Pickle, Pickle Star

I had a mental list of Funny Things the Boys Have Said running through my mind all day, and now I can't remember them! I'll just write the ones I do remember and maybe more will come as I type (most of them are Drew sayings, because he talks about 3 times as much as Owen)...

*On our way to the store tonight, Drew yelled, "I see 'em moon sky!" He's getting very good at putting words into sentences.

*Yesterday, Drew told David, "I watch football, too!" He ends a lot of sentences with the word "too." I've been trying to get him to exchange it for the word "please," which is almost always applicable. He also ends a lot of sentences with exclamation marks. He's a loud kid.

*Drew wanted to sing "Pickle, Pickle Star" before bed today. In real songs, that's "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."

*Owen is more active than verbal. Last week, his cousin Westley taught him how to do a somersault. Today, I taught him how to jump off of a step with both feet, and how to do jumping jacks. His jumping jacks are really cute; I'll try to get a video to post.

Here are some words that the boys always mispronounce:

Fwap= Straw

Soosing= Sleeping

Manus (or Mayonnaise)= What Drew calls Marcus (his cousin)

Sassay= What Owen calls Westley

Fessie= What Drew calls Westley

Tac= Cat (they don't say this often; usually when they see a cat, they call it Kee Kee Kee, like they would if they were trying to get it to come to them. Or they just call it Merle, 'cause that's what we call our cat)

This is all I can think of for now. I'll have to jot stuff down on paper so I don't forget it before I can actually record it. When Drew and Owen are older, I want them to know how clever they were as kids!

I'm A Sap

I've always told myself (always as in ever since I've become a mom) that when it's time for my kids to start their school I will be rejoicing, and I won't be the mom who turns into a soggy mess of tears and running mascara. I still have a few years before the first day of school, but I suspect my resolve was slightly shaken today.

We went to the celebration of Marshall Public Library's 100th birthday. It was a lot of fun. They had different events throughout the day. The one we made it in time to see was a performing bull and his friend a performing donkey. The boys, animal lovers that they are, thought it was really cool. There was also free cotton candy, a trolley that went to the Union Pacific Railroad depot, and a little train made by McKee's pet store.

That little train is the reason I question my ability to remain tearless when the kiddies start school. We put the boys in their respective train cars and sat back to watch them ride around the parking lot. As I sat on the curb watching, I noticed how excited Drew looked and how proud of himself Owen looked. For some reason, I got all teary-eyed (and I'm getting that way now, as I'm typing). It was a weird feeling to see my kids looking so "big."

So now, as I analyze my feelings, I'm thinking that parents don't necessarily cry because they're sad to see their kids go (I think the reason I would rejoice is because I'd hopefully get a few quiet hours to get stuff done while my kids are at school), but because they are proud of their kids and the kids' increased independence. That's how I felt, anyway, as I watched my little boys ride around that parking lot without me, enjoying themselves thoroughly.

I Owe David Steak

I guess my blog has really taken a back burner; I'm way behind on writing, and haven't made it over to friends' blogs, either. It kind of bums me out, because blogging is one of my unwind activities to keep me from getting too wrapped up in things (I just have to make sure I don't get too wrapped up in blogging...).

Things have been going pretty well. I've been busy, but it's a good thing. Rather than try to recap everything that's happened the last week or so, I'll just start fresh with tonight...

I'm not a gamblin' kind of gal, but David does like to gamble--he likes Craps and Blackjack, and likes to bet on sports sometimes. Tonight, watching Monday Night Football, I decided to act like I knew what was going on and assert my confidence that the Buffalo Bills would beat the thus far undefeated Dallas Cowboys. David said "I'd bet money that the Cowboys win by a landslide. Would you like to make a wager?" Normally, in this situation, I retreat and just watch the game quietly. But I felt feisty today, so I said, "Sure. What will the stakes be? How 'bout steaks?" So it was decided that if the Bills won, David would take me to Texas Roadhouse tomorrow (I was supposed to go for my birthday dinner, but we still haven't made it over yet, cause it's always packed there). If the Cowboys won, I would make David a steak dinner. He pointed out the fact that he's paying either way since I don't have a job, so I told him I wouldn't make myself any steak, I'd just watch him eat his.

The game was very close, and very exciting. And with two seconds remaining, the Cowboys won by a point. So I'll be cooking steak and blogging will, once again, be put on the back burner.

Mommy's Helpers

I've been trying to give the boys little responsibilities such as putting their clothes in the hamper, picking up general clutter in their room, putting their dishes in the sink, putting toys in the toy box, et cetera. They've been doing really well, so far. I don't let them put books away, though, because I like them to be put on the bookshelf a certain way and so far I'm the only one in the house who does it "right" (I guess I have slight OCD issues when it comes to books).

Today I let Owen help me put clothes in the dryer. He acted like I was doing him a favor. Every time I handed him a bunch of clothes to put in, he said, "Thanks. Thank you." It cracked me up. Now if only they could help fold the clothes without the living room ending up looking like a tornado hit...

I took Samantha to her two-week checkup. I didn't take Drew or Owen with me. I took them with me last week to the growth checkup, and they were hell on wheels. Drew kept opening the door to our room and slamming it shut, then he opened it and ran up and down the halls. The good thing was, the pediatricians are used to kids and didn't seem to mind. But they looked a little relieved when I showed up with only one kid today.

Samantha is chunkin' up quite nicely. She put on 8.5 ounces in the last week. Her doctor is really nice. He always gives much needed words of encouragement, such as calling me an "experienced Mom." It's nice to hear, because even though this is kid #3 for me, I feel like two years is a long time and I've forgotten what to do with a baby. Also, I'm not sure how to handle just one. But I guess so far, it's going well. We have a healthy, chunky baby and two healthy, (very) chunky toddlers, and nobody's maimed anybody yet...

Says Who?

According to babycenter.com, the following is not an acceptable message for a birth announcement:

"This is our baby. We're so freaking tired."

I think it just about hits the nail on the head, especially if there are older children around. I'm not going to send paper announcements, though, because the informal emails I sent were a lot easier, and postage-free.

So we've just been hanging out trying to adjust to having another kid. Three is a lot different than two. It seems like someone is always left out. I feel bad for Drew and Owen; they like Samantha, but I think it's hard for them not having as much Mom Time. They do like to hold Samantha, so that gives us a chance at some nice together time.

And the boys have been getting a lot more Dad Time. When David's home he takes care of the boys so I can feed Samantha undisturbed or rest or take a shower or whatever.

Watching videos on the computer with David.