Supercali-WHAT?!

At bed time, Maddie has decided that she wants me to sing new songs to her that she doesn't know.

I can remember when I was younger, I had my own record player and records (does that make me old?) with tons of songs on both sides that I would play over and over in my room. That was always so much fun for me.

I have tried to recall these songs, but I just can't remember all of them. Plus, most of them are the songs that kids are still taught in school today. (i.e. "The Hole in the Bottom of the Sea" & "There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly", etc...)

So, I've resorted to the fabulous Mary Poppins. Maddie's two favorites are:
"A Spoon Full of Sugar" and
(as sung by Maddie herself) "Superfralicagilisticgetmeoutofdocious"
In Maddie's own words, "I am NOT kidding"

While bathing the girls this evening, the conversation went down like this:

Me: Maddie, repeat after me. Brother is sleeping.
Maddie: Brother is sleeping.
Me: What does that mean?
Maddie: What does that mean?
Me: Funny...now what does it mean?
Maddie (smiling and with a giggle): Be quiet...?

She gets it AND she's funny. Oh, how I love her...I must not be doing too bad at this Mommy thing.

Deaf, Numb or Desperate?

I'm beginning to think that this week is Crazy Shopper Week. Do all the insane people come out for Back to School shopping?

Today, I stopped by Walgreens to pick up necessities (okay, it was Blue Bell ice cream & Coke - don't judge me--Rod's out of town! BTW: for those of you not from TX, you MUST try Blue Bell Ice Cream - it is THE creamiest EV-ER!!!) My Daddy was with us and he asked me to drop off his prescription while I was in the store. I was patiently waiting at the Pharmacy counter when someone said - "a Raccoon!" That was an expression I had not heard before, so I turned around to see who was behind me only to find a woman holding a Raccoon. Not a cat, not a dog, a Raccoon!!! (Danielle, maybe she can help you...apparently, she has about 10-15 of them at home) This strange 'pet' was kissing this woman incessantly on the cheek - the way an excited dog would do - Sure wish I had my camera - I knew you guys wouldn't believe me...

Yesterday, Carter and I went by Target to pick up a couple of things that we needed (No, it wasn't ice cream or Coke this time.) While we were browsing the aisles, there was another woman with her children. I counted four - which in my opinion is not really THAT many, but still more than I'd want to take shopping. They appeared to range in age from about 15 months to 15 years. I guess I expected that the 15 year-old would help out with the others - yeeeah, not so much!

They were quite loud. I swear they followed us around the store making my pleasant experience with a sleeping child more like what it would have been had my two crazy girls accompanied us.

At one point, one of the screaming children, perhaps 3 years?, was beating a drum begging to take it home. To which the Mommy replied, "No, just play with it while we are in the store." To which I replied (silently in my head), "Yes, please...that's what I'm here for loud banging noises!"

So, a few minutes later, I'm in the baby dept browsing for...nothing in particular when I hear (just above the whining and fussing) "You're such a brat!" I look over at the shoe dept where I see the 15 year old screaming at the 3 year old. All the while the Mom is carrying on like she has no idea that the kids are even there. Well, except the 10? year old that she is begging to come and try on shoes. It was obvious he had no interest in shopping this day. Never once did she stop to correct them in any way.

And I wonder....

...is she deaf?
...could she be numb to it all?
...might she just be desperate to get the back-to-school shopping completed?

After mumbling under my breath, "SERiously?!"...I thanked God for my beautiful children.

Lesson learned: Perhaps I should be more thankful for
1. my well-behaved children*
2. my wonderful husband who does a good bit of the shopping
3. fabulous family members who are always around to entertain my children so I don't become the 'Crazy Target Mom' I saw today.

(*No, my children are not perfect, not by any means, but never, ever have they embarrassed me the way I would have been if I had experienced today's 'Crazy Target Mom's' trip. I like to think that's because Rod and I have taught them to show us respect and well, just to behave!)

Maybe tomorrow I should just stay home...

4 - 42.6 - 26 - 14 & 9.7

Got your attention? You wondering if I have lost my mind? (I know, there wasn't really much to lose...funny!)

Today, our little man Carter turned 4 - 4 Months that is! How did we celebrate? I took the sweet little boy to be tortured at the doctor's office. He was cooing and smiling and jabbering non-stop. He showed off all his talents for the nurse. Holding his head up while sitting assisted, putting weight on his legs, bringing both his hands together, smiling at her, etc...In fact, he also threw in a six-month milestone - reaching for and grabbing ahold of stuff. He really is a strong little guy. Way to go, Buddy!

He cried the entire time the nurse was administering his 4 shots. I was relieved that the 5th was an oral medicine---only to find that he decided it was not worthy of consuming. Carter 'rejected' it along with his mid-morning meal all over his clothes. Thank goodness I keep the diaper bag well stocked!

Since he was displaying his talent of drooling and bubble blowing for the doctor, she took a look in his mouth to see if she could find any emerging teeth. I must say, this Mommy was happy to hear none would be coming through soon. She did mention that we could start on some solid food whenever we were ready. That's exciting, but I think we'll wait just a little bit longer. He's growing just fine on Mommy's milk for now.

Doctor Bel was very pleased with his stats.

Head: 42.6 cm (50 -75%)
Height: 26 in (75 - 90%)
Weight: 14 lbs 9.7 oz (50%)

Yes, my child is THAT big! And I couldn't be more proud.

Letter from Carter

Dear Family and Friends,

I noticed there's a new boy in the house. I've seen him around a few times. Don't worry, I'm not jealous. In fact, I rather like him. According to Mommy, he's downright adorable. I did notice that it seems like Mommy is always holding him which is confusing because I can feel myself in her arms and hear her voice in my ear.

I was standing in front of him today (with lots of help from Mommy) and went to give him a kiss. He kissed me back, but his kisses weren't warm like the ones that everyone else gives me. He felt very cold - almost like he was behind a piece of glass.

He makes me smile. It's good to have another little boy my age in the house. I hope that once we're both able to sit up on our own, he will play with me. I'll be mobile soon and I'm not so sure my sisters are going to be so crazy about me getting into their stuff. Besides, it's all girly - with the dolls, bottles, bows, and pink, pink, pink!

So, about this thing Mommy calls "tummy time" - I'm not so crazy about it. Not really sure what it's supposed to accomplish, except make me cry. It's frustrating that I cannot just get up and crawl away. Today, I tried to lift my arms and legs up off the floor, but still, I could not fly. I concentrated really hard. I bet Mommy could see the determination in my face.

Those toys that she puts on the floor beside me, I have figured out how to pick them up. I just keep trying to eat them. They don't taste very good, but chewing on them makes my gums feel better. Mommy calls it "teething" I'm not sure what that means, but I think it might change what I get to eat. I see big people putting things into their mouths all the time, but they don't typically pull them back out. I think that has something to do with eating. I hope to be able to do that someday. It's got to be better than just having milk all the time - BOR-ing!

I do prefer being on my tummy instead of my back though. Monday, when Mommy laid me on my back and was trying to put my socks and shoes on while talking on the phone to Poppy, I decided to give her a hard time and so I rolled over on my tummy. Instead of getting upset with me, Mommy was very excited and praised me for a job well done. She doesn't put me down on my tummy very much and so apparently, this was my first time to roll over. She was very happy and gushed on the phone to Poppy how great it was.

Life is great for me. I am very happy. Everyone I meet is so nice and always talks sweet to me. I can't help but smile and "talk" to everyone I see. When I first entered the world just under 4 months ago, I cried. I was in a comfortable place. It was warm and cozy and I did not want to leave my home of 9 months. I cried very loudly. I wanted the whole hospital to hear me. But then the doctor person handed me over to this woman I call Mommy.

I spend most of my time with Mommy. She takes great care of me. Everywhere Mommy goes, she takes me along. It seems she is the only one who can feed me right now. There are these things called "bottles" that I do not like. I refuse to drink from them. And don't even try handing me one of those "paci's" YUCK! Mommy says I make ugly faces when she tries to give me one. I always spit it back out.

We had lunch with Daddy today. Well, Mommy had lunch with Daddy. I just had to sit and watch. Mommy says that I look a lot like Daddy. In fact, most people say I look very much like my Daddy. When he holds me, I really like to check out his hair. Daddy talks to me a lot. His favorite thing to say to me is "I hope you like what you see 'cause in 30+ years, this is what you're going to look like." My Daddy is a funny, funny man.

Have I mentioned my sisters? I have the absolute BEST sisters in the world. My oldest sister, Maddie, is very nurturing. In the car, she tries to quiet me when I'm upset by talking to me and holding my hand. When we get home, she loves to help unbuckle me from my carseat (with Mommy's permission) and take off my socks and shoes. It makes me very happy to be free. My other sister, Hailey, is FUN-ny! She makes me giggle. I don't know what it is, but I can't help but laugh at her sometimes. They both like to help Mommy get "diapers and wipers" for me. It's great to have sisters.

Well, It's time for me to take a nap, but I have asked Mommy to include a picture of my new friend for you all you see so you will know him when you see him.

Love to all,

Carter

I'm gettin' Creative!

So Wednesday, I joined in on my first class discussing the book by Lisa Welchel: Creative Correction. I really enjoyed myself probably for several different reasons:

1. It's a pretty good book so far.

2. I had great female adult interaction.

3. I have homework each day that will require me to get into the Bible more.

4. My girlfriends CRACK ME UP!

5. Lisa actually has some good ideas of ways to include verses from the Bible when disciplining my children. By using this technique, I hope that they will learn it's not Daddy and me alone, but the wisdom of GOD through HIS Word that guides them in how to live.

6. My friend Ms. TD is doing a great job leading us and keeping us chatterboxes girls focused on the topic.

7. I'm not the only one in the room who is still nursing and has to bring my son with me because his dinnertime falls in the middle of class.

8. I enjoy learning new things that help me be a better Mommy.

WOW Wednesday (WithOut Words)

Sisterly love

Who needs sleep? Not me!

So, the saga continues another day. It didn't start out so easy today.

At about 3:30 AM, I hear the creak of my bedroom door and it's Maddie...

Maddie: Mommy, I need to go to the bathroom
Me: So, go!
(back again)
Maddie: I don't want to flush it because I don't want to wake up Daddy.
Me: Go flush the potty!
(truth is, she does not like the sound of the toilet - any toilet - flushing)
Maddie: Can you take me back to bed now.
Me: Sure (In my mind I'm thinking: Hey, why not, I'm only half asleep now - who needs sleep? Obviously not me! I don't work...)

So, I take her back to her room - thought I saw something on the floor, but in my state of mind, I thought I was just seeing shadows - and back to bed for me - YAY, 3 more hours of sleep!

Maddie: Mommy, it smells in my room. I can't sleep in there.
(Again, in my mind, I'm thinking: Clean sheets, she's got clean sheets - how can they smell and at this point, Carter is awake, so I'm feeding him and I'm just too tired to deal with a stinky room)
Me: Just sleep in Hailey's bed. (Hailey had already joined us in our bed - because she woke up disoriented - 3 hours in her own bed, not bad - we're getting there!)
Maddie: Can you cover me, I can't cover myself very well.
WHY NOT, remember: I don't need sleep anymore...

...I slept in.

Don't get me wrong, I got up dressed the girls, loaded them into the Expedition and sent them on their way with Daddy to Aunt Stephie's house for the day. Then, I went back to bed. Turns out, I DO need sleep...Who'd have thought?

The girls had a great time today. They went to the mall and played, they rode the carousel and had lunch at Chick-fil-A (I'll never forget Maddie called it Chicken Yay for the longest time - so cute!) After lunch, they all went to the pool for a swim. Boy were they tired. Both girls were in bed an hour early. Nice! Hailey asked if she could go back again tomorrow. Sounds like a plan to me. What do you say, Steph?

Today I turned my attention to the kitchen. And one more load of laundry - Maddie's sheets, again! Some time in the middle of the night - lets just call it 3:30 AM, she got sick. Which would explain the spot I thought I saw on the floor and the "smell" she reported that was keeping her from her sleep.

What did I accomplish today while my little man slept? 1/2 of the Kitchen and Maddie's room...we'll do pictures tomorrow.

I'm really enjoying myself. It feels so nice to have so much energy to clean. I never knew sitting behind a desk/computer could drain me so much.

I am loving this SAHM thing...