!  Kris and I worked fairly "normal" days this week, but the kids had VBS all week and so we literally only saw each other for a couple of hours each day, if that!  BUT, in spite of that, I do have a couple of funny stories to share.  And as always, if you want to join in by posting about your own funny kids, just link up below.

The kids had their final VBS program and of course, my kids are the kids that have arranged themselves so that they are DEAD CENTER, for all to see.  I still can't find the charger for my camera, so the picture below isn't great.  But it's all I've got.  I've labeled my kids, just in case you think I'm lying about them all 4 being in the middle.  At one point, Livvy was in the middle, laying down, hands on her chin, staring at the monitor in front of her.

My mother-in-law told me another funny Abbeyism.  The "theme" for VBS was Saddle Ridge Ranch.  Apparently, the downstairs bathroom doors at church said "Cowgirls" and "Cowboys".  Abbey told Grandma that the doors should say "Girl Bushes" and "Boy Bushes" because in the "old days" boys and girls used bushes, not bathrooms.

We took the kids to Steak 'n Shake earlier in the week.  Livvy, as usual, waits until we get situated and then says "I need to go potty!"  Katherine was sitting across from her, and I gave Kat the look.  The look that says  "Please, pretty please, take her to the bathroom so Mommy doesn't have to."  Livvy was trying to figure out how to get down, since Kaleb and I were sitting in her way.  So I said "Just go under the table."  Livvy just looked at me, quite incredulously I might add, and exclaimed "Nooo!!!!"  Um...no Livvy.  I didn't mean go POTTY under the table.  I meant climb under the table to get out!  Needless to say, we all got quite a chuckle out of that!

In my crazy head...

...are lies.

I know they are lies.

And yet I beleive them.

Every. Single. Time.

Lately, I've been obsessing quite a bit about my weight.  Well, not my weight so much as my body and how I look.  It's always been a struggle for me, how I view myself.  Even before I gained weight and had kids and all of that.  I've never felt beautiful.  And just to put this out here, I am NOT looking for compliments or reassurances.  I wouldn't know what to do with them anyway.  I'm just laying my heart out, because I need to get some of this off of my chest so that I do not explode.

This week, on numerous occasions, someone thin has walked by me, and I have thought "I wish I could look like that."  Skinny.  What is that like?  Using food as a coping mechanism is so NOT going to create the healthy body image I crave.  I know this.  I know the right answers.

"Trust God."

"You're beautiful on the inside.  That's what really counts."


I am so NOT that Proverbs 31 woman.  A long time ago, a dear friend actually introduced me to Proverbs 31, by putting verse 30 in a letter.  "Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised."  So I KNOW that those outward things don't matter.  I know what does matter.  I do.  But I fear that my heart will never reconcile with my mind on this one.

Satan tells me lies, a lot.  Pretty much ALLTHEFREAKIN'TIME whenever I look in the mirror.  I see things that maybe no one else ever will.  Maybe even things that aren't there.  And yet I can still see them.  Every time I start to feel this way, I am reminded of a Caedmon's Call song, "Piece of Glass".  How I wish I could embrace the truth in that song.

Can't believe that I did it again

Wake me up from this nightmare

Cause this monster is wasting me away and taking my days

Every day I live a bit less; one night leads to another

Even if I went back would they recognize me or criticize me

Who are you that lies when you stare in my face

Telling me that I'm just a trace of the person I once was

Cause I just can't tell if you're telling the truth or a lie

On you I just can't rely

After all you're just a piece of glass

Still I control this nightmare, when I call it answers

But I can't tell it when to come, or when to stay

Who are you that lies when you stare in my face

Telling me that I'm just a trace of the person I once was

Cause I just can't tell if you're telling the truth or a lie

On you I just can't rely

After all you're just a piece of glass

Don't talk, listen

Hold me tighter

Stay with me just for a while

Until the sun shines stay with me

Just give me one more day

Who are you that lies when you stare in my face

Telling me that I'm just a trace of the person I once was

Cause we're not the same, you're just a picture of me

You're gone as soon as I leave; you've lived my life for me

And you're no more than a piece of glass

You're no more than just a piece of glass

BEST! DATE! EVER!

!!!GEEK ALERT!!!

Non-geeks beware! 

You may not want to read this post if you:

A. Hate libraries

B. Hate books

C. Hate reading

D. Hate geeks

E. Hate my blog

If none of the above apply to you, proceed...

Now, you may be asking yourself "Why am I still reading this?" "What does THAT have to do with a date?" 

Nothing.

Unless you are me:  

Wait, that's not me...but while I have her here, I have been told on numerous occasions I look like her (only she's skinny and wears make up!).

Here I am:

Note to self: Lose some weight, put on some make up, dye your hair, AND smile with mouth closed if you'd really like people to make the connection to you and Jennifer Connelly.

OK...back to the topic at hand.  Where was I?  Oh yes...books/reading and DATES have everything to do with everything if you are me AND...

You're married to this guy:

Man he's hot!  

But I digress...

Tonight Kris and I were afforded an opportunity to go on a date.  Grandma was taking the kids straight to VBS, so we didn't need to get them after work, which also meant they wouldn't be home until 9:15pm.  So after work, Kris and I had dinner at Pappy's Smokehouse...YUM!  Great little place downtown that I totally think Guy Fieri should check out for Diners, Drive Ins and Dives.

It started storming, which meant the anxious one (hmm...me or Kris? You decide.) started to experience some moments of panic.  The driver was NOT helping the situation, and the anxious one kept yelling "Stop light!" and "Slow down!" and "Be careful!" and "Don't kill us!".  I'm sure the driver would have liked to have hauled off and smacked me in the face to get me to shut up, but me and nerves and storms and driving DO NOT MIX.  Well...let's be honest.  Me + pretty much anything else do not mix!

Kris and I had both driven separately to work today, since we went in at different times, and had two vehicles downtown.  So, we were faced with crazy, anxious me driving home in the storm to meet Kris before going to do something OR finding something to do near work.  We thought about going to see a movie.  We had a few choices: Inception, Karate Kid, The Sorcerer's Apprentice.  But when we looked at showtimes, none of them would work within our allotted time frame.  So we thought, let's rent a movie.  Off to the nearest Redbox we went, seeing mostly movies that we have come across at the library recently.  That's when WE (he tried to say it was his suggestion, though it was really mine!) thought "Hey, let's go to the library.  We can get a movie there."

Because we're geeks.  And that is what geeks do.  For dates.  Because it's the new cool.

We knew there was a library near work, though unsure whether it was part of the St. Louis County Library.  That "library" has several (14 or more I think) branches throughout the St. Louis area.  We were thinking that maybe the branch we had driven by from time to time was possibly Headquarters.  We discovered later tonight that it wasn't Headquarters after all, but that's not important.  And I know this is bordering on boring, if it hasn't already leapt across that line, but that part was important because it leads up to our discovery of the St. Louis PUBLIC library.  There IS a difference.  And the public library has several branches as well.  We went to not one...not two, but THREE different public libraries tonight.  From what I can tell, the ONLY thing that the St. Louis County Library has on the St. Lous Public Library is movies.  You can get fairly new releases at the county, while in the city their selection is much, MUCH older.  But beyond that, I was really impressed with the public libraries...all three that we visited.  They have some unique things that you can't find in the county.  

Like book boxes.  This is basically a large tub full of books, puzzles, games, CDs, etc...all on one theme.  We saw one on the human body that we wanted to get because Kaleb LOVES anatomy and all things relating to how the body functions but it was on the third floor of the particular library we were at and everything had to be checked out on the first floor, which we hadn't even looked at yet.  So maybe next time on the book box.

They also have toys.  We didn't get a lot of info on this, but one lady at the second library we visited told us that they have slides and sandboxes, as well as smaller toys.  Basically, they  have toys you can check out, for the littlest kids, as well as older ones.  We'll look into this further once summer winds down.

The other thing they had that we really liked was what they called a book bag.  Yes, it is kind of what it sounds like.  Basically it is a large bag, full of books, geared towards a specific age.  So, for instance, the one we chose had about 25 books in it.  Books like Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, I-never-remember-the-rest-Very-Bad-Day, an Amelia Bedilia book (oh how I LOVED her!), a joke book, chapter books, non-chapter books, all geared towards 2nd grade.  When we showed the kids, it was a free for all!  They all made a mad dash to pick one out to read before bed.  I just thought this was a great concept...and the kids loved it.

Oh, and the public library has some sort of online resource where you can watch movies or read e-books, but I haven't checked that out yet.  And you don't have to be a resident of just St. Louis city.  You can live in St. Louis County.

Check out some of the things we saw on display tonight:

Though (no offense to anyone), I think this book could be helpful to a lot of people over the age of 35.

Really?  There weren't any books on this shelf that seemed "totally NOT Oprah worthy" but I found it interesting.

Vampires are real?  I've always wondered!  There was also a book about how Harry Potter was a REAL BOY...totally NOT vampire-related.  I should add that the vampire book was in the NON-FICTION section...

Um...OK.

A 10-step reality test for your marriage...good to know that if I am thinking about leaving, the library has books to help me figure out if it is the right decision.

I love this!  It was a mural on the wall in one of the libraries, in the children's section.  It says "The Library.  A child's garden of wonder and imagination"

I need to know what happens with Frank!

I have worked for the last 9 days straight, and I am starting to feel it.  I put in about 5 hours on Saturday and then another 3 on Sunday, 9 yesterday and then today.  While I didn't work a LOT over the weekend, the fact is I worked and I needed a mental break.  So now, I'm ready to crash.  I have realized that I NEED my weekends.  While it felt great to get caught up at work, I'm really regretting it now.  I came home from work thinking "OK.  It's time to watch The Bachelorette and find out what the heck is going on with Frank!"  They have been taunting me with those previews of drama and Frank nonsense, and because I don't watch TV when it actually comes on (unless it's The Food Network), I am always at least one episode behind.  So, I came home this evening, ready to detach myself from reality for a bit and absorb myself in someone else's drama, only to find that there is no sound on the computer!  Now I'm just sitting here irritated.  Kris apparently stole the cable from the living room and took it into the bedroom so we could test out our new TV/computer/entertainment setup in there.  #1.  I have no idea how to take the cable and put it back, let alone which cable it actually is.  #2.  We need another cable!  So, Kris when you get around to reading this, and I know you will, can we PLEASE buy another cable?  You're killing me here!

Let's change the topic so that I am not just sitting here stewing...

Speaking of stew...

I love coming home to the house-filled aromas of food cooking in the crock pot!  I put some round steak (not stew after all but it was a good transition) in there this morning and it smells SO good!  My mom taught me the EASIEST way to cook round steak and it is a favorite in my family.  Katherine has even requested it as her birthday meal in the past.  If you're looking for something quick (prep) and easy, give this a try.

#1.  Buy some round steak.  I don't really think it matters what kind or cut, as long as it says "round steak" somewhere on the package.  I'm basing that on having bought many different shapes and sized and always having the same results.  Real solid evidence...
#2.  Open the package (this step is KEY!)
#3.  Generously coat the round steak with Lawry's or other brand seasoned salt.  Don't be afraid of it.  Cover those babies!
#4.  Sprinkle with flour or corn starch.  Though I'm supposed to be cutting out corn, I figured corn starch was the lesser of  the two diet-related evils, so that is what I used.
#5.  Put in heated pan (I heated some garlic-infused canola oil in the pan first) and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side.
#6.  Put in crock pot and cover steaks with water.  Cook for 6-12 hours.  I'm making up the time here...Let's see...I cooked them on high because I didn't think "Hey idiot you'll be gone all day so put that thing on low."  I started them at 9:30am and when I checked back at 5:30pm they were falling apart, which is a GOOD thing!  I think you could probably cook them on low for the same amount of time with the same (or better?) results...I don't really know.  Just wing it...I do!
#7.  Serve over mashed potatoes.

I always start to feel anxious if I go a day without posting.  Not because I'm worried that I will disappoint my readers.  You're probably thinking "Great!  Finally a break!"  I get anxious because I start to think "I didn't have time to write and writing keeps me sane!"  I am feeling much better now that I have a chance to breathe and write!  :-)  Now if Kris would just get home and fix the sound so I could find out what happens with Frank!

Marriage is...

...crazy hard great!

For instance, a couple can fight about, oh pretty much anything.  Does the toilet paper go over or under?  Is HE required to put the toilet seat down?  Is SHE expected to do all the household chores IN ADDITION to working full-time and caring for ALL of the children?  Now, fortunately, Kris and I don't fight about ANY of those things.  Oh, we have stupid, pointless arguments for sure, just like everyone else!  For the most part though, Kris and I don't fight about the usuals: money, sex, discipline, etc...

However...we did have an interesting conversation (NOT an argument) last night about GIVING, which I won't go into much detail on because I want to stay married for reasons that will remain nameless.

I have to preface this by saying that the only way you are reading this post to begin with is if my awesome husband has read and agreed to its content...he is my filter...and since this post exposes him a little, he gets to approve it.

Let me back up a bit and say, as I have said a million times, Kris is SUPER SMART.  We're not talking Doogie Howser smart (then again, that was JUST a show), but he's extremely intelligent.  For instance, he slept breezed through college, having to put in little effort to make straight A's.  Me, on the other hand?  I had to stay awake and study and work hard to get some A's, B's and maybe a C here or there!  I'm not dumb, but my husband is WAY smarter than I am!

I'm horrible with managing our money.  When I was in charge, we were um...royally screwed in a little deep. With Kris in charge, we are doing MUCH better and have paid off some of our debt quicker than I ever imagined possible.

Marriage is all about balance and compromise and Kris and I balance each other out beautifully. He's super smart and logical; I have common sense.  He's good with money and I can't be trusted with it.  He has a dry sense of humor and I'm hilarious legitimately funny some of the time.  And approaching the topic at hand, I'm generous without reserve and he is sometimes a little on the frugal side.  If a friend needs money to pay a bill or take care of something, I'm ready to give them any spare money we might have.  Kris is there to remind me that we don't have spare money!

I love what the Bible has to say about giving.  These passages need to be seen in their full context, however, I think the principle still holds true for us today.

Deuteronomy 15:10
"Give generously to the poor, not grudgingly, for the Lord  your God will bless you in everything you do."

Deuteronomy 16:17
"All must give as they are able, according to the blessings given to them by the Lord your God."

2 Corinthians 9:7-8
"You must each decide in your heart how much to give.  And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure.  'For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.  And God will generously provide all you need.  Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others."

That last verse really sticks with me, though it doesn't explain how you balance that out within a marriage.  Especially the part about each one deciding how much to give.  If you have two different viewpoints, how do you decide who is right?  How do you find a compromise?

Biscuits and gravy and a parking ticket

I was craving biscuits and gravy today.  I looked online to try to find a gluten-free biscuit recipe that looked good and sounded like it might NOT taste like dirt.  In my quest, I came up empty-handed.  I had all the ingredients for some of the recipes but I really didn't want to waste the expensive flours for something that might not taste good.  So I gave Livvy cereal and pulled out the Bisquick.  I browned some sausage and made the biscuits as instructed on the box.  I used corn starch and the sausage grease for my gravy (even though I shouldn't eat the corn...at least it wasn't white flour).  The end result?  The sausage tasted great!  The biscuits were bland and dry and the sausage had little flavor.  I did not enjoy my meal, thinking the biscuits I've made in the past with corn starch and potato starch tasted better AND were healthier than the Bisquick biscuits.  So I sat in my room lamenting that not only did I consume gluten, it didn't TASTE good!  And in comes Abbey to save the day, as only Abbey can do.  She held her hand up and said "High five for another recipe good done!"  Well, at least Abbey enjoyed it!

Poor Kris...he got a parking ticket at the end of June.  He thought about it yesterday, knowing it was probably due soon.  Well, he found the ticket today and said he had 45 days to pay it.  We were relieved.  He sat down to pay bills this afternoon and just now came in here to tell me that he only had FIFTEEN days to pay the ticket without a fine.  Now his ticket has doubled!  He's not happy, to say the least.  He's downright pissed off now and saying "That's ridiculous!"  Fifteen days to pay a ticket?  For barely being out of the parking space???

Glee

It's dark and stormy out this morning.  For some reason, it reminds me of fall, which I am longing for.  Of course, I'm sure when I go outside and feel the almost 90 degree temperature, it won't remind me of fall anymore.  I'm so ready for jeans and sweatshirt weather, though I'm going to miss my flip flops!

Kris bought me the Glee Volume 3 soundtrack this weekend and I have been listening to that at work and in the car.  Abbey and Livvy were with me yesterday and Abbey said "I think I'm starting to get into Glee."  It was so cute!  She wanted me to keep playing "Total Eclipse of the Heart", "Hello", and "One".  She likes the duets.  She listens to the soundtrack from Wicked quite a bit, so I guess it shouldn't have surprised me when, after hearing "I Dreamed a Dream" she said "Is that the girl from Wicked?"  I was so pleased with her question and told her that YES that was Elphaba from Wicked singing the first part of the song.  I couldn't believe she recognized Idina Menzel's voice!  Livvy of course loved "Bad Romance" - good thing she can't understand the words to it.  She really liked the "ga ga ooh la la..." part and was back there just singing away.  Listening to that CD leaves me #1. Wishing season 1 was already out on DVD and I didn't have to wait until September and #2. Ready to spend the weekend having a Glee marathon!  I read that season 2 will introduce 3 new characters, and also, who else is excited that they have committed to not ONE but TWO more seasons????  I cannot wait!

I am THAT mom!

I'm the mom who laughs at her crying kids.  Be honest.  How many of you have, at one time or another, found yourself with a crying child in front of you, crying even harder because you are laughing at them?  Olivia is four.  Katherine and Kaleb are 9 and 8 respectively.  We made everyone go to bed at 7:30, which meant that by 8pm they were all still up and wandering about, trying NOT to go to bed.  We told Kaleb and Katherine they could read until 8:30pm.  We've been letting them stay up late (like between 9-10pm!) but their behavior as of late has been less than desirable.  So, I came home from work a little early tonight and we put the kids in bed.  Not because I came home!  Just because that was the timing.

So Olivia found out that Kat and Kaleb were reading and of course, she didn't think this was fair.  I had already put her back in bed twice.  The second time she just wailed!  I finally called her out to the living room to talk with her.  I had to get to the bottom of the wailing and stop it.  She shares a room with Abbey and Abbey doesn't need ANY excuses NOT to go to sleep.

Not as cute when she is throwing a tantrum, but still hard to resist...

Livvy tells me, almost incomprehensible, "I want to sleep with Tahtin [her word for Katherine] and my BUH...NEEEEE!"  What?  Could you repeat that?  "I want to sleep with Tahtin and my BUH...NEEEEEEEEEE!"  What do you want to do with your bunny?  You want to sleep with Katherine?  "No.  I want to sleep with Tahtin and my BUN...NEEEEEE!"  I'm laughing at this point, wishing I could stealthily grab my phone and start videoing her, because the way she was annunciating was just hilarious.  She tried to tell me that the only way she could go to sleep is if she had someone in bed next to her.  When do we EVER let her have someone next to her in bed?  She goes to sleep EVERY night with no one beside her.

Anyway...I just sat there laughing and she kept crying harder, though it was only half crying and half dramatics.  I finally told her she wasn't even crying real tears.  She responded by squeezing her eyes really tightly, trying to force tears to come out!

Facing another Friday

Wow what a morning.  Attitudes all around!  Kaleb has already called me stupid, Katherine has screamed at me and unintentionally hit me with a book.  Have I ever mentioned that unlike most people, I HATE summer? Because I do!  So far Abbey and Livvy are doing better than the older two.  I got a much-anticipated "good morning Mommy" from Olivia and it made me smile.  I love that the kids tell me good morning when they wake up.  There's just something about hearing those heartfelt words come from their little mouths and voices that makes my heart swell with joy!

I hope everyone has had a great start to the day.  Fridays are the days I love to hate, yet look forward to at the same time, since it signals the starts of the weekend.  Kris and I are hoping to find a sitter for tomorrow night so we can spend some time without the kids (hint hint Grandma).

While I love all the Friday blog hops, I especially love the new Follow Me, Chickadee!  It's just such a great concept and makes some of the hopping less overwhelming.  Plus, even if you are #300 in a list of 301, you can still get some exposure and find some great new blogs to follow at the same time.  Check it out by clicking the first button below.  There is also a giveaway going on for that particular hop, today only!

Friday Funnies

Check out last week's Friday Funnies for instructions to link up or to find out what this is all about!


I don't have a lot this week.  I was just sitting here, getting ready to go to bed when I realized "Oh no!  Tomorrow is Friday!"  I'm going to share something that my mother-in-law left on last week's comments for Friday Funnies, since it's about all I've got.  


"Abbey who was tired by 8:30, even though we were still at Botanical Gardens decides to tell me, 'My girl knee is tired, but my boy knee still has energy and says we need to exercise.'  I ask which one is the boy knee and she says the one on her left side with her boy hand-'the one I write with.'  I said Abbey, 'I thought you wrote with your right hand.'  She replies, 'I just can't make up my mind.'"


Now, Livvy is going around talking about boy hands and girl hands, etc...


OK, the only thing I really have for you is a little bit of the Little Bishops creativity.  They have been driving us INSANE lately, asking CONSTANTLY to play on the Wii, or watch TV or play on the computer.  Beyond that, if we tell them no, they whine and cry and give us attitude and we are just tired of it!  So we kinda grounded them for a few days and punished them by forcing them to use their imagination, of all things!  HOW DARE WE!  And that's what they did...used their imagination...

The green papers spell out "bathroom" while the white sign says "laundry" and has an arrow pointing down.

Katherine's room: the top says "beware of tomboys", the green one says "all adults allowed" and the little sign above it says "no boys allowed"

Abbey and Livvy's room.  Top green signs says "no boys allowed" with a little tagline of "unless they're adults"

Forgive the blurry picture-Kris took this on his phone and apparently didn't bother to retake the picture.  Sad too because Kaleb is the one who started all the labeling of doors and all.  The green sign says "all adults allowed" and the white one above room says "no girls allowed (unless they have permission)"