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.)