Thursday, January 29, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
A way with words
Matthew seems to always find a way to make us laugh with his one-liner comments and tonight was no different. Emily had quite the attitude this evening and after being very disrespectful to both of her parents she was not only sent to her room but sent to bed early as well. She threw a real doozy of a fit once she got to her room (only reinforcing the fact that she was indeed tired) and it was about that time Matthew came out of the bathroom from his shower. He told her very frankly, "Emily, what is your problem? You sound like a dying pigeon." The good parent in us told him that is wasn't nice but that was only after we laughed and asked each other where in the world he comes up with his analogies.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Lately funnies
Several nights ago we went out to eat dinner and afterwards Matthew wanted to stop by Michael's and pick out some yarn for a scarf (I just recently learned to crochet and Emily has 2 new scarves.) From the restaurant to Michael's we had to listen to the children argue about boys having scarves; Emily insists that boys don't wear scarves and everyone told her yes they can. Among all that chatter Matthew looked up at the store front and saw that one of the letters had a light bulb flickering and pointed it out. We all looked and agreed and then he said "That is a stroke light." Yep, those good 'ole stroke lights.
Tonight I told all the kids to put on their pajamas. This would usually result in Matthew finishing first and Jacob last but tonight it was reversed. I was quite puzzled on what could be taking Matthew so long so I went to check on him. He tried to put his pajama pants on and found the legs to be knotted. He couldn't get them undone and then Jacob yells from his room "just pull the two strings." I tried to explain to him it wasn't that kind of knot and he persistently told me yes, it was. Finally he said "I know how they got knotted; I did it." Upon further questioning he said in his book The Boys Book, How To Be The Best At Everything it says "How to annoy your sister or brother" and follows with tying the legs of their pajamas in knots. I wonder how long those pajamas have sat in his drawer with the legs knotted before Matthew chose them to wear.
This weekend we have to choose Jacob's elective for his first year of middle school. He has the option of band, choir or study skills. He expresses some interest in band but not a lot and I'm trying not to force him into liking band just because he has two parents that were band geeks. Today he brought home the recorder- the screechy when you don't open your throat enough, recorder. After an hour I had to ask him to give the practicing a break; I'm now rethinking this band idea. God bless our parents.
Tonight I told all the kids to put on their pajamas. This would usually result in Matthew finishing first and Jacob last but tonight it was reversed. I was quite puzzled on what could be taking Matthew so long so I went to check on him. He tried to put his pajama pants on and found the legs to be knotted. He couldn't get them undone and then Jacob yells from his room "just pull the two strings." I tried to explain to him it wasn't that kind of knot and he persistently told me yes, it was. Finally he said "I know how they got knotted; I did it." Upon further questioning he said in his book The Boys Book, How To Be The Best At Everything it says "How to annoy your sister or brother" and follows with tying the legs of their pajamas in knots. I wonder how long those pajamas have sat in his drawer with the legs knotted before Matthew chose them to wear.
This weekend we have to choose Jacob's elective for his first year of middle school. He has the option of band, choir or study skills. He expresses some interest in band but not a lot and I'm trying not to force him into liking band just because he has two parents that were band geeks. Today he brought home the recorder- the screechy when you don't open your throat enough, recorder. After an hour I had to ask him to give the practicing a break; I'm now rethinking this band idea. God bless our parents.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Normal
Hypothetical situtation (well, sort of)
You go to the doctor for reoccuring migraine headaches despite being on a daily preventative medication and even having the dosage increased. Your migraines have dramatically increased and have become more than a nuisance at this point. Your doctor is very caring and seems concerned; he/she looks into your eyes for a great deal of time while shining a 60 watt lightbulb deep into your head causing your eyes water down your face. Then you are sent downstairs for a blood draw to run some labs and make an appointment for an MRI to take place two days later.
Deep down you feel that there really isn't anything seriously wrong but it never hurts to follow through with some basic medical measures just to make sure.
You think you've had an MRI before but quickly realize that you actually had a CT scan and the two things are very different. You keep your eyes closed and try to deep breathe (but don't move!) while inside a tunnel with a cage around your head for 25 minutes. All goes well and the tech says you should have the results in a few days.
Two weeks go by and you haven't heard anything. You could call to get the results but surely you would have heard by now if there was something seriously wrong. No news is good news, right?
OK, so you finally receive your hypothetical letter telling you that everything is fine with your MRI. It might read something like this:
Dear Mrs. Jabberblogger,
The radiologist and myself have reviewed your MRI films taken on Dec. 34, 2039 and want to inform you that all results were normal. If you would like a second opinion please contact me and I will arrange it.
If you continue to have an increase in the occurance of your migraine headaches or feel your symptoms dramatically worsen please call me. I would like to follow up with you in a month to check the effectiveness of the medication change.
Sincerely,
Dr. Kitterzapper
Or, you might receive a letter like this instead (actual scanned letter, just changed the names):
So much white space, almost like I might be missing something but my brain is normal so I know that is just plain, white space. Happy New Year to me!
You go to the doctor for reoccuring migraine headaches despite being on a daily preventative medication and even having the dosage increased. Your migraines have dramatically increased and have become more than a nuisance at this point. Your doctor is very caring and seems concerned; he/she looks into your eyes for a great deal of time while shining a 60 watt lightbulb deep into your head causing your eyes water down your face. Then you are sent downstairs for a blood draw to run some labs and make an appointment for an MRI to take place two days later.
Deep down you feel that there really isn't anything seriously wrong but it never hurts to follow through with some basic medical measures just to make sure.
You think you've had an MRI before but quickly realize that you actually had a CT scan and the two things are very different. You keep your eyes closed and try to deep breathe (but don't move!) while inside a tunnel with a cage around your head for 25 minutes. All goes well and the tech says you should have the results in a few days.
Two weeks go by and you haven't heard anything. You could call to get the results but surely you would have heard by now if there was something seriously wrong. No news is good news, right?
OK, so you finally receive your hypothetical letter telling you that everything is fine with your MRI. It might read something like this:
Dear Mrs. Jabberblogger,
The radiologist and myself have reviewed your MRI films taken on Dec. 34, 2039 and want to inform you that all results were normal. If you would like a second opinion please contact me and I will arrange it.
If you continue to have an increase in the occurance of your migraine headaches or feel your symptoms dramatically worsen please call me. I would like to follow up with you in a month to check the effectiveness of the medication change.
Sincerely,
Dr. Kitterzapper
Or, you might receive a letter like this instead (actual scanned letter, just changed the names):
So much white space, almost like I might be missing something but my brain is normal so I know that is just plain, white space. Happy New Year to me!
Dinner
As a fly on the wall of our house last night you would have heard the following:
Emily- I am NOT eating that!
Matthew- Eww, what smells?
Emily- You don't need to put that on my plate because I am NOT eating it. (Then green beans went on her plate) UGH, that too?! Well, I'm only eating potatoes.
Then the plates were put on the table in the dining room.
Emily- This is so disgusting.
Matthew- Yea, what is this green stuff on it?
Emily- I am so NOT eating this.
Later we were talking about going camping and canoeing with Papa and J asked them if they would go fishing and then eat their fish for dinner?
Emily- No way, I would not eat that; we would be camping.
J- Well, when you go camping you go fishing and then have a fish dinner. (All the while I'm saying how good fried catfish tastes and Matthew is talking about how fun it would be.)
Emily- No, I'm taking real food with me when I camp. (We ask her what this would be.) Stuff like chicken nuggets, pizza, fish sticks.
WHOA WHOA WHOA
The girl who just called my dinner disgusting, smelly and green says she will eat fish sticks because they are real food. We made sure we told her what went into fish sticks and Matthew even made sure to point out- EVEN THE EYEBALLS!
Want to know what I served for dinner last night? Broiled salmon with a teriyaki glaze, green beans and potatoes. To her defense, the green beans were gross; I like green beans but will not buy that kind again. She made sure she pointed out that nobody ate their green beans, not even mom or dad.
We informed the kids how nutritious salmon is and we called it "brain food" because of the Omega 3's. Jacob gobbled his up and said he knew he was smarter. Emily begrudgingly ate her salmon after the fish stick and brain food stories but followed it up with a sassy "I know it doesn't really make you smarter."
Emily- I am NOT eating that!
Matthew- Eww, what smells?
Emily- You don't need to put that on my plate because I am NOT eating it. (Then green beans went on her plate) UGH, that too?! Well, I'm only eating potatoes.
Then the plates were put on the table in the dining room.
Emily- This is so disgusting.
Matthew- Yea, what is this green stuff on it?
Emily- I am so NOT eating this.
Later we were talking about going camping and canoeing with Papa and J asked them if they would go fishing and then eat their fish for dinner?
Emily- No way, I would not eat that; we would be camping.
J- Well, when you go camping you go fishing and then have a fish dinner. (All the while I'm saying how good fried catfish tastes and Matthew is talking about how fun it would be.)
Emily- No, I'm taking real food with me when I camp. (We ask her what this would be.) Stuff like chicken nuggets, pizza, fish sticks.
WHOA WHOA WHOA
The girl who just called my dinner disgusting, smelly and green says she will eat fish sticks because they are real food. We made sure we told her what went into fish sticks and Matthew even made sure to point out- EVEN THE EYEBALLS!
Want to know what I served for dinner last night? Broiled salmon with a teriyaki glaze, green beans and potatoes. To her defense, the green beans were gross; I like green beans but will not buy that kind again. She made sure she pointed out that nobody ate their green beans, not even mom or dad.
We informed the kids how nutritious salmon is and we called it "brain food" because of the Omega 3's. Jacob gobbled his up and said he knew he was smarter. Emily begrudgingly ate her salmon after the fish stick and brain food stories but followed it up with a sassy "I know it doesn't really make you smarter."
Friday, January 2, 2009
Resolutions
Are you the type to make resolutions every time New Years Day rolls around? Do you keep them or dump them in a week?
I usually do not make New Year resolutions. In the past I have tried to set a goal for myself but I never really set the bar extremely high so if I didn't make it I never had the sense of being a failure (see how that works?). In years past I have thought of trying to be a better mom, or more patient, or always speaking with a sickeningly sweet "oh that is OK you broke my $300 TV with your spray bottle, TWICE, honey" voice, but...well that quickly flew out the window an hour later when I had two or eventually three toddlers/preschoolers all saying "MOMMY" at the same time and I wanted my 12 inches of personal space back. Yea, I tried that goal only once and then I wised up; the only way I could maintain that patient, sweet talking, better mom persona is behind two closed doors with a book during certain times of the day.
OK, so that makes it sound like I'm raising three rowdy, out of control children that drive me crazy. That is only half true- I'm raising three awesome, wonderful children that drive me crazy.
This year I am making a full-fledged effort of setting a few resolutions. To hold myself more accountable I am posting them here for the world to see, so if I fail- I really fail.
In 2009, I plan to:
1. Lose all the weight that I lost once before. This will take a considerable amount more effort than it did last time because at that time I was stressed out and alone with 3 kids for a year. That made weight loss goals unbelievably easy. Now I am happy, fat and comfortable and my stress level is considerably lower; I find chocolate much more desirable now and diet chocolate sucks.
2. I plan to start an individual devotion. I picked up this book yesterday and we'll see how it goes; maybe I'll find that sweet talking mom persona deep down and not raise my voice when my children break the bed for the third time after being told not to jump on it at least once a week.
3. I plan to actively search for a new church. This has been hard for me, far more difficult that I imagined it to be. We city hop and thus, church hop nearly every year but our last year in GA landed us in an absolutely wonderful church where we met amazing people and friends. We were able to share and grow in our financial ministry and found it so rewarding. Leaving that church behind affected me more than I than expected but also clouded my search for a new church. I am vowing to set aside my pouting, whining and my version of a three year old tantrum and come to the conclusion that I cannot have another Westtown but God will lead us to the place we need to serve here.
I usually do not make New Year resolutions. In the past I have tried to set a goal for myself but I never really set the bar extremely high so if I didn't make it I never had the sense of being a failure (see how that works?). In years past I have thought of trying to be a better mom, or more patient, or always speaking with a sickeningly sweet "oh that is OK you broke my $300 TV with your spray bottle, TWICE, honey" voice, but...well that quickly flew out the window an hour later when I had two or eventually three toddlers/preschoolers all saying "MOMMY" at the same time and I wanted my 12 inches of personal space back. Yea, I tried that goal only once and then I wised up; the only way I could maintain that patient, sweet talking, better mom persona is behind two closed doors with a book during certain times of the day.
OK, so that makes it sound like I'm raising three rowdy, out of control children that drive me crazy. That is only half true- I'm raising three awesome, wonderful children that drive me crazy.
This year I am making a full-fledged effort of setting a few resolutions. To hold myself more accountable I am posting them here for the world to see, so if I fail- I really fail.
In 2009, I plan to:
1. Lose all the weight that I lost once before. This will take a considerable amount more effort than it did last time because at that time I was stressed out and alone with 3 kids for a year. That made weight loss goals unbelievably easy. Now I am happy, fat and comfortable and my stress level is considerably lower; I find chocolate much more desirable now and diet chocolate sucks.
2. I plan to start an individual devotion. I picked up this book yesterday and we'll see how it goes; maybe I'll find that sweet talking mom persona deep down and not raise my voice when my children break the bed for the third time after being told not to jump on it at least once a week.
3. I plan to actively search for a new church. This has been hard for me, far more difficult that I imagined it to be. We city hop and thus, church hop nearly every year but our last year in GA landed us in an absolutely wonderful church where we met amazing people and friends. We were able to share and grow in our financial ministry and found it so rewarding. Leaving that church behind affected me more than I than expected but also clouded my search for a new church. I am vowing to set aside my pouting, whining and my version of a three year old tantrum and come to the conclusion that I cannot have another Westtown but God will lead us to the place we need to serve here.
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