life is getting better

I want you to take a really close look at this picture.  One, it is 6:15pm and Quinny is outside without a jacket - I think I can hear angels singing (OK, they are birds, but the sound is heavenly)!  Is spring actually upon us?  Two, I don't see a speck of snow in the background - glorious!  Three, and possibly best of all, Q is eating that deliciously, crumbly granola bar outside!  Thank you, thank you, thank you - one less Q mess!

As you know, Fridays are my favorite day of the week because I get to help in Mimi's classroom.   I think I am in love with 1st graders.  I know I say that about kindergarteners as well, but really, they are all toothless wonders!  Today we were working with money, mostly counting, identifying, and sorting, however, Mrs. Baker had a little game for us to play at the end.  I'm telling you, I am starting to believe that cheaters are born.  First, a few weeks back, I caught Mimi's arch-nemesis, Dillon Schiavone, cheating and thought it was just a fluke.  However,  even at these young ages I keep finding them. During our simple little game, where only two kids played at a time, one of the Graces kept cheating.  First, she held the outrageously large die, found the six-dot side, set it down, then claimed she rolled it.  The other Grace (her opponent) said, in shock and horror, "Grace!"  Next, she took a card from the draw pile right from the middle, thinking it would be better than the top card.  Not sure why that would be better, but cheating nonetheless.  She proceeded to "roll" her die two more times.  The other Grace just let it go, she's not a cheater and had resigned herself to the fact that Grace #1 is.  The best part - she lost, therefore learning a little more than money - 'cheaters never prosper'.  I loved that at the end she said, "I hate losing!"  All I can say is:

To Grace #1 - learn to lose gracefully.

To Grace #2 - graceful win, my dear!

mom's lesson #6

A plunger is not a toy.

I guess, as the saying goes, desperate times call for desperate measures.  Quinny has very little to play with these days, but when I found this in the hall, I found myself yelling lesson #6 - a phrase I never would have guessed would come out of my mouth.  This was close by...

I'm totally cool with the flipped over laundry basket for a toy.  What kid doesn't want to play with that?

I'm a little upset with this lady and her trusty amigos...

Dora and her friends were supposed to be babysitting during the plunger incident.  Look at her acting all innocent.  When I found Q she was on the bed with a sly grin.

She probably knew that I was going to find this...

...as soon as I went downstairs.  And so the night went on and on and on......

st. patty's day

Are you ready for some Kalahari fun?  Everyone here is!  The countdown is ON!  I'm not sure if Q is more excited about the water park or her birthday - let's just say there is excitement.  Ah, look, she used to have a little chub.

Do you see what Haley is doing?  That's right, she is using the ipad.  No more electronic restrictions.  That means she cleaned out her spewing backpack.  Yay!!  She is also all green for the day.  I got the traditional salutation, "Happy St. Patrick's Day, Mom."  Has a holiday ever passed her by?  I believe she lives for them.

So, in true Haley fashion,

Did you know...

"Green ribbons and shamrocks were worn in celebration of St Patrick's Day as early as the 17th century.^[11] He is said to have used the shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain the Holy Trinity to the pagan Irish, and the wearing and display of shamrocks and shamrock-inspired designs have become a ubiquitous feature of the day." (Wikipedia)

OK, time for me to catch up. I'm very slow at posting it seems, but better late than never!!

Well, Saturday was the day after Alli's 3rd birthday and the day of her big party. There were lots of family and some friends there to wish Alli a happy day! She got lots of presents and seemed to have a great time. Aunt Shelle actually bought a veggie tray holder and chopped fresh veggies for the party. Quite a domestic transformation, I must say! Here are more pictures from the party. I think I need to take blogging lessons so I can arrange these like I want them. Kim, dear, feel free to edit my post!!

breakdown

We are having our various breakdowns today, mostly of the communication variety.  I guess you could say it started when I walked into Robyn's room this morning.  The conversation went something like this:


Me:  Robyn, it's 7:00.  Time to get up.
Robyn:  Yeah, that's why you need a membership.
Me:  What?
Robyn:  What?
Me:  What?
Robyn:  The membership.  Never mind.
Me:  What!?!?!


After school, less than FIVE minutes into working on packing up Haley's side of the room....


Me:  Haley, do you want this?  Is it garbage?
Haley:  (letting out a huffy)  This is so tedious.


Later, when I was dropping off Haley at play practice.....


Haley:  OK, thanks Mom.  I'll call you when I need a ride.
Me:  Haley, you don't have the phone.  Eric does.
Haley:  Oh.  I'll call you when I'm done.
Me:  OK


Later, the phone rings.  This is what I see.

I do know a J. McEntire, but clearly this is not my beloved Janette calling to chat it up with me.  No, this would be Haley calling on some random phone.  Not knowing McIntire J, I screen her call, but with my cat-like reflexes I am able to get to the phone before she hangs up.  This is the conversation that follows:

Me:  Hi Haley!  What's up?

Haley:  I'm fine.

Me:  Why are you done so early?

Haley:  I'm at the performing arts center.

Me:  Start walking home.  I will get you when I can.

Haley:  OK

Because I was in the middle of making dinner and she was done early, I wasn't able to leave for about ten minutes.  I thought she would be halfway home.  No.  She was still at the school.  I'm not entirely sure she heard a word I said.

Eric walked home from school and had a small breakdown about his eyes when he got home.  Not sure what was wrong.  He took a small rest on the couch, ate some dinner, went to the bathroom, and then felt fine.  Strange.

Mia had a breakdown about which door she was going to get out of when we got home from the movies.

Q has hourly breakdowns about Dora.

We did more packing after the movie.  Haley couldn't handle it.  She was begging to go bed. There were a lot of huffies going on.  I told her if she said one more word I was going to explode.  There was a long silence after that.  I finished what I was doing and we parted on good terms.  No more breakdowns tonight.  Well, maybe one more, I am going to breakdown and go to bed!

tunaMac

The saga is coming to an end today.  Her room is going to be cleaned out while she is at school.  Apparently there was no amount of blogging, asking, begging, humiliating, etc. that would coerce Haley into moving the suitcase to its original location.  And Haley, in case you happen to read this, and you are laughing like you usually do, because you think this is soooo funny, the suitcase goes in your closet or the basement.  I even would have settled for under your bed.

Haley, sporting the new turquoise eyeliner this morning.  She has had some busy days lately.  The school play is next weekend.  I can't wait!  I LOVE the school plays!  She makes a pretty cute munchkin mom.

 I guess Addi-Q was bugging Mimi last night.  "Turn on the music, Mimi!"  She was relegated to the couch.  I think she liked it!

 Let's call this TunaMac.  I like that title better than the one in the magazine.  And let's face it, did they really make this recipe up?  Four and a half out of five Thomas's surveyed said they would eat it again.  Three even went as far as saying "that was really good".  So, I guess it is going to make it on the recipe blog.  Shocking!  What is even more shocking - I was one of the Thomas's that said "that was really good"! 

I caught Robyn on her way out the door this morning.  She is speedy these days.  Track has started.  I am looking forward to her meets.  I can't tell you how much I appreciate the help she has been in packing up and cleaning out.  Her room looks great!

Eric did NOT want his picture taken.  That didn't stop me.  I am torturing him by packing everything, including the basketball hoop that goes on the front door.  I don't want our house to look like a dorm room when people come to look at it.  When it rains, and the kids can't go outside, there are limited things to do inside, especially with the TV lamp blown out which means no Wii or xBox.  Maybe some of the neighbors will have mercy and invite him to play.

happy tuesday

I gave myself a pretty good laugh this AM.  I was so tired when I got up that I just threw on a hoodie and ran out the door to take Haley to seminary.  I came home and went back to bed.  When I got up to go get her I went into the bathroom and turned on the light. This is what I saw.  WOW!  Nice color combo, Kim!  With my slippers I look like some kind of crazy happy spring elf.  If only I felt like one!

And from the Aspie Corner....
Haley (6:55am, while I was posting and she was eating breakfast):  "Oh yeah, yesterday was Pi day.  You want to know something ironic?  Albert Einstein was born on Pi day."


While cleaning out her bedroom yesterday, Robyn found this card that Haley made years ago at Activity Days.  The assignment:  Write a letter to yourself to be opened on your wedding day.  All I can say is AWESOME!

house for sale!!!!

Hello there Robert.  Here's what I have been doing today - packing up, taking pictures and talking with Melissa (my new best friend - OK, our realtor).  I started a different post earlier today, but I was having some technical difficulties, so you will not get to see the video of Q putting magnets on the nasty microphone at the church.  Too bad for you.  You get this post instead!  Here are the pics of the house.  I took 80+ pictures, so these may not be the best ones, but it is close to midnight and I am tired, so I really don't care at this point.  This is what you get, and I am off to bed.  Night Night!  By the way - daylight savings is stupid, especially when you are on-call!

Dad's Lesson #1

Adapted from what I've learned from Q. How to eat apple dippers from McDonald's:

1. Ignore your apples

2. Dunk each bite of your chicken nuggets deeply.

3. Finish off the caramel with your amazingly long tongue

4. Play in the play place with your new Happy Meal fairy, then let another kid steal it from you.

5. Ask about your lost fairy right next to the kid's mother, who will hear a sad 2-year-old bemoan the loss of her new toy, who will act like she's not hiding it under her baby's car seat.