Nate actually wore his costume without freaking out. I guess slowly breaking him into it by making him wear it every single day for a week before hand actually did the trick. Is he not adorable? Look at him holding his little tin. Like he's going to be able to eat any of the candy people gave him. He was just happy to have something to keep his hands busy.

He was happy as could be just getting strolled around, looking at all of the costumes and all of the different people. I would have let him walk, but the silly boy refuses to wear shoes *and* walk. If I put shoes on him, he sort of stares, sits down and won't move. Even if I try to stand him up. He won't budge if there are things on his feet.

After 30 minutes, Ellie decided that she was done trick-or-treating (fine by me). She also decided that she wanted out of her costume and wanted to go home despite the fact that there were still kids coming around. Dustin was off visiting people with Nate and there was no way I was backing out of a parking spot with that many kids swarming around, so I did as all good moms do -- I threw her in the back of the car with one of her buddies (who was also done trick-or-treating) and let them eat M&Ms until the whinning died down.

After it was all over we went over to some friends to let the kids watch a movie and wind down. I was *shocked* that they didn't want to dig into their candy stash right away, but I'm guessing Ellie might have been full from her chocolate binge earlier. And that was Halloween. Must be my Jewish blood that can stretch a holiday out for an entire week.

Happy Birthday Baby

SO here he is on his FIRST birthday. I can't believe my baby is one. I have to admit, his birthday wasn't all that Ellie's first birthday was. I think it's just the curse of being the second child --alas, I am also a second child and I can't even begin to explain what a horrific childhood I had ;). I didn't even wrap his presents. There were also no balloons, no huge special party just for him. . . I only got him two toys.

Part of me feels horrible mommy guilt, and then the practical side of me reminds myself that it doesn't matter! He's only one. He'll never remember and he doesn't need anything. Plus he's happy as can be with just two toys.

So happy birthday baby! You're just as adorable and sweet as ever. WE LOVE YOU!

Yup, doughnuts for breakfast. I think Nate got his sugar fill for a year this weekend. Doughnuts for breakfast was followed by corn bread and brownies for dinner (and maybe some chili), some leftover doughnut for lunch on Sunday (after green beans of course) and two kinds of cake for his birthday meal on Sunday.

We made the mistake of buying a cake for him. With all the leftover sugar in this house, he would have been fine with just that, but Dustin and Ellie really wanted him to have his own special cake. Then of course the HOA President brought over a cake as a thank you for putting together the block party. So now we had two cakes. Luckily we had invited over some friends who had a birthday last week as well (I swear I can name 10 people who had birthdays last week) so they helped eat down some of the cake and the rest I sent to work with Dustin today.

NO MORE CANDY!

The Block Party

Our block party was a HUUUGE success. At first we were a little nervous that it would only be our little group of friends and a few other LDS couples in our neighborhood, but we actually had an AWESOME turn out. Tons of food and it was so much fun. Everyone chatted and got to know eachother and the kids had the best time playing all the games (see Ellie swinging at the pinata? She swings like a girl).

Everyone was thrilled with how well it turned out. We all stayed until it was too dark to talk any longer. It was a good mix too. About half our neighborhood is young families and the other half are older retired couples who loooooved spoiling our kids. I don't think Dustin or I held Nate the entire evening and all the kids entertained themselves too, so we were child free.

We're doing it again in December too. Although, I hope someone else gets put in charge of it, because I am party-planning-ed out.

I'm also glad Ellie is getting such good use out of her Halloween costume. definitely worth the money if she's going to have a zillion parties to wear it too. Tonight is the last one, and I'm sure I'll have pictures tomorrow. We're doing a big potluck with 7 other families and then taking the kids Trunk-or-Treating. HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Jill found these stinking cute potato sack bags. The kids were so darn adorable. Do you see how all the other mothers are helping their small children get into their potato sack? Notice that a neighbor is helping Ellie into hers? Oh well. Some one has to take the pictures.

A *fabulous* action shot for your viewing pleasure

Please note that as Ellie struggles, I continue to take pictures. Bad mom!

Halloween Party #3

This is possibly the world's worst picture, but I can't stop laughing when I look at it. Today was the playgroup Halloween party and I'm not sure what I was thinking. I had it all planned out in my mind and it was going to be so cute and organized. But I soon realized that 20+ kids under the age of 4 and the word "organized" don't really jive. The games quickly went out the window and we did what we do best -- let the kids run wild while we chatted. Overall, a huge success.

The picture is of all the kids old enough to sit up minus 3 little buddies who showed up late and Hayden and Abby who are out of town. But this is our usual friday group (it has gotten HUUUUUGE since 5 of us started it last year). I love how only Ethan is smiling and everyone else is either distracted or staring blankly. And the two in the corner crawling off screaming crack me up. Hopefully someone else has a better picture!

Picture update

I'm back from out of town and have realized that I've been neglecting this thing. So I thought I'd upload a few photos from our week so far.

Today's Dustin's birthday, so Ellie and I are off to make a cake. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

The Pumpkin Patch

This has got to be my least favorite activity of all time. It was dirty, crazy, crowded and Ellie was intent on driving me crazy. But we went, we did, we survived. Of course every one else we went with had a fabulous time, so I know there must be something fun about it. Nate eating the hay? Nope. Ellie crying the entire tractor ride? Nope. The smelly petting zoo? Nope. Getting paint all over while trying to paint pumpkins? Nope. The Bouce thingy packed with waaaaaay too many kids? OK, that was kind of nice because Ellie did enjoy it and I got to relax for a second.

I make it sound way worse than it was. I am sure it's actually really fun and lots of people I know love it, but it was just not the place I wanted to be Tuesday morning. Anyway, enjoy a picture from the place. There really aren't many to choose from since they refused to sit still for any of them. I could always find a few of Ellie throwing her tantrum on the hay ride that lasted foreeeeeever. I don't get how you can stuff 75 people on something so small.

Where'd he get that from?

So last night we get a call from an old friend. Dustin and he are talking on the phone catching up and comparing what the boys are going to be for Halloween. All of a sudden, I hear Dustin inform him that Nate is going to be a cheetah.

WAHHHHHH? Where did he get that from? Nate's going to be a dog (a shout out to my girl Kerry who handed it down to us). We (as DUSTIN and I) have put Nate in his dog costume before and I've mentioned to several people IN FRONT OF DUSTIN that Nate was going to be a dog. I feel like I'm taking crazy pills!

We actually do own a cheetah costume, but it's 18-24 months and seeing as Nate isn't one until Saturday, I thikn it would drown him. Maybe next year.

So of course after Dustin and I start discussing the cheetah costume, Ellie had to go get it out of her closet and dress up too. I can't believe she can still fit in that thing. It's from two Halloween's ago.

School Halloween party

Today was Ellie's pre-school Halloween party. She decided to wear her BYU cheerleading outfit instead of her Sleeping Beauty costume after she heard all the rules I had if she chose to wear her SleepingBeauty dress(like no eating, no playing in the dirt. . .). I thought she looked stinking cute in it!! And it worked out better anyway because it had to have been 90 degrees out today.

At the end of class the kids came out and did a little parade for us. The little boy with the Darth Vader costume has a little brother Nate's age who is giong as Yoda for Halloween -- so darn adorable. And his older brother is Ankin, his mom is Leah and his dad is being Han Solo. I am going on the record as saying that as much as I love my kids, I'm not sure we'll ever have a family costume for Halloween. But if we did, Star Wars would be the coolest.

PS Big shout out to Uncle Casey and Aunt Sarah who were so sweet and bought Ellie her cheerleading outfit as a gift. Ellie has the best Aunts and Uncles!!!

Cute cute Ellie and Ashley are such good little buddies. They are in Pre-School, Girl School and play group together. Although, no longer in the same ward. Believe it or not, Ashley's mom and I have known each other since I was a baby. It's so strange that I have so many friends down here who I knew in Oregon. And pretty cool too.

My Arizona Baby

This morning my girlfriend and were going walking at 8 am. It's been a little chilly in the mornings, so I checked the weather and sure enough it was only 68 degrees out (which is COLD if you live in Arizona). I decided to dress Ellie and Nate in pants and long sleeves to make sure they were plenty warm. Poor Nate hasn't worn pants or long sleeves since January, so the kid had no idea what was getting putting on him.

Poor little Arizona baby -- he doesn't even know what a long sleeve shirt is. He kept pulling on his sleeves and looking at them with wonder. Then the pants got on and he was even more confused. He'd pull on the bottoms and look at me quizically. I wonder what will happen the first time he wears a coat.

Why I am so tired

Let me recreate my night for you

8 pm Cuddle up with Dustin to watch Desparate Houswives. The house is clean, the kids are asleep, and we've got candy to munch on

10 pm Crawl into bed and fall asleep almost immediately (after a short conversation, but we'd been up late every night this weekend and we were beat).

Midnight What is that noise?? Wake up to hear Nate SCREAMING. Go into hold him and comfort him. Cralw back into bed at 12:30

2:30 More screaming. Nate is burning up, give him tylenol, hold him, put him back in bed and try to go back to sleep at 2:45

3:30 Once again, screaming. Close eyes hoping Dustin will hear baby and get up with him. Dustin continues snoring. Kick Dustin hoping that will wake him up. Dustin is startled, but falls back asleep quickly. Kick Dustin again and BEG him to get up with screaming son. Dustin who is still haldf asleep has no idea what is going on and needs step by step explanation of what he is awake for. Finally Dustin goes and gets Nate. He then sits in the squeaky rocking chair and rockes Nate. Yeah, that's going to put him to sleep. Fall back asleep at 3:50.

Meanwhile, Dustin decides that he doesn't want his alarm to wake me up and goes to sleep in the guest room as not to disturb me.

4:15 More crying. No one next to me to kick. Get out of bed and hold Nate. Get back to sleep almost within seconds of hitting the pillow.

5:15 Yes, he's up again. I'm soooooooo tired. Will he go back to sleep if I ignore him? No, go cuddle him, give him tylenol, kiss him and put him back down. I'm not even sure I made it back into bed before I fell asleep

6 am I decide to just ignore this time. My eyes are unable to open due to lack of sleep.

6:50 Ellie is up. Get her out of bedm give her a glass of orange juice and tell her to watch tv. Crawl back into bed.

6:55 Ellie is in my face. "Mom, I want some more juice."

7:00 Nate is awake. Time to get him up for the day.

8:00 Dustin is home from the gym, cralw back into bed and fall asleep for a power nap.

8:22 Stinking phone rings and wakes me up. I decide that Dustin should actually make an appearance at the office today and tell him I've got it under control.

Let's just say that today has been looooooooooong and very little is under control, but it's almost over.

Funeral flowers, my little "princess" and more

OK, I know people warned me about this "stage," but I'm about to pull my hair out. Ellie is trying to drive me to the point of insanity and she's not being shy about it. I am at my wit's end. Half of her toys are in the "garbage" right now (which means they're hidden in the garage). The other night after begging her to clean up her room (and even trying to help), I told her I was putting her toys in the trash. So what does she do??? Bends down to help me put them in the trash bag. AHHHH! So then the NEXt night, when her toys are all over the floor and I ask her to go pick them up, she says, "No mom, just put them in the trash." GRRRRRR! I'm doing it again tonight. Pretty soon she's not going to have any toys to play with.

Other than that, my stressful week is almost over. The funeral meal went perfectly (I loved how the center pieces turned out) and everyone was so helpful. My turn at Girl School is over for the month. PHEW! Ellie and Lexia had a great time playing together and tomorrow's activity will be over soon enough. I'm so excited for the weekend.

Another short update

OK, things are cray around here keeping me busy for updating this. I love September because it brings the promise of cool weather and the structure of school being back in session. Of course that also means the lazy days of summer are over. There are commitments to be filled, schedules to follow and too much to do before the end of the year.

Since I last updated this thing:
*We had Stake Conference -- Elder Perry came (so we made it to both the Adult Session Sat night and the Sunday morning one)
*We went to an Ice Cream Party
*Lola babysat a LOT that weekend
*Dayton and Wyatt came over to play
* We had FHE on the Sabbath Day
*Ellie went to Pre-school 4 times
* I went to a Shade Clothing Party
* Ellie had Gril School twice
* Dustin lost his fantasy football game one week
* Dustin won his fantasy football game the next week, and the weekly prize
* Ellie and I went to Pump It Up on a school field trip (veeeeeery educational)
*I had Activity Days at my house. One little girl's father left her here until 7 pm
*We had playgroup at our park
* Dustin's EQ Pinewood derby was re-scheduled -- and then re-scheduled again
* I went to the relief Society General Broadcast
* We went to a Diamondbacks game with friends
* I finished my Visiting Teaching for the month (and even reported it, too)
* I got all the meals arranged for Shirley next month and arranged for people to sit with Andrew this week
*Lola came for Sunday dinner
* Dustin made dinner for me to take to Shirley
* We finished up our 72 hour kits for FHE
* Ellie got to go to Build-A-Bear for a birthday party
* My Visting Teachers came
* Brody and Sadie came over to play
* Dustin finished his Home Teaching and did EQ's visits
* We went swimming once
* Dustin went to the gym 10 times. . . me: 0 (but I did lift weights at home)
* We returned some curtains to IKEA, put Ellie in the play center and ate dinner there
* I finished my cards for the card swap

And somewhere in there we managed to clean the house, run errands, do the laundry (one basket still eneds to be folded) and all that other good stuff.

Today's plans:
* Get Ellie to do her homework (check)
* Breakfast, hair, clothes, clean up (check)
* Get Ellie to pre-school (check)
* Take Nate to the park (check)
* Read Scriptures (check)
* Pick Ellie up from Pre-school (check)
* Morning nap for Nate (check)
* Update blog (check)
* Lunch
* Go to Brenda's at 2 to watch Andrew
* Afternoon naps
* Clean house
* Finish Girl School Lesson plan
* Dinner -- Dustin's friend from out of town is coming
* Book club meeting at 8

So I guess I should stop piddling and get busy.

Whirlwind Update

This week . . .

* We had 4 play dates
* I did 3 loads of laundry
* I actually folded some laundry too (thanks to sweet Dustin who folded the rest)
* Tommy turned 29
* Jim and Cheryl celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary
* Ellie learned about rectangles and diamonds at Pre-School
* Ellie learned about Times of the Day in Girl School
* Ellie got to go on a Teddy Bear Picnic
* Nate and I spent a lot of time shopping while Ellie was at School
* We went to the park 3 times
* It was cool enough to eat dinner outside, so we did
* Nate started taking a few steps by himself
* Ellie roder her bike, steering and pedaling all by herself
* We ditched play group (shhhhhhh!)
* I did my Visiting Teaching
* Dustin went to the gym 4 times. . . me: 0
* I got to lead the Singing Time in Primary -- best calling EVER
* We ate breakfast with Dad at the "Castle"
* I started on my cards for the car swap
* The bathrooms and floors got a thourough cleaning
* I didn't get anything in the mail that was suppossed to go out
* Ellie and Dustin had Cake flavored ice cream with sprinkles and gummy bears (Ellie picked of course)
. . .
* and I didnt' update my blog :)

Happy Birthday!

To my brother. . . the powers that be kept me from getting your card in the mail in time (ie vast government conspiracy). But Happy Birthday anyway! Hope it's a great one.

It's always Friday around here

So if you remember this blog entry, you won't be surprised that my daughter ended up naked AGAIN at play group today. Same exact park even.

She had sand all over her hair and down her swimming suit, so I told her to go over to the sprayers and wash it all off. Sure enough, I look over and the girl is stripping down. What am I going to do get her to keep her clothes on?

I think it's harder to NOT title these than to actually title them

Ellie comes up to me and says, "Mom, my heart hurts."

I replied, "You know what makes my heart better? A hug." Then I gave her a big hug, but she still looked sad. So I ask her, "What is the matter? Do you want me to kiss it better."

Ellie tells me, "No. I just need to say prayer. You want to say prayer with me?"

And so we sat kneeling in prayer. Our arms folded and heads bowed. Her little voice thanking God for all His goodness and listing her blessings. Then she whispers, "Please bless my heart not hurt."

It was powerful for me to watch that. Humbling.

Crud

Ellie did an EXCELLENT job tracing and coloring the triangles on her triangle worksheet. Unfortunately, she did it neon yellow so you can't see. BOO HOO! I just realized it when I looked at the blog. Oh well, you'll just have to take my word for it. It's EXCEPTIONAL!

. . .

Back by popular demand. . . more of Ellie's school work.

And so this blog will be all about school! Ellie now goes to "school" 3 times a week. Now "school" is actually a lo of fun I've determined. But that's the way it should be. Play is the work of children. I've watched Ellie do her homework and she has to put a lot of effort into making those lines. I also know it is hard work because she naps for about 3 hours on school days.

Today as I go to drop Ellie off at school, her teacher asks me if Ellie is always so quiet. I gave her a quizzical look. Ellie is rarely quiet. And I should know this because I taught Girl School yesterday and couldn't get the girl to quiet down. So I guess my daughet *is* capable of being quiet. For other people at least. From what Becky said, she works quietly and even raises her hand to answer questions!!!!! And this is why I will never home school. She doesn't do any of that for me.

So what is Girl School -- I'm sure you're wondering. Every Wednesday, my girl friends and I rotate doing a little pre-school type thing at our houses for 2 hours. Yesterday was my turn (as well as the first day) and it went splendidly, if I don't say so myself. Except that Abby didn't show up and none of us could figure out where she was. Turns out Michelle (her mom) had gone into labor at 3 am that morning. Welcome to the world little Lauren! Back on topic here. . . Those little girls are so stinking cute together. It is fun to watch them learn and interact. We were playing a game where they had to run to the shape that I said, and it was so funny to watch their little legs go all over the living room and to see their little minds switch gears so quickly. That being said, I'm glad my week isover for the month.

And what is Nate up to? He's my little buddy as I run him all over town and back. He is such a good shopping buddy. Today we went and picked up hand towels to make Hygeine kits for the Bishop's storehouses in the South. While we were there I also *HAD* to buy this cute little dress for Ellie, school supplies that were on clearance and about a billion other little things.

OK, I've piddled enough. I've got to get my lesson ready for Activity Days which is here today. And maybe feed my kids some lunch. I've heard they're happier if their bellies are full.

Don't forget that I'm boycotting this title box

Are we ever going to have a normal family picture again? These are some that we tried on Monday. We were all lounging around and I had wanted a picture of the 4 of us together for reasons that must remain unkown at this point. So I made my sister come out and take a few snapshots for us. AY YA YI! Getting Nate AND Ellie to look at the camera was a pain. And of course trying to get Ellie not to ham it up was impossible. And then when I looked at the pictures I realized that you couldn't see anything of Dustin's eyes because of the glare on his glasses. BLAH!!!!! Oh yes, and see that pink box in Nate's hand? That would be the Tic Tac container that he would play with when he wasn't pulling on my hair. It's not like I wanted anything formal. Just a casual family picture would have been fine. I offcially give up.

And along that vein, I wouldn't count on getting a picture with your Christmas cards this year either.

Why do I have to title these things? And other random thoughts.

I mean, really! The only titles I can come up with are so cheesey. So I think I'm going to protest titling my blog entries from now on.

And why is this Blog called "Dustin and Maddy?" Dustin never posts on here. I'd be highly entertained if he did. I'm not even sure if he *reads* the blog. I'll have to ask him. Dustin -- if you're reading this, give us something to read!

Are you a knocker or a ringer? I personally am a knocker. I always knock before I ring the doorbell. I just feel like it's more polite. The doorbell is so startling. If no one answers after I knock, then I'll ring.

I love holiday weekends. Saturdays are much more productive, because I know if I work hard, I'll have all Monday to play. And I actually went to the gym today and worked out HARD. I've been out of the habit for a few months now and slowly getting back into it. We've got Race for the Cure coming up, so I need to work hard.

We rented Sleeping Beauty the other night and let Ellie watch it last night. There is something magical about watching your child watch a movie you loved as a child. The way she wishpered when she said the characters names. . . the fact that she was completely absorbed in one thing for an hour and a half. . .it makes life fun. I love how happy my kids get by the simplest things.

My sister is here right now and that makes me happy too. My kids adore her and I love to watch them interact with her. Everyone should have an Aunt that is 100% goofy with them. Plus, she thinks everything they say and do is so cute and unique. It makes me laugh at them even more too. Love that.

Well, now that I think about it, I'm postively bursting with happiness. We're going over to a friend's house tonight. I am a really social person and any chance to chat is always a good thing. Should be fun.

So basic wrap of for this weekend -- good times, good times!

PS Intervention Update

I think we're going to dress as Fred and Daphne from Scooby Doo for Halloween.

And I have 40 Christmas cards done. Yay me :) Just had to let everyone know, so you can start panicing!

School Days

I know I won't be able to keep all of Ellie's school papers forever, but they are just so darn cute and I can't help laughing at them. Please note how poorly my daughter handles scissors! She got a lot better as she went farther down the page. I drew in the lines so you could see where the cuts are. I'd say we should practice more, but I'm not letting her near scissors if I can help it. And look at how hard she tried to trace the lines. She did a pretty good job with the straight ones!

Just a proud mama showing off all of Ellie's cute cute things! I wish there were school today. She's driving me CRAZY!

Stay cool!

OK, what is up with the weather around here these days? It's gorgeous for August. I'm absolutely loving it. In the morning it's cool enough to run errands without melting to death and the afternoons are hot enough for a dip in the pool. And of course by sunset, you can still take a stroll or sit outside and talk. If only I had grass in my yard it would be so much more pleasane.

Today was the first official "no parent" day at school, so I was freeeeeeeee for a whole 2 hours. Well, as free as I could be toting along a 25 pound 9 month old. But honestly, a baby is soooo much easier than a demanding 3 year old. Not once at the grocery store did Nate ask if he could have candy. Or if we were going to leave anytime soon. Or who my favorite pincess was. I just cruised the aisles enjoying the silence.

On a side note, I went back to the gym this week after a month long "vacation." I'm reaaaaalllllly out of shape again.

Speaking of mouths . . .

So while I'm on here, posting photos of my son's mouth. . . thought I'd post these too. What is up with my son's tongue when he smiles???

We have a tooth!

It's true! At almost ten months, Nate is one step closer to being able to actually chew food. I'm not a big fan of the drool and the crankiness that come along with teething, but I love that Nate is one step closer to table food.

When Ellie was a baby, I didn't get all the hype over moving onto solids. I was plenty happy just feeding her a bottle. If only I had known the FREEDOM! I cannot wait to go out to eat and order Nate something off of the menu. No more smushed veggies being shoveled into his mouth. . .

Here's hoping that another tooth will show up soon! Although, I'm not holdiing my breath. I don't see anything remotely close to a tooth or a red bump while zooming in on this picture. I do see drool though. Hopefully that isn't grossing anyone out. When it's your own child, you find it endearing.

Later taters!

Ellie's first day of school

YEAY! Ellie started school today. I didn't cry at all (of course I did cry about it 2 weeks ago, so I think I'm all cried out). I have to keep telling myself that's only preschool.

She found her desk all by herself (she can read! she can read!) and managed to stay on task for a whole 2 minutes. But whatever, not my problem anymore :). Then her teacher read "The Kissing Hand" and we traced their hands and kissed the inside. So sweet. When it was time to go, Ellie didn't want to leave. That's a good feeling. Hopefully she'll like this whole "school thing."

Ellie's teacher, Miss Becky 

Ellie's seat 

Ellie already bored and off task 

Elie's kissing hand 

Ellie gets off task AGAIN 

Say Cheeeeeeeeeeese!

This morning, Ellie got a hold of the camera and decided to wander around taking pictures. These are just a sampling of the wonderful images she captured. I'm not sure she's got the "eye" for photo journalism. Luckily, I delted all the pictures she got of me before anyone got to see them.

 

 

 

Ellie's attempts at photo-journalism 

I need an intervention

Yes, there are more things wrong with me than just my love of Arrowroot cookies (easy to chew and swallow). I have serious holiday issues. This week officially started my holiday season when I made my first Christmas card. Not just one Christmas card, but I've already made 5. Isn't it still July????

And I already have my kid's Halloween costumes. Speaking of which, if you have any ideas for costumes for me and Dustin, let me know! I'm not 9 months pregnant this year, so I can actually go as something fun! Yes, I still have 3 months, but I need to get planning!!!!

I'm also planning my Christmas party. I've decided that we're not going anywhere for Christmas this year, so I'm going to do all the things real families do this year. We're getting a tree, we're taking little gifts around to neighbors (I already bought the ornaments to tie with the ribobn on the gifts), we're sending out home made Christmas cards (did that last year too), and we're having a party. I'm not sure what we'll be doing at the Christmas party, but I know what the invitations are going to look like, I know who's invited and I know Dustin will be cooking (I think he knows that too, but I'd better double check).

I've already bought a few Christmas present as well. I've got my entire list made up and I'm checking it twice!!!

Lowest of the Low

I need sugar and none can be found in this darn house! I've gone through the entire place and the best I could come up with was some freaking peppermint sticks.

And so I'm sunken so low that I am eating Nat'es Gerber Arrowroot Cookies. And I like them too.

I hate lunch time

Can I just tell you all how much I miss eating lunch by myself? Slowly putting the food into my mouth, carefully chewing each bite, actually getting a sip of water here or there. . . Lunch time now consists of me BEGGING Ellie to eat what I've prepared and shoving food as fast as I can into Nate's ever open mouth, all the while standing up to run and get Ellie something else or clean up a mess one of them has made.

Today at about 11, Ellie comes to tell me she is hungry. I told her we'd eat as soon as Nate woke up and to go clean her room up so we'd be all set. Now before anyone feels sorry for Ellie, this is her MO -- she SAYS she's hungry and then refuses to eat what is set before her. So as the next hour passes, Ellie comes in every 15 minutes to tell me she's hungry. I then remind her to clean her room. She leaves and comes back 15 minutes later. . . So finally I tell her we're not eating lunch until her room is clean.

Nate woke up, ate a bottle, got his diaper changed. . . her arms were "broken" so she couldn't clean her room. Nate played, we made some calls, unloaded the dishwasher. . . her head hurt so she couldn't clean her room. I'm feeding Nate cheerioes to keep him happy until we can all sit down together. Finally it is 2 pm and nap time is sneaking up on us. Ellie is still sitting in the middle of her room doing NOTHING at all excpet every once in awhile her tummy "speaks" and says: I'm hungry. Well tummy! CLEAN YOUR ROOM! I finally gave in and fed Nate. Did the dishes, cleaned up the mess all over the floor under Nate's chair. . . Ellie has her hands over her eyes -- she can't see so she can't clean her room. Nate and I play around with his toys in the living room when I notice it is eerily quiet. No shouts of, "I'm hungry," or "I can't do it." Just silence.

Ellie has crawled up on the crib mattress under her bed (she has a loft bed) and has fallen asleep. I go and get cracker and toss it under there with her. She wakes up for a split second and says, "Mom, I'm just resting. I'm too tired to clean my room. Maybe when I wake up."

So Ellie's room is still a disaster and she hasn't eaten anything since breakfast. Should I make her clean it before dinner or just give in?

PS

All my pictures from this weekend stink. Will everyone share theirs with me? Just send them to my gmail address (samenamehereasmyhotmailaddress@gmail.com) , pretty please!!!!!!! it doesn't matter if they have my kids in them or not, I just want to see them.

The kiddos 

Alex Anne and Ellie after their bath  

Wyatt and Nate (6 months & 8 months) 

SUCCESS!

Yes, Rogers Raging Reunion 2005 went off perfectly fine. The children survived, the house isn't completely trashed, Ellie quickly got over her fear of dogs, Nate adored sleeping in the closet (so much so that he is napping there right now) and we even managed to eat before 8 pm a few nights (ha ha ha). Seriously though, it was so much fun. I just loved watching the kids play together. It really made me wish we had family around. There's some special bond between cousins that just makes your heart melt. Dustin and I never had any cousins to "bond" with, so it really saddens me that Ellie and Nate are so far away from all of theirs. Would some of you stinkers move out here please??? I believe the theme for this year was, "Arizona Doesn't Suck After All."

Anyway, we love you all and miss you now that you are gone. Come see us soon! I'M THE BOSS you know.

As for the rest of you, I'm finally de-stressed and everything can go back to normal. I will return your phone calls, I will be scrapping, I will be working out at the gym, I will make it play group. . . as soon as I catch up on my sleep.