Wordless Wednesday

Not me! Monday

Although MckMama is off on a tropical, well-deserved vacation, it is still Monday and that means starting the week with the wonderful denial of truth! Here are a few things I certainly did NOT do this past week...

• I did NOT hear from my older son that he was praying for me during his nap that I would not be angry when he woke up. He did NOT then whisper in my ear that he recommended I do the same!
• I did NOT get to go on a wonderful date with my husband to watch the Sioux CRUSH Denver 8-3! (Thanks Nikki and Tom)
• I did NOT have a few emotional break downs this week and wonder why exactly my husband puts up with me ;0) 
• I did NOT wait until late in the morning to take the boys to workout, get groceries, stop at subway (for me), where I did NOT leave my credit card, and continue to my sister's apartment to see her wedding pictures, then leave AFTER they had reached the point of no return and stop at Starbucks (again for me) only to realize that I left my credit card at subway. The best part was my 4 year old was the one who knew where it was! "Mommy, I think you left it at the sandwich store!"
• I did NOT get to go on two dates with my boys and my mom this week. One to the mall to play, followed up by cold stone. I did NOT get ice cream after telling myself I would not. The second was two see the movie "Hotel for Dogs" which I did NOT totally love!
• Jonah did NOT have a melt down after the movie and test every ounce of patience I have in my being. I did NOT almost yell at him but laughed instead when Elijah said "Showtime" after getting his pjs zipped up. I was NOT impressed until Jonah pipped in that it was from "Madagascar" and he didn't make it up. 
• I did NOT just get 22/24 on the adjective/adverb quiz my husband just gave me! Booyah! (If you are a religious reader of my blog you will truly appreciate this feat)
• I did NOT become ecstatic when I realized Richard and I were going to possibly go away for a weekend in February (we have never done this) and while surfing the web for our destination getaway decide instead to take the whole family down to Iowa City for the weekend!  
• I did NOT give Richard his Valentine's Day present today. Oh, it's not Valentine's Day yet? Silly me! I am NOT impatient when it comes to giving gifts to people and I do NOT do this often. 
• I did NOT just tell the internet to "Bite me." Nope. It is an inanimate object. Plus I did NOT hear my boys go "Ugghh or Grrrr" when they were frustrated this week. They, of course, did NOT learn this awful coping mechanism from me.  

What didn't you do this week? I would love to hear about it!  Here is to another week with a fresh start. AMEN to that!

Flashback Friday

Today it was bitterly cold and as I bundled the boys up to head to the car I was thinking how cute they still are all bundled up and reminded of one of the first times they both were outside.  How amazing that I am still able to remember these things and I pray my memory only gets better as they get older and more kiddos are added to our family. The first picture is of Jonah in the courtyard of our 2 bedroom apartment on good old Emerald Street in Iowa City.  He loved the snow!  I still remember the three of us trekking around outside, going to the hidden park by our apartment and returning home for some hot chocolate.  He was almost one and cried when we took him inside. The second one is of sweet Elijah all bundled up and ready for a walk in California. We were able to travel there the January after he was born (he was almost 5 months old) and spent a week with Richard's brother Tom and his family.  It was a blast! It wasn't as cold as it would have been at home, but it is a fun memory! He wasn't so sure about being outside and was fine as long as we kept the stroller moving. 

Little did I know that they both would be winter lovers and I am afraid they would never come inside if we didn't force them too!  They have adjusted nicely to these arctic ND temps and I have to say I am pretty impressed. The car starter definitely helps though! Did I ever say how much I appreciate and enjoy that? Oh, yeah...almost every post!

Kids say the darndest things...

This will be a random post about some of the random comments that have been heard around our house lately...

Jonah: "Mom, why do we have bones in our body?"

Me: "Jonah, what made you think of that?"

J: "I don't know I just thought of it."

M: "Well...God put the bones in our body to protect our organs, like our heart, lungs, stomach, and so that we can walk and move around."

J: "Oh, I see."

M: "Who told you about bones?"

J: "Jesus."

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Elijah: "Mom, I was not being naughty downstairs. I was just hanging out."

(It was definitely a disaster with almost every toy out and it only took him about 10 minutes to do this)

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Elijah: "How your day mom?"

Me: "It has been very nice sweetie, thanks for asking. How was your day?"

Elijah: "Good. Jonah, how your day?"

Jonah: "Good. Mom how was your day?"

Me: "Boys, I have been with you all day long.  Remember? We played games, did puzzles, read stories, and colored."

Jonah: "Oh, that sounds nice. Did you have fun doing that? Did your kids have fun?"

Me: "Yes, I did have fun. I think they had fun, but you could ask them."

Jonah: "Ok, I will."

(This question has stemmed from me asking Richard when he gets home every day how his day was. The boys now ask each other and me this frequently throughout the day)

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Jonah: "Mom, you know how I keep praying for a baby sister someday....well I was wondering if you can have two babies at the same time?"

Me: "Jonah, remember that first of all we don't get to pick when or what kind of baby we get, that is God's decision. Second, I am pretty sure we won't be having two at the same time, but it does happen. What if we would have had two Elijah's at the same time?"

Jonah: "Hmmmm....I am just going to pray for one baby sister instead of two."

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Jonah: "Mom, you hurt my feelings!"

Me:  "I am sorry I hurt your feelings, but you can't do that."

Jonah: "Mom, you hurt my feelings...all the way to my heart...right where it beeps (I think he meant BEATS)."

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These comments have come out of my mouth during an average day with the boys...

• I am sorry you are not done killing all the bad guys, but it is time for lunch...so put down your guns and get up here!
• You can not use golf clubs and bats for weapons. Please stop hitting each other with them.
• I don't care what you think will happen, but you can not FLY off the bunkbeds.  Jesus will NOT keep you safe this time.
• Please save the burping and farting for anywhere other than the table.
• No Jonah, I can not fart with my arm in my armpit or behind my legs. I can only fart with my bottom.
• I am sure your dad does let you do that, but I don't think it is safe so you have to stop now!

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I wish I had time to write down all the adorable things they say.  These are just a few that made me smile!

Not me! Monday

 I haven't participated in the wonderfully refreshing denial of truth that MckMama created for a little while now. It's Monday, Monday, Monday Hurray! So I thought today this would be a great way to start my week off. Check out others who have joined the craze and pull up a cup of joe and enjoy some great laughs at the expense of others!

1. I did NOT just hear my son pray for me to not be angry this morning at breakfast after I had to start the morning with discipline for a dispute over spider man.
2. I did NOT have a blast celebrating my dad's 50th birthday this weekend. We did NOT get treated to a night in a hotel with a small water park that the kids did NOT spend HOURS on and we would become totally exhausted. Richard and I did NOT get to stay the night with the boys because no one else wanted to and we did NOT laugh as the boys were up until 11pm because they were so excited to go swimming the next morning.  
3. I did NOT let the boys have more days spent in our pjs all day than days that we were dressed. Nope! 
4. I did NOT praise the Lord when I had 5 boys 5 and under at my house and everything went so smoothly. (I was watching them for Richard's cousin during a funeral). 
5. I did NOT tell Richard that I definitely will be adopting a little girl (adoption has always been on our hearts) if God gives us all boys!
6. I did NOT run just a little longer this week on the treadmill only because I wanted to finish watching the show I had started watching. That would be silly, especially since my shins and knee were hurting a little bit. 
7. We did NOT spoil the boys rotten this weekend by going bowling Friday night and ordering pizza, swimming at the hotel sat night with mcdonalds for supper and sleeping there, and then swimming more sunday and mcdonalds again for lunch!
8. I did NOT become second fiddle to a poker game in my basement with Richard and his buddies on Friday night. 
9. I did NOT go spend some quality time with a neighbor (during the poker tournament) and then spend the rest of the evening watching a chick flick in our bedroom with the space heater on!
10. I did NOT burst into laughter a handle of times while disciplining the boys because of the adorable things they said. (This was not helpful by the way)
11. I did NOT discover that chapstick all over the bathroom wall comes off real easily with a babywipe (Thank you Elijah).
12. I did NOT also learn that letting Elijah get up in the morning (while I lay in bed awake, but just not wanting to get up yet) and "play in his room" = Elijah eating M&M's in his bed and mints that he snuck from the candy jar.
13. I did NOT stay up until at least 1am almost every night because I was ordering presents online for birthdays, picking out pictures to print from the last year (1800 of them by the way), and watching movies with Richard. I am NOT sick because of it either!
14. I did NOT just change Elijah's diaper and ask myself why his stool was pink colored only to realize it must have been from the non-alcoholic strawberry margaretta he had at supper last night. He in turn replied, "Oh, rita did it to my but." I laughed of course and explained it was from the drink and repeated the word for him but he just kept on reciting, "Oh, rita did it to me." 

What did you NOT do this week? It feels so good! Cheers to a great week!

Happy Birthday Dad!

Today is my dad's 50th birthday!  When we told Jonah this he wondered if Grandpa was older than the dinosaurs!  We had a wonderful time last night celebrating his birthday at the Holiday Inn in town. He rented a pool side room and we all went swimming, played a game and our family spent the night. It was a blast!  We are going to eat dinner tonight at a restaurant of his choice (probably the Italian Moon) and then have cake, ice cream and open presents. 

I wanted to take a minute and say Happy Birthday to a wonderful man! I couldn't have asked for a greater father, grandfather to my boys, and friend.  I have learned many things from my father and have so many great memories of growing up and especially over the past few years watching him be a Grandpa to my boys!  They are madly in love with him and it has been great to be so close so we can spend even more time with him! 

Happy Birthday Dad and I am blessed to be your daughter and call you Father. Thanks for everything you do and for all you are. I look forward to spending more time with you now that we are just a few minutes away instead of a few hours away!

Baby it's COLD outside

So our move back home to the arctic, I mean ND, has been full of transitions. One thing that has been similar is my need to check the temperature before leaving the house for the day in order to appropriately dress my kiddos. Let me explain.  In Iowa you may have a day that is sunny, warm, 60 degrees and the next may be 15, cold, snowing and raining.  Although the fluctuations are slightly different up here...it is still a necessary evil. Instead of should I wear shorts, or pants the questions become "will I need fleece lined pants, long underwear, or my snowsuit or all three?" and it is only January!  Today I decided to check before dressing the boys and just about had a heart attack when I saw -37 degrees F!!!!!  This was at 8am, but still! As I write this post it is a balmy -16 out.  

Although we miss so many things about Iowa I have been comforted by some familiar sights over the past few months.  ***Warning*** You may not appreciate the following list of items unless you have lived in arctic temperatures like wonderful Grand Forks or Northern MN.

What I never knew I missed about Grand Forks, ND in the winter...

1. Automatic car starters are God's gift to mothers with small children (Thanks honey) and you may find more cars left running in the grocery store parking lot then cars not during these wonderful chilly months.
2. Bomber hats are apparently still popular.
3. Russell pants are still a fairly common sighting. (I haven't checked the stores for them, but I have seen them)
4. You are a minority if you don't own a snowblower (That would be us)
5. The postal workers must go on an expedition to find the mailboxes hidden in snow banks.
6. There are "real" winter storms here. Not those wimpy ones in Iowa that cancelled school for a 1/4 inch of snow and a little reduced visibility. 
7. You can skate outside on the outdoor rinks if you are ok with losing body parts to frost bite.
8. You can find lefse in the grocery stores!!!!
9. A shovel in the back of your car is a necessity.
10. Shoveling is a great form of exercise. Especially when you have two small helpers "unshoveling" what you have just shoveled.

These are just a few things that are helping us survive.  I am sure the North Pole is a great time, but if you would like a cheaper vacation and want to see some Dafoes you can always come visit! 

Here is what I woke up to the other day!  I watched from inside for awhile and thanked the Lord for snow, my wonderful husband who is also a wonderful father!

Christmas Tears

This morning we had just finished eating breakfast when some men from the city came to trim the trees in our front yard and remove our Christmas tree (Sophia) who has been patiently waiting to be taken away while sitting on the berm.  The boys were busy playing and I was busy checking my email before starting our day. I thought they would enjoy watching this since the garbage truck coming by our house on wednesday is the highlight of the day. 

I was wrong!

Jonah became almost hysterical when he realized what was going on.  I tried to smooth over the situation by saying "Bye Sophia (our tree's name)" which only made matters worse when Jonah burst into tears saying "You named it! You named the tree?" Then he cried even harder and sobbed into my arms while crying something about not wanting Christmas to be over. **He has had a hard time with this as we took the decorations down and put things away**

Elijah had no clue what was wrong, but decided to participate in the crying too so I had two hysterical boys carrying on about our poor Christmas tree!  Then Jonah was quiet for a bit and must have realized what was going to happen to it and became hysterical again crying out "are they going to squish it? Are they going to crunch it up? How will we get it back for next year?" 

Poor kid. So, moral of the story...death of Christmas trees is just as real as death of imaginary friends, superheros, and animals in the eyes of two toddlers. 

Not Me! Monday

How appropriate that my first blog of the new year be a Not me Monday post?  Very fitting I think.  It has been a crazy whirlwind over the past few weeks with my sister's beautiful wedding, Christmas, Jonah's Birthday, and a few days together before reality sets in tomorrow (Richard goes back to teaching).  I have been taking a blogging break as I contemplated all that happened over the past year (a post to come) and a fresh new look for 2009 (also to come). For now, I at least need to get a few things off my chest and participate in the absolutely, wonderful, freeing, denial of truth, created by MckMama herself...Not Me! Monday!

• I did NOT have withdrawl from this marvelous therapeutic activity over the past few weeks as I was busy with wedding planning, a wedding, Christmas and Jonah's 4th bday!
• I did NOT watch my son turn 4 years old because he is NOT getting any older and he will certainly be little forever. Right?
• I did NOT love every minute of my sister's wedding and I did NOT feel honored to be a part of it all! Love you Nikki!
• I did NOT let my boys stay at the wedding until it was over (1230am) and when they fell asleep around 10pm I did NOT just lay them down on a pile of coats in the corner of the dance floor because every respectable mother would certainly not do this.
• I did NOT love watching the boys open their presents on Christmas and hearing them get so excited about not only their own presents, but everyone else's (even if they didn't know what they were)
• I did NOT spend a whopping 45 minutes trying to figure out how to put together my son's transformer and I did NOT have the directions with me while I was doing it!
• I did NOT probably gain 15 pounds over the holidays because I did NOT eat any sweets, or junk food at all! Nope!
• I did NOT actually sneak a few treats behind my kids backs so I would not have to share.
• I did NOT get to go on a wonderful date with my amazing husband out for dinner, bowling and then home to snuggle up and watch a movie. We do NOT need to do this more often!
• I did NOT try to convince Richard he should get an online degree and work from home so he doesn't have to leave us every day. 
• I did NOT take at least 25 pictures of our boys in various outfits and settings hoping to get the perfect Christmas, I mean New Year's card picture and now wonder if it is just a little too late? Do people still want to get it? Is it worth it? 
• I do NOT hope you also participate in this wonderful denial of truth. Nope! Cause I know you WON'T enjoy it at all!