Thirty

June 30, 2010

Coming forward to admit that I hate balloons.

Hate them and the inevitable angst, crying, and rending of garments that occurrs when one of the balloons a) flies away upon getting out of the car, b) rises to the top of the cathedral ceiling in the family room, or c) pops.
The only thing worse is when this happens to only ONE child’s balloon. Then the cries of “No fair!” are added to the mix. Note: we ALWAYS get different color balloons.

Of course our local grocery store gives out balloons so approximately every other day we reenact one of the above scenarios. I actually found myself telling one of the kids the other day that if they didn’t stop whining about their balloon I wouldn’t even go to the grocery store the next day. Yup, you can add that to the ever growing list of threats I never thought I would levy against my children. You know, before I had kids. Now? That I actually have children? Nothing that comes out of my own mouth really surprises me much.

Interrupting my month of photos and captions

June 29, 2010

Because this made me cry today. Those big fat tears that you can’t control.

Gwendomama wrote about not having money. The post is so much more than that, though. If you aren’t reading her, you should. But the part the resonated the most deeply with me was her not having the $20 to send her daughter on a Brownie field trip. How many of us waste $20 a week on coffee or fast food or other crap we think we need, but really just want.

I was that kid. The one who had a father who never paid a dime in child support. The one who didn’t get to do stuff because there wasn’t the money.

I remember the big block of government cheese.

Until things changed once I got a bit older.

If you have any spare cash banging around your paypal account. Or you are just feeling generous Gwendomama has a paypal account. She says her life has reached a new low, it is my hope that many people donating just a tiny bit will pull her back up.

Twenty Nine

I wore my “fireworks” dress today, as my daughter likes to call it.

Blood draw today after endocronologist appointment. My thyroid medication hasn’t been upped in a couple of years and lately I have had all the signs that it needs to be increased. For those of you who didn’t follow my health saga, I have Hashimoto’s which is basically an autoimmune hypothyroid disorder.

I constantly feel like obesity is knocking on my door.

As usual, I had to be poked several times in order for the girl to get a good vein. So I am sporting these attractive cotton ball bandages on both arms. Or was, I took them off right after I took the photo.

Twenty Eight

June 28, 2010

Last week of swim lessons.

Miles still doesn’t understand why he can’t swim while plugging his nose.

Duh, otherwise the water goes up his nose.

Vacation Part Over

“Why can’t we just stay here?”
“Because then it wouldn’t be vacation. It would be real life.”

And so vacation comes to end.

I think the beginning of the end came one hour outside of Austin at the gas station off I35

Today is real life with 6am wake ups for football camp With piles of laundry. Sand tracked through the house. Car interiors that need steam cleaning. Mail that needs to be sorted. Cips of coffee that will be poured and never finished because of interruptions Bills that need to be paid. Emails that need to be answered.

I should also think about serving the kids some sort of vegetable for dinner this week. Because this is real life and even though most of them won’t eat it, that’s what real life mothers do.

As opposed to vacation mothers who think Vitamin water and ketchup count as vegetables, and then tell their kids to go eat some more grilled/fried meat.

Typing on a real keyboard. Yes!

Vacation Drive Home Part Three

June 27, 2010

I left out the most important thing that I discourage while on long car trips.

Throwing up.

And just like everything else in this parenting gig, they don’t pay attention anyway.

About five minutes after pulling out of Sonic and onto the highway Miles started crying his stomach hurt. I ignored him for about 3 minutes, which as it turns out was 3 minutes too long.

On the bright side, if there can be such a thing as a bright side when it involves vomit and the backseat of a car, the gas station I pulled into off the highway had a spigot on the building right where I parked.

I unloaded everything from the back of the van, including my neighbor’s duffle bag that wouldn’t fit into their car and ended up being right in the line of fire. I hosed everything off, including Miles.

While the childless drove by and looked over in horror. (Heather, consider this your birth control reminder)

And the fellow parents drove by and nodded sympathetically.

I stripped Miles down right there in the parking lot and redressed him.

To add to the horror my older children were experiencing, I washed off Miles’ seashell collection. With baby wipes and the spigot.

That, my friends, is love.

Vacation Drive Home Part Two

The allure of the drive in restaurant escapes me. Why do we want to eat in our car?

Turns put we don’t want to eat in the car. They want to eat outside. At Sonic. In the 100 degree heat.

Not sure who is crazier, them for wanting to eat outside, or me for allowing it.

Vacation Drive Home

Things I encourage while driving in car:

Sleeping
Looking out window
Listening to iPods
Texting friends
Playing Nintendo DS with headphones
No logging anyone else in the car into the game
Sitting silently
Reading in YOUR HEAD

Talking to me or anyone else is not encouraged
Neither is drinking

Vacation Day Five Part Four

June 26, 2010

I am on vacation with my friend and her huge extended Mexican family. I mention that they are Mexican only because they tease me about being the “white” girl.

And I tease them about the completely random words in Spanish they sprinkle into conversation.

But one thing is for sure, they know how to cook.

The first photo is titled Boy vs Food. My 11 yr old can pack the food away like no one else can.

Her family also dotes on the little kids. “Mija, here is some shrimp grilled just for you.” The kids have been spoiled rotten.

Today I am thankful for friends who treat me and my kids just like we are a part of their family.

Vacation Day Five Part Three

I am typing this through a ziploc bag at the beach. The same way I have written everything this week.

Sea Salt and Vinegar chips. Love. They taste like the ocean, only better.