the wages family

Accidently

2009-05-26T18:21:00.000-07:00

Everything for Olivia lately has been "accidently" ... she "accidently" got sand in her brother's hair, and she "accidently" kicked her sister, and she "accidently" forgot to obey me.

So when she came in and told me that she "accidently" forgot to feed her roly bug pet and it died, I said, "Olivia, you don't have to say 'accidently' about everything ... you can just say, 'I forgot to feed my roly bug and it died.'" She looks me seriously in the eye and says, "Mom. [insert big sigh here] Everything IS an accident."

Poem by Eliana Wages

2009-05-13T11:29:00.000-07:00

Olivia

bosy, cut

mean, funny, anouing

happy, mad, crasy, wird

Nina

The 10 Best Things About My Mom by Eliana Wages

2009-05-12T22:40:00.000-07:00

1. My mom helps me when I am sad. And she helps me clean my room.
2. My mom makes me food when I am hungry. And takes care of me.
3. My mom helps if I frgot how to spell someting. or if figot to do someting she wood tell me what I was suposd to do.
4. My mom snugls with me when I'm sad it makes me happy.
5. My mom is allways there when I need help or I am hirt like bleeding!
6. And she dosen't wake me up on the weekends sents I allways like to sleep in!
7. My mom lets me have a popsicle every day after lunch!
8. I like to be nice to my brother and sister that allways makes her happy.
9. And she tells my brother not to hit me but he never obeys!
10. And last of all shes my very very one and only mommy!

God is so NICE!

2009-04-08T19:42:00.000-07:00

It's really funny how kids are different. Eliana is so literal, she wants to understand the how and why of everything. Olivia, on the other hand, is very relational. Everything relates to people and relationships between them. I know that both my children are wired this way, but sometimes their differences just strike my funny bone.

Olivia has an "owie" that she can't leave alone. We've been discussing why it's important NOT to pick scabs, but Olivia keeps picking this particular scab until it bleeds and then freaking out all over the place because it's bleeding AGAIN. We're on our way to pick up Eliana, and Olivia says, "Wow. God is so nice!! My body made it's own band-aid again. That's the way we're created, Mommy!" Her comment just tickled me! Juxtaposed against some of Eliana's observations about human bodies ... her diagram of Malachi in utero with the umbelical cord, discussing how antibiotics work, etc ... vs. "Wow. God is so nice!" I just had to laugh.

Argh!!

2009-04-06T14:13:00.000-07:00

We were going to walk to MES and pick up Eliana today. As we were getting ready, Olivia announces she's going to ride her bike. So I get out the bike, the scooter for Eliana, buckle Corbin in the bike trailer, and off we go. FIFTEEN MINUTES and a HALF OF A BLOCK later, Olivia decides she can't ride her bike after all. At this point, we've run out of time, and have to drive. I was so angry.

BTW, my belly gets in the way of pedaling.

Whew.

2009-04-06T13:13:00.000-07:00

I scored myself a few minutes of breathing room today. I'd been trying to get Corbin to play out back all morning. I was cleaning, and he was getting into stuff. But no. He wanted to read, do puzzles, and play Hungry Hungry Hippo. After we picked up Olivia from school, I made lunch, unloaded the dishwasher, switched the laundry, yadda yadda yadda. I looked out the window and commented, "Oh look, Olivia's jumping on the trampoline." And ZOOM ... he was gone. hmmm. Shoulda figured that one out earlier.

In other breathing news, I can't. Malachi has completely maxed out the space in my enlarging abdomen and is in desperate need of some more real estate. Since I can barely fit in most of my pants as-is, and I have 7 weeks and 3 days till d-day, this worries my slightly.

Well, I'm off again. Time to pick up child number one from school. I promised we could walk/ride bikes today and spend some time playing on the playground. Should be fun!

Malachi

2009-03-30T20:25:00.000-07:00

Corbin has been feeling a little bit under the weather. Since he doesn't seem all-out sick, the end result is that he follows me around all day. Including to the bathroom. I'm constantly answering his question, "What you doing, Mommy?" After the second or third time he followed me to the bathroom and me telling him I had to pee, he says, "You already pee, Mommy." I replied, "Yes, but Malachi's pushing on my bladder, so I have to pee a lot." He thinks about this for a moment, seems satisfied, and that's the end of that. About an hour later he hollers at me from the other room, "Mommy! Mal-chi sitting on your bladder 'gain?!" I chuckled at his observation of my frequent potty trips. Awhile later he says, "Mommy, MY Mal-chi sitting on my bladder in my tummy. I have pee too!!" Apparently if he has to pee, now it's Malachi's fault, too!

Funny Stuff

2009-03-29T20:50:00.000-07:00

This evening, I was making cupcakes for Olivia's class tomorrow. Olivia saw a picture of Red Velvet cupcakes on my favorite food blog and decided she HAD to have red cupcakes with Tinkerbell green frosting. They should be interesting. Anyways, I was in the middle of making frosting and had gotten the box of food coloring out when I was interrupted for bedtime stuff. While I was distracted away from the cooking, Eliana decided to taste food coloring and see what it would taste like. We're all sitting together to pray before bed, and Eliana is drooling red drool. And her lips are red. And her gums are red. And her teeth are red. When she finally admitted why she was drooling and dyed red (apparently food coloring tastes awful) I could hardly contain my glee. I could not have arranged a more perfect love and logic moment. She had a horrible punishment and I had to do NOTHING. I did make her brush her teeth until they were no longer pink ... which took about four rounds of serious brushing ... but she went to bed still complaining about the yucky taste in her mouth. It makes me shudder every time I think about how awful that must have tasted when she was expecting something yummy!! I love natural consequences.

After Steven got the kids down, Olivia asked him to come give her one more kiss. As he leaned his head close to her, she whispers in her most dramatic five-year-old whisper, "Never forget Daddy, the Lord is always with you!"

Computer Rant

2009-03-09T19:53:00.000-07:00

I hate my computer.

Actually, I love my computer, which is part of the problem. Macs are supposed to be hardier than most computers and not EVER have issues. Especially mysterious ones that no one seems to be able to diagnose.

Today I found places for all the kids and scheduled an appointment with a macologist at the mac store. This very intelligent, helpful, cute, and VERY young gentleman helped me out, gave me what seemed to be excellent advice and sent me home. I got home, spent a couple hours dealing with backing up my entire computer on my recently-purchased external drive, and proceeded to attempt a disk repair. It didn't work right. So, after a seemingly helpful call the mac store, I tried another attempt. My blasted computer froze. And after yet another call to the mac store, they said I'll need to bring it in.

So now I have to schedule another appointment at the mac store and try again. I don't know what's worse, the fact that I'll probably have to pay the $90/hour rate, or that I have to find childcare and drag my computer and 7-month pregnant belly through the mall.

Ugh.

The Sick Month

2009-02-18T15:57:00.000-08:00

It seems that every year, between the beginning of January and the ending of March, we have a sick month. All the colds and flu bugs that are floating around wipe viciously and rampantly through our family. First Corbin, then Steven, then me, then Corbin, then Eliana, then me again, then Corbin, then Eliana, then me. And you did read that correctly ... Olivia has NOT gotten sick at all during this month of mayhem. (knock on wood) Just when I think we're coming out of it, bam! Someone else gets sick. And I run myself ragged trying to keep things together, and I get sick over and over. Most of the time, I'm well enough that I can't completely collapse. So I function while I'm feeling awful week after week after week. I think Corbin gets it so often because he isn't at school yet and not built up all those antibodies. But his sisters bring home the germs. Eliana seems to recover quickly when she gets it. My only guess with Olivia is that maybe 'cause they're so strict about washing hands and using hand sanitizer at her preschool that she's safe ...

So now we're dragging towards the end of the month, and I'm drained. I'm so burnt out that I'm ready to scream. I had a wonderful date with my husband this past Sunday (we went to a great garden store together), and I thought I would recover nicely from the bout of sickness. I was hopeful and excited to put myself and our house back together. But that night, Eliana started barfing, and then Corbin joined her the next morning. And when I was ready to send Eliana back to school, she barfed again. Now my throat feels like someone scraped it down. I napped on the couch this afternoon (not very restfully, since I was refereeing every five minutes), and I sent the kids outside to play in the beautiful sunshine. (Eliana seems completely healthy, despite her barfing last night) I'm so so so done with this.

Please, can I have my life back?

What happens when Mommy is sick?

2009-02-05T09:18:00.000-08:00

My incredibly sweet husband took an extra sick day for me this week when I woke up yesterday morning so sick I couldn't function. I slept basically from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and went back to bed at 7 p.m. (and I spent most of the hours in between laying down). But somehow, life doesn't seem to stop for Mommy.

I was woken up every hour or so by Corbin "checking on me" ... he would come in, get really close to my face, and say, "Hi, Mommy!! Hi, Mommy!! Hi, Mommy!!" until I responded, then ask if I was sick, and then leave.

Twice, Corbin came in to ask me to take him potty, even though Steven was completely capable (and already in the room with Corbin before he sought me out).

Olivia came in twice to ask for a drink of my water or to tell me she was hungry.

Steven woke me up once to tell me he made me banana muffins (which were delicious). I got up long enough to eat one before I collapsed again.

Our dinner was pizza. Lunch was mac & cheese. He took the kids to ice cream for a snack.

And I got up this morning, still feeling icky but at least functioning, (Steven went back to work) to the kitchen looking like a tornado hit it ... the pizza box still out, the empty milk carton in the sink, and dirty dishes everywhere.

To Steven's credit, he was feeling icky still himself.

I hope I never get sick again.

Fancy

2009-01-20T10:15:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I had to take Olivia to the doctor, and so I found places for the other two kids to stay while Grandma, Aunti Jenn, Olivia, and I went into Salem. We went to the Keith Brown closeout, (where I got great new kitchen hardware ... watch for photos coming soon), lunch, the doctor, and in between lunch and the doctor's, a couple of stores. In the Arbor (an awesome little boutique on State St), the sales lady was commenting on Olivia's big vocabulary. Aunti Jenn says, "Yes, she really likes fancy words ... Olivia, what's the fanciest word you know?" Without a moment's pause to even consider it, Olivia cheerfully (and immediately) says, "Ooh-La-La!"

WHAT?

2009-01-20T10:05:00.000-08:00

So this morning I was in the mood for scones ... maybe because I have been really wanting a girly tea party, but that's beside the point. I had the oven turned on and was sorting some papers waiting for it to heat up, when I started smelling something. Not realizing it was coming from the oven, I started searching the house looking for the melting plastic smell. Finally, it clicked. I opened the oven, and there was a melting blob of green plastic. I scooped it out and ran cold water over it, hoping to discern what this odorous green blob was. Unable to discern its origins, I began questioning my two "angels." Olivia seemed genuinely confused and shocked, but Corbin had this stricken look on his face and didn't say anything. I looked hard at him, and thought back to what he'd been playing with this morning .... ah-hah! "Corbin, did you put the green turtle in the oven?" After the solemn look for a moment, Corbin nods ... "Yeh." He says quietly. I began moaning and groaning and making a big deal about how it stunk and now the turtle is ruined and he can never play with it again and then made quite a ceremony out of throwing it in the garbage ... yes, overkill, but I'm hoping he really gets the message. Drama can go a long way in these types of situations. But after I'd made my point and retreated into the kitchen to finish making my breakfast, I began snickering to myself. Seriously, it was funny.

Yummyness and Other Sundries

2009-01-17T11:09:00.000-08:00

I tried a new recipe last night .... it was so yummy and healthy that I just have to share. It's from my favorite food blog, and I would say this is even better than the "traditional" chicken and rice with campbells from a can and/or the lipton soup mix. Here's the link to the recipe (it's on my favorite places list) ... so maybe you'll be inspired to try it too!

In a side note, some days I feel so lucky. Watching my children play together, I just wondered how I am so blessed. Three beautiful children and one more coming ... a great house, and we are comfortable. Even at our most "strapped" financially we have so much more than many many people ... I do not deserve this happiness, but I am so thankful!

Today, Olivia and I had a date. She wore a princess crown, and everywhere we went, people commented on her crown, her cuteness, and how well behaved she was. By the end, when someone asked her if she was a princess, she said, "NO! Why does everyone think that? I'm just wearing a crown!!!" Our first stop was Starbucks. She ordered (and I quote) "Hot chocolate with whipped cream on top and no lid." She also had a cinnamon roll that she licked off all the frosting and the cinnamon insides. She was discussing the people in the coffee shop, and I was trying to explain that it's not polite to point at people in a public place. I told her that she could explain "that gentleman in the green shirt" and nod her head toward him to indicate what direction he was. She thinks about it, tries out the head tilt, and says, "I can't because it makes my crown fall off!" When I burst out laughing, she said, "Mommy, you can't laugh like that in public, it's not polite!"

Olivia's Preschool Quotes

2009-01-11T19:50:00.000-08:00

At preschool during play time, Olivia announces, "I am the ice queen!" and Mason (her "boyfriend") yells back, "I am your ice king!"

Later, "That looks Ooh, La, La!"

ANNOUNCEMENT!!

2009-01-08T17:45:00.001-08:00

The blog that made me cry ...

2009-01-08T10:24:00.000-08:00

The mother of four

ANDREA HEY

Four children aged 13, 11, 9, and 4

Looking after three children under 4 had been desperately hard work but the worst was behind us. So what happened five years ago, when my third child was within striking range of that welcoming reception class door? You've guessed it. As my mother mutters darkly, I have ended up with "more children than is strictly necessary."

"How clever you were to get it all over with quickly," everyone said after my third was born. But the details were lost in the blur. It had all gone so fast. We'd started out young and now our friends were beginning to produce gorgeous bundles of their own. I felt broody and left out.

There were also deeper forces at work, less comfortable to examine. At some level, the idea of having four children appealed to my vanity. What a statement about the health of my marriage! Look how competent I must be as a mother! At the time we were feeling financially secure. If I put off building some sort of career for myself, never mind. I wouldn't be just a mother; I'd be a chief executive mother! And the small question of what to do with the rest of my life could be shelved for a few more years.

So I luxuriated in the pregnancy, savouring that "last time" feeling. This would be the child whose parents had finally hit their stride: the mother relaxed and experienced, the father competent and attentive. This time we'd do it properly — the activities, the social life, the table manners, all the niceties that had fallen by the wayside in the first crazy batch. Then we were handed 8 lb 4 oz of reality and a whole new set of problems.

Don't get me wrong. We adore her. We're beyond lucky to have four healthy children. But perhaps all mothers come prewired with a set number of times that they can perform certain tasks before blowing a circuit. Just how many repetitions of The Wheels on the Bus can anyone bear before reaching for the gin? Think hard about a fourth baby if, like me, you can't afford a nanny to sing the Postman Pat theme tune while you lie in a darkened room.

Maybe mothers, like other aging flesh, have a best-before date. I came to realize quite quickly that my energy for the more practical tasks would have been nicely used up by three-and-a-half children. That extra half has sometimes pushed me beyond fulfillment into despair.

The early months passed in a fog of exhaustion. My husband and the cat escaped expulsion from the house, but I can recall banishing the dogs to a kennel: the numbers had to be reduced somehow. I couldn't cope.

A not untypical "first year" scenario involved driving to school with the baby screaming for some undiagnosed reason; Number Three being sick in a handy bucket; Number Two sobbing because I had put the wrong filling in his sandwich; and Number One announcing that I had forgotten her swimming kit again.

The packed lunches were made with the newborn ululating for the morning feed. Tummy-bug victims couldn't stay home alone but had to trail out on the school run.

Nurturing another small personality has remained endlessly fascinating, but after 13 years I'm numbed by the practicalities. Forget 9 to 5, it's the monotony of the 0-to-5 routine that kills the spirit. When you shovel yet more gloop into the little mouth or gird yourself for another round of potty training, you know where this is headed and it won't be pretty.

As Number Four starts to develop her own collection of little friends, fitting her social life into the busy whirl of the greater family is like stuffing a balloon into a sock. My brain can't hold another classful of names, faces, and birthday parties.

I am stale. Walking into her "first" third birthday party felt like stepping back in time. The roar of the bouncy-castle pump, the rioting of hyped-up toddlers, the impossibility of conversation with other distracted parents: hadn't anything changed? Well, yes. I had.

Older children doing more grown-up things is exciting. Yet our late addition slows us down (or necessitates a babysitter).

Even the simpler aspects of family life — cinema trip, bike ride — are compromised by the little one's inability to keep up with the gang. Her infant illnesses tear up my agenda at a moment's notice. Last Saturday I was housebound with a very sick youngest. My husband was left to cope with the birthday disco party (including the scene where the teenage daughter locks herself in the loo five minutes beforehand, howling that her outfit is wrong). I can feel my eldest storing that particular maternal absence for future recrimination.

Whereas our third child's delight in the birth of his fan club has been constant, there is slight resentment in the older pair. "You said that when Freddie was bigger we'd go on a skiing holiday. Instead we got another baby," moaned the elder daughter.

Plus a bigger car ... financially, how naive we were. My broody self had "reasoned" that surely one more baby wouldn't add that much expense. What about all the hand-me-down clothes, toys, and equipment that we already owned?

But it transpires that the cost of rearing four children is actually about one third again more than the cost of raising three.

Funny, that. The lesson I have learnt is that having four children is indeed a status symbol. But doing it in comfort is the preserve of the seriously rich.

Life out there feels closer now but I still can't quite touch it. And when my baby starts school in September, I face my fourth encounter with the same reading scheme.

There is a look that I recognize in the eyes of mothers of four. No matter how much we dote on our brood, it's as if we left something important behind and can't quite remember what it is. Socks? Wipes? Car seat? No. It was our better judgement.

Dinnertime Conversations

2009-01-06T18:36:00.000-08:00

At dinner, Eliana says, "It really bothers me when people say things like they have to pee or poop. Like in the lunch line today, Gypsy said, 'I have to pee.' It was so gross. And rude. I wish they would say, 'I have to use the bathroom.'"

So Steven proceeds to tell this story how he was in kindergarten and he told his teacher that he had to use the pot and his teacher thought he was being rude and wouldn't let him go. (Yes, I think it's scarred him ... I've heard the story a number of times.)

There's silence for a moment, and Olivia says, "What's the pot?" So I tell her it's a rude way of saying toilet. There's another moment of silence, and Olivia says, "I think we should make a rule in the Wages family that no one is allowed to say 'pot' because it's bad!" And Eliana says, "Well, at least when we're talking about the toilet."

The Joy of Siblings

2009-01-06T18:05:00.000-08:00

Corbin is getting really really good at picking on his sisters .... specifically Olivia. He decided to demonstrate it for me this evening. He ran up to Eliana, grabbed ahold of her hair, and yanked as hard as he could. He kept pulling out the cords that attach the DVD player to the TV while Olivia was watching her movie. He stood next to Eliana beating her with a pillow while she said, "Please stop, Corbin. Please stop, Corbin. Please stop, Corbin." Later, that failing to get an emotional reaction or attention, he threw a little people dinosaur at her. I'm pretty sure it hurt a lot. He's also been calling names. His sisters have taught him two lovely names that he uses occasionally as his attention-getting weapon. He says "stupee" (stupid) and "dumb-ball." Gotta love that older-sister influence. So while I was cleaning up from dinner, he was repeatedly calling Olivia his prize names.

After getting him in trouble a couple times, it clicked. Yes, he was being naughty, and his goal was ATTENTION ... from ME!! (brilliant, Mommy). So I decided the next time I would ignore it. Sure enough, 2.5 seconds later, the opportunity presented itself. Olivia yells from the toy room, (yes, she's in on it, too), "Mommy, Corbin called me dumb ball again!!" So I yell back, "Thanks for telling me, Olivia." And do nothing. Corbin realizes I haven't taken the bait and I hear him yelling "Dumb-ball, Dumb-ball, Dumb-ball!" I take a deep breath, tell myself, wait. wait. wait.

And then Eliana, my miniature Mommy, decides to take action. She marches herself into the toy room and begins to lecture her siblings. "Corbin, you are being very naughty. If you don't change your behavior, you're going to have consequences." (Yes, that is really what she said.) When he continues, she says, "Corbin, you're going to lose this balloon if you can't behave." (Corbin responds, "I will NOT.") "See these scissors, Corbin? I'm going to cut up this balloon so you never use it again." And apparently it elicited enough of a behavior change, because I heard quiet for awhile in there .... or at least the good kind of noise. Quiet would be alarming.

Until Olivia got mad at Corbin for something and apparently hit him over the head with a toy. And Eliana decided to intervene again. "Olivia, you have the choice to walk away, or ask him to please stop, or if he does something really bad and it's a big problem, that's when you involve a grownup." I just about died laughing in the other room. Later, I was asking Eliana about it, and she says, "Well, Mrs. Beam has this webkins that's a green frog named gerbil and it has these rules for if people get in a fight ... you know, what you can do." I asked who Mrs. Beam was, "She's my counselor. Well, the school counselor."

Wow.

Ultrasound

2009-01-06T12:20:00.000-08:00

Today we scheduled our ultrasound. It's going to be this thursday afternoon!!! I am so excited I can hardly wait! My mom thinks we should start a betting pool whether it's a boy or girl! So let the betting begin! The kitty goes into the diaper fund!

Christmas Program

2008-12-29T16:43:00.000-08:00

The Christmas program at church (postponed a week because of weather) was hilarious. Eliana knew every line, every place she was supposed to be, and every dance step. Olivia forgot many things because she was so enamored with having an AUDIENCE. She kept stopping to pose. And then there was Corbin. He was perfect during the rehearsal. Then he got on stage and ... well, you'll see. Enjoy.

Christmas Morning

2008-12-29T14:21:00.001-08:00

Snow Days

2008-12-29T13:50:00.000-08:00

We had a lovely/horrible week of snow and ice ... the first batch of snow was tons of fun for the kids, but then we had yucky ice, and by the time we got more snow, Steven was so sick and we were struggling so hard to keep the house warm that nobody went out in it the second time, even though the snow was better. But I think the first time was enough!

Playing Games

2008-12-29T12:09:00.000-08:00

Today is my "catching up on blogging" day ... so hopefully you'll get lots of glimpses into what this vacation has been for us.

Corbin and I have a breakfast tradition. We have breakfast early (usually cheerios these days) and then after my shower (or after we drop the girls off at school on school days), we make our "second breakfast" of eggs and potatoes. Corbin was a little hungry today, and while I was making the eggs, he devoured all of his potatoes and was asking for more. And he's been asking for more potatoes all morning, even though he ate half of mine with his eggs. He really likes fried potatoes.

While we were making breakfast, the girls were playing UNO Attack! There are a few extra cards with UNO Attack, and Eliana asked me what a certain card was. I told her it meant that you could lay down all of your cards of a certain color. She thinks about it for a minute and then says, "I don't think I want to do that, because then I'd win and it would hurt Olivia's feelings. Olivia, I'll just skip you instead."

A little while later I hear her say, "I think that might be cheating, but we can do it anyways if we want to." and Olivia replies, "Yeah. It is my game, so we can cheat whenever we want!"

They seem to lack a competitiveness sometimes... but in a really good way! After lunch they were playing go fish. Olivia had all her cards laid out on the table, and Eliana says, "Ask me for this one, Olivia, and I'll give it to you!"

Happy Birthday Krystal!

2008-12-13T19:46:00.001-08:00

Today is wonderful Aunti Krystal's birthday!! Happy birthday Aunti Krystal! I hope the Phillipines is treating you well on this special day! We miss you very much ... Here are the girls' responses to Aunti Krystal's birthday:

Olivia: "I know just what to get her for her birthday! A belly button pump. It's for doctors. Really, it is! You hook it up to your belly button and POP your belly button pops out!"

Eliana: Happy Berthday Cristl . How old are you terning? I hope you are having fun. I had my dance recitle to day! Me and my sister danced on stag ! My sister danced tow time'S.I danced only once . because I was only scegld for one! I did tap it was cold Slay Ride! and Olivia's dance is cold I'm gitin nuthing for crismus and the other one is cold Havein Fun ! And cobin's dance was cold toy shop he was a Bear! Love Eliana !

Cousins watching Nemo

2008-12-03T09:39:00.001-08:00

Corbin's Haircut

2008-12-03T09:37:00.000-08:00

Addendum

2008-12-02T12:33:00.000-08:00

So check out my sister's response to Olivia!

Olivia's kissing

2008-12-01T20:08:00.000-08:00

Olivia got into some trouble today at school. Apparently she's been kissing and hugging too much at school. Specifically her "boyfriend" named Mason. Last time we had a discussion about Mason, she told me, "I can kiss Mason if I want to, Mommy!" ... I decided to let it lie because as far as I knew, this kissing was hypothetical. Mason has been her "boyfriend" since last school year, and she has been constantly telling us that she is going to marry Mason. Since then, the kissing has become less than (more than?) hypothetical. Ms. Dianna stopped me at school today to inform me that she had to talk to Olivia today about it. When I got to school, she and Mason were sitting together hugging and talking. Then I talked to Mason's mom who has determined from Mason that the kissing has happened on at least one other occasion. I felt like I was discussing a teenager. We had a long conversation with Olivia at the dinner table tonight how kissing at school was against school rules and that our family had a rule too: no kissing outside the family. I feel a little bit better since she agreed to follow our family's and school rules ... but I'm still nervous. How can a four-year-old be so enamored of a boy? And what does this bode for teenage years?

Eliana again

2008-12-01T17:17:00.000-08:00

Eliana and Corbin have been playing pretend. Corbin wanted his shoes on, and from the other room I heard Eliana telling him, "We're going to take you to the experiment farm to get your shoes on." A moment later they come trotting into the laundry room where I'm folding laundry, and Eliana says, "Experiment farm person, will you put his shoes on? You're the experiment farm person because you have so much more experiments than anyone else.

Eliana also got her report card today. She's "above instruction level" in reading and "at instruction level" in writing and mathematics. She scored "4" and "+" on everything on the whole report card except "Conventions (capitalization, punctuation, spelling, grammar)" which she scored a "3" .... [If you read the last blog, you might have got that idea] When I told her how proud I was of her and gave her an overview of the card, she said, "so I'm doing good in everything except periods and capitols and spelling and stuff??" I thought it was kinda funny how she summarized it ... as though there's anything she's doing badly at. And then she proceeded to explain to me how multiplication works. Did you learn multiplication in first grade?? I sure don't remember doing that!

Eliana's Journal Entry

2008-11-30T13:57:00.000-08:00

11-27-2008, November

Thursday, we are going to my Grandma's house for thanksgiveing and we are spenting the night there. Olivia is going to woch the moovy of tinkerbell there. Me Eli I whent strat in the house and played it was really fun.

11-28-2008 Day after thanksgiveing. Olivia stabed me with a pen and it pealed my scin and it made a pen marck and it hert really bad my sister did it on perpis.

Paybacks

2008-11-26T10:45:00.000-08:00

So, I have been having great sympathy for my parents lately. Eliana is reading chapter books, and she REALLY gets into them. Last night she was reading on the couch before and after dinner, and every time I said something to her, I had to repeat it three times before she responded, sometimes threatening to take her book away. (I know, my mom is smiling right now) At dinner, she barely participated in the conversation, and as soon as she had eaten the bare minimum requirement, she left the table to go back to her book. We had to call her back three times before she came to clear her place, and I eventually had to confiscate her book before she would do an acceptable job. Then she stomped and stormed her way through the job. Steven finally told her she couldn't have her book back until she changed her attitude. He modified that to her smiling. And after a twenty minute battle of wills between the two of them and a number of tears on her part, she finally managed a smile to earn her book back. We're such harsh taskmasters. It brought back some uncomfortable memories of being on the other side of this situation. So all I have to say is, yes Mom, this is paybacks!

What do campsite, earwax, and doorknob have in common?

2008-11-24T18:35:00.000-08:00

Eliana has been learning about compound words at school. At dinner tonight, she was explaining to us what a compound word was: two words that are put together to make one word. We asked for an example ... and she promptly told us, "Thanksgiving!" Impressed, we began a discussion of other compound words: backyard, butterfly, catfish, into, campsite, hairbrush, sweatshirt, basketball, volleyball, cheerleading, schoolhouse, icebox, doorknob, dishwasher, birthday, wallpaper, earwax, eyelid, lipstick, bookshelf .... and there were many, many more, most of which Eliana came up with on her own.

As we're coming up with all these compound words (and plenty that aren't) Olivia was trying to help. She came up with lipstick (which was actually pretty impressive), and then she pipes up, "How about stay-in-your-boundaries?"

Bedtime Prayers

2008-11-19T19:30:00.000-08:00

At bedtime, we pray with the kids every night. Each family member gets a chance to pray, and if one of the kids doesn't want to pray, we always tell them, "you can pray for two people." For Eliana, this isn't usually an issue ... she wants to pray for everyone we know. Olivia, on the other hand, usually prays for herself and mommy ... since that qualifies as two people. Corbin has been taking a turn ever since he was old enough to understand that it's something he can participate in. The caveat of this is that often we don't understand what he's saying. So we chuckle at what he says and move on. Lately he's been praying a lot for "Mommy, Daddy, Pee-po ...." and we have no idea what "Pee-po" is, but it's cute, and he's very sincere. Until tonight, when it just clicked. We remind Olivia almost every night that she can pray for two people. And so Corbin prays, "Mommy, Daddy, too pee-po ..."

Like WHO?

2008-11-14T11:46:00.000-08:00

Corbin is in this stage of everything being very negative. His favorite answer is "no!" His comments are all presented as dire and upsetting, even the ones he's excited about, like the "po-ise car!" And if he's talking and you're not listening, he's yelling at you to pay attention to him. So in the car today, he's yelling because I'm talking to Eliana and not him, and I sighed and said, "Corbin, you're impossible." Eliana asked what that meant. I replied that it's kinda frustrating how everything he says is complaining or yelling. And Eliana replies, "Oh. Kinda like Sharpay!"

Sick

2008-11-14T10:15:00.000-08:00

My sweet Eliana is very sick today. I think the saddest part is that she's so brave about it. Fever, headache, runny nose, cough, with some barf thrown in there during the night. I think the barf is cause she gets too much phlegm in her little tummy.

So after I dropped Olivia off at school today, we went to the grocery store because the only thing she wanted to eat was strawberries. How could I resist that? While we were there she also decided she wanted yogurt and chicken noodle soup. She sat in the cart, wrapped in a blanket, giving her sick-voiced little comments and questions. So pray that she gets better, 'cause she makes me feel so sad! Even right now she's curled up on the couch reading to Corbin because she felt bad that I was refusing to read to him while I was on the computer. I know, I'm a mean mom. And she's very sweet.

On the positive, today is my first prenatal! We get to hear our baby's heartbeat for the first time. I'm just praying there's only one!

Halloween pics

2008-11-05T12:39:00.000-08:00

On Twins

2008-10-18T11:37:00.000-07:00

I think I would die if we found out we were having twins. But Olivia asked me the other day if maybe we would have two babies, one boy and one girl ... Olivia likes everyone to be happy. I said, not having really considered the idea, "Oh, I hope not!" After a little pause (where she was obviously thinking), Olivia says, "So if we have twins, will we sell one?"

On boys and girls and new babies

2008-10-16T08:35:00.000-07:00

We were discussing whether our new baby was going to be a girl or a boy. Olivia has waffled a little bit about whether or not she wants a sister or brother, but mostly lands on "Corbin needs a brother." So yesterday, she gets all teary and says, "I want to be the baby girl. I don't want to have a girl baby because then that will be the baby girl and I want to be it!" We all make sympathetic sounds and stuff, and then Eliana says, "Well, I want a girl!" And so then we're discussing how many people want boys and how many want girls. We determined that Olivia wants a boy, Eliana wants a girl, Mommy and Daddy don't care, but it's extremely difficult to figure out what Corbin wants. If you ask him straight out, he says girl. But if you ask him if he wants a girl like Avery or a boy like Jack, he says, "Yike Dack!" So Eliana decides he doesn't count 'cause he wants both. So she and Olivia are tied. And I said, "But I still think you're outnumbered ... more people want boys than girls." And so she demands to know who ... Aunti Jenn, Grandma Cooper, Grandma Wages, Grandpa Wages, Aunti Krystal ... so she huffs a little bit and says, "They are off the chart! They don't get to pick. Just US!"

On being Tinkerbell

2008-09-15T16:07:00.001-07:00

Today, on the way to preschool, Olivia was discoursing on how she behaves as Tinkerbell. She told Corbin, "I am Tinkerbell and you are a dirt fairy."

Later on, Eliana asked Olivia for some of her paper, and she refused. As Eliana stomped out of the room to find her own, Olivia said, "I didn't give her any because she didn't call me Tink." Corbin was listening seriously to the conversation and sat up and said, "gi me kee, Tink?" (translated: Give me a kiss, Tink") ... Which was hilarious that he was following the conversation and also amazing because he doesn't usually put that many words together!

She also spent most of the day in a ballet costume and wings ... and dressed Corbin up to match!

Final Camping Trip

2008-08-26T21:40:00.000-07:00

So, we went camping again. (Yes, that's right ... the THIRD time this month). Fortunately, it's the last one of the summer. I was pretty burnt out by the time we got home. It was the church camping trip, but pretty much it was the young families of the church. That means that there were sixteen kids, the oldest being 6 years old. It was nutty. And fun. But really really nutty.

My favorite quote of the weekend was by a little girl named Bekkah, who is five years old and my shadow all weekend. She said, "When I grow up, I think I'm going to be a princess." This from the girl who told me, "My mommy told me that mermaids aren't real." That was after my girls and I were discussing whether or not mermaids lived in the beautiful pools along the river.

However, the all-time funniest story goes to Corbin: On the way down, the kids were eating chips in the car, and Corbin got chip crumbs all over himself and his carseat. (you're shocked, right?) So they start itching him, and he starts yelling at us from the back seat: "Ladybug! Ladybug! Ladybug bite me!! Ladybug bite me!!" As you can imagine, Steven and I are totally mystified. We explained that there were no ladybugs in the car and that ladybugs don't bite, but he was having none of it. He's getting himself more and more hysterical because he's convinced that ladybugs are in his car seat and biting him. We finally had to pull over, get him out, show him the crumbs, clean everything up, and explain that there were NO LADYBUGS!! All weekend, anything that itched or hurt was ladybugs biting him. We think that with all the camping talk about bug bites (from mosquitos, except that no one ever says mosquitos), he's made the translation to ladybugs.

He IS pretty obsessed with biting right now, though. He is petrified of dogs biting him, even though he's never experienced a mean dog, but he won't leave grandma's cat alone even though he's been bitten by Sorah more than once. And he's obsessed with riding horses (he calls them all "Neigh") but always wants to know if horses bite. And every other animal or bug, he has to know if they bite. And then he wants to hear it again. And again. And then 20 minutes later he needs you to tell him again.

For all the activity, busyness, and mess, two years old is a REALLY fun age!

More camping stuff

2008-08-18T11:52:00.000-07:00

If you're interested in more camping pics, check out my fabulous sis' blog at www.twopeasandapod.blogspot.com .... it's also in my favorite places links!

Beach Trip

2008-08-12T21:10:00.000-07:00

We had a fantastically amazing camping trip to the beach this last weekend. We stayed at Rock Creek Campground between Yachats and Florence. It was really great, but I'm too tired to actually blog, so here's some photos.

The Birthdays via Photo

2008-07-27T22:00:00.000-07:00

Corbin's Birthday on Friday, July 25th. I can't believe he's actually two years old! While he was trying on his new clothes, including his light up Diego shoes that he LOVES, Olivia said, "You look hottie! That's a fancy word for bespecially cute!"

The Big Birthday Bash on Saturday, July 26th to celebrate both Corbin's birthday and Eliana's birthday. Somehow, I didn't get a single picture of Eliana opening presents. I can't even believe it. Corbin's favorite, hands down, were the tools from grandpa. Big surprise. Eliana's Aunti Jenn and Aunti Care were having a contest to see whose birthday present was Eliana's favorite. So when Aunti Jenn asked Eliana which was her favorite present, she started listing them all, and finally said, "I just like them all!"

My birthday cake masterpieces. Eliana's was a white cake with white chocolate raspberry cream cheese filling, and Corbin's was a banana chocolate chip with chocolate hazelnut cream cheese filling. I know. You're so impressed. And it was my first time. This is where you say, "OOOOh! AAAAAh!"

Olivia was well able to entertain herself and anyone who cared to be entertained during the party. Olivia actually got a couple of presents too, one of which was a bug puzzle. When someone pointed out to her that it was a puzzle about bugs, she excitedly said, "Yes! I'm a bug expert, you know!"

Grandpa Harland got out his metal detector after the party. I think my kids will be "detecting" and "digging" for weeks now. Olivia was using a plastic golf club for detecting, and Corbin was using some of his new tools to dig in the grass. After finding a couple of pennies, Eliana said, "Just tell me if you find the silver money, that's the only kind I want!"

Fancy Date

2008-07-21T22:17:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, we took Eliana and Olivia to Michael's Landing in Corvallis for a "Fancy Nancy" date. For those of you who do not know about Fancy Nancy, she is a little girl who is very fancy but her family is not, so she teaches her family how to be fancy and they all dress up like movie stars and go out to dinner. The girls have been asking for a long time to do it, and so we finally did. Steven and I let the girls pick out their own outfits and ours, and we did hair, makeup, and of course, accessories.

The girls were absolutely hilarious during the date. On the way there, we had this conversation about what kind of food there is to eat there. We discussed that it was a fancy restaurant, so they could probably get anything they could think of. Olivia said, "I want french fries!" I asked Eliana what the fanciest food she could think of was, and she said "Parfaits ... that's french for ice cream sundaes." She asked me what the fanciest food I could think of was, and I told her, "Escargot ... that's french for snails." The girls thought that I was kidding, and when I finally convinced them that I was serious, they were horrified and curious. Eliana wanted to know how I ate the shell.

Then, during the drive, there was this hilarious conversation about fairies:

Olivia: "My pet fairy gave me powers, but not fairy powers, restaurant power. Tinkerbell is the only one who shares her power with me. She's the very nicest fairy ... you have to see her, Mommy. It's hard to see her, you have to pray to her to see her.

Eliana: "So you can't see Tinkerbell so you might accidently step on her? If she's so small, how can you see her?"

Olivia: "She gave me that power too!"

At the restaurant, we walked in the door, and the two hostesses were trying so hard not to laugh at our dressed up little girls. Eliana asked to sit outside (although we convinced her to sit inside because outside was yucky seating) and Olivia announced that she would like french fries.

When the waitress asked what we wanted to drink, Olivia said, "Hot chocolate please!" And Eliana asked politely if they had root beer. When the root beer came, it was Henry Wienhards in a bottle, so she got the bottle and a glass of ice. She picked up the glass of ice and said, "This doesn't look like root beer to me!" When we explained to her that she poured the root beer into the glass of ice, her eyes got really big. She spent the rest of the meal pouring little bits into her glass and then refilling it.

Then there was the wonderment of an appetizer! When it came, Eliana said, "You know, this isn't even our dinner!" And Olivia said, "It's our appertizement BEFORE our dinner!"

Eliana ordered fish and chips, and Olivia ordered chicken strips and, of course, french fries. Eliana was disgusted that they served something that looked like ranch but wasn't with her fish (it was tarter sauce).

While we were waiting for our food, Olivia told Eliana, "I'm daddy's lucky child." And Eliana, ever the logical child replied, "You know, we're ALL lucky." And Olivia says, "Yes. But I'm daddy's luckiest." There's this long pause, and then Eliana says disdainfully, "Olivia, that's rude."

Then we ordered a mud pie for us all to share at the end. It was a wonderful evening.

I think the highlight for the girls was going down to the landing and throwing rocks in the river. They thought it was so interesting how dress-up shoes aren't made for walking on the rocks.

Summer Daze

2008-07-17T22:35:00.000-07:00

Today, Olivia rode her bike for the first time. Really, truly rode her bike. After months of refusing to even touch the bike, she got on the bike and patiently pedaled it down and up the sidewalk. Go figure. My drama queen is cool as a cucumber on her bike. She smiles beautifically up at me and says, "aren't you proud of me, mommy?" And then, "I think I'll walk my bike for this part." and my favorite, "My crown doesn't fit under my helmet, so will you wear it for me, mommy?" She pedals carefully where she wants to go, every so often honking her horn without stopping or looking around, just honking while she pedals. She says, "I honk my horn for trucks and ring my bell for cars. Look, that one's a truck, so I'm honking my horn." It's cute, hilarious, and unbelievable. I told her that we were going to celebrate "Olivia riding her bike" day by going to ice cream. I walked and Eliana and Olivia rode their bikes. Eliana was so busy riding in circles telling us, "I took the long way through the college and I still beat you!" that she kept running into things and crashing her bike because she wasn't paying attention to where she was going. I think she crashed three times on the way to the ice cream parlor.

I had also told the kids we could play at the park. The problem being that Olivia rides VERY slowly. It took a lot longer to get there than I anticipated. So my kids were playing at the park at 8 p.m. They were the only kids at the park. Corbin was certainly the only one playing in the fountain at 8 o'clock at night.

I'm also putting together an art show with my friend Prindi. It's tomorrow night, and I'm very excited. I think it's going to be great! I'm displaying my stick art. The kids will be singing "I had a little turtle" ... I think they'll probably steal the show.

On ANOTHER positive note, I just finished a ten-day detox, including one juice fast day. I lost 7 pounds and counting ... and with my new glasses and bangs, I've had two people tell me that they didn't even recognize me. The totally weird thing is that a lot of my normal "fav's" taste and sound discusting ... ice cream, chocolate, coffee ... I think I'm going crazy. It's actually probably the healthiest my body has been in a while, but it still feels weird. Someone offered me coffee at a meeting, and after my first sip I almost gagged. Too weird. There's something therapeutic about drinking coffee, and I can't see anything else really filling that gap. I'm not a big herbal tea person, and I'm not sure black tea would be any different. I guess maybe I'll jump on the jamba juice wagon! BTW, have you heard of the new "hot smoothie"?? It sounds gross to me, but supposedly it's good. sure. right.

On the way home from the park today, I realized that for the first time, it actually felt like summer to me. The "do-fun-things-with-the-kids-just-because-its-summer" thing. It was good. Really good. I hope I keep feeling this way for a long time. Too bad it took me a month and a half to get here.

A WHAT infection?

2008-07-10T20:07:00.000-07:00

So, I'm totally stressed out about this Corbin thing, and today Steven and I finally had a real good talk and decided he's just not ready. If he was ready, this would be easier. So we're limiting "mommy times", but continuing to nurse. I feel really good about the decision. It's a big relief after the turmoil of the last four days.

However, I now have ANOTHER issue consuming me .... I have a corneal infection in my left eye. Who knew that something like this could come on so quickly?? Last night my eye was itching, and by this afternoon the light sensitivity was so bad that Steven had to come get me. I couldn't drive home. It figures that I can barely resolve one stress before the next one comes. And Corbin broke my glasses this morning. Apparently they're un-fixable (is that a word?). And my eye doctor is on vacation. I'm wearing taped-together glasses with sunglasses over the top. Believe me, I feel REAL sexy! Apparently lots of people that get this have to wear glasses with prescription sunglasses for six weeks. I'm hoping that's not me. I'll find out tomorrow.

And tonight I got stung by a bee. I need a relaxing bath.

What a week

2008-07-09T20:34:00.001-07:00

I'm having troubles processing that it's only Wednesday. It has been a week frought (is that how you spell that word? I need Carolynn's new dictionary) with chaos.

Firstly, and probably most significantly, we're trying to wean Corbin. What a harrowing process. Mostly because he's not happy about it. On Sunday night, Corbin woke up at 2:30 a.m. asking to nurse. And since I said no, he proceeded to scream for two hours straight and refuse to go back to sleep. Again last night, he woke up at 4 a.m., and didn't scream, but refused to go back to sleep. During the day, he has been this grumpy monster that I don't even recognize. It's been really hard. I miss my happy little guy.

I know that this is really good for us, I feel that it's time for our relationship to change, but it is really hard on this poor momma's heart. My baby is sad, and I am refusing to offer him the comfort he wants. On the other side, I think it's time that he learned to be comforted in other ways. I just wish it was easier on us both.

Another positive of this, though, is that he is finally EATING! He's done this thing for months where he refuses to eat unless it's something yummy (snacks, sugar) or breakfast or dinner. The whole middle part of the day, he wouldn't eat. Yesterday he ate crackers, a banana, chili with nachos, and part of an apple (and a popsicle ... shhh) ... all in the middle of the day. I cannot even tell you what a relief this is.

So, while I'm playing catch-up from having Courtney and Avery here, plus the fourth of july, Corbin is making life difficult, and that leaves my poor daughters catching the short end of things.

During rest time today, they worked on a little art project:

Oh well. It washes off. You can't see very well in the picture because the purple doesn't show up very well, but it was very tastefully done.

Did I mention that in addition to this week's stressors, Steven and I are on a 10-day detox diet?? So no carbs, grains, sugars, etc. Basically just veggies, meat, and fruit with lots of water. So I'm also craving coffee, sugar, and at this point, I'd eat just about any kind of carbs. I hope I feel good and lose enough weight to make it seem worthwhile.

Awesomeness!

2008-07-08T21:11:00.000-07:00

I found this really great quote by Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of state. I really really like it and the idea behind it!

"I think really the big changes happen very often at the local level. The most important people in my life were my parents, but the next most important people to me were the people in my community: my teachers, as well as the people who lived in my community and made sure I got home safely at night. These people were very much a part of my life and still are. Some of them I still stay in touch with: That's what communities can mean.

If you've got great family and great friends, as I have had throughout my life, that helps a lot. I'm also someone who has great religious faith. I am a great believer in being able to draw on what the Apostle Paul once said in Romans 5, which is that you have the glory and tribulation also, because from tribulation grows perseverance, and out of perseverance, hope.

In times when life is easy, we don't appreciate enough our religious faith, or the people who support us and care about us and love us. But when things get tough, we have to rely on them. Every time you go through a tough period, I think you're just making yourself a stronger person."

The Green Tinkerbells

2008-07-05T00:11:00.001-07:00

Ellie-isms

2008-07-04T23:57:00.000-07:00

I whacked my hip on the metal stair rail, and after chuckling at me, Eliana said, "Sorry. I shouldn't have laughed."

Olivia was wondering if we were eating pig for dinner, and Eliana told her, "It's called chicken for a very good reason. Because it's made out of chicken. Why do we eat chicken? I don't know. That's a very good question."

Randomly heard from the vicinity of the back seat, in all seriousness, "I think you'll make a very good mom."

Stunning

2008-06-28T14:26:00.000-07:00

Today I braided Eliana's hair into two braids. She tied her braids into a knot in the back of her head with the ends sticking out sideways. When I commented on how cute her hair looked, she told me,

"It doesn't look cute. It looks better than cute. It's stunning. Stunning is WAY better than cute."

Well. Pardon me.

The End of Day Camp (finally)

2008-06-27T20:02:00.000-07:00

Today was the last day of day camp. I feel bad to say it, but I'm very relieved. Olivia had a hard time making it through the week. She completely melted down this morning getting into our carpooler's car. Corbin and I waved goodbye to her crying, tearstained face as they drove away. It wasn't the first meltdown this week. We decided to cancel the August camp for her. I thought she might have a problem with it, but she seemed fine. Hopefully it won't be different when it actually happens. I told her that we'd do some fun things instead ... like a date and a tea party. She's already planning our tea party, so hopefully that works out well. It's just hard watching big sister do things without you. Although, I have to admit, it's one of the best benefits of them being so opposite .... the same things just don't matter. (it's amazing how sometimes that's frustrating too)

Eliana's attitude came to a head this evening when she called me an idiot because my bike was parked in her way. Needless to say, she spent a long while in her room before we both felt ready for her to face the world again.

So on to bigger and better things. Like planning for the fourth of july. With a myriad of activities to choose from and my need to plan ahead, Steven is probably in for more long "Fourth of July Planning" conversations than he'd like. It's a good thing he loves me so much!

Visiting Avery

2008-06-27T13:49:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we all drove up to northern Washington (Marysville) to visit Jonathan's wife, Courtney and see their new baby. (My brother is floating somewhere in the middle east using up millions of dollars .... no political commentary intended.) Since it's a six-hour drive to get there, I was planning on going alone. But at MIDNIGHT the night before I was going to leave, Steven decided we should all go.

Here's how the conversation went: (laying in bed, half asleep)
Steven: So, why are you going again tomorrow?
Me: I am going to take pictures of Avery and I want to see her.

Steven: And when are you leaving? (btw, we've talked about this a couple times already)
Me: 2:30 ... your sister Mari is coming to watch the kids until you get home from work.
Steven: I feel like I've hardly seen you this week. What if we all go?
Me: Are you serious? That's tomorrow.

Steven: Well, I was thinking we could just drive awhile and sleep in the car when we get tired.
Me: You're kidding, right? We have three kids under the age of six. Does that sound like fun to you???

The long and short of the rest of the conversation is that I spent the whole next day getting the entire family packed and ready to leave at bedtime. We drove at night the whole way. It probably would have been fine if we'd left a little later at night. We left at 7:30 p.m., and the kids were so excited it took them forever to fall asleep. Then, ten miles from Marysville, we were stuck in road construction on the freeway for an HOUR at MIDNIGHT. To top it all off, by the time we got out of the construction, (1:30 a.m.) , we followed Steven's mapquest directions to a private gravel road in the middle of nowhere. As we're parked someplace random trying to get directions from my mom via cell phone, and while I'm trying to calm our suddenly screaming son, a creepy bum is knocking on our car window trying to get money from us. As we started driving again, Steven and I just started laughing. How crazy are we? Three little kids, a six-hour night drive turning into eight hours, hour-long road construction, getting lost, screaming kids, and creepy bums ... it was like a comedy of errors.
The next day, pictures went great.

And we also got some cute pictures of the kids holding Avery.

And our drive home went perfect. We did it in four and a half hours. The kids slept the whole way, and it felt like we were having a date. Four hours of uninterrupted talking. I don't even know the last time that happened!! Maybe we should do it again next time we need a date!

Day Camp, Day 3

2008-06-26T13:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday after day camp, Eliana and Olivia were having a snack at the table while I was making dinner. In response to some question I asked her, Eliana says, "So slap me on the booty and let's make a deal!" I choked so hard I had a 30-second coughing fit. Then I couldn't decide whether it was okay to laugh or not.

Needless to say, we had a long conversation about what kinds of things that older kids say are okay to repeat and what isn't. This whole attitude thing is killing me. Who'd have thought that my sheltered, no-tv, almost-six-year-old would be rolling her eyes, sighing dramatically and for all intents and purposes acting like a teenager. Maybe this is my punishment for being so proud of how smart she is. Maybe it just goes with the territory.

On a more positive note, Corbin and I made cookies today. Three different kinds. I was feeling cookie-ish. I know, that's not a word, but it describes how I feel. Maybe I should make snickerdoodles too. Is four too many?

For all those who rag on me for my son's lactating preferences, you'll be happy to know that not only is he going to bed now with daddy (that means no nursing), but I've also started putting him down for his afternoon nap without nursing. Today he fell asleep in less than five minutes. Let me tell you, that's a big change from an HOUR!! He now has his OWN bed across the room from ours. To sweeten the pie for him, we decked it all out in Dora sheets. .... Now, before you freak out, he LOVES Dora. And I'm sure by the time he or any of his friends are old enough to care, he will be on to something else. But for now, he is THRILLED!

Well, that's all for now. I think I'm going to go eat a cookie.

Day Camp

2008-06-24T19:54:00.000-07:00

Eliana and Olivia are going to Ms.Dianna camp this week ... it's a day camp put on by the preschool teacher at MICP. She holds it out at her house ... a few acres to run, hike, play, and swim. She has a barn with dress up clothes, a huge play structure, a pool, hot tub, and a great porch for story time, snacks, and crafts. Each week has a theme, so this week is plants. They have been planting and digging in her garden. The girls have been having a blast.

The downside is that Eliana has come home with more attitude and new phrases in the last two days than her entire first year at public school. Yesterday she asked me why I brought them chocolate graham crackers. I told her it was because I knew she liked them. There was a moment of silence in the back seat and then I hear a very disgusted, "DUH!" I was so surprised I choked, and then I started laughing. It was so obviously a new word to try out, and it didn't even quite fit the situation. This morning she told Beth (the mom who picked her up) about how her brother got into her paints. Beth asked her why he did it and she said, "My mom and dad would probably say that he did it because he didn't know any better, but I don't think so. I think he did it because he's a big JERK!" When Beth told me about it, my jaw hit the ground, I couldn't believe that my sweet Eliana would say that. I guess it should have been a hint since we've been hearing a lot of "stupid-head" and "idiot-head" ... needless to say, the older kids at Ms.Dianna camp are not on my top 10 list today. I'm actually wondering if we should cancel our second week in August.

The past two days have definately been draining on Olivia. She had a ten minute screaming tantrum when we were trying to leave. All the other kids and parents were staring, and Ms.Dianna looked scandalized. I think she couldn't believe that cuddly Olivia was a tantrum kid. Amy Gilson walked by and said, "I thought that sounded like Olivia!"

I'm amazed at how quickly the day can go by with the girls gone. I thought I would feel like I have tons of time, but I don't. I have a few hours in the morning, then lunch for me and Corbin, then naps, and then it's time to go pick them up.

Dancing with Nelly

2008-06-19T23:29:00.000-07:00

Thursday, June 19

2008-06-10T14:12:00.001-07:00

Okay, for everyone who checks my blog and lives close ... I'm having a Demarle Home party on Thursday. Krista makes a super yummy dinner and it's really fun and I think you all should come!!

The pace of life

2008-06-09T21:47:00.000-07:00

What is it about this time of year that seems to run away with you?? I can't seem to take a breath, and then whoosh. It's over. So here's the update of what has been happening in our house.

Eliana and Olivia had a dance recital. They were adorable (of course). Olivia was a fire ant ... which meant lots of marching in lines. Eliana tapped to "Jeremiah was a Bullfrog" ... so she and Olivia have been singing the song constantly since then. And her ballet dance was a dandelion.

The next week, I was taking a nap with Corbin, and Eliana comes running in, "Mom! Olivia cut her own hair!" and then brings me HANDFULS of hair. I bawled and bawled. Olivia sat on my lap and bawled with me. She looks like tinkerbell now, though. It's cute ... she can pull it off.

Then Olivia had preschool graduation. it was very cute.

Then Eliana had kindergarten graduation. She was so beautiful. The classes (all 90 students) came in with these ribbon "wings" to the song "I believe I can fly" ... needless to say, I was a little sniffly. Unfortunately, the battery died on my camera, so I didn't get a single picture of it.

Eliana also lost her first tooth. She wanted it out so badly. I was convinced that it wasn't ready, but she just worked and worked at it one afternoon and got it out. She'd been working at it, and then during dinner, she bit on the tooth (it kinda crunches at that stage) and then she was too excited to eat. She begged me to try pliers, so I let her. It was very funny watching her try to grab the tooth with pliers. Eventually, the old twist the tooth worked the best. Of course. So then she had to decide about where to PUT the tooth for the tooth fairy. I think if she wasn't so convinced that the tooth fairy is real, she would have realized that it's not logical for the tooth fairy to exist. But somehow, she is able to still believe. She asked me how the tooth fairy knows she lost a tooth, and what if the tooth fairy forgets, and how does the tooth fairy get in ... and my favorite: if fairies are pretend, how come there's a tooth fairy??? (that was a tough one, believe me!) Then she decided to write the tooth fairy a letter to tell her to take the tooth but leave the box (she had a little tooth box) and that she wanted $5 for her tooth. Now, I'm pretty sure that the tooth fairy was planning on leaving only $1, but I think she was so overwhelmed by the cuteness of the letter that she left the whole $5.

Now that school is out, things have calmed down. Which is great. Except now Corbin is not feeling well. And that is very frustrating!

Life doesn't ever slow down. It just seems to pause for a moment.

Photos

2008-06-09T20:37:00.001-07:00

House Pictures

2008-04-17T20:58:00.001-07:00

Looking upward?

2008-03-28T12:08:00.000-07:00

So Steven's sister Linsey fixed my blog problem without realizing it .... apparently my problem was Safari (my browser) .... she used my computer and downloaded Mozilla Firefox ... and lo and behold, no more problems.

So here are my backlog of pics from the house! Enjoy!

Blog problems ... life problems

2008-03-25T23:23:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I'm extremely frustrated ... does blogger not support mac?? I can't do anything that requires a checked box (and that includes uploading photos to my blog.) So I'm pissed off. And so I can't upload my absolutely amazing photos of our new home's transformation.

Wow. Wow. Wow.

That's all i can say. It's worth all those wows.

The new floors look stunning. My Russian Olive wall is huggable. (even if Jenn thinks it looks like .... well this is a public posting, and I don't think I can talk about that here.) Trust me, it's classy.

I have lists and lists of things to do ... and that's only the immediate ones, not all of my ideas for how to make our fantastic new house even more wonderful and classy and updated and most importantly ... ours!

Carolynn is coming tomorrow to paint polka dots inside the window seat of the girls' room. Jenn and Courtney (Jonathan's wife) are also coming. I'll just point to the list.

Don (Steven's dad) was here today painting (thus the huggable Russian Olive wall) and he'll be here tomorrow to finish the living room ceiling and the new walls.

Right this minute, Steven is hooking up our washer and dryer. They looked fine in our old laundry room, but somehow in this painted, new floors, amazingcan'tbelieveit'smine laundry room, they look yucky. Our new-used fridge is coming tomorrow morning. I won't have to go out on the back porch to get food out of the fridge. Now I just wish the dishwasher was working .... Sheesh. I'm just never satisfied, am I?

So, in case anyone is looking for ideas for housewarming gifts, here's the list:

New stacking washer and dryer

New working dishwasher

Daphne Odora plant for the front yard (and maybe for the back too)

Lowe's gift cards

Gardening gloves for the family

Subscription to Oregon Home magazine

Gardening books

IKEA gift cards

and, as always CASH or CHECK is accepted!!!!

sunny days ahead

2008-02-27T12:51:00.000-08:00

So, as we're approaching spring (March 20th ... 22 days and counting), the weather has been frustratingly erratic. Unfortunately, so have my children. They have been loving the nice weather.

We've been playing outside a lot. Yesterday I ditched housework (again) and taught Eliana how to bump, set, spike, I jumped on the trampoline, and just played with them. It was really fun until I came inside.

Corbin has surprised me at how much he wants to be outside — all day long. I guess it's just one more way that boys are different. I'm looking forward to having a big backyard this year. I can't wait.

Olivia is in this phase where she's dressing in layers. Odd layers. Obviously she's experimenting, but I sometimes wonder how much she's looking for a reaction. I finally stopped commenting, other than to compliment her outfit when one looks particularly nice. I think she gets it from Auntie Care.

Eliana has been pushing pushing pushing ... I think she's trying to redefine her limits and how she fits into our family structure. She's had so many changes lately ... kindergarten, reading, math, loose teeth .... I would be redefining myself if I had that many changes all at one time!

Oh well ... spring: come quickly! New house .... hurry up!