Out of the mouth of babes...

Drew is quite the little talker now... his verbiage increases daily. He has just recently (as in... as of Friday) started calling Andy "daddy"... but it's more like... dah-yeee it's SO cute! How can you just NOT do anything they want when they're calling DAAHYEE!

He knows animal sounds:

cow - moooo
horse - neeeeee
sheep - baaaaaah
pig - uck (hey, it's close to oink... that's a tough one!)
duck - kak kak
dog - you have to remind him on this one to say bow wow wow otherwise he starts to just scream RAH! (surely imitating Boomer/Gidget)
chicken - bock bock

he knows the sounds of an airplane without seeing it and will proclaim "Aaaahr paaah"
He knows what the moon is and says Mooooo
He knows star and says "tah"

He knows Boomer - boo boo
Gidget -- did-gee
Thor -- doooh

He knows his Mimi and Pop and Pawpaw... usually says Mama for grandma though

he knows milk (in sign language) otherwise it's "mik"
cracker (ka-ka)

He knows where his elbows are... toes, knees, belly, chest, head, hair, eyes, ear, fingers, hands, feet, mouth, nose... he knows socks and shoes (sheeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwwz)... and his coat (coke) :)

He's coming around... he loves to talk on the phone (who would have though MY child...likes talking on the phone!) LOL

I can't wait to see what's next on his list... hopefully it's something that's rated "G" :)

I Ya Ya Ni Ni

Those were the last words I heard tonight from my little man. When I tucked him into bed... lay his little head on the fleece liner that will keep him snuggly wuggly... pull his blue silky blanket up beside him.... show him where all 5 of his binkies are so he can choose the perfect one for his bedtime switch-a-roo ritual (where you give him one but he wants to pick the one HE wants to suck on)... show him his duck and bunny to snuggle with and then ultimately pull up his blanket, turn on his aquarium to that all familiar bubble music... and watch him turn ever so slightly onto his side... I said... I love you... and he repeated I ya ya.... and then I said... night night... and he said... ni ni.... and rolled over a little more.

My days may be mass hysteria, loud, chaotic, but in the calm of the mundane, I find these little nuggets of ... wow... these moments simply take my breath away.

Don't like the weather? Wait a couple of hours...

It's unbelievable the things Mother Nature can send us -- tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, heat waves... and then there's the balmy summer-like conditions we've been having (sunny, slight breeze, 80's) and then she thought she'd mix it up a bit and LOW and behold, it's 35 degrees outside with a chance of wintery weather?! What the heck is going on out there? If people weren't sick before, this shock to their system surely will make them that way. Good GRIEF Charlie Brown!

I'm supposed to go to my Uncle Leon's graveside memorial this morning but I'm not sure I'm going to take my 19 month old out into this cold for that... just don't think it'd be fair to him since he's just getting over a cold.

We're also supposed to go to a birthday party for my cousin's little man -- he's turning THREE! But with bad weather possible, I just don't even think I want to go out in it so we may just be homebodies this weekend.

I know Josh will because since being in a tad bit of trouble for continually losing his star at school and just being really apathetic about it, he's grounded -- from sugary sweets, gum, television he wants to watch (the TV can still be on if someone ELSE is watching it), playing with his friends, video games.... so he's going to have to earn those back...but is still getting a minimum of 1 butt paddle for lying today. I don't do well with lying... talking in class... I can forgive and forget... you lie.. you pay. Being a parent just is hard... but not as hard as that paddle! Hopefully it'll be a wake up call to just tell the truth. Kids just lie about the weirdest things... I gave him like 4 opportunities to make better and say "I'm kidding" but he finally fessed up that he was lying. UGH...OK Pinocchio... bend over... this is going to hurt me worse than it hurts you! Is that like... cannibalism for wooden dummies -- if you smack a wooden boy with a wooden paddle?

Can I Get A Collective DAYYYYYYYUUUUUMMMMMM!?!

Hold onto your seat folks, he's at it again. Captain Pampers (a.k.a. Drew) refused his breakfast once again. He's so hungry but when he sits in his highchair, and surveys the spread, he looks up at me with this "you think I'm gonna eat that" look and I'm like... yes... eat. He pushes it around with his fork before waving his arms and professing his "aaahh daaah" (all done). He was given biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs with ham slivers covered in melted cheese -- a breakfast suitable for a king! Did he eat it? Heck no, he didn't touch a single bite. Little toot!

We have lots of errands to run so I get ready and get him strapped in his car seat, start up the car and it sounds and runs like a crank-um-up-jalopy. So, I immediately drove it to the dealership. I'm like... charge me extra to upgrade my rental -- I do NOT want a car so, my rental? A freakin H3! How cool is that?... love these big mean cars. I need one!!! Okay... "need" is a bit much but it's so freakin cool! Love it! I'm in an H3 but I'd rather have an H2. I like that they're wide enough for THREE carseats (should I require one)... hee hee... and still have cargo room to spare! My Envoy needs to be a little bigger... and a dvd player! :)

But, on the way home, after the entire car chug-a-lug episode and the hummer pick up, it was late, lunchtime, naptime so I stopped at those beckoning golden arches and got drew 2 things -- a 4 pc chicken nugget and a cheeseburger (forgot to say hold the onion)... so I get home and he starts eating chicken nuggets? Good GRIEF Charlie Brown it's about time. He ate 3 chicken nuggets! Not a "meal" but it's a start. He didn't touch the cheeseburger... oh well... at least I figured out SOMEHTING he'd eat! He loves french fries but he didn't get any of those until the nuggets were gone. :) He only got 4 fries.

Tonight is the visitation for Uncle Leon. UGH... I hate stuff like this but will definitely go. He was such a sweet old guy. I'll go running around, too, to get the birthday presents for Sterling, Gabe and there's something else I was supposed to do... hmm... don't remember (shocker)

--- later today

OK... so I took my car in...got the H3. Feeling all sassy driving such a mean machine until I get the call from the dealership. Bad news. Mice apparently chewed up the wires in my car. It has nothing to do with the fact that two weeks ago I went through a brushless carwash with the gas cap off and the freakin door wide open. What a total bonehead move right? I was sure that I'd fried my first and only favorite car I'd ever owned. Who waits until they're 33 to screw up a car? That's something you do when you're 16 trying to put on makeup, change a tape and drive at the same time while talking to your best friend about your ex boyfriend and the ugly breakup as you stuff french fries from McDonalds in your mouth. No, I never did that but I've heard it's happened before. Hee hee...So the damage... $200. Ok... $200 fix it. She said, that's just if it's this one section... if they've gone deeper into the manifold (or something like that -- I don't speak "car") then they'll have to remove the entire engine and that'll be quite expensive so at this point -- hope for the best and she'd get back with me. Two hours later, she calls back with more bad news... yes, the mice have apparently made a nest in my engine... dogfood stored up for the winter and all. :) Nice huh? Chewed all the way through (the wires) and oh yeah, try the battery cables too. The total price tag (so far) oh try ... abotu a grand (that's inclusive of the $300 30K mile tune up it was getting. So, Andy has declared war -- as we didn't even realize we HAD A MOUSE PROBLEM! I'm just so horked off those freakin little bastards have taken up fort in my vehicle. I'm going to park on the street from now on! UGH!#~@#~

On another note, went to the funeral home... saw some family (not sure who they all were...but they were family none the less)... saw Uncle Norman (had wisdom teeth out today and is swollen like a chipmunk -- poor dude) and Aunt Bobbie, Dad, Mom, Estelle (used to be Bumpass but I don't know her new married name) and some of her kinfolk. It's just going to be a simple graveside service tomorrow... oh, and did mention the weather...tomorrow's high is going to be 38 degrees... possibly rainy.. ick. So, depending on that we will or won't go to the funeral. IT's at 11 am (Drew's naptime) so we will just really have to see. I was glad to see quite a few people there. I know that Uncle Leon is happier now. He really was so lost without Aunt Ruth by his side.... I guess once you find that special person in your life, it's just not worth living without them. YOu're just existing... not living. I Hope that as I grow and experience more in life that I touch many people so that when my time comes, it's a true large celebration of life... it makes you realize how humbling death is... how fragile life is... how much we take for granted... and how we want our matters handled in the end. I hadn't seen Uncle Leon in quite some time... years... but I thought of him all the time when I'd gone back through pictures... he was truly a hoot. I remember him fondly... and I guess all I can say is that is how I'd like to be remembered too, so we're okay.

Wake Up Sleepyhead! Death to Murphy!

After talking with Josh's teacher... he's apparently FALLING ASLEEP IN CLASS... ok, maybe not THAT bad but he's saying he's tired, putting his head down on the desk and she's having to coax him to sit up straight, breathe and get himself alive and kickin' again. Maybe I should give him a Red Bull before breakfast?

She did say it was especially bad on Thursdays -- and that's probably because he's not in bed until around 9:30 on those days because we've been going to AWANA. So, until I can keep it from affecting his school day, AWANA is no more. I'm hoping a 7:30 bedtime will curb this and he can again go to AWANA because he really loves it. If they could just start at 6:00 instead of 6:30, I think that'd make all the difference in the world! UGH...

Dad came over and we picked up Josh and Jackson from school and then Dad took Josh to Mi Pueblo for some post-Valentine sopapilla (sp?)...they make them THE BEST! They're hot and covered with cinnamon sugar and caramel... mmmm... I gain 10 lbs just thinking about them. I was feeling like death warmed over so I didn't go (not that my arse needed a sopapilla anyway)! I can smell those and just think... you know, I just might as well sit on it and rub it in b/c if I eat it, that's right where it's gonna go! So, thank God for small favors like a sinus infection. Josh nearly ate 2! So he had a pure sugar rush for a little while afterwards...which was why I couldn't get him to lay down and take a nap. I knew he needed it. But good grief, he would NOT be still. I was about to go postal... Between him laughing and shaking the entire bed every time Drew said something and he heard it thru the monitor or kicking his feet, patting the bed, tossing and turning I'd finally had enough and said... ok... that's it... get out... next time you're sick and need to lie down, you're going out to run laps! UGH. I'm so not friendly when I am sick and need sleep. Drew kicked and talked and screamed and whined and babbled and clapped from about 3:45 to 4:20 then he crashed out. Why is it when you NEED sleep there is just no opportunity for it but when you don't really need it, you just have every opportunity but no reason to just lie down? I hate Murphy's Law and how my life rotates around it. Freakin Murphy... one of these days I'm going to hunt him down!

We got ready, took Drew over to Mimi and Pop's house. He's so funny now... he used to cry and pitch a fit being left over there... now when we drive up he's literally trying to pry himself out of his car seat just saying over and over and over Mimi Pop... Mimi Pop... Mimi Pop (get the idea?) yeah, it's annoying. :) He runs across the grass, up the path... grunts for you to pick him up to ring the doorbell then he knocks and stands there until someone opens the door and he looks up, smiles and runs in. Before it was like trying to pass off a Tasmanian devil... now he's like... Oh, you're leaving? Don't let the door hit ya in the butt on the way out!

BUT... while there... he ATE! An entire PB&J sandwich, 1/2 a mini pizza and an entire cup of vanilla pudding. So, we'll see how tomorrow goes.

Criz called me before we went into church... Uncle Leon passed away. He was old, sick and just tired of living. The men in our family really just don't know what to do without the women in their lives. He was never the same after Aunt Ruth died. I'm glad they're together again. They need one another. God bless you Uncle Leon.... I hope you're a happy man now.

Be Mine

Valentine's Day started out quite well. I woke up to go wake up the little man (not the littliest man... just the little one)... to my surprise he was ALREADY AWAKE and dressed! He said it was my Valentine's present. How awesome is that? I have a 6 year old that already knows how to please his momma! Woo hoo. He was so excited about it being a "party day" at school, I feared he'd lose his star again and he'd have to suffer the consequences. So, I finally got the littliest one down and then started finishing up on party ware. Andy got home to rest while Drew slept and I headed off to FWC to see Josh and party. We made snowglobes, had a puzzle contest, ate treats... and of course, played in the Valentines! It was a lot of fun.

I came home with Josh and we got everything ready for dinner -- Lisa, Jackson and Wyatt came over for dinner -- fettucini carbonera -- YUM-O! And we just pretty much made a big ole mess with sprinkles as they decorated their Valentine's cakes. They left about 7:30... the boys were upstairs getting bathed and ready for bed and it was lights out. WOO HOO!

If only you could consider it that they were sleeping and not just RECHARGING! :)

God Bless the Pooper Scoopers

Do I live a lavish style? Do I stay current with the fashion trends? Do I have a chef? Do I have my nails done weekly? Do I have perfectly coiffed hair meticulously highlighted to look natural? Heck no! But, am I pampered? Yes... why? Because I have a pooper scooper. :) God bless the man that comes over every Monday to pick up my doggie's disposal. Though I love those little guys, it's just such a dirty job... glad someone else is there to do it!