The Graduate

I tried uploading this the other day and my computer was being completely wonky so I gave up in frustration.

I'm back today to post the pics...but they're completely out of order and today I'm lacking the patience to mess around with blogger's completely wacky photo placements.

Owen graduated kindy last Tuesday and we of course, are super proud.  It seems weird that he's moved beyond "kindergartner" into the rocky terrain of "elementary schooler".  It literally seems just a week or so ago that i was sniffling in the kitchen writing him a letter as he slept the night before his first day of school.  

Anyway....here he is, pictures all askew, as he graduated on Tuesday.

Good job Owen! We are so proud of you! :)

Lately, I've Been.....

procrastinating.
an escapist.
enjoying the spring weather.
feeling inadequate.
wanting to be a better friend.
tired of myself.
wanting a vacation.
thinking I need to join the gym again.
wondering what the future holds.
defining some goals.
floundering in my own lack direction.
irritated by how much I care.
needing to care more, but about different things.
wanting to make a difference.
going to bed early.
wishing i was different.
thinking that change is good.
resisting the urge to move again.
planning to paint some stuff.
ignoring my camera.
twittering.
anxiously awaiting summer.
coveting time with my husband.
looking to reclaim my passion.
realizing my insignificance.
needing a break. from everything.

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What have you been lately??

The Credit Crunch

We turned in our minivan yesterday. It was a lease, and the lease was up yesterday. For all my years of griping about it, it was a decent vehicle and served us well.
So naturally, we've spent the last week looking at family-mobiles and examining our options. Yesterday I re-read this article I've kept from Relevant Magazine that I thought was interesting. Here's an excerpt:

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From Straight Talk About Debt by Dave Ramsey:

"Taking on a car payment is one of the dumbest things people do to destroy their chances of building wealth. The car payment is most folks' largest payment except for their home mortgage, so it steals more money from their income than virtually anything else. USA Today notes that the average monthly car payment is $464 over 64 months. Most people get a car payment and keep it through their lives. As soon as a car is paid off, they get another payment because they "need" a new car. I you keep a $464 car payment throughout your life - which is "normal"-you miss the opportunity to save that money. If you invested $464 per month from age 25 to age 65, a normal working lifetime, in the average mutual fund averaging 12 percent (the 70-year stock market average), you would have $5,458,854.45 at age 65. Hope you like that car!

If you put $464 per month in a cookie jar for just 10 months, you have more than $4000 to pay cash for a car. I am not suggesting you drive a $4000 car your whole life, but that is how you start without debt. then you can save the same amount again and trade up to and $8,000 car 10 months later and up to a $12,000 car 10 months after that. In just 30 months, or two and a half years, you can drive a paid-for $12,000 car, never having made a payment, and never have to make payments again.

Taking on car payments because everyone else does it does not make it smart. Will your broke relatives and friends make fun of your junk car while you do this?? Sure they will, but that's a very good sign you are on the right track. Having been a millionaire and gone broke, I dug my way out by making a decision about looking good versus being good. Looking good is when your broke friends are impressed by what you drive, and being good is having more money than they have."
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While I don't necessarily agree with his tone, implying that acquiring wealth is the greatest goal to work towards, I DO like the idea of working towards living debt-free. It's taken me months to get over the idea of having a car with less than 20,000 miles on it. I've had this phobia or "thing" about older cars or cars with higher mileage - fretting about their dependability, expecting them to fall apart on the road as I drive them, etc. etc.
Admittedly, I'm a very short-sighted person. Yes, we'd be in debt, but we'd have a GOOD car, a RELIABLE car, and (said to myself) a PRETTY car. Yeah, guess I'm shallow like that. So here we are...looking at cars - and for the first time, I'm thinking: Maybe it WOULD be worth it to drive a crappy car for a couple of years so that we can save $400 a month.

And I'm pleasantly surprised to find that I'm okay with that.

So if you see me in town with my kids in tow in a crappy old minivan or SUV - just wave and smile and laugh if you feel like it. It's taken me a long time to get to the point that I don't care. :)

Garden 2009

In no particular order, because Blogger is being weird and I'm too tired to re-arrange.

Here's our garden that we did last week.

Many thanks to:

The horses from a client's farm: for your poop

Erica: For use of your truck to pick up said poop

Casey:  For taking photos

My husband: For working tirelessly until it was done

AJ: Who worked his little hiney off all day on the garden, happily and without complaint. He even got a sunburn.

Sick Boys

AJ was sick over the weekend...chills, fever, achiness, extra whiney. :) Today has been his best day - he'll probably be back to normal by tomorrow, but of course this morning when Owen woke up, he wasn't feeling good.
They both crashed on the couch this afternoon - a rare occurance indeed.

Why do the boys get such great eyelashes??

Hello, It's Mister Nasty!

Remember these lines from the movie, You've Got Mail?
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Joe Fox: [talking via email, to who he doesn’t know is Kathleen Kelly] Have you ever become the worst version of yourself. That a pandora's box of all the hateful things, your spite, your arrogance, your condecension has sprung open? Someone upsets you and instead of smiling and walking away... you zing them. "Hello it's Mr Nasty". I'm sure you have no idea what I'm talking about...

Kathleen Kelly: [talking via email, to who she doesn’t know is Joe Fox] No I know exactly what you mean and I'm completely jealous. When I'm confronted by someone I get tongue tied and my mind goes blank. Then I spend the rest of the night tossing and turning over what i should have said. For example what should I have recently said to… [meaning confrontation with Joe]
Kathleen Kelly:…a bottom dweller who recently belittled my existance. [stops and thinks] Kathleen Kelly:Nothing... even now days later I still can't figured it out...
Joe Fox: Wouldn’t it be great if I could pass all my zingers to you, then I could always be nice and you could be nasty whenever you wanted to be. Although I must warn you... when you eventually have the pleasure of saying the thing you want to say at the moment you’re wanting to say it... remorse eventually follows...
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Generally, I'm think fairly fast on my feet. I can easily banter back and forth with someone, and throw in the occasional witty zinger. But is that a blessing, or a curse?

Yesterday, I posted the videos of Tyler's various messes over the last week or so, and in order to post them on here, I first had to publicly post them on Youtube. It doesn't bother me to put them up on the internet for the world to see, mainly because the clips are only 30 seconds long in length and have no identifying information in them. If some stranger in Oklahoma wants to watch a video of my kid with oatmeal on his head.... whatever.

So....the possibility is there for comments from people that I don't know (like the 5th grader that commented on AJ's "Itchy Cast" video saying...." I feel ur pain".
Well, last night I check my email and see that I have two comments from someone on Tyler's Egg Video from yesterday.

The comments were from the same person and they were laughably absurd. I wish I had saved them so I could cut and paste them here.
The basic gist of it was: I can't believe you let your kid get so messy, just so you can show it to the world on youtube. It's testament to what a bad parent you are to let your kids be so disgusting.....blah, blah, blah. It was a long comment.

I laughed. Seriously, what an idiot.
So then I deleted her comments, and closed the video comment section so that no one could comment on them. I know some people on youtube post videos because they WANT a lot of comments and attention, but I only use youtube as a means to an end (to post videos here and on Facebook for my family and friends to see).

And then I left it alone and didn't think about it again.

yeah, right.

No. OH NO.....
Instead....feeling the need to "inform" this woman of the petty, insecure, judgemental, idiotic, irrelevant dumbass that she was, I sent her a message via her youtube contact page.
And here's where Mister Nasty came out.

It was a clever message - Dismissive, but scathing. Belittling, but with pointed sarcasm. Brief enough to convey that I don't have time for her, but lengthly enough to convey my message. Pointing out the pathetic nature of a person who trolls youtube at night making judgemental commentary on the parenting styles of people that she doesn't even know. It was intentionally nonchalant, with biting undertones. I'll spare you the details. Suffice to say, it was ugly. Ugly wrapped up in a witty, educated delivery.

It was unneccessary. But it made me feel better.
For a minute.

And then as Joe Fox said....."remorse inevitably follows".

Words can cut deep.....I know that. I've experienced it quite a bit in my 29 years- which is maybe how I learned it myself. Sure, it can be a fun "tool"....when your'e joking around or trying to be funny with your friends. But if you make me mad? Insult me or my family? Watch out- because my tongue will lash out at you and cut you to pieces. Where does that come from?? How do some people "know" how to do that so well, and other's don't? Or maybe the "others" just exercise more self-control. Sadly, more often than not - I hold back from completely tearing someone to shreds. Somehow I KNOW what it is....what words I COULD say if I wanted to, that would cut you straight to the bone. I'm also a fairly perceptive person - in more ways than one - so I also can somehow....just know. Know your weakness, know your insecurity, know your deepest fear - and I could put my finger on it and press. If I wanted to. I guess my basic desire to be a generally good and loving person keeps me from going there.
Makes me real approachable, huh? Maybe a little bit more about me than you wanted to know, eh?? Well, this is me being real. *sigh*

Just a humbling reminder this Wednesday morning of the ugliness of my heart, the power of words and the danger of a sharp tongue.
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Where do you fall on the "Zinger" scale?? Do you get tongue tied and then spend the next 4 hours thinking of what you should've said?? Or do you open your mouth and "zing" them?? Feel free to discuss. I think I need an intervention.
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"But the tongue no man can tame, an unquiet evil, full of deadly poison."

Terrible Two's Got Nothin' on Tyler

Boy, is THIS a fun age. *rolling my eyes*

Sick. And Pantless Skiing.

I know this blog has been seriously lacking in content lately - and for that, I'm sorry.

We've been hit with a triple whammy the past week - Tyler got sick first with a wet nasty cough and quickly passed it to Owen, then AJ (who has decided to add a few a la carte's to the mix: specifically ear ache and a minor bout of vomiting). And now I have it as well. Times 10. I really don't ever get sick SICK - like barfy, flu type of sick, but I DO usually catch a sinusy-cold every winter. This year's is the worst in awhile...ear aches, stuffy head, miserable sleeping at night..the whole shabang.

One of those colds that makes you want to curl up in bed with movies and a blanket and not move for 5 days. But since we can't ALL take a break from life like Dan-o (who landed himself in the hospital on Sunday, for those of you not in-the-know....love ya D-man!), I just keep on truck'n. And try not to complain about it too much.

And hope to God that Steve doesn't get it too.

So I've got nothin' for ya....except this:
It's really terrible...and it could've been quite tragic....but since it wasn't, it's fun to gasp and laugh at, the poor, poor man.

Man Left Dangling Upside Down, Pantless, After Vail Skiing Mishap


Enjoy.

A Lovely Fall Day

Yesterday took the boys to Chehaw for a picnic and some fun at the park and the "zoo". The weather couldn't have been more perfect and it was nice to get out for an afternoon of fresh air and good times with my 3 favorite little boys. :)
Sorry for the watermark on some of these....I posted them on my biz blog too so I stamped 'em. :)

We were having fun doing some self-portraits...

And So It Begins.....

The other day I was doing Owen's "homework" with him and he was working on stuff regarding the letter "M". He had to do a worksheet, and then read a little book with M words in it. After I gave him instructions for the worksheet, he pulled out his little book, titled "My Mm Book" and read the cover:

Owen (in a southern accent): "My IiMm Book"
Me (over-enunciating): No...it's not 'IiiM"...it's 'M', making the letter sound short and concise (like it's supposed to be).
Owen: "IIIiiiimmmm-uh"
Me: 'No, M - it's short. M.'
Owen: 'IIIiim'.
Me: 'M'
Owen: 'M"
Me: right!
Owen (picking his book up again): "My IIIiim Book"
Me: (sighs)

He's talking southern.
What should I do?
Wouldn't you think that language is influenced more by the way it's spoken in the home rather than at school? What do I do, what do I DO?!?!? (running around in panic)

OY VEY.

Talk about an eventful (and awful) photo session tonight.....if you're interested in hearing the gory details (and about my call to 911 and the blood on my hands and shirt) then maybe I'll share tomorrow, but for tonight you can just read the condensed version on my biz blog HERE.

*sigh*

What a night.

$30...the story of my life

It seems like every time I go to the store, it costs me $30.

Trip to the store to pick up eggs, milk, bread, and something for dinner: $30
Trip to target for toothpaste, toilet paper, deodorant, and new pants for Owen: $30
A few hours of babysitting: $30
Enough gas to get me through the next week or so: $30

This sounds like a line from a mastercard commercial, but it's not -- I'm just always spending $30 somewhere. Isn't that weird? Do you have something like that??

This is me being glass half empty

I can tell already that it's going to be a very bad day. Ever have days like that?
By 8 am there was:
1) MUCH fighting and threatening of spanking because "will you PLEASE just get your freaking school clothes on?" is apparently not clear enough instructions for my 5 year old. Neither is: "GO.BRUSH.YOUR.TEETH.RIGHT.THIS.SECOND" in my "I'm about to go postal on your tiny hiney" voice.

2) the last of the Frosted Mini Wheats and all the crumbs in the bottom of the box dumped on the kitchen floor. FYI - Frosted Mini Wheat crumbs are VERY tiny, and make a VERY large mess.

3) One cardboard circle (from a pizza? I don't know) whipped around the house, stuck in the doorjam, and hitting me in the head. Twice.

4) Multiple instances of crying, tattling, and whining. All before I can even get the coffee brewed.

5) Dog food tossed in the dog water, and dog water splashed all over the floor in the laundry room.

6) One dumped bowl of cereal (tyler). And it wasn't enough to just dump it on his highchair tray. THEN, he thought it would be a good idea to violently wipe his hands around in it and spray milk and Kix in a 2 foot vicinity around him.

7) Tyler climbed on top of the kitchen table 6 times. SIX.

8) A battery powered Thomas the Tank Engine tossed in the master bathroom toilet. Aggravating only because the boys' bathroom toilet is currently out of commission from Tyler tossing something in there LAST week. After I fished out Thomas from the crapper, I whipped him across the bedroom (Thomas, not Tyler). That made me feel a little better.

9) A yet-undiscovered Pee-the-Bed incident. Picking up toys in the boys room, I stumble across some very WET, very ODOROUS pajamas.
"Did you pee the bed last night?" I ask AJ
[thinking] "Nope. I peed my pajamas."

This is all before 8 am. I can't WAIT to see what the rest of the day has in store.

Tagged By Ness

Ness over at Happiness Is A Butterfly tagged me with the task of sharing 7 random facts about me, a task that is harder than it seems because I feel like I've shared just about everything with bloggerland.
I mean, you already know that I count how long I pee for, and that I always wanted an outie bellybutton, and how I save eggshells for my nonexistent compost pile, and how I have a thing for birds (okay, I guess I've told you about a few different things with birds) and roadkill.
What else is there??

Hmmm.....let's see.

1. I have terrible luck with checkout lines. I'm not kidding or exaggerating. Ask anyone who's been in store with me - I've actually thought about blogging about my CheckOut Line Curse but haven't got around to it. 99.9% of the time, I will choose a line (short or long, doesn't matter) and one or all of the following will occur:
I will
a) end up behind the person who is paying for their entire purchase in nickels and pennies
b) get the cashier-in-training who has to ask me "is that a cantelope or a honeydew melon" and proceed to flip through her produce manual page by agonizing page looking for the correct code.
c) be behind the elderly person who is paying by check.
And it takes her 7 minutes to write the check.
And then she writes it for the wrong amount and has to start over.
d) Unknowingly get behind the person in the self-checkout lane who apparently has no freaking clue how to actually USE the self-checkout lane.
e) any combination of, or all of the above.

2. I've had quite a few run-ins with broken fingers. From my middle school year through college alone I had 6 broken fingers.
4 of them (all 4 fingers on left hand) rollerblading
1 (pinky finger-right hand) playing beach volleyball
1 (pinky finger-left hand) playing volleyball in college intramurals (or goofing off with friends, I can't remember).
The last one I didn't think I actually broke it - I thought it was just a bad jam so I ignored it for about a week. When it was still hurting after several days I went to the college medical building and they suggested I go see doctor. It was broken all right, but since I hadn't done anything to it, it had already started to heal and is still bent to this day (I can't fully straighten it).

3. The only time I've ever punched anyone (with malice) was in 1st grade recess when Brent Bolerjack said girls couldn't play kickball. I showed him a thing or two about what girls could and couldn't do.

4. I say the following phrase at least 10 times a day: "Tyler! No climbing" or "Tyler! Get down from there!"
I also say the following in abundance:
"You rock"
"Owen, please stop"
"Great idea!"
"I love you"
"I'm gonna get you"
"Just a minute please"
"Did you wipe?" followed by "Go wash your hands"

5. I've always had a desire to adopt. For many years the desire was international adoption, but that desire has been morphing over the last year or so. I'm not sure what the future holds for us and adoption but I do know this: our family is not yet complete.

6. I never snooze my alarm. EVER. The sound of an alarm's buzzer is so aggravating to me that it's worth it to me to just get up so I don't have to hear that hellish buzz again in 9 minutes.

7. I have an actual bucket list. Like, written down in a journal. I've added to it over the years and I think everyone should have one. Right now there are 14 things on it and I've done 5 of them. The weirdest one? Go on vacation at a nudist resort. I'm saving that one for when Steve and I are old and wrinkled and our children will be completely mortified that their old parents are going on a nudist vacation.

okay, there's my seven! And I'm tagging Casey, Clint, Amy, AmyLynn, Amy Porter, Amy Pottenger (man, I know a lot of Amy's!), middle-school friend Melissa, and Steve-o (who actually has a blog that he has only written in ONCE so i cant' remember the name of it to link it- you better add your link in the comments after you do it, dear hubby!).

Small Things

Fall has arrived in Georgia. I was hesitant to post that last week, when the weather had just started to turn towards cooler pastures, because I know how dastardly Georgia weather can be. Undoubtedly, no sooner had I uttered a sigh and proclaimed How I Love Thee Autumn, it would've turned back into a 98 degree inferno.
But one week in, and I think it safe to proclaim that Fall is indeed, here to stay.
After 6+ months of grueling Southern heat, my Michigan blood breathes a sigh of relief and relishes the intoxicating breeze that blows through the air. It's hard to not just sit outside all day and enjoy every last minute of it.

Yesterday after we got home from picking Owen up at school, Tyler went down for a nap and the (big) boys and I headed outside. I laid in a chair, the boys played in the dirt, the sandbox, the playset, the grass - looking for lizards, building castles, digging for treasure.

And then I went inside and grabbed my camera.......

Autumn + small things= me happy. :)

A spiderweb in the canopy above the playset

A rusty bolt on the monkey bars...

A watchful dog...

A few lone tomatoes hanging on the last straggly vines in the garden...

A largely overgrown cilantro bush that fills the backyard with it's beautiful scent every time a breeze blows....

A silly child....

A soulful child....

Citronella candles on the table...

An abandoned sandbox toy...

Climbing flowers on the back fence dying to make room for new growth...

Giving our caterpillars some fresh air and anticipating their metamorphosis....

The chain on a swing....

A long-forgotten clothespin on the line...

What small things make you happy?