Mommy McD

Reset.

2012-01-23T11:47:00.000-08:00

Last week was a downer.

So, this week we're resetting.
We're alive. We (mostly) have our health. We're together.

So, with that announcement - here's a little puppy love.

Hello, Monday. It is good to have you here.

I am NOT carpe-ing this freaking Diem.

2012-01-18T09:30:00.000-08:00

This article kicked off a week of phlegm, pneumonia, ear infections, vomit and no sleep.

It helped me not feel so guilty for the tears I sprung during serious moments of near-mental-breakdown-ness.
[B-rox having an asthma attack, Kenny crying because his legs/ears/head hurts, and Holdeezy puking on anything in sight, is one particular moment.]

Today, I've received word that my Grandpa passed. While it sounds callous, it was time. His mind was gone and his body was struggling. He didn't deserve that. I often thanked my lucky stars that I was 3,000 miles away from it, because strong is definitely a word that could be used to describe him, and I didn't feel brave enough to want to see his decline.

A friend of mine from college died from cancer, yesterday. He was 27.
I dated him a few times, before we decided that going to the movies together was about all it was going to be. Our friendship had become a little more thin over the years, as we married (other people, obvs.) and life went on, 3,000 miles apart. I'm still sad. And taking a reality check from it. It's time to make some of the appointments I've been putting off.

A friend, who has become very special to me (maybe because our kids are the same age, go to the same school, and we both love running? I don't know. She's an awesome woman.) told me she's been diagnosed with breast cancer.
I had nothing adequate to say to her today. I started crying, which I'm sure, looked way cool. I will probably not have anything adequate to say to her. I'm sorry doesn't seem adequate, and yet I am. It doesn't seem fair.

And, so, you know. I'm not carpe-ing this diem. I'm, in fact, going to take a nap.

Uhm... No. Just... NO.

2012-01-10T03:20:00.000-08:00

We are NOT expanding our family in anyway in the coming year. No adoptions. No pregnancies. No more trips for fish filters.

Imagine I am a hive of 30,000 bees. Imagine the boys are 30 Japanese hornets.

Yes. Now you understand. Our big news has nothing to do with family expansion.

I have all I can handle, right here.

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. Its a new year. Bringing new things - and all that jazz.

2012-01-09T06:35:00.000-08:00

B-rox, on Saturday night, looks up at the sunset and says, "I know what causes all that fire".
Me: Oh yeah? What?
B-rox: A rocketship crashed.

I have Christmas to catch up on.
[It was wonderful and full of joy.]

New things are coming this year! Exciting things! (No, not pregnant. Thank you, grilled cheezus.)
But until it's firmed up and FO SHO - I can't tell.

The dog still isn't housebroken. Blah.

Three new races in the books already for the year.

Two "resolutions". Which is a dumb name, because if I don't achieve them - I'll be a better person for even attempting them and only getting halfway. (What kind of smarmy, mushy crap is that????)
1. Read 65 books.
2. Run 2,012 miles. (Averages out to 5.5 a day.)

Woot! Bring it 2012!

Have you ever heard the story...

2011-12-19T04:00:00.000-08:00

Of the handyman's house that is never finished/put together/working right?

Well, I suppose, one of the less awesome things about spending the months of September-December up to your elbows in other people's pictures for their Christmas cards - is that you never have time for your own.
I am the photographer that never has her own photos hung/sent to loved ones/printed.

So, Friends and Family, here is your digital Christmas card.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

He's One. Sniff

2011-12-14T15:31:00.000-08:00

Where did my baby go?

Happy Birthday, Holdeezy. One year later, I can fully say I'm glad you're here. Your smile lights up the world.

Things my dog is afraid of. A running series.

2011-12-08T04:00:00.000-08:00

Note the very nice and comfy dog bed right below her.

*Men.
*Men with beards.
*Black men with beards, most especially
*Umbrellas
*Rain
*Grass
*Baby gates
*Wind
*Loud noises
*People standing on their deck while we are on the ground
*Tractors
*Leaves falling off of trees
*Shoes
*Telephones
*Microwaves

So far, this is what we know. I'm sure there will be more. Hence the "Running series".

Live action Frogger, anybody?

2011-12-07T06:41:00.001-08:00

Saturday was the Hot Chocolate 5/15K race at National Harbor.

To say it was a ClusterF is an understatement.

Quick run-down of why I WON'T ever run this race again:

1. Took us 1.5 hours to make it across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and exit into the harbor. Which, made us approximately 25 minutes late for our race's staging time.
Just FYI - staging a race with 20,000 people and only one entry point to the venue is a bad idea.

2. The walk to the start line was 2 miles away from parking. Not the most inconvenient in itself, the problem was that you had to dodge the 5ker's that were headed the opposite direction on the same SMALL path.

3. Because of traffic issues that they somehow hadn't forseen (who doesn't see a problem funneling 20k people into one spot?) The 15k was delayed 90 minutes. In 36 degree weather. With no shelter to stay warm in.
I actually count myself lucky to have been stuck in traffic. Because, it was warm. A couple of friends got there earlier and froze for nearly three hours.

4. There were too many runners for the course.

The course.

Only one lane of 210 was shut down. That's where the Frogger reference comes in. Because of the small lane, you never had a chance to "stretch out" and actually run. You were constantly ramming into the back of someone else, or someone was ramming into you. It was awful. So, if you wanted to stay away from the runners, you could dodge cars/trucks instead! Occasionally you'd be pushed out into traffic anyway, because there were just too many people crammed into the lane. It was pretty dangerous. While I was lucky and didn't sustain injury, I've heard reports of many people getting injured (I assume from being run over from other runners) and because the road wasn't closed ambulances/aid trucks couldn't get to them.

5. Uhm, where's the chocolate?

Most of the Fondue dippers were already in my belly. By most, I mean the other two.
Marshmallow and rice crispy treat.

Oh, that's it? Maybe, just maybe, that was worth running the 5k. Not, the 15k.

6. Then we had to hike 2 miles back to the car.

At least I look pretty sexy. I'm pretty sure my orange arm sleeves and socks kept me from being run over.

That time where we went to Petsmart for fish filters...

2011-12-06T04:21:00.001-08:00

... and came home with a dog.

Meet Samantha. It was instant love. She had a rough life before us. Puppy mill baby maker, kept in a dog run, and - by the way she shies away from men and loud noises, probably beaten by men.

We've been keeping ourselves open to getting a dog for a few years now. But, both Hubband and I rescued our dogs growing up and felt it was important to continue rescuing. There are some breeds I'm dead set against. There are certain breeds hubband was dead set against. Eventually, we discovered the indomitable bulldog. Kid friendly, sturdy, and cute... Oh so cute.

We had been checking in with some of the local bulldog rescue organizations, and never found the "one". As much as I would like to say I could totally take on whatever issues the dog has, because if it's "the one" then it's "the one". But the fact is I have three little boys, who do - and always will, take first place in my list of priorities. I know I'm gonna have some haters for that statement, but it's true. I love my kids more than I love anything else on this planet - including myself. So taking on a severely disabled dog (which was all that was filtering into the rescues) wasn't in the plan for us.

So, into Petsmart to get some fish filters. We made note of the adoption fair going on, and decided to check it out.
Hubband said that when "he saw me see Samantha, he knew we'd be going home with a dog".

She is so sweet, something I attribute to, 1. her nature and 2. the many, many litters of puppies she's had. She's finally getting comfortable here and with us. Her tail wags near constantly and her ears are always perky.
She's finally adjusting to having to relieve herself outside, versus in a cement dog run. (Or on my carpet. Gag.)
She thinks Holdeezy and his penchant for dropping food off of his tray is the best thing in the history of the world.
So, while it pretty much is having a really messy fourth child, we're pretty happy. My black shirts will never look the same, and she'll never have to worry about being hit, or having puppies again.

It's a good deal.

Final Vacation slideshow!!!!

2011-12-05T07:07:00.001-08:00

Some of LegoLand, (which was, unfortunately, pretty lame), and other random shots that didn't make it in earlier posts.

One of the best breakfasts I've ever had in my life.
IN MY LIFE!
Crab Benedict.
I die. Dead. Lurve.

Ran to Tijuana and back a few times.
Ran until I got to this sign, or border patrol stopped me.

Rush hour traffic?
Laughable.
Virginia knows rush hour, and this isn't it.

If only you know what Kenny was squealing in this picture...

Our "souvenir" from Legoland. Mark insisted.

Happy baby, happy life.
In case you were wondering?
The Ergo is as amazing as they tout.

"There are just so many birds of prey to sit on in California. This place is intense."

Why couldn't he love a cute animal? Why vultures?

Don't eat me!

Artistic ergo shot.

I'd be concerned, too.

Legoland at gets it.

Awkward sideways photo.
One of the few rides you didn't have to pay extra for...

He seriously loves Darth Vader.

Also, poll - how young is too young to let them watch Star Wars?

Kenny's first fender bender. Oi...

"I'm a rockstar. This is my rockstar girlfriend. Except, that dog is silly.
And my car would be green."

This pretty much sums up the entire park's dilapidation.
The whole place felt dirty and broken.
[That's what she said.]
I also have many more reasons for why I was so disappointed in LL... but if I ever post about it,
it won't be today.

Thanks San Diego. We had a great time.

More pictures in two days than have been taken in TWO YEARS. Side eye to little sister

2011-11-29T06:27:00.001-08:00

One of my favorite parts of vacation this time, was the fact that I got to see my little sister, little brother and finally meet my nephews.

I met J.Michael in utero - but he's now over two. Baby Ezra is just a few weeks old now, but I'm ever so glad to have spent a couple of days with them.
My heart hurts sometimes at the fact that the cousins aren't growing up together, down the street from their grandparents.

Mush. Over.

Now, on to pictures. I took MANY because little sister apparently has a titanium memory and doesn't need a camera to remember all those precious moments.
If only we could get an eye-fi card in her brain so she can just upload them to us.

Guilt trip over.
Also, the pictures were all taken with a point and shoot. I also wasn't like super into trying to make them awesome. Deal with it.

Cheese!

Sand castles on the beach.

"I belong on the beach, mom. Because I'm a pirate surfer, and you have to have a beach
to be a pirate surfer."

Baby Ezra

What? Looking at the camera is hard to do!

If you had known my sister when she was this age, you would understand why I laughed my pants off.
This is the exact face his mother made all. the. time!

Leetle brother. Who isn't little anymore.

finger in the nose...

finger in mom's mouth!
Bwahahahahaha!

Bear hug!

Just like his big cousins...

The only picture with ALL of us in it. Oi.
I failed, mom. Sorry.

It was super good to see you, Burt.
I miss you tons.
Now TAKE MORE PICTURES.
AND POST THEM!!!!

Partay!

2011-11-26T17:51:00.001-08:00

This year we eschewed the traditional McDaniel Boy Birthday Bash in favor of a special outing while in San Diego.
So, we bought them a special behind-the-scenes tour of Sea World.

A few highlights:

Walrus BUTT!!!!

Dolphin that we were about to pet.
If you've never heard an actual dolphin talk, I suggest go forth to Sea World.
It might be the cutest sound ever.
EVER!

Very cool.

Very cool, again.
[for the record, we all got to touch and feed - but it's hard to take a picture of yourself doing it...]

Feeding the eels.

Slightly less sure about this particular feeding.

All in all, I was told it was a very successful birthday party.

I was going to make the pictures pretty, but let's face it. I have kids and consider making it to the shower every day an accomplishment, so I'm going to post as they are.

2011-11-24T17:25:00.001-08:00

Yeah. That title pretty much sums it up.

Now, onto vacation pics. Because I know you want to see them.

Leavin' on a jet plane...

View from our deck. the first evening in the condo.
Bliss.

Even Holdeezy dressed up for the occasion.

Seeing them in tuxedos made me cry.

Handsome, handsome and handsome.
Also, those badges? They say "Official Ring Security".
Cutest. Thing. Ever.

Baby, first on the floor.

McDaniel women.
We be awesome.
(Me, MIL, SIL, New SIL, Gramma Jane, CousinIL)

Kenny cuts a rug.

B-rox doin' a little breaking.

We. Are. Sexy.
Also, somehow, beaverlicous even at weddings.

This kid and his condors. Seriously.

Safari park lion, thinking we look tasty.

Safari park tram. I swear, we were having fun.

"Mom, take a picture of my teeth!"

"Mom, I get to ride a bird of prey. The kids at school will think this is SO cool!"

Ok. We'll end here. This was many pictures.

Bucking the trend. Except for today.

2011-11-04T07:08:00.000-07:00

November 15th is a big day for Hubband and I. We'll be celebrating 8 years of togetherness.

I'm not usually on the gravy train of "30 days of Thankfulness" because I'm truly working on being thankful for what I have ALL YEAR LONG. Not just in one month because of a day allocated for too much eating happens to reside in said month.

However, this is my facebook status today.

Sarah McDaniel

isn't going to do the whole "30 days of thankfulness". However, today she is thankful. For her husband. Who, despite thinking cleaning the bathroom equates to swishing out the toilet bowl and who ISN'T her dream partner for the Amazing Race, is a great husband and an even better dad. The last (11 days shy of) 8 years have flown by, mostly because he's smart and charming and funny. And doesn't beat me when I buy too many shoes.

This guy.
Who, last night, woke up and walked downstairs with me to keep me company while I ordered a dress
that absolutely HAD to happen last night.
Because he knows a) I'm scared of being alone in the dark [light switch what?]
and b) because he knows my insomnia would act up even more if I waited until morning to order said dress.
This guy.
Who, this past weekend, despite freezing temperatures - took his children and I on a Halloween fun run.
And wore a silly hat.
This guy.
Who despite cold, heat, and monstrous hills - has cheered me on and supported me with my running habit.
Because he knows it makes me happy, and no other reason.
[well, maybe he likes the benefits of my hot bod - but that reasoning takes away from the mushiness of the post.]
This guy.
8 Years.
Here's to 57 more.
Because I am thankful.
And lucky.

Also, since I'll be on vacation and hopefully pretty absent from facespace/the blogosphere, Happy anniversary to two other favorite people. Big one and Bob. Had November 15th not happened, I'd be short a bestest. November 15th is a big deal in my book. It literally changed my life.

"I'm not just a bird, I'm a vulture".

2011-10-31T17:10:00.000-07:00

Oh yes, friends, family, and other followers - it's Halloween.

Tonight is actually their third time in costume. When you put that many hours into making a costume, you kind of want to wear it more than the hour trick-or-treating allows.

However, this is the "official" unveiling of the ~~coolest costumes in the history of the world~~ of the turkey vulture, manta ray, and the second time we have a chicken in our midst.

"Vulture Swoop"

"Manta ray glide"

"I'm a freakin' chicken, yo! It's hilarious!"

Oi. I love these guys.

Happy Halloween, everyone. We hope you had a safe and fun one!

Tough. That's me.

2011-10-24T06:20:00.000-07:00

When I get more photos, of what I'm sure will be AWESOME facial expressions, of myself I'll post a little more about yesterday.

It was fun.

It sucked.

Then it sucked some more.

Then, they electrocuted me.

But, truly, I did have fun. Which is weird.
If you need to know why it's weird - look at this picture:

Source

That would be a dumpster full of ice... and just enough water to be able to submerge bodies. Yes. It's necessary to dunk your head.

I'll post a better recap later.

More bullets!

2011-10-19T11:44:00.000-07:00

Jumping right in...

*We rented a beach side condo for our trip to San Diego and it looks FABTASTIC. I'm stoked. However, because it's not a hotel, they don't keep things like play yards or travel cribs on hand. In order to rent one, you have to go through a third party company. That third party company wanted $100 freakin' dollars to rent us a crib for the week we'll be in sunny California.
Uhm. No.

I happened to remember some articles/reviews/advertisements on pop-up style travel beds. I got to Googling.
And found this:

For $55 I not only have a small, foldable, suitcase-totable, travel crib - I also have a shelter for play at the beach, and shade at summer soccer games. I'd call this a win.
It just arrived today. It's seriously cool. I'll give a review after we've used it a bit.

*Pinterest is on the verge of making me fat.
Recipes I've made in the last few weeks:

Kenny and I made these this afternoon. Holy Batman.
Make these if you like air.

Also mondo delicous. Hubband said the texture was a little off
from actual burger, (duh), but that he liked them.
I thought they were fantastic, but I'm crazy like that.

Beer mac 'n' cheese. Meh, good - but not I MUST EAT IT ALL good.
The addition of beer makes it runny - but gives decent flavor.
Try if you need something new in your life.

SO good. Perfect fall nightcap.
Really.

And finally, these:

I made a batch of these for dinner.
They were loved by all.
Also, I made some substitutions to make them a teensy bit healthier:
instead of regular flour - whole wheat flour
instead regular pepperoni - turkey pepperoni
instead of regular sausage - turkey sausage
instead of whole milk - 2%
instead of whole mozzarella - skim
and I skipped the parmesan. I felt that was just overkill.
So, the next day - I made a triple batch to throw in the boys' lunch boxes that week.
*Awesome mom award* Right here.

And, now, it's time to go pick up the other kid...

Bullets!

2011-10-19T07:56:00.000-07:00

I have to leave in about 20 minutes to pick up the Kenny, but we'll see what we can eek out bullet point style!

*I finished the boys' Halloween costumes. I cannot wait to reveal the finished products to the world. I'm not going to lie, they're freaking awesome. A mark of a good costume, in my opinion, is that people can tell what it is. You can totally tell they're a turkey vulture and a manta ray. {pats self on back}

*Less than a week until the Tough Mudder. I'll be perfectly honest - I'm nervous. You see, the boys thought it would be cool to see their mom jump over fire. Their mom thought it would be cool to run a race that was a little different than your normal half-marathon.
THEN I realized that one of the last obstacles is "Electroshock Therapy". Yes. They're going to electrocute me. Hubband and the boys intend to camp out there. Hopefully they get good pictures!

*This past weekend went by in a blur. Four soccer games and two photo shoots. I was flabbergasted when I realized that it was Sunday evening. So... I turned Monday into a "mental health day". Everybody stayed home and drank tea, ate vitamin C, and I cleaned. We all feel a little more refreshed.

AND!

One of my photo-shoots netted me a pair of shoes.

Hubband said he'd give me five dollars if I could get this shot:

Which, obviously, I did.

But what he really meant by five dollars was "you haven't bought a pair of shoes in about seven months. It's way past due".

So, now I have a new shiny pair of TOMS on their way to me. (Kenny has this pair coming and B-rox has this pair coming.) Perfect vacation to San Diego shoes, I think.

*I went shopping today, sans all coupons. (Waaaay tired, waaaay busy, and shopping on no coffee...) I wish I hadn't...

*I have other things I want to say - but I have to go wake Holdeezy up. So, consider this a to be continued.

Some cheese, Please?

2011-10-12T04:46:00.000-07:00

To go with my whine...

I don't have much time to blog and I'm WAY behind in reading the blogs in my reader. WAY behind. Hopefully nobody named me President of all that is Awesome and Shoes. Because I'd be lagging in my duties before I was even coronated. (Yes, I'd be coronated president.)

Luckily, I think the chances of that are pretty slim...

Anyway, in lieu of an actual blog post with substance, you know, like... words...

I'll do an iPhone dump!

Happy Birthday to MEEEEE!!!!!!
Thanks bestest!
Seriously awesome.
Not awesome?
Trying to figure out where to put it...

Just chillin' at soccer practice...

At Babies 'r' Us, Kenny and I needed to use the restroom.
He made me strap H down in this.
Because:
"It's like a little baby rocket ship!"

Getting ready to help me make
"Decorate your own funny face pancakes".

In his chef hat...
Yeah...

Pancakes before.
They were eaten too quickly to snap a picture of the after.
But there were bananas, apples, icing and sprinkles.
They looked awesome.
And were gobbled, so It's a win.

Fiber optic mohawks. Who needs cowbells with these things around?

Soccer Saturday.

Cold Soccer Saturday.

And, a pancake.

Yes. That is a cockatoo on her arm.
Yes. I took this picture while driving.

Mom's sunglasses fit SO well...

I might have the handsomest sons on the planet!

Face paint at a party.

This girl might be trying to dethrone me as
"favorite girl in B-rox's universe".

A big help.
Obviously.

A little Michelangelo, anyone?

We bought little pears from the farmers market on Sunday.

He thinks mowing them is pretty awesome.
And it is.

... Until he whittles it down to a small enough size
that he can shove the whole thing in his mouth.

I don't know if I've posted this...
But this is what happens when you let brothers dress brothers.
Then go to the dentist.

Picnic at the park. The entire dinner, they were quiet.
No joke.
B-rox's words as we packed up?
"Mom, that was just beautiful. I could just watch the waves for a long time."

That pretty much sums up the last little forever. Hope you enjoyed watching as much as I enjoyed living it all.

Teleportation. Where are we on that?

2011-10-01T12:44:00.000-07:00

Because I totally could have used it today. No, seriously. Here's a run-down of what I've done today:

5:15 am ~ Holdeezy wakes and wants to nurse. By the time the nursing session is over - my brain is no longer sleeping and I know that there are only 30 minutes until my alarm goes off. I forgo the bed and instead spend the next 30 minutes getting about halfway through this book:

It's pretty good. Not quite as good as "The Year of Living Bibically",
but that is because I'm not the biggest fan of essays or short stories.
I like becoming invested in my plot, and you just can't when they're only 20 pages long.
His wife does tell him to eff off. Which, like in the last book, I find hilarious.

6:00 am ~ Shower. I tried to shave, but it was too cold and I shaved off two strips of goose-pimples before I called it quits. I'll take a bath and crank the shower tunes in order to relax for tomorrow.

6:45am ~ Drive Mark to Reagan National, to pick up the rental car for the day. [We only own one car]
Drop Hubband off, head straight back down 95 for soccer pictures.

8:15 am ~ Show up at soccer pictures, only to realize I don't have my wallet and the Hubs is still en route with his. So, I have to scramble to figure out how to get Kenny's pictures taken and paid for so they won't be "voided". I don't need to add to the "middle child complex" he's already developing.

9:00 am ~ B-rox and Hubband show up. Hubband takes receipt of Kenny and heads off to his game. (9:30) I wait around while the CF that is team pictures goes on.

10:00 am ~ Holdeezy, B-rox and I head over to watch Kenny's game.

10:45 am ~ Kenny's game is over and it's freezing out. So Hubs and B-rox stick around for B's game at

11:00 am ~ while I take the other two to Starbucks for hot chocolate and then home to rest.

12:15 pm ~ B-rox and Hubband show up. Feed children.

1:00 pm ~ Load everyone back up in the car and drive the 24ish miles to National Harbor for Race Packet Pick-up. Everyone conks out on the way. Not me, obviously. If I had, I probably wouldn't be blogging about it.

3:00 pm ~ Back home. Time for some mac 'n' cheese and let the kids finish nap time. And start this post.

?:00 pm ~ Head out to the Nike/Under Armor/Sports Authority outlet for some running tights. Some SCHMO told me, up until this morning, that the weather would be sunny and 60. Well, folks, it's not. At. All. So now I have to cover my legs. Because cold skin covering jiggly fat pockets (pretty picture, right?) stings after a while and I don't need distractions during my 13.1 tomorrow morning.

So, now I'm off. To clean up Mac 'n' Cheese and go get running tights. That aren't orange. Therefore, not nearly as cool as my orange checkered shorts I was going to wear.

A better post.

2011-09-25T05:33:00.000-07:00

Friday morning, Hubband left to run RAGNAR 2011. A relay race from Cumberland Maryland to National Harbor Maryland.

He had legs 12, 24, and 36.

Pretty much the consensus was "two weeks is not enough time to train and then perform the way I'd like".

Leg 36. The Anchor leg.

Putting on his sexy face.
Fail.
However, his medal is a bottle opener.
Also, probably a personal weapon you don't need
a permit for.
It's the size of a Hershey bar, and weighs a pound!

You can almost smell the BO through the computer, right?
"Run Time Errors" Team 190

Nerds.

Then, while daddy was doing his thing (waiting for the van to come back,
we went down to the Awakening Statue.
B-rox didn't leave a part un-climbed. (Totally a word.)
(B is on his beard, here.)

"I built you a castle!"

Part lemur.

Also, hats? Easy way to spot your children on a busy playground.

He Didn't Get Run Over By A Car. Again.

2011-09-24T17:19:00.000-07:00

He finished.

Better post later.

An unexpected break.

2011-09-19T09:06:00.000-07:00

This weekend, our car broke down. Seriously. Our two-and-one-quarter-year-old-car broke. the eff. down.
{Edited to note: It turns out we just needed a battery. The battery was 1 year older than the car?!?!}
So, I have some unexpected time to blog. Since, you know, I can't play chauffeur like I do most days.

Mark and I made it a mission to spend as little time as possible at home over Labor Day weekend.

Thanks to Groupon and our yearly pass to the state park - that's what we did.

Here's day 1, of Labor Day weekend fun.

Groupon was offering tickets and hot dogs for half price to the local minor league team.
Since tickets are already mondo cheap, we really couldn't pass it up.

Maybe? Not sure about this baseball stuff, Ma.

Ignore my face.

The boys insisted I take a picture of the "really big tv"

This was the last regular season Saturday game.
They capped it off with fireworks.
Great way to end the season, in my opinion!

Then, post fireworks - the boys got to run the bases and earn free ice cream. Woot!

Good times, thanks Groupon.

Bear with me.

2011-09-12T08:57:00.000-07:00

I have several posts I intend to put up soon. As soon as:
1. I edit and deliver around 1,800 photos from the Arlington 9-11 Memorial 5k
2. I sleep a little bit.
3. I go shoe shopping. (it is my birthday week, after all)
4. I make cake pops with the boys

Also, you know - the other things. Soccer practice, dentist visits, food, running.

Why big brothers can't leave their lunch on the ground.

I'm off to work on that list!

Earthquakes, Hurricanes, Floods - What Next?

2011-09-09T04:00:00.000-07:00

And now, the entire east coast is on it's way to kill me, for jinxing things.

Here, the boys are channeling their inner Gene Kelly, in the driveway of our new riverfront property!
The stream is about 5 or 6 inches deep. This place is madness lately. Madness, I tell you.

Ah, weather. Don't you love it?

There are so many things I could title this.

2011-09-08T04:00:00.000-07:00

*"At least he's not the one with long hair."
*"Yes. It's all pink."
*"He's caught the fever."
*Whereupon the oldest realizes the world doesn't revolve around him."

Wrong sport for the Heisman...

Pink Ball.

Hahahaha! This picture just made me laugh.

Pink shoes.

Also, pink shin guards.

Pouting. Very angry he had to be there for a practice that wasn't his.

Telling some other brothers ALL about how mean I am.

He was pretty angry that his practice was "so so so so so so short". Other than that he's in love. Phew.

And Then There Was One...

2011-09-07T06:41:00.000-07:00

My two big boys went to school today.

I just can't wrap my brain around this right now.
So, instead of crying, I'll post pictures.

Favorite Food: Peanut Butter Banana Sandwich
Favorite Toy: Hotwheels
Favorite Song: "Twinkle Twinkle"
Favorite Movie: Tinkerbell
Doesn't Like: Thunderstorms
33 pounds, 41 inches

Favorite Food: Root Beer Floats
Favorite Toy: K'nex
Favorite Song: "The Princess Who Saved Herself"
Favorite Movie: Any Backyardigan Movie
Doesn't Like: Thunderstorms
2 Permanent teeth, 35 lbs, 42 inches

My one on one time with Holdeezy is not so one on one. Because this is his nap time. Alone time? Whoa...

Free fun. What more could you ask for?

2011-08-28T05:29:00.000-07:00

Are you a mom at her wit's end? Kids driving you crazy? Can't take another lap around your kitchen?

Well, I have the solution for you!

Look no further than...

Your freezer!!!!

Note. The baby has nothing to do with this.
Except, he was there.
And cute.
Therefore, deserving of precious memory space on my phone.

I took a bunch of random toys, put them in bowls of water - then froze them.

Then gave the boys a hammer, chisels, screw drivers, and hot water with squirties.

And let them spend the next two hours hacking away in order to "discover" their toys.

awww.

Say it with me this time:
"awwww".

No injuries. Yay!

"BofA - this is what I think of you owning my mortgage!"
"Om nom nom"

Baby sideeye.

Ahhh, free entertainment. Every mother's dream.

I LOVE YOUR FACE.

2011-08-27T05:18:00.000-07:00

If you are my friend in facespace. You've seen these. Feel free to tune out now.

Don't even get me started on that ankle...

When/if he decides to cut his hair - I will cry.

My green eyed guy.
Recessive genes FTW!

Any guesses as to my preferred brand of camera?

"I put up with this shiz because you feed me."

MAKE IT STOP!

Growling and being a lion.

Seriously? Seriously.
So. Stinking. Gorgeous.

Being a "super hero daddy"
Idolization of the fajah much?

Helping daddy pick out parts for his 'vette.

I can't do calculus.
I can't keep my bathrooms clean.
I can't sleep through the night.
I can't blow a decent reed on my clarinet anymore.
But damn, I am GREAT at making awesome looking kids.

Even when they do this.

OHHH MAAA GAAAAHHH!

2011-08-26T17:17:00.000-07:00

Well, hello. You've tuned in to totally random tidbits!

Except, they're not that random!

*I went on a 7 mile trail run today. While it rejuvenated my SOUL, it left my ankles asking me "why?" all day. In that nasally voice that kids do, except it was my ankles. So if you're picturing this - there is some serious stuff going on in your head. Stuff that defies physics.

Seen on my run today.
It also kind of defies physics.
I named it "Birdodileish".
Because it looks like the wayward child of a bird, crocodile, and fish.
Also, now you're trying to imagine those three things copulating.
Ew.

This doesn't defy physics.
It does defy the capabilities of my iphone, however.
This scene (lilies on the water) is much more gorgeous in person.
Promise.

Turn around point of my run. Also, one of the higher points in the area.
I pretended I was on Mt. McLoughlin.

Birds! I was actually lost at this point...
Luckily only for a moment.
But, I ate a spider web and had to stop and walk for a minute.
So, I took a picture of birds.

*I'm currently blogging while hubband finishes readying the house for the "STORM OF THE CENTURY". Because, apparently we haven't lived through enough of those since moving to the EC. (Which is what the cool kids call the east coast in case you were wondering.)
Snowmageddon. Earthquake. Now Hurricane.
Water jugs filled. Tea and coffee pre-made. Bread baking. Crank flashlights located, candles located. Cheap new (to us) board games. Blogs scheduled to post. We're ready, yo.

*I got new business cards today. I feel old. I feel official. (Officially old. Har. Har.) I would post a pic - but I don't feel like going into photoshop and cropping off the "sensitive" info. Because Season two of "Warehouse 13" came in today. I need to know how Artie fares.

*With that I'm going to leave you. By leave you, I mean I'm going to plunk down in front of the television and drool. Or, get blown into the ocean by Hurricane Irene. (We are nearly smack dab in between 2pm Saturday and 2am Sunday. Our house is in the 100k winds zone.) Should be a "fun"weekend...

I haz no phone, but I haz the interwebz.

2011-08-23T11:52:00.000-07:00

Excitement in our 'hood!

I'm still waiting to hear from Mark, but my guess is that he's ok. The boys and I are fine - though it did make for a rather exciting lunch...

We were in Red Robin, when I felt the "a truck is going by" rumbling, that lasted longer than a truck going by would. Since it felt like it was building, I told the boys to get under the table - to protect their noggins, in case the Three Stooges above them felt like careening from their place on the wall.
I ducked over the baby.

We made it through. Though, a couple of the TV's in Red Robin did not.

We've had some minor damage/disruption here in the love nest, but nothing serious.

As soon as I figure out a way to get a hold of Mark, I'll update here for y'all.
{Just got a hold of Mark. He's not trapped under a beam.}

C'est la mort.

2011-08-23T05:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon, after a rather ridiculous start to the day, I took the boys outside to play around a bit. We were out there for a good two hours. In that time, Thor decided to lay down the hammer and head back to Asgard.

I figured it would happen.

B-rox took it pretty well. In fact, I think I was closer to tears about it than he was. So, being the "awesome" parents we are - we packed up and went to Petsmart.

We now have a second tank, identical to the first, to house B-rox's new beta.

Meet Dragon Warrior.

The fish are ever entertaining.

But, I'd still rather have a pig.

Thor and Mohawk Warrior.

2011-08-20T07:45:00.000-07:00

Wednesday night we took the kids to the county fair.

We did the usual, eat old fashioned ice cream. Funnel cakes. Lemonade.

Watched a demoliton derby.

And then went to Wal-Mart.
Wait - what?
That's right. Wal-Mart.

We had to get a home for these guys:

Meet Mohawk Warrior

And Thor.

All the way home last night I heard "Mom, drive carefully. We have special pets in the car." "Mom, watch where you're going - we need to get these guys home safely."
Seriously.

The thing is, I'm stressed out of my mind about these things.
I don't want to have another death conversation. The last one is still taking it's toll on my brain.
Unfortunately, I don't think Thor is long for this world.
I could be wrong. Goldfish have been known to do some weird stuff. But I know it's not normal for a goldfish to not to swim around. I know it's not normal for it to just roll from side to side on the bottom of the tank. I know it's not normal for it to slowly "glub glub" like it's begging me for help seconds before the Thermal Cleaning goes off.
C'est la vie. Except, what's the french word for "death"? Because it's more "c'est la death".

We officially have pets. Hopefully they fare better than plants in my house...

In the absence.

2011-08-19T04:18:00.000-07:00

In the absence here on the blog, this has been the "happenings".

I had my hair done.
Bliss. Seriously. Bliss.

4 hours later, here's a car picture.
It doesn't do it justice.
I'm blonde again.
With a bit of "GO BEAVS"
Because it's almost football season!

Brotherly love has continued to blossom.

Holdeezy sleeps in the crib now.
Though, still wakes multiple times a night.
Gah.
Baby steps. Baby. Steps.

Aunt and Uncle Sneaky made the day with new
Superhero shirts.

The baby took to eating glue. Because he heard
sniffing it could stunt your growth.

We ate one of the best eggplants ever.

I met new friends on a run.

Fell in love with the state park down the road a little more.
Sunrise run along the beach?
Yes, please.

It's been confirmed that he's in the running for
"Worlds happiest baby in the history of the world".

We made our own water cycle.

Which gave us two days of discussions on:
Pollution.
Food Chains.
Water cycles.
Thank goodness for Science Experiment books!

It's been fun 'round these parts.

Date Night.

2011-08-18T07:18:00.000-07:00

With this guy!

The B-rox "took" me out to see "Glee, the Movie Concert" on Tuesday. He said he wanted to do it "just because it would make me happy".
(Truthfully, letting him take me and think he was making me happy is what made me happy.)

The movie was... interesting. Obviously, I'm a big ol' Gleek - but I'm not sure I needed to spend $30 to go see the songs I've seen on the show.

However, when Braxton is married - and treats his partner like royalty - they can thank me. I'm training them early.

He opened doors, shared his popcorn, and was most courteous all night.
Thanks B-rox. I had a great night. I love your nose.

I'm Laura Ingalls Wilder, Yo. I mean, Y'all.

2011-08-10T04:36:00.000-07:00

Recently we've been making some changes. Some big, some small. But changes none the less.

One of them, is getting back to purchasing local fruits and veggies. We were members of a CSA for about 1.5 years, but due to the structure of the program near us - it wasn't working out. So we stopped and went back to buying our produce at the grocery store. It didn't really take long before I was once again immensely frustrated by the cost, the quality, and the stickers that all said something like "from Chile", "from Argentina". No wonder the quality sucks. No wonder the tomatoes resemble more of a sponge than a beautiful tomato. No wonder the apples are bruised and mushy. No wonder the broccoli is already flowering. Gah.
Lucky for us, one of the best farmers markets in the state is just a mile and a half away.

Our first trip looked like this:

60lbs of produce for $55.
All local, all deeelish!
Also, all of that produce (except the onions)
was gone by Saturday.
So, no, we didn't over buy.

I made a huge batch of salsa for our neighborhood block party with a quarter of the tomatoes. The others I turned into a batch of my own pasta sauce!
I couldn't find a single recipe for home made pasta sauce that didn't say "now dump in two cans of tomatoes". Seriously. NOTHING. Not one recipe could take me from tomato to spaghetti. So, I wung it. {It's make up your own grammar day.}

First step:
dump the tomatoes in boiling water for about 4 minutes.
Then drain, and take off skin.

Step 2:
Put tomatoes back in the pot.
Add (home made) veggie broth, onions, garlic,
peppers, seasonings.

Step 3:
Let simmer and stew for 2[ish] hours. until reduced and saucy.
See the line of where it used to be?

Step 4:
Use a portion to make eggplant parm.

This past week, we bought 40lbs of peaches and last night I spent the evening washing, peeling and slicing them. Then, we put them into freezer bags {time to get a vacuum sealer set up.} and will be able to enjoy them through "The Long Winter". [In case you're wondering - 40 lbs makes enough to eat fresh peaches for a week and then about 20 quarts of sliced peaches.]

Other things I've done with our farmer's market hauls:

Zucchini Canoes.
Yum. Like, times a million.

Zucchini sticks.
Mix panko, parmesan and italian seasoning.
Coat sticks, bake.

Jalapeno Hush puppies.
Follow recipe.
Watch your arteries cry.
But enjoy every single second of it.

We had "appetizer" night. The zucchini sticks, the hush puppies, and various fruits. Eaten on a blanket while discussing some family plans. Which mostly consisted of us telling the boys we're cancelling their birthday party...

Now, I just need to learn to can and I'm set. A true pioneer... or something.

For those who care.

2011-08-08T06:54:00.000-07:00

I got my new camera last week. Oh my goodness. I'm. In. Love. I wasn't sad at all to see my other camera go. Though, that may have had more to do with the fact I sold it for $175 than anything else...

So, I spent a lot of time researching a new camera. There are a lot out there. Luckily, the fact that I already have an incredible $800 dollar Nikon lens helped me narrow my choices down... To Nikon.

Eventually the wallet allowed me to get the one I've been drooling over for a while. The D7000. It's fantastic, and lives up to every five-star review on the interwebz. (I only read a couple of less than five-star reviews - and most of them were complaints about shipping time, not the camera itself.)

I decided to take a sunset walk with the fam to flex it's low-light capability muscles.
Here's what I got.

f5.6
ISO 800
(Don't remember shutter speed...but it wasn't slow.)
The sun was completely set 13 minutes later.
Not a lot of light - and LOOK at this!
The only editing was some contrast fixes in camera.

I'm in love. Thanks Hubband.

Saturday Silly.

2011-07-30T04:00:00.000-07:00

Quick background:

B-rox reads. Everything. Anything. He reads - period. (Is it redundant to put the period after I wrote period?)

His Gramma and Pa-hat bought him his favorite book last summer, "Reptiles and Amphibians". It's a four hundred page book on just about every reptile or amphibian on Earth. He reads page by page - and can recall just about any fact he's read. Trust me, I've tried calling his bluff. He can flip to the page, shove it in your face and say "told you so" quicker than the Sahara can melt ice.

Conversation between the boys:
Kenny: Why do mommy's have to have big boobs to feed babies?

B-rox: Well, I was reading about the Frilled Neck Lizard the other day and I think it's their defense against predators.

Uhm... Yeah.
My kids need to worry if boobs are my defense against predators. Because, if you had to rank my "defenses" on a scale of McLovin' to Vin Diesel - I'm a Paul Rudd. No lie.

What's on their mind?

2011-07-29T04:00:00.000-07:00

I like to "interview" my kids every now and then. I think it helps me get to know them better. Because kids change ALL the time. I sit down during quiet moments and ask them random questions. I've never thought to write it down before because I've always felt like it was sort of a personal exercise between us. Then Hubband and I had a conversation about a fourth(?) grade project where he said he wanted to have three kids and drive a mini-van. (He's SOL on that particular notion.) It's fun to look back on that stuff and see how you changed throughout the years.

So this morning, during my "coffee time", which is usually their "entertain yourself" time, they sat on my lap and we interviewed. They call it the "imagination game". I took notes on my phone and am glad I've decided to write it down. They're not going to want to miss some of the answers that that hour on my lap produced.

1. If you could be an animal - what would you be?
B: An Orangutan. Because I like the name and how they have really long arms.
K: A chicken. Because I like how they go bok bok bok and I like to eat eggs.

2. If you could go on vacation right now, where would you go?
B: Africa. That place is cool.
K: Starbucks, then McDonalds, then Panera. {Hungry much?}

3. If you could be a piece of clothes - what would you be. (what color, what's on it and why?)
B: A shirt. It would be yellow with ghosts on it. It would be a zip up short sleeved, because it's hot in Africa.
K: Shoes with rocketships. So I can go fast.

4. If you had to eat one food every day for all your breakfasts, lunches, and dinners - what would it be?
B: Bananas. Because orangutans like bananas.
K: Macaroni and cheese. Because it's my favorite. You make it awesome, mommy.

5. If you could be a plant or a rock, what would you be and why?
B: Rock. Because I'd be a whistling rock. That would be my defense against predators. {Rocks have predators???}
K: Plant. Because I'd be a blue plant. Plants are alive, not dead like rocks.

6. If you could drive - what kind of car would you drive?
B: An off road racer. Because I like to go off-road and I like to do it fast.
K: A fast car. Like a Corvette. So I can match Daddy.

7. If you could have a pet - what kind of pet would you have?
B: A bug. Half ladybug - half butterfly. I'd call it a lady fly.
K: A zebra. I'd ride it to work and black and white are awesome colors.

8. What do you want to be when you grow up?
B: A rockstar that sings about crazy stuff.
K: An astronaut. {In light of the recent NASA developments - I prompted him to give me another answer.}
A Table.

9. How much does that job pay?
B: $165 an hour {Must be an indie artist...}
K: $55 dollars an hour to be a table. {Maybe I need to look into this being a table thing...}

10. Where do you want to live when you grow up?
B: In Borneo for a while. Then when I'm old I'll move to Nigeria.
K: At home with mommy and daddy.

11. Do you want kids?
B: Yes. 95 girls. All twins. {A Siamese in there somewhere then?} 20 boys. All twins. {At least he's cutting his baby momma's work in half?}
K: Yes. One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten. (On his fingers) All sisters.

I like my kids. They're funny.

Thursday Thidbits.

2011-07-28T04:00:00.000-07:00

Tidbits are for Tuesdays. THidbits are for Thursdays.

The other day some pre-paving work was going on behind our house.
I woke the boys up from their nap to sit out on the deck.
AND eat ice cream with cookies on top.
I am the coolest mom, ever.
Ok, maybe not.

I'm not sure how I feel about this, but B-rox has
decided that he LOVES coffee.
He steals it, sneaks it
and on the weekends gets a couple of ounces.
Here's the kicker:
He likes it black.
(No "Airplane" jokes, please.)

Last weekend we were looking for something fun to do after dinner.
Couponing to the rescue!
Rango had a $5 dollar off the video coupon.
Safeway had a special where:
Buy the "Rango" dvd or blu-ray get:
Free box of Pop-secret
Free bag of Hershey's kisses
Two Free Lipton teas.
Plus, an extra $3 dollars off the video.
Total: $38 dollars.
We paid: $19
Yay family movie night.
Even if the tea was disgusting.

Paving day!
(Finally)
Steamrollers, dumpers, skid steers - OH MY!

Little brothers are awesome, right?
(Braxton asked if he could put his head there so Holdeezy could grab his hair.)

Random picture of a Beluga Whale. It mysteriously
appeared in my photo album on my phone
while Hubband was documenting my Tri.
Weird.

At the Firefly Festival, learning to roll down a hill.
Because this kind of stuff is important.
They ask whether you can or not on college applications.

"Look Mom, I'm a big boy too!"

Tradition.

2011-07-27T04:00:00.000-07:00

All my kids get baths in the sink. They just do.

I think he enjoyed it...

2011-07-26T04:00:00.000-07:00

I picked up this water table at Target the other day for 60% off. Just $20! (I also got a GIANT amount of the boys' Christmas shopping done in this particular clearance sale. Score one for a less stressful holiday/birthday season.)

Lolz. That's all I can come up with.

It's a hit.

I love that they can be near me - but not underfoot during dinner time.
Thank you Target, for the awesome steal.
Now, if only this heat wave would go away so they can handle being outside
more than 10 minutes at a time...

I love sales...

I can haz blueberries?

2011-07-25T04:00:00.000-07:00

Yes, I can!

I've Teased You Enough...

2011-07-19T17:25:00.000-07:00

Where does the time go???? Seven months already??? Geesh.

Happiest baby, ever.

"Squeeeeeeeee"

West Coast is the shit, man.

Last month he was 17.5 lbs.
26 inches long?
He sits, rolls, and laughs at everything.
He has four teeth.
He loves, apples, bananas, avacados, blueberries, pears and pizza. (No. Not joking...)
He does not like cucumbers or watermelon.
He loves to say "mama". He sings it, screeches it, says it, mumbles it. It's all about the mama.
He sleeps better at night now. But he's still in his Rock 'n' play, because he refuses to sleep lying on his back. He also has comandeered our bathroom as his bedroom. I know it will eventually end, so I'm just trying to remain chill about our unusual sleeping arrangement. Somedays, it's easier than others.

Towards the end in this video, you can hear Hubband ask "who is this?". He was pointing to me. Holdeezy knows and loves his mama!
(Ok, maybe not. But - please don't burst my bubble!)

Friday Fill-In. Woot.

2011-07-15T12:28:00.000-07:00

Blogger is being a juice-box and won't upload the video I want to upload to finish off H's 7 month pictures post. So, I plan to wow you with a Friday Fill-in.
By wow, I mean - you clicked on my blog by accident - right?

Well, I'm gettin' right down to it.

1. If you could have a private concert with any singer, who would it be? submitted by An Air Force Wife’s Blog

Bare Naked Ladies.
No, not a porn concert - the band. They've been a favorite since I was a youngin' . (Though, my parents questioned whether or not they should let me have a band with such a scandy name - despite the un-scandy lyrics.)

2. Is there anything you do to supplement your family’s income? submitted by Our Life, One Adventure at a Time

I take on the occasional family portrait session. I don't do it often, and it doesn't pay great - but I love it.
Mostly, though, I'm just a drain on the pocket book. Or, that's what I'm told. Excel spreadsheet what?

3. During your pregnancy (whether past, present, or future), what did you nickname your unborn baby before you knew the sex? submitted by Explosions of Love

The first was named Gus Gus. An homage to Hubband's lineage. Because pregnancy nickname was as far as we were going to go with Gustav. Plus, the mouse in Cinderella is adorable.
The second was Thing 2. If you've never read "The Cat in the Hat" you need to skip yourself back to pre-school and learn up. Yo.
The third was called baby DinoZore. Because that's what the first two wanted to name him. Also, because we didn't tell anyone what the name was until he was actually here.

4. Have you ever won a blog giveaway? If so what did you win? submitted by Mrs. O’s Life

Yes. It turns out, that taking away my luck getting pregnant has channeled my luck into other areas. More specifically, winning give-aways.
I've won a ring, a Panera Gift Card, and a cloth Diaper. I was notified of the first win (ring) while I was waiting for my epidural in the hospital. (ThankyoubabyJesusforthechangeinluckandnomorebabiesAMEN!)

5. If I looked into your refrigerator right now, what would I find? submitted by Married to the Army

Two drawers and a shelf full of produce. A gallon of iced tea. (unsweet, because simple syrup is GROSS.) Woodchuck hard cider. Milk. Cheese. V8 V-fusion. Yogurts. Lunch Meat. Tortillas. That's about it. Not much else will fit...

I WAS going to post about Holdeezy turning Seven months, but I'm posting about this, instead.

2011-07-14T12:13:00.000-07:00

My day has been interesting so far. Not bad. Just interesting.

*The boys, of course, were up too early. After talking to themselves in their beds until 9:30 pm.

*Coffee, laundry, and breakfast - all before 7:30am.

*Bought the Papa Petrone's groupon. I love me some scramble bread!!!

*Showered, Dressed, facespaced, pinterested, and then left to run some errands.
I had seen a super sale on running gear at Dicks and had to check it out. I managed to score a $70 dollar pair of compression shorts for $16. WIN!
The boys have been saving their "allowance" in order to purchase a Captain America Shield and a Real Thor Hammer. Also, managed to get my favorite mascara and eyeliner for just $5. Hubband can now stop saying things like "It costs too much money for you to make yourself pretty for other people."

*While out on errands, I gave one of my fruit and nut bars to a homeless guy. Who gave it back, because "he doesn't eat that shit". (His sign, ironically - said "will do anything for money, or food".) His wife/partner/sister/mother snatched it back from me and said "ignore the douche bag, thank you and God Bless".

*Then The B-rox told "the most funniest joke in the world" Q: What do you call a potato and a shoe? A: A shoe potato. Both boys lost their breath laughing. I was definitely missing something there.

*On the way into Target, the lady in the car across from me noticed the rosary I have dangling from my rearview mirror. She politely informed me "Catholicism is a sin, and I can show you the true Jesus Christ." I said nothing. I really wanted to tell her to eff off, but that wouldn't be very christian - now would it? Also, Hubband would be mad if I taught them that word. On pinterest, I recently saw a button that said "If only closed minds came with closed mouths". I let out a little "Amen" when I read it.

*In Target I had a really nice conversation with a really old lady about how I should keep trying for a little girl. Explaining to her that I can't have any more kids did nothing to deter her from her opinion. Then we discussed how she thinks it's stupid that all of the personal hygiene items are in one section of Target. Except for the hair care. Which is halfway across the store. I agree. Though, not because my hips can't handle that much walking...

*Walking out of Target - the boys and I almost got Linda Blaired. There was a girl (probably 10 or 11 years old) who had an incredibly upset stomach. She was just outside of the exit puking up her guts - towards the exit, instead of away and bawling. While her mother and older sister just squealed "eeeewwww, gross, OMG". I handed the poor girl some wipes, turned her away from the exit, told her I hoped she felt better soon and I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do about her whack of a mother. Completely erasing my good karma moment from earlier. C'est la vie. She stopped crying, thanked me and tried to clean herself up while she puked her way to the car. As her mother squealed, "You're not getting in my car until you knock that off", behind her.

*And now I'm home. Preparing for my trip to the post office today. Because, well... You never know what you're going to find there...

*A bird flew into my window just now. I hate birds.

Time to get back to laundry.
Because this is what the kid wore to bed last night.
Christmas Jammies that are too small... So they're only pulled halway up his rear,
And his St. Patrick's day onesie.

Video 1: Happy Velocibaby.

Video 2: I'm a bear!

Yes. These videos are mostly for the enjoyment of the Grammas. Though, that doesn't mean you can't think he's the cutest baby in the whole wide world! {because, I do}

Buffalo Chicken Bites.

2011-07-13T15:54:00.000-07:00

I recently jumped the Pinterest bandwagon. The plethora of new ideas out there is amazing. Uh-MAZE-inG!

There was a recipe for Buffalo Chicken Bites that swam my way and I decided to run with it. Except - I never looked at the recipe. I just looked at the picture and said "I can do that".

And, I did. Because, the Hubband loves buffalo chicken and needed some show of luvin's.

Sadly - I didn't shoot the finished product. We were so hungry we made those things disappear like David Copperfield.

Here's what I did.

Boiled the chicken in a broth, then let cool and had the boys shred it.
Then I heated the shredded chicken with some sharp cheddar, bleu cheese and "Franks Buffalo Hot Sauce". I popped a top on a Woodchuck Hard Cider.
Finally, I wrapped that in some Pillsbury crescent roll stuff, then baked.

Now, Hubband is full, happy, and willing.
To buy me an entry into this race. ~~muahahahahahahahahaha!~~

Yes. My shirt IS on backwards.

2011-07-10T11:18:00.000-07:00

(This post may contain graphic photos...)

Today was T-Day.

The day of my triathlon.

Packed, organized and ready to go!

Chattin' it up with friend in transition, pre-race.

The boys and my Hubband made this race for me. They were awesome.
I feel loved, supported and encouraged to continue.
Thanks boys.

Graphic photo coming up!

In the queue (Why is it spelled like that? Seriously?)
[le sigh. I used to have decent legs...]

And. I'm off.

I'm not completely sure how I feel about the pool snake swim.
But do you see those three guys right behind me?
They ALL decided to pass me. AT THE SAME TIME.
Do you know how they did it?
By swimming ON TOP of me.
I lost a bit of time there, obvs.

Not completely thrilled with the swim.
Also, not in focus...

Bike portion.

I'm an animal!
I borrowed this bike from a friend. She was SO awesome to let me borrow it. Truly.
I have now learned why I need an actual road bike or Tri-bike if I plan to continue this.
[into transition 2]

Out of transition 2.

FINISH LINE IN SIGHT!
[thank you baby Jesus.]

I finished at 1:19. 56 - or something like that.

Swim - 11 minutes. (NOT a good time, and slower than I was expecting.)
Bike: 38 minutes. (7 minutes faster than my goal. If I get a lighter bike, I might get faster yet!)
Run: 26 minutes. (Exactly at target speed. For a half marathon. Owell.)

I ranked One-hundred-somethingth [lower end of the 100's] out of almost four hundred. 385?
I placed 8th in my age group.

I feel tired now.
But, I've learned a lot. (Like, don't take a gel you've never taken before. It *might* make you puke half a mile into the run){ok, it totally made me puke.}
Also, next time I'm not even going to bother putting a shirt on...

Stealing a moment.

2011-07-07T16:21:00.000-07:00

With the computer. That I just turned on four minutes ago.

As my mother so nicely pointed out in a text today - I have not apprised people of Kenny's sitch.

He has a green stick fracture. I'll explain in a later post what that is.
He is NOT in a cast, they've decided splinting is the best way to do it. (Idiots)
He seems to be healing very quickly - which is putting my mind at ease about their prophecies of tissue damage.
We'll re-assess in two weeks.
Lindsay, in answer to your instacare question: We are tri-care. We pay $0 for any ER visits made. Wait times can be a pain in the ass, but it's literally across the street from our house - so mondo convenient.

That is all I can write right now. I'm going to steal these next few moments to actually take a breath.
Before Hubband goes back to work for the night.

They're DONE!

2011-07-05T04:00:00.000-07:00

The fans! Yay! One step closer to a finished bedroom! I'm sure in another two years, when we get ready to move - we'll have them done.

For some reason, anytime I was working on this fan - I sang "Pocahontas" songs.

Thanks, Karen - for the genius idea. I'm still trying to figure out the last few finishing touches for it all - but it's up and Braxton LOVES it.

For Kenny's we just painted it silver. There was too much color on the wall to put any on the fan as well. Don't want to cause a seizure or something.
When it's spinning (as you can see) it looks a bit like a UFO. When it's still it looks like the space station... or something.

Our Golden Age Has Ended.

2011-07-02T12:11:00.000-07:00

I have been a mom for exactly 5 years, 6 months and 4 days.

In that time, I've never taken one of my children to the ER for an injury. Illness, yes. Injury no.

Today, that golden age ended.

Thursday, Kenny jumped off the fourth stair - trying to show me how big he has gotten. It went wrong. I remember thinking, "Ah geez, this kid is going to break something at this rate."
All day Thursday, all day Friday he limped and kept telling me his foot hurt. When your three year old is consistently limping and complaining about the exact same spot - you know something is up. This morning, he seemed to be doing better - until he went for a "run" with his dad. He was returned not even five minutes later limping even more.

So we went to the ER.

Portable X-rays are awesome!

Except when they determine you won't be spending much time at the pool this summer.

Waiting for the nurse to come and splint his leg.

We saw the x-rays. There's a pretty obvious break in his ankle - along with a lot of swelling in the area. However, the ER doctor is apparently not a "specialist" and didn't want to cast him without the advice of one. Also, there wasn't a radiologist on call (what hospital ED doesn't have a radiologist?) so for now, until Tuesday, he's in a splint and wrapped up.
Tuesday we'll take him in for a second opinion and see where we go from there. Most likely he ends up in a cast for the next 4-6 weeks.
Crossing our fingers for not...
Because I don't know how I'll manage that one. I'm overwhelmed just thinking about it. Also, I have a race next week. It will be interesting to see how Hubband manages the three trolls at the race while I'm busy...

Diamonds used to be coal, ya know.

2011-07-01T08:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I was wearing a necklace that has a trilobite pendant.

trilobite.
i.e. a fossilized bug.

I happen to love rocks and fossils, so this necklace has been a favorite for about the last twelve years.

While wearing it yesterday - I had this conversation with a lady:

[Holdeezy was playing with it while in his carrier]

Lady: Oh, thats an interesting pendant - what is it?
Me: A trilobite
Lady: Uh... what is that?
Me: A fossilized bug.
Lady: Oh, your husband couldn't afford a real gem?
Me: Uhhmmmm..... I've had it for 12ish years. My husband didn't get it for me. {Side note: he doesn't buy jewelry.}
Lady: Oh, then why do you wear it?
Me: Uhmmmm.... because I like it????

Now, it's one of those little fossilized bugs - a little smaller than a quarter and on a very simple silver chain. Nothing crazy or gaudy or really all that weird. (it's even darker and less defined than the picture) Except that I'm not wearing a gemstone - I'm wearing a fossilized bug. Which, is pretty cool. Especially when you think about the fact that diamonds used to be coal! I'd rather wear bugs than coal.

{Also, why do I meet all the weirdos sans filters?}

To the Winds.

2011-06-30T06:41:00.000-07:00

*I officially have 10 days and 1 wake up until the triathlon. Yesterday was my toughest bike ride yet and I impressed myself. My running has also been going pretty well, so at least two thirds of it should be relatively straight forward.

In hopes to make the transitions and swim a teensy bit easier - I scored a schwaggle deal and got this and a couple of other items for just $40.
Bikini? You say? Yes. Here's my thought process:
I don't want to change completely in the first transition (from water to bike). Mostly because it's a pretty short race and two because I'd rather ~~scare the shit out of everybody~~ prance around in a bikini, than try to change out of my suit and have the towel fall off and ~~kill someone~~ blind somebody with that ~~awful sight~~ extreme not Marissa Miller-ness.

Wish me luck with it all. I'm going to need it, I think.

*I tried to sign up for Pinterest. There is a waiting list. Communists.
But I did do some browsing. Oh man, the projects I want to do...

*

I love how well together these three play.

Call me crazy, but I dig this picture. It feels peaceful.

These are a few of the other shots from our day at the park with some friends. I love the parks around us. Especially this one. Trails, beach, playground, picnic area, boat ramps - everything. It's awesome and only two miles from my house.

*Kenny's fan is done and installed. I'll post pics when I finish B-rox's. They're awesome. No lie.

*We also completed tie-dye shirts. I'm addicted. Apparently the "Grateful Dead loving, tie-dye wearing" hippie trait is genetic. I get it from my mother. No joke, I used to wear her shirts as nightgowns and several of them were concert T's. She is awesome.
Pics of the shirts forthcoming in another post.

*Next project? A volcano.
Any advice?

Life's a beach.

2011-06-29T04:00:00.000-07:00

Holden looks adequately frightened.

Holdeezy is trying to figure out how to get my thumb in his mouth without me knowing.

Cutest. Boys. Ever.

Somebody taught my kid the finger mustache.

I'll agree B-rox, your baby brother's head does look like a vanilla ice cream cone.
That does not mean we should lick it.

We're still in the appropriate month.

2011-06-28T09:14:00.000-07:00

To do Holdeezy's six month pictures.

My favorite.

We've made it half a year.
The time flies.
Where did his five month pictures go? Nowhere. I never took them. Woops.

Flotsam and Jetsam

2011-06-24T15:43:00.000-07:00

Not those awful eel things in "Little Mermaid", though.

We have sitting!!!!

And, dragons.

This, amazingly - looks JUST like my daddy.
Before he had kids, that is.
(He's a little more... gray, now)

B-rox insisted I blog about his cars.
So here it is.
For 79 cents, you really can't beat these as a "treat".

MINE!!!!!!

Just bits and pieces.

Is it September yet?

2011-06-23T12:00:00.000-07:00

This guy is ready. Are you?

Seriously. I need me some football.

Brotherly Love. But not Philly.

2011-06-22T12:00:00.000-07:00

They were peaceful and quiet.

It was a frickin' miracle, yo.

In a Pinch!

2011-06-21T15:38:00.000-07:00

Argh ye matey's!

Unfortunately, my kids have giant noggins and they lost interest in their self-designed "pirate" hats pretty quickly because they wouldn't stay on.
Bunny Cow and Ray Ray are still sporting theirs, however.

Entertainment In-Lap.

2011-06-20T04:00:00.000-07:00

We've been having some wonky weather so I've had several barometrically induced ankle aches. During one this past weekend, I was trying desperately to entertain a very tired baby. IN my lap, so I could keep the rice pack on my ankle and not cry.

He's a natural for the self-portraiture and I also expect to see him on youtube here in the near future.

The iPhone 4 has that nifty turn the camera around for emo shots.
Babies find themselves very entertaining.
"DAMN THAT BABY IS HANDSOME!"

"Pssst. Mom's a creeper."

"This guy is funny."

"Just a little adjustment here..."

"Do a little dance, make a little love... get milk tonight."

"Self timer fail."

"Dad, you're so silly. Looking."

"Oh crap! I let my head get away from me!"

"I'm back and awesome as ever."

I'm not sure who was more entertained. Him or me?

Of Shoes and Ships and Ceiling Wax.

2011-06-17T17:40:00.000-07:00

Actually. Just ships and ceiling fans. No shoes? Gasp, faint...

I have a dilemma. A crafty dilemma.

You see, I'm not. And I've undertaken a "be crafty and original" project. It wouldn't be so bad - except, I've been watching Karen just pull stuff out of her ear, or maybe nose to decorate her house with and it looks beautiful.
Along with other bloggers that are making this pretty or "hey, look at this - I just farted and my living room looks awesome" or "I just got the inspiration for this room from watching my baby eat spaghetti".
Seriously. I'm not like that.
At. All.

So, here's the dilemma. I have a husband who adores ceiling fans. In fact, that was our "anniversary present". A new ceiling fan.
[I hate fans. All fans. Except this one. The noise they make as their little blades cut the air hurts my ears. No joke. I also hate pencils. I decided when I was seven I never wanted to be a teacher because I hate pencils and I couldn't handle a whole class of pencils.]
Insert ridicule.

Now, moving on.

As far as ceiling fans go, this one isn't bad.
The wooden planks are a near perfect match to our floors, and the white and brushed silver are carried throughout the entire living room/house. It's also not "grannyish" in style, so it gets props. Which, is kind of what it looks like. A plane propeller. Or, a daisy that's on it's last few "love me, love me nots".

Anyway, we bought two, builders grade, white fans for the boys' rooms.

Uh, this fan to be exact. Not ezzactly awesome.
Yet.

{Quick refresher of the boys' rooms}

Spoiled much?
(The treasure map wall has seen many improvements. That wall was my one piece of genius.)

I'm trying to find some {cheap} fishnet stuff to hang on the ceiling in here.
Hence the un-touched up space around the Co2/smoke detector.

Yes. Yes they are.

So, the dilemma is turning those fans into something that will jibe with the room, but not make the room cross the line from "awesome" to "garish".
Yes, that green is already garish. If you are a parent and you let your 3.5 year old pick the color for his room - you have to be prepared for something like this. He wears sunglasses at night.

Anyway, this is what I'm thinking. (Open to ALL suggestions. If I don't pick yours - don't be butt-hurt. I'm just looking for some inspiration to strike gold with this project.)
I'm considering painting the body of Kenny's silver. I was considering making the whole thing silver, and trying to figure out how to make it look like a jet engine - but then I realized jets don't go into space. Rockets do. Idea fail.
I'm going to paint the blades... I don't know. But we're thinking of stamping stars/rockets/moons/aliens... on the blades. (NOT original at. all.)

We have NO idea which direction to head on B-rox's. Nothing but some jolly roger-esque things and frankly, I believe that's already pretty played out in the room.

Please help. Plleeeeez.
And thank you. In advance.

Baby Yoga.

2011-06-17T04:14:00.000-07:00

It takes work to be the baby.

Gotta stay limber.

Also, when paci can't be found - toes will make an acceptable substitute.

No, I don't edit my iphone pictures. Deal with the crappy quality.

VelociBaby.

2011-06-16T09:14:00.000-07:00

All night.

All day.

This is what I listened to:

And this is what I saw:

Fulfilling his nickname "Baby DinoZore".

He is of the Velocibaby species - and sounds similar to his raptor cousin from Jurassic Park.

At least Hubband brought home gummi-bears...

Do you get paid $150 an hour?

2011-06-14T11:04:00.000-07:00

No? Interesting.

I don't really either. But that's how I write it in my head so I feel important. I'm going to share another couponing post with you, because there have been several more questions asked. It turns out, people like to save money and I've been saving money - they want my secrets.

So, here is a last installment of how I coupon. I don't want to get boring- but here I'll address questions asked about how I do things along with this weeks savings. (read the title... should give you a clue.)

This weeks inserts separated and organized.

This weeks coupons clipped ready to be put into my binder.
(Stripey thing to my left)
Yes, there are more coupons than pages. Front and back people, front and back.

This took me an hour. One hour ten minutes including putting the coupons into the binder.

While I'm organizing - I make mental notes of the coupons that are for stuff we need the most. This week's offerings had a lot of cleaning supplies. So, I made a quick note of my favorites.

Then, I sit down with the store weekly circulars. I compare prices in the circular to the coupons I have and decide which stores are going to be my best bet. (Note: most products go on sale in 3-4 month cycles. With coupons corresponding to said sales.)

Also, online at krazycouponlady.com She'll list outrageous deals she comes across. I peruse there occassionally, as well.

After Sunday's work of 1 hour 10 minutes:

Total before coupons: $290.00
I paid: $130.00
Savings: $160.00

Favorite Deals:
Chi Chi's tortillas = Free. (Regular price79 cents. Coupon for 50 cents that the store doubles 'til zero.)
Raisin Bran and Shredded Wheat = $1.00 a box
Tie-dye Kits = $9.00 (big one normally $29.99 I got it for $3.97 small one normally $9.99 I got it for $4.99)
Crystal Light = $1.10 a box. (Normally $3.99 a box)

The bread, produce, granola, sun chips, bagels, and milk were not on sale, nor did I have coupons. Which greatly increased my total.

Also, The hotdogs freeze. (And by hotdogs, I mean ball park turkey dogs. No fillers, less fat, less sodium. Yum.) We eat hot dogs (because the boys get to choose a meal now and again) about once a month. We now have enough for the rest of the year, at only $1.50 a pack vs. the normal $4.99 a pack.

Air fresheners: Buy one refill - get one warmer free. Refills on sale for $1.50, normally $3.00. Boys stink.

Other notes:
Buy the smallest size possible. Take the shampoo for instance. Normally $3.49 for that size. On sale for $1.99 with a $1 off coupon. Making each bottle 99 cents.
The bigger size was normally $5.49 on sale for $3.49 with a $1 off coupon, would make each bottle $2.49. The difference in ounces was only 8. (16 oz vs. 24 oz) Where as for another 99 cents, you'd double the amount of shampoo that you have and still have spent 49 cents less.

Also, all of my unused/expired coupons are sent to families stationed over seas. They can use expired coupons at the BX/PX/NEX/Commissary for up to six months after they expire.

Yay Savings!!!

And that is how I get paid $150 an hour.

Weekend Mornings.

2011-06-13T11:55:00.000-07:00

Are brutal. But not for me. For my hubband.

"Awwww, daddy is so cute when he's asleep."

"I'll let him catch a few more z's and eat on Orange Bear."

"Screw this. I'm awake. Nobody sleeps when the BABY is awake!"

Since giving birth to Kenny, Hubband has taken the weekend shift and normally lets me catch a little more sleep. About the time we decided to split the weekends, was about the time the boys decided they liked ~~getting ice cream for breakfast~~ seeing daddy in the morning instead of me and revolted. They would just holler while I was down there with them until Hubs decided it wasn't worth trying to stay in bed anymore. Voila weekends are mine.

Isn't his weekend alarm clock adorable?

I am officially old. Old, I tell ya.

2011-06-10T06:31:00.000-07:00

This guy graduates today.

This guy is my "little" brother.

I am nearly a decade older than he is.

Now, he's an "adult" and stuff.

I feel old. Like, really old this morning.

My bones are creaking old.

I wish I had a picture of him when he was a little guy. Mostly to embarrass the heck out of him. What are big sisters for?
Also, because he was pretty cute and now he's handsome.

Where does the time go?

I don't know.

But I do know that I'm proud of you, Chad.

Happy Graduation. I'm sorry I can't be there. Sorry, sorry sorry. (Stupid Navy.) I hope it's a great day for you.

Comment Palooza!

2011-06-10T04:00:00.000-07:00

Dear anonymous meany-head commenter:
You suck. I did not publish your comment because I will not have you swearing at me. How RUDE!
It is not your business how I donate my time or money to anything. It should not matter to you how often, to whom, or how I donate. I was told to do good works because they make you feel good - not so you can brag about them. [Though, bragging is awesome when it's done like this. Thanks for sharing about Family Promise, Karen. I'll definitely be looking into it more.]
Also, I don't know how your household works, but 32 rolls of toilet paper is SO not more than my family can possibly use. It's probably 2 or 3 months worth.

Ashley, Here's a little more on how I do the coupons:

Sunday, the Washington Post delivers four Sunday papers (Got a deal for 59 cents per paper, roughly the newsstand cost of one.) and Hubband and I go through to separate the Redplum/smart source/P&G inserts. Piling like pages. Then I go through, cut all coupons at the same time and file them in my binder.
I also peruse the weekly circulars to pair up sales with the coupons. Then I make a quick note of what/where/when I need to use and plan accordingly.

The extra papers are driven across the street to the homeless shelter. (Because we're awesome, but not awesome enough to read the same paper four times over.)

My trip to Bloom was fabulous, because on the first and seventh of the month they doubled coupons up to $1.99 - so I intentionally took my bigger coupons in and hit their matching sales.

The "one coupon per purchase" means one coupon per item not per transaction. (If they mean transaction - they'll say it).

Also, most stores will have items on sale and/or a store coupon for the item that can be paired with the manufacturers coupon (found in the paper).

Most stores also double smaller coupons, regularly. Our favorite grocery store doubles coupons up to 99 cents.
Hopefully that answers your question. If not, ask again. :)

Tricia,
I appreciate all the wonderful comments! It's good to hear from you.

To everybody else that comments... Is your brain leaking out of your ears yet? Reading me too much might cause your brain to melt! But thanks for taking the risk.

Happy Anniversary. I still love you. Despite the bruises.

2011-06-09T10:38:00.000-07:00

There was this one time, Hubband decided to show me his awesome ninja skills. He tried to jump over me, but kneed me square in the forehead. Made me woozy for a few minutes.

Then there was another time where he kicked me...

Also, he is like Steve Carell and never shuts the drawers in the kitchen/bedroom/bathroom. My hips and legs are mottled with bruises because the spatial connection in my brain doesn't allow room for open drawers where they shouldn't be.

So yeah. There are bruises. (All, completely unintended. Just FYI)

But there's awesome stuff, too. (like when he buys me my new camera. Or how he completely supports my love of running. Or how sometimes, he remembers me while he's at the store and comes home with cannolis.)

He's pretty awesome. I'll keep him for at least another 6 years.

We don't have wedding pictures.
Otherwise I'd post one.

So, of what we do have. This is a fav.

Happy "fake" anniversary. I'm definitely looking forward to the next 6 years!
Love, ME

Tired of this yet?

2011-06-08T08:36:00.000-07:00

By "this" I mean the hodge-podge thoughts posts.

Well, if you are, too bad. Here comes another.

*Yesterday:
I decided not to run at 5am because I had fallen asleep nursing and slept at an awkward upright angle for a few hours (until we started to lean off the bed and Holdeezy woke up) and had a crazy kink in my neck.
I did not get to sleep, however. Holden was up at 5:15. Little butthead.
So, I did all those normal morning things and was out the door with the boys by 8am.
After our errands (which I'll discuss momentarily) I came home, made lunch, did all the laundry, cleaned the kitchen and caught up on a show (that I'm too embarrassed to admit I actually watch....), picked the hubband up from the commuter lot, came home, biked 3 miles then ran 3 miles, came home got crabby because I'd forgotten to eat since lunch, fixed tacos at 9pm... went to bed.

*Let me preface this next little segment with this statement:
I loath most of the people on TLC's "Extreme Couponing". They're hoarders, who justify what they're doing by saving money. I do not feel it's ok to buy something just because you have a coupon. For instance, 150 candy bars. I also don't think it's ok to take more than you can possibly use in one year, decdade, lifetime. For instance, the lady who bought 60 mustards, clearing the shelf - only to have her husband declare "nobody in our house even likes mustard". Unless you donate it to someone who needs it. In that case I say: Get on with your bad couponing self!

That being said, I live in a house with three boys. Already our grocery bill each month is downright scary. SCARY. They're not even teenagers yet and one doesn't even consume anything but milk. Which happens to be of the free variety.

So, in an effort to save money so the kids don't literally eat us out of house and home - a friend taught me to coupon.
I'm about to tell you a little about my awesome scores.
Also, I'd like you to know - most everything that we don't use by December will be donated to the homeless shelter and/or our church as part of our regular Christmas donation.

Total: $120
After coupons: $46
Savings: $73

This was a Target score.
Deal: Fusion razors - on sale for $9.78. Buy 2 get a $5 Target gift card. Coupon for $4 dollars off each razor. $39.12 - $16.00 - $10.00 = $13.12 for four razors. $3.28 each. (Essentially the same deal was made on the Venus razors as well. Just slightly different prices.
Deal: John Frieda - on sale for $5 dollars each item. Buy 3 get a $5 gift card. Coupon for $2 dollars off each item. $15.00 - $5.00 - $6.00 = $4.00. $1.35 each.
Deal: Buy one Old Spice deodorant get one Old Spice body wash free. Deodorant on sale for $3.00.

Total: $140
After coupons: $60
Savings: $80

Deals at Bloom.
Bloom was doubling all coupons up to $1.99. So I took all my big coupons in there.
Deal: Millstone coffee - on sale for $7.00 per lb. Coupon for $1.50 off each lb. Doubled = $3.00 per lb. $4.00 lb of coffee. Total $16.00
Deal: Danimals yogurts: On sale for $2.49 a box. Coupon for $1.00 off each box. Doubled = $2.00 off. Each box = 49 cents. $1.50 total.
Deal: Tampax ended up being $1.50 a box [bought 6] (I'll cut out the math...)
Deal: Charmin TP ended up being $1.50 a four pack. [bought 8]
Deal: Shaving gel ended up being 99 cents per bottle. [bought 4]
Deal: Razors (The homeless shelter's news paper ad is always asking for these. They'll be put to good use - don't worry) ended up being $2.49 (for one razor and six replacement blades each.) [bought 3]
Deal: Tide to go: ended up being $2.00 per pen.

We're having a hard time couponing actual food. We won't compromise our health for a good deal and produce is never on sale - nor are there ever coupons for it. The Danimals yogurts were about as far as I was willing to go. (The sugar level is suprisingly low and we give them as frozen treats which is infinitely better than a popsicle during the summer)
However, if I can save on things like toilet paper, tampons and... razors, we'll be able to afford the mountains of food consumed by our children without having to starve ourselves!

*

They made me take a picture with the big red Target ball.
We're a seriously weird family.
At least they look cute...

He's found his voice. Dear lord help me. I'm not sure I'll stay sane with three loud little boys running through my house...

Also? I think he might become mobile sooner than I'd like.

Afterthought.

2011-06-07T03:44:00.000-07:00

This isn't really an afterthought. I tried to put this up WITH the Savor post. Blogger was being a juice box. [Side note: Juice box is what I have started using in place of 'douche canoe'. It's not a pretty thing when your 3 year old greets a random person by saying "hello douche canoe".]

Water cups, napkins, plates, cheese picks, spoons!

Awesome opossum!

Yes, this really was one of the most awesome things I saw the whole evening.
Though, not quite as awesome as cargo shorts/salmon blazer man.

Date Night!

2011-06-04T12:57:00.000-07:00

I am in love with both of these people. They're amazeballs.

No, we didn't steal reservations - or get chased by killers. Nor am I gorgeous like Ms. Fey.

However, we did have a date night. I got dressed up, met Hubband in DC and then partied like it was 1999.
Not really. But kind of.

A quick stop at Starbucks to kill a little time... and hydrate.

First tasting stop. A little bit of home.
A funny piece of info - my senior prom was held at this brewery.

Also - in case my Mom... or someone else who loves me very much ever wants a good gift idea?
Send me some of The Dissident. That is one hell of an amazing beer.

Yum!

In action...
So not photogenic...

Perusing for the next kill... er... tasting.

The National Building Museum is beautiful. Seriously beautiful!

BBQ + Beer at the same party = Awesome.
BBQ + Beer in the same bottle = Disgusting.
This brew is made with liquid smoke. Gross.
But, it has a moose.

The building is gorgeous - but the bathrooms are weird.
They're see-thru.
I'm glad I didn't notice until after I'd taken off my roos and lifted my dress...

Us.
Continuing the unphoto-genesis...

Looking for food.
I ate a lot.
Like the mini-apple pies.
Or the sushi
Or anything else they had out.
I didn't hesitate to ~~knock a beech down~~ cut in line for food.

From the uncrowded, un-see-thru upstairs bathrooms.

Channeling my inner SR in the non-see-thru-non-crowded bathrooms upstairs.

This guy made my night.
(The ticket said to wear business casual/cocktail attire)
Salmon blazer, cargo shorts and reef sandals.

Time to metro home.
You should have seen all the booze in that station....

Us again.

(Btw, the pictures don't do me justice. I really did look hawt. I was told so. By strangers.
Which must mean it's true...)

Great night.

Happy Birthday Hubband.

I Feel Crazy so I Jump in the Soup!

2011-05-31T11:22:00.000-07:00

If you can name the artist of that song, then you are a mother. (Or, possibly a father. We don't discriminate here.)

*I am eating a giant salad. It is sooooo good. I often wonder why more people don't eat salad. It's the 100% customizable food. I eat one nearly every day and am never bored - because there are so many ways to mix it up! EAT A SALAD AMERICA!

*Whoa, salad tirade much? I really love salads.

*I vamped up the blog a little bit, in case you couldn't tell. I added pages, which - I think, makes me official.
Officially insane?
Thanks for sticking with the 6 different templates that made an appearance during the choosing process. If you saw more than two of them, you may be a stalker...

*This morning I accomplished most of my entire week's to-do list in just two hours.
VBS application in? Check
Joanns for elastic to fix the boys' capes? Check
Post office to mail out letter and return a package? Check
Laundry washed, folded and waiting to be put away? Check

Now, if only every day of summer could be that productive!

*I took a really long break in the middle of this post to actually fix the boys capes. So add another check on my to-do list!

*Summer is officially here. Which means swim suit season. I'm not exactly stoked. At least about myself in one.
The boys in one - is awesome. I found them long-sleeved rash guards on sale for $5.50! Normally $20!!!
Now, I just need to find a killer deal on a one piece, long-sleeved, long-panted swim suit for Holdeezy.

*I've been working on a list of fun stuff to do with my boys this summer, to keep us all entertained and sane. Also, to possibly learn stuff.
Here's what I have so far:
~Tie-dye shirts.
~Make Artwork to go in the frames I intend to put in the kitchen
~Make a volcano
~Hubband came up with a crazy/fun/cool family picture Idea - I'm hoping to pull that off.
~Some of the experiments from this book.
~Convince hubband that we also need this book.
~Survive the heat.

Anybody have any other suggestions for activities for us to do? I'm open to all suggestions!
Except get a dog. Which has been suggested. And denied.

We'll also be building more epic race tracks.

*Date night is Friday night. Like, little black dress, wearing heels, have a babysitter (thanks MIL and FIL!!!) going to mingle with ONLY ADULTS kind of date night. SOOOO excited I just can't hide it!
I'm about to lose control and I think I like it.

Anyway. Happy Monday. That's not really a Monday. It's a Tuesday. But we didn't work yesterday, so it's a faux Monday. Have a good one, regardless!

Sneaky Little Finger.

2011-05-28T04:00:00.000-07:00

Reading about Monster Trucks.
This picture makes you say "awwww" doesn't it?
All sweet, and pull at your ovaries cute?

What about this one?
Do you love that my youngest is already a pro at flipping me the bird?
Yeah me too.
At least I know he's ready for the world...

Mil-Spouse Friday Fill In.

2011-05-27T06:58:00.000-07:00

I haven't done one of these in a while. [Insert whining about not having enough time, being tired, lack of inspiration.]

Thank you Wife of a Sailor for hosting even when people like me go in and out more than my kids do from the back deck during the summer.

This morning, I have a sleeping baby. B-rox is back at school and Kenny is pretending to be Captain America. Saving the world, one snack at a time.

1. Do you think civilians, in general, understand the meaning of Memorial Day?

Uhm, honestly - I don't generally understand the meaning all that well. To me - it's the weekend that the pool opens.

Before you get your 'roos in a wad - hear me out. I'm all sorts of patriotic. I love the 4th of July to the point where my kids get new outfits for the occasion. It's a big deal, celebrating the "birth" of our country.
I also love me some Veteran's day. Not just because it's a day that Hubband isn't required to go to work, either. I consider anybody serving or that has served, a veteran. So - I'm honoring all those military folk on that day.

I'm willing to learn, however. If you want to teach me a little more about it {I honestly don't know. We visited some family members graves a time or two - but other than that - I really am clueless as to what the weekend is about.}

2. What are your plans for the Memorial Day Weekend?

Well, tomorrow the pool opens. Yay! I also have book club and a Dream dinners appointment.

Also, my Aunt Ann, Uncle Mike, Cousin Susan and her hubband and chitlen's are coming to town on Sunday.

Monday... I have a long run planned. 10 mile bike ride then 4 mile run.
(Triathlon countdown: T-minus 44 days!)

3. What skill/talent do you wish you had?

I don't know if it's a skill or a talent - but I wish sometimes I had more patience. In traffic, with my kids, with stupid people, with my husband, with electronics, with stupid people... you get the picture.

4. Which came first: the chicken or the egg?

Seriously? I don't want to tax my brain this early.

5. What is the best thing about your post (base)?

The best: It's where hubband makes the bacon. It has a place for him to work out and on the weekends when we want to catch a Nat's game we can park on base and walk to the stadium. Forfeiting most of the crowd issue.
The worst: uhm... it's in a crappy part of the district (people get stabbed. No joke.), there isn't exactly a "wives group" so you're kind of left... floundering to find your S/O place in the world.

And, to end the post. Here's your daily dose of awesome:

When brothers dress brothers.