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Saturday, January 15, 2011

baby o' mine.

i never understood why my baby brother was treated like a baby for most of his life.  it was explained to me but i didn't understand --- i didn't feel the explanation.  he was spoiled and doted on and inexplicably favored.

it was foreign to me until i had my own baby.

and by that, i mean.... LAST CHILD.

i knew when i had sophie that she was going to be our last little tike.  boy or girl, we wouldn't be trying for just one more.  i was ok with that concept because that allowed me to convince my hubster to try one last time.  i needed a big family.  i was from a big family.  i felt this want and need to continue that tradition.

so back to baby.....

i have one spoiled and doted upon little mess on my hands.  i know i helped create the little monster i did, but i can't help it.  she was my bayyyyyyyyybyyyyyyyyyy.  forever and always, my last little one.

knowing that she was my last i wanted to keep her little forever.  don't get me wrong, she's only four and a half, and thus... still little.  but you know it has to be bad when, at four and a half, she still baby talks and can run the house based on her shrill screams of anger and/or demand.  i.  made.  this.  mess.  i must clean it up.

i stress on a consistent multi-daily basis how much that baby talk grates on my last nerve.  but she keeps on keeping on.  and it irks me.  the other day she wanted a new purse.  one from my mom's store.  that sucker was $32.  she's four and a half, remember?  after a lot of negotiation between she and my mom, they agreed that sophie could have it for $3 and a grown up voice.

wiggawiggawhat?  winner winner chicken dinner, fo SHO!

so on the way home that day i had a grown-up conversation with her for the entire 15 minutes we were in the car.  we talked about school, about make-up, about cheerleading, and a billion other things.  it was awesome.  i could understand her and she actually made sense.

she didn't baby talk hardly at all that night.  it was great.  i mean completely less frustrating of a night.  you see, it's not just her baby talk, but also her baby cries that make being a home like being in a daycare.  constantly.  connnnnnnnnstantly

over the next week she still baby talked, but far less.  it was pretty amazing -- all for a purse.  i came home one day with information on cheerleading and soccer camp for her. we talked about it and she told me flat out that while she would enjoy soccer camp, she would be way too shy to do it, but with cheerleading, she knew she could get over being shy so she could perform.

back.  the.  truck.  up. 

this conversation just made me realize she's more like fourteen, than four.  and i'm not a fan.  it was at this very point that i wanted to kick myself in the head.  she's so little and only this little once in her life.  why do i want her to talk normal when that's going to lead to normal friends her age?  i'm kinda hip in her eyes right now and ultimately her most preferred playmate.  in her eyes, i totally rock.

her entire life started flashing in front of my eyes and i started to panic.  maybe baby talking isn't so bad?  could i really deal with being on her "b" list of friends?  am i ready for all things non-BABY with her?  am i ready to just be "mom" and no longer "mommyyyyyyyyyyy?!"

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!  what have i done?!


this is sophie:



now, suddenly, i'm speechless....

Friday, January 14, 2011

organizer.

i love making lists.  so much sometimes, that it's an absolute downfall.  when thinking of lists, though, it makes me think about my calendar(s).  yes.  calendar(s).  i love lists.  i love calendars.  i love to be organized.

coming out of the 2010 holidays................ i am not organized.
not even a little bit.

for an organizer, that's frustrating beyond belief.  i can walk around all day with deodorant at the bottom of my shirt and honestly not care {too much}.   but if i don't have some organization to my life, i feel like everything is spinning out of control.   seriously out of control.

so i took some time this week to make a calendar.  a personal calendar.  and then i realized i really needed a separate work calendar.  and not just one, but three, because i have courses at home, courses on the road, and my guys are all over the map.  i.  need.  three.  calendars.  {justforwork}  

i am only slightly out of control with my calendars.  don't judge.  because it works.  i am now less out of control with my life because of them.

so then imagine my surprise this week when  i was the recipient of a new weekly calendar.  god love the peeps that i work with... they know how to make my life exciting.  details by the week is SO much more of a necessity than simply month by month.  those squares get full fast.  so fast that i have to have four different calendars running just to keep it all square.

but not no mo!

my goal this weekend is to consolidate into one calendar.
that will take some time.
especially with my color coding... but it will all be worth it.
because i will have absoLUTE order back in my life.

unless you count these pipsqueaks...

and by the way...

if you've never played Just Dance 2 on the Wii...
i pity the fool.

because it rocks my socks off my face and it certainly will rock the socks off of your face, too.

we played for FOUR hours this night.
incredible and incredibly hilarious.
i highly recommend.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

love me some sisterly goodness.

i have two sisters, two wonderful and amazing sisters.
we have quite the age spread between us, but you'd never know it.
it is awesome.


i had the privilege {yes, PRIVILEGE} of going to D.C. with them both last week.  the beauty of going with them is that we can clearly state ahead of time what our expectations for the day are.  like, "i just want a pic in front of the white house and the capital building, and maybe a quick trip through the natural history museum." low, low, low expectations.  being that i was laid out at home the day before with body aches and a miserably sore throat, i needed the lowest of expectations.

i {thankfully} got them.


we took four of our eight children with us.  and obviously, we chose the older half of the brood.  it was perfect.  i get to see my older sister once a year.  solamente uno.  it's never enough.  now that the kids are older, we felt that a field trip was needed.  not only does it help break the monotony of the week, but it gets the kids out and running free... so that they can come back and welcome the monotony back with open arms.  it's awesome.


living near D.C., i totally take that city for granted, but if you've never been, it's a good time with tons to do.  here are some snappy-snaps of our day:


my sister, dre {of Daily Dose of Crazy}, and my little emma girl.


all the wee ones on the metro.  they loved it.
duh.

my sister and her fam.
i {heart} them all.

sisters.
wonderful sisters.

millipede at the insect zoo.
ethan has always been my bug guy.
"such beautiful creatures."

f. me.
i touched the roach but i did not hold it.
my boy is so brave!

a tomato worm.
even i touched this one.
it was awfully adorable.
and totally pop-able.

i just had to document this next one.
rarely does emma step out of her comfort zone.
it was monumental.

if i could take one snapshot in life to describe my sister.....
this would be it......
seriously.

he played along with his mother pretty well, considering he wanted nothing to really do with me that day.  he was in a big city with his big cousins... he wasn't fond of my kisses.

the hope diamond.
the only reason my four year old was upset she didn't go to D.C...
can you believe that?!

freaking amazing.
huge.
colorful.
freaking amazing.
it was called "The Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef" exhibit.
pure awesomeness.

one of ethan's favorite parts?
walking over top of this street.
he felt like his life was full of danger.
the simple things.

oh yes... yes that's right.
these are THE ruby red slippers.
you know the slippers i'm talking about.
THE slippers.
do you know who DIDN'T know what i was talking about?
all the kids.
"slippers?"
"Dorothy?"
"Toto?"
oye.
i blame the horribly scary monkeys that scarred me for life and made it impossible for me to fathom ever showing that horror to my own kids.

sweet emma right after she took a step off the curb.  for some reason she thought it was one of those moments where you should smile.  for me, it was one that my heart stopped, my blood turned cold, and my ears went hollow.
i.  peed.  a.  little.
ok, not really, but i was a nervous wreck.

sibs and cousins and aunties.
nobama.
he was vacationing in hawaii.

a great day.
one my kids will continue to talk about all year long.

i love my family, and i'm sad they are gone...
it was worth every load of laundry that got ignored.
every bit of dirt that remains on my floor.
every bit of christmas still floating around my house.
every bit of exhaustion running through my bones.

i love my family.
it was a hell of a holiday season.

muah!