Oh My Gosh! My Daughter is a Freak!

OK - so I'm sitting at my daughter's laptop typing my post for tonight and she stops to talk to me. We are simply having a random thoughts conversation. Then the conversation turn serious...we were talking about her chicks.

Me: "I think your chicks are sleeping too much. They are all cuddled together in the middle of the day. They should be up pooping and making messes."

Daughter: "Mom, they are like babies. It's OK for them to sleep a lot. They need to."

Random ramblings...then we get to the good / my daughter is a freak part...

Daughter: "My chicks are already developing fine. Mrs. M's chicks are only like a week younger than mine and hers only have like 3 tail feathers and mine have like 8."

WHAT THE HECK KIND OF FREAKY KID COUNTS THE TAIL FEATHERS?

Tail feathers people ~ the feathers on a chicks butt! OK - see, this is one of the reasons I didn't homeschool her. She would totally not be socially accepted. This is also why we send her far away to the city each day to attend high school. OK - not quite to "The City", but it is definitely a bigger town than what we live in!

[Oh - another scary thought...she not only counts the tail feathers of her chicks (possibly understandable considering the amount of time she spends with them), but she is counting the tail feathers of someone else's chicks!!! Is that legal?]

Hey Ashley, if you are the type of person to count tail feathers...does that mean you are checking out guys "tails" at school? Come on...it's mom...you can tell me! I promise...I will type it to myself...(blog world ~ I'll keep you posted).

These are wings ~ not tailfeathers. I took these picts last week. I took more picts of the chicks today (will post later...) and holy cow they have grown! Can't wait for you guys to see them!

Ashley let her chicks out for a little sunshine run last weekend. They were having the time of their life! Well, second to eating the worm from my garden. More on that later too!

10 Months + 2 Days...

This is only one of the few times they have slept together since they were a month old. Aren't they just adorable?

OK - so I totally spaced posting the twins' 9 month check up details so here are their 10 month details. (We only did 10 months because they needed a flu shot and a PCV shot. I only allow a couple immunizations at a time. It creates more co-pays, but it eliminates most of my worries.)

Aiden: 28 lbs!!!!!

"Mommy, I want.....this for dinner!"




"I'm one happy boy!"

Isaiah: 23 lbs!!!!

"Check me out! I'm a super diaper model. All the chicks dig me."

OK - as I was gardening last weekend, I look up and Isaiah is sitting like this. I couldn't stop laughing. Thank goodness I had my camera ready. What he was really doing was getting all of his dried lunch out of his hair. It doesn't matter what he eats - he rubs his hands through his hair! Drives me crazy!!!

He is totally messing with Ashley in this photo. The two were playing ball, and he started to tease her by holding the ball and then throwing it when she wasn't looking. He does love his sister.

Can you believe it? They are growing so fast that it is hard to believe they will soon be a year. Time is flying while watching these two.
Currently, both boys are walking in their walkers, sitting, creeping (not crawling), eating almost everything, they both have teeth (Aiden is working on four teeth all at once, and Isaiah is getting three!), and ornery! They will both chase Stephan around the house. They like to annoy him and tease him. Aiden says mama and dada, but Isaiah just laughs at you when you try to get him to talk. Don't worry, he can hear just fine! The pediatrician said they are just big boys and we don't need to worry about their weight. She is happy at the rate they are progressing. She would like to see them crawl, but she said that not all babies do. They are both generally pretty happy babies. They don't like to sleep together like many twins. Well, Aiden would probably like to sleep with Isaiah, but Isaiah prefers to sleep alone. He has actually preferred sleeping alone for quite some time. He wants his own bed and his own space.

My Winter Garden

Song of The Flower
I am a kind word uttered and repeated

By the voice of Nature;

I am a star fallen from the

Blue tent upon the green carpet.

I am the daughter of the elements

With whom Winter conceived;

To whom Spring gave birth;

I was

Reared in the lap of Summer and I

Slept in the bed of Autumn.
At dawn I unite with the breeze

To announce the coming of light;

At eventide I join the birds

In bidding the light farewell.
The plains are decorated with

My beautiful colors, and the air

Is scented with my fragrance.
As I embrace Slumber the eyes of

Night watch over me, and as I

Awaken I stare at the sun, which is

The only eye of the day.
I drink dew for wine, and hearken to

The voices of the birds, and dance

To the rhythmic swaying of the grass.
I am the lover's gift;

I am the wedding wreath;

I am the memory of a moment of happiness;

I am the last gift of the living to the dead;

I am a part of joy and a part of sorrow.
But I look up high to see only the light,

And never look down to see my shadow.

This is wisdom which man must learn.

- Khalil Gibran

Tim's coaching paycheck came at just the right time. Gardening time...(thank you Tim!) Guess this will be the last time he gets paid to coach...he was elected to school board. Congratulations, Tim.

I planted my winter garden a couple of weeks ago. I decided to do plants versus bulbs so I could have immediate satisfaction. (Can you tell what kind of day I had?) I unfortunately had forgotten to count the flowers because about half way through I thought to myself, "What the heck? I've been here forever digging holes! No wonder I usually do bulbs. For bulbs you just dig up a bunch of earth, throw down your bulbs neatly, cover with dirt, and wait. and wait. and wait... But it is easy!

Shopping with children is always an adventure. This particular day I had Stephan (my 2yo) and the twins. Since everyone fights over the steering wheel, and I'm constantly rotating them so that everyone has equal steering wheel time...I use a regular cart. Why don't they invent carts with three steering wheels? Anyway, I was letting Stephan pick out the colors of the plants when I looked into my cart and saw that all the flowers were blue and purple. I hate "themed" gardens. I like ecclectic. So I swapped a few out when he was munching on his mum that he picked out. Thank goodness they aren't poisonous! I'm serious! He totally bit down and ate the top off of the mum. Strange things that boys do.

Here are the boys in the cart. Isaiah cracks me up because he always manuevers himself to the front. I swear it is because he likes to feel the wind in his face. Stephan usually gets the seat part. Then there is Aiden. He is hidden by Isaiah...he is so laid back.

Do you see all of the empty parking spaces? That is because the closet town with a Home Depot isn't much bigger than where I live!

Stephan even picked out his own plant. (Big sister Ashley helped him repot it.)

Do you like the boots~shorts combo? It is a regular outfit at our house. You should have seen him earlier. He wore his shorts backwards all day! I'm still not sure how he got them on that way.

Stephan's plant is at the top right.

Enjoy my garden ~ I do. :)
Yep, he's gardening in his underwear. Clothes are not always worth the fight.

He's Walking!

Yep ~ Aiden has decided that crawling is either too hard, or is for wimps so he has gone straight to walking. Oh, fun for me....

Here is Daddy checking to be sure Aiden has his balance...

This is Wylie and my good friend, Melissa. Wylie is asking Aiden if he can walk with him.

Here is Wylie catching Aiden.

(Hey look, there is Miss Morgan is the background. We love Miss Morgan!)

My Isaiah

Yep, he's all mine. Mostly because he won't let anyone else near him. Isaiah is a very simple child - love him or leave him. He prefers that you leave him, but if you don't allow him to stare you down - he'll love you.

My little man has goofy, stand straight-up in the air hair. He doesn't talk or crawl. He can throw a ball though!

Instructions for getting Isaiah to like you:

1. Be sure Mom (me) is not around. Anywhere near around!

2. When he gives you the look, (trust me, you will know it when you see it...) just keep smiling at him and don't look away. Make him look away first.

3. Hold him a lot. (When I'm not around.)

4. Play ball with him ~ he will love you forever.

When we got back from voting on Tuesday, Stephan and Aiden took naps. (Isaiah has decided to give up naps in order to have lots of special one on one time with Mom.) Isaiah was rolling around on the floor and just laughing so I had to grab my camera. He is usually scowling at my camera, but today...the little angel couldn't stop smiling.

Here he is...My Isaiah.

Did you get out and VOTE today?

Aiden is not pictured here because he fell asleep on the way home... voting is hard work!

I DID.

And if I can get my butt out of bed (after dealing with a sick 9 month old with a fever of 102.4 and less than 3 hours of sleep ~ only 2 of those consecutive), take a teenager to the bus stop, feed three small children, take a shower (huge miracle ~ I seldom get to shower on Tuesday mornings), deal with a 2YO temper tantrum, straighten the house, pack a diaperbag, load 3 small children into carseats, drive to the polling place, unpack all children and loot (don't forget the loot ~ it keeps said children happy in small crowded places that weren't built/meant/ever seen a double stroller), and still have a smile on my face for the young-dreadlock-sporting hippie boy (where did he come from? he certainly doesn't live in this Redneck/country town) who checked my ID then YOU CAN TOO!

Plus ~ there is an added bonus...

Starbucks [where they know me (and my boys) by name] is giving away FREE COFFEE. Free coffee people. I LOVE STARBUCKS COFFEE!!!!

Here we are at the Polling Place. This is the three boys after they voted (no, I did the voting, but they still think their voice counts - you should have heard them! :p ) and the Polling Place Marshall. (Do all polling places seriously have a Marshall? What is up with that? What is his job? Does he get paid more to be a "Marshall"? What if his name had been Dan?)

This is Aiden.... he'll have the Caramel~Mocha Macciato. ;o)

This is Isaiah... he'll have the Caramel~Mocha Frappacino. :o)

This is Stephan...

"I order mysef, mommy!" says 2YO in a stern voice.
"OK," replied the giddy mom who doesn't care...she's getting 3 free coffees because everyone has "I Voted" stickers on!

"I have choclt hooter, pwease," my 2YO ordered. (Translated: "May I have a chocolate whip cream shooter, please?")

OK - so, we didn't get our coffees because only regular coffee was free, but we did vote. I hope you did too.

Stephan is STILL wondering when we are going "boating." He isn't able to distinguish between "b's" and "v's".

I have to say, this is only the second time in my life that I voted. The first time was way back...when I was 18 and idealistic and young and not jaded and didn't have kids and... OK - so I haven't voted for the last few years out of shear laziness. I waited in a long line, in a hot library, with TONS of other people. It was not a pleasant experience and I don't recall clearly, but I think my presidential hopeful was not elected.

This year, I was a bit hesitant. Embarking on a new adventure with the three littles is often intimidating. (The new adventure is intimidating ~ the 3 littles is normal.)

Before we embarked on our "boating" journey...

Stephan had a huge temper tantrum this morning because Isaiah had wedged himself behind the bedroom door, and Stephan couldn't get in. Stephan was convinced it was a deliberate act against him, and that Isaiah was playing with his toys. A HUGE no-no in Stephan's eyes. The twins are NOT allowed to play with his toys. This resulted in Stephan pushing Aiden, and getting in my face yelling at me. Nope. Mama doesn't play that game. Timeout = Temper Tantrum = Frustration All Around. We weren't starting the day off on the right foot.

However, there is always a happy ending at our home...some nights just end a little later than others...

The people at the polling station thought my boys were cute and adorable. (Mostly they were old ladies ~ except the young, deadlock wearing, hippie kid. Where did he come from? I'm serious!) They allowed me to be "accomodated" for my disability, and they not only helped to babysit, but everyone got stickers, and no one was offended by Isaiah's scowl. (Although two ladies took it as a challenge to attempt to get him to smile. I warned them...)

How did I end up with 5 stickers you ask? Well, one of the polling ladies told Stephan that since his mommy was voting she got a sticker. Then she asked Stephan if he would like a sticker since his mommy was voting and he was being a big boy. Duh? Two year old not want a sticker? Feeling the love ~ he said "ya-yen too" (that means Aiden too), and "ya-ya" (Isaiah). He also informed them that he has a sister at bolleyball (volleyball). (She was at school, but he always thinks she is at volleyball...she lives the good life.)

Note to Grandparents...

I will upload the photos to Shutterfly within a couple of days.... be waiting. I'll let you know when they are there...

Traditions

Student, athlete, pirate, biker babe...she is keeping her options open. Think Harvard would like to see this picture on her resume?

Have you ever noticed how traditions change throughout the years? Our traditions just seem to evolve.

"He's got leg's..."

"Every girl's crazy about a sharp dressed man..."

Do you have ZZ Top running through your head? I do... I'll be dreaming in ZZTop stereo tonight.

Take Halloween, for instance. First of all, it is not one of my favorite holidays. Don't get me wrong ~ I used to decorate my ENTIRE house, for the ENTIRE month. Lately, (OK - only since Ashley got to be "older") I haven't decorated, and this year was no exception. I didn't have the inclination nor the energy.

"What, exactly...is in the bag?" I reluctantly asked. " Please tell me you didn't tie up one of your brothers."

"I'll never show you," she replied with a smirk.

The other undertaking that I was lacking on this year was...Dang! I hate to admit this... My kids (except Ashley) had store bought costumes. Oh the horror. I despise store bought costumes with every fiber of my being. Ashley, in all of her 14 years, has NEVER had a store bought costume. We may have purchased bits and pieces, but never an entire ensemble. So, not only are my children deprived of decorations, but also of the homemade costume. Hopefully Ashley still has memories of making homemade Halloween ghosts, and cutouts, and candy, and caramel apples... We did some pretty cool things! Why are my boys not getting the same treatment?

Well, for one thing - Stephan is 2, and has no patience for crafts. (Must be the boy in him.) The twins are only 9 months so "who cares"? They don't!

"Dude, I think there is something on my head. Can you check it out for me?"

"Are you kidding? The parents couldn't even pull down my shirt before taking a picture. What kind of show is this? Check out my muscles. I am baby ~ hear me roar!"

"I'm serious. I think there are eyeballs on my head...""Can you see them? I know there is something up there."

"Mama, please take the picture and get me away from him. He's starting to scare me.""I will not be put off. I know there is something up there. Please send help..."

"I'm done. You are all really going to hear me roar now..."

I also gave my sewing machine to Goodwill last month. Dumb move if you want a homemade costume for your kids. (mental note: save money for new sewing machine) Seriously, do I really want to sew 4 costumes? OK all you SAHMs, how many costumes do you sew in a year for your own family? Do any of you purchase costumes?

Back to Traditions...

"I'm telling you, my mom has a bad case of ADD and can't carry on a simple conversation without taking a photo, or talking with her hands, or even staying on topic. Do you know how many photos she has of me getting into a vehicle? Why? What is the point? She needs serious help."

Before kids...Tim and I would get all dressed up and participate in the scaring of little kids. Yep, we were the awful adults who would stage a large scary scene in some one's front yard, and as the kids would come to the door, we would scare them till they ran away screaming. It was great fun! Some kid actually kicked Tim one year. (Very funny moments.)

Then, along came Ashley. We were responsible adults at this point so we dressed our little girl up and went to visit family. (They give the best treats!)

Eventually Ashley got older and wiser and learned that other children actually "haunt" houses and BEG for candy! She was hip to this whole idea, we allowed our child to buy into the commercialism, and so off we went. The bad part about this is where we live. Children don't walk house to house, they have to be driven house to house because we live so far away from each other. (Let me tell you, my husband and I would draw straws to see who had to drive that year. Pretty much takes the fun out of it.)

Then, the pre-teen years hit. A new tradition was started. (A good one too!) She was old enough to be driven in town, and allowed to trick or treat in unknown neighborhoods. (Settle down, I still walked with her...) We would meet our friends at a local Mexican food restaurant, eat dinner, and then meander through the neighborhood in town. Good friends, good food, good exercise, child happy with LOTS of candy...

A few years ago, the town got smart... The local business owners decided to begin "Trunk or Treating." This is where you either donate candy to the businesses, or you park your little "booty" on the street with a LARGE bag of candy, and the kids come to you. It is a very cool idea. Main Street is shut down for two hours during this festival.

But, we don't do that. We volunteer at our church. Our church has a Fall Festival for the community. There are games, videos, face painting, and LOTS of candy.

Shelby is our pretend daughter. We pretend she is ours, and she pretends we are hers. It's a fun little community.

Shelby, Tim, Aiden, Stephan, Ashley, Me, Isaiah

This year... off we went. ALL of us dressed in costume heading to the church. It is always a good place to be. Stephan was so overwhelmed by the people, the games, and the candy. He even tried eating the wrapper on a Tootsie Roll! The twins had mixed emotions. Aiden couldn't figure out why someone put a "snout" on top of his head, and Isaiah wanted to know what had become of his mommy. He had a bad night. Overall, it was fun.

It is our tradition, for awhile.

Eventually, our children will be older, and we will evolve...again...and create... a new tradition.

Enjoy the photos of the family, kids, friends, and festivities..

Don't ask how long it took to figure out how to get his car seat buckled while still wearing this costume. He refused to take it off. Good thing I'm good with puzzles.Grammy and Isaiah

Morgan (on the left) is the boys' favorite babysitter. I love her because she is not afraid to come over in the middle of the day and play with the boys. Sometimes I even take a nap. I tried to convince her to drop out of college and be my full-time nanny. She's still in college...Grammy and Gramps with Isaiah and Stephan