Where have I been???
Well, busy having fun with assorted friends. Our 1st group arrived last Friday and we (9 total)had a fabulous weekend in Big Bear complete with 5in. of fresh powder for the kids to play in before we left on Monday.
NOW, we have a different group of friends here AND a much BIGGER group :) There are 12 people here - 4 adults/ 8 kids (the oldest is 11-1/2)!!!!!!!!!!

Here are a few observations:
1) wife friend and I have agreed that having multiples wives IS a good thing. We are having a ball ---non-stop chatter amidst cooking, cleaning, shuffling assorted children, errands, and even having wine & margaritas. Life is good. (side note: I don't want to necessarily share my husband if you know what I mean) AND she homeschools her kids, knits, smocks & sews. I might have to kidnap her.
2) we are eating MASS quantities of food. It is completely unreal. They arrived yesterday afternoon. Since then, we have consumed 4lbs. of strawberries, 2 gallons of milk, a large box of cereal; 4 gallons of water; a Costco sized spaghetti sauce + a couple of random jars; 1-1/2 lbs. of spaghetti; 32 homemade meatballs (we made 36 and they ain't mini ones); BBQ --7 chicken breasts + 16 chicken legs; a HUGE MONDO bowl of fruit salad; an entire pack of Costco bakery cookies. We've also had green beans and corn, but I don't even know how much. This is only what I can recall. Isn't it hilarious!
3) it is beyond hilarious to hear about all the random adventures that your dh had in college. I consider myself incredibly lucky to have met him when he was graduating. His poor Mom has always said 'anything beyond 25yo is bonus!' I truly get it now. Could it be funnier to hear one of his long-time buddies say "I think I've been there during everyone of your insane mishaps."

We are heading to the mountains again this weekend and it's supposed to snow again. Yippee!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

In the spirit of celebrating, today I thought I would list something that I love about those around me:

my husband -- I love that he works hard; that he loves teaching the kids new things; that he loves to cook!

Maggie -- I love that she loves drama & dance; that she still likes to be tucked in at night; that she ADORES her baby brother.

Sean -- I love that he loves to learn; that he is an animal lover; that he can be sensitive and silly all wrapped in one.

Amanda -- I love that she likes my silly nick-names; that she is friendly and sweet; that she can make me laugh so hard with her priceless giggle! (and that she digs lunch at Panera Bread)

Ian -- I love that he is MY baby boy!; that he is very funny; that he ADORES his older siblings!

Had a funny conversation the other day about STUPID television and how bizarre it is that people get sucked into it all. We've all done it at some point......sat there and watched for 30min./1hr./an entire movie! It leaves you with the feeling of "gah! I just wasted 30min. of my life that I can never get back!"

So fast forward to last night -- exhausted after a long FUN day at Sea World, dh and I got sucked into some random WWF Raw wrestling challenge. @@ OH DEAR GOD! I couldn't stop watching (and laughing). I couldn't stop babbling "do people REALLY STILL think this is real?" "where do these steriod freaks come from?" "can you imagine just going to one of these crazy, loud things and not die from laughter?" "Who will the Undertaker choose to wrestle?" "Did that poster really say 'My Mom thinks your hot'?" {snort!} Poof - 30 min. of my life gone!

And tonight, dh had the nerve to ask me 'ooooo, I wonder if the Undertaker defeated Batista?'

Baseball practice has started. YEAH! I love baseball season. I love going to the games. However, most of the conversations in this house recently go like this:
Dh: Sean needs a new bat
me: OK
Dh: wahwahwah blahblahblah some random numbers wah blah (imagine Charlie Brown's teacher)
me: uh, huh
[repeat this part about 20 times]
Dh: wah blah wah blah $250
me: *cough, gag* no! try ebay
Dh: wah blah wah What size do you think?
me: *deer in the heads lights look*
Dh: OH! I can get it for 1/2 off retail on ebay
me: yeah, get it!

It's all about the gear {shrug - who knew?}

Remember this jingle: Here's to good friends tonight is kinda special...

It's Superbowl Sunday and even though we aren't having a PARTY OF ALL PARIES BECAUSE THE SAINTS ARE IN IT we do have some friends over. Hubby has already made the crab-boil potato salad; he's slow cooking ribs; and I'll nuke the frozen corn, lol. We've already mowed through the chips & bean dip (with 3 adults and six kids it didn't take long) and the game is hours away.

We're rootin' for the New Orleans boy (Manning), but overall we don't care. I just wanna see these million dollar commercials.

There is nothing like the LOVE a Grandma has. My MIL sent this after our recent Christmas visit.

Seriously -- isn't it grand. I like to call it our 'surprise box o' junk'. For several weeks after we leave, she puts her house back together and gathers all of our random stuff. This box: one pair of dh's underwear, one pair of Mag's socks, Sean's beanie, a random deck of SeaLife cards, a Viewmaster (from the cousins), a few Barbie accessories [a girl has to have her shoes & sunglasses, ya know], an sctivity book and the NINJA TURTLES GAMEBOY cartridge! [the cartridge somehow got nestled under the bottom cushion of her recliner @@]

Now if that isn't LOVE I don't know what is.

The news is in.............

SEAN MADE KID-PITCH. He flipped back and forth about actually trying out for kid-pitch or simply playing machine pitch. HE IS SOOOOOO EXCITED!!! This little dude lives for sports; he appears to be pretty good at baseball so we'll see what kid-pitch brings. He will definitely be challenged.

The coach who drafted him (yes, they look at the try-out ratings and draft a few teams) is a guy we know from when the boys played together in early 2004. He is a really nice guy so I am glad to see that he has confidence in Sean.

GO RED SOX!

I pride myself on being pretty healthy and never being sick. My dh says I have the immune system of steel. Well, it's 2007 and I'm not changing diapers anymore; so that means I'm not washing my hands 15times a day. Soooooooo, can you guess what happens next?

Yep --- I have the COLD FROM HELL. I've been wishing it away for about a week; mild annoying cough with an occasional need for a tissue. Well, this morning the cold decided to take charge; grab my lungs; and take hold!!!!!!!! Woke up at 5:30am coughing and DID NOT STOP until I pulled myself out of bed at 7:15. It was bad enough that after dropping my kids at school, I immediately hit Sav-On (without passing Go and collecting $200). Snagged some Mucinex [this is huge for me b/c I despise their commercials] and some cough syrup. I never take medicine. I did today.

I declared today that we would do NOTHING and that included getting Ian dressed. I did manage to keep my children fed, cleaned the kitchen, and did a load of laundry BUT the rest was NOTHING.

Does TV make a great babysitter? Yes, Yes it does.

Sing with me now.......think Rocky Horror Picture Show....'there's a light'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQwgu-3LTK0&eurl=

I can see the light at the end of the tunnel; the tunnel of mothering tiny children (ironically it's often like Frankenstein's place). This week Ian has decided that he is going to "wake up dry" and is magically over using Pull-ups for sleeping. Yeah!!!! After almost nine years of carrying a diaper bag, now I don't anymore. I simply carry a change of clothes in my car in case of a random accident or spill. He's 95% capable of dressing himself too; if you ignore his mis-matched outfits or his backwards pants he does a fabulous job. Being #4 child, I've gotten over the random stranger looks and just smile with the 'ain't he cute' look.

NOW, I'm not kidding myself. The light is glimmering, but it isn't glaring just yet. I still have kids in car seats; I still tote random snacks if the schedule is going to be tight; I still have to wash straw sipper cups b/c I can't handle random spills.

HOWEVER, I only have one child left who 1)can't tie his own shoes (but he CAN do velcro) and 2) who needs his butt wiped.

I think I'll take a moment to do the Time Warp in celebration!

Sometimes I wonder about Moms and where they have left their brains. Just in case you need reminding here are the RULES of the playground:

1) If you bring toys (sand, trucks, balls, etc.) LABEL them with your name and then consider them fair game for SHARING. You know the drill......'let Johnny use your truck. You aren't using it and he will return it shortly OR give him 2 minutes and we will ask to trade OR it still belongs to you and it's fun to let everyone play.' IF you can't do this, leave the TOYS at home.

2) When you child has a fit b/c someone else is touching one of your kid's 562 trucks, remove your Ipod and help teach your child HOW to share. OR better yet, leave the Ipod home.

3) DO NOT BRING TOYS TO THE PARK if your child is going to scream/freak out/throw them at other children when someone walks within 15 ft. of his 562 trucks. REMOVE your child whether he likes it or not. Just b/c my kid's shadow may have brushed your precious prince's 562 trucks, I don't to have to explain to my child why he just got beamed in the head with a truck.

Has humanity lost all common sense? Is it really that hard to try and figure out? I get that some kids don't like to share; don't set them up for failure by bringing 562 trucks to a busy park. Now, for the real kicker and most important rule......

4) One must NOT chase all of the other kids' off and monopolizes the 562 trucks when THEY AREN'T EVEN YOURS. GAH!!!

Can you even believe that Ipod Mom got a grip and finally said 'oh, he must need a nap' after 45min. of non-stop toddler tantrum and packed up her stuff. THe 562 trucks WEREN'T EVEN HERS. Well, maybe they were and her 'punishment' for not sharing was to leave the trucks behind????????? Is that possible???? To say to a 2/3yo 'since you can't share, we are going to leave your toys here.'

Holy frijoles. I think I'm getting to old for this park mumbo-jumbo.

Just in case you weren't aware of it, the NEW ORLEANS SAINTS are in the NFC Championship game tomorrow vs. the Chicago Bears. You can bet that my fleur-de-lis wearing butt is going to be parked in front of the television.

WHO DAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtNLKzmOyrM

I'm a real blonde and this post proves it.

I thought I had a steal of a deal at Bed,Bath,and Beyond when I snagged a 5qt. crockpot on display clearance (got an extra 30%off AND used my 20%off coupon) for $22! I was all jazzed and my brisket was ready to roll. That was until after about two minutes of being on the crockpot started to smoke (from the vent above the timer). Hmmmmmm, mild silent panic. Is this a 1st time use thing? Was I supposed to put water between the stoneware and main cooking pot? I have no manual so I started calling all my friends, NO ONE WAS HOME to answer my questions and assure me that I wasn't going to burn my house down. After five calls, I caught E.D. in her car.

me:"Hey, did your crockpot smoke the 1st time you used it"
her: "um, No!"
me:"Ok, so it isn't burning off some random coating?"
her: through her laughter "um, NO -- unplug it and come get mine if you have to"
me:"it smells pretty bad; I guess I'll bring it back "

I think I should be glad that she didn't wreck her car laughing at me. The folks at BB&B looked at me like I was INSANE when I said it was smoking. @@ Whatever. The manager actually smelled the vent and said 'oh, yeah - I can smell it'. I got a new one but didn't get the added bonus of clearance&30%off, grrrrrrr.

Counting my blessings that I didn't leave right after I turned it on. AND for the record, the brisket was delicious!

So I sucked it up and finally decided to make a few phone calls that I've been dreading. Mostly b/c they require uninterrupted time and patience to deal with AUTOMATED PHONE SYSTEMS. Kill me now.

I've come to realize that even if I provide my kids with their favorite snack; favorite TV show; and made sure no one needed their butt wiped BEFORE I dial the phone the phone call WILL NOT be uninterrupted. So I just do my best to grab the cordless and walk away from said whining, needy child(ran) while I attempt to deal with an AUTOMATED PHONE SYSTEM.

Now, I'm not talking about the 'for Spanish, press 2' option or the endless 'please listen carefully as our options have changed' scenario. That would be too simple albeit tedious. I'm talking about the AUTOMATED ones; the ones where you have to TALK to a random mysterious computer. My calls usually go something like this:

system: why are you calling?
me: need repair service (child in background: MOM, he hit me!, I mumble 'stop that please; I'm trying to make a phone call')
system: I'm sorry, I didn't understand
me: (UGHHH!) need repair service
system: OK, did you say set up service?
me: NO (random child screams: CAN I HAVE GUM?)
system: I'm sorry, I didn't understand
me: CUSTOMER SERVICE PLEASE (whatever happened to pressing 0 for assistance?)
system: Ok, you want to set up service

ARGH!!!! I usually end up sitting in the bathroom with the door locked so 1) no one can mess up the SYSTEM and 2)no one will ask me to wipe his/her butt b/c I'm occupying that space.

LOVE this pic. Crashed out at Grandma's over the Christmas holidays. They do love each other on some level.

Happy LOVE Thursday!

Ahhhhhh, back to school this AM. I managed to get everyone there on and time and jumped back into the reality/routine of life. Hit the library, returned videos, kids to the park, Costco run, the joys of motherhood and all that.

My crazy husband has to decided at the last moment to roadtrip it to the National Championship game. I thought it was in Pasadena(Rose Bowl) when told him to "go for it!" Um, HELLO???, it's in Phoenix, Arizona. I don't want to know how fast they are driving; I'm just happy that he isn't going to have his name on the speeding ticket if/when it happens. ACK -- whatever, boys will be boys. [in case you were wondering - no, they don't have tickets]

Yeah, me - I got a babysitter b/c I realized I have a GS Cookie Mom meeting tonight. I'll appreciate that little accomplishment and treat myself to a Starbucks. So is the life of a Mom.

Funny stuff:

Since I call Ian so many nicknames, I asked him today....'what's your name?' And he promptly replied 'Ian!' So I said 'Ian what?' And he happily chimed 'Ian Stay-in-the-House' He would fit right in with Bill Cosby's old joke about his kids being Damn-it and Jesus Christ.

For all my wonderfully competitive friends out there............


GEAUX TIGERS!!!!!!

and

WHO DAT SAY DE GON' BEAT DEM SAINTS - WHO DAT?

You are a scrooge if you don't laugh:

Sean -- http://www.elfyourself.com/?userid=9ec08866dea18df98dc04f1G06122208

Maggie -- http://www.elfyourself.com/?userid=c77230c5fa002d00decbe58G06122208

Amanda -- http://www.elfyourself.com/?userid=dfde0c465ba532558884b6dG06122210

Ian -- http://www.elfyourself.com/?userid=8e6a56ed507c0978da6b76eG06122210

Merry Christmas!

Houston, we have a problem!

Poor little Ian just can't seem to get a decent nap in during the 'normal hours' of the day b/c we are at the height of holiday madness/school parties/etc. Recently he has taken to zonking OUT COLD around 5:30-6pm. (Excuse me.....did you just say 'well keep him up/wake him'? I didn't think so.) We've had pretty good luck SO FAR with putting him in his bed and he sleeps through the night. I'm pretty sure he's growing again b/c he ate TWO pb&j sandwiches yesterday afternoon.

Well, imagine my surprise as I came out from the computer area to discover my dear darling hanging out on the couch at 10:30PM!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yippee, he thinks he just had a four hr. nap. I dozed on the couch until 1AM until I finally decided to move us to the guest bed. He could happily watch TV in there while I attempted to sleep with him. He DID fall asleep at some point but was UP at 5:30AM. ::::yawn::::

Think I'm gonna ask Santa for some sleeping powder, just in case this phase lasts too long.

What to say, what to say. It is true that if you don't blog on a regular basis you forget and then don't blog at all.

Let's see --
1) I need to trudge through laundry so I can pack before they wear the clothes again. We leave on Sunday; Maggie's stuff is pulled out. I'm working toward Ian's stuff, but :::::whine, whine::::: I hate packing for five people. Add to that the need to sort our winter/snow stuff and toss a few pieces of that in. :::: more whining from me:::::

2) We are opening our family gifts this Friday so hopefully the kids will play with the new stuff while dh and I take down the tree. Fire hazard and all that. Don't need a phone call in OH saying our house burned down.

3) We are hoping for snow at Grandma's. Ian is telling everyone he can that he is going to 'go-cart in the snow' so the Winter Warlock best pay central OH a visit. Pray that my box-o-Santa-gifts arrives safely at Grandma's or Santa has some 'splainin to do.