Argh!

A few weeks ago we went to the beach with the Charlie's sister, Sarah, and her family. They were having a pirate exhibit with tents and ships. We stopped and the kids played tug-of-war. Then a pirate came up to me, took my camera and handed it to another pirate who took our picture. The pirate hugged me really tightly and I think it scared Emma a little bit. She kept pulling on my arm and asking why that man was holding me.

Back To School

Justin is now in third grade. He is growing up too fast. I can't believe that this is my little baby. We were concerned this year about which teacher Justin would get and with good cause. Justin got the horrible teacher. We went Tuesday to find out classes and teachers. I told Justin who he got and he looked terrified. I promised to fix it and we walked up to the principal. She was talking to other moms and I stood next to her. She looked at me and I smiled briefly and said "Hi... how do I get my son out of this class?" She took down our information and promised to get back to me. The next day around 10 a.m. I received a call from her telling me Justin's class had been changed. Yippee!

We have been a little concerned about how well Emma would acclimate to kindergarten. She is wonderful, creative and smart, but can take a while to get comfortable with new people and in new situations. I was glad she got Justin's kindergarten teacher, who we know from church. Emma was excited for the first day of school and picked out her own outfit which included her new "Zorro" boots. After school I asked who she played with at recess. She said her friend Trevor from church, but then a mean boy came up and hit her in the mouth and she decided "fine, I won't make friends today." I tried to convince her that it was probably an accident, but she told me that it wasn't. She said he thought he would hurt one little girl that day and it would be her. (She pointed.) I told her that it would make me happy if she made two new friends the next day. She asked who else it would make happy. I paused, thinking about the correct answer, and then said "Jesus? And it would make Dad happy, and your teacher." Okay, she would do it then. I asked her if she had enough to eat. Emma told me that she didn't and that she was starving and almost died. When you're starving you are very hungry and your tummy hurts. (The next day I packed a huge lunch including three cookies and she only ate grapes and drank water.) Emma told me her teacher invited her back for kindergarten the next day. Emma asked if it was alright if she went back again. I said she could and asked her if she wanted to. She thought a moment and said sure. What a relief!

My Little Kook

Me- Wow, Emma, you are a little excited, aren't you?
Emma- No, I'm all the way excited. (Hands in the air.)

A few hours later.

Emma- Will open this water bottle for me.
Me- Sure, that looks good. (open bottle and take a sip. hand it to Emma.)
Emma- Don't worry Mom, I am not angry with you. I am not angry that you took a drink of my water. And I am not angry that you got your germs all over my water bottle. I just wipe them off.

Just the Boys- Kinda

Today the girls went to spend the night with Grandma and Grandpa. That meant some special boy time with Justin. First, Justin picked In'N'Out for lunch. After all, what says "boy" like red meat? Then we got out the bikes and went for a ride. We dropped by Dad's work, then headed out down the trail that runs along the wash. We stopped to ride down steep streets and returned to the wash to throw rocks. I gave Justin some pointers on how to properly throw a rock. Then we had a contest to see who could throw the furthest. We agreed to tie. Then we raced. We even saw a dead squirrel in the street. I pointed it out to Justin. He said "Flat as a nail." I corrected him and said pancake. He said that it was really nail because "the top of a nail is flat, but you could say pancake or nail." Oh, okay. When we got home we decided to go for a swim. Boys like to splash a lot by the way. Next, I cut his hair (so he could look more manly.) I love having one on one time with the kids. It is so much fun to cater to them once in awhile. I hope the girls are having a good time too.

STOP SINGING!!

Emma asked me to read her "The Little Mermaid." It is a really long book, so I tried skipping pages, but she caught on. Then I tried to read some, summarize some. I then started to sing the songs from the movie. If any of you have heard me sing I apologize. It is not pretty. Anyway, Emma tried to cover my mouth to stop me. I squirmed out of her way. Then she started to shake me and said "Mom, you are having a nightmare." Charlie added "I am living one." Wocka, Wocka. Real funny.

Help! Need Food!!

Yesterday Mia was sick and I spent the day holding her. I needed to go grocery shopping, but couldn't go. So today I really needed to go grocery shopping, and again couldn't go. My sweet little girls took my wallet to "save it" for me. Then they forgot where they left it. I spent the next SIX hours scouring the house. I looked in the freezer, cabinets, toy boxes, etc. Finally, minutes before Charlie walked through the door I found it in a slot on the shoe holder that hangs on the door in the entry closet. By late morning we were out of bread, all fruit except kiwi, all vegetables, cereal, crackers, and almost out of milk. I tried to get the girls to tell me where my wallet was, but they couldn't remember. Justin also got upset because he was hungry and we didn't have any of the food he likes. I stressed the importance of the items in my wallet and said I couldn't drive or shop without it. After a few hours Justin comes up to me crying. He asked if we would have to live on the streets if I couldn't find my wallet. I explained that everything was replaceable, but it was just a major inconvenience. He asked how we would get food while I waited for a new ATM card. I said Dad still has one and he could shop. Justin gave me the funniest look as if he doubts Charlie knows how to pick out food.

Happy, Happy Birthday Family

Today is a big day in our family. Charlie and I both have little sisters with birthdays today as well as my uncle. I really like a family tradition that we started when I was a teenager. We go around the table and everyone tells a favorite memory or something they like about the birthday boy/girl. I won't be having dinner with them tonight, so I will just say it here. First, Uncle Bud, I love how much you love and care for Grandma. It is great to see how much happiness it brings her, especially when she can't remember the rest of us. Next, Ashley, you are so funny and different. I love it. You make me laugh all the time and I love to be around you. Halloween is great, because you come up the strangest/best costumes and parties. You are a great mom. My favorite memory is when you got mad at Holly and me when you were a kid and yelled "All you care about is your pooh!" It still makes me laugh. Sarah, I love that you have made me feel like your sister. I always enjoy when you come stay at our house. It is so great to spend time together and watch the kids play with their cousins. You put God and family first and aren't afraid to show it. I really admire that.
Have a great day. We love you.

I've Created a Monster, But a Cleaner One

Emma doesn't exactly have the highest of standards when it comes to hygiene. Okay, she is really gross. (I found her playing in the cat box at age 2. Last week she picked up a penny in the store and licked it.) I told her that germs are like little bugs you can't see crawling on your body that can make you sick. It started several weeks ago when she woke up in the middle of the night with a high fever and gasping for breath. I freaked out and took her to the ER. She wouldn't open her mouth for the doctor so I said he needs to see and wipe inside your mouth to test for germs that are like bugs in your throat. The doctor looked at me and sarcastically asked if I was a child psychologist and said I will give her nightmares. Well, she opened her mouth and waited for him to swab her throat without a complaint, and she hasn't had nightmares.

Now Emma has become increasingly concerned about germs. She calls them bug-germs or just bugs and wants to take a bath at random times to wash them off. She also uses hand sanitizer much more often. After licking the penny I told her that it was covered with germs and she spit it out. She loves to hug, kiss, tie up,torture, etc. our dog, Toby, all the time. I told her he has germs too and now she tells everyone that our dog has bugs. Thanks, Emma.

Queue the Music: Hammer Time

I added a music player to my blog. Alright, Charlie actually did it. Sorry about the title for this post, but it is the first title that popped into my head. Actually, that is what often pops into my head when music starts. I am not sure why. I never really liked MC Hammer. I guess I am showing what a big dork I really am. Maybe the thoughts that run through my mind should just stay there.

When Charlie and I were first dating I said something about Snoopie Doggy Dog. Charlie looked at me probably with the same face you're making right now and he told me I was a grandma. I was really 18. So now that I am 30 I have no hope. Well, he married me anyway and hopefully you are my friend anyway.

I just want to note that Charlie picked out two of the songs and added them to my playlist, one of which is Somewhere Over the Rainbow. (The other song is Coming Home Soon.) Evidently one of us is a little girl and since I am the old grandma that means it is Charlie. Sorry honey, but Somewhere Over the Rainbow is an odd song choice for a grown man. But I love you anyway - even if you are a wussy.

Forget sleepwalking, we have sleep crossdressing

Justin recently spent a couple nights at his grandparents house. When this happens the girls are really sad when we drive away and they realize that Justin is missing. I get yelled at to turn around. Then Emma gets excited to sleep in Justin's room. She went to bed in her jammies and then this is how we found her a couple hours later at potty time. I guess she just really misses Justin when he is gone. Me too, but I think his clothes might be a little tight on me.

Mmmm...Icicles

Justin decided to make dessert for the kids. Aunt Christy gave him some popsicle trays and he thought water would be a great idea. I informed him that water makes ice. He knew. Okie Dokie Justin. Well, it was a big hit for his sisters. Who knew? I guess Justin did. Charlie asked Justin how it tasted and Justin said cold. Charlie said he didn't know that cold was a taste. Then Justin said very cold. Oh, that explains it a lot better. ;) Look at Mia's face when she is trying to stuff it in her mouth. And notice Mia without her cast (that's for you Christy.) She prefers Charlie's shoes now.

Sweet Innocence

Emma asked me to take her picture then did this pose. I love you Em.

The Bump

So I already told some of you this story, but I forgot the best part. The other day at the gym I was on the treadmill and this guy who says he is the manager comes up to me and asks me if I want a free session with a personal trainer. I don't mask my annoyance and say not really. Then he says come on it's free; run for ten minutes then come in my office. I looked annoyed again and say fine. Then he puts his fist in the air in front of me. I stare at him and think to myself. This is hilarious, this big guy in the gym is doing the "bump" to me. I try not to laugh or look too excited for my first time and return the bump. So a few minutes later I'm in his office and he asks how much I weigh and has me get on the scale. He says lets just round up for my weight and asks how much I want to lose. I say maybe 15. He says come on, 20. I tell him no, then he asks to feel under my arm. I extend my arm and he pinches. He says he could feel a little, but he could have felt more if I weren't flexing so much. I give him my "seriously?" look. Then he wants to know which plan I want: $1000, $800, or $450. I say I don't really want any. If I try a little harder I could lose any weight myself. He says oh, well I don't want you to get in trouble with your husband so bring him in here with you. He then says he knows that I go to the gym to lose weight. I tell him actually the main reason I go to the gym is to be by myself, have alone time, and not have to talk to anyone. He then says he isn't hitting on me and he has a wife. I look at him like he has some kind of mental impairment and say that I never thought he was. HELLO, you don't tell people that they're fat if you are hitting on them! He again asks me to bring my husband in and then gives me another "bump." I am less excited this time.

Mia gets her cast off!

Another summer, another cast. This one was much better, so much so that Mia threw the biggest tantrum of her life when they took it off. She wanted to keep it on. Emma said "Don't worry, next time you break your leg you can pick another color [cast]." She screamed so hard that she got little red dots all over her neck and Emma left the room to wait in the hallway. Nice. The cast wouldn't have lasted much longer anyway. It was wearing off and cracking on the bottom.

Emma's Earrings

Emma, always fashion forward, tries a new style for earrings... apricot tree branches. That is until Justin tells her that there are probably bugs living in them. She looks at me and I agree. Then she promptly throws them out.

Justin's Big Day

Yesterday was one of the biggest days for our family. Justin was baptized. We are so excited. Justin is a great kid and brother. He is always asking me questions about how the world works and why. I have to keep on my toes. He recently asked me why there are so many other churches and why some people in some of those churches don't go to church on Sundays. I talked to him about how some of them were formed and why, then we talked about the fact that some people don't like Mormons. He was puzzled by this and asked more questions. I explained that some churches actually teach bad things about our church, most of which is untrue or half true. I gave him some examples like that we can't dance, we teach that Jesus married Mary and had children, etc. Then I said that one of my primary teachers met someone when she was a child who had been taught that all Mormons have horns on their heads because we are like the devil. Justin looked confused then slowly lifted his hand to his head. He felt around for a minute then said "That's not true." It was awesome. He cracks me up so much. He is growing up too fast.

Oh that's a chamber pot!!

I have recently been converted to the value of the blog. Charlie has been trying to convince me for a couple years now, but I guess I don't listen sometimes.
Anyway, my family tends to give me a lot of material to work with. I recently bought the movie Ever After, one of my favorites, and after watching it again let my kids watch. (There are two bad words, easily skipped, not sure why the PG-13 rating) As we watched there is a scene where a maid dumps the contents of the chamber pot out the window. I tell Justin what it is and explain the lack of indoor plumbing. Fast forward a couple weeks and I go into the girl's room to find a bucket next to the window. I stop and look for a moment, then Emma comes in and excitedly tells me that she has her own toilet in her room now. I pick up the bucket and yep there's pee. I instantly remember Ever After. Turning my head away so she can't see me trying not to laugh I tell her that it is gross and she needs to use the real toilet. Mia is using the real toilet at the moment so I dump the pee in the tub and leave the bucket there. I then tell the girls to finish getting ready for bed and I run to tell Charlie what she did. I come back to find Mia cleaning the bucket for me... with her toothbrush. I yell "No! That is so disgusting!!" As I say disgusting she pops the toothbrush into her mouth. I start to gag.