yet another bad photo

Taking the annual Christmas card picture is pure torture. I am convinced.

I am not auditioning for "awkward family photos" but it sure seems like it. Two in a row! Woo!

This was supposed to be our Christmas card picture. It is so not going to be.

Here are the reasons why:

1. we are all squinty eyed, this was the first time we were visiting big tall family and it the weather was sunny, they live by Lake Erie and it is always dreary there

2. my hair looks goofy

3. Big Tall Hubby is in the midst of his full blown Bell's Palsy so he would not smile

4. you can see my big tall in-laws dog peeking out the door and my dog's pug butt is there too if you look hard enough, why does it appear in all my pictures?

5. I am sitting goofy

6. I just look plain goofy

So everyone else looks pretty good, I guess it is just me that looks goofy. So therefore, I will not send this to my friends and family, near and far. (But I will post it here for the world to see! I'm warped I tell you.) My looking good in a photo is way more important than everyone else looking good, right? I mean, who cares if the kids are looking like gooney birds, they are gooney birds most of the time! You agree with my don't ya ladies?

Now you understand why I think it is pure torture.

Boy, life is so crazy at my house right now. I cannot even begin to explain it all. So I won't because you would be bored reading it all. Or you'd feel super duper sorry for me and come over and help, either way, I just don't want to get into it all.

Somebody got a big boy bed!

He loves it real much.

Here is Parker showing him how to stand on the headboard and jump off or hide behind it when mommy yells "did you brush your teeth? Did you make your bed? Did you pick up your dirty clothes?" No kidding, that was the conversation.

I have since added a cute little blue table and lamp so he can read at night (hopefully I can post a pic soon). Well, actually, he just insists on climbing out of bed 2000 times a night to pull every book off the shelf and not go to sleep. I try so hard not to get mad but seriously, after they all go to bed is the only time I can get a thing done around here!!!! All my kids have done this during the big kid bed transition, I don't know why I am surprised (or irritated for that matter.)

The walls look really icky green in these pics. I like it better in person. It is Martha's "sea grass". I was going to use a khaki but I felt kind of bad since Tanner is a little guy and khaki seems more like a big boy color. He insisted I keep the yellow curtains (Pottery Barn kids from Zoe's baby room!) because "lallow is my favorite color mommy!"
We actually have another one of these beds (sitting in my formal living room until I find a spot for it) for Asher to use in a few years. I think it will be so cute to have matching beds for them. I haven't hung any pictures back on the walls and I still have Asher's clothes in laundry baskets instead of the new dresser. Told you, things have been crazy here lately.

Holy thighs Batman! Oh, don't act like you didn't notice them. You did, it's ok. I'm pretending to be over it.
This picture and this picture alone is inspiring me to get my big ole butt (and thighs obviously) off the couch (Big Tall In-law's couch to be exact in the pic) and exercise. Jeez. That is terrible. Big Tall Hubby was consoling me, being so sweet, saying, "oh honey, that is a distorted picture, I took it from way high (well, duh, I don't call him "Big Tall Hubby" for nothin') and you were just relaxing (code for napping while the kids watch tv and Big Tall Mother-In-Law cooks Thanksgiving dinner), you look great for having a four month old baby." But, he can kiss up all he wants. Pictures don't lie. **sigh** Now that I look at it, my head looks teeny beeny, maybe it is distorted. Or my thighs are so big my head looks teeny beeny. Hmm.

Don't you love how Parker watches tv? I swear, my kids are hardly ever upright. I see more of their feet than their faces. Speaking of feet, I am wearing my stylish gym shoes because I have some kooky thing going on with my feet that makes them hurt ALL THE TIME (apparently being pregnant in the summer and wearing flip flops all day, every day because your feet are really swollen is really, really bad for your feet). I'm so looking forward to them getting better so I can wear real shoes (code for cute ones, not my running shoes.) Gym shoes are really only for the gym. **sigh**

my menus this week:

keeping it easy, nothing new or exciting, again, my life is crazy right now, no time for fancy cooking

• spaghetti and roasted brussel sprouts (easy, kids will eat this)
• chili and turkey sub sandwiches
• chicken tortilla soup and biscuits
• italian sausage sandwiches and oven potato chips
• blackened fish (chicken nuggets) and sweet potato wedges
• homemade pizzas and salads

my things to do this week:

• take Parker to the oral surgeon (yikes! more on that later)
• finish Christmas decorating
• drop off a big load to Goodwill
• plan holiday baking and menus/grocery lists
• shop and wrap gifts (this will be reoccurring until the big day, I am sure)

I hope everyone has a great week!

Ho ho ho!

researching

Here I am with my boys (Big Tall Hubby was the photog) on a lovely Thanksgiving Day hike, we were visiting my Big Tall In-laws and they live right by this giant forrest/national park, we took advantage of the great weather... my sweet daughter was spending time with her Nana so she is missing from the photo but she was having her own kind of fun. (getting spoiled by her Nana! one on one time is the best!)

Thanksgiving was delish, of course. I am still digesting all that sweet potato casserole (I think I ate about half the entire pan), I love that stuff. I am doing lots of laundry and trying to get ready for Christmas decorations that are going to start appearing this weekend. So, in other words, I am a busy little momma.

I have been reading everyone's posts, although not commenting. Sorry, I know we all love our comments. All my "extra" computer time I have been devoting to researching treatments for my Big Tall Hubby's Bell's Palsy. We are trying to find some alternative treatments for him and it is taking a lot of time and energy. I hope to have my laundry under control and the house all decked out by this weekend so I can devote more time to the fun stuff... crafting, blogging, reading blogs, baking, wrapping, internet shopping, etc.

Take care.

Talk to you next week, I hope!

Thanks Becca, for saying you missed me. That really made my day. I needed it.

Thankful

I think this guy's cheeks are chapped because I kiss them all the time. I am keeping his little baldy head covered because I fret over him being cold all the time, plus these little baby hats are so darn cute.What are you thankful for? I keep asking my kids that. I keep reading what everyone is blogging about and Facebooking about and today I am very thankful. I am amazed at what some people put out there to be thankful for... beer (saw this one on FB), really!? It seems like everyone is just cruising right past Thanksgiving (using it as an excuse to overindulge) to get right down to shopping and spending money like maniacs. It just makes me sad.

I am thankful, truly, for the obvious: my husband, my kids, my home, food, shelter, a steady income, ability to pay our bills, my extended family, appropriate clothes... really. All those things, I am thankful for today and everyday. I promise, I am not just saying that. I watch the news everyday and get so sad for people all over the world who have it so much worse than I could ever imagine. I don't really feel all that thankful for "stuff", other than necessities, I can live without the newest I-phone or game system.

Today I am most thankful for health. I beat myself up everyday after stepping on the scale and not seeing the pounds just fly off. But I am healthy. Not sick, not ailing, not frail. So for that I am thankful.

I am thankful for my kids' health. They are all growing so well and I can give myself a break for letting them have ice cream and cookies, they are healthy and for that I am glad.

I am thankful for my husband's health as well. This morning he woke up with a weird numbness in his face. He was unable to smile, whistle, and food tasted "weird" so I immediately panicked. I was thinking the worst (don't we always!?), a stroke! I was thinking, oh my gosh, what are we going to do? How can I make him better? What am I going to tell the kids? Why us? Is he going to be ok?

I got through the morning the best I could taking the boys to gymnastics, getting Zoe on the bus, buying a birthday gift for my neighbor, all that everyday stuff. I made him go to the doctor because I just couldn't stop worrying. Why do our hubbys resist going to the doctor? It turns out he has Bell's Palsy. A weird, random, usually temporary paralysis of the face. I had heard of it before but never thought much of it. Obviously, we were thrilled it wasn't more serious but nonetheless we want him well. He was prescribed some medicine and I am doing lots of Internet research hoping to learn all I can. So today, I am thankful for health. All the other "stuff" just doesn't seem very important right now.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving.

I am also thankful for all those Blog Mommies I chat with, you are some wonderful wonderful ladies.

Hello, I love you

This little buddy is a total chatter bug. Holy moly. He talks to me all the time. Yes, he does! Don't question me! Yes, it is like this, "ahh, argh, ahhhhhargh, goo, gah." But I know what it means. It means, "hello, I love you mommy." He says it every time he sees me, or this mobile hanging on his bouncy seat or the old ladies at the grocery store or the dog. He's a lovable guy I tell ya.

love notes

I love this note Parker left for Zoe when she was away at Girl Scout camp a couple weeks ago. I helped him spell everything but he did the writing himself (including the question mark, he thought it was an exclamation mark, but I didn't have the heart to correct him). I don't really have a reason to share this, just wanted to. It is a good reminder to me that my kids do love each other. They have been quarreling a lot lately, being cooped up from rain perhaps? I myself, am feeling rather grumpy for lots of reasons. I wish someone would make me one of these cute notes, it just might make my day.

Diapers are my life

I've been changing diapers for 8 3/4 years, straight, no breaks. I often have two kids in two different sizes. That is fun. Something about changing itty bitty baby poops makes changing the preschooler/toddler poops very repulsive. Asher just moved up to size 3 diapers and why does that make me sad? They seem huge on him, swallowing up his little booty.

The other day Big Tall Hubby changed Tanner's diaper (usually size 5- that kid will be wearing size 10 if they exist, he has NO interest in the potty!) and I was so glad because it was a stinky one. The next time I changed him, I noticed he was busting out of the diaper, oops, BTH had put the size 3 on him. "It seemed to fit" he told me. We chuckled, because what else can you do?

Here is Asher on our downstairs changing table. It's our dryer. I have never had a "real" changing table. I use the dryer downstairs (cabinet above make for handy diaper storage) and I use a dresser upstairs. I look at the changing tables in Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware lovingly with their adorable pictures and artwork hanging above them. They are so darn precious. I never saw the need to get one though, I guess I always felt like they were a temporary piece of furniture and not very practical. I mean, if I am going to spend hundreds of dollars on a piece of furniture, I want it to last a good long time! Who knew, I'd be kind of needing one for 8 3/4 years, probably more like 12 years when all of these kids are potty trained! Yep, diapers are my life.