Cold Season Prep

Last year..or early this year?..I made hats for all the kids. Gabe, technically, got 2 or 3. He refused to wear them, actually, but had no problem wearing someone else's hat.

This year, he's wearing his hat whether he wants to or not because I love it.

It took 1.5 days to finish. Actually, not even that. Maybe 8 hours in all.

The mohawk was the most time consuming part of it all.

All in all, he doesn't MIND it. And I may be trimming down the 'hawk. But I love it. Love it love it.

Three Little Birds

Rise up this mornin'.

Smiled with the risin' sun.

Three little birds pitch by my doorstep.

Singin' sweet songs...

...of melodies pure and true.

Sayin'...

"This is my message to you."

Don't worry about a thing.

'Cause every little thing is gonna be alright.

Baby boy, my head can't wrap around the idea that you're now officially 2 years old.

Let's face it, you hit the terrible twos around 18 months and it's all been a d

Coffee Talk: Starting School

I'm a little shocked that it's time.

It's time.

Time? Time for what?

These two little beauties are starting kindergarten.

WOAH. Stop time. Just stop. STOP.

Because just a few days ago, they were itty bitties.

And then next up, there's...

...and then...

..and from the looks of it, Gabey's meaning serious business.

When did my babies turn into kids? :(

Disappearing. I've been busy.

Holy crap, this summer as FLOWN by. It feels like I've been running consistently. Whew.
But here's just a couple things that have happened.

First, I FINALLY got to repaint this lamp that we got for free.



Still not sure how I'm feeling about it, but I'll figure it out eventually. I hope.

Me, Kyle, Amanda, Selena, and Gabey went to the Zoo in St. Louis.

My favorite exhibit?

PENGINS.
And yes, it's "pengins". I can't say "penguins" correctly.

Seriously, they were the best thing about the zoo.

Especially the fact that their building was SO much cooler than the 100+ F heat we had.
Gabe was in love with the anaconda.

He tried to hug and kiss it through the glass, all the while having the snake following his every movement. Gabey even had an audience, laughing away. He made it a point to tell everyone "HI!" and then "BYEEE!" while blowing them kisses.

The hippos were pretty cool, too.

Luckily for the kids and Amanda, the zoo had a huge waterfall thing to play in.

I stayed away, but I used one of their misters and stood in front of one of their big fans.

OH. And then today?
Today this happened.

We still need to give it a name.
Hell, we need to find out for sure if it's a male or female. >.<

The Girls' Room.

Do you remember that segment on The Amanda Show? It was one of my favorites.

If you don't, then please sit still while I try to steal your youth.

Anywho.

I've done a fair bit of random decorating in Selena's room. There's flowers and butterflies on the walls, there's a completely redone dresser, but we still have some things to do. It's really coming together.

We haven't done anything in Riah's and Dot's room, as horrible as that is.
Honestly, the paint on the walls sufficed for a good while. It's not just a flat one color wall.

The photos are a bit crummy, I know, but you get the general idea. The doors need some work, and that vent on the wall needs to be painted, but all in all it's pretty good alone. Lately, though, I've been trying to come up with ideas to spruce it up. My main goal is to make the rooms easy for the kids to grow with and into, so we aren't doing renovations all the time.

I started with something easy. A bookcase.

I had some problems with putting the backing on, because I'm a perfectionist, so Kyle and Gabey stepped up to the job.

And there's only one spot where they didn't hit the nail right. :)

So, it's slow progress, but it's a start, right? Soon the house will be more homey, right?

Maybe I'm not cut out for this, but I'm hoping my crafting will get be through.

Happy Mother's Day (Dr. Seuss Style)

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You're on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.

You'll look up and down streets. Look 'em over with care.
About some you will say, "I don't choose to go there."
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,
you're too smart to go down any not-so-good street.

And you may not find any
you'll want to go down.
In that case, of course, 
you'll head straight out of town.

It's opener there
in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen
and frequently do
to people as brainy
and footsy as you.

And when things start to happen,
don't worry. Don't stew.
Just go right along.
You'll start happening too.

OH! 
THE PLACES YOU'LL GO! 



You'll be on your way up!
You'll be seeing great sights!
You'll join the high fliers
who soar to high heights.

You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.
You'll pass the whole gang and you'll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you'll be the best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don' t
Because, sometimes, you won't.

I'm sorry to say so
but, sadly, it's true
and Hang-ups
can happen to you.

You can get all hung up
in a prickle-ly perch.
And your gang will fly on.
You'll be left in a Lurch.

You'll come down from the Lurch
with an unpleasant bump.
And the chances are, then,
that you'll be in a Slump.

And when you're in a Slump,
you're not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself 
is not easily done.

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.
Some windows are lighted. But mostly they're darked.
A place you could sprain both you elbow and chin!
Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in?
How much can you lose? How much can you win?

And IF you go in, should you turn left or right...
or right-and-three-quarters? Or, maybe, not quite?
Or go around back and sneak in from behind?
Simple it's not, I'm afraid you will find,
for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.

You can get so confused
that you'll start in to race
down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace
and grind on for miles across weirdish wild space,
headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place...

...for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go
or a bus to come, or a plane to go
or the mail to come, or the rain to go
or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow
or waiting around for a Yes or a No
or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting.

Waiting for the fish to bite
or waiting for wind to fly a kite
or waiting around for Friday night
or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake
or a pot to boil, or a Better Break
or a sting of pearls, or a pair of pants
or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.
Everyone is just waiting.

NO!
That's not for you!

Somehow you'll escape
all that waiting and staying.
You'll find the bright places
where Boom Bands are playing.

With banner flip-flapping,
once more you'll ride high!
Ready for anything under the sky.
Ready because you're that kind of a guy!

Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done!
There are points to be scored. there are games to be won.
And the magical things you can do with that ball
will make you the winning-est winner of all.
Fame! You'll be famous as famous can be,
with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.

Except when they don't.
Because, sometimes, they won't.

I'm afraid that some times
you'll play lonely games too.
Games you can't win
'cause you'll play against you.

All Alone!
Whether you like it or not,
Alone will be something
you'll be quite a lot.

And when you're alone, there's a very good chance
you'll meet things that scare you right out of your pants.
There are some, down the road between hither and yon,
that can scare you so much you won't want to go on.

But on you will go
though the weather be foul
On you will go
though your enemies prowl
On you will go
though the Hakken-Kraks howl
Onward up many
a frightening creek, 
though your arms may get sore
and your sneakers may leak.

On and on you will hike
and I know you'll hike far
and face up to your problems
whatever they are.

You'll get mixed up, of course, 
as you already know.
You'll get mixed up
with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step.
Step with care and great tact
and remember that Life's
a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.

And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and 3 / 4 percent guaranteed.)

KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

So...
be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray
or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O'Shea,
you're off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.So...get on your way!

-"Oh, The Places You'll Go!" by Dr. Seuss.-

Thank you, kids, for making life fun, exciting, and pretty exhausting. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. I don't need one day devoted to moms to make me feel special when I have 365 days with you all in my life.

That doesn't make you a mommy...

I have a problem with the world these days. A big one. A few, actually. But one in particular really hits home.

What makes a mommy a mommy.

I'm a firm believer in there being a difference in being a mommy and being a mother. Just like there's a difference between being a daddy and being a father. HUGE difference. I'm taking, the size of moon craters.

Kidlet throwback.