Eight Years Later

Brea, I hope that you’re reading today.  Thank you for marrying the wrong person eight years ago.  If you hadn’t have gotten married when you did to the person that you did, I wouldn’t have been your maid of honor and wouldn’t have had a reason to come to Atlanta on December 31^st, 2003.  I met Don eight years ago today and I had my last first kiss at the stroke of midnight—we were leaning against a table and we both pretended that we weren’t next to each other on purpose when the ball dropped.  Don said something like “Well, you’re closest”.  From that night on, we were together.  I look back at everything we’ve done together in the last eight years and I am so thankful for that plane ride and that God knows what he’s doing.  Good times or bad times, I am a happy girl.

Don, I want to thank you for not caring that I lived in a different state when we met.  The long distance thing was crazy to a lot of people and I’m glad that we didn’t listen to them.   Also, thank you for not scaring me when we first realized that we were supposed to be together.  You played it perfectly with a girl who was so scared of relationships and falling in love.  How could I say no to a person like you?  I thank God every day for everything that I have, but especially for you and the kids.

Happy New Year’s Eve, everyone!  I hope that 2012 is full of love and happiness!  Remember not to pick some crazy, unobtainable New Year’s Resolution! 

Here’s the Word of the Day:

anamnesis \an-am-NEE-sis\, noun:

1. The recollection or remembrance of the past.
2. Platonism. Recollection of the Ideas, which the soul had known in a previous existence, especially by means of reasoning.
3. The medical history of a patient.
4. Immunology. A prompt immune response to a previously encountered antigen, characterized by more rapid onset and greater effectiveness of antibody and T cell reaction than during the first encounter, as after a booster shot in a previously immunized person.
5. (Often initial capital letter) a prayer in a Eucharistic service, recalling the Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension of Christ.

Sucker for Dylan....and Chick-fil-a

As I write this entry, I am stuffing a Chick-fil-a biscuit and hash browns into my mouth.  Mmmmmm, jealous, aren’t you?  Dylan woke up this morning and said “Bisit, hash boooowwwwwns” with a gigantic smile, so we went to Chick-fil-a.  I am such a sucker for that kid.  He’s like “Marshmallows!”  I give him a few, which is completely unacceptable to him.  “Whole bag!”  I say no to that.  “Big bowl!”  I get him a bowl of marshmallows.  He looks at me with those big blue eyes and flashes a little smile; I’m a goner!  He also has this soft little voice, almost raspy from being so sweet and gentle….I can’t resist!  He says “Bag of sugar”, what do I do?  I run to the pantry.

I feel sorry for Northerners.  They really miss out in the food department.  Not having Chick-fil-a would really suck.  Actually, I know it does because when I lived in Milwaukee for two years and came to Atlanta for Brea’s wedding, I freaked out when I saw someone with a Chick-fil-a cup in their hand at the mall and I immediately ran to get some.  I wasn’t even hungry, but I knew that I would have to travel a thousand miles to get it again.  Why does everyone think that the Northerners won the Civil War when we’re the ones with Chick-fil-a?  OMG.  I am totally kidding.  And why do I always want Chick-fil-a on Sunday?  It never fails.  I’m like “Mmmmm, you know what would be good right now?  Chick-fil…..awwwwww!  They’re closed!”   I know you do the same thing.

Carson has a cough and a stuffy nose.  He is sitting on my lap, sneezing and sniffling.  He only wanted a sippy cup with milk in it; left his Chick-fil-a for Dylan to devour.  I have some errands to run with the kids today, but I may hold off if Carson doesn’t start acting more normal. 

Here’s the Word of the Day:

lave \leyv\, verb:

1. To wash; bathe.
2. (Of a river, sea, etc.) to flow along, against, or past; wash.
3. Obsolete. To ladle; pour or dip with a ladle.
4. Archaic. To bathe.

noun:
1. The remainder; the rest.

adjective:
1. (Of ears) large and drooping.

Hungry Eyes

I watched "Dirty Dancing" last night.  How can that movie NEVER get old?  I’ve seen it 200 times!   My sister was 5 and I was 7 when our dad took us to see it.  That’s right, my dad took my sister and me to see it in the theatre.  So funny, Dad.  Lacey and I dressed up and danced with brooms in the garage pretty much every day after we saw the movie.  We cranked our little pink tape players and hiked up long, adult-sized skirts around our chests to look like dresses.  It was the best.  We flipped the brooms over to look like our dance partner; I guess we told ourselves that they had spiky hair.  Good times.

Anyway, I clicked on “Special Features” and watched the music videos from the soundtrack.  One of the videos was for “Hungry Eyes”.  Wow.  This is one of the most horrible music videos, ever.  The actress, I don’t know if she’s tempting the guy with her chest or getting ready to eat a cheetah, but it’s pretty scary either way!  And I love how they make her play the saxophone.  Nothing sexier than a chick in 80’s whore clothes playing the sax!

http://youtu.be/rI4fzajz3Ok

interpolation \in-tur-puh-LEY-shuhn\, noun:

1. The act or process of introducing something additional or extraneous between other parts.
2. Something interpolated, as a passage introduced into a text.
3. Mathematics. A. The process of determining the value of a function between two points at which it has prescribed values. B. A similar process using more than two points at which the function has prescribed values. C. The process of approximating a given function by using its values at a discrete set of points.

Christmas Recap....pictures to come.

I just talked to Don (he had to go to work) and he told me that he gets an email every time that Lindsey downloads an app on her new Kindle Fire.  She was up downloading stuff until 2 in the morning!  I would’ve done the same thing, so I am letting her sleep in. 

Disclaimer:  This entry is really just documentation for the kids so they will remember their Christmas.  If you want to read on, plan on basically getting a list of what everyone got for Christmas.  I am not including stocking stuff and I am sure that I will forget a lot, kids, but I am going to do my best!

Don and I were up until 3 am setting things up and wrapping.  No matter how prepared we are, this always seems to happen.  We woke up between 6 and 7; Logan and Lindsey were the early risers.  They woke before the boys!  Don went downstairs to set up the camera and I threw the Christmas morning food into the oven.  Dylan was screaming wanting Peanut Butter and Jelly toast, his favorite food and entirely his invention.  When we had everything set up, we allowed them to come downstairs.  As soon as Carson and Dylan saw the toys that Santa brought them, they forgot about food. 

Dylan’s first word was “Buzz!”  Carson screamed “Woody!”  They got the Buzz and Woody dolls from the movie.  They got a giant car carrier, cars, cars and more cars.  Dylan got a big Lightening McQueen, Carson got a big Tow Mater.  Lindsey got them Alvin and the Chipmunks Build-a-Bears.  These are so special…..she recorded her voice to say “Hi, Carson! (Dylan on his) Merry Christmas!”  They love them.  Logan got them remote control cars, Francesco and Mater and “Cars 2” the movie.  They got games and some other stuff.  Don’s parents and brother got them so much stuff, but some of their favorites…..the cars train track, the vegetable and fruit set with a fake knife and cutting board, giant puzzle and wall decals (all Cars stuff).  They boys are obsessed with Cars the movie. 

Santa brought Lindsey a huge fish tank and a certificate to go shopping for fish and rocks and stuff.  She got a mountain bike, a Rapunzel doll, Monte Carlo the movie, the Jackie Evancho Christmas CD, and an HD camcorder from us.  Don’s parents got her a Kindle Fire; Uncle Bill got her a karaoke game with mics for the PlayStation 3.  She got games, some clothes, a silver necklace with a cursive diamond “L” charm.  Oh, and we got her a pink bed net for her room.  This is so funny to me….she wanted this bed net because it’s pink and sparkly, when all it really is is a Mosquito net.  Didn’t Bill Gates just buy a bunch of Mosquito nets for the people in Africa to eradicate Malaria?  And we bought one for Lindsey, because she really needs one, right?  American kids have no idea how lucky they are.  Logan got her two cross necklaces, very pretty.  Short story....we had to measure Lindsey's legs to see what size bike Santa would need to bring.  She got an adult mountian bike.  She's SEVEN inches shorter than me, but her legs are only THREE inches shorter than mine.  I don't have a long torso, her legs are just that long! 

Santa brought Logan an electric Razor scooter, a Georgia Tech jersey (an exact replica), a Tony Hawk helmet, games, night vision goggles.  He also got an HD camcorder from us. Don’s parents got him a desert remote control car, a Roddy White jersey, a Julio Jones jersey, a Falcons t-shirt, and some shirts from Uncle Bill.  He got him a cool Superman shirt, one that says “Do Not Disturb, Daydreaming in Process”.  Haha.  He got a Harry Potter video game and Modern Warfare 3.  He got all of the Ernest movies, Yay, yea right.  “War Horse” the book.  He got Avatar on Blu-ray, from Lindsey.

Peyton got basically all military stuff from Santa and us.  He seriously got like three air soft guns and I know nothing about them.  He got night vision goggles, and a bunch of other war stuff.  He got clothes, video games, Battlefield 3.... a bunch of other stuff, but he won't jog my memory because he's busy.

Don got a bunch of sweatshirts, jeans, a huge hard drive for the computer, video games, a wallet, and a bunch of other stuff.  I actually got him three video games that he likes!  I was excited, since I haven't played since Sega.  I know nothing about games anymore.

I got two tickets to the High and two tickets to the Museum of Design in Atlanta.  These were in my stocking and I was so excited.  I am also IN LOVE with the Michael Buble Christmas CD.  It is so good.  Don got it for me.  Don got me an AWESOME camera because I lost my old one.  He also got me a Blu-ray player for upstairs and as he was setting it up, my old camera fell out, so now Don has a new camera….my old one.  Isn’t that funny?  I looked everywhere for that camera, but now I am sort of happy that I lost it because I love my new one!  I got a floor steamer, a clothes steamer, a coffee bean grinder, Logan got me a Georgia Tech shirt, a very girly one.  Lindsey got me a cross necklace and a dove necklace.  Don’s parents got me Shiseido softener, Estee Lauder self-tanner for face, exfoliator, and the awesome make-up kit for this year.  They got me a certificate for a facial, they got me some Banana Republic clothes.  OMG…..the dress…..ok, so this dress will have a blog entry of its own.  It is the cutest dress ever.  Ever.  They got me a griller machine that makes Panini’s and waffles and stuff.  Don’s brother got me Beaches, Titanic, As Good as it Gets, The Breakfast Club, Swingers, Dirty Dancing, Big Business, a pink Kindle case and light, I feel like there were more movies but I can’t think off the top of my head.  Basically, I got a lot of movies that I didn’t own and should have.....now I do!  My friend, Tiffany, got me this necklace that I thought was so special I had to take a picture:

There are 5 charms.  Peyton, Logan, Lindsey, Carson and Dylan. 
Isn't that so sweet?  She said that usually it looks like a basket, but I have too many
children,so she had to do strips.  Personally, I like it the way that it is.

And look at this.  FUNNIEST ever.  My mom had a magnet made for me that had me laughing for a few minutes.  Ok, the story is that my sister, Ash, and I called each other “Seeester”, for sister.  (Not when we were little, like when we were 20 and 22.)  Then we got sillier and more dramatic and started saying “Seeeaaaaster!”  You sort of have to hear us do it to fully understand.  Finally, our friend, Brian, came to Milwaukee with us and said “Why do you call each other Chester?”  It wasn’t what we were saying at all, but then THAT stuck.  Now we call each other “Chester”.  Here’s the magnet:

Chester's......Don't Get in their Way!

The day after Christmas I got up with Logan and Carson and drove to Birmingham to get Peyton.  Carson said "I wanna go to Burbaham," so I took him.  Burbaham.  So adorable.  On the way he'd say "Where we goin', Mama?  Git Paypen?"  I'd say yes and he'd say "My Paypen."  He is so funny.  On Christmas day he was listening to my Buble CD and he said "Mama, what's this song 'bout?"  I said "Santa."  Then the next song came on and he said "Mama, what's this song 'bout?  Jingle Bells?"  I said "Yes, it's called Jingle Bells!"  Dylan and Carson love music and listen to everything that the songs say.  No more Lil Wayne for me.  Just kidding. I wouldn't play that for them.

Still in his jammies.  We woke up at 6:30 and left pretty much immediately.

My Paypen!

When we got back into town, Peyton opened his presents and then we headed over to Don's parents' house for another Christmas. 

I will post pictures when I can.  I had to dedicate a lot of time to writing all of this down, kids, so I hope you appreciate it one day.  You're whining right now because you are having to play with the boys.

I really miss Dylan lately.  He is so into playing with his new toys and he's one of those kids that plays so well, you can begin to feel like you don't even get to see him! 

 Here's the Word of the Day:

fusty \FUHS-tee\, adjective:

1. Having a stale smell; moldy; musty.
2. Old-fashioned or out-of-date, as architecture, furnishings, or the like.
3. Stubbornly conservative or old-fashioned; fogyish.

Christmas Party Pictures

Because there is so much to cover on Christmas and there are so many pictures still on my camera, I have decided to write about it in little chapters this week.  I seriously need to pick up the house today because we pretty much can't walk without running into a box or stepping on a toy.  I tried to pick up as we opened presents, but it didn't seem to matter.  Who cares.  It was Christmas and it was wonderful. 

Last Wednesday was Don's company Christmas party and his dad took a couple of pictures:

Is this the same picture as the one above?  Hmmmmm....

Check out the shoes.....they're red, for pain.

Here's the Word of the Day:

adventive \ad-VEN-tiv\, adjective:

1. Not native and usually not yet well established, as exotic plants or animals.

noun:
1. A not native and usually not yet well established plant or animal.

Dumber than a Pigeon

It turns out that even pigeons are better at math than I am.  I'll bet as I sat in the tutoring lab at Georgia State, they were all outside, peering into the window, cooing with laughter.  "Look at that dumb blonde," one pigeon said to another.  "Look at her face torque as she tries desperately to find the values of X." 

Pigeons.  They are the rats of the bird species and yet they are good at math.  What's wrong with me?  Ok, so I'm totally playing.  I can do simple math, like a pigeon.  Read this article.....very interesting.  With all of these studies about how intelligent animals are, I am seriously considering becoming a vegetarian.  Not that I eat Pigeons.


http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/12/23/are-pigeons-as-smart-as-monkeys/

Dirty Bird.


Here's the Word of the Day, just for the pigeon:

acumen

noun ability to understand and reason

Merry Christmas!

Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas! I hope that you have a great day and enjoy being with your friends and family. 

Love,

Brit

Word of the Day:

canticle \KAN-ti-kuhl\, noun:

1. A song, poem, or hymn especially of praise.
2. One of the nonmetrical hymns or chants, chiefly from the Bible, used in church services.

Happy Birthday, Lacey!

Today may be Christmas Eve, but it's also my sister's birthday.  Happy 29th birthday, Lacey!  Love you!

Every year on Lacey's birthday our dad always took us shopping for my step-mom because he was a procrastinator.  He preferred us to choose her presents from the scraps left at the mall.   They are no longer married.  Haha!  I crack myself up.  But seriously, they are divorced. 

We all got to open one present on Christmas Eve, but I always thought that it was unfair to Lacey to have to go shopping for someone else and then watch others open presents.  It is, after all, her birthday.  It never seemed to bother her, but I never liked it much.  She did get to pick what we ate for dinner on Christmas Eve; she always chose Chinese food.  It's still a tradition.  Every single Christmas Eve I want Chinese food.  Thanks, Lace.  Love that one.  It tastes good, plus, it's the one time of year that you get to sing "Fa ra ra ra ra ra ra ra ra!"  Don't tell me that you don't do that. 

Lacey, I hope that you have a great day and that you try to do something special for yourself.  You were everyone's most favorite Christmas gift of all time and that should make you feel very special.  I love you.


Here's your Word of the Day:

am·bit

   /ˈæmbɪt/ Show Spe

noun

1.

circumference; circuit.

2.

boundary; limit.

3.

a sphere of operation or influence; range; scope: the ambit of such an action.

Ode to Yoga

I went to yoga this morning and I feel awesome; I always do after yoga.  I have practiced long enough to believe that yoga truly helps to make you aware of what’s going on with your body and it helps you find balance.  Yoga isn’t just about stretching and breathing.  It’s about quieting your mind, tuning out the noise and listening to what your body is trying to tell you.  If you listen, when you’re “off”, you can feel it and you can find a remedy.  Our bodies are smarter than we are, and if we can learn to listen, we’ll be healthier.

Balance is probably the most important thing to master in life, also one of the most difficult.  Without balance, you are neglecting an area or overdoing another.  Americans have a hard time doing anything in moderation and that is probably at the root of most of our problems.  We overdo everything.  If we could all learn to balance the things that are necessary for us to function physically and mentally, we’d all be happier and healthier.  Instead, this is what Americans do:

We hear:

“Fat Free”—OH, goody!  I can eat more!

(Or you could eat the real thing in moderation.  At least it’s made from real food rather than ingredients that end in the word “acid” and “phosphate”.)

 “Red wine is good for you”—Alright!  I’ll bet a bottle a night is even better!

(Come on, now.  And just because they say red wine doesn’t mean that other types of alcohol are also great for you.)

“Dark chocolate is good for you”—Wooooohooooooo!

(I think that they mean a piece or two and I’m almost certain that they aren’t talking about Almond Joy.)

“Red meat is bad for you.”—I’ll become a vegetarian and then eventually be anemic.

(I’m making fun of myself.  I saw “Food, Inc.” and I went a little psycho for a while.  I basically couldn’t eat anything for three months because it freaked me out so much.  See it, you'll understand.  The food industry is white collar mafia, as far as I am concerned.)

One of the things that I like about myself at this age is that I understand the importance of exercise, a good breakfast, quality of food, digestion, sleep, God, having a positive attitude, family, organization.....the list goes on and on.  When I was a younger mom I used to complain about not being able to balance everything.  I used to tell my mom that if I had a clean house, I forgot to eat.  If I did all of the laundry, I didn’t exercise.  (You get the point.)  It seemed that I would improve in one area and then another would suffer, especially when I was in school or worked.  I know that one of the only reasons that I am better at taking care of myself is because I am blessed to be able to stay at home.  I can take care of everyone in a way that I am proud of because I have the time to take care of myself.  If you don’t love yourself and take care of yourself, you have nothing to give anyone else.

When someone gets sick or someone has surgery, I try to stay in my routine, but often I fail miserably and I feel it emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually.  When I get sick, it takes me days to catch up and it’s the most frustrating feeling because I can feel how unbalanced I am.  I work every day to balance my life and there are certain things that I know that I have to have to be happy, other than the obvious, my family.  I have to have God, I have to write, I have to eat well, and I have to exercise.  I have really become a stickler and if I do not do these things, I feel it and my energy is different.  I’ve always been the type of person who wakes up happy, has a positive attitude, and loves people and staying busy.  Now I can tell that I am not the best version of myself if I don’t take care of me.  And it’s like a domino effect.  If I don’t work out, I’m not hungry, therefore I don’t take my vitamins, therefore I don’t have energy and get sick.  When I feel bad, I am cranky, therefore I am unhappy.  Make sense?  It’s unbalance and it’s unhealthy.  My New Year's resolution is to not completely freak out when I am out of my routine and cut myself some slack.

The reason that I am writing about all of this is that I know that many people are going to be hitting the gym in January and making a lot of unattainable New Year’s resolutions so that they can participate in a lot of self-loathing in mid-March.  Don’t do that.  Don’t be an American and over-do the good and then burn out and get discouraged because you failed.  If you set up ridiculous goals, of course you’ll fail.  Balance is about giving a little to all of the important places in your life.  Love yourself and do things that make you a happier person.  Don’t set yourself up to fail by going a thousand miles an hour for a couple of months in one area.  Make a lifestyle change, don’t do the fad thing.  Figure out what areas you’re neglecting and dedicate a little time to it without forgetting about the others.  Keep in mind though that a lot of things do go hand-in-hand.  If you decide to exercise, it’s a given that you need to take vitamins and eat well.  If you don’t, you’ll fail at the gym.  This is just an example. 

I used to think that yoga was weird, or just crazy new-age stuff.  It makes so much sense to me since I have done it for so long and I recommend it to everyone.  The more that I learn about the universe and energy, the more that I think that we are all balls of energy and that some people have bright lights and some little dim flames.  Some have horrible and evil energy.  Some people can light a room up and make everyone happy.  Some people can drag everyone down.  When you take care of yourself and go to yoga, you can learn to shut out the negative ones.   If you find the right instructor, like me, it clicks and you no longer think it’s all a bunch of silly mumbo-jumbo.  My favorite yoga instructor, Deborah, is a very enlightened person and she lives a very healthy life.  If you believe that we are all spirits in a bunch of bodies, chances are that you have the ability to feel and read others’ energy.  She just has a great, loving spirit.  Find someone that believes in yoga and you’ll become a firm believer in the practice.

The last thing that I will say about yoga is that it’s helped me to quiet my mind, listen to myself, and listen to God.   Don’t knock yoga until you try it.  And please, consider what I said about New Year’s resolutions and balance.   Don’t set yourself up to fail, but figure out what you’re going to do for the three areas in your life: mind, body, spirit—and then do your best and take it day by day.

I hope that everyone is remembering what Christmas is really about......Jesus was born.  It doesn't matter how many presents you get or what kind of meal you eat.  Christmas is a time to remember how blessed we all are.  My grandma in Indiana....Hello, Mamaw.......fell and hurt her leg and had to have stitches.  She can't walk because when she fell, she hurt the leg that wasn't cut.  In other words, both of her legs are injured.  When I talked to her a couple of days ago, she was upset that she couldn't fix Christmas dinner for everyone.  I told her that first of all, someone else can lift their finger.  She's 80.  Secondly, I told her that it really didn't matter if everyone ate a traditional dinner or pizza.  Christmas is about something else entirely.  I told her about our Christmas stump and she giggled and said that I was right.  I love my grandma.

Namaste.

Here’s the Word of the Day:

swaddle \SWOD-l\, verb:

1. To bind an infant with long, narrow strips of cloth to prevent free movement.
2. To wrap (anything) round with bandages.

noun:
1. A long, narrow strip of cloth used for swaddling or bandaging.

The Great Gatsby, Again

Ok, now I am officially excited.  "The Great Gatsby" is being adapted for the big screen, again, and this time Leonardo DiCaprio is playing Jay Gatsby.  It comes out next December.  I hope the world doesn't end first; that would be a shame.  If you've followed my blog for a while, you probably know that I love the book and the movie with Robert Redford.  I have an old man crush on Robert Redford.  When I did the math, I think I figured out that he's 40 or 50 years older than me, but he's adorable and I can't help liking him.  Tobey Maguire will play Nick Carraway in the new film, which is fitting.  Carey Mulligan is playing Daisy Buchanan....not so sure what I think of this.  I don't picture Daisy looking anything like Carey Mulligan. 

You have a year to read the book if you haven't, so no excuses!

Here's the Word of the Day:

calvous \KAL-vuhs\, adjective:

Lacking all or most of the hair on the head; bald.

Vivian Maier

Since it's a crazy week for me and everyone else, I am keeping my posts short.  My brother-in-law, Matt, sent me an article about Vivian Maier and I thought I'd share.  Check out the link below to see some cool pictures from the 50's.  I am in LOVE with this one:

 I think I was born in the wrong decade, style-wise.  I would KILL for that car! 
And the clothes?  So girly.  I love it.  Why couldn't we obtain equal rights without
burning our bras?  Bras are good.  Dresses are even better.  We have a waist and legs. 
Why do we have to wear the same pants as a plumber?  It's so wrong.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2075228/What-nanny-saw-Housekeepers-stunning-images-1950s-Chicago-working-class-America-new-light.html

I wonder who these people are or if she even got their names.  The little girls (in the first picture) are probably in their seventies by now. 



Here's the Word of the Day:

brogue \brohg\, noun:

1. Any strong regional accent.
2. An Irish accent in the pronunciation of English.
3. A durable, comfortable, low-heeled shoe, often having decorative perforations and a wing tip.
4. A coarse, usually untanned leather shoe once worn in Ireland and Scotland.
5. Brogan.
6. A fraud; trick; prank.

Thanks, Ty.

My brother, Tyson, sent this to me.  It was so funny, I just had to share.  Have a GREAT day!  No Word of the Day because they haven't yet emailed it to me, and frankly, I am too lazy to find one.  HA!  Now you go home, no stay four hour!

I Just Love Sleeping. Sleeping's my Favorite!

I am feeling more energetic in the morning since the boys are sleeping in their big boy beds all night.  It feels good not to have to drag my butt out of bed, but instead to physically feel the effects of sleep.  I love sleep!  I love it!  I woke up at 6:00 and got ready to go to the gym.  I went downstairs and made Don’s lunch, ate breakfast and drank my coffee.  (I also watched an episode of Frasier in the kitchen.)  I got the kids up and dressed and we headed to Don’s parents’ house; they watched the boys while I went to the gym. I did some cardio, weights and planks for an hour.  I picked Carson and Dylan up and we went home.  The boys played while I sat down with a stack of mail.  As I opened the Christmas cards that my friends and family so lovingly took the time to send out, I felt some remorse for having not done one AGAIN.  I have always sent out a Christmas card, but this year and last year, I dropped the ball.  I just couldn’t handle it this year.  Seeing as how it’s the 19^th of December, I guess it’s entirely too late.

I am about to get the boys down for a nap—we still need to work on this.  They are great about CRASHING into a nap, but they are not good at intentionally taking one.  Maybe we’ll watch “Elf” again.  They love that movie.  You know what part I love?  I love when he says “I just love to smile, smiling’s my favorite!”

Smiling's my favorite!

Here’s the Word of the Day:

ectype \EK-tahyp\, noun:

A reproduction; copy.

Fortunate Fortune Cookie

Last night I had Chicken Fried Rice for dinner and my fortune cookie said “You have a charming way with words.  You should write a book.”  I have to say, I was mildly amused.  Ok, I wasn’t mildly amused, I screamed out my fortune like a 10-year-old.  I hope to write a book one day, but these days I feel like I will never find the time to write more than a blog entry here and there.  My fortune cookie has me thinking otherwise.

Lindsey came to me and said that her fortune was scary.  (She's scared of everything, so this wasn't a shock.)  She handed it to me and I read it.  It said “Prepare today for the demands of tomorrow.”  I didn’t understand why that was scary.  She said “Mommy, prepare today for the demons of tomorrow?  How is that not scary?”  I said “Lindsey, the DEMANDS of tomorrow!”  She laughed and let out a big breath.  She was sincerely relieved that her cookie wasn’t giving her insider information about the day of the Apocalypse. 

Here’s the Word of the Day:

gangrel \GANG-gruhl\, noun:

1. A lanky, loose-jointed person.
2. A wandering beggar; vagabond; vagrant.

Seeing Santa

Lindsey had a pajama party until 10:00 last night at the studio, so I took Logan, Carson and Dylan to the mall to see Santa. The kids weren’t in Christmas-themed clothes, but I didn’t care.  If I have the time to take them and no one is barfing, it’s the right time.  The more kids you have, the more you learn not to sweat the small stuff.

The boys were stoic when they saw Santa.  They had been so excited to see him all day, so I was a little surprised that they froze like they did.  The photographers were laughing at Carson because he looked so serious.  Dylan cried for a second until Logan offered to hold him and then he did what Carson did.  He sat there, emotionless and frozen.  Last year they both screamed bloody murder—I prefer stone faces!  As soon as they got their candy canes they were normal again.  We walked around a little and I got them pizza and a cookie.  When they got tired we went home and got ready for bed.  They slept in their beds all night…..AGAIN!  It’s so awesome.  I am very proud of them.  As long as I give them a “Konkey Story” and a “Bear Story”, they stay in their beds and go to sleep.  I tell Carson stories about adventures he has with Curious George.  He is “Carson the Konkey”, a monkey who loves bananas and getting into trouble with George.  Dylan is a bear in all of his stories and I let him pick where he’s exploring, like the zoo or the pool.  They love it. 

I cleaned my house today and I’m going to the gym later.  A clean house feels so great!  Have a great Saturday! Oh, and I posted pictures under the Word of the Day.

Here’s the Word of the Day:

procellous \proh-SEL-uhs\, adjective:

Stormy, as the sea.

I took a picture of the picture so you can see their faces close up, that's why it looks so awful.

Dylan at the North Pole

I am a total mess, but Carson is such a good hugger!  Look at that hug! 

What do you want for Christmas? To get out of here!!!

Carson almost looks bored, and Dylan is just tolerating it.

Clueless Vintage? As If!

Look at this sweatshirt from Forever 21. WHAT-everrrrr!  Stop making stuff from when I was a teenager "retro".  It's irritating.  I'm 31, not 52. 

Oh, and I was talking to a friend today and was informed that all of these 90's babies are really into the Chili Peppers.  They like just discovered them.  What's wrong with that picture?  These types of things really bother me!

You can find this ridiculous sweatshirt at Forever 21.  I'm talking to you, 12-year-olds!

I am not trying to sound like the Grinch or Scrooge, but I am already over the lawn decorations.  The closer we get to Christmas, the more crap is accumulating in the yards.  One of the houses in my neighborhood is sporting a "reindeer" that looks like a giraffe wearing a Santa hat.  It's so stupid.  Hurry up, 2012.  Yeah, right.  What am I talking about?  The same people that tack up their lawns are the same ones who leave their decorations up until after Valentine's Day.  Bah, Humbug.

No Word of the Day.  I can't open my email right now.

O, Christmas Shrub!

I haven’t written in a while because I have been so busy with the boys and preparing for Christmas.  Actually, I am not going to lie.  I haven’t really been in the Christmas spirit because every time I turn around, someone has caught a bug. Between that and Carson’s leg, I just can’t concentrate on much else.  And it’s like I have forgotten how to type because I haven’t blogged in like a week!  I’m going to have to rename my blog “Haphazard Haphazardly”!  There are several little stories that I want to tell, but first is about the Christmas tree.  I really am trying to prepare for Christmas, but I am having a difficult time.  Oh, and no Christmas cards this year….dropped the ball on that one!

We didn’t put the Christmas tree up as early as we usually do because we knew that the boys would take the ornaments off and break them, and quite frankly, we wanted to shorten the amount of time that we had to deal with that.  Plus, 10 days to a child is an eternity, so they don’t need it up for an entire month.  We got the tree out of the attic yesterday and set it up. Let me pause to say that this is a really nice artificial tree.   It’s beautiful.  Anyway, it was a little crooked, but I told Logan not to mess with it and that there was a screw in the stand that hadn’t been properly tightened.  I took Lindsey to ballet and when I got back the tree was curved like a “C”.  I asked Logan what he did, but he said he didn’t do anything.  I had to bend the pole back until it straightened.  Later on in the evening as the children decorated the beautiful tree with ornaments, the tree started to fall.  Lindsey caught the 8 foot tree with her right hand and saved her baby brothers from being smashed.    Don and I moved everyone out of the way and examined the tree to see what had happened.  The pole had bent and snapped in half due to Logan bending it and my bending it back.  Long story short, the tree is trashed and we immediately went online to look for another.  Then we started laughing  because Lindsey put the very top part of the tree onto the “stump” and placed the star on top.  We started calling it names and were laughing about “what if” we kept it up and got a new one next year.  We were singing songs like “O, Christmas shrub, O, Christmas shrub” and “Rockin’ around the Christmas bush”.  We were talking about how the kids wouldn’t ever forget the year we had a stump for a tree and that it would make for funny pictures.  Also, the boys will be three next year and will be less likely to tear the new tree up.  I think we have decided to have a Christmas shrub this year, just because we think it’s hilarious.  It’s something that would’ve happened in one of my favorite movies, “Christmas Vacation”.  I can just imagine if anyone comes over.  “And here’s our beautiful Christmas stump.”  Haha!  I don't know if I can actually stand it for another day; I might change my mind.  Here’s a picture:

Now that Carson has been cleared to walk, he can also sleep in his bed again because he’s able to be alone.  I told the boys that Santa called me and said that he wouldn’t bring toys unless they sleep in their own beds every night.  They were actually excited  and it worked.  I got up 11 times with Dylan, but they were all within the same hour or two, so I still got some sleep.  He woke up yelling for Bo at one point.  I went in and placed the bear’s ear up to his nose and he fell back asleep.  Carson only woke up once to say that he needed a new diaper, but it was only because Dylan had woken him. 

Little update on Carson…..he walks like a little old man because he’s stiff.  If anything touches him, he falls.  The coolest thing about all of this is that he has learned to operate the computer and mouse.  I taught him one afternoon so he’d have something to do while he couldn’t walk.  He can completely navigate through PBS’s Curious George site.  He plays for hours at a time and Dylan sits next to him and watches.  Dylan is totally cool not operating the mouse because he knows that he hasn’t learned how to work the mouse yet.  Carson’s funny.  Last night when I was putting him to bed he said “Mama!  You go to your bed and watch Frasier!  You go to your room and watch Frasier!”  He didn’t want me sitting there forcing him to stay in his bed anymore.  As soon as he promised to stay in his bed, I left and watched an episode of Frasier; he rolled over and went to sleep. 

I still haven’t taken the kids to see Santa and this morning Dylan asked to see him.  I am taking them either tonight or this weekend.  I’ll post pictures. 

Lindsey had a holiday ornament making party on Sunday and she has been extremely busy with dance.  Tomorrow she has her Big Sis/Lil Sis Christmas party at the studio.

Logan has been pretty chill, no crazy stories except for the apology letter we got last night for breaking the tree.  He had put the ornament boxes in front of the tree and everyone kept tripping.  He broke the tree and then celebrated the “shrub” and since he had broken it, we told him not to get crazy and celebrate the fact that it was broken.  I said “It’s one thing for us to look at the bright side, but you broke it and shouldn’t be acting crazy and proud.”  Honestly, we weren’t very angry and he wasn’t in trouble, but he still wrote an apology letter, which was nice.  I also told him that it was my fault just as much as his because I bent it back.  I don’t know if you can read it, but here’s the letter.  It's a damn good apology for a 10-year-old.  How can I be mad at him?

It says: "Dear Mommy and Daddy, I'm sorry that I ruined your Christmas Tree.  I know it doesn't matter if it was 1 dollar or a million, I shouldn't have done it.  I know that you put a lot of time into it and I am sorry.  I am also sorry for arguing and putting the boxes right in front of the tree.  I am also sorry for celebrating "the shrub" and being proud that I broke it.  And Mommy, I'll go ahead and take the blame for breaking the tree.  It was my fault.  I truly am sorry.  Love, Logan."

Sleep is Awesome, Wendy's Isn't

I promised a video of Lindsey performing at the retirement home, but I couldn’t record it, so I had her do the dance at home.  I tried to send the video from my phone to my email so I could post it for you, but it says that the video is too large to email.  I hate technology sometimes!  I did however take some more pictures; here they are:

Aren't they cute?  At the studio, before heading out

The girls made Christmas cards for the residents at the retirement home

Last night I called Don’s dad and asked if they would like to babysit.  I felt like I needed to take a breather.  It was awesome to have some time with Don and it was nice to sit in a quiet environment for a while.  Actually, the kids all slept over, so I didn’t wake up until 11:00 this morning!  Ahhhhhhh.  Is that what people do when they don’t have children?  When Lindsey got home she said “What happened to you?  Your hair is crazy!”  I told her nothing, I slept. 

I was so hungry when I woke up that I could’ve eaten tree bark, so I went to Wendy’s after the kids came home.  I think that tree bark might have tasted better.  Has anyone else noticed that the only good change about Dave’s menu is the fries?  I have always gotten the chicken sandwich.  It’s nasty now!    I didn’t care.  I forgot to eat yesterday and made a sandwich at 6:00 last night, so I was pretty much starving.

Carson is now walking a little.  His leg is stiff and he’s a little sore, so he looks like he is just learning how to walk.  Dylan, as I type, is walking around with him, holding his hand.  He’s saying “Look!  Car-hun’s walking!” 

Here’s the Word of the Day:

adytum \ad-i-tuhm\, noun:

1. A sacred place that the public is forbidden to enter; an inner shrine.
2. The most sacred or reserved part of any place of worship.