Tuesday? Check!

Wow.

Tuesday.

I always knew you were an awful beast, sneaking up on us right after the deluge of Monday, but without the rest of the weekend under our belts.

But this? This was a low blow. And what's worse? You're going to keep coming at us with both guns blazing.

Tuesday has taken on a whole new state of chaos in our life. Tuesday is now known as "Sports Night".

Let me back up a half a click and say this - we limit the kids to one sport per child per season. This is difficult to make them understand, but hey, we've already resolved ourselves to the "mean parent" role. Because one sport per child x 3 children is still 3 sports per season. And nights like tonight prove that is still way more than we can handle.

Our new Tuesday regime looks like this:
*Get Bonnie and Clyde up from nap, change Bonnie into leotard with warm clothes over it and Clyde into his hockey gear.

*Dexter home from school via carpool at 3:45 pm

*Everyone loaded up in the car, ready to pull out at 3:50 pm

*Drive 20ish minutes west of home to the ice rink, where Clyde has hockey lessons at 4:15 pm.

*Have Husband meet us at ice rink prior to 5 pm so someone can leave with Bonnie to drive 35ish minutes east (to the other side of the county) to make gymnastics practice at 6 pm.

*All while the other parent stays at the ice rink to change Clyde out of his hockey gear, get everyone a snack, and then get Dexter in his hockey gear in time to be on the ice at 6:15pm for his hockey team practice.

*All meet back at home somewhere around 8 pm to eat dinner at lightning speed, shower at lightning speed, and get them all into bed at lightning speed (and hopefully, before 9pm, a full hour past the regular bed time)

Yeah, Tuesday. You're a cruel, cruel joke.

There's something spooky in the air......

Let me just start by saying - Halloween? Not my favorite. I vaguely recall enjoying it as a child, but then there was the incident with the candy and the stick from my scarecrow costume..... Well, let's just say, I was thankful to have a big brother.

But, I'm living with four people who really seem to like the holiday, so I've pulled myself up by the bootstraps and joining in. My doors display black feather wreaths, and headstones grace my front porch.

The one thing, though, that I've never liked is carving pumpkins. The ooey, gooey, nasty, sticky innards? The mess? The smell? The need for artistic ability to make something other than triangle eyes? The ability to not try to slice off one's own pinky........oh, there go the childhood memories again.

My kids, though, love them. LOVE THEM. We drive past a pumpkin patch on our way to school, and from August through October, they watch the vines spread and the flowers bloom, eventually turning to big, plump, ripe pumpkins. They argue over which one they're getting. Who's will be the biggest? Who's will be tall and skinny? Who's will be short and round?

We've been remiss this year in getting to the pumpkin patch. We were going to go last week, but alas, I had the death (aka H1N1) and Husband wasn't so hip on taking them by himself.

So instead, we're bombarded with daily conversation of pumpkins.

The latest of which went like this:

Bonnie - You see, Clyde, dere's lotsa kindsa punkins.

Clyde - Yep! Tall ones, short ones, scawey ones....

Bonnie - Yeah, de scawey ones are Jank0-Laters. Dere de glow-up kind..........

"Your stunned silence is veeeeeery reassuring......."

File this under "classic conversations"

Bonnie - Ok Mom! We cleaned up the whole playroom!!

Me - Really? The whole thing?

Bonnie - Yes!!!!

Me - And you put everything away where it belongs?

Bonnie - **insert stunned silence here**

Me - So if I pulled out a tub, I wouldn't find random things all stuck in there?

Bonnie - Well, actually, we didn't.

as she runs back upstairs:

Bonnie - Clyyyyyyyde! We hafta put stuff where it BELONGS

Clyde - Ooooooooooooooooh. Dasa gonna take a little longer..........

Cute Kid-isms from the day

Today has been filled with funny kid-isms. In no particular order:

From Clyde: I spy, wif my wittle grwasses eyes................underpants! (peering through his bottle of water, and with underpants no where in sight.....)

From Bonnie: It's spring, tra la la la la!!!! (upon spying the fountain was on in the school pond)

From Dexter: You mean, I can really, really use my muscles?!?! (when told he could run and play again after his two week surgery recovery)

And lastly, a pair from Bonnie and Clyde upon their reception of gymnastics' trophies (for completing a year of gymnastics):

Clyde - my firstest eber tropie, Mom! In my whole wide life!
Bonnie - I wowked, and I wowked, and I wowked, and look, Mom! I did it! My tropie! I'nna sleep wit it tonight. I DID IT!!

T minus 40 hours..................

Not that I'm counting, but in T minus 40 hours, I will be in a car bound for a warmer, less stressful, sandier locale.

And hopefully, sometime between now and then, I'll have my act together and get everything packed.

Oh, and Lands' End? Yeah, this size EIGHT rashguard isn't going to be much help on Bonnie unless it was intended to be a dress. Thanks, for that.

Vacations aren't for sissies......

Seriously. Going somewhere for spring break sounded like a GRAND plan. Especially back in August, when we decided that, newly constrained by Dexter's school schedule, we would be ready to get outta dodge come spring.

And really, it ** does** sound like a great idea. A week of no plans, beach, warm weather! What's not to love??

Except the whole getting ready for the trip? Yeah, that part? Notsomuch. I love to travel. And we'll have a great time when we get there.

I'm just rusty on the packing.

Cut me some slack! It's the first time we've gone anywhere since AUGUST. AUGUST, people!! Do you realize that we haven't set foot in a hotel in nearly SEVEN months?!?! That might be a new family record. Seven months. My kids, when asked what they're doing for spring break, shout "We goind to a OTEL!!!! Oh, and dere bill be sand dere, too."

But first, little ones, Mommy must pack. But never you fear, I will power on.

I may be rusty, but I'm no sissy!!!

I'm declaring Winter '08-'09 to be D.O.N.E.

Don't tell mother nature, but THIS mother has declared winter to be over.

(Ok - side note? Facebook makes me talk about myself in the third person. It's a disease.)

So, with spring break blissfully on the horizon, and the forecast this week looking decidedly NOT cold (ok, so morning lows of 30* might be pushing it, but I'll call it brisk. Brisk sounds uplifting! Cold? Cold is depressing....) - ANYWAY - anyway, I've decided winter is over.

Hats, mittens, coats, scarves, you name it. All have been washed and successfully put away. Replaced with raincoats, fleece jackets, and all accouterments spring.

Now, about those fleece footed jammies.........