Asthma Still Sucks But...

Maybe you guys remember this photo?

 

That's Little One at 8 months old having her first breathing treatment of Albuterol to treat her virally-induced asthma (We've also used Xopenex).  Yeah, it sucked.  Luckily, she wasn't the first one of the kids to have it - Youngest Boy was also diagnosed with the same thing when he was 2 (while I was pregnant with Baby Girl).  I knew what it meant.  I had been down that road before and I could handle it but I still absolutely HATED giving them to her.  The drugs (Albuterol, Prednisone, and Pulmicort) all had their different side effects - racing heart, hyperactivity, no sleep, etc.

We still battle this today.  Youngest Boy only develops wheezing now if it's a serious chest cold but Little One is still in the thick of it.  We just got back from a Disney vacation (more on that soon...short version - WE DROVE!) and of course, Mr. MOTH and Oldest Boy got the cold.  They're big boys and they can handle it but when I realized it was going straight to their chest I got ready.

I mentioned briefly before that I've started using Young Living Essential Oils.  There's a lot I want to talk about with that, but just know this:  They have changed my life.  That picture up there?  I hope to never see it again. 

On the way home from school on Friday, both Youngest Boy and Little One were a mess.  I could tell they would both need breathing treatments when we got home and I was feeling really disgusted with the whole thing.  Defeated.  I have nothing against modern medicine.  In fact, I won't hesitate to do whatever is necessary to keep my kids healthy and safe.  It's just that I no longer necessarily believe that standard pharmaceutical drugs are what's necessary.  I'm going to try the oily alternative first.

Problem was, the oil that I had ordered for this particular issue wasn't in my hands yet.  Hopefully, it was on its way but I wasn't sure when it would be delivered.  So, I prayed.  And God heard.  I pulled into the drive and my package was sitting on the porch!  I did a quick search on how to use it and then I applied the oil blend RC (see below) to both of their chests.  Within minutes NO MORE WHEEZING!

Let me say that again -

NO MORE WHEEZING!

Folks, you can doubt their efficacy (I did).  You can call me nuts (That's not entirely inaccurate...).  And you can most definitely call me an oil convert.  But what you can't call me?  A liar.  Because this is the truth (and I suck at telling lies, so you would know).  People nowadays use the term "Life-changing" all of the time.  But to not have to use a medication with less-than-desirable side effects on my babies?  Yeah, I'm gonna use it. 

RC Ingredients: INCI Ingredient Names: Eucalyptus globulus leaf oil, myrtus communis oil, pinus sylvestris (pine) leaf oil, origanum vulgare (Vulgare) leaf oil, eucalyptus radiata leaf oil, eucalyptus citriodora leaf oil, lavandula angustifolia (lavender) oil, cupressus sempervirens oil, tsuga canadensis leaf oil, and mentha piperita (peppermint) oil.

There are so many other uses and oils and blends and products but I'm just going to leave you with this for now:  Being a Lemon Dropper is AWESOME!

Spit That Out!

Here's how bath night works in our house:

The boys are now old enough to shower by themselves - they supervise each other (I know! But it works for now) and I give the girls a bath together.  I run back and forth to the other bathroom a couple of times to make sure no fights have broken and out and no one is using my razor to shave their brother's head and the girls get to play a bit in between.

They have a little tea set designed for the tub that they LOVE to play with.  It has, however, been banned on more than one occasion because Little One can't seem to grasp the concept of "pretend" when it comes to drinking her beverage.  She chugs.  At one point she passed gas in the tub and then shortly after I caught her trying to drink out of one of the teacups.  I told her she was drinking "fart water" and that put a stop to that!  And now she no longer farts in the tub!  Double bonus!

A couple of nights ago, she asked to have the teapot.  I told her if she drank out it, I would take it away immediately.  As I'm washing her sister's hair I glance over and I could just...tell.

Me:  "Did you just put bath water in your mouth?"

Little One:  "No!  I was washing my tongue!"

Me:  "But your tongue is in your mouth!"

Little One:  "No!  I stuck it out!"

I figured with a creative defense like that I would let her play with it for a bit longer...

Busy Day

Yesterday was a very busy day for me and a couple of the kids:

8:30AM - School drop off.  Little One and I usually only take the kids MWF but this week Mr. MOTH had meetings which required him to be early.

8:40 - Little One and I are at the supermarket scoping out the donuts

8:42 - Little One and I are camped out in the backseat of the space shuttle sharing donuts, coffee (me) and water (her).  She kept high-fiving me the entire time. :) We got an extra donut for Youngest Boy.

9:00 - We hit the Dollar Store.  Youngest Boy entered a writing contest (Detective Puppy is the name of his series - he's got over 20 books!) and he didn't win.  I picked up a bunch of writing supplies to encourage him to keep going

9:35 - We pick Youngest Boy up for his eye doctor appointment.  We know what's coming but avoid the topic.

10:15 - Eye Doctor.  He needs glasses, just like his parents and big bro.  At first he's not happy.

11:30 - We pick out his new specs.  This brightens his mood a bit, although I nix the fluorescent green and black frames he wanted.

12:00 - Back in the car I tell Youngest Boy the news about the writing contest and then immediately give him the writing supplies.  I explain that although he didn't win, his daddy and I still think he's a fantastic writer and we want him to keep doing it.  He's tickled (which tickles me)!

12:15 - The three of us have lunch (McDonald's - his choice).

1:10 - Youngest Boy is back at school, just in time for recess (we missed mass tho).

1:30 - Little One and I hit Target.  She's thrilled to be shopping (that's sarcasm folks), especially when she realizes we aren't buying toys.  We score a clearance shirt for Baby Girl but not what I was looking for.

2:30 - We're still shopping.  Kohl's this time - I score a clearance watch for $3.50 (yes, that's correct)!!

3:15 - School pick-up.  Every.Day.

3:45 - Arrive home and go through the routine (homework for them, paperwork for me)

5:00 - Dinner.  It's early because we've got stuff to do (yes, STILL).

5:30 - Mr. MOTH arrives home.  He wolfs down some homemade apple crisp (his favorite, yesterday was his birthday.  I'll post the recipe because there's none better - Thanks, Mom!)

5:45 - The boys get a call that their hairdresser is running late; Baby Girl, Little One and I head out to do the grocery shopping.

8:15 - Arrive home.  Walk in the door just as The Pens FINALLY score!  Woot!  Let's Go Pens!!

8:35 - Finally finish putting the groceries away while watching the game (not as easy as it sounds).

9:00 - Tell the kids the next one to get up is losing Wii time for the ENTIRE WEEKEND (What do children have against sleep anyhow?!?!).

9:25 - Take one look at the disaster area that used to be my kitchen and decide to pick up my Kindle and read instead.

10:15 - Collapse from exhaustion. 

There you go - A Day In the Life of The Mommy.  Not exactly typical but not really that outta the ordinary either!

Sh*t Happens

Around here, it happens a lot.  In the middle of the flu that I mentioned in my last post I was still trying to get at least most, if not ALL, of my training runs done.  This is my first endurance race and I want to make sure I'm ready - especially since I don't exactly have any confidence in myself as an endurance athlete.

But, alas, I am and always will be The Mommy before I am The Runner.  All 4 kids had that awful, awful stomach bug and although Baby Girl and Youngest Boy seemed to recover the most quickly, Oldest Boy took nearly 10 days.  And Little One decided to show them all up and she ended up in Children's Hospital ER with an overnight stay. 

Sometimes, you just have to go with your mommy (and daddy) instincts.  We took her to our "pediatrician" (who isn't a doc but a Physician Assistant since the full time ped at our local office left town).  She diagnosed her with strep and sent us home with a prescription.  Even though I kept saying things like, "she hasn't really had anything to drink ALL DAY" and "She's slept 45 outta the last 48 hours".  (Note:  We are NOT returning to that office.  Ever.)

That was Friday.

Saturday at 8AM I was headed to the Big City Children's Hospital (After our experience of the day before with the local yokels we were DONE with hicks trying to diagnose our children - we wanted only expert care and we're so thankful to be only an hour away from some of the best in the country).  They treated her with IV fluids...and she still wasn't any perkier.

They wanted us to spend the night.  Now, I thought this was probably for the best because, frankly, she's our little fireball and to see her laid low by a stupid virus was scaring me.  Little One?  She was downright PISSED.  She wanted to go HOME!  NOW! And she told anyone and everyone with whom she came into contact.  As a matter of fact, that was ALL she would say (OK, scream).  We saw 3-4 doctors and more nurses and techs than I can remember.  The docs all agreed that while she did indeed test positive for strep she's actually a carrier and doesn't need to be treated (that would explain why she was asymptomatic both this time and the last time our ding-dong PA diagnosed her with it). 

She just got fluids all night and when she was finally producing output (she peed) they eased up and by late Sunday afternoon they discharged her.  The good is that she recovered much more quickly than if we had ignored it.  The bad is that it was more than a little traumatic (and it cost me a My Little Pony...).

Little One and Grandma E (my grandma) taken this past week.

I just LOVE this photo - taken with my new camera from Mr. MOTH



March Is Here!

This is going to be a pretty random catch-all type of post.

In January (the 7th, to be exact) I signed up for a half marathon.  That same day (like, 5 minutes later) I got some blood test results back that weren't exactly encouraging.  Nothing to slow me down...yet.  We'll see.  I get retested in July.

Oldest Boy is at the tail end of basketball season.  I love basketball but watching 3rd and 4th grade boys play is stressful, especially when your son is not exactly a star player.  I'm proud that he sticks with it and doesn't seem to get down when he doesn't get to play when it matters (read: when they actually keep score, like in the season-end tournaments).  When your coach asks you, "Do you want to play or do you want to win?" and you just go with the "win", that takes character.  My boy has that.  Me?  I want to smack the coach upside the head and say, "Who says that to a 10-year-old?!?!"  They lost the first tournament game, in which our son only played 5 minutes, max.  Frankly, I think they lost because they only played their better players.  Hear me out.  I don't mean that the bench-warmer types would have upped the score, I mean that those star players are used to getting breaks when they follow the rules and play everyone equal time (or at least close).  Those boys were tired and that made them make mistakes and miss easy shots.  Serves the coaches right - they didn't follow the rules and they lost.  C'est la vie. 

We gave our nursery furniture away.  My brother and his wife are expecting Baby #2 in April and since Baby V is only going to be 19 months old at the time they needed a second crib.  Our furniture was a gift from my Mother-in-law and we debated what to do with it.  Mr. MOTH is glad it will be used by family.  I'm glad, too.  But, man, that room just isn't the same.  We've had a nursery in this house since the day we moved in - November 2002.  Sigh.  Sniff. 

The computer room is 90% finished.  We need to hang up Mr. MOTH's patents (4 and counting) and get a small console table but those are such small details, I'm not worrying about it.  I have moved on to the next project.

The girls' room got a closet system.  See, everything hinges on the next project, or, uh, I guess the previous project.  I had to empty the changing table in the nursery so my brother could take it but I needed a place for the clothes.  So Mr. MOTH, in his never-ending need to organize, went with an Easy Closet System.  Those things aren't cheap but they are SOOO worth it.  It was up in less than a day.  Now, we need to get Little One a bed because right now she's sleeping with Baby Girl.  It has actually been working pretty well and our plan is to put their beds back-to-back when we get hers.  Soon.

We started planning our next Disney vacation.  I can't wait.  I know I said I would never go in August again, but, hey, live and learn, right?  At least the weather is predictable then.  It will be H-O-T.  Less clothes to pack!

I got my hair cut.  Short.  Not you-can-see-my-ears short but well above shoulder-length.  Mr. MOTH is not happy.  I am.  The jury is out on who I will make happy in the long run but going to Florida at the hottest time of the year does not tempt me to grow my hair out.  Sigh.

What Age Do They Understand What "TMI" Means?

Little One and I pick the older 3 kids up from school every afternoon.  It's not exactly something we look forward to doing but I've been focusing on the fact that I'm thankful we have the ability to do so.  Little One usually watches part of a video in the Space Shuttle on the way there and while we're waiting.  Before the big kids get in, I turn it off and it doesn't go back on until I've heard the pertinent details of everyone's day.

They have a list of required topics that they always tell me (who they ate lunch with, who and what they played at recess, etc.) and sometimes they fight over who gets to go first.  Baby Girl is a chatter box and tells me infinitely more details about her day than the boys do (sometimes, ad nauseum). 

One day last week, we were sitting at a red light and there was a lull in the conversation.  No music, no video, and no older sibling talking seemed like the perfect time for Little One to impart some information about herself.  From the backseat I heard a little voice...

"You know, I fart sometimes..."

{SIGH}

Take THAT!

Typically, when Oldest Boy has basketball practice or a game, we head to the public library for a bit so that kids can do homework without having to drive the whole way back home.  The school is 25 miles from our house and the library is 7 so you can do the math.  Gas ain't cheap.

While we're there - hanging out in the large children's area - Little One loves to make new friends.  Scratch that.  ALL of my kids like to make new friends.  They always have each other, so sometimes I worry that they are somewhat unapproachable to other kids but at the library, they each have their own spot so they're more or less alone.

Yesterday, Little One made a friend; a little girl who was 4.  They were playing very nicely together, building a rectangle with wooden alphabet blocks.  One of the blocks had a picture of a unicorn on it and the little girl said, "My big sister just LOVES unicorns!!  She really LOVES Picachu, too!!"  Not to be outdone, Little One said, "MY big sister loves ME!!"

Touche.

The Holidays

The holidays can be a little bit confusing when you're 3 years old.  Little One is under the impression that Christmas isn't a "day", it's a 4-day gift-giving, junk-eating extravaganza - Christmas Eve - my parents host my dad's family; Christmas Day - Mr. MOTH won't leave the house, so we host; Day After - Grandma E and Aunt Jo (pronounced Hant Jo by Little One) visit; 2 Days After - Mr. MOTH's youngest sister and her husband visit (this year, we were actually hoping to see most - if not all - of his 4 sisters but it SNOWED - yes, that had to be all caps).  She is understandably overwhelmed and more than a little confuddled.

We also spend a lot of "family time" during the break.  Mr. MOTH takes a ton of vacation over the holidays and we end up running around a lot (this time, it was for paint chips, paint samples, gallons of paint, sandpaper, etc., etc., etc.).  Also, life goes on.  Oldest Boy still had basketball practice several times and it was on our way to drop him off that my favorite quote of the holidays happened.

Little One (as we're cruising down the highway):  "I really love the holidays, but I need to go potty!!"

Little One with her most prized possession: A "sparkly" piggy bank that she only asked for 1, 376, 922 times.

I Still Hate Asthma

Just when you think you're outta the woods, it comes up and knocks you back down.

I allowed myself to be lulled into a false sense of security.  Thankfully, God DOES answer prayers, and Yougnest Boy has been without a "virally induced" asthmatic episode for well over a year.  As a matter of fact, if he hadn't there's a good chance he wouldn't have been running cross country this year.  As much as I trust his coach (who also suffers from asthma and therefore recognizes the symptoms and knows exactly how to deal with it), I would have been too over-protective mama bear-ish to allow him.  He's been great.  Even with these last two rounds of colds.

But.  Little One...notsomuch.  She hadn't had any episodes last year, either, and I had allowed our prescription for their rescue meds (Xopenex) to expire.  I mean, that stuff ain't cheap and it seemed silly to pay for it if we would never need it.  Besides, I kept the old stuff "just in case".  Well, "just in case" came late Thursday night/Friday morning.  She was breathing too fast when I put her to bed, but a fever can also cause that so I was only mildly concerned with the game plan being to take her to our (non-existent) peditrician the next morning.  Then at 2:47AM (as she's sleeping in our bed - a topic for a completely different post), she started coughing and couldn't stop - CLASSIC symptom.  I administered the old drug and offered up a prayer that it wouldn't somehow do more harm than good.  It didn't.  It was obvious that it helped tremendously (she thought it was now PLAYTIME - Yippee!).  And I was crying.  I just want SO BADLY for them not to have to worry about this.  I'm still hoping (and praying fervently) that she'll outgrow it as her brother seems to have. 

Oh, and as an added bonus:  She also has a double ear infection and walking pneumonia.  Current meds for her - Augmentin (antibiotic - 10 days), Xopenex (rescue med - as needed, every 6 hours), Budesonide (inhaled steroid- 2 days), and Prednisone (oral steroid - 5 days).  And Oldest Boy also has a double ear infection and has to take meds 3 times a day for 10 days.  My house looks like The Mommy's Walgreen.  {SIGH}

A Milestone and Elderberry Pie

Last night - for the first time in almost 9 and a half years - there was no one officially sleeping in our nursery. :(  We moved Little One into Baby Girl's room (now officially called "The Girls' Room") and she slept in there.  We will move up to a big girl bed - right now it's a crib mattress on the floor (a smart move considering I went in last night to check on her and her head was hanging over the edge).  The idea is that she will stay in her OWN bed all night.  On paper, it seemed like a good idea.  In reality?  Notsomuch.  She seems to think that she can't get out on her own still, so when she wakes up, instead of coming into our room like her siblings (who STILL do it), she sat up and screamed for me.  Good thing her sister can sleep through a freight train!

********
We have a bumper crop of elderberries growing in our yard this year.  I've been watching and waiting for them to get ripe for what seems like FOREVER and yesterday - when the birds were attacking the bushes - I knew it was time.  Perfect timing, too, because my parents come over on most Sundays and I knew if I made elderberry pie at least I would have someone to share it with.  It's really all about memories.  My Grams used to make pie with elderberries every year - I think it was one of her favorites.  I love pie.  Of ANY kind. 

Baby Girl and Grandma picked the berries off of the bushes (you cut the whole stem) and brought them to me. Youngest Boy, Baby Girl and I picked them off of the stems and into the bowl (4 cups?  That's a whole lotta berries, yinz guys!).  It took more than a hour for that whole process.  I had already made the crust so it didn't take long to get the pie in the oven and, even though we had to eat it when it was probably a tad too warm, it was worth the effort and stained fingers (and front porch).

For your baking pleasure:

Flaky Pie Crust

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup vegetable shortening - CHILLED
1/2 cup butter - no substitutes (TRUST ME) - cold
up to 6 TBSP ice water

Using a food processor, combine flour, salt, shortening and butter.  Pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Drizzle in ice water, a tablespoon at a time, JUST until dough comes together.  Divide in half and wrap in plastic wrap.  Chill for at least 30 minutes (or up to 24 hours) before rolling out between two pieces of waxed paper.  Makes 2 9" crusts.

I used this Elderberry Pie recipe (I ended up adding a bit more cornstarch). (I also forgot the lemon juice)

It Was Her Turn



Little One is the ONLY one who wouldn't let me take her down when her photo shoot was over.  She said, "You can go away now..."  As if!

3 Years Gone By

I can hardly wrap my brain around what life might have been like if you weren't here:

 You have become the sweetest little girl:

 With just a hint of mischievousness:

 You are like a ballerina truck driver:

 Always hamming it up for the camera:

 And enjoying your just desserts:

 My littlest friend:

The one who made me a mama of 4.  4.  It's a beautiful number.  It made our family complete.  Completely insane, but complete.  Your birthday party is just days away and all you want?  Pink shoes and cake! 

Mother of the Year

Sometimes, your day starts out on the very wrong foot - you yell, you fight, you are short with everyone, you burn your toast, you can't find your keys or your shoes or your hairbrush.  Then you get through breakfast and you think it might get a little better. 

You head out for a nice evening with family - your sister-in-law is having a cookout for her birthday - and things start to get touchy again.  They live on a corner lot and you have a 3-year-old who doesn't understand that a road can be dangerous.  You live on a cul-de-sac with one neighbor beyond you.  No traffic for 1/4 mile.  All of the other kids are running and she thinks she should be allowed to, too.  You thwart her every effort, use every distraction you can think of and finally give up.  You are just going to go home.

But the other kids are having fun, you haven't eaten yet, they haven't even cut the cake!  OK.  You'll stay a bit longer but not much.  You want to get home to talk to Daddy - who was out of town - before night-night.

You sit back down, hand Little One the iPod with her favorite games loaded up, and tuck in.  Not 30 seconds later you're sprinting down the sidewalk - your sister closing in from the other side - when it happens.  She stops short.  You don't.  You trip, landing with your full body weight on her head.  On cement.

In a panic, grandma want to call "911" but your brother's house is a mere 5 blocks from the local hospital!  You toss her in her car seat, tell the other kids to stay put (Youngest Boy is sobbing), and drive away with flashers blinking, running every stop sign and almost a red light. 

They take one look at the mess you are at the ER desk and put you right through.  A doctor sees Little One within 20 minutes and orders a CTscan.  You take this photo to send to your husband who is a thousand miles away and grandma puts a stop to it.  Would you want to see this?:

You wait for what seems like hours (because it nearly is) and finally they take the test (Little One heard she was having her photo taken and, swollen lip and all, gave a trembly smile).  They promise you results within an hour - hopefully less, they say.  After an hour passes you start to worry.  You have been working out a plan to get the bigger kids home (tomorrow is a school day) because it's getting late.  What if the test isn't OK?  You and your husband have already agreed that any treatment beyond a band-aid is being done at the Big City Children's hospital. 

And the results are in.  No fracture.  No swelling or bleeding in the brain.  She can go home.  Wake her up at least once over the course of the night.  Try not to cry yourself to sleep (You fail at this one).  You pick up the other kids, thankful to all be together and on your way home.  The patient talks non-stop on the 25 minute ride - commenting on the lightning strikes, grateful that her siblings are all around her, thank you for my new shirt (they let her wear the hospital gown home so as not to pull her t-shirt over her head) and, oh yeah, Mommy, please don't do that again. :(

It's after midnight before everyone is asleep.  You decide ahead of time tomorrow will be a tardy mark on their school records.  You don't care.  You survived.  She is going to be OK.  But you will both have the marks for a long time - some seen, some unseen.

Choose Your Words Carefully

Potty training is not on the top of our agenda, even though Little One is clearly showing signs that she could be ready. We're gearing up for vacation and there ain't nobody going on this trip who wants to spend 75% of it looking for a potty. We'll be packing diapers, thankyouverymuch.

BUT. That doesn't mean we would be adverse to the idea if, say, she did it herself like her big brother, Youngest Boy. The kid woke up one day and said, "I'm going to use the potty now." And hasn't looked back. Not once. We talk about it often usually saying, "Big girls go on the potty, right, Little One?" This is followed by nodding on her part while she squats herself down in the dining room and does her business (I don't ask why there but ALL of the kiddos have done it).

After baths on Sunday night I made a feeble attempt at getting her to try to tinkle on the potty chair. Both Baby Girl and I told her, "Big girls go on the potty!" She sat for a second (mind you, she's buck naked as she just got out of the tub), then stood up - quick as a flash - closed the lid, climbed ON the potty...and peed. YAY! Or not.

Choose your wording carefully. We now say, "The pee goes IN the potty, right, Little One?" {SIGH}

Mistaken Identity

My kids don't watch a WHOLE lot of TV (although we are Mickey Mouse Clubhouse fans...) but because we spend so much time shuttling back and forth between home and school(s) we watch a lot of Disney movies in the van. Lately, the girls have been enjoying Lady and the Tramp. It caused this interesting discussion:

Little One (walking around calling for...someone): B*tch! B*tch! Where are you, B*tch?
Me: What did you just say?!?!
Little One: B*tch?
Me: Where on earth did you hear that word?!?! That is NOT a nice word!
Baby Girl: That's what the boy doggie calls the girl doggie.
Me: Oh. Well, uh, um then technically it's not a bad word but we still don't say it!
Little One (cupping her hands around her mouth for more volume): B*tch!!
Me: {SIGH}

After watching the movie in the Space Shuttle again (because I could NOT figure out when they used that word in the movie...) I realized she was saying, "Pidge" - or at least trying to! The Tramp calls Lady "Pigeon" or "Pidge" for short throughout the movie. This came as a great relief to ME, but it was in no way helping Little One to realize what she was supposed to be saying. In other words, if she calls you "B*tch", take it as a compliment!

Buttons

Saying things have been crazy-busy around here is almost an understatement. All 4 kids have some bizarre head cold that starts out easy (simple runny nose, maybe a low-grade fever) and morphs into this croupy sounding cough that causes them to have laryngitis. There is really NOTHING more pathetic than a two-year-old with laryngitis. :(

This cold did not stop us from celebrating my mother-in-law's 84th birthday. She is currently living in a home near my SIL that the entire family is comfortable with. It might not be top-of-the-line but extended family (my SIL's SIL) works there and can keep tabs on things for us. The sisters brought her to J's for the "party". It is unbelievably bittersweet but sometimes comical (My SIL Donna went to pick her up and she was dozing. She bent down and whispered in her ear, "Ma, we're gonna take you to J's..." and my MIL said, "What the hell do YOU want?!?!" LOL!).

While we were waiting at the house, the kids were trying to entertain themselves. The older ones scored the Cartoon Network on an upstairs TV. Mr. MOTH was watching the college football game. And Little One was wandering around pushing buttons. Any button she could find - the phone, the remote, you name it. At one point my nephew was sitting on the couch with this puzzled look on his face. Finally he said, "Does she have the garage door remote?" Uh, yeah. He was sitting right above it and could hear it going Up! Down! Up! Down! *snort*. What a kid!

Creativity

Each of my kids has a unique creative "talent". Oldest Boy is fantastic at building anything - ANY-THING - out of Legos (as in, if he sees a toy on TV and he knows there's no way he's going to be receiving one any time soon, he'll head to his blocks and make his own). Youngest Boy then takes those Lego creations and spins a tale that will make your head swim with the cleverness of it (Hey, I'm his mom. I can say he's the next Steven Spielberg if I wanna.). Their current "movie" revolves around the Crash Bandicoot video game and their stuffed animals. I don't ask. It keeps them occupied for HOURS.

Baby Girl likes to draw. On anything. With anything. Whatever. She is content "painting" the driveway for hours with a paintbrush and water. The world is her canvas (and occasionally the living room walls, but she's mostly outgrown that).

I'm still anxious to see for certain what Little One's talent is going to be but I'm a little skerred. My oldest children all have their own loveys which they have named - predictably - Bear (because he's a bear), Puppy (because he's a beagle pup), and Kitty (technically, she's Peanut Butter Kitty but that's only because her paw "accidentally" landed in the peanut butter shortly after she was received. She's a kitty.) Little One doesn't have a lovey, per se, but she does seem to have a talent for giving stuffed animals actual names. Similar to my Aunt E.

My Aunt E gave her dogs (and other various animals - and there have been A LOT) names that no one could pronounce. Personally, I think she did it to screw with my grandpa (her dad) because dude can't even pronounce the simple names correctly. You should hear the way he pronounces Lemieux. (Thank God the Pens have Crosby!) Her first dog that I can remember was a german shepherd named Schlemenel (I am totally making up the spelling but I'm hoping you'll get the pronunciation). And then she had an English Sheepdog name Chygladon. He was the dog that caused me to fall in love with dogs (he used to hide behind the clothesline pole - sideways - and thought we couldn't see him!). After she met her husband the names became more...normal - at least for the dogs. And her son (whew!).

But when Little One picked up her sister's Zhu Zhu pet and started calling it "Buzz" my ears pricked up a bit. The other one is called BeeBee. I don't know why. I just know that it's a heck of a lot more creative than "hamster" and "hamster junior" which is what I am 100 percent certain the other kids would have named them!

I forgot to mention Aunt E's box turtles - Didiluch and Bazileo and her, uh, mole like mouse thingy name Amiotorone. See why I'm worried!

Random Catch-Up Time!

I'm not sure what it is about this time of year, but we always - I mean EVERY YEAR - have a whole lot going on. Sure, there are 3 birthdays in our family of 6 in just over 3 weeks, but on top of that there's a lot of other things that seem to just have to be done. Just means our life is full, I guess. In an attempt to try to capture all of it on "paper", here we go.

Oldest Boy made his First Holy Communion on May 1st:

It was a beautiful ceremony and, aside from the crazy old lady behind us telling a mom of one of the communicants that she was going to hell, all went well. (Yes, that actually happened. We could not believe our ears. It was one of those surreal moments that, while it's actually happening you can't believe that it is actually happening. It wasn't pretty, but it ended well).We celebrated like we celebrate everything - with CAKE!

Then this little beauty turned 2 (T-W-O!!):
I still can't quite come to grips with that but she is just amazing. She loves shoes (As a matter of fact, yesterday I put her Princess sneakers on and ran upstairs to get the keys. When I came back, she had taken them off and put on her purple crocs. BY HERSELF. Point taken, baby!). She also takes the stool from the bathroom and walks around with it, just in case there's something she needs to reach. Apparently, that's just more portable than pushing a kitchen chair around, which is what she used to do. And it's also quieter.

Sleeping is still optional most of the time, but it seems to be getting better. It still takes a very, very long time to convince her to fall asleep and she still gets up before the sun most days but at least I rarely spend two hours in the middle of the night singing to her. (I'm almost afraid to type that, lest she get wind of it and decide tonight would be a fun night for a party in her crib).

Tomorrow is her "official" party, but I'm not one to pass up the opportunity for cake, so we had one on her actualy birthday, too:

In between all of the goodness, we also helped to get my mother-in-law admitted to a nursing home. Timing is everything and because of the logistics and red-tape it had to be done over Mother's Day weekend - the same weekend as my first 5K and Mr. MOTH's birthday. Let's just say it's a birthday he'll never forget. :( The whole situation sucks but I specifically asked my prayer warriors to pray for 1) Peace for the family 2) A safe and uneventful trip back to her home state and 3) A smooth admission. Again, I believe the more specific your prayers the more likely you'll be able to find the answer. They were all answered, but not exactly how I would have chosen, I suppose.

And, on a lighter note, does anyone else get as annoyed as I do when you open a bag of something - chips, pretzels, dry cereal - and the bag just seems to disintegrate down the side? Yoy!

Thunder

When Oldest Boy was just a little tyke (probably 3 or so), we had a lot of storms. At that age, thunder can be frightening and we did our best to calm his fears but we didn't make stuff up (it isn't God bowling, or some such nonsense). He knew it was called "thunder".

One evening, after a day of stormy weather, we were on our way up the stairs for bed when he, um, passed gas. He looked me straight in the eye and said, "I made thunder!!" ...and that has been what we have called it ever since. Even now, when the boys prefer the more basic term of "fart", the rest of us more civilized folk (Mr. MOTH, the girls, and I) still call it "making thunder".
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Monday afternoon I had the stomach flu (yes, again) and I was laying on the couch while Little One was watching some rain fall outside the living room window. First she said, "Oh, no! It's raining!" *shakes head pathetically* "I can't fix dis..."

And then a loud clap of thunder scared the bejeezus out of her and she ran into the center of the room, looking bewildered. Pretty soon she came over to me, rested her hand on my leg, and said, "What was dat?!?!"

I said, "That was just thunder, baby."

She said, "You made THUNDER?!?!" As if to say, "Mommy, you mean to tell me you farted loud enough to rattle the windows?!?!" Uh, no. {SIGH}

Duh!

Little One has really started participating in imaginative play. She takes the Minnie Mouse doll and pretends she's going to sleep or going up steps. She has really started to "pretend" all sorts of silly things that make me smile.

So yesterday while I was sitting at the computer, she walked up to me with a silver bowl from the kitchen playset that the girls' have. I pretended to be delighted as she said, "Here you go, Mommy!"

"Wow, sweetie! Thank you! What's this?"

"It's a bowl!!"

{SIGH}