I'm sorry...

... but this is just a funny picture:

... as is this:

... check out that double chin!!!

Growing Pains

When E was 2 years and 1 month... she was potty-trained.



M is now 2 years and 1 month.



And is she potty-trained, you ask? No, not really. I hadn't really thought about it.



Anyway, recently I decided to investigate.



I put underwear on M. I let her run around. She did not have a problem.



Then I put her in the tub.



She pooped.



Then I took her out of the tub... obviously...



While I was cleaning up the tub, she peed on the carpet in her room.



While I went downstairs to get a rag to clean that up she yelled from the top of the stairs"

**** in a teasing voice, mind you ****

"Mommy, I poop on the floor."



Luckily, she hadn't. She was just teasing me. TEASING ME.



So no, in answer to your question, M is not potty-trained. And I have no intention of doing that for a long time.



I told Justin that is why I rent. I will get my own house, with my own carpet when all my kids are 12.



Maybe.



the end

Te He He

E has a cough.

And since you can't give kids medicine anymore until they're 14 and weigh 97 lbs... I gave her a cough drop.

Do you think she'll overdose?

No, but this is what is funny:

Because her mouth is little, and because she is new to the world of cough drops...

... she can't talk while she sucks on it.

Hence the "te he he."

When we had our ultrasound of little E, her mouth was wide open the entire time. Now we know why. She was talking.

And talking.

And talking.

She hasn't quit.

Except right now. Instead, she is humming and pointing and trying to communicate to me with throat sounds.

Te

He

He

January

I am having January doldrums.

I am sorry, but I hate January.

Nothing happens in January. Except M's birthday... and we all forgot that anyway.

Meanwhile, I feel like I am waiting at an undisclosed train station, waiting for an undisclosed train, that will arrive at an undisclosed time with all this PhD stuff.

And let's not forget that this train will take me to the next five years of my life.

That makes January even more irritating.

Sadly, my children have to deal with me in this beautiful state.

Today I made an apple pie. That was yummy.

E thought it was yummy too.

"Mom, this apple pie is soooo yummy. I love it."

About five minutes later...

"But Mom, I don't really like the apples."

She ate the crust and the whipped cream. Left all the apples in her bowl.

So did M.

More apple pie for me!

I'll think about that instead of January.

Cousins

A and E had a fight on the way to ballet yesterday.

At the end of it, E declared:

"I am NEVER talking to you again!!!!!" (Pause) "At least, until I forget."

She forgot soon.

Be Positive

Today, I actually made dinner.

Not Stroganoff or Spaghetti.

The kind of dinner that takes two hours. I made it with a cake for Justin's "Congratulations, you're done, dinner."

I used red peppers, and cilantro, and an orange.

I used cumin, and cinnamon.

I didn't get my normal Monday activities done.

And then, 1 hour and 50 minutes into the exercise, I accidentally infected the whole meal with raw chicken juice.

And there was no way to cook it out.

So I had to THROW IT AWAY.

I am never cooking again.

We ate plain mashed potatoes and chocolate cake for dinner.

And I lost an entire afternoon of my life.

I am so mad.

In other news:

On Saturday we went to the BYU Bookstore. M missed her nap as a result. As we walked through the Wilk, I carried GQ and she followed me, screaming. She wanted me to carry her.

Finally, I said:

"M, what do you want me to do? Put G down on the floor and leave him here?"

With a sob... "Yes."

Oh, to be the baby of the family. What a coveted post.

E went with me to the store today. On the way there she listened to NPR reports concering Haiti. When we came home, she drew a picture for me to send to them. She wants to send the pennies from her piggy bank too.

When I told her I ruined the salsa for dinner, she said:

"It's okay Mom, I don't like the salsa."

Then, she told me to to "be positive" courtesy of Aunt Laura and Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.

The long and short of it?

Plain mashed potatoes are good food, my friends.
Being carried by your mother makes your heart feel better.
Sending pictures and pennies to Haiti is a worthy endeavor.
And everyone should be a little more positive.

The end.

Sigh...

... the applications are done.

Can you believe it?

Neither can we.

Now comes the waiting time, and the hoping time. With about 500 applicants for each school, and 3-5 positions available... there is no guarantee for anything.

Cross your fingers with us!

Snippets

Today we went to the doctor's for some shots.

After being told I'd done a nice job of keeping my children healthy, I gave them a sucker and took them to Wendy's.

Wouldn't want to do too good of a job.

Then, at home, M lay on the floor kicking and screaming because I locked her out of the kitchen. I asked her:

"M, would you like to kick the gate, or have me read you a book."

The doctor asked if she can speak two-word sentences. Apparently she can:

Says M: "I want to kick the gate."

Meanwhile, after a nasty migraine last night, I went to bed. My migraines, rather than bringing pain, result in:

A. an inability to read - letters just disappear off the page, so strange, and
B. the odd habit of saying the wrong words: like "think" for "thought" - this makes Justin laugh).

The first time I experienced these symptoms I was in the 7th grade. I was convinced I had a brain tumor and would die momentarily. My mom did not agree.

Anyway, during last night's episode, Justin put the baby to sleep for me.

Funny, I think I like migraines now. It's so nice to go to sleep without wondering if someone is crying.

Then, today, after Wendy's, and kicking the gate... all the children went to sleep. Since Justin was home I got to go to the bookstore.

Alone.

Wow.

Of course, I couldn't buy any of the books.

But I did just sit there for a moment without wondering whether one of my children was eating/tearing/ or losing any of the merchandise.

Now that I'm home again, with M awake and preparing to kick the gate again, I am thinking of having a migraine again.

No, not really.

Just kinda.

Behold, the Power of the Bathroom

When my cousin's little girl was small... she used to sleep in the bathtub. Now that she is grown up and tending a baby of her own, I decided to continue the tradition.

You see, GQ has recently decided he would like full mothering attention at 11:00 at night.

And at 2:00.

And at 4:00.

I said: Dream on.

No, seriously. Please, dream on.....

Anyway, after trying several options which resulted in unsatisfactory bedrest for GQ and his parents, we tried the bathroom.

Why, you ask? Because I felt like it.

Luckily, his sleep habits immediately improved.

I am not sure why this is working, but I don't really care.

He still wakes up at 11:00 and then seems to look around and decide he might as well go back to sleep until 4:00.

This does make for a rather stinky Justin since the room with the shower is out of use in the morning.

But come on people, we have priorities here.

And sleep is definitely at the top of the list.

** He does not actually sleep in the bathtub, we did move his crib in... but we are considering it. Apparently Justin needs more room to do his hair.

When There's Love at Home...

Says Mom to M: M! Stop. You may not poke your brother's eyes with a fork.

*****

Says Mom to E: Do you love you animals more or your sister more?

Says E: My animals.

*****

So far today we're doing great.

For Paula and Mark....

Says GQ: Thank you Grandma and Grandpa!!! I love my new jumper.

Tubby

I can't find the file on my computer.... but this is E when she was about 6 months old. Justin used to drip water on her tummy when she was in the bathtub and she would make this face.



GQ may have blue eyes and light hair, but to me he is a little replica of his big sister E. Even when it comes to getting splashed in the tubby.

A link...

http://womeninthescriptures.blogspot.com/2008/12/importance-of-birth.html

My sister-in-law sent me this link. A great essay.

And even though it's also religious - I think you'd like it, Heidi, for it's birth centeredness.

Is centeredness a word? Is it spelled right?

A Gift for Meg? Courtesy of the Grandparents.

M meets the M doll. Happy Birthday! It was her only birthday present - on the day - that's what comes of a January birthday.

So, was the present for me or her? She has taken it to bed since she got it, so maybe she actually likes it. She does insist she has piggy tails like her doll.

Maybe We'd Do Better With Hebrew? or We interrupt Jamie's obsession with family pictures for a post about - thank goodness - something else!!!

When I was little, I wrote my name backwards.

Both the letters and the name.

It was very cute.

E does the same thing, although usually her letters face the right way. Apparently she is smarter than me.

I don't worry about it since I obviously know how to write my name now. thgiR?

Anyway, when she takes her "naps" she is allowed to come downstairs at 4:00.

This means that, despite my careful explaining every day, she comes down at 2:34. (She apparently misses 2:04, 2:14, and 2:24).

"But Mom, the 4 was first!!!"

And yes - I still make her have quiet time for two hours. If you can call the Broadway show going on up in Justin's office "quiet time."

Which One Should I Make Big?

#1

#2

#3

#4


#5

Happy Birthday!!!

Oh, what a treasure our dear little snippet is!