Elf Drama

Jingles and his hijinks might be a little too convincing.

Yesterday, Andrew stepped on his Flash action figure, breaking both legs off at the knees. Instead of being upset, though, he set the pieces in front of Jingles and asked that he take them back to Santa's workshop for repair. 

I smiled, arrogantly thinking I could fix Flash and have him back to Andrew in no time. I just needed to remember to collect the pieces after the kids went to bed, fix the toy, then stage him with Jingles to complete the illusion. Before I headed to bed, I actually remembered to grab the pieces, and initially thought I could just pop the knees back into place. 

Oh, was I wrong.

Apparently, there are little pegs which hold the bottom parts of Flash's legs in place...or, there were little pegs. They seem to have broken completely off. So, now I have to figure out how to repair Flash. Hopefully glue will work, but then Flash probably won't have legs that bend at the "joint". 

Of course, Andrew noticed that his beloved super hero was missing today, and reassured me that Jingles would bring him back after he was fixed. "Maybe Santa will even put a button on his chest, so when I press it, Flash will run super fast around the house!"

Crap. That, I can't do. I love that the kids still believe in the magic of the holiday. If I can replace this action figure, I think they will continue to believe. No pressure, right? ;) Perhaps it's time to take to the internet to search for a replacement.

Seasons

All through the weekend, we heard about an impending snow storm, which we pretty much disregarded. It's not unusual to hear about the possibility of severe weather around here, all through the year, but many times it just doesn't happen. I do like to know what could be coming, so we can plan accordingly, but usually the storm misses us and then we move on.

Imagine my surprise to wake up this morning to find a bunch of snow on the ground, and to hear that the kids were out of school for a snow day. In November. Craziness.

Of course, the kids were elated to have a day off, and they almost immediately wanted to play in the snow. That's when it began, the relentless chorus of "Mom, where's my ______" that comes with each new season. Gloves, hats, snow pants, boots. They wanted it all, and couldn't find any of it.

It quickly occurred to me that the four seasons have different meanings when you're a kid. Winter is "Mom, where are my mittens?" Spring is "Mo-OM! I can't find my jacket. I don't need is anyway, it's warm!" Summer, or "MOM! I can't find my other croc!", comes next, and is followed by Fall, or "Seriously, Mom, I don't need a jacket. It's still summer! Besides, I lost that jacket. Will you buy me a new hoodie?"

Seeing as we just entered "Mom, where are my mittens?", or Winter, I wish all parents the patience to search the entire house, every day, for random gloves, scarves, and boots. May we all retire someplace warm, where we never have to worry about cold weather gear again.

Things I Actually Said Today...

I have a headache. Could it be because I heard myself say some ridiculous things today? Here's a sampling:

AlexANDer, the dog can NOT fold laundry.

And why would you leave the bathroom if you weren't finished wiping?!?

Please get the underpants off of your head. Now.

Give me the snakes. I am so done with this.

It is not nice to call him an "hour hogger". Please do not call him that again.

We do not chase each other with shoes.

Please do not write "butt". Your sight word is "but".

Ok, we are not going to race each other in the laundry baskets.

And perhaps the best of all (seeing as it's not even Halloween yet):

Santa is watching.

I think I can make it to bedtime. I wonder how many more lovely phrases I can add to this before then?

Bedtime Blues

I remember thinking, when the kids were toddlers, that once they got older their bedtime rituals would be simpler. 

I was wrong. Very, very wrong. 

Bedtime is hairy. We are all exhausted by the time 8pm rolls around, and some evenings we don't get home until after 9pm. 

Let's all just cross our fingers that this situation improves soon. This mama is tired. 

Life

"Hey, when you're out, pick up a new board game that we can all play later!"

These were the words from my husband this afternoon, and I agreed; it sounded like fun. Before my daughter and I left Target today, we stopped by the toy department and selected The Game of Life. My sister and I used to play this all the time when we were kids. We loved it! I was excited to share the game with my kids.

As with most things, we should have waited a bit longer before trying this.

Nobody could keep track of their paydays, there were cards scattered everywhere, everyone was talking over everyone else. Ugh. Not fun at all.

There were a couple of funny parts, but the game became exhausting and grew old. Appropriate, I suppose: life is tiring, stressful, and if you're lucky, kind of funny sometimes.

After the kids cleaned up the game, I slyly slid it under a cabinet with my foot. I hope they forget we own it, at least for a few days. I need time to recover.

Lessons from Andrew

This just happened:

Andrew came skipping into the kitchen. "Mommy, can I have a grape juice?"

"You already had one," I answered as I sorted through all the papers that came home from school.

"What?!? That does not answer my question, Mommy."

"NO, Andrew, you may not have a juice because you already had one," I replied, with perhaps just a smidge of exasperation.

"There you go, Mommy. Now that's an answer. You just had to be more pacific."

"Well, ok then, buddy. Go play."

Then he went skipping back out of the kitchen, en route to the next bout of mischief.

Happy weekend!

It Really Does Rock

We've been listening to Schoolhouse Rock! Rocks! a lot lately. I loved this cd when it was released, and now my kids love it too. So, we rock out in the car to the likes of I'm Just a Bill and My Hero, Zero.

Perhaps my favorite on this cd, though, is Better Than Ezra's presentation of Conjunction Junction. It makes me quite happy.

Find the cd. Rock out in the car. You won't be disappointed.

Torture - Otherwise Known as Homework

Here we are, trying to get through another night of homework. 

Part of tonight's assignments: a subtraction worksheet. We've been arguing over the first problem for the last ten minutes. 

"Al, what's 15 - 11?"

"Six."

"No, Buddy. MINUS."

"Six. Five plus one is SIX!"

"Well, yes, but this is subtraction, dude."

"But it is six."

Ugh. We've got eight more problems to argue over before we move on to spelling words.  

Monday, Monday

Hey! It's a rare morning post!

That's how bad our morning was. I felt it important to sit down and blog it right away. Actually, it wasn't the worst morning we've had around here, but I doubt I'll have time tonight to sit down and write, so here we are.

I committed a horrible act against Alex: I allowed us to run completely out of chocolate milk. That is bad news, you guys, as chocolate milk is to him as coffee is to me. I naively offered him juice or water, and that's when the morning took an ugly turn. Tears and snot were flying, and Alex was pretty upset too (just joking...only Al was crying...but that is a funny visual, no?).

Seriously, though, Alex was a mess and then he and Andrew started battling and Andrew ended up wearing his cereal. Good times.

And of course, the bus was actually on time today, when I could have used the extra ten minutes that we've had since school started. Figures. Alex did perk up a bit, though, when he saw his violin waiting for him with his backpack, and he waved at me from the bus, so maybe he'll shake his Monday blues by the time the bus arrives. I'll spend the day in a cloud of anxiety, mentally calculating how many gallons of chocolate milk I can fit in the fridge.

So, if you wouldn't mind crossing your fingers that the kiddos have a good day at school, that would be appreciated.

Happy (freaking) Monday.

Nerd

Tonight, I was folding laundry while Andrew practiced writing letter As. We were chatting about this and that, and I will admit that I was just half listening and trying to push through until all three kids were tucked in and I could have a moment's peace.

"What do you think I am, Mommy, a nerd?"

I instantly perked up, glancing up from the laundry to size up this question.

"Where did you hear that word, Andrew? What do you mean by 'nerd'"? I was reluctant to just leave that one alone. With the kids back in school, I am always looking out to make sure they aren't being pushed around, or being the one to give another a hard time.

"You know, Mommy. Nerds. They build really cool stuff, like robots. Nerds are awesome," he explained as he finished his page of As.

Big sigh of relief. While I still am not entirely thrilled about the labeling of others (even though in this case, 'nerd' is being used in a complimentary fashion), I was happy to hear that he wasn't being a big meanie.

Blah Blah Blah

Although we had a rough start to our day (Alex was not a happy camper at Andrew's soccer game today, and the awful humidity magnified our drama), it has taken a slightly happier turn. Both boys are playing restaurant in the kitchen, and I'm taking a "Mommy Break" to write this and hopefully sit in front of the tv for some mindless entertainment.

Before clocking out, I was loading the dishwasher, and overheard the boys' game. Alex approached the table, in his undies and a construction hat, saying "Hello, I'm Alex. I'll be your server. What do you want to drink?"

Andrew asked for a cup of ice cold, refreshing milk. Alex started to write that on his pad, then stopped and began scribbling. Taking every opportunity to practice whatever skills present themselves throughout our day, I told him to start over and I would help him spell "milk".

"No, Mom, I got it. I just wrote 'blah blah blah'", came his response, and he showed me his notebook, full of scribbles. "See? That says 'blah blah blah'," he gleefully exclaimed.

He knew he won that round. We'll practice writing it later. I'm on break.

Transition

I was more than ready for the kids to return to school. Now, I'm paying the price.

Transitions are difficult at our house. Alex just doesn't handle them well (chalk it up to his Down syndrome, I'm told), and then when he acts out, the other two follow suit. Not that they shouldn't also be tired; they're back in school, too, sitting for long periods of time, following new rules and learning new routines. They need to blow off some steam when they get home; I get that. But boy, they are all little nightmares by 8pm.

I'm hoping that Ad and Andrew will find their groove in the next few days, and Alex will hopefully only need a bit longer to do the same. Of course, as soon as things start to improve, they will have a three day weekend.

We'll make it through this transition; we always do. I can't promise you that I won't deal with it by eating obscene amounts of junk food and banging my head on my desk. We do what we gotta do.

Weirdness

Today was full of strange surprises.

I was trying to get caught up on housework, laundry, and anything non-school related; I didn't complete my list, but I got a lot accomplished. As I was working in the kitchen, I heard a smoke alarm sound; it wasn't a full blown alarm, but it was a longer tone than a low-battery chirp, so I was curious. So were the kids! A couple minutes after the alarm sounded, the boys were yelling about smoke in the backyard. "Yeah, right," I thought, and went on about my business. But, as I turned the corner to calm them down a few minutes later, I realized they were right: there was smoke coming from the backyard. I opened the door and realized that it was the a/c unit, so I quickly headed to the thermostat and turned it off  (we really didn't need it today, but it was still on) and began brainstorming reasons that this could have happened.

Not long after I started pondering (panicking about?) this, we realized that the wifi in the house had gone down. What was going on?!? Our connection is pretty reliable, and for it to stop working is rare. In an attempt to stop my runaway imagination (as Andrew had been ghost hunting earlier this afternoon, ha!), I gathered up the kids and headed to the grocery store.

After returning from our errand, I went upstairs to try and restart the router and restore the wifi. I then discovered that nothing would turn on in my bedroom, causing me to think that a fuse was blown. I was right. Craziness! But, I was happy to restore the wifi so the kids could watch a little Netflix before bed.

As I was trying to get the bedtime routines going, Al looked out the window and yelled "Maisey is eating a RAT!!", and of course, we all went running outside to see what she had found. Fortunately, it was just one of her bones, and as we all stood around watching her, she paused and looked up at us with such a look of disgust that it was truly funny.

Hopefully, these quirky little adventures have ended for today. I hope whatever ghostie Andrew disturbed earlier has relaxed a bit; this mama is tired and wants a good sleep tonight. ;)

First Day of School, Part I

We made it. We survived the first day back at school. Al & Ad were happy and had many things to share with us about their new classrooms and first day adventures.

Tomorrow, however, will be a challenge.

My mission, as I have already accepted it, will be to get three kids ready for school and on the bus by 8:10am. I, too, will have to be ready to go so I can meet Andrew's bus at school and take the traditional First Day of Kindergarten photos. This could be interesting.

I tear up a bit just at the thought of that bus pulling away with all three of my babies on it tomorrow morning. Andrew is super excited for Kindergarten, though, so I know that we'll both be OK.

Of course, I'll have Part II of this story tomorrow...

Ready or not...

...here they come, 3rd & 4th grades!

Tomorrow, Addie and Alex return to school for another fun-filled year of learning. Both are quite excited to get back into the swing of our "normal" schedule, and I am beyond delighted to send them back. Ha! Not that we haven't enjoyed our summer, but routines are a wonderful thing.

They are both excited about their new teachers, happy to already have friends in their classes, and they are looking forward to making new friends too. Did I mention that I'm excited and happy that they're going back? ;)

I don't even mind the endless paperwork that comes with the new school year, or really even the ridiculous cost of getting your child ready to go back to school. I'm determined to enjoy the years that they still like going to school, because who knows when that may change. I'm fortunate to have at least one kiddo that thinks homework is fun; Addie can't wait to break in those new #2 pencils. Alex has more fun being with his friends, I think, but that's ok too; he learns a ton from peer interaction, which makes me happy.

Andrew's first day of Kindergarten (what?!?) isn't until Thursday, so I don't have to experience the joy of getting three kids out the door until then. That, my friends, should be interesting. Wish us luck!

Zombies

Last night, Mark participated in a team building event for work; something about bring trapped in a room with a zombie (terrifying, by the way). 

Tonight, he thought it would be fun to share the experience with the kids, and even find YouTube footage of such an event. 

Now the kids are afraid to be in their rooms by themselves. Super. Fun. Times. 

Let's hope we get some sleep tonight. Zombies, stay away. 

Sad Freezer

Days like today are exactly why there should ALWAYS be ice cream in this house.

Nothing particularly terrible happened around here, but the kids were especially trying and I have a lot to accomplish in the next week. Thus, the reason I wanted to sit back tonight, try to relax, and enjoy an ice cream treat.

But, we are out of any "good" ice cream (sorry, the kids' frozen fruit juice bars just aren't going to do in this situation). The freezer is sad, devoid of any mommy-appropriate indulgences. Really, is it too much to ask for a satisfactory supply of Magnum Double Caramel ice cream bars after a day like this?

Even more frustrating than a lack of guilty frozen pleasures? The fact that I do most of our grocery shopping and failed to recognize the urgency of a low supply. Ugh.

Eh, well, I'll scrounge around and find something to fulfill this craving, and then off to bed. Tomorrow is a new day, with fresh starts...and plenty of time to stop at the grocery store to refill the freezer.

Going and Going...

My kids seem to have Energizer Bunny genes.  They don't stop; they just keep going and going and going. All.  Day.  Long.

I'm certain they aren't the only kids like this, and they do have their quiet moments throughout the day, but I feel like most of the time they are bouncing from one thing to the next without stopping to take a breath.  It's exhausting.

Add to it toilet training (I told Alex today, for about the 352nd time, that I am OVER it, and he just needs to get rid of pull-ups), behavior issues (Andrew has been closely studying Alex for more than five years, and thinks he can also pull some of the same behavior crap), and a daughter who goes sideways if her brothers so much as look at her, and you've got a full fledged recipe for chaos.

I figure we've got several more years of this coming our way before they grow out of these behaviors (and adapt new ones, fun!), so I will just have to suck it up and promise that I'll keep trying, day after day.  What else can you do?

And so, with that, I'm off to bed.  I hope you're enjoying the weekend.

Lightening Bugs

When my sister and I were little, it was not uncommon for us to chase down lightening bugs in the summer months.  We would build little houses for them, out of jars or plastic containers, catch them, and then basically watch them suffocate in their new "habitats".  Or, we would pull out their little light-up-thingy and then smear it on the sidewalk to watch the concrete glow.  (Hey, no one ever said we were humane about our bug hunting.)

Perhaps it's because I'm usually rushing from one kid activity to the next in the evenings, or just trying to survive until bedtime, but until this week I can not remember ever seeing enough lightening bugs to give my kids a chance to enjoy them.  The other night, I realized just how many were floating around our backyard.  I made a mental note to share them with the kids, then dragged myself upstairs to bed.

Tonight, while trying to convince the dog to go outside, I noticed them again.  This time, I pounced on the opportunity.  I yelled to Alex to come out and see.  Addie must have sensed something interesting was happening, since Al was supposed to be getting ready for bed yet I just called him outside.  Soon, the three of us were creeping through the yard, hunting lightening bugs.

We spent the next ten minutes or so chasing them; I do not recall ever having so much trouble catching them! It was awful; apparently, another downfall to getting older is that your hand-eye coordination, in the dark, diminishes. Al nearly smashed a few in his attempts to catch one, but finally Addie had a new little friend climbing up her arm.

They were completely in awe.  We watched the little bug glow, then light up even more, as he crawled around Ad's hands.  The kids giggled, and then Alex asked if he could hold the bug (huge for a kid with sensory issues).  We played with the bug for a few more minutes, and then I shooed the kids inside for bed. (No, of course I didn't show them how you can squish the bugs and make the patio glow!)

The kids have done (and will get to do) many fun things this summer, but it's these little, quiet moments that I hope will stand out in their favorite memories.

Manners

My kids are silly, loud, and can be absolute monsters.  I accept this.  They are great kids, but like most children, they can be also be little nightmares.  Such is life.

One thing we have always stressed with them is the importance of good manners.  There is no option there.  I may be a "pick your battles" kind of mom, but if you're my kid, I better hear "please" and "thank you" come out of your mouth.

Fortunately for them, my kids do pretty well with this, even without reminders.  Today, I took them out to lunch, and listened to them order their drinks and meals (something else we've always stressed; they need to learn to speak up for themselves!), with the appropriate "May I please have..." requests.  When their food came, the shift manager (who brought the food out) heard a cheerful round of "thank you!" as he set down their plates.  I was satisfied to hear them use the manners we've reinforced since they could talk (or even before then, since Alex learned to sign before he could speak; you can bet he could sign "please" and "thank you"!).

After the bill was paid, and our server dropped off my receipt, she hesitated long enough to compliment the kids.  She commented on how well behaved they were, and mentioned their nice manners, and told them that even her manager came to tell her that he also noticed those things.

The kids beamed.  I beamed.  It was a nice moment.

Of course, shortly after that, Alex threw a big wad of cheese on the floor of the grocery store and refused to pick it up, which resulted in a stand off.  We won't talk about that, though.  I'm still enjoying the brief moment where someone saw how well behaved the kids can be.  I'm allowed to do that.