MOVIE Review: I Am Legend

Wow.  WOW.  What a good movie - although I have an idea for the end that I THINK is better.

What a scary movie.  The graphics AND the plot are AWESOME  - the whole movie kept me on the edge of my seat.  SERIOUSLY.

I loved it - if you haven't seen it, do!

And Will Smith is awesome in it - it has to be hard carrying a movie on your shoulders.  He is alone in the movie for most of it except a bit at the end.

ps.

ps - now that the cheetos are gone, stay away from the skittles, moron!

note to myself

sTeP away from the ChEEETOS!

Weekend Update - I ATE TOO MUCH!

Saturday was Son's movie night at a friends.  B's parents have like 30 kids and their parents over to watch a movie (the "bee movie" this week) on an outdoor screen.  Everyone has to bring a dish - so I brought my famous homemade from scratch cookies.  I brought them last time and they all got eaten IMMEDIATELY so I brought them again - and there were at least 5 other plates of cookies there too!  But my plate cleared of cookies before I brought it home, even though there were so many other cookies!

So - I had cookie dough and cookies Saturday afternoon and beer Saturday night.

Then yesterday I baked a vanilla/chocolate marble cake (from scratch) with homemade butter cream frosting because we had all the ingredients laying around and I didn't want them to go bad.  So not only did I have a slice of cake, I had batter and icing!

(I also bought a bag of cheetos in a moment of weakness Friday which I managed to eat most of this weekend).

I have no idea why I can't get these 5 pounds off!

what a Saturday!

We played in the pool with the kiddies!  And now I'm baking chocolate chip cookies, my famous ones!

how how how how

how does a man beat and stomp his own toddler (or any toddler) to death?

HOW?

REMINDER: save natural gas

turn off the pilot on your gas fireplace!

a wonderful day!

 Yesterday we took our nephew to King's Dominion!  And Grandpa came along to help out!  We had a great day - the little kids had a blast, Son had a blast and nephew had a blast.  Hubby and I got to rid big rides w/the nephew!  I RODE THE CRYPT!  It was very very cool (actually it was very hot, but it was an awesome ride)!

It wasn't too hot so it was great.  And NO CROWD at all!  We did really have a blast!

If you go:

Bring Sunscreen.
Bring re-fillable water bottles ( $3 a bottle there! )
Buy the all day refillable bottle if you're a soda freak like me (every 2nd cup I'd get lemonade and share with hubby) - so for $8 we got like 7 giant drinks.
Bring bandaids!
Bring hats and little snacks!
BRING EXTRA Clothes - the kids didn't get dirty by BabyJ dumped water down her diaper and on her clothes.

ALSO - the don't seem to sell any fruit or healthy snacks AT ALL. I understand having a limited selection, but NONE?  Disney has caught on since last December when we were there - now they have fruit at every stand!  Such a good idea!

PRODUCT REVIEW: Papa John's Wheat Crust Pizza

I was skeptical!  Whole grain bread is gross - and this crust was 100% whole wheat and whole grain.  But I ordered it anyway and I LOVED it!  And hubby tried a slice and loved it too!

Like with many whole wheat or low fat options, they use a spicier sauce than on the regular although they didn't need to, it was like regular crust.  But the new sauce is good!  Just have a water handy!

I definitely give it a thumbs up!!!

gave blood!

We had the Red Cross at work today and gave blood!  I got to prove to everyone that I have REALLY low blood pressure and I bleed very slowly!

owners of our truck!

As of May 16, we are the owners of our black GMC Yukon XL!  IT IS FULLY PAID OFF!  YAY US!  And, unlike in the past, we did not run out and buy a new vehicle!!!

diaper review: Target Brand Diapers.

I bought some of these because I've read numerous places that they are awesome!  So I fully expected awesome w/out the price -bite of Pampers!

WRONG!

The sizing was fine - very similar to Pampers.
We didn't get any leaks or blow-outs, which is good.

BUT the diapers don't keep the BABY as dry as the Pampers do.  When I opened her diaper numerous times she was damp.  Which, because we change our children whenever we notice that they are wet (as opposed to the other theory of "wait until the diaper is full", which, GROSS.  Why would you want your precious child toting around pee until the diaper is full???  That's nasty) she didn't get a rash, but I could see she gets pinker when we use the Target ones.  And I have to think that it also feels gross to be damp like that.  So for now, I'm only using Target sporadically, and never 2 in a row until the pack runs out and I won't buy them again.

so...back to reality

Hubby and I had our first night (2 actually) and days alone in 6 and 1/2 years.  We went to a great dinner (part of the conference) at Shula's in the hotel and then the sales guys took everyone out for the evening to Pleasure Island.  The next day we slept in, ate late and went to the parks after I did some conference stuff.  We only rode rides we cannot ride w/the kids!  I did Tower Of Terror and The Rock & Roll Rollercoaster!!  And ate ice cream!  Then we had a concert (also part of the conference) with H.OOTIE and the B.LOWFISH!  Awesome.  Thursday we slept in late and went shopping!  Then it was time to come home.

But that taste of our old life - the fun carefree life before we had kids.  Remembering what it is like to have fun with each other!  And have one another's full attention!  And eat a meal in peace!  It's almost shocking to come home and be dropped into the life as parents of three children - especially since the 2 little ones are SO little.

We have already started planning our next escape!

at IBM PULSE 2008

In DisneyWorld!  I am at the DOLPHIN and it is SO Fabulous!  We just saw Lance Armstrong speak - what an amazing story!

some awesome talent

i saw this today - the artwork is AMAZING.  And what the children have to say!  Even, and especially, the young ones.  What great young minds we are producing!

http://www.google.com/doodle4google/vote.html#

WE'RE GOING TO DISNEYWORLD!

HUBBY AND I ARE GOING FOR TWO DAYS (I GET FOUR DAYS TOTAL!  HE'S COMING FOR 2 OF THEM) WITHOUT THE CHILDREN!  IT IS OUR FIRST TIME ALONE IN SIX AND A HALF YEARS!!!!!

Product Reviews: Seventh Generation Dishwasher detergent vs. Palmolive ECO

When we first decided to be greener at our house, I bought the Seventh Generation Powdered detergent for the dishwasher because everyone RAVES about their products.  Also, since I put my dishes pretty darn clean into the dishwaher anyway, I don't really need a harsh/super strong detergent --> an aside: I believe in the power of soaking.  I will use a bowl that is already dirty, let it fill w/water as I use the sink all day then put the silverware into it to soak until I'm ready to load the dishwasher, that way most of the food is off the silverware before it goes in and I didn't have to do any work!  I also leave dishes under the faucet to get water run on them all day for a constant soak, so they also are pretty darn clean going into the dishwasher - same w/glasses.

 

 

Anyway - the first couple of loads were fine, though hubby complained about the goopy detergent that was being left in the dispenser.  Over time I noticed all the glassware getting hazy - a problem I've NEVER had before - and all my spoons were getting the haze too (just the spoons!).

 

So I switched to Seventh Generation Liquid, since my Target doesn't sell the Method dish detergent and Whole Foods is too far for a special trip.  It was no better, though it didn't leave soap in the dispenser.

 

So when I ran out I bought Palmolive ECO - WHAT A DIFFERENCE!  All of the haze is GONE GONE GONE!  I love this stuff (a liquid) and recommend it WAY OVER the Seventh Generation stuff!

*Note this is not a paid/supported review, just my findings over time!

well well well...

Hubby is living it up in Vegas - having a WELL deserved break.

 

SO I bought myself a break!  A babysitter for this evening to help entertain the kids (it's been raining for 2 days and we're all a little stir crazy) so I could actually eat my dinner and clean up!  YAY Me - the best $25 I ever spent!

 

Hubby home in T-3.5 days!

damn...

hubby went out of town for 6 days

 

Forgot to eat dinner.

Walking!

And we have a walker!  Who will be going to stride rite to get her first shoes today!

party time!

BabyJ turns ONE tomorrow!!  unbelievable!  We are having her party Sunday - along w/a half birthday party for toddler T (his real bday is in Dec).  So our house will be awash in Lightning McQueen and Tinkerbell Sunday, as well as cake, candy, drinks, people, toddlers and craziness!

Wish me luck!

tying shoes?

Is it odd that it only took Son 15 minutes to learn to tie his shoes?

pray for strength

is what I do when BabyT (toddlerT?) spills his Elmo potty FULL OF PEE on the hardwood floor in the guest bathroom.  OH MY F-ing GOODNESS.  I know he's trying to be helpful and dump it but REALLY?  All over my floor?  I almost had a stroke I was so upset.

going to break her cell phone

The person over my cube wall has ringtones - OBNOXIOUS RING TONES.  SEVERAL (the one that just went off is "Hallelujah"  - VERY LOUDLY).  Not only does this person chat on the phone all day they let their phone ring several times before answering the damn thing.

and the older women too!

A third grader walking by that rides Son's Bus saw Son in the yard yesterday and she tried to get him to come over (out of our yard) and talk to her.

She said she had been watching him in his afterschool ultimate sports camp and wanted to chat with him. And was he busy watching her too?  Thank GOODNESS Son is So Not Interested in girls, but it is odd.

i have fainted.

Son has received TWO love letters in his backpack this week from the girls in his class.

One invitation to SPEND THE NIGHT....OMG.  Hubby and I almost dropped dead.

And one letter just professing love.

Good lord people, he is SIX and in Kindergarten!  What on earth is going on?

menu planning works for me!

One of the websites I read says that menu planning will save you lots of $$ because you can goto the store with a list of only what you need to buy to feed your family for that week.

Since our grocery bill (5 people!) has gotten out of control - the rising prices are killing us, especially since I try to buy Organic if it's an option for that product (they make organic chocolate!) - we're looking at EASILY $200 a week (and that doesn't include formula for the baby).

So yesterday I made my menu for the week (which doesn't include fast food or restaurant food for the whole week and went to the store.  Well, pizzas were on sale, so I bought 5.  And I bought baby cereal, ice cream (buy 1 get 1 free!), walnuts (heart healthy!), a jug of gatorade, and a couple of other things that weren't on the list.

The total: $130!  So I got everything we needed, plus a few bonuses and spent way less!  YAY!

Look 10 Years Younger!

Me and the young guy on our team, J, were meeting with our "Problem Manager".  He said something about the young kids these days.  I asked how old he was because I think he looks about 43?  I am 34.  HE SAID 33!  He thought I was the same age as J, who is 23!  Yay me!  I look 11 years younger than I am?  AWESOME!

so, um yeah - SKIING!

We went to Snowmass, CO with Hubby's parents.  What a trip!

For the first time in YEARS, I got to ski!  And not only SKI, but ski EVERY DAY.  FOR TWO HOURS.  With hubby!  Without children!  It was AWESOME! 

I spent Monday - Thursday working on my technique (which was crappy).  I can get down any slope (Jupiter Bowl in Deer Valley?  Where they did the OLYMPICS?  Check!  I can get down it - not ski it well, but I didn't die!).  But I wanted to ski more like all those rich people skiing around who get to ski more often than once every six years!  So I worked and worked and worked on my technique.  And I improved!  Yay me!  I even went down the Campground Run - which is a BLACK!  And a Black on the west coast is WAY HARDER (steeper!  LONGER!  STEEPER!) than a black on the east coast skiing.  I laugh at blacks on the east coast, because EVEN if you find them scary, they only last 1/8 of the time the ones out west do!  But I did it!  And I didn't do too bad!

But then Thursday night, we got snow.  At the base of the mountain, it was like 16 - 19 inches, easily 2 feet at the top.  I've never skied that much fresh powder before, so out we went into the blizzard (it was still snowing like crazy Friday morning).  And the first thing I did was fall down! Into 2 feet of powder.  Which is pretty much like falling into 2 feet of water - you get submerged.  It was neat!  So I went down the green as I was a bit shaken - skiing in 2 feet of powder is nothing like skiing on a well used run!  MISTAKE!  Apparently no one skis green slopes in that much powder because the powder makes you go so slow.  SO I was skiing on totally unskied territory and I was alone.  And terrified I was going to screw up in all that mush and go flying off the mountain.  But they had run a snowmobile around the slope for morons like me so I just went in it's track and finally got to where the run crossed where Hubby was waiting for me.  But by the end of our time, I had improved my powder skillz as well, aren't you proud?

And SON?  He is an awesome skier!  We skied with him a couple of times (he was in ski school all day and loving it) and he blows our minds!  He tried to ski thru the woods!  And tried to get over to the jumps!  Thank goodness he didn't see those things in time to ski over to get to them!

Anyway - more on what we did that wasn't skiing coming up next!

And we're back!

We just returned from our annual ski vacation out west!  MAN did we have fun!

But the time change!  YIKES!  We flew out west March 7, and had a 2 hour time difference.  Then the clocks sprung forward on March 8.  Then we returned home and NO ONE set OUR clocks forward so all day yesterday in addition to being off by 2 hours for the time zone, we were off 1 hour because the clocks were wrong... And man did we manage to screw up everyone's body clock!

going green!

Ok!  We're going green!!!

Here's what we're doing!!

 

** recycling plastic, glass, newspaper

** recycling cardboard, paperboard, magazines & junkmail

** bottling the water that runs while I wait for the faucet to heat up - I use this water to rinse out the recycling

** not drinking bottled water if we can help it

** not ordering straws for the adults at restaurants

** using washclothes to clean the 2 babies after meals (we were doing this anyway at a savings of at least 6 papertowels a day!)

** not letting the shower run on and on while we wait for it to get hot and get distracted away.  I'm waiting by the door for it to get warm.

** taking shorter showers

** turning off faucet when washing face (already doing that for brushing teeth)

** not turning the car on until we're actually ready to drive away.  Even if it only saves 10 seconds of idle time per trip, over time, that is A LOT of gas.  I'm also no longer using the remote starter to start my car (this is sad, I love love love that thing) but my truck is a GAS HOG and to let it sit and idle just to get warm is DUMB and WASTEFUL

** Potty training BabyT.  This will be a huge savings for the environment - all those diapers!

 

It's funny, but all the going green stuff is CHEAPER than doing it the wasteful way.

Oh, except for the green cleaners.  Those are damn expensive. Also the dishwasher soap doesn't seem to work very well - I've tried Seventh Generation liquid and powder and they both suck.  Any suggestions?

The products, well, that part is getting expensive!

one suitcase???

Are you freaking serious?? Airlines are now only allowing ONE suitcase per passenger?  PLEASE.  Go fuck yourselves.  American and United - bite me.  You suck.  A lot.

is there no goodness going around??

omg

http://justanotherpregnancyblog.blogspot.com/

i am not for Obama

Barack Obama in 2004 responding to the question of why he was ruling out running for president in 2008:

"You know, I am a believer in knowing what you're doing when you apply for a job. And I think that if I were to seriously consider running on a national ticket, I would essentially have to start now, before having served a day in the Senate. Now, there are some people who might be comfortable doing that, but I'm not one of those people."

From Rachel Lucas.

so many tears

Are you following Flotsam's blog?  She had twin babies recently, and lost the little boy.  Simone is still very sick and her latest updating has her fighting her way thru!

warning, you probably won't be able to read this without crying...

http://flotsamblog.com/2008/02/24/the-golden-ticket/

OMG!

I did NOT KNOW that John Rich had a reality show!  It's called Gone Country and it's fabulous!  He takes artist from other genres of music and is giving them a chance to cut a country single.

We have Bobby Brown, Dee Schnieder (from Twisted Sister), Maureen that played Marsha Brady, Carnie Philips, Julio Iglesias JR., and some chick from American Idol.  Oh, and Sisqo (The Thong Song guy).  It's great, and who doesn't love John Rich?!  He is so...so....HIM.  He's a great artist with great insight.  I always have a lot more respect for artists that write their own music and he writes his own and a lot of the other country music out there.  It's worth tuning in!  And they show his awesome house, Gretchen Wilson's farm and who knows what else!

well.

As of last night, we are sponsoring a child thru Compassion International.  I don't know if you've been reading around the blogosphere, but they sent some bloggers there to meet the children that they sponsor.  I am awed and humbled by what they've experience and written about.  I want to make a difference ( a post coming soon about the differences/changes going on around my house!  It's big stuff for us!)...and my way to make a difference is to sponsor a child.  At least that's where I'm starting, no telling what'll come next!

Check them out: http://www.compassion.com/default.htm

grrrr.

So.  Someone forgot they needed some work done for a big, executive level meeting on Monday (yes, the holiday).  Of course, they need the work done whether I have enough time to do it or not.  It still has to be done.  So, because some "person" forgot to tell anyone they needed this work done, and it's for something important, I have to get 10 of these items done by Monday.  And my husband is out of town, so I have three kids for three days straight and am supposed to get all this work done?  I think the "person" who did the forgetting should come to MY HOUSE all weekend and watch the kids while I do the work THEY forgot to tell anyone they needed.

I HATE it when someone else's problems become MY problems.  Fuck.

Fwd: no school today!

we've had an ice storm!  I'm waiting to let Son go out and slip and slide around!

and so it is...

Hubby has to go on another business trip, again.  Man, we all hate it when he has to go away!l  But it's so much easier to schedule for me only working part time than full time.  Tons easier.

BabyJ had her 9 month checkup.  She is OVER the 100 percentile in height.  She is quite tall.  And 60% on weight, so tall and thin.  Like the supermodel/doctor she's going to be.  Or a life-size Disney princess!

BabyT had his 2 year checkup.  He's also OVER the 100 percentile.  At the 2 year appt, they give you the future height estimate.  He is on track to be 6' 3.5 inches tall - GOLLY.  Son is to be 6' about, so looks like I will be the short one in the family again as soon as they are teenagers!

and he thought I was kidding.

The OB did, when I asked him what I could do about my what-appears-to-be-permanent mommy-belly.  Seriously, after three kids, I expected my tummy back?  When TWO of the children were big (and one of them GIGANTIC)?  Apparently this was funny to ask.  I, however, didn't think it was funny.

It is NOT fun to be told that, well, your abdominal wall is just shot and that there is one way to fix it --> tummy tuck.  Exercise, which helps, isn't going to fix it (duh, I knew that, but I did think it would help more than it has).

*Sigh*

well said...

http://thehappyhospitalist.blogspot.com/2008/02/wheels-on-bus-go-round-and-round.html

for those of us with little girls...

http://greenmomfinds.com/2008/01/29/peacekeeper-cause-metics/

vaccines

We vaccinate.  I do not want my child coming down with some of the horrible things that there are vaccines for.  The side effects are no where near as bad as getting the actual illness.

Hear is a link for a med blog I read:
http://drbensblog.kruskal.com/2008/01/28/vaccines-people-either-dont-want-em-or-want-them-too-much/

 
Look what my son built! It walks by itself - it is SO cool...All the Lego Star Wars stuff is really cool.

on working...

When I started to get ready to get for work, my big name alphabet soup company did not have any part time positions for me.  This was a bummer as we need the money.  I'm in the same boat as a lot of families around here - my hubby makes (for example) $10 a month.  Our bills add up to $11 a month.  So I have to work, even though it looks as if I don't because most of my paycheck is extra (except of course, when we overspend --> December was a rough month with a Disney Trip, Christmas and birthdays for TWO of our children).

BUT in November they found a part time spot for me working for the group that writes and maintains the software for our company's help desk.

I love my new job!! LOVE LOVE LOVE.  I work with great people, in a great location, with great flexibility in my schedule.  AND I can work from home occasionally or to earn extra hours.  And it is possibly one of the few true development positions in the world that is part time!

It is a perfect fit and I couldn't be happier!

man, it's been a while!

HI there!  I just got back Sunday night from A GIRL'S WEEKEND!  It was fun and fabulous and all that I'd dreamed of.  And after 3 days away from the kids, I feel refreshed and energetic and full up of patience to be with them and love them and want to cuddle them like crazy!

We had a great time (traveling had LOTS OF ISSUES, we will never fly Continental again) - eating and drinking and seeing the sights in Scottsdale, AZ.  And it is so wonderful to chat and hangout and re-bond with my girlfriends.  It's amazing how wonderful it is to sit and talk with other women that GET you.  And are in the same place in their lives.  And dealing with the same issues.  It is revitalizing and wonderful.   I love my girlfriends. 

We are already discussing plans for the next one!

yeah, i don't know about this one.

Inmates on death row are challenging the way executions are handled.  They challenge the way most states execute prisoners by lethal injection, which critics say creates an avoidable risk of excruciating pain.  You know what?  You don't get ON DEATH ROW by being nice.  You caused SOMEONE severe pain, probably an excruciating death, actually.  So please stop spending my tax dollars to save you from what might be a painful death, when the death (or deathS) you caused yourself were not PAIN FREE.  Please.  Get off it.  If the Constitutional Amendments say that we need to spare them from unnecessary pain, then I say repeal the amendment.  If some jerk had murdered my family, and now wants a pain-free ticket, FORGET IT.  How many of my tax dollars are being spent on this?

The article on Yahoo! actually points out that it is unlawful to execute animals in this way.  That is fine - THEY should get pain-free executions because they didn't MURDER anyone.  I think that law is just fine.

well.

It's been a while no?  Yes?  Of course it has.  Working + 1 toddler + 1 baby + 1 6 year old = kicking my butt.

Also, both babies apparently keep sharing 2 different colds amongst themselves.  Lovely.

I am tired.  Beyond tired.  But hubby and I get to go out to dinner tonight ALONE for the first time since JUNE.  JUNE people, that is a LONG time ago!  I am so excited I can't wait.  Our New Year was fine - we didn't do anything special, but I think next year we will try.

VA Tech lost last night, booo.  Seems like they always choke in big game pressure.

I leave next week for a girl's weekend in AZ!  YAY for us, I'm so excited to see them, be warm, and not have to take care of kids for 3 whole days!  BLISS!

Merry Christmas!

Well hello there!  Merry Christmas!  I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday full of family and love!  We had a wonderful holiday - you can't get better than an almost-6-year old and a two year old at Christmas.  There was a LOT OF SQUEALING and children jumping up and down with excitement and happiness.  And that twinkle in their eyes that the day was indeed magical for them!  It started with tracking Santa on Christmas Eve day (thanks Charlie!!) then carried thru right up until bedtime Christmas night!

I purchased ROCKB*AND for my hubby.  What a great great great game.  We've already had a ton of fun playing it and doing the songs!  I apparently ROCK at vocals and score something like 92% each time (you need to be able to follow well for vocal and it doesn't rate your ACTUAL SOUND, just that your voice is starting/stopping at the right parts, you're holding notes long enough and inflecting your voice correctly.  Which is good, because I SOUND like a dying cat!)... anyway, if you are at all into video games, I highly suggest this one for family fun!

post office

 do you want to know WHY packages don't get where they're going when shipped via US Mail?  Because post offices, LIKE MINE,  do not open until 11:30.  Are you freaking kidding me?

I got all three kids to the door when I read the sign.  It's freezing, all three kids are cold and now we have to come back freaking later???

just ... wow.

I did not know Disney could be so wonderful.  If you've ever seen your own children's faces light up out of sheer amazement, wonder, joy or happiness, it is amazing.  And wonderful.  And worth every painful minute of hauling a toddler, a baby, and a young child around Disney (which is no small feat).

There was...

* fear.  BabyT was TERRIFIED of the characters for the first NINE DAYS we were at Disney.  On the afternoon of day 10, he started to LOVE LOVE LOVE them.  Seriously.  He freaked so bad at one point, he threw up.  Hubby had to leave more than 1 character meal because BabyT couldn't be within EYESIGHT of a character or the Cast Members that protect them.

* pure happiness and delight.  We saw this at different times on the faces of all three children (BabyJ LOVES LOVES LOVES all characters and tries to eat them).

* falling.  I tripped while holding BabyJ and landed on the concrete.  She didn't get a scratch but I was a bloody mess.

* new restaurants!  We discovered many new secret places to eat that we had not been to in 11 years worth of trips to Disney!

* shopping!  MAN the shopping!

* Disney Dining Plan!  Man is this the money saving food generating way to go!  We got way too much food on our plan, more than we could ever eat and it was all included!

* new resorts!  We saw the Boardwalk resort for the first time and I think I'm lobbying to stay there next December.

* did I say food?  We ate ate and ate.  There was no way anything we could eat could keep up w/the energy we were expending carrying the kiddies around.

All in all, ALL FIVE of us had a fabulous time and it was worth every penny, every scrape, and every bead of sweat and more!

disney!

we are at disney!  Return home soon, will blog then!

why ruin a holiday with sleep?

Or "How our Thanksgiving Went"

We left Wednesday morning for PA to see Aunt L and Granny.  There was NO traffic.  It was like a scene out of a horror movie where everyone has disappeared!  It was stunning and wonderful to travel and HAVE NO TRAFFIC!

The kids loved being in PA.  Aunt L and her daughter (R) and her son (A) are fabulous w/the kids and man, do the kids love them to pieces!  Wednesday night went as follows: BabyT SCREAMED at the top of his lungs for TWO HOURS STRAIGHT.  BabyJ, just having started her anti-biotics would only sleep in our arms in the chair.  It was quite a lovely scene as you could imagine.

Turkey day was great - the kids played and had fun.  We had holiday soup for lunch and a fabulous 25 pound turkey for dinner!  Then that night - BabyJ was up on and off and BabyT only shrieked for a little bit.  Of course, BabyJ was up for the day at SIX AM.

Friday - also great, but included shopping at Kohl's for their sale!  The toys are always at a great price on Black Friday there.

Then Saturday, about 1, we headed home.  Again, traffic was very light, even on 95 which was still amazing!

the TV!

Oh my - but there is SO MUCH good tv on I can't stand it!  I love some TV time!  What I'm watching  now:

** Nip/Tuck.  Man this is awesome.  The show is so good I wish it was on more often. The storylines this season are GREAT!
** Survivor.  This season is also shaping up great!  I love the gravedigger guy!
** Dr. Phil.  He seems to have trashier topics this year.  I love it, nothing better than trashy-talk-reality shows!
** EVEREST!  This years trip to climb Everest.  It is awesome, except for the arrogant Tim and his graphics of the steel in his legs and back. Phurba the Sherpa is fantastic and I love that he gets to do something challenging even to him, though I hope they are paying him an entire lifetime salary to do it since his job is to help the client do it.  And he's doing it w/out guide/safety ropes. Awesome.
** Desperate Housewives.  Also awesome and trashy!

so that's WHY!

BabyT has a sinus infection AND bronchitis!  Which is why we aren't getting any sleep around my house!  A-ha!

still sick dammit

BabyT is STILL SICK.  This is 4 days of fever.  So he's still Mr. CrankySickPants.  And so much fun to be around.  The river of snot is also fun.  And the not sleeping.  That part is AWESOME.

ah, croup. You slay me!

Ok...so now we're into the runny river of snot/nasty cough/fever portion of croup.  WHICH SUCKS.  This portion is marked by LESS sleep than the croupy part because the fever keeps BabyT awake and uncomfortable and he won't take his medicines (all THREE of my children will vomit if you force them to take meds - strong gag reflex I guess).  So...my update is that we STILL aren't getting any sleep.

anyone?

anyone know how long croup lasts?

know what hurts?

We have a magnet we got from the Ripley's Aquarium in Myrtle Beach.  It is a shark magnet, where the shark is facing forward, not sideways.  Actually it's just a shark head.  Well, BabyT left it on the floor, shark mouth up.  So a pointy plastic shark head to the foot.  So far, that is more painful than

** lego block
** army man
** transformer pieces
** action figures

Beating lego block and army man (the little green ones) is a pretty good pain.

oh my!

we took babyJ to Potrait Innovations yesterday and MY GOD!  The photos!  They did a fantastic job and the pics look great.

We have a professional photographer we use for the pics at the house (considered art-worthy) but he is so expensive - $150 for an 8x10 to hand out is too much.  So we decided to try this place and see how it goes for pics to give people and MAN are we satisified!

They have a great deal - we got 14 poses for $100 - 3 sheets of each pose and a CD of all the pics.  Can't beat that!!!  I highly recommend them if you're looking to get pics done!

my day...

6:15 - Adamant "GET DOWN!" startles me awake.  I scramble to babyT's room to get him before his voice escalates and wakes other children.

6:20 - Inform BabyT that there will be no cartoons shown before 7 am.  He starts meltdown which wakes BabyJ.  Excellent.  Put on Scooby-doo so that he will not get into anything dangerous or messy while I go get BabyJ and change her.  Run into Son in hallway - tell him it's TOO EARLY to be up and go back to bed.  Yes, he may sleep in our bed instead.

7 a.m. (on the dot!) Son emerges from my room as he knows this is when I have deemed it acceptable time for him to be up.  Catches me eating my morning cereal bar.

7:30 feed BabyJ oatmeal, then bottle.

8 - feed BabyT and Son each 1 banana, chocolate milk and a donut as a surprise!  Wander aimlessly around house holding baby so she doesn't spit up breakfast.

9 - my mother arrives, thank GOD.  I shower myself and BabyT.  Fold laundry while he draws in shower.  Make him 89,000 cups of bubbles.

10 am talk babyT into going upstairs so I can clean.  Realize I need to make Son's lunch (yes, he eats at 10 because of kindergarten schedule) and get him dressed.  50 minutes is NOT enough time to do all of that.  BabyT has meltdown becuase he was excited to go upstairs and play.  Damn.

10:10 Son starts eating 1/2 sandwich.
10:15 BabyJ wants bottle.  Harass Son to eat faster.  Start laundry.
10:20 BabyT needs snack.
10:30 Inform Son he needs to kick it if he wants to be on bus.

Good lord, I'm tired of typing already and only up to 10:30!  Good grief,

whew! Hard at work!

my first day of work is Nov 12,   but wait!!

That is apparently a holiday!  So I have a day off already!  Isn't that great!!!!!

dear cashier at Wendy's drive thru...

I watched you try and fit three different lids on my soda.  you gave up and handed it to me thru the drive-thru window STILL w/a lid that didn't fit right.  And seemed STUNNED when I asked you to please put on a lid that was't mis-shapen.  Like I am supposed to ignore that and drive around w/a full soda and no lid?

AND don't look all "puuuu-llleeeeaaasseee" when I check each and every cheeseburger to be sure there is no mayo, lettuce, tomato, etc. hiding on there.  You guys at Wendy's (and this one in particular) always get the burgers wrong when I don't check right away.  And I will not pull forward to check, because then what would I do?  Come in to have the problem fixed?  I am NOT getting all three kids in and out of the car to go in and fix your mistake (and then, of course, stand there w/all three kids while you make new burgers?  I don't think so).  SO I will sit at the window and check them, thank you very much.

oh, and by the way

And today I think the time change was even dumber than I did yesterday.  BOTH babies were up at 5 a.m.  Since hubby is STILL out of town (we're on 35 days now of him gone) I'm ready to shoot myself.  My 5 year old is now whining because I've declared that I'm taking a nap today when the babies do, which means so is HE!

donating money to the school...

Son started Kindergarten - so far we have "donated" (or been asked to donate or purchase)

** $82 worth of wrapping paper (we bought it, we did not ask co-workers and family to do so.  We bought an amt we thought he'd possibly sell.)
** $20 for the Fall Festival (the "Not Halloween" party they had on Oct 31)
** $25 for an Entertainment coupon book
** $15 to buy the library a new book in honor of Son for his birthday
** $50 at the school bookfair
** $15 to buy items for the class gift basket to be auctioned off at the Winter Festival

Seriously -for eight weeks worth of school, this much money already?

We also spent $64 on school pictures which came out BLURRY, with the WRONG background color and where Son is not freaking-centered in the picture!

time change...

man, I hate the time change!  babyT and babyJ are quite adamant that they goto bed on time - 8 p.m. for babyT and 8:30 p.m. for BabyJ.  Well, what the hell do I do now?  BabyJ also got up at 5 a.m. (the old 6 a.m.) for some reason today.  Why do we have to do this ridiculous practice.   It doesn't ACTUALLY create more daylight- we're just fooling ourselves by moving the clocks around.  Stupid.

working sucks

as I get closer to my "return to work" (Nov 12, btw.  But only part time) I get REALLY angry.  Why is it that people (ie. Britney Spears) get the resources (time and money) to spend UNLIMITED amounts of time and energy on their kids, but DON'T and other really wonderful moms have to goto work to make ends meet, when they WANT to spend time w/their kids.  Life is so unfair.  And then when I see her making a total ass out of herself, I just want to smack her.  Or other moms who don't work, yet feel the need to have a nanny?

Don't get me wrong, I'd LOVE help.  Were I to be so lucky, I would employ a full-time cleaning person, chef, etc.  But NOT a nanny.  The kids could be my only responsibility around the house.  Let someone else cook, clean and organize!

 
oh my, the cuteness! Evil doesn't stand a chance!

Happy Halloween!

 
Happy Halloween! Son designed the 2 family pumpkins. Didn't he do a marvelous job?!

and it's booked!

We are going to Disney!!  I cannot wait! BabyT is going to FREAK!  He is SO going to love it!  BabyJ will probably also enjoy it, but she enjoys everything....

And we will be there when they're filming the Christmas parade for broadcast!  And we're going to the Christmas party!  And character lunches, and breakfasts, OH MY!

playground morons...

Dear parents,

Taking your kids to the playground, then making them sit on the equipment for 30 minutes does not count as playing.  The poor kids looked miserable. You can sit still at home, why did you drag them to the park, then hog the equipment to do this?

Dear Spanish Nanny,

I DO NOT SPEAK SPANISH.  DO NOT ASSUME I DO PLEASE. 

Dear Father w/the Spanish Nanny,

if your overweight dirty three year old barrels down the slide WHILE MY ONE YEAR OLD IS ON IT, I expect you to tell your kid to wait until the other kid gets off.  At the least, if not sort of saying your sorry when my baby gets hurt. 


Dear Father making a business call at the playground,

We are not impressed and you look like a big dork w/your pants up under your armpits like that.  I thought it was funny when my son was screaming about something or other and you were right there to hear it and let the other people on the phone hear too.  Very professional!


Sincerely,
VHMPrincess

today's Moxie!

I love this woman...today she says...

"Has anyone else been watching the BBC show--now on the Discovery channel in the U.S.--"Last Man Standing"? It's 6 youngish American and British athletes who go to tribal villages and participate in their tests of strength and fighting rituals. I've been watching, thinking how lame it all is. Any woman who'd mothered a child through the age of 5 could beat any of these guys in tenacity, endurance, and feats of strength under adverse conditions. Brazilian piranha-tooth cuts on the legs rubbed with chile powder? Try 36 hours of unmedicated labor.  Zulu fighting sticks? Try sleep regression after sleep regression. Running 30 miles uphill in sandals? Try nursing all night for months and still holding down a full-time job. Maybe I should work up a pitch for the show: kick boxer, triathlete, and bodybuilder vs. mom of high-needs baby, mom of twins, and mom of three kids under age five."

so damn true!

 
Son's new shoes!

 
BabyT loves this! The ghost sings "I want candy!". It is SO SO cute!

 
smart girl has already figured out the walker!

  My Son, the sword maker!

 

This is a pumpkin from Son's first field trip!

call for help!

Ok - some of you are great foodies!  I need help!  I am going to try cooking more often, from scratch!

What I'm looking for are recipes that are meat-based (like I'm doing a roast chicken this week I think) and without veggies or with veggies large enough to pick them out...

Another good one is tomato-sauce based chicken and rice, to give you an idea.

Meat and potatoes, meat and rice, meat and noodles are sort of where I'm going...

Beef, chicken, fish are the meats!  Pork also...meatballs, shredded meats.

Let's see what you've got.  Hubby and I are sort of picky so nothing crazy spicy.  Nothing Asian flavored.  LOVE homestyle or italian or mexican.

Anyone?  AND EASY, remember I am a beginner cook w/three kids and no time!

2 + 2 = no sleep

2 sick babies = no sleep as we take the man-on-man approach ALL NIGHT last night.  I do think we got a couple of winks between 2 and 4 a.m.  Yikes.  Both babies have colds AND BabyJ figured out how to get out of her swaddle on the same night!  GREAT!

all sick...

hubby had a cold, which turned into a terrible sinus infection, then pink eye.

I now have the cold.

BabyT has the cold AND pink eye.

It is much fun at our house, let me tell you!

peepee in the potty!

My 20 month old just told me he had to pee, and then went pee pee in the potty!!!!!!!

Does this make up for pouring an entire gallon of Downy on the floor in the laundry room (Which then seeped down the air vent so we'll be "april fresh" in that room for a LONG TIME)?  Almost!

don't get too secure!

Having my third child, hubby and I feel like old pros.  We know how to handle babies and toddlers and feel like we're doing well w/the older son.  We've been working on writing and reading for a while and feel that he's one of the more advanced in his class.  We felt like we had this kid thing down and were just cruising.

Then he went to Kindergarten.

And we stopped cruising.  Now, I DON'T get to pick his school, or his days, or his schedule.  I don't like it ONE BIT.  Then we hear conflicting stories from him about how his days go and kids that do and don't play with him, do and don't sit on the bus, etc. and we are rattled to the core.  Just like we are first time parents w/a sick child all over again, we're nervous and discussing scenarios and what-ifs and should we call the school, etc.  I guess it never ends huh, the new stuff?

no room at the inn...

my employer has NO PART TIME positions available.  NONE.  This is not good news.

frustration w/school...

Son starts Kindergarten next TUESDAY.  The school system has not yet bothered to inform us of which session he is in (AM OR PM), nor which teacher he gets.

Now the teacher thing is not a big deal, as I do not have a preference.  But as a working parent, I need to know AM or PM to make arrangements accordingly.

Last Thursday they promised it would be in my mailbox Saturday.  Also that the principal would call me back.  Neither happened.  After I retrieved today's mail, which STILL contained no letter, I called again.  They promised it would have been in today's mail, which I informed her I was only calling because I got the mail and, NOPE, NO LETTER.  I explained that at best I have 4 business days as of RIGHT NOW to make arrangements, and getting the letter tomorrow leaves me THREE.  Though I have no faith, based on THEIR past lying to me about when they sent the letters, that I'll get a letter tomorrow.  I asked AGAIN that the principal please call me back.

Stay tuned.

anyone watching BB8?

It is GREAT this season....just absolutely great trashy reality tv, if you like that sort of thing.

My dad always laughed at my tv choices (back then it was soaps and wrestling, of all things!) - he always said for someone so smart, I sure did watch the dumbest TV possible.  He couldn't quite believe that my brain would even let me watch that crap!

18 month sleep regression

has hit our house, even though it's a little late.  Damn, it is a ROUGH one too.  OF COURSE, when we FINALLY get BabyT down after the middle of the night batttle, it's time for BabyJ to get a bottle (if she's going to get one, she only gets up 50% of the nights for a bottle, thank goodness)...

trying!

I am trying, trying, trying desperately to find time to make it to the darn gym simply to sign up!!!.  Heaven knows how I'll find time to ACTUALLY excercise!

trying!

I am trying, trying, trying desperately to find time to make it to the darn gym simply to workout.  Heaven knows how I'll find time to ACTUALLY excercise!

laundry update...

1 load adult dark clothes
1 load bed sheets

Still to go:
1 load adult light clothes
1 load child darks
1 load child lights
1 load family reds
1 load baby lights
1 load baby darks
1 load baby spit up rags
1 load bed blankets
1 load bath towels
1 load beach towels

and now that BabyT just peed on the floor getting into the shower:
1 load bath mat

sorry for the silence!

We've been at the beach!  Just got back, in fact.

In case anyone was wondering, going to the beach, with a 5 year old, a 1 year old and a 4 month old is A LOT OF WORK and not to be attempted by those looking to actually RELAX on their vacation and/or SLEEP.

a new baby!

And Bugsy is having (or has had?!) her baby by now, here's sending her lots of luck and love w/her new bundle of joy!

http://bugsys.blogspot.com/

dear AVEDA,

F*** YOU.

You MAY NOT discontinue a product before producing a suitable replacement!  They have stopped making their Elixir leave-in conditioner, which is my favorite.  Not only for the wonderful magic it works on my hair, but for the wonderful scent.  I tried another leave-in product they make for colored hair, but you are supposed to use a conditioner with it, so I would be using TWO products instead of just one.

Today I tried Redken's leave-in. MAN IS IT FULL OF PERFUME.  It really really stinks.

Back to the drawing board.

as the warning light came on in the other car we own today...

Hubby arrived home after 52 days away!  YAY!

what do you do when...

** you have all three kids in the car - the 3 month old and the 1 year old are sleeping
** you have 2 bottles in the car for the baby but they are both dirty.  This is not supposed to be an issue because you are only driving 20 minutes from your mother's house to yours
** it is 99 degrees outside and blazing sun
** your husband is in a very far away place
** your father-in-law is ALSO in a very far away place
** your brother is 1 hour away

You are 6 miles from home.  You have a left rear tire pressure of 0 according to your tire monitoring system (you get to watch it drop from 20 when it started warning you to 0 as you drove off the off-ramp for the Dulles Toll Road)

There are NO males that can come quickly to your aid that you know.  EVEN if they could, you would be on the side of the road in BLAZING HEAT AND SUN with an infant and a run-away toddler ( I am assuming it is not safe to change a tire on the car w/the kids IN the car, which also means, in this heat, the car would have to be left running).

The 2 females you COULD call could only do the following: drive to where you are and SIT with at least one of your kids while you drive THEIR car home and retrieve your other vehicle that is big enough to hold everyone.  This also means installing car seats in the BLAZING HEAT AND SUN should you choose this answer.

All the other males you know are
   a.  at work
   b. also at least 1 hour away

Many of the phone numbers you might need to call random friends for help anyway are stored on your OLD cell phone, as luck would have it.

So what do you do?

are you watching what I'm watching?

One thing about having a baby...I'm FORCED to sit down and feed her every few hours or so, and there's really nothing else to do but...WATCH TV!  One of my faovrite activities!  So here are my current fave shows...tell me about anything I'm missing ( I just found out about "Ice Road Truckers" and I love it - I'm afraid I'm missing something else good!)

Deadliest Catch - apparently there are THREE season of this great show.  I think I've seen all of them, but I keep recording it in case they show one I haven't seen.

Ice Road Truckers - love it.  I had no idea anything like this went on (just like Deadliest Catch).

Big Brother 8 - it is REALLY good this summer. I want Evil Dick to win it!

My standard Oprah and Dr. Phil get recorded every day to see if they do something interesting.

Flip THIS House ( please note, not "Flip THAT House", which is a different show ) - these are experienced flippers (?) with companies that are doing really well.  I really like the Montelongos the best.

The Real Estate Pros.  Another real estate investment company w/a show, but the owner seems to be a big hearted guy, always doing generous things and believing in people and I LOVE LOVE LOVE Ginger!

Big Medicine.  Anyone watching this?  Apparently they are the #1 gastric bypass docs and this showcases some of their patients surgery and recovery.  VERY interesting, though I get a little irritated when the patients get turned down by their gov't insurance plans and get upset.  HELLO?  How did you get to be 750 pounds (seriously)?  It is not the gov't (and therefore MY) responsibility to pay for this kind of surgery when these people ate themselves into obesity (if medical problems were making them heavy, the surgery wouldn't work- these people simply overeat).  When they show what they eat per day, it's mind-shocking.  No wonder.

Random documentaries - I'm always on the lookout for documentaries.  I LOVE them and can't resist.  There was one just on, "I eat 33,000 calories a day", the Discovery Channel and it was fascinating.  Any other documentary fans?  I need suggestions!

Jon and Kate + 8 - this couple is amazing!  They have twins and SEXTUPLETS.  And they haven't lost their mind!  Makes me feel bad for having a rough day sometimes when I have only 3!  She even says once, "having triplets sounds so easy!".

Are there more??

reminder...

when Son has an army battle in his room, check the floor w/the LIGHTS ON earlier in the day.  Walking in there blindly at night is going to be VERY PAINFUL.  Those army guys could be used as a torture device!

whew!

I make a promise, and here it is 10:55 and I'm just sitting down!!

BabyJ!  She can roll over FRONT to BACK and does so repeatedly.  Usually they roll the other way first!  Also, she is trying to sit up out of her bouncy seat, which is neat and astounding and all, but makes it hard to leave her in the bouncy seat.  Especially since she loves it so much!  And the babbling!  I've never heard a baby talk CONSTANTLY.  I think, because our house is so crazy and noisy w/the 2 boys, she's talking too, since it seems to her that our mouths are always running too!

BabyT...whew!  What a BUSY boy.  He is into everything, although he couldn't be cuter.  He says "Morning!" when you see him in the morning.  He does a high five then "pound it!" w/the fists (a high-five w/the fist instead of open palm) and it is so cute.  He's also getting the concept of a multiple word sentence...he's indicating to me that he wants me to put the "baby" "down" in her "fish" chair.  When I say no, he'll suggest every other play area she has, it is so cute.

Son.  He is now the MASTER swimmer.  He goes off our pool slide head first and swims for a bit underwater before coming up for air.  He's fascinated by pointing out differences (like those games, which of 4 images is different).  For example, there are a ton of different Transformers out there, a lot of them are Optimus Prime (the #1 good guy) in different colors/poses, etc and he delights in telling me exactly what makes each one different, specifically.

Whew -i've got to get to bed...more later!!!

hey!

someone noticed!  I haven't updated in a while.  Busy is the biggest understatement in the world for how things have been around here - hubby is STILL on his trip, and will be for a few more WEEKS.  I am swamped taking care of the 3 kids by myself, but I promise an update tonight after they goto bed...  EACH child has made HUGE milestone leaps this past week, it's amazing!

voice operated customer service lines

Dear United States Postal Service and USAA.....

Having a service that ONLY operates on voice commands and does not allow you to say "Help" or "operator" to get a REAL LIVE FREAKING person sucks.  Trying to call you guys and actually get a person is extremely difficult and frustrating.  And then try doing it with three small children in the background that the damn phone system picks up, and I want to poke out your eyes with baby spoons.