I Take It Back

Just a small sample...aren't they beautiful? I don't really hate the garden...I just don't like the pressure of a massive harvest while I'm home alone. Kids and canning do not mix. Actually, I'm just not a canning, pickling, dehydrating, sauce making kind of girl. Dan's that kinda guy though. He even pickled some zucchini a couple of weeks ago. I'm really ever so not thrilled...but I'm trying to reserve judgement for the big reveal this winter...

I completely spaced Max's first soccer game this weekend. Feel terrible about it. Of course, maybe if he'd let me sleep I might have some normal cognitive abilities. We went to a BBQ that night and after about an hour of running around with the other kids and some dinner, Max curled up on one of the cushioned lounge chairs outside and asked for a blanket...if you give your kid a blanket while at a party, he'll snuggle up and then ask for some lemonade...after you get him some lemonade...he'll want some chips to go with it...then he'll ask for more lemonade...then more chips...you'll give this all to him and then he'll proceed to fall asleep by the fire...under the stars...you'll look at your child and try to think about how many more years you have before you're able to do that...then you'll be thankful that you're at a party-there are adults to talk to-you have a glass of wine-and your husband is taking care of your other one...

We've been reading a lot of Laura Numeroff lately: If You Give a Mouse A Cookie, If You Give a Moose a Muffin, If You Give a Pig a Pancake. Max actually requested them last time we were at the library. It's the first time he's ever wanted anything besides Charlie and Lola. I was so glad to find them on the shelves. Alex is really likes Sandra Boynton these days: Blue Hat, Green Hat, and The Going To Bed Book...and Mrs. Wishy-Washy by Joy Crowley - she likes to point and say, "In the tub you GO!" I have a little feeling our current dictator may be ousted fairly soon.

"Breaking My Motherly Balls"

That's definitely not mine. But thank you, Annne Lamott (Operating Instructions). It pretty much sums up my week, sans husband, perfectly. We started off strong...going to the train museum...then to the outdoor waterpark nearby... Max was on his best behavior and I managed to keep them both from drowning AND getting lost. I was feeling on top of my game.

Then Alex fell Sun. night and cut her tongue on one of her teeth. I didn't realize how badly until later on that evening (it bled a lot, but had stopped and she was acting fine). Monday morning I took a look and the gash was so deep there was a bit of a flap and it really freaked me out! To make a long story short, I called my pediatrician for some advice and mostly reassurance. I ended up talking with a super bitchy and uninformed nurse practitioner who made me feel like a dumb, neglectful ass for not rushing my baby to the ER instantly. She sent me to the urgent care unit at the hospital (wrong place) and I eventually waited three hours and paid $100 for the physician's assistant (too ridiculous for even a doctor to look at) to glance at her tongue for a couple of seconds and tell me she'll be just fine. "We only suture if the tongue is practically falling off." Great. Thank you. By the way, waiting three hours in an ER with two small children translates into about three unbelievably stressfull days and I can't even begin to describe the number of subsequent injuries that were narrowly avoided!!!

Her tongue has been healing pretty well, although she's been quite a bit crankier than normal... what with a gash in her tongue and all. She even fell again yesterday and bit it in the same spot. Oya-Vay!

Somewhere between then and the edge of now... and all of the tomato sauce and pesto making and bean picking (I officially hate gardening)... in between the mountains of laundry, the tantrums, the dinner I make every night that noone eats and just ends up all over the floor and in a certain someone's hair...the carrying of both of them everywhere... the not napping...and the "Eat your breakfast now or you're going to be late for school!!!" for the tenth time every morning... I just sort of desintegrated.

And then I poured myself a glass of wine.

Mommy, Daddy, ?

I thought it'd be fun to play a little game...Guess the Source of This Behavior...

*Max loves to pee outside...when he's finished, he carefully picks a single blade of grass and meticulously dabs off the drop(s).

*Alex likes to stuff her onesies with marbles.

*The other night Max threw one of my plates at the playset to see what would happen. What a surprise...it broke! "Hey, Mister, that came all the way from China!"

*Alex has this extreme need to put everything BACK...as it was...doors, toys, partially eaten food, dirty laundry that's been sorted for the wash...she especially likes to put Maxs' dirty clothes back in his drawers.

Future Resume Material

I love building these train tracks and have become obnoxiously proud of my accomplishments. To prove it, I even took a picture of my latest creation. See?! This takes some skill...especially with your younger child taking apart every other piece helping and your older child screaming, "Is it done yet?!" every 5 seconds. I have to admit though, it was Max's idea to go over Tidmouth Sheds. He likes watching them careen down the big hills and off the table. Alex likes the same thing, only she uses marbles.

Don't Let These Pictures Fool You

I wanted to capture and post these delightful moments because... well, they seem a bit scarce these days. These little buggers barely sleep and they yell and scream at eachother... and me... A LOT. Max now says things like, "I can do it if I want to!" and Alex is particularly fond of saying,"NO!" although she at least throws in a "Ya." fairly often as well.

Luckily, no matter what the state of affairs, there is no shortage of these moments: We are all getting our swimsuits on and Max picks up the top part of my bikini and asks, "Mom, is this for your BOOBS or your BUTT?" ...and with exactly that emphasis.

T-Ball

Here's a shot of our Little Slugger. Last night was our last T-ball game for the summer...and I hope think maybe our last one ever. In the end, it was a great learning experience. We learned that Max doesn't like to catch balls...at all! We also learned that Max is extremely good at entertaining himself when there is a lot of standing around involved...like when the other team is up at bat. (There were a few older, much more skilled kids on the team who were severe ball hogs, so whenever our team was in the field most of them had nothing to do.) "Which one's Max?" - "He's the one dancing around with the mitt on his head."..."Oh, look at that, now's he's taken to running around in circles while singing to himself!" "Pay attention, Max!" He finally looks in the direction of the hitter and follows the ball as it rolls right by him...another kid runs after it and pounces on it...another one is just behind him and lands on the first kid....NOW Max is interested...Ah, Ha!... and he proceeds to add himself to the pile. I'm thinking rugby may be more in line with his character. However, since there's no Little Rugbers league out there I think we'll try soccer.

Better Than Any Playground

After a very long bout with a super nasty stomach flu (everyone had a turn), things are finally returning to normal here. I'm running again and today I remembered to pack the BOB for river play. I even remembered to charge the camera battery and, as you can see, I also remembered to put the battery back in the camera, put the camera in the car, and to then bring the camera on the run with us. I'm feeling very proud of myself.
We moved lots of rocks around, climbed all over the boulders, felt the slime between our fingers and toes, watched a little frog swim and hop around, and ate Fritos. But most of all I really enjoyed watching Max and Alex just sit and feel the water moving by their bodies...they were completely mesmerized at times.