Monday Mumbles 23

1. I was organizing my photos yesterday and came across some March items that epitomized my children's personalities. At least as they are today.

Easy going

Anything but....

S.a.s.s.y.

 2. I quit Facebook. At least for the time being. Over the weekend, I was tempted to click the app on my phone, but it hasn't been terrible. I don't think I'll miss it much.

3. I am directing my home energy (which has been depleted lately) toward the kids in an educational function. I've been able to come home and just "be" mom but I feel like we're faltering at times, with certain things, and I need to be more structured.

4. Number three will mean I will need to be even more aware of taking "me" time when I'm not with the kids so as not to be lethargic when I am. I don't do a lot of "me" time, but I will need to use lunch hours and some weekend hours for just that. I don't think it's fair that I keep saying "my commute is my me-time".

5. I love summer but I will NOT miss the bug bites from this season. They have eaten our family alive.

6. Evelyn wanted to wear blue boy shorts and a Raiders football jersey to Turner's ball game yesterday. She sobbed when I made her at least change her shirt to a yellow Dora shirt. I'm all for tomboy, but I can't have her looking like I'm TRYING to force her that direction.

7. I will miss these days when tricking the children with my "super mom" powers is so easy. They can't figure out how I can see things without having actually stared at it or made it obvious to them I saw it. Owen especially thinks he's so sly.

8. Saturday night my mom had the kids and Hubs was away with friends watching football and boxing. I had the house to myself for a few hours, along with a bottle of wine, sports, and Sandra Bullock movies on TV. I was in heaven.

9. There is a boy on Turner's basketball team who has chosen to wear hot pink shoes. Owen wants to know why. Part of me wants to say, "It's okay to like whatever you want" and another part of me is just happy Owen is confused by his choice. Sounds antiquated of me, I know.

10. Before the kids went to mom's Saturday, we spent two hours walking around KU campus. My calves are appropriately sore. I miss those hills something terrible, some days.

Monday Mumbles 22

1. Has anyone seen the "Renuzit" commercial? A man for every room? Ummm.....it's nice.

2. I might be going through a mid-life crisis. Not to worry.

3. Not the "I need to buy myself a hot new sports car and wear platform stripper heels when I drop my kids off somewhere" kind of crisis. More of an evaluation kind of crisis.

4. I read a line in a book this week that said, "In my experience it's the unexamined life that is worth living. If one wants to live happily every after, that is - with one's partner." I think there is some truth to that. Too bad I can't help but examine until the cows come home.

5. I took Turner to his ball game by myself last night. It was nice. It was quiet. And peaceful.

6. Hubs keeps trying to get me to watch a movie he has on the DVR. But he missed recording the first 10-20 minutes. I can't watch that movie. I won't watch that movie. I need it all. Does anyone else feel the same?

7. My brother pointed out that I forgot to Mumble last week. Damn holiday weekends always get me.

8. Yet again, another change at work is taking place. We're switching up client assignments, so I'm learning a new one and handing off my babies. I get possessive of my work. It's something I know about myself, and am not really willing to change.

9. Cartoons are just plain weird. The ones we watched, the ones the kids today watch. Weird.

10. It's back to boot camp this week for me. I am hoping to get 2 or 3 days in this week. 4:20 is just so darn early, though. Wish me luck.

Monday Mumbles 21

1. When Owen gets upset but has to forcefully try to cry, I sometimes lose it. Fake crying is the worst.

2. I'm too cheap to get pedicures but as I sat and did my toes last night, I wondered...how in the world will you get these painted once you can't fold your leg up to your chest anymore?

3. Every single door in our house squeaks. Hubs says he likes it that way so he can hear who is coming and going. I get it, but it still annoys the crap out of me.

4. The kids had a couple of stuffed objects that wore holes in them. While I CAN hand stitch small holes like that, they chose to ask Grandma to do since she was the expert, and had a machine. I think this made Grandma feel good.

5. Yesterday, as we drove away from Grandpa's house, Owen says, "Grandpa is SO AWESOME." Turner replies, "Yeah. He's really, really, really awesome." I think hearing that would have made Grandpa happy.

6. My parents are FANTASTIC grandparents and I don't pretend this is common or to be taken for granted. I appreciate it very much.

7. Is it just me, or is Pokemon kind of like cock or dog fighting??

8. I love the heat wave we're having (90s all week here in the Kansas City area), but I'm really tired of air conditioning. I don't know if I'll ever get to live without a/c or heater again, given the kids' allergies. Ugh.

9. Today is my girlfriend's birthday. Thinking of you Tracy!!

10. Evelyn decided - for this weekend at least - that she was okay with people complimenting her hair. When someone inevitably DID say something to her, she said to me as we walked away, "When people talk to you.....you need to...speak." What I loved about her sentence that can't be interpreted here is the way she said it. The pause after she said "you need to"....was her thinking the word TALK, but pausing to choose a synonym. It's tiny little lessons like this that make me smile.

Tuesday Owenisms 10

There are days when I wonder if Owen thinks. At all. He acts so impulsively at times, and so emotionally at others, it feels that he never stops to just THINK before putting himself out into the world. I love and hate this about him all at the same time.

One day, however, he surprised me. Like he always does. Some day I'll get used to it.


OWEN: Mom....is this real life....or fake life?

ME: Well, it's real life. See? *pinch* I can touch and feel you. Feels pretty real to me.

OWEN: Oh.

ME: Why do you ask?

OWEN: I don't want it to be real life. I want it to be fake because I don't want anyone to die.


Maybe he won't end up in jail, after all......

Monday Mumbles 20

1. Hubs and I have been together for 11+ years. We've been to or hosted multiple roller skating birthday parties. I've skated at all or nearly all of them. He says yesterday to my mother, at Turner's skating party, "When did she learn to skate? I didn't realize she could skate that good." WHERE HAS HE BEEN?

2. I had a few days off last week so I could be home to prepare Owen and Turner for the first couple days of school. Detaching from work when you have a work blackberry is very, very difficult.

3. BUT...I did manage to carpe diem all 3 days. Wednesday I decided to pack up Turner and Owen and head to the Royals game. On Thursday I was able to complete a lot of the laundry that had piled up on me recently. On Friday, I sent a late morning text to my dear girlfriend and decided to head over and hang with her for a couple of hours.

4. It's not that I CAN'T plan, it's that I prefer to live day to day and see how I feel. I am aware this causes issues with some people. Maybe I'll try harder.

5. Confession - we have a LOT of little boy underpants that both Turner and Owen have outgrown. Guess who hasn't? My mom is mortified that I sometimes allow Evelyn to wear pairs of the straggling boy underpants. I just can't stand to waste them and they fit her perfectly!

6. Have you ever had a jolt of shock when something you've been proud of....any sort of personality element that may exist....escapes you and you find yourself behaving like you typically never do? I've had that a few times lately and I'm wondering if I can just chalk it up to an early mid-life crisis?

7. I'm excited. Back on #3? That friend I visited? She let me borrow book #5 of the Game of Thrones series. It's so nice to get back into it. Now if I can just stop trying to find ways to sneak off and read.

8. My brother puts in a lot of hard work for our fantasy football league, but I think I'm bowing out after this year. I just can't seem to get excited for it anymore. Maybe it's because I don't get to sit at home on Sundays and just watch games. I don't feel as connected to the season. I'm feeling old just saying that.

9. One good thing about school starting? The kids get really tired earlier during the evening. :)

10. Today Turner turns 9 years old. Man, he looks so much better with a hair cut. Love that kid.

Funny Face Friday 10

Hubs taking a picture of me taking a picture of him.

Some cool dudes.

This one is trouble.

This one is ALSO trouble.

See what I mean?

Monday Mumbles 19

1. As confirmation that I take myself too seriously, I was accused not once but twice this week. One came in the form of the statement, "You used to have a sense of humor." The other in the form of the statement, "You haven't been very light-hearted lately."

2. SO, I will try again this week to lighten the mood, and find a balance between what must be given the "serious" priority and what can be indulged and humored upon.

3. But first, can I just complain once? It wasn't until after having kids, and certainly Evelyn, did the hormones of ovulation really affect me. Now, I get a headache every month the day or two before I begin my cycle. It stinks.

4. The kids and I watched the animation movie Rio Sunday night. Cute movie. I just need O and E to get a bit more "movie friendly" and sit still better. That way I can totally veg out.

5. Did you know there is a www.farmersonly.com dating site? Just wondering.

6. I made a list of things to do or happening in August for the family. I was tired after reading through it.

7. Did I mention that we're thinking about coaching the indoor t-ball session at the local sports facility, and putting Owen and Evelyn on the same team? It's for 3-5 year olds. We coached Turner's one year and judging the others coaches, it's best if we handle these two for the first year.

8. We finally.........................finally finished Turner's summer book reports. He had to do two and it was exhausting. BUT, I didn't want him to rush through the books and rush through what he thought was a decent "report". I don't think the teacher gave them any direction on what a good report is, and I didn't want him to get off on the wrong foot on how to put one together. I monitored his reading, and read along too, and then we discussed the questions she needed answered and how he could incorporate them into his report. It's tough for an 8 year old not to just answer the questions as they're listed 1-7 but I am trying to teach him the idea of an opening, conclusion, body, etc.

9. Speaking of reading, I am reading a non-fiction book right now and I love that it requires me to have a dictionary handy. I need refreshing writing with intellectual language I don't come in contact with daily.

10. Summer has been slightly disappointing as far as heat goes. There haven't been as many days as I'd like for me to hit the pool after work. Ah well. We still have August. Here's to hope.