THAT'S Why You're Supposed to Call First...

Why do people ALWAYS show up when it is the very least convenient?

It never fails:
The children are playing peacefully with their educational, environmentally friendly toys.  Their hair freshly washed and combed, teeth sparkly-white, clothes wrinkle-free and clean.  The house is immaculate, smells nice, and a pie is in the oven.  WHY can't people unexpectedly drop by to witness this?  (Okay, yes-the answer is admittedly because "this" has never actually happened, but there are times that the kids are not fighting and we all look presentable at least.)

No, no.  People want to show up when we look positively homeless.  Case in point:
Yesterday I was sitting in the carport happily neglecting my housework and watching the kids play.  I was wearing the worst of the worst, last-resort-laundry-day clothes, my hair had not yet seen a brush...and I looked the BEST out of all of us.  The youngest was your typical RV park poster child, complete with snotty nose and chocolate-smeared face.  He was in head-to-toe cammo, and his "shirt" was actually pajamas.  The middle child was in shorts on a chilly day, and nothing else.  My daughter did her own hair hours before, and had played hard since, making it look like I stuck her head in an electric mixer.  She was sitting on her bike, fruitlessly pedaling and not going anywhere since the chain was dangling pitifully and obviously broken.
I did not have time to rush everyone inside, turn out the lights, and pretend we weren't available when the lady whom lives down the street slowed her car down to a pace that only meant one thing: she was stopping at our house.  Let me explain that this isn't our cute, friendly old-lady neighbor from right next door.  This is a woman we rarely talk to, and has earned herself a spot on my list of Top 5 Gossip Mongers I've Ever Known.  The way I was positioned she could not see me and I couldn't see her.  My truck was blocking me since I was sitting in a chair in front of it.  Before I saw her I heard, "Where are your shoes?" and "Where is your momma...you're running around outside alone?"
During our "small talk" I had to repeatedly ask child #2 to stop swinging an extension cord around like a lasso.  And child #3 was pushing a stroller around (and by "pushing" I mean ramming it into the wall at top speed repeatedly), which wouldn't have been a big deal except that it is very loud, and when pushed inside a carport the sound is echoed.  It was basically a white trash three-ring circus.

To make matters worse, I couldn't get out of my chair to either distract the kids or for us to walk away from the commotion because I had my legs pulled up to cover my big belly buddy.  We have managed to keep the pregnancy from most of our neighbors (only the cute little old ladies next door and across the street are in on our secret).  So I looked like a fabulous mom with my out of control, misbehaving, unkempt kids while I jut sat there stupidly.

Gotta love people you barely know dropping by unexpectedly.  :)
...It's ALMOST as bad as the Mormon boys knocking on your door while you're having a dance party with little kids in the living room and as you shamelessly do The Sprinkler they are staring dead at you through the window.  And you only notice them as they walk away shaking their heads in a "that poor, lost soul" kind of way.  Seriously-women whom have small children should be exempt from unannounced visitors!

Okay, I do feel better now.  

Bad Day...Disney Style

We went to Disney since daddy got two days off in a row.  Our friends were going to be there the second day so we all hung out together, and I even decided to stay an extra day and catch a ride home with them.  I thought the munchkins would sleep in a bit after staying up past their bedtime and running around the Magic Kingdom all day, but alas they sprang out of bed at 5:45.  

We filled our bellies with "free continental breakfast", and left for the parks.  The air inside Disney gates is different; it gifts one with the ability to see through a child's eyes and it's called The Happiest Place on Earth for a reason.  Unless, of course, you are ME.  Then you can expect a day slightly less magical...

We met up with our buddies at Hollywood Studios and stopped for lunch at the Commissary.  Something went wrong in the kitchen so while our friends got their food, poor Rick was stuck waiting amongst a growing mob to get our meals.  During the time he was waiting the rest of us were sitting at the table chatting.  There was a family of two girls, a mom, and dad sitting to my right and out of the corner of my eye I noticed the mom looking at me (a feeling I am all too familiar with), and I turned towards her just in time to hear her say "...he squirted it on me...".  And then I noticed she was covered in mayo.  Literally from head to foot.  It was on her clothes, up and down her back, and on her legs.  Luke was returning her stare and was holding an empty condiment packet.  My jaw dropped as I slowly put the pieces together, and I started apologizing.  Luke was just sitting there nonchalantly without a clue what the fuss was over.  He had some on his shirt, but nothing compared to his poor victim.  He was playing with a packet of mayonnaise, and obviously he bent it at such an angle that it burst open and shot across the aisle onto the mom.  I couldn't bring myself to tell her that it was all over the back of her head in her hair.  After a minute or two she pointed out that it was even in the plant on the other side of their table.  We all laughed about that.  No wonder Americans are overweight; how much mayonnaise does one packet contain!?

After lunch we decided to see the Indiana Jones stunt show and immediately afterwards I asked Luke if he needed to go potty, to which he answered very convincingly "NO".  The other kids went to go on a ride, and my kids stayed with me.  The adults were talking when I heard Sarah screeching, "MOM!!!!  MOM!!!!  LOOK!!!!!!! OH NO, MOM!!!".  She was pointing at Luke, who had the "oh no" look on his face, and a puddle forming at his feet.  No one would have noticed if Sarah hadn't so kindly informed the surrounding area with her screaming and pointing.  So in front of all the people around us, who were staring, I moved the stroller into a position to hide him somewhat and stripped off his wet clothes to change him into his spare outfit I always bring, but never have to use.  After wiping him, changing his clothes, and putting his wet clothes into a bag, I started weighing my options.  His shoes were completely soaked, dripping wet.  I could either leave the park, buy shoes, and come back (by the time I did that I may as well stay at the hotel since it was getting dark already), or I could let him be that kid who runs barefoot in Disney (no), or I could spend my life's savings on shoes at a store on property (sigh, my only real option).  Off we went in search of shoes...which happens to be surprisingly hard in December in Disney.  Many castmembers informed us that after Summer, when the flip-flops run out of stock they are not replenished.  Yay.

We finally found one store with some shoes left.  As I was gaping in helpless horror at the price tags, Luke helped himself to our Coke and promptly dropped it.  Coke splashed everywhere and I tried to cover the huge lake of sticky Coke with the stroller (to avoid causing someone injury) while I ran in search of paper towels.  The young woman behind one of the counters got a roll of paper towels and a trash can and came over to clean up the mess.  I was on the ground helping her, explaining that this was my last trip to Disney World after having passes since my middle child was 2, and I was having a hard time dealing with it.  ...And that this was not the way I wanted to end my visits.  Then I pointed out my barefoot, mayo-squirting, Coke-drenched child and told her we were there searching for shoes, but that they were $35, and I couldn't bring myself to spend that amount on shoes, even if they were really cute Mickey Mouse shoes.  Then Luke grabbed a $20 pair of flip-flops and ripped the tag off right in front of her and I just looked at her with pathetic "I'm sorry" eyes.  She said to hold on a minute, which I did because I felt downright defeated, and I was right in the middle of asking God if He was ruining my last Disney days on purpose to help me not miss it, when she reappeared and handed us the flip-flops with no charge.  I was able to see the Osborne Lights once more because of the awesomeness of the Disney family.

Lots of other little things went wrong (my relentless, excruciating back pain, boys' bloody knees, rain...), but I will look back on those days with fondness and a smile.  Because there's no such thing as a bad day at Disney!


  

Yo-Ho-Yo-Ho, A Pirate's Life For Me

I know by my stat counter that someone, somewhere is reading my blog. You would never guess it by the lack of comments (ahem), but the numbers don't lie so I have decided to write a post detailing the planning of my son's birthday party for any momma out there who may need some inspiration for their lil buccaneers. I relied heavily on the internet for help along the way and I wanted to pass it on. :) My hat is off to the women from the past who had to, you know, read books and talk to others for ideas. This post is for all the novice party planners like myself:

*Patrick's 5th birthday party!*

I gave myself weeks for planning, yet I still didn't manage to finish everything I wanted to do (little final details like black streamers in the doorways and a few miscellaneous signs, etc). A problem I encountered was...STUFF! So much stuff to look at, buy, or make. I recommend creating a plan and then sticking to it! Buy your supplies and then try very hard to not add items. I kept adding to my supplies which added to my work. So a lot of the preparations waited till the last minute due to my ordering things right up until the last minute. Clearly the food had to be put off till Saturday and Sunday to prepare (the party was on a Sunday afternoon). Looking back, I really wish I had set aside time every night to go through the loot little by little because I ended up sorting through it all Sunday morning and it was stressful/took away some of the fun trying to cook and get the tables set up, PLUS do the loot bags. That was something I will do differently in the future. My thinking was that if I started earlier it would have gotten disorganized and I would have confused myself, not to mention I had new arrivals of loot daily. It was overwhelming so I dealt with it by not doing it until it had to be done. However I should have cleared out extra space somewhere safe and done it much sooner. Oops!

Tip #1: Allow no less than 3 weeks to plan your party. Get the most accurate as possible head count before putting the finer details together to save money/time.

As true Disney (and particularly Pirates of the Caribbean) lovers, the theme of the party had been decided years ago. Patrick has been a huge fan of the franchise ever

since his first encounter with Captain Jack Sparrow at WDW when he was not quite 3 years old. Every time we made a trip to Disney he requested to visit Jack, and it seemed like he was always singled out by the Captain. This prompted us to let him watch the movie, and it has been a serious preoccupation for him to this day. True love. Since I think throwing parties for toddlers is stupid (sorry, but it is) this was Patrick's first party and I wanted to make it something he'd remember. Mission: Accomplished.

I checked out a party store in the big town nearest to us. I found a lot of props, decorations, and treasure that I really wanted for our party, but the price tags caused a moment of hesititaion. Thankfully, Rick agreed to come with me so I begged asked in a normal tone for him to please take the children far away from me so I could think

straight for a few minutes. I love my smart phone and the ability to save enormous amounts of money with a few simple taps on my device. Within ten minutes I purchased probably half of my party supplies-no, no, not from the store I was standing in. From my phone, with my beloved eBay app.

TIP #2: Do NOT buy ANY supplies without checking sites like eBay and Amazon to compare prices beforehand.

After picking up the things I did want from the store we left, just under $100 poorer, and enthusiastic to create a true birthday party experience, not just custom plates and cake-which is what I'd always considered an acceptable birthday celebration.

Invitations:

After being properly motivated, the first order of business is the invitations. It goes without saying-the fewer guests you have the more STUFF you can buy. I'm a big believer in inviting a whole family, including all siblings. (I have never understood the concept of only inviting one child in a family-the poor siblings whom feel left out, and the poor mommy whom more than likely has to LEAVE her child so the excluded children aren't around...I don't get it!?) You have to decide-better and more STUFF, or better and more guests. We only sent out four invitations, which represented 15 children, plus their parents. My family brought the grand total to 18 kids and 7 adults. I used pirate font and wording of course. Then they were stained, oven-dried, and burned around the edges to look authentic, then rolled into scrolls, tied with string, and mailed. I was actually going to mail them in bottles filled with sand and shells, but I knew the kids receiving them would wind up fighting over it so for the sake of peace I opted to mail them the boring way-in an envelope.

After getting an exact headcount (with a party this size exactness matters) I got to work finding treasure and loot. I had quite a pile building up in a corner, and more kept arriving almost daily from my eBay purchases. I thought I was going to have a much harder time keeping the kids out of the loot, but really it wasn't that bad. I had many lists going: food, props, decorations, games, and treasure. Lists were the only way I could keep everything straight.

Invitations...check! Moving on to.........

Decorations:

I had no trouble finding decorations; between online deals and going to the dollar and thrift stores I found plenty of loot. I found a huge Jolly Roger flag online for $3. I checked out the dollar stores and found a few things like chocolate gold coins and skeletons. I bought a few items from Wal-Mart such as candy, black plates and cups to have as extra in case the special POTC supplies ran out, and another skeleton. The thrift stores provided a treasure chest. Since my son's birthday is two weeks before Halloween I had no trouble finding pirate-y things for our party. I simply dressed the skeletons as pirates using hats and eye patches we already had. I also used Halloween decorations that we already owned and made them fit the pirate theme. I saw some cute plastic signs at the party store, but I chose to make my own to save money, plus I really thought it looked more authentic to do it my way. I used the same stain, dry, burn technique that I used for the invitations and made many signs: "Galley" which hung in the kitchen, "head" which adorned the bathroom door, "Property protected by pirates" for the entrance, "Captain's Quarters" for above Patrick's door, and of course-the ever popular "Dead Men Tell No Tales". I also made a "Code of Conduct" for the outside, which were rules for the pirates' behavior (included "no whining" and "no hitting"). I used the Pieces of Eight font for nearly everything, which is a free download, and it is the closest to the actual POTC font that you can find.

Tip #3: Use anything you can as a decoration. Borrowing toys from your kids' rooms that fit your theme and using them for the party doesn't cost a thing, but adds a lot.

Props/Decorations Con't:

My hubby works retail so I put him in charge of cardboard. Yes, cardboard duty. He brought home any large boxes or sheets of cardboard and started a pile in our carport for me to work with. I wasn't sure exactly what I was going to do with it, but I knew I would come up with something. ;)

One piece he salvaged was the backdrop for a cookie display and looked like a wooden fence. I thought it would be perfect for this:

BEFORE: AFTER:

(The finished prop looked exactly like this,

except the empty noose was behind the sign and a clue was taped to the back of the sign. The paper in the background on the left is the "Pirata Codex".) And yes, those are actual hangman's nooses-I found a cool knot-tying website with videos and now I am a professional noose-tier. Not sure what I'm to do with this talent?

I had another piece that was divided into three sections-perfect for a stockade. We nailed the finished prop to fence posts outside:

I had several small boxes which I spray painted black. These were part of the decor as well as functional:

The tattoo parlor was all ready to go (except the water). This helped the party flow from one activity to the next without a lot of stopping, chaos, or too much work for me.

I had another box for accessories in case anyone showed up in need of pirate gear:

I came across a craft for a Halloween decoration from FamilyFun.com, and

then used the directions (see "Crafts" post for link) posted on a blog since it had illustrations.

Here's Mr. Bones:

Tip #4: Don't stress over how everything looks. Kids don't care about perfection; they care about awesomeness. If your Mr. Bones looks like recycling gone bad, who cares!

My biggest undertaking was the pirate ship. I used a dishwasher box, plus three miscellaneous sheets, and two rolls of duct tape and constructed a ship. I spray painted it black and brown. To be honest, I was worried my own little swashbucklers would mutiny and sink it before the party guests got to even see it, so I purposely waited to construct it until they were asleep on Saturday night. I stayed up until midnight, but it paid off because three weeks later it is still standing on our back porch and being played in. :)

Decorations and loot taken care of, now time for...:

Food:

Since our party started at 2 pm and had no ending time I wanted a meal, not just snacks. I made sure everything I served fit the theme, and to really drive the point home I printed out labels on white stickers and stuck them onto black construction paper for each food item (this also counts as a decoration):

drinks = "grog"

deviled eggs = "cackle fruit" (what real pirates referred to eggs as)

chips and dip = "bone chips and guts"

chili & rice = "salmagundi" (a pirate food made from a hodgepodge of ingredients)

spinach dip = "seaweed"

the ice cubes = "alligator blood"

the cake = "just cake"

cookies = really should be in the "decorations" category

Every party needs...

Games:

I wanted to use all of the props for the games to ensure that they were utilized.

Originally I was going to have three or four games and then do the pinata and head to the cake. But then I realized that a pirate party would not be right without a treasure hunt and there was just no way out of it. So I used the games as a way to give clues.

I had a black box for the games (which sat next to the other black box props until game time) so that when it came time to play them everything was organized. Each game was in a plastic bag and numbered, and included the corresponding clue, prizes, and any props needed so all I had to do was grab bag #1, #2, etc. With 18 kids I did not want to stop, think, get supplies, and so on.

Tip #5: Make sure your games are 100% ready to go and organized before the guests arrive. You don't want to be scrambling whilst you have a bunch of kids going nuts at your home.

Game #1 : Davy Jones' Locker

This is a take on Sharks and Minnows. The biggest kid volunteered to be Davy Jones and all the pirates ran from one side of the yard to the other when I yelled, "Abandon Ship!" Whomever was tagged by Davy Jones was "out" and received a dum-dum lollipop as a prize. The last pirate in the game was declared the winner and was rewarded a lollipop and the first clue which said, "It's a pirate's life for me. Look for a sign under a tree." The clue led them to the "Pirates Ye Be Warned" display and attached to the back of the sign was a piece of the map.

Game #2: Cannonball Stomp

I had the hardest time finding black balloons which I honestly did not anticipate since it was so close to Halloween. So I opted for dark green water grenades instead, which worked out since they really did look like grenades. Let me tell you it was extremely hard to blow those suckers up and get the treats inside. I originally planned on making 1/2 empty, 1/2 with a pirate coin, and one with the clue. But instead because it was so difficult to get the coins inside, I ended up with about 5 with coins, one with the clue, and the rest stayed empty. This game was hysterical-18 kids stomping balloons. It was over very quickly and a few of the kids got upset that they didn't get to stomp any balloons. For the record-there were 35 "cannonballs". The winning pirate whom stomped the balloon containing the clue read, "Beware! If yer enemies catch ye, you'll wind up THERE." This brought the pirates to the stockade, which they had to search. The piece of map was hidden between the cardboard and the wood.

Game #3: Gold Nugget Hunt

This was basically an Easter egg hunt with gold nuggets substituted for eggs. In the days prior to the party Luke helped me walk around and find rocks which we rinsed, laid in the sun to dry, and then spray painted gold. I had a section of my yard closed off during the party so the children wouldn't venture into it and discover the gold. I hid the nuggets the morning of the party (after the dew dried) so I wouldn't be frantically trying to hide them during the festivities. The losers got ring pops and the pirate with the most gold chunks won the clue which read, "They say milk does a body good. Look for a skeleton by some wood." This of course led them to the milk jug skeleton and the piece of map was hidden in one of the cavities of Mr. Bones.

Game #4: Pass the Parrot

This is Hot Potato using a parrot. (My beloved parrot from my childhood, but that is another blog post...) The same older child who was Davy Jones was the music controller. He paused a song from the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack randomly until the winner was declared. The non-winners received an eye patch, and the winner got the final clue which said, "This is a place where you jump. Search all around for a lump." The last piece of map was discretely taped to a railing of the trampoline. I of course had it planned out that the last piece to be found was the part that contained the exact location of the treasure. The map was drawn on a crumpled paper bag and ripped into four sections. On the final quarter it said, "To find your reward look under an orange gourd", and naturally an "X" marked the spot. It was pretty warm out and I tried to get the kids to take a drink break halfway through the games, but very cutely they all refused-they wanted to finish the treasure hunt! I had the treasure chest pinata hidden on our front porch under a Halloween pumpkin. (Another mommy placed it during game #3 since there was chocolate inside which would have melted.)

We hung up the pinata, and as the children lined up to take their turns swinging at it I handed out the loot bags so they had somewhere to put their pinata goodies. The bags were store bought POTC, but I personalized them by sticking printed labels on the back of each bag that said "Hands Off! This booty is the sole property of ....". Each child had a cool pirate name-for example we had Captain Patrick (birthday boy), Coldblood Max, and Longtooth Maggie. I put telescopes, chocolate coins, stickers, pencils, and bookmarks inside (all store bought). The kids finally busted it open, and all the loot disappeared so quickly. I had many beaded necklaces, some bracelets, LOTS and LOTS of candy, pirate rings, and gold coins and medallions inside the chest.

After the pinata excitement we headed inside for cake. I found many options for cakes online (ships, treasure chests, skulls, you name it), but I love Publix cake so we ordered ours. Had I chosen to make the cake I am not sure which I would have chosen; they were all really neat. I would have had to allow time for that, and I had too many other things to do....

I had one more surprise for the pirates: Alligator blood to prevent scurvy. I brought out two 2-liters of lemon-lime soda and everyone had their cups ready. Then I pulled a black bowl full of red ice cubes. But not just any ice: I found a silicone mold for skeleton head ice cubes in the Halloween section of Wal-Mart. I started on Saturday and had a system worked out very quickly-it took 2 1/2 hours for them to freeze so every 2 1/2 hours I popped the 15 heads into the bowl in the freezer and filled the tray again with Hawaiian Punch. Yes, even through the night. By party time I had the bowl filled.

I already owned the soundtracks to the POTC movies (parts 1 & 3) and I also own the special 40th Anniversary cd that Disney released in honor of the attraction. I burned a cd of just the music from that (excluding the talking and narration), and had all three soundtracks on loop for the duration of the party. Since there was so much music it never seemed repetitive (to me). Our backyard was so much fun transformed into pirate theme that it was painful to it back to normal again. In the photo you can see the stockade on the far right, the hanging pirates in the far center, and Mr. Bones was very far to the left (not pictured). The pinata was hidden in the front of the house, and busted open in the carport.

Tip #6: Hand over your camera to another parent and request photos of the birthday celebrant, decorations, activities, etc. I suggest taking photos of everything set up BEFORE guests arrive-you will not get a chance to afterwards! You want to remember how your hard work turned out. I will never forget to do this again; lesson learned the hard way!

I had a blast planning this party even though it was a lot of time and work. I am going to do another for my daughter next Summer. I think I will start the planning right after New Years.........

Crafts!

'Tis the season for crafts! Lovely temperatures after months of not leaving the comfort of air-conditioning combined with the upcoming holidays make this my favorite time of year. The little cold snaps bring fresh energy and opening windows, preparing firewood, spending so much time outdoors all unite to push housework to the side, cut down on heavy school work, and take advantage of quality time with the rugrats. I wanted to share some really easy, fun ideas, and the best part is you already have everything you need-no inconvenient trips to buy fancy craft store products. Even if you're not a stay-at-home mom, or your kids go to school there's no excuse-if you can spare 15 minutes to play on the internet you can spare 15 minutes to make a craft! :)

***Halloween Countdown***

This is kind of late, but you can always save it in your Halloween/Fall arsenal for next year, or go ahead and do it now since it takes all of 10 minutes:

Disney Halloween Countdown

***Play Dough***

Okay, yes, it is safe to say most mommies know how to make play

dough, but just in case..here is my favorite recipe:

It lasts until you throw it out, never dries up.

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
2 cups warm water
1 cup salt
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 Tablespoon cream of tartar (optional for improved elasticity)

Mix all ingredients in pot over med heat until it no longer sticks to sides. When it cools down, you can color it with food coloring and make lots of choices. If you don't have food coloring I have used a packet of Kool-Aid to color, but be warned: it has an odor (not bad, just...there). I store it at room temp in ziplock baggies and it keeps forever! I know some mommies keep theirs in the fridge, but I don't want to give up the space, plus it makes the dough hard. Seems unnecessary to me.

***Bubbles***

Bubbles are fun, too. And sure, you can get them on clearance for next to nothing at the dollar store since Summertime is over, but where is the fun in that!?

Mix 1/4 cup of dishwashing liquid with a quart of WARM water. I always add some oil to keep the bubbles from breaking (not much, just a tbsp or so). Give each child some "tools" like straws and old bubble wands and let them play. Make sure they are outside. ;)

***Fall Leaves***

Need decorations for Autumn? Take your kids on a "hike" (a walk around your yard or neighborhood) and find colorful leaves. Sounds easy, but in Florida this is actually quite the task. All we have is brown or green. Finding yellow and red was really a task-it took two days of searching, and another added two days of searching because we didn't finish the craft right away and the leaves got too crunchy. Oops! After looking far and wide we finally scrounged up some red and yellow leaves. I imagine this craft would offer much more gratification if we had access to big,

colorful maple leaves or something comparable.

Ours were pretty pitiful, but despite our abundance of evergreens I still love Florida:

***Milk Jug Skeleton***

I was browsing the internet for ideas for Patrick's birthday party a few weeks ago and came across instructions for a skeleton made of milk jugs. It was a neat project that I would definitely do again. The biggest challenge was not what I thought it was going to be (cutting the small areas from contoured plastic). The hardest part was getting the stinking labels off. I soaked them in hot water, and managed to destroy two of the jugs right off the bat due to the water being a little too hot. I used soap and a knife. Nothing seemed to get the glue off; the labels yes, the glue no. I used my nails to scratch away at it, and after one whole jug I gave up. Who needs perfection!? I spread out all of my supplies on my back patio and let the kids play with the pieces while I worked. It took over an hour because there is a lot of cutting involved. The plastic can be pretty sharp so this was a craft that is better left to older kids, or for mommy to complete while younger kids do something nearby. I gave my kids the job of trash pick up and hot tubbing next to me.

The original idea came form FamilyFun.com, but I found these instructions, which I liked a lot better because they included illustrations. I didn't take the time to ask her permission to re-post, but I linked directly so I'm sure she won't mind. ;)

I ended up using the finished skeleton as a prop for the birthday party and he is currently on display for Halloween.

The Times, They Are A'Changin...

I remember when I was younger being outside playing for hours and hours. Literally not stopping for anything, even drinking from the hose and eating whatever my mom left on the porch if she decided it was time for us to eat. There were a few kids who lived somewhat near to us (my town had a population of 100 to give you an idea), and we would use our bicycles to make the journey to join forces and create enough bodies to form teams for various games.

If there happened to be an emergency-say we were terrified from running through the graveyard at dusk and needed to catch our breath-we would shout, "TIME OUT!", or "TIME!", or some variation, including making a "T" with our hands.

I remember when video games came out and to be honest, I didn't really understand Atari. It was lame. We handed it back to mom, the dust barely disturbed, and let it go back to where ever it came from. Then came Nintendo. Everyone got one for Christmas. Well, everyone except us. One of the following Christmases we were actually gifted with a beloved Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). We were finally movin on up. Nevermind that there were already newer, better game systems. It didn't matter to us. My brother and I traded our hours outside for hours in front of the TV. Somehow we didn't wind up with tendonitis from holding the controllers so furiously for so long (God bless youth). None of our friends came searching for us-they were just as brainwashed by their video games. Our parents didn't seem to care, after all we were quiet and out from underfoot, right?

Eventually the novelty wore off, puberty set in (which freed me from the gaming addiction while at the same time sadly trapping my brother for life), and I became too busy with real life, homework, and teenage melodrama to care about Nintendo.

Flash forward 15 years and I am all grown up with kids of my own. My son plays an online game. He is 5, doesn't read, and has no attention span. It never really crossed my mind that he would get addicted, but I see it now. I have had to set limits ("in 30 minutes you have to turn it off and come eat"), use bribery ("if you want to play later, you'd better pick up your clothes"), and threaten ("unless I see PERFECT behavior at the store..."). Very recently I have hidden the laptop cord and left the house in favor of the playground because once he knows the game is not an option he doesn't care about playing it. I need to remind him there is a beautiful world that God gave us to enjoy and the weather is too nice to be cooped up inside. The limitations have become more strict, and I will delete his character if it becomes a real problem. Now why didn't MY mom think of that!?

Yesterday we were at the playground and I was sitting there counting my blessings (okay, really I was totally beat from pushing three heavy kids on swings simultaneously), and the kids were running around chasing each other up and over, under and through all the equipment...they were completely breathless and red-cheeked and happy. Sarah stopped in her tracks, spun around, looked at her younger brothers, and yelled "PRESS PAUSE!".

Just Another Ordinary Day

This morning we were all woken up to the sound of thunder and lightning overhead. It sounded like it was trying to get inside. Just a few minutes before 6 am the house became an eerie quiet and black dark as the power lines couldn't take anymore abuse.

Many candles and tears later we decided that alternating locations to watch the rain fall wasn't cutting it (how did they do it "back then"!?) so we went for a drive around the neighborhood to see where the power outage was coming from. We were so happy to see wonderful cable guys out there in the still pouring rain working hard to restore our electricity.

Later in the morning I remembered Luke had an appointment with the pediatrician. Since Rick didn't have to work until the afternoon he stayed home with the older kids so I could have a peaceful trip with my youngest. (In Rick's words: this was my "alone time". THANKS.)

While I was signing Luke in he went into the little playhouse in the waiting room, and I turned around to go sit nearby. He had that look on his face-sure enough upon closer inspection I saw he peed his pants. As nonchalantely as I could, I took his hand and asked for paper towels (since the bathroom didn't have any-grrr), cleaned up the puddle, and wiped it with Germ-X from the handy container they so considerately place on the counter. After that was cleaned up it was time to clean up the child. By that time he was saying, "Cold!" and walking like Frankenstein so I was pretty sure my nonchalance wasn't fooling anyone. Oh...did I mention it was still down-pouring rain? Yeah.

Luke and I got completely drenched while we were at the car trying to change him into clean clothes. Clean clothes? Why, yes, I always have spare clothes in the car for such unfortunate circumstances. However, as I searched in the rain for said clothes I realized my super-duper helpful hubby cleaned out my car for me. I looked for anything, and to my relief there was one solitary diaper leftover from before underwear days. I "nonchalantly" strolled back into the office, soaking wet, hair matted, and half naked child. Luke actually seemed quite happy and relaxed sitting in a waiting room surrounded by people in nothing but a t-shirt and diaper.

When it was time for his shot, the nurse remarked, "See, you already have your pants off for me", and I responded, "Yes, I planned it that way".

After Rick left for work I got to work on some decorations for Patrick's upcoming birthday party. This is no easy task with three eager helpers whose definition of "help" is thoroughly destroy all of my hard work. I actually managed to finish one project so while I was cleaning up I decided to let the kids go outside (since they have been cooped up for days due to the rain). It was merely sprinkling at this point, and no lightning. Everything is okay, right? Wrong! They got the brilliant idea to add the water hose into the mix and came gut-wrenchingly close to ruining 3 1/2 hours of work on the party prop.

Fortunately for me it was late enough to corral them inside and feed, bathe, and ready them for their "camp out". They camp in the living room when Rick works at night and stay up late watching shows they normally don't get to watch. Finally-at 9 they are passed out...which is exactly what I am about to do! Tomorrow will be another day; better get rest! ;)

No Need For Post-Its Anymore!

I've always had problems remembering things. Ever since I had multiple children it has gotten worse; if it hadn't been for those magnetized shopping list pads which stick to the refrigerator I would have missed countless appointments, made many more trips to the store for forgotten items, and flaked on important commitments.

I have finally figured out a way to remember! I want to share my discovery:

I ask my husband to call me and remind me of something. I may not remember the task, but I will darn sure remember that Rick didn't call me to remind me! See, all you have to do is figure out a way to blame your hubby. Ta-Da-instant ginseng!

I'm waiting on the photos for my next post-it is a tutorial on birthday party planning. Stay tuned! :)

Whew, the months are really flying by. We have been thoroughly enjoying our Summer-plenty of time in the water, playdates, and fun mini-vacations. Maybe that is why it has taken me three days to write this post. If I try to sit down during the day the kids' built-in radar pick up and they all harass me mercilessly until I give up. By the time they are all asleep at night, I am too exhausted to do anything besides sit on the couch and mindlessly stare at the TV. The solution? Close the door to the playroom and promise them a treat if I get 15 uninterrupted minutes. The good news is I don't have to pay up. The bad news is it took three days to type a few paragraphs...

Patrick is going through a singing phase; it is so cute. He either sings songs he is familiar with or he will just bust out his own made-up tune whenever the mood strikes him. For example: the other day he had been asking me relentlessly "play with me!!", and I kept telling him, "I will, I will...in a few minutes...". After the hundredth exchange exactly like that, he stared singing "A B C D E F G, I WANT MOMMY TO PLAY WITH ME". How could I deny him after a serened like that?

On another afternoon, Rick took the youngest with him to run a few errands and left the other two home with me. We three were cleaning the boys' room (well okay, I was cleaning and they were playing with everything I put away) and I was hanging a new picture of a guardian angel looking over two little tykes crossing a dangerous bridge (I'm sure you've seen it). I used it as an opportunity to remind them of their own guardian angels and Sarah asked if she could talk to hers. I answered that of course she could anytime she thought to or felt like she had something to say. Her face lit up with understanding and awe. My son is much, much more interested and curious about God, Jesus' life, etc. so to have finally made a breakthrough with my little girl was a monumental occasion for me. Proud of my abilities to evangelize small children with my amazing story-telling technique, I sauntered out of the room with a satisfied smirk. Immediately I heard her whispering, "Please Guardian Angel, bring me candy."

Last week was insanely busy due to our church having VBS. The theme this year was hiking through the wilderness and learning about the seven Sacraments. I was the director of snacks for the program. (To find out why this year was especially difficult-keep reading...or look to the right!) The music was definitely my favorite part, however there is one song which begins: "I'm going on a wilderness adventure/ into the life of Christ..." No matter what, I kept singing, "...into the life of crime..." What kind of sick mind switches "crime" for "Christ"!? To make it worse, every time I did it and noticed I had messed it up AGAIN I would involuntarily giggle. Please, someone tell me I am not condemned for all eternity...?

I was showing Sarah a website with photos of a baby's development in utero (look right). While we were bonding and chatting, we were sharing a bowl of yummy chili from the crock pot. Yes, I am bragging-it was SO good. Right as I took a bite we came to a paragraph which had a cute illustration of a tiny baby with webbed fingers and toes and an over sized, adorable alien head. It's tiny spine was perfectly formed and there was a teensy heart. To compare the size of the developing baby there was another picture off to the side of the sweet little illustration. It was a kidney bean. Yes, kidney bean...as in a major ingredient of chili. As in I was eating a kidney bean that was supposed to represent the precious unborn baby. This is the twisted universe I live in.

July

The past week the children and I have been taking turns laying around on the couch not feeling well. First up was Sarah, who had a ridiculously high fever for an entire day and night. She woke up around 6:30 am, jumped into the hot tub at 7 (I don't know...), and went back to the couch by 7:15. She dozed for a couple f hours and then went to her bedroom and slept for the rest of the day. This is blog-worthy because even in sickness my kids don't ever sleep like that.

I made sure she took small sips of Gatorade each time she awoke, gave hot-forehead kisses freely, and piled on the blankets since she was literally shivering in her sleep. I figured it was the beginning of the flu and soon the entire house would be infested and quarantined. It was a mere matter of time before all of us would be begging for death so I did the only rational thing I could think to do in the meantime with my precious few hours until onset and cleaned out the kitchen cabinets. Being down one kid really freed up a lot of my time and while the boys played with play-doh and ate popsicles I got to work.

I filled an entire garbage bag and added a dozen items to my shopping list. Among my finds:

• many expired medicines (the winner: ibuprofen with an expiry of 1999. yikes. Runner-up: infant's Tylenol with literally less than a dropper full left, it was crystallized)
• a small-dog flea collar (what dog--small or otherwise!?)
• a plastic cup full of change (Hello hubby's stash-turned-ice-cream-truck-money!)
• 11 (yes, e l e v e n) garlic salts
• old tubes of paint (from decorating the "nursery" for my first child)
• a brand new bottle of Pepto-Bismal with creepy, abnormal separation of liquids not unlike what happens to milk (expiry: 2009; do not remember buying that!)
• 4 opened, nearly full boxes of cornstarch (really?)
• A number "5" candle (I assume I purchased for my daughter whom will be 7 in a couple of months)
• 3 unused Easter egg dying kits (sucker for clearance items; must remember I'm all set for next year...)

Nothing short of shameful. I KNOW I've been up there digging around and cleaning before...I think...I hope...!!? How did all that junk get past me for all these years!? It is an odd feeling to know that a bottle of ibuprofen has lived in your house longer than YOU have.

By the weekend the little princess was back to herself, and I took her place on the couch. I don't know if it was a cold or a sinus infection, but it doesn't matter at all because either was I was miserable! The kiddos were pretty well-behaved considering the fact that I neglected them for three days in a row. I felt so yucky that I couldn't even feel guilt about it at the time.

For the Fourth of July I planned on the continuation of my loafing and pity partying alone with the kids since my husband works retail (holidays are never a day off). But then I unexpectedly received a call from a friend and decided the kids deserved some fun-after all, they had gone along with my sickness for about four days-so we got dressed and got together with the Websters at the MacKenzie home. I am SO glad I pulled it together (and by "pulled it together" I mean found clothes on the floor, forgot to brush my hair, and didn't care about make up, or apparently deodorant as I figured out as the day progressed...oops!) and went. Did I mention this was the first time I had ever been invited to this couple's home? Yep, that's right. I'll keep you posted if I'm ever asked back, HAHA. After that I really don't know; I tried to assure everyone it was just sinus, but I'm not sure they were convinced. Really! It IS just sinus, though. Although the first hour or so after arriving was spent in a zombie-like trance I had a great time and I left much, much later than I anticipated due to the fact that everyone was having such a good time that the hours just slipped by unnoticed. After spending the entire afternoon in the pool, being treated to yummy sno-cones, and then a spontaneous snowball fight, topped off by golf-carts rides around the property the kids passed out in the car on the ride home and were tucked into bed flawlessly.

Who needs fireworks!?

Okay, now where is that Benadryl.....................

Parenting Tip

Do not allow children to bowl with watermelons. It just never ends well.

The really sad part is that I hadn't realized this fact was something which needed to be explained. Had I only had known that my kids' dad was previously uninformed of proper watermelon handling I would have saved myself a lot of juicy, red mess.

Not to worry:

He has now been informed. Very loudly.

Preparing for Vacation

I always feel guilty for admitting that our family is about to go on "vacation". Vacation...From WHAT!? My whole life is a vacation! I feel self-conscience talking about our upcoming trips, feeling that my friends and family probably think I am completely spoiled...a darn accurate assumption, by the way! It makes me uncomfortable mostly because I know how fortunate we are being able to go places and have that time together, a luxury most families do not get to indulge in.

Now that I have convinced you how much guilt I feel about my trip, let's discuss it!

I realize I only have three children, but the amount of time it takes to get ready for a two week long absence makes it seem like there are many more than that. I am what some (*less organized*) folks may refer to as "neurotic". I break up the packing into stages: pre-packing, packing, and finalizing. (Sussette, stop laughing-I can hear you form here!)

The pre-packing phase starts about two weeks prior to departure, and includes planning meals up to the last day home so we don't have perishables or leftovers, making a list of all the things I can't live without so I don't forget anything, and paying the bills which will be due while we're away.

The packing phase begins one week before we leave and the bulk of this is laundry. The kids are forced to wear embarrassing ensembles for the entire week because their acceptable clothing is off-limits while I fill the suitcases. The other bulk of this week is threatening and yelling at the kids because they will not stop emptying said suitcases, climbing inside, and packing each other. I cannot count the amount of times I re-pack suitcases. It's as if they have never seen their clothes before and they insist on playing fashion show. They also insist on "helping" by packing the items they cannot live without. Their list of essentials literally takes up every inch of available space and takes much time to UNpack and put away. These items include, but are not limited to: babydolls and their many accessories, action figures (all Pirates themed, of course), hairbows (ironically, since she NEVER does her hair), a few random blocks, pillow pets, and a ship (yes, a pirate ship). The toiletries bag is the item of most contention. There is something downright irresistible about that bag. The special "vacation-only" toothpaste and toothbrushes, the somehow different-than-ordinary q-tips, everything in that forbidden bag of temptation. No matter how closely I watch it they somehow always manage to divert my attention just long enough to dump out and ransack the contents.

The three days leading up to vacation is crunch-time! Between training the girl down the street to care for the pool, cleaning out the refrigerator, and checking my list twice these days are pure chaos and excitement. I no longer feel exasperated when the kids ask, "Are we leaving NOW??" To the contrary, my automatic response "Nope, in ___ days" is laced with my own excitement, even upon the umpteenth reply (in one hour...before sunrise...several days to go...).

But of course, no Goodman vacation would be complete without turmoil during the preparing. This year we had car trouble, pool trouble, and grocery trouble. The pre-packing phase was interrupted by the AC in Rick's truck acting "funny". This was our clue that something was wrong with MY truck a couple of years ago so we knew it needed to go in. Without the extra vehicle I was homebound, which prevented me from meal-planning properly. One would think this no big deal seeing that my dear husband, you know, WORKS AT A GROCERY STORE. Sparing you the lengthy details, lets just say the kids and I are sick of ramen noodles and PB&J. The absolute worst fallout from not being able to shop: no coffee. That's right, I was coffee-less two days before scheduled departure! Oh, the inhumanity. That was a wake-up call (er...lack thereof...?) to hubs: he finally brought provisions home.

Like any good mechanic knows how to do, the price tag to repair the truck induced cardiac arrest and we decided to take our chances and take the truck without repair. Prayers welcomed.

The pool trouble started during the packing week. The water was testing perfectly, however it was getting cloudier by the day. After a few days we admitted defeat and called in the repair guy. One painful check and a new pump later, it was STILL cloudy. Not good news when we are supposed to leave within days; obviously we can't leave the pool like that or else it would need to be emptied by the time we arrived back home. So another painful check, several bottles of magic chemicals, and hours of precious packing time spent babysitting the pool, it was finally back to normal and safe to leave. All of the unforeseen complications kinda put a wrench in my planning, but flexible and adaptable momma that I am handled it just fine: bribes and pleading for cooperation was all it took to get back on track, and I am happy to report that I even have spare time to blog.

Inevitably, we will pull out of our driveway and make it out of the neighborhood only to have Rick blurt an explicative and turn back home. Every. Single. Time. He forgets something. I get the house, three children, and myself ready and all he has to do is show up and drive and he still manages to forget something (usually something I find rather stupid, such as checking the back door (I already did it) or his spare sunglasses). Hmm, maybe someone should have made a list. I have spent much time contemplating this and have come to the conclusion he does it just to tick me off. Mission accomplished, we generally spend the majority of the 6 hour drive bickering. Good family memories in the making. ;) Hopefully my next post will be from the beach-less than 12 hours to go!! YAY!

BAD Day

Sooo bad...that I can't even blog about it.
I guess not everyday can be rainbows and ice cream trucks, right?


On a brighter note: the tightness in my chest has unclenched into a dull throb. YAY! And all three monsters darling children are asleep by 7pm. That is a blessing straight from God to me because He knew I could not take one. more. minute.


Looking forward to tomorrow; we are all going to Saint Augustine to the Chrism Mass at the Cathedral and our friends will be there, too. After that we are going to make waves at the beach (get it!?). I suppose I'd better get packing...yes, packing. Because Rick is coming with us so we will be 5. All needing pretty church clothes, casual clothes, and swimsuits, towels, sunblock, snacks, and various shoes. Gotta go charge the camera battery and finish laundry. Then I can close my eyes on this dreadful day and wake up to a good morning. :)

Fun Saturday

Today we were outside and we noticed a bunch of ants dragging a dead bug across the carport. Sarah and I think bugs are gross so we kept our distance. But my boys were captivated by the strength of the ants and gathered round to cheer them on. They were truly appreciative; Patrick said, "Thank you, ants!" so cutely I had to take a photo so I would remember the day my son thanked the ants for their bug removal services. Minutes after this it started to rain steadily. It came out of a blue sky, completely unannounced, and thrilled the kids beyond belief. An unnexpected rain to run through is apparently one of life's joys. Then to top off the moment Luke and Patrick simultaneously screetched, "ICE CREAM!!!" and we all looked down the street to see the familiar Saturday sight-a bright yellow ice cream truck playing tell-tale music. So they scrambled to gather their quarters from the kitchen counter and bought ice cream in the rain under a sunny, bright blue sky. Magical childhood moments I tell you.

I Was Tagged

My friend Jessica tagged me to list five reasons why I love Jesus. I am supposed to tag five others to do the same, but since I pathetically do not have that many friends I choose to tag no one. So there! Here they are:

• 1. I often feel inadequate to teach my children about God and our faith so I am constantly presented opportunities to "teach" them...without working at it. For example, when the children notice the beauty around them (the blue of the sky, a rainbow, trees) it opens the door for a natural, laid back-yet effective-conversation about God.


• 2. No matter what happens I know He's got my back.


• 3. I have been blessed with a personality which allows me to love God without having to question every aspect of faith (why do bad things happen, etc). I like it this way. ;)


• 4. I have never TRULY felt alone. Even in the darkest hours of despair, when I wanted to crawl in a hole and disappear, when I turned my back to God and swore I didn't love Him anymore like a child angry with his parents. I knew He was there. Waiting for me to calm down so He could comfort me. I didn't even WANT Him to be there...but He was.


• 5. And the final reason I love Jesus is cause He loves ME!! And my nutty kids. I love how the good in life will ALWAYS outweigh the bad because good always triumps.

No Time To Post!

Every time I sit down to hack out a post someone comes up to fool around with the computer, ask for something ridiculous, or just plain I am too tired to see straight. There are plenty of little things that happen, cute tidbits of the day I really want to remember...but then I forget them. :( The whole reason my blog was born was so I could journal the antics of my kids' fleeting childhood, put them in print so when I'm lonely in my neat and tidy home with nary a stray toy to step on I have a sort of comfy, warm emotional blanket to wrap myself in. I am so neurotic about everything else...I need to set aside 30 minutes per week to blog. Hmmm...maybe I could jot down the hilarious stuff on a piece of paper so I won't forget. I'd have to figure out a place to keep said paper from being destroyed........ I want to remember the baby streaking for the garbage men...three weeks in a row. I want to be able to smile when I pull up the image of all three kids hiding in my closet with a dozen markers...completely decorated from face to feet. One day it might not be so terrible that we have blue patches on the ceilings...from Flarp (Google it) being mishandled. And instead of wanting to smack his bottom, maybe I'll remember Patrick's spunk when I re-read about the macaroni and cheese food fight he started while I was in the shower...and I had to peel it off the walls. Yep, setting aside time seems like the right thing to do. I just need to get the kids on-board so that can become a reality. ;)