My hamper floweth over

Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me!

2008-06-29T20:48:00.004-05:00

Yep, I celebrated my 33rd birthday on Thursday. The big 3 3. That doesn't count as mid-thirties, does it?
A friend of mine who is a little (a few months) older than me said she remembers watching "Thirty Something" when she was younger and thinking how old the characters were. I remember feeling exactly the same way. Not only that, but I also thought it was weird that they were all such older parents of young kids. Yep, that's proof I am from a small town in the mid west, ain't it?
There are some things I find interesting about being 33, some things that take me by surprise:
1. I feel much younger than my body looks. Who is that old lady in the mirror?
2. Music from my youth can make me forget what year it is. I'll be driving down the road
mini-van radio blaring some wonderful eighties tune when the "Mom! People are staring at us! Turn that down, gosh!" literally makes me jump. What? Who was that? I have kids? Five of them? When did this happen? And I totally feel like I aged from 16 to 33 in that very moment.
3. I still think farts are funny

Anyway, my birthday was nice. I am a big Coldplay fan, and since some people don't think that Coldplay changing their concert date is sufficient enough reason to change the date of their wedding*, and now I probably won't get to go to their concert, Chad managed to book them on the Daily Show for my birthday. Which was great, considering Jon Stewart and Chris Martin are the two men I would consider leaving my husband for. He even managed to have them play "Lost!" which is my favorite song from their new album. Impressive, huh?

*Just kidding, myself and the rest of the Keiths are all totally excited about the wedding. But I was wondering, have you asked about them playing at the reception? You never know...

You know you're getting older when....

2008-06-04T16:13:00.003-05:00

I am in the office, which is right off the living room, and the kids are flipping through the channels. I hear Oprah, and ask the kids to wait a minute, I want to see what her show is about today.

Oprah: Today we have an idol, his millions of fans know him as J.T.

Me: oooh, leave it here, I want to see this.

Kids: loud sigh, and I think I can actually hear their eyes rolling in their heads.

Oprah:(I should mention here that there is some vaguely familiar pop music playing in the background) Here is is the one and only Justin Timberlake!

Me: loud sigh, I am pretty sure you can hear my eyes rolling in my head, "you can change it now"

Anyone care to guess who I mistakenly thought was Oprah's guest?.

For recruitment purposes

2008-06-02T23:55:00.009-05:00

I have had it up to here with blogger. It Took me about 10 tries to get that video of Jordan singing up, and each time I lost my whole post. There was initially witty text involved, something about my camera being broken because it didn't capture the cherubim sitting at my daughter's shoulder and the heavens opening and shining down upon her, but I was so fed up by the time my husband finally managed to get the video up that I couldn't look at my computer screen if that annoying blogger logo was in the corner.

Anyway, I guess I am over it. And I have great news! I just found out that a very good old friend of mine that I haven't seen in many years has finally seen the light and become a Presbyterian! That's right, another Presbyterian with hair that is neither a shade of blue or gray! And, she has more kids than me. Six. Five of them boys. Her house is probably as loud as mine! And maybe even as messy!

You know what that means, right? That I am by Presbyterian law required to recruit her for family camp. I have already mentioned the no cooking or dishes for seven whole meals in a row, which is all it takes for me, really, but I thought I might post some pictures as well in case she needs some extra convincing.

This is the camp in its entirety.

As a new Presby, I am guessing you have never seen so many walker free fellow Presbys, eh?

Okay, I know the pool pictures could have a negative recruiting effect on a mother. You want to put on a swimsuit how early in t he summer? But I will volunteer to sit next to you. I'll even put off that diet I've been talking about since Max was born for another whole year. The sacrifices I'll make for a friend....

This eight week old baby of a fellow class of 93 graduate from big Mac was there this year. I won't tell you who it is unless you come.

There's canoing!

There's fishing!

Processed meat!

And catfish skeletons!

I think that last picture would seal the deal for just about anyone.
they should hire me to make the brochures.

I know my kid's a star

2008-05-21T19:11:00.003-05:00

The storm before the calm

2008-05-21T14:44:00.007-05:00

Every May, our lives become a whirlwind of activities. End of the year this, end of the season that, it seems like every evening there is some obligatory activity.

Usually, I become so overwhelmed by all of it that I forget that when it's all over, there will be a great void of organized activities. And that my kids need structure. They are so used to a full schedule that a switch to full days of free time leads to utter chaos.

This year, however, I am prepared. I have new books, computer games and arts and crafts up my sleeves. I know that I need to go over the days plans at breakfast. I am confident! I am woman! Hear me roar!

Here are a few pics of some of the things that have kept us on the go as of late:

A picture of all of the kids following the oldest girls' concert. They are getting better at this whole smiling for the camera, no?

Yet another "brainiac". Yep, that's Max holding a real human brain at math and science night at school.

Some soccer pics. I have to take a minute to give a shout out to Coach Tyler. Thank you for taking our team of misfits and turning them into a team that could hold their heads high (and us parents, too). Even Max got the hang of it by the end of the season, mostly. Notice the picture at the bottom where he is walking with the other team in the "good game" line. He's three, people. He went from laying face down on the field, to running with the ball to the other field (still need t o get some footage of that up, it was too funny), to stopping when the whistle was blown and kicking the ball in the general direction of the other teams goal. Can't ask for more than that.

We went to Kansas City a few weekends ago to visit my sister and I took the older two girls to see Wicked again. It was amazing again. The little kids and Chad had fun at Science City. It was a great trip.

AND... only TWO SLEEPS until family camp! AND.....I am almost done packing!!!!

Yep, I can feel an awesome summer on its way...

Tell me what y ou really think.

2008-05-17T21:18:00.003-05:00

I mean it. I really want some feedback here. I need to know if I am just a crazy overprotective mom, or just a mildly crazy mom.

i don't let my preteens wear skimpy bikinis. I feel like they are more for laying out than for actually swimming. They can wear tankinis, or bikinis with a more sports bra like top, but there has to be more material up top than two tiny triangles of fabric.

I don't let my sixth grader pluck her eyebrows. she did it without permission, and I am making her let them grow back as punishment. I know, I know, I'll have to sit through a therapy session about it when she's older. It won't be as painful for me as the ones where she recounts how I made her drink dish soap when she had the stomach flu (mistaking it for Gatorade) or the one time she walked in on mommy and daddy wrestling. I will rethink the whole eyebrow thing next year.

Friday, I went to pick up my sixth grader from school, and she came to the van carrying 4 cans of Red Bull. She could tell by the look on my face I was not pleased, and she tried to reassure me that she was only drinking one of them, the rest were empty cans she had picked up to put in our recycling bin. I told her I was proud she thought to recycle them, but asked her where they came from. She told me a car with a big Red Bull can had driven up and handed them out to the students. For free! Wasn't that nice? I went on a rant about while I wasn't mad at her, I was pretty upset that the school hadn't stopped them, and how the person who did it found it okay to hand out a product not meant for children to children. I told her that caffeine, especially in that high amount, is a drug, and told her I feel about the same about them passing them out as I would if a big camel came to hand out cigarettes. Okay, I know that is a bit of an exaggeration, trust me, Jordan reminded me that I would be "way more mad" about that, but honestly? I'm still pretty mad. I am shocked that there isn't an age limit on any of the "energy" products, and also that they seem to be marketing them more and more towards children.

So, the meanest mom ever? Or just in the top ten. You be the judge.

Reason #587 why I hate my big fat mouth

2008-05-07T15:28:00.003-05:00

One day, at work, I was talking to a few of the kids in my class, two year olds, about their younger siblings. One little girl walks up and says "I'm a big sister." knowing she's an only child, I called her silly and tickled her. The look of two year old I-will-make-myself-heard-you-will-understand-me determination crosses her face and she says "No, I'm going to be a big sister."

I mention it to her mom after school, and she tells me she is indeed going to be a big sister.

After she leaves, I remember that her daughter had fifths disease the week before, so on Monday I ask if her ob was aware that she was exposed. She tells me yes, they were mildly concerned, but everything is okay.

Today we found out a child who comes opposite days of her has hand foot and mouth. I mention it to her and that the info sheet they handed us says to call your doctor if you are exposed. I tell her that htey aren't ever in class together, he hasn't been there in a week, but I just wanted her to be aware.

That all sounds kosher, right?

Only today when I was talking to her she was standing next to another mother in my class, a friend of hers.

Yeah, and her friends looks very perplexed and says, "Is there something you haven't told me?"

I. SUCK.

I wanted to crawl in a hole.

She says "Didn't I tell you? I'm only 14 weeks."

If I thought it would make things better, I'd write her a letter...

Guess what's at the top of his Christmas list?

2008-05-01T15:26:00.001-05:00

Max's first soccer game

2008-04-21T08:24:00.004-05:00

Yep, it's moments like these that make a mother's heart sing with pride. And by the way, this was his contribution to the game in its entirety. There was another game this weekend, and the footage of it is equally entertaining. Look for him in his film debut "Nap it like Beckam".

Updated update

2008-04-09T15:42:00.002-05:00

Okay, I feel really bad leaving my previous post up so long. I promise I am not in a mental institution or rehab.

The tomorrow after my last post was not a good one. Nor the next. There had been mild work related drama, and a familiar anxiety filled knot was beginning to form in my stomach. However, unlike my previous job, where one drama filled situation led unresolved to the next, this situation was handled fabulously and resolved within a week. My directors worked together using logic, respect, and compassion for their staff to come up with a great solution. And I wonder how I managed to make it for six long, drama-filled years at such a negative, horrible place? Which, from what I hear, hasn't gotten any better with my departure, so there, former boss, you were wrong. Anyway, I already know t he answer to my question, I stayed because I hate change. Even good ones. Something to work on.

So after a veree bad week I decided to get away for the weekend. My friend Kristi and I took the kids down to Dwight for a nice relaxing weekend. And it was. Great weather, kids played outside and enjoyed the freedom of being able to explore a little, we saw a snake, good times.

And while I would love to type THE END. in giant letters, you should know by now that's not how my luck runs.

On the way back, my van died. DIED. Is still dead, about 120 miles away. Parked at a marina. Not the marina where my mom's boat is, by the way. That would be to easy. No, the nice man with the tow truck dropped it off at the wrong marina. About 20 miles away. And it's not by any city of any real size. And we now, and for the next several weeks, have one van and seven people with seven different schedules. And our tax rebate money is now spent on van repairs.

BUT:

The weekend produced this picture of my kids. Which makes it all come out about even in my book.

Bad. Veree bad.

2008-03-31T16:19:00.001-05:00

I found a note card that my son had written that phrase on this weekend. "Bad. Veree Bad". And I thought "Ain't that the truth?" It summed up my week.

Chad took the kids to visit his dad and grandma this weekend and I had twenty-four whole hours alone to do some spring cleaning. My initial plan was to hit the house hard until about 10:00 pm and then go have a few drinks with some friends.

But people? I. Was. On. A. Roll. I only slept for about 5 hours, and the rest of the time was spent in the trenches.

Not only did I scrub every surface in my house, I also "decrapified" a whole bunch. I watched part of this Oprah show last week about hoarding, and while on the surface I might not seem like a hoarder, the state of all the closets and drawers in my house hold dirty little secrets.

I threw away eight bags of lids that don't match, lidless containers, mismatched socks,holey t-shirts, broken hamster balls,kids art work (shhh) capless markers, broken crayons, etc.

I filled my husband's van with stuff to donate.

It. Felt. good. Clean, fresh, new.

This morning, however, the "veree bad" started all over again.

And guess who likes to show up at my doorstep ugly little head in times like these? That's right, my good ol' pal depression.

But I'm not opening the door. And I am screening my calls. I think I will write him a
Dear John letter. Because we are through.

And tomorrow? Just to let you know, tomorrow, I am expecting you to be Good. Veree Good.

Momentarily wondering if the Easter bunny takes returns

2008-03-23T17:56:00.002-05:00

What is the point of buying a new digital camera if your children won't stop make silly faces and protesting every time you try to take their picture? Max was actually screaming "No picture! No picture mommy!" whilst holding his hand up to the camera.

I see all the blogs with the children posing, smiling, enough for their moms to post pictures weekly, or more!

How do you other bloggers do it? Although I am pretty sure I mean that to be a rhetorical question, for fear the answer is somewhere along the lines of your children being better behaved, which could quite possibly be true.

2008-03-23T17:52:00.003-05:00

Fortunately, they all redeemed themselves by standing still and smiling just long enough to take a semi-decent family picture.

Even if a certain someone had to be bribed with jelly beans.

HAPPY EASTER!

egg-static about Easter

2008-03-19T16:49:00.003-05:00

Rutty rut rut

2008-03-12T15:24:00.003-05:00

I've been blogging a lot in my head lately. I have all of these things that I really want to get out of my head. I just can't seem to find the energy to actually type them out. So I'll give you the ten second versions.

1. Neither one of the stores I frequent stocks the world's best cereal. Chocolate Chex. Low sugar, great taste, but if I want to indulge in it, I have to make a special trip. Ugh.

2. I am sick with an icky cold again. No one should have to have a cold twice in one season. Ugh.

3. Jordan participated in a local production of Oklahoma Jr. last weekend. It was really good. Yay!

4. I have on short sleeves today, and I am not the least bit chilly. Double YAY!

5. I am really struggling in deciding what is the best path for my son's education. We are considering changing schools. It would be a pain to have him at a different school, but if that may be what is best for him.

6. Jordan's school is way crazy right now. An issue that has divided the parents and students down the middle Lots of drama. Too much to go into now (ten seconds, remember?), but let's just say I would be surprised to hear that some of the parents end up slugging it out.

7. Max was just now eating a plum. He walked over to me, still eating, and said "here mom, there was poop in my apple" and handed me the pit. It must have been a really good "apple".

8. LOST rocks!

2008-03-06T07:38:00.001-06:00

If you tried to watch Max's birthday video and couldn't, you should be able to now.

And you should watch it. Because he is a Cutie McCutiepants.

Late night reflections on a consignment sale

2008-03-03T23:10:00.005-06:00

I want to meet the people who are asking someone to spend $20-$30 on their five year old lightly faded, lightly pilled Gymboree outfits.

I want to meet the people who buy them.

We all know Mary-Kate and Ashley is sold at Wal-Mart and Mossimo and Cherokee come from Target. Writing "boutique" on the tag fools no one.

Call me crazy, but it shocks me when I see a size 8-10 Thomas the Tank Engine shirt.

On the other hand, when I see two shirts by different brands in a girl's size 7 that say "Me, my cell*, and I", I find that equally disturbing.

Don't get me wrong,I stand in line with laundry basket in hand in the freezing cold at eight o'clock on a week night anxiously awaiting the moment I am let inside to rummage through other people's hand-me-downs with the best of them.

I stand elbow to elbow in poorly lit and heated aluminium buildings, heart all a flutter when I find treasure hidden among the racks.

Ah, the joys of bargain shopping.....

*As in cell phone

2008-03-01T23:47:00.001-06:00

I had to add music to cover up the horrible sounds of my uterus weeping.

Brainiacs

2008-02-24T20:01:00.009-06:00

I took some of the kids to a local science museum today. They had some hands-on exhibits set up, and at one you could hold an actual human brain.

Pierce and Lillian were brave enough to hold it.

While I couldn't muster up the courage to actually touch it, at least I was brave enough to stand there and take picture of my kids touching it. Unlike Ashton and my friend Kristi, who sat on a bench where they didn't even have to see it.

The effects of preschool programming on a 32 year old woman

2008-02-21T15:24:00.004-06:00

We all agree "junk food" is okay in moderation, right?

So just once, I would like for junk food to be the right choice for Captain Carlos.

Like, should Captain Carlos lick the lead paint, or eat the Twinkies?

Or, should Captain Carlos eat his boogers, or have a few Cheetos?

I know, I know. I have issues.....

symbol

2008-02-17T11:58:00.005-06:00

A wedding ring: A symbol of unity, love, commitment.

This one is more than that.

It is a symbol of forgiveness. Forgiveness of a careless wife who misplaced it's predecessor.

And acceptance. It was not given with threats of "If you lose this one, that's it. These don't grow on trees, you know."

Or pleas of "Just try to keep up with this one."

You know, all the things that I would have said.

He just asks that I wear it.

I love him.

The glamorous life

2008-02-14T11:56:00.003-06:00

That Monday had been a beautiful day. On the way home from school, the children had all whined and moaned that they were melting, even after the windows of the van were rolled down. I just had to turn on the air conditioner. They could barely breathe, for Pete's sake!

We came home and the older girls ran upstairs to rummage through the "new to them" box of hand-me-downs they had a received the week before. They came downstairs wearing several layers of brightly colored tank tops, capri sweatpants, and ballet flats. As we headed to the park, they looked like tourists in a strange land, not sure what to make of this new bizarre climate.

That was Monday. Now it was Wednesday. I was already late for church as I jumped in the van and headed down the street. I pulled up next to the curb a block and a half away and tried to fake a smile as I opened the door. "Come here, Otis boy", I said in a falsely sweet tone, trying to mask my utter disgust with the situation.

He ran up to the open door, into the front seat, but as I leaned over to shut the door, he ran out again.

This went on for five more blocks. I finally parked the van and continued the pursuit on foot. Several times I thought I had him cornered in someone's driveway, but he was just to fast for me. After a block and a half, I gave up and walked back to my van.

As I started the ignition, he ran to the drivers side door. Skeptically I opened it, and he jumped right in.

On the six and a half block car ride home, he stood proudly in the front seat, staring out the window and smiling. He would turn to me frequently as if to say "that was fun, wasn't it? Let's do it again tomorrow!"

As I carried him inside, the brisk cool wind caught the backside of my pants, and I realized they were damp.

Yes, Monday had been a beautiful day, and I had, of course, left the van windows down just in time for that night's rain storm. Though I sat on towels Tuesday and Wednesday morning, apparently the seats were still wet.

I participated in a Valentine's secret pal exchange at work. They handed out questionnaires to give people ideas. Along side the "what is your favorite snack food? drink? magazine?" type questions were "what is your favorite hobby? what do you do to relax?"

I reread the questions several times as if they were written in some foreign language. My heart sank a bit. I imagined all the fun, exotic hobbies that my coworker were writing down. I made some joke as to not having free time, and decided to answer honestly with logic/word puzzles, reading, watching t.v.

As I scanned my secret pal's sheet, I laughed as I came to those questions. I laughed aloud as I read her answers. Next to "What are your hobbies?" she had written "Laundry?" and on "what do you do to relax?" was "read and watch t.v."

I get that I wouldn't do well at a high school career day. No right minded teenage girl would daydream of a similar future as described chasing a dog six blocks in wet pants or talked excitedly about the new stain remover I had discovered.

I'll admit that I myself have found myself a million miles from where I thought I wanted to be. But I can't imagine, in a million mile radius, a better life for me.

2008-02-09T23:15:00.001-06:00

happy birthday, 15 year old boy.

Cleaning out the memory card

2008-02-04T21:05:00.001-06:00

We purchased a new digital camera, so I cleaned out the old camera's memory card. I thought I would share a few of the gems I found with you.

These first pictures will be in Lillian's upcoming photography show; "A portrait of the artist as a young lady."

beanie baby sleeping

Apple and little brother's foot

Lillian Mae: Self portrait
Pink shoe with puzzle

2008-02-04T20:45:00.000-06:00

Max and a friend at school.......Don't think I need to say any more.

Max being.... Max

Max and his "guitarget". He would watch the Wiggles or Laurie Berkner daily and try to emulate their every move.

Otis when he first joined our family. I didn't realize how much he'd grown.

Whining time

2008-01-31T16:17:00.001-06:00

Why did I think that the chaos of day to day life would diminish as the holidays ended? Things are hectic. We are busy, busy, busy. Rescheduled-due-to-the-ice-storm holiday events, basketball, play practices, concerts, cub scouts, church, work, surgeries, yada yada yada. I know what you are thinking, poor, poor, Jamie. I appreciate the sympathy tears.

While you're feeling sorry for me, go ahead and shed a tear for the ridiculous weather I have to endure. I see all the blogs with the happy children playing in the snow, and I feel envy. We just have freezing cold wind and enough snow to be annoying. No snowmen, no sledding, just a dusting of the white stuff. And did I mention the cold, cold wind?

I am planning summer fun to get my mind off it. Trips to K.C., hopefully the Great Wolf Lodge in Texas, maybe Branson? maybe New York for some of the Keiths? Anything sounds good to me right now as long as short sleeves and flip-flops are appropriate attire.

I am taking a barely 24 hour hiatus sans kids and hubby tomorrow. I won't say why. It doesn't have anything to do with tonights premiere of Lost. And it doesn't involve custom made "Lost watch party" shirts, or Dharma logo beer, or an island themed dinner. Because that would be kinda dorky. Oh yeah, so am I! And I'm really looking forward to it. Especially the sans kids part :)

The new and improved Lillian!

2008-01-29T08:08:00.000-06:00

Now with 100% fewer tonsils*! And 50% better hearing! New improved Lillian comes with princess pajamas and a kitty Webkinz!

*removal of tonsils will certainly cause "death breath". "death breath" may cause dizziness and nausea.

Roundin' up a posse

2008-01-20T19:44:00.000-06:00

I am starting an organization: M.A.M.S. Moms against moon sand. Anyone want to join?

Once we get enough members, we will be heading over to the makers of moon sand's houses with kids in tow for so good ol' vigilante justice.

I am hoping that each and every one has at least one light colored carpet or rug, just perfect for grinding moon sand in.

The older children will leave little piles of moon sand on the couches for the little ones to come dribbles sippy cup puddles of juice onto. Nothing like moon sand paste!

No room will be granted mercy. There will be moon sand in the dishwashers, moon sand in the bathtubs, moon sand in the DVD players, and moon sand in the sheets.

Contact me at Jamies5kids@gmail.com if you are ready to hop on board. Let's show these people just how much their ingenious product is appreciated!

I bet they never made eye contact

2008-01-10T07:39:00.000-06:00

While I am completely aware that neither "Sister Christian" by Night Ranger nor "Bryan Adam's "Heaven" were playing in the background, that doesn't stop them from playing in my head when I look at the picture.

My new favorite

2008-01-08T15:30:00.000-06:00

Someone found my blog by searching "Did Nostradamus predict the crocodile hunter Steve Irwin's death?"

That totally beats "lady Angela spanking."

By the way, he did predict it. Right after he predicted the outcome of the O.J. trial and Jamie Lynn's pregnancy.

Ending 2007 with a bang, er, bump.

2008-01-07T15:33:00.000-06:00

We spent New Years Eve helping a friend move to "the big house". No, not what you're thinking. She lives at a camp and with her promotion to Executive Director came a move to a bigger house. We graciously offered to spend our holiday weekend helping her move. Never mind that he main reason for our generosity is due largely to the fact that her moving greatly increases the size of our vacation home...

Lillian tripped while going up the stairs, and busted her chin open. One surprisingly quick trip to a very small town Er, a little surgical glue, a pack of bubble gum and a sparkly pink cell phone later, and all was well by midnight.

The next day, she asked me:

"mommy, when am I going to be on the news?"
"what do you mean?"
"When am I going to be on the news? Everybody wants to know that I hurt my chin. You know? Like Pierce was on the news after he went to the doctor."

For the dog bites. I told her that, unfortunately, she would not be making her television debut, and she sulked off.

I can't get her on the news, but I can put her on my blog.

Happy New Year!

2008-01-03T21:09:00.000-06:00

Hello! I hope everyone had a great holiday season! Ours was, with the exception of a few kinks. ICE STORM 2007!!!!! had us displaced for a few days, but luckily we were able to stay in a family friend's guest house. Cramped, yes, but the kids thought it was an adventure. We watched "Elf" every night for at least a week. When asked what he thought Santa would bring him for Christmas, Max began answering "candy, candy canes, and candy corns" a line from the movie. Which is better than the "give me a juice box, biatch" that he picked up a few months earlier from "Zathura". It has since been banned from the Keith house.

We went to Kansas City for Christmas and got caught in some pretty nasty weather on the way there. Usually a five hour drive, it would have been a ten plus hour drive had we made it the whole way. We decided to stay the night in Emporia after traveling a dashing ten miles an hour behind a snow plow for an hour. The roads were much better in the morning, and we had a great trip.

I was pretty sure I was going to make my blogging hiatus a permanent one. I have been very frustrated as of late with the whole blog thing. What is the purpose of my blog?
What direction do I want to take it? Should it be a mostly picture blog? Hard to do without a digital camera. Should it be an outlet for my frustrations? Nothing but "dear so and so" letters? Or a brag blog? All about how great my kids are? Or the opposite, a "you wouldn't believe how hard it is to have five kids" blog?

I am not a bare my sole kind of gal, there are many things that I don't mind sharing with most of the dozen or so of you who read my blog, but this is the Internet. Some of the people who find my blog via searching creepy phrases on Google, yeah, I don't so much want them to know my deepest darkest secrets.

However, if I am going to have a blog, it needs to reflect who I am. What my daily life is really like, my beliefs, my likes and dislikes....That's all so hard to do if you aren't going to spend more than ten minutes a week on your blog.

Alright, this next part is going to sound corny, so bear with me.

Like I said, I was pretty sure I was throwing in the towel. I had decided to try a daily journal,something that I and later my children could look back on and remember what that week, month, year was like. But then my mom gave a present for Christmas. This really cool jigsaw puzzle made almost entirely of pictures she had obtained from "My Hamper Floweth Over." Putting it together really made me nostalgic.

So I am going to give it another whirl. I am going to dedicate a little more time to it, and try not to view time blogging as time wasted. Corny, yes, but I am leaving a mark. The baby books are barely filled out, our calendar is dry erase, the camera is so many times forgotten, I just don't want the moments of our lives to be forgotten in all the chaos of the day to day.

So happy 2008! May it be a great one for us all!

Just one more...

2007-11-20T15:49:00.001-06:00

Star in Your Own JibJab! It's Free!I had to do one more, because it had room for everyone.....

Gone for the holidays

2007-11-19T20:20:00.001-06:00

Star in Your Own JibJab! It's Free!I am way to busy right now to keep up with the whole blog thing (sure no one knows what that feels like). So I will say goodbye until the turkey is eaten and the presents are opened, but I thought I would go out with a hula......

This person is just crazy.....

2007-11-11T13:17:00.000-06:00

But the fact that I won't leave the house without the beds being made or the dishes being done? And the toys picked up off the floor? Just in case someone were to break into my house or a fire were to start while we were gone and the police and possibly news should show up? That, of course, is perfectly normal.

Call me Debbie Downer

2007-11-08T15:46:00.001-06:00

I am working on to future posts; one highlighting some products I have discovered and now can't live without, and the other about the "Halloween picture curse" my family suffers from. The only reason I have pics of Max in his costume is because I promised to pass some along to the costumes makers (you didn't think I made it, did you?).

But I have to pause to pass along this in case you live in a hole and haven't heard

Target, Toys R Us, Amazon and Wal-Mart, among other retailers are all scrambling to pull the latest hot toy off store shelves. Not because it’s almost Christmas and it’s considered a top Wal-Mart toy for 2007.

“Aqua Dots Super Studio” was being heavily promoted this season as a fun arts-and-crafts project that combines, “creativity and crafting to create multiple designs – just add water!”

Adding water or saliva is the problem.

In an unusually strong warning, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) says that a solvent used to manufacture the toy’s beads at a Chinese plant can, when ingested, convert into a chemical that’s found in the date rape drug known as GHB.

More than four million of the toys, distributed by the Canadian company, Spin Master are being recalled. They’ve been on store shelves since April and may be in a closet waiting to be wrapped.

In an unusually strong warning, the CPSC says consumers should take the toy away from their child and look for any stray beads that may have fallen from the craft kit.

CPSC’s Julie Vallese says, "Parents should take this very seriously. The consequences to children who ingest these beads is very serious."

5 Children Injured

The CPSC has reports of two U.S. children who swallowed Aqua Dots including a 20-month-old who became dizzy and vomited then slipped into a comatose state. A second child vomited, went into a coma and was hospitalized for five days. Both children have recovered.

Since last week, three Australian children were also hospitalized by the Australian version of the bead toy called Bindeez, Australia’s 2007 Toy of the Year.

A two-year old boy and 10-year old girl swallowed a quantity of beads and were both admitted to a Sydney hospital. The third child, a 19-month old was also receiving medical help after eating beads.

Seriously, people. What are we supposed to get our kids for Christmas? Lead testing kits? Is there a kit to test for GHB? Mine are getting paper, lead free pencils, and maybe Hazmat suits. So that they can play with their toys without fear of being poisoned.

WARNING: May cause costume envy

2007-11-06T16:11:00.001-06:00

updates and new things to worry about (as if you already didn't have enough)

2007-11-05T15:33:00.000-06:00

Thanks for input on the last post. I am not 100% sure what I will do about my concerns. I am not opposed to my children being exposed to different beliefs. I allow them to attend different churches with their friends, as long as their services don't involve snakes or exorcisms. I don't, however, think that it is unreasonable to expect our Church Home to be a place where she is taught what our religion believes. One of the draws to the Presbyterian church for me is the room for debate. I also love the focus on more of what TO do than what NOT to do, and a focus on a loving God more than a fear of Hell. What concerns me about this website is that it seems very passive aggressive to me: while it seems to be telling it's readers to share their faith in a loving way, it is at the same time stating that "Mo the Muslim" attends a "'church' (called a mosque)" and stating that if Mo becomes a Christian his family will disown him and even plot to kill him. It also states things as a matter of fact rather than opinion in an "if you are a REAL Christian this is what you believe" kind of way. I find that dangerous. Anyway, I am done talking about it for now. After talking to the youth director, I will probably either keep her out of the class for a while or send her with much discussion at home before and after classes. Too bad it's not Ashton who's in the youth, once she saw their latest attack on Hannah Montana, she would disregard anything they had to say!

Alrighty, now on to happier topics, Yay Halloween! We had a great one! I can't post pics until I get them developed (anyone remember what that word means?) because I dropped and broke my digital camera last Tuesday. But trust me, Max's Max from The Wild Things costume was the cutest EVER! And the candy? Oohh, the candy.... Did you know they make a dark chocolate version of Twix? And have you tried a Hersey's Smores bar? Heaven, I tell you. And since my children would rather have a sucker than a chocolate bar (more on what might be wrong with them in a moment) I have eaten my weight in chocolate daily since Thursday.

Now, why would a rational human being choose a boring sucker over a delicious chocolate bar? Here is a possible explanation. READ IT!!!! Because there are many products that haven't been recalled yet that contain lead. And it really irks me that I have to worry about putting an apple in my kids' lunchbox may give them lead poisoning. Because how many years have we know that lead is unsafe? and notice that it calls attention to the inside of your diaper bag, you know, where you carry pacifiers and teethers! Ridiculous, people. No wonder taper legged pants are back in style...

2007-10-30T18:00:00.000-05:00

The next post I write will be titled "Self loathing: Why I hate my blog". Rereading my previous post reiterates that feeling.

The problem is, I never spend more than ten minutes on any given post. That gives a final product full of typos, poor grammar usage, and half baked thoughts. If I didn't know me and I read my previous post, I would think I was pretty anti gay. That is not the case in the least. My only problem with Dumbledore's outing is the impact it will have on the books for future readers, mainly due to ignorant twits.

I read this article and can see it from a different perspective, how people should apply the new discovery. "Oh, he's gay? I wouldn't have known. It really has no impact on the person he is." I am just sad that the percentage of people who feel that way I fear will be low. The percentage of people who declare him a pedophile and question his relationship with Harry will be ridiculously high.

Alright, now that that's cleared up (I hope) I need to ask for some feedback. I know that not many people read this, but my stat counter says that about twenty a day actually glance at it, and while I don't usually mind the lack of commenters, I could really use some feedback here. Jordan is old enough now to be involved in the youth at church, which we were both pretty excited about, until I found out that their new curriculum is affiliated with this website. If you have a minute to check it out, please look at this page
as well.

How would you feel about a card promoting this website being handing to your child in a pamphlet? How would feel about curriculum associated with this site being taught to your child? Really, I would love to hear some viewpoints.

My ten minutes are up, let's see what mess has been created at the expense if this post :)

Why's it always gotta be the guy with the beard?

2007-10-24T16:35:00.000-05:00

If you've read the Harry Potter books, you know there is a lot more going on in them than Quidditch matches and potion classes. J.K. Rowling recently stated that she has always viewed the books as "a prolonged argument for tolerance." I see many parallels between Hitler and Voldemort (though J.K. has said there isn't meant to be) and Jordan, who is fascinated by books on the holocaust, has noted them on her own right. There are also the house elves, and Hermione, who is a strong female character, and her fight for their rights. I think that it makes sense for J.K., who doesn't try to hide the sexuality of teenagers and their fondness of "snogging", to have a homosexual character in the book.

I was, however, saddened by the press release.

We have already had our run-ins with anti-Harry Potter folks. And, quite frankly, I don't care much about what the think at all. It is an evil book in their minds already. But I would hate to see it become labeled as a gay rights book. Because to me it much more than that. I am sure, as well, that Dumbledore's fondness for Harry will also be questioned. Evey word he spoke to him, glance he gave them, touch between them will be over analyzed to death.

Even Harry potter fans will view the book differently. When studying the books, I can see a question "What do you think Dumbledore meant by that?" followed with "Remember, his character is gay".

J.K. has said that Dumbledore's love for Grindewald was evident. I read the last book, and didn't catch it. Yes, Dumbledore acts uncharacteristically to seek his approval, but that is par for teenagers regardless of sexual attraction. Seeking approval of peers is not always sexually driven. Even now, I dress up as much when I'm going out with the girls as I do when I am going out with my husband.

The characters of a book are born from the authors mind, and I respect that.I know that this is not my story, and I'm not about to go all "Misery" on J.K. Rowling (though I would have if she had tried to stop the books before the series was over, me and my pig named Hermione) but I hope that people still are able to see the books for all that they are. I am glad that at least one of my children was able to read it untainted.

And by the way, how dense am I? I always though it was Professor McGonagall that was gay!

Fun with captions: Centennial parade edition

2007-10-15T16:01:00.001-05:00

I loved Lizzee's idea for the caption contest, and I think I will start having "fun with caption" posts frequently. Actually, with as busy as we have been lately, that may be all I post for a while. (You may need to click on the photos to enlarge them in order to get the full effect :)

As I am sure people who don't live in Oklahoma suspect, this is one of our favorite forms of transportation.

High five, anyone?

Is it me, or is that Mr. Hanky with a cowboy hat?

Run, Forest, Run!!!

You are ants! I squash you all!

Please feel free to leave your caption ideas, unless they are way wittier than mine.

First Love

2007-10-07T09:42:00.000-05:00

Where's Waldo's brain?

2007-10-05T14:55:00.000-05:00

My kids love Where's Waldo books. And they love jigsaw puzzles. So imagine my excitement when I found this jigsaw puzzle at a consignment sale for the low, low price of one dollar!

A combination of two things our children enjoy. Hours of family fun, right?

After the kids had finished the puzzle for the first time, they were looking at the details in the picture. From the other room, I hear "EWWWWW! That is so gross! I can't believe they did that!"

Yes, they found this image in their puzzle:

Yes, after you have found Waldo, look for: A man who is overdressed, a human stepping stone, a cowboy, two odd friends, and the side view of a boob.

Where is Waldo's brain? Apparently right below his belt buckle.

For shame, Waldo, for shame.

God bless us, every hamster

2007-10-03T22:43:00.000-05:00

Tonight was our yearly pet blessing at church. We bravely took three of the Keith pets tonight, though we didn't get a picture of the blessing of the hamster (which really stinks, because Lillian carried him up in his pink ball to be blessed. Too cute).

I would love to say it went smoothly, but you know how you have those days when you take your kids with you to the grocery store and you leave hiding your face the way Paris Hilton does from the press?

Let's just say Otis was not on his best behavior. He was very hyper, and very yappy.

And Scabbers, the guinea pig, peed on me.

I love this picture! Doesn't it look like they are taking the Tasmanian Devil to be blessed?
Actually, it's just that cute little kitten we found this summer.

I found these pictures that the girls took of Otis on the camera while I was downloading tonight's pictures.

The girls really love him. So I guess he can stay, for now :)

Stinker!

2007-09-19T16:41:00.000-05:00

So we've been going forward with the whole potty training thing. He wears diapers to school and bed, and undies the rest of the day. He still needs to be reminded to go, but he can usually do it all independently. Last night and today at nap, he had accidents because diapers were forgotten, but most of the time his Thomas undies stay dry.

Today, I was in the office helping Pierce with his homework, and I heard Max toot. I remembered he still had his diaper on from school, and told him we would go sit on the potty and try to go poopy when I was done helping Pierce. He hasn't done that particular thing yet, and I thought I would read him a book while he sat there.

As I am admiring Pierce's picture of a baby giraffe, I hear a grunt from behind me. I turn around and see Max clutching the side of the train table.

--"Max! Are you pooping?"
--"No, I just tooted."
--"Well, lets go sit on the potty and see if you need to go poopy." I untape his diaper, pull it out, and hear a (I wish I could say it was unfamiliar) "SPLAT".
--Max says "What's that?"
--"It's poopy Max, you poopied."
--"No I just tooted."

Alright people, I know he is still young, but I really don't want to give up on this. Pierce was almost three when he was finally trained, but that was different. He was freaked out by it all. Even at one, Pierce would only poop in his diaper in his room. We would return from a weekend trip, and he would run to his room to take care of business. When we first tried potty training, he wouldn't even sit on the potty. His legs would straighten stiff as boards and he would scream.

Max? He's just lazy. And I know some say "don't worry, it's not like he'll go off to college wearing diapers." But Max? I could totally see him doing that! I'd get a call "Hey mom? I'm in biology, and I'm going to need you to come change me."

And what kind of woman is going to marry a man in pull-ups? Not the kind I would want for daughter-in-law, I'm sure.

Anyway, I'm going to keep trying, up the positive reinforcement, increase the frequency of prayers, and prepare myself for some super icky accidents.

BUT...
If all of this should possibly, though very unlikely, not work, and I should possibly, though very unlikely, cave...no one, and I mean NO ONE is allowed to in any way rub it my face. Okay? I thought so.

Quitting a bad habit

2007-09-16T21:41:00.000-05:00

I swear, this is my last pack....of diapers, that is. Max has been showing all the signs that he is ready to potty train, but I have been so busy (and maybe just a little lazy) that we really haven't put forth the effort that we need to. I went to Target tonight, and didn't buy a pack. I have about ten diapers left, that gives me just enough for mother's day out for the rest of this week. It's all undies the rest of the time. Once he is out of diapers, it will close a chapter in my life. I have changed diapers daily since 1998. I only had about a seven month reprieve between Jordan and Ashton, so that adds another two and a half years, though they don't run consecutive with the other nine. NINE. Although I will still change diapers at work, it will be different to not have to worry about it at home. Not bad, mind you, just different. Kinda makes me want somethin' to cuddle.....

First grader at last

2007-09-13T16:51:00.000-05:00

Today I walked the kids to school. Pierce ran ahead of me with one of his friends. When I caught up to him in his new classroom, he was already sitting in his desk. Grinning from ear to ear.

His new teacher seems really nice. And she has very clear, very fair behavior policies.

I almost cried alligator tears of joy.

It's a good time, for the great taste....

2007-09-07T10:09:00.000-05:00

Max loves to eat at "Guh-Donald's". \

His typical order is french fries and "Chicken num-nuts".

Abandoning the three previous posts I started and never finished and starting from scratch

2007-09-04T16:06:00.000-05:00

Seriously, three posts that I started but couldn't find the ten minutes I needed to finish them. That has been my month. I am expecting much better things from September. I am pleading with you September, please be gentle with me. I am a woman on the edge.

I'll start with the good news. Jordan is doing fantastic in middle school! She loves it! She is very self motivated with her homework, and loves the English teacher that we heard so many horror stories about. She has the highest test average in his class out of all the sixth graders! Yeah, Jordan!

I am also happy with Ashton's school situation. She has the same teacher she had last year, and I love that teacher! She moved from second to third grade, and kept the whole class with her. Hooray for Ashton!

Max and Lillian have great teachers, too. Love, love, love, Lillian's teacher! She was Pierce's afternoon kindergarten enrichment teacher last year, and she is fantastic. Lillian did, however, hide under the table this morning and kiss her boyfriend. On the lips. Jordan said "Hey! I haven't even kissed a boy on the lips yet!" We are locking her in a tower when she turns twelve.

Now for Pierce. My poor, poor Pierce.

So, while Pierce was recovering from the whole dog attack thing, I kept his spirits up by talking about how great first grade was going to be. How he was going to have his own desk, have reading groups, math sheets (he loves math, didn't get that from me), yada yada yada, things that are pretty universal for all first grade students.

Well, when we went to enroll him, we found out he was in a "split class" with transitional first and first grade students. We were reassured that he would have the same work, they would work with the other first grade classes frequently, etc....

Not so much. They don't have desks, spend most of the day sitting on the carpet, and did a lot of coloring.

We had several meetings with the principal (who is, by the way not my "pal") and were told so many insane things that I can't even begin to write them all down. After six days in that classroom, he was starting to dread going to school. He was bored, and his teacher, lets call her "Mrs. Yellsalot", did just that. A LOT. And I don't care how many years Mrs. Yellsalot has been there (25) or how many people think that boys benefit from her "discipline style" (lots of yelling), I am not one of those people and I never will be. I know I did not complete my degree in early childhood, but I never saw a class entitled "Yelling 101".

Anyway, so after seven days, I went back to our "princi-notmypal" and was told to "trust her", she was going to get things sorted out eventually (wouldn't give me any kind of timeline or any guarantee that my son would be moved to a proper first grade classroom and I was told for the umpteenth time that all the first grade teachers were just doing busy work and if Pierce was ready now for first grade that he would be ready in a few weeks). Even though the other first graders were already learning about north, south, east and west and having spelling tests. So I pulled him.

He stayed home with me for two days, and now she says that he will be moved tomorrow. We'll see. There are two first grade classes and SEVENTY first grade students (which, by the way, has nothing to do with the more than a dozen transfers in the first grade alone) so I know that some other child will be moved into Mrs. Yellsalot's classroom when my son moves out. And don't tell anybody, but I don't frankly care anymore. I need a rest from drama.

So, goodbye August, month of much crap! And hello, September, month of great fortune!

A quick antecdote

2007-08-28T20:37:00.000-05:00

I have a post nearly finished about Jordan's experiences as a middle schooler, but I don't have the energy to finish it tonight (just can't figure out how to get my blog to play "Sunrise, Sunset". Just joking, sort of). There is new news about the whole pit bull thing, but I want a break from talking about that. And there's a whole rant about Pierce's school, but I'm not in the ranting mood. So I will tell a little story from dinner tonight.

Max is still in a highchair at dinner. We only have six chairs at the table, so it is mostly out of necessity. The highchair sits a little behind and to the side of the table, and tonight, as the older kids were recanting their days, Max kept leaning up to me and saying "What are they talking 'bout, mom?" So I took the tray off his highchair and pulled him up to the table. He was oh so very proud.

--I said "Okay, everybody, let's give Max a chance to tell us about his day."
--Through an ear to ear grin he giggled "I don't know."
--So I prodded him with a few questions I already knew the answers to: "Did you paint today?"
--"YEAH! They paint my arm! And hand!"
--"What colors?"
--"Ummm, brown! And geen!" "It's not funny, guys" (a little scowl here, because the older kids were giggling).
--"What did they make out of your arm and hand?"
--"A twee! A twee!"

It was very cute. He is officially a big boy now.

Alright. I'm off to get ready for tomorrow. We are all still adjusting to the new schedules, and we are all very grump from about 3:00 to 6:00. I'm hoping we fall into routine soon. Because I am beat, people. The walking dead. A zombie. Hopefully more tomorrow.....

An update on the update

2007-08-18T15:49:00.000-05:00

Friday Pierce had all of his stitches taken out. They initially thought he would need steri-strips on his leg, but they had healed better than expected. He still has to take it easy for a few weeks, but he isn't feeling sore at all anymore. Incredibly itchy, but not sore.

I am always amazed at the speed at which children heal. Physically, I expected his recovery to take much longer. Unfortunately, I underestimated the psychological effect the experience would have.

We took Otis for a walk around the block Friday.Halfway around the block, we heard a dog barking in a nearby backyard. Pierce grabbed my hand. A few houses later, someone opened their back door to let their two dogs into their backyard. They ran towards the chain link fence barking, and Pierce was overcome with fear. I held him close, tried to reassure him, and as we continued walking, we encountered several more yards with dogs and it was hard for him to keep walking. I could feel his whole body trembling, his little heart beating so rapidly. Luckily, when we got to our house, there was a very thoughtful cookie bouquet waiting on our front porch. It was the perfect distraction from the unpleasant trip around the block.

My sensitive little guy is no stranger to phobias. For over a year, he was extremely afraid of black men. It was a paralyzing fear that was often a little embarrassing for us. He would hide behind us, trembling, and there was no denying what he was afraid of. He told me that two black men had climbed through his window and taken him away once, and even though his window is painted shut on the inside and all of his screens and storm windows were in tact, he could not believe that it was a nightmare.

Then there was the whole "clown coming into his bedroom at night" incident that turned out to be the result of an art project hanging in his room. And although some (Lizzee) may argue the rationality of a clown phobia, this is obviously different.

So, I would love to hear some opinions on therapy. Should I give him some time, see if it the fear fades on its own? Should we try pet therapy? Reenactment with toys? Primal screaming? He is sleeping in our bed, and won't go to sleep unless we are with him. I just want him to feel safe again.

Awaiting your input. Mom to many

Stir crazy

2007-08-15T12:58:00.000-05:00

Even without Pierce's stitches, the ridiculous heat would have had us inside this week. And it's the week before school starts, so there's a lot of nervous excitement in the air. The Keith clan has completed a 300 piece puzzle, made a menagerie out of clay, several dozen Perler bead projects, watched an obscene amount of television, played every board game we own, 100+ games of Go fish and Uno, and done so much whining and bickering that I am most certain that the tick I have developed in my right eye will never go away.

Yesterday, the girls put together a little play about Otis. They made a graph with several different dog breeds on it, like pugs,collies, poodles, and "sh*t-sues".

I thought it was funny, but then again, for the most part of the day yesterday, I also thought it was Thursday.

Quick update

2007-08-13T23:37:00.000-05:00

Brooke: we were allowed to file the complaint. Which means that, in two weeks, my husband and I will both have to take off work (provided I am back at work) and take Pierce with us to court, knowing that at most t he guy will pay a thousand dollar fine. Although I feel the fine is ludicrously low, I feel it is important to have a record of the attack. There is a state rep. who is trying to pass a pit bull ban, and we are sending all the information and pictures to him as well.

Elena: As far as a civil suit goes, we haven't decided yet. Of course he needs to pay (we think Pierce deserves at least several million for the promising career as an underwear model that will now never come to be) but we just don't know if it will be worth it. If the man owns his home, his homeowners insurance may cover a lawsuit, if not, well, it's the whole blood from a turnip thing. It really irks me to think that he could profit from the sale of the puppies. There is however a petition going around the neighborhood requesting his puppies be euthanized. I don't know if it will help, but it's nice to know I'm not alone in feeling that they should be.
I don't know if I've mentioned it, but this guy lives a few blocks away from our grade school.

I am having very mixed emotions. I am incredibly thankful that God was watching out for my son, which he so obviously was. I know how much worse it could have been. When I close my eyes, I am haunted not only by visions of what happened, but what could have happened as well. I felt and do feel some guilt for not being right there, but after reading other stories of attacks, I know that even if I had been outside watching, it wouldn't have made much of a difference. And if we had all been outside, and Max had been riding his scooter on the sidewalk (his favorite outdoor pass time) ...

I do feel blessed. I am incredibly grateful. I have my son, who will probably be unchanged minus the scars that will be covered by clothing. But I am also very angry. I am shocked and appalled that the laws are so lenient. Someone's hands can be categorized as lethal weapons, yet you can train dogs to be killing machines, let them loose in a neighborhood full of children with no consequence other than a small fine. Pedophiles can't live close to a school, dealing drugs near a school carries stiffer fines, but, you want to have slew a killer dogs a few blocks away from one? Nothing to stop you there. All the accounts of the attacks I have read are the same. The owners of the dogs are shocked that they would attack someone; they were always so sweet and gentle. Yeah, when most people are looking for a family pet, they immediately think pit bull. Give me a break!

Pierce is doing okay, he has had a lot of visitors, and I am incredibly touched by outreach we have received. He's goes to the doctor tomorrow, he has been running a low grade fever and is complaining of headaches. Hopefully nothing is infected. He is such an amazing kid, such a trooper.

Animal rights activist, apparently, not so much.

2007-08-11T22:34:00.001-05:00

I will warn you now that There are disturbing pictures at the bottom of this post.

Yesterday was a happy day for my almost seven year old fish of a son. He was picked up around 11:00, went swimming with his friend at a club, had lunch, and went swimming again in his friend's backyard pool. He came home about 4:00. We left about 5:00 to go swimming at a friend of the family's. We came home about 6:45.

My husband was already home. Ashton went outside to walk the dog, and Pierce went with her.

Ashton came back inside, and Pierce stayed outside to ride his bike on the sidewalk in front of our house.

I remember hearing him come in the door. "I was bit by a dog" he was saying fairly calmly, though fear and shock were obviously present in his voice.

There were puncture marks on his arm, right under his sleeve. We knew there would be a trip to the emergency room, but my husband went to look for the dogs.

"There were two of them. They bit me a lot. They bit me a lot."

Then I saw the blood on his swim trunks. When I raised them, I saw that there were chunks of flesh, pieces of my son, missing.

I yelled to my husband that they had to leave now. He told me that he saw the dogs heading towards our park, only a block away.

I called 911 with a description of the dogs and dropped the other kids off at a friends.

We are lucky. We are blessed.

His wounds though many, and deep, are on his arms, legs, back, and bottom. Not on his face, not on his torso.

We didn't hear him call out as the dogs attacked. He told us he was trying to stay calm, that he knew if he panicked, it would be worse.

Across the street, several men were working on a roof. One jumped off the roof and beat the dogs off with a stick as they were dragging my son to the road.

It took over eighty stitches and several hours for his thirteen lacerations to be closed. My brave little man barely cried.

The officer from animal control came to take my statement at the hospital. They had both dogs (thanks to our neighbor who hunted them down) and they were both going to be euthanized immediately. Then I am told about how the poor owner turned the dogs over immediately, he was just given the dogs a few weeks ago by a friend and had no idea they were capable of such a thing. And I was told how one of the dogs had very recently given birth to ten puppies that, although the owner was going to try to bottle feed, would probably not make it. I was told this in a very "isn't that sad" tone.

I was told how the dogs seemed very "sweet" and went straight to the officer when he called them.

I was asked what my son was doing when they attacked him. I was asked in a very accusatory tone.

I was told they were both pit bulls.

I was told that I could file a complaint, but that the most the owner would receive would be a $500 fine per dog, and that my son would "be dragged into court to testify".

He recommended that I sign a paper saying I would not file this complaint, it just wasn't wort it. I signed.

I was in a bit of shock myself. They had just started to sew up my son. He was lying naked on a table, covered in Betadine, while two doctors went to work on repairing his many injuries.

Today, after reading a bit about pit bull attacks, I changed my mind. I called animal control, and they said I had already signed the paper. Why would I change my mind? When I brought up the fact that this owner had ten puppies still in his care, I was told "ma'am, those puppies didn't do this to your child." I was asked to have sympathy for the owner, whose dogs had been euthanized, and whose heads had been put in a box and mailed to a lab to be tested for rabies. Not that he meant to minimize my sons injuries in any way. I mentioned, okay, just short of yelled, That my son had numerous holes in his body, that the dogs had to be beaten off of him, and was told that a call would be made to the officer who handled the case.

He showed up at my door an hour later. He never meant to insinuate that I not file charges. HE had thought of filing the charges himself...Yada yada yada.

I believe that having a dog notorious for fatal and near fatal attacks and letting it roam free is the same as playing Russian roulette on a playground full of kids. I mean, there's only a one in six chance the gun will go off, and then what are the odds that bullet actually hits a kid?

I believe that, without the quick intervention of the man who witnessed the attack, they wouldn't have stopped until my son was dead.

I have no sympathy for the dogs, and less every minute for the owner.

There are other injuries, but mostly around his hiney, and I will spare him the embarrassment of posting those.

By the way, as to the question of what my son did to provoke the attack? He saw the dogs running towards him, barking at what he thought was each other, and tried to get out of their way and into our house.

Vacation part 2

2007-08-08T09:17:00.001-05:00

I am waiting on photos from my sister of our vacation in Kansas City, but the few photos I have really sum up the trip. We did something fun every day; a movie, the zoo, Science City, a petting zoo. And almost every evening we walked to the park. One night, we went in spite of a very ominous sky and stayed to play in a downpour. I was thrilled to eat at two very yummy places that Oklahoma City (unfortunately) does not have- Chipotle and Dairy Queen.

But for the kids, the real excitement of the trip was the company. They had such a great time playing with their cousins. Every night, they fell asleep in a heap, and arose early the next day to resume the fun.

I was a little apprehensive about taking a split vacation, and although I wouldn't want to do it every time, it really worked out great for this summer.

Sidenote: Yes, that is my son, Max, in the pink princess bike helmet. If you think that's funny, you should see him in the shiny plastic high heels he likes so much.

Vacation part 1

2007-08-03T09:58:00.001-05:00

I have put this post off for a few days due to overwhelming frustration. I use photobucket to download my pictures, and planned on having a photo album from our vacation, because I know slideshows, particularly long slide shows, can be a tad on the tedious side. But I could not figure out how to get the album on my blog. So I decided to do a slideshow through Photobucket, and I put descriptions on all of the pictures. Only photobucket slideshows are only about 10 pictures long. So I went back to Slide to make a slideshow, and my captions for the pictures didn't show up. UGH!!

So, I will tell you that Chad and the girls had a great time! They took the train to Chicago, spent the day walking around Chicago, then went on to Buffalo. The train was not very comfy for sleeping, but they still had a great time. There was an observation room with large windows, the girls loved that, and they even met a few friends. They spent the day in Buffalo, admiring lake Erie, and then went on to grandmas.

They spent one day at Niagara Falls, one day at a beautiful state park, and on the way back, they went to the Lincoln Park zoo in Chicago. The rest of the time they spent exploring around grandma's, apparently there were several streams on the property.

Definitely destined to be an annual trip. Next time they may go through St. Louis instead.

The rest of the Keiths had a great vacation as well, I will post about that trip soon.

Can you believe summer is almost over? I don't think I'm quite ready to go back to our rigid school year routine. I am also not ready for the kids to all be a grade older, especially my sixth grader and first grader. Boy, it all goes so fast....

The end of a wonderful journey

2007-08-02T15:04:00.000-05:00

We had a great vacation. We got home late Tuesday night, but I'm not ready to post about it just yet. I need to reflect on the end of the marvelous journey that has come to a bittersweet end, the Harry Potter series.

I discovered the books when my oldest was in second grade. She wanted to read the books, and with so much hype surrounding them, I wanted to read them first. I was hooked immediately.

Jordan loves reading, she is a real bookworm, and up to that point I had steered her towards books from my childhood. I had tried reading some of the newer children's books and was depressed to discover that many of them were written with poor vocabularies, underdeveloped characters, and superficial stories.

I have enjoyed reading them on a personal level, but more than that, I have enjoyed witnessing the elation that they bring to my daughter. Everyone from my parents' generation remembers where they were when Kennedy was assassinated, everyone in Oklahoma City remembers where they were when the Murrow bombing occurred (I was pregnant with Jordan at the time), and our children will have faint memories of the horror and sadness surounding 9-11, and unfortunately, I am sure there will be more horrorific and tragedy incidents that will mark time.

But to remember where you were in time for a positive experience, standing in line in front of whatever bookstore or event when these amazing books were released, that's priceless.

Thank you J.K. Rowlings, for the joy, the sadness, the frustration, the magical ride you have let us all experience. No pressure, but if you could go ahead and start on a new series that my second oldest will enjoy equally, preferably set in Egypt, and possibly featuring cats, I would be forever indebted, well, more than I already am.

Thanks again,
Mom to many

so glad I can hide behind my kids

2007-07-20T16:25:00.000-05:00

Because if I didn't have kids, I would still be buying the new Harry Potter book at midnight. Which really isn't bad in itself. But I would still want to go someplace fun to make a wand, wear the glasses, get a scar painted on my forehead, and that might seem just a tad bit weird!

I had planned on writing a long post revealing my (I am certain) accurate predictions, but it didn't happen. Been crazy busy. And, unfortunately, that does not include reading all of the previous Harry Potter books. I only made it to book four, although I was reminded (by my own brain and my daughter's) of most of what happens in the fifth book after watching the movie.

One interesting errand I did have to run was getting a copy of Jordan's birth certificate. There were signs posted everywhere stating that the cost of a birth certificate is $10.00. Although, when I reached the counter, I was informed by the nice lady working there that the birth certificate I needed would be $15.00. Because I wasn't married to her father when she was born. Whaattt? I wanted to explain to her that we got married when Jordan was six weeks old, and have been married for the past eleven and a half years. But I realized she couldn't care less, and handed her the extra $5.00. Is that what they call a sin tax?

The birth certificate was needed, by the way, so that my daughter can go to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls next week. I am so excited for them!

Alright, I most go. I have much to do, and unfortunately I have no time turner like Hermione to help me.

Oh, on a final note? I will be wearing my "I TRUST SEVERUS, ALBUS DID." T-shirt. If that gives you any indication as to my predictions.....

My husband

2007-07-12T14:01:00.000-05:00

He likes to stick his finger in my mouth in the middle of a good yawn, completely ruining the moment, or tickle my underarm during a good stretch, or interrupt a good sneeze. Annoying.

He finds it amusing to chase me around the yard while carrying a particularly nasty bug, funny to hide in our closet and jump out and scare me, and downright hilarious to watch my clumsy mishaps (like hitting my head on the pew in front of me when after bending over to replace a hymnal).

He refuses to eat leftovers, except for pizza, which he insists on defiling by warming up first.

But

He can do this

And this

And this

And even this

And so I guess I will keep him around.

Can I have some ketchup to go with that crow?

2007-07-11T23:12:00.000-05:00

I consider myself a semi-intelligent, not-so-gullible person.

I know that chiggers do not indeed crawl under your skin, and require clear nail polish induced suffocation in order to die (and apparently float around in your bloodstream?)

I don't remember a time when I actually thought ringworm was a kind of a worm.

I know that the bugs that Okies call locusts are actually cicadas.

I am aware that ostriches do not actually bury their heads in the sand, and that lemmings will only jump blindly off of a cliff after being spun in a centrifuge so long that they feel the way you would after a night of binge drinking.

HOWEVER,

There is one old wives tale that I was totally willing to sit back and accept as fact, mainly because it's being true would make my life easier:

That turning lights on and off uses more electricity than leaving them on.

And wouldn't you know that the Mythbusters would go and rain on my parade and prove it to be false?

If you'll excuse, I have some lights to go turn off.

New member of the family (guess which one)

2007-07-09T20:41:00.000-05:00

Say hello to Otis Keith. Make it quick, because if he has one more accident (particularly on my bed), you will be saying goodbye instead.

Happy 4th of July! (and yes, another slide show)

2007-07-05T10:27:00.001-05:00

We had a great day!

Max, the two year old, two in March, not quite two and a half, decided he can swim. I am no longer allowed to hold on to him in the pool (unless he yells HAANNNNDDDD! In which case I may hold out my hand for him to hold onto, but under no circumstances may I hold onto him). This is, of course, with the aid of a life jacket, but still. It's enough to give a mother a heart attack. And? He jumps in! Craziness!

We didn't make it to a big fireworks show, but were in a neighborhood where fireworks are legal, and apparently, required. It was amazing! The big do-it-yourselfers were going of every second or so somewhere on the street for hours.

This has been a great summer, and there is still a lot to look forward to. And you know what that means, more slide shows. Please, try to contain your excitement.

Addicted to slideshows

2007-07-03T09:17:00.000-05:00

I can't help it. They are just fun! And the kids love them! And they are good for the environment! And they help save baby seals! (okay, I'm being a bit ridiculous now)

Anyway, the big girls went to camp last week, had a great time, and we all stayed an extra dat picking them up.

I can't tell you how happy it makes me that my whole family shares my love for a place that means so much to me.

Although I didn't see near as much crying and "we will never see each other!" type moments.

I credit that to e-mail, myspace, and cell phones.

A reoccuring complaint, hope for a brighter future, and a plea for advice

2007-07-03T08:41:00.000-05:00

I say Wal-Mart you say fruit flies!
Wal-Mart!
Fruit flies!
Wal-mart!
Fruit flies!

Yep. My house is infested yet again. If you are asking, "hey, if it keeps happening, why shop there?" The answer is, "because there are no good options that are close." I live in an area with very limited grocery shopping options. I try to drive to the better option *cough* (Super Target) as often as possible, but it's pretty far away. And a lot of our staples are a lot more expensive there. Seriously, it might not sound like a real problem, but I can;t tell you how many people I have heard lament over the same issue.

But...
Aah ahhhhhhhhh (angelic choir singing)
I heard (from a very reliable source) that we may very possibly be getting a Whole Foods very close very soon. I am super excited. I have heard great things about this chain.

So, if you live in an area with a Whole Foods, give me some feedback, please. Is it a store where you can buy most of the things you need? Are the prices reasonable? Will I love it?

Anxiously awaiting your responses.....

Meme

2007-06-22T17:10:00.000-05:00

What were you doing 10 years ago?
I think I was in junior high 10 years ago? Nope, that can't be right! Geez! I'm old! 10 years ago I was an overbearing, overly worried mother of a one year old. I was probably reading some how to parenting book and taking notes. Seriously, I was a little wacko. I made a fruit juice sweetened birthday cake for her first birthday and sprinkled wheat germ in her food. She didn't have a french fry until she was over two.

What were you doing 1 year ago?
One year ago I was drowning in depression, that very unfair disease that steals away time that you can never recapture...

Five snacks you enjoy
peanut butter and bananas
chips and salsa
natural cheetos
key lime pie yogurt
seasoned triscuits (if you haven't tried them, they are amazing!)

Five songs you know all the words to
Proper cup of Coffee- Trout Fishing in America
Closer to Fine- Indigo Girls
Annie's Song-John Denver
Popular -Wicked
Under Pressure- Queen

Five things you would do if you were a millionaire
Okay, I've thought about this too much, don't laugh. If we won the big lottery, we would keep 25%, and give the rest away. Seriously. I would let each kid research and choose charities (except Max, who would give it all to Thomas or the Doodlebops), and thoroughly enjoy choosing some of my own. I would also like to help some of my friends/family. I know it sounds like I am trying to convince God to let me win, but it's true. We have lived with so little that owning our own home mortgage free and having enough money to not have to worry about money would be enough for us. Plus, I would worry about our kids being too materialistic if we kept it all. That's not really an answer to the question, is it?

Five bad habits
--I bite my lips and the inside of my cheeks - totally gross (I'm really not copying, Pam, I swear! I would post one of the many candid pictures that have been taken, but I have thrown them all away in disgust and embarrassment..)
--I have a habit of giving irrelevant responses to rhetorical questions. Like when guy at the snack counter says "Enjoy your movie." And I say "Yeah. You too!"
--I will be late getting somewhere because I can't leave the house without making the beds and picking up the house first. I like to call it "cleaning for the burglars". Because if someone broke into our house it would be an embarrassment if the beds weren't made.
--Staring at people. But not really. I'm just zoning out. But it looks like I'm staring.
--Biting my nails. I know. Ridiculous.

Five things I like doing
reading
going to the grocery store with one child
cleaning the house when I am all alone (and listening to music only I like, oooh ABBA)
watching movies with my hubby
playing board games with the kids

Five things you would never wear again
A bikini
bodysuits
stirrup pants
high heel shoes
tapered jeans (I don't care how in style they become)

Five favorite toys
jigsaw puzzles
logic puzzles
Nancy Drew computer games
Skip-Bo
Legos (still love em)

That was fun! Thanks, Pam! I'll tag:

Heather
Laughter Thoughts

Wicked Fun!!!!

2007-06-16T23:58:00.001-05:00

The girls and I went to see Wicked the Musical tonight. It was an amazing show! We went with a fun group of people. After the show, the girls waited for autographs, and had their pictures taken with Galinda and Elphaba, who also complimented them on their homemade Wicked t-shirts. Definitely one of the highlights of the summer! Just think, Wicked and the final Harry Potter book in the same summer? Life just doesn't get better than that!

Yeah summer!

2007-06-12T22:05:00.001-05:00

Tonight was our first t-ball game. Pierce and Lillian both did great, Pierce played first base and did amazing! Lillian made it home twice!

I could mention how a ridiculously rude man sat in front of us, sighing and shaking his head in annoyance that my two year old son would not sit still and quiet at an 8:00 t-ball game, and that he actually insulted me as a parent, and told a three year old child through clenched teeth not to touch him when he accidentally brushed against his shoe, and that my husband didn't defend my honor, but I won't.

Instead, i will leave you with a picture of snack time at the pool. Do you remember how good snacks tasted after an afternoon of swimming? Ahhh, hot fries and Laffy Taffy, good times!

T

The punishment for bringing fleas into my house....

2007-06-11T15:39:00.000-05:00

I love how the directions on the bottle of flea shampoo says "wet fur, massage in shampoo, starting with the head, and let sit five minutes." but doesn't say "good luck with that! Ha! Ha!" or "caution: wear a scratch proof suit."

Feeling Reflective

2007-06-09T18:36:00.000-05:00

Last summer was horrid. The worst bout of depression I will hopefully ever know took over my life. It came unexpectedly, a year after giving birth instead of days after.

Last summer I found that those I considered to be great friends were much more the fair weather type.

Last summer I was in a very dark place, and wasn't honest with myself about just how dark.

I cannot tell you how wonderful it feels to be able to put a past tense to all these things. To definitively differentiate between then and now, how I felt and how I feel.

Have you seen those commercials for Claritin? Where they pull back the film to reveal a much clearer picture? That is the best way to describe the difference. I walked, I talked, I went through with the daily motions of life, but without actually feeling alive.

Although it hasn't happened overnight, I have awakened, and I feel great. Life not only seems more than just bearable, but more than just manageable as well. Life is fun. Life is good.

This summer, I have a wonderful family.

This summer, I have genuine friends.

This summer, I have a fantastic job!

This summer, I have myself back. I couldn't ask for more.

Bye Bye Birdie slideshow

2007-06-03T11:03:00.001-05:00

2007-06-01T07:48:00.000-05:00

These last two weeks have been crazy. End of the year everything, this week the girls have had rehearsals for they play (opening night is tonight!) almost every night, work days for me at work, crazy. I am only surviving all of it because of last week's hiatus.

reasons why I love Family camp:

duck duck goose. My older kids try to act as if they are only playing it for the sake of the younger ones, but they love it. Seriously, they could play for hours! But only at family camp, they would be too grown up for it anywhere else.

I don't have to cook, I eat yummy yummy food, and I don't have to do dishes.

This year, Pierce and I woke up before everyone else and walked around the road to camp. We watched a hawk (making lazy circles in the sky) and then spent a good twenty minutes just watching and listening to a hummingbird. All three of the girls took turns helping me do jigsaw puzzles. I had forgotten how much I like jigsaw puzzles (I stayed up with a group until 2:30 a.m. finishing one) Lately, our lives have had little jigsaw puzzle time, too much soccerhomeworkactingchoirschool time, and it was such a nice change of pace.

Max participated in the talent show this year! He sat on the host's lap, and would sing "Down by the Bay", whenever the microphone was placed in front of him. It became a ventriloquist act. Ridiculously cute!

We didn't get in the van. Not once, for an entire weekend. I want to plan a weekend like that soon. The park, our church, City Bites, are all within walking distance from our house. I think it will be fun to do a van free weekend in the city.

My absolute favorite thing about family camp is the people. I can see the appeal of communal living, waking up every day to see so many friendly faces, the extended family feeling, it all sounds like fun. (minus any poison kool-aid or anything like that, of course)

Okay, I am off to watch Pierce perform the Pledge of Allegiance in sign language at the end of the year awards assembly, Jordan's last in grade school, sniff, sniff. I would possibly post a video, if the video camera hadn't been introduced to the creek this weekend. Not by my clumsy self, either. I won't say who did it, just that he is an adult in our family.

Have a great weekend!

Family camp slideshow

2007-05-29T12:36:00.002-05:00

twenty-four hours from now...

2007-05-24T16:18:00.000-05:00

Twenty-four hours from now, the half packed bags that sit on the office couch will be crammed into our tightly packed van.

Twenty-four hours from now, we will hopefully be on the road, listening intently to a Beverly Cleary book on tape (yes, we still listen to actual tapes in the van).

Twenty-four hours from now, I will start to hear Lillian ask "are we there yet?" To which Pierce will answer "We're almost there when we get to the roller coaster roads, Lillian, remember?" And I will remember. All of the vans, cars, and church vans in which I have traveled down the roller coaster roads. I will remember the time we came down a hill to find a cow standing in the middle of the road, or the one time we had to hit the brakes while a bonnet clad old lady crossed the street to get her mail.

Twenty-four hours from now, I settle into my seat in the van, satisfied and proud in my assurance that every swimsuit, towel, pillow, bottle of sunscreen and bugspray, and special blanket have been remembered.

Twenty-four hours from now I will be on the road to one of my favorite places on Earth. But right now....

Sigh..... I obviously have no right to be blogging!

I hope you all will enjoy your holiday weekend as much as we will!

Oklahoma is Ok?

2007-05-23T11:50:00.000-05:00

I love living in Oklahoma, but I still am still having a hard time embracing the slang. I hardly ever say "ya'all", and it pains me to type it. I'm never "fixin' to" do anything, and (this one KILLS me), I never have "no ideal what chur talkin' 'bout". I don't shop at "The Wal-marts" either.

I'm not saying I look down on the people who use Okie slang. I usually don't even notice it. But for some reason I can't stand to hear such things come out of the mouths of my children. I think I have already mentioned that Jordan and Ashton both wrote stories in first grade about the three little pigs and the house they made out of "strawl". Pierce just brought home a story about his new kitten (yes, we still have it) and how it likes to "play with yur lag." It also like to "greek milk" (drink milk).

And although I love, love, love, his kindergarten teacher, and am totally impressed with the unprecedented progress her class has made this year, I winced the other day as she told me that "Supposibly the test Pierce had taken...." I don't remember the rest of what she said.

What slang Ya'all got round yur parts? Or ain't ya got none at all?

Girl power

2007-05-21T08:28:00.000-05:00

Look at this sweet face! It doesn't look like the face of someone who was up all night throwing up every twenty minutes or so, does it? I assure you it is. Which makes sense considering our history with family camp and the stomach flu (only four sleeps away!)And while I usually insist on two full days of quarinitne and the brat diet, it just wasn't that kind of weekend. She missed a swim party and a soccer game, but made it to her sister's concert and the end of the season soccer party.

The oldest. Too old if you ask me. She sang her first real solo (she's had solos in songs before, but never a whole song by herself) for a fairly large audience, and she did great!

Ashton's the one in the red jersey. She seems to attract friends who are mistaken for her sisters a lot. Once a shy girl, she has definitely come out of her shell this year. Quite the soccer star, as well!

Look at my three strong girls! I wish for them life long friendship and love. Yeah for girls!

My fantastic idea

2007-05-16T15:25:00.000-05:00

Raise your hand if you are getting a bit tired of the presidential candidate "debates" already. My hand is waving like Horshack's on Welcome Back Cotter.

My husband made me sit through part of the republican debate last night, but he was forced with threats of violence to change the channel when Mitt Romney stated that not only did he support No Child Left Behind, but that he believes standardized tests are an excellent way of judging how a school is performing and that they help inner city schools enormously. Hmmm, I can't tell you in a thousand words or less how absolutely and completely ludicrous that statement is. Standardized test have been denounced by educators as a way to adequately judge progress for two decades now. They judge how well kids can take test, and fill in circles. Period. And they rob students from time that could be spent learning. Let's see Bush and Romney's kids attend an inner city public school, and then I will consider listening to their views.

And the democrats? I fear that they have, as Jon Stewart has joked for over a year now, found a way to "screw up the 2008 election". I am not a huge Hilary fan, and while I am a fan of Obama, I don't believe that he is electable. Too many ignorant people (like those who work at FOX news), who "confuse" his name with "Osama", Too many ignorant people that believe he has a "muslim agenda"....

Here's my grand idea!

Let's put a stop to all the debates. Let's take the top twelve contenders from both sides, and sequester them in a house. Both political parties will be on teams, and each week, they will have to complete a challenge. The team who performs the worst on that challenge will go into the boardroom and face, you guessed it, The Donald who will fire one member of the losing team. And it will, of course, be televised. So we can see the candidates in action. Imagine the applause when he said "Mitt Romney, that is the stupidest idea I have ever heard. You're fired!" Priceless.

Weekend Update

2007-05-14T16:07:00.000-05:00

I really did try the potty training thing on Friday. All the way to nap time. But the fact that he sits on the potty pants up as much as he does pants down? And that he peed on the floor and clapped for himself and shouted "YEAH!"? He's just not ready. I am a firm believer in independent potty training. I think they should be able to make it through most of the steps (pulling pants and undies on and off, wiping, flushing, washing hands) before they are really potty trained. We will try again in August.

It all worked out really well, because our soccer games were cancelled this weekend due to flooded fields, and we were able to make an impromptu trip to visit the Grandparents (some of them).

Hope everyone had a fabulous Mother's Day!
Oh! And By the way? Max does not like to go fast on the boat. He likes to go really slow. Just ask him. He's been saying it ever since "No fast boat. Slow boat. Really slow boat."

Fool me once...

2007-05-11T09:14:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was Pierce and Lillian's end of the year music performance. They were really cute. I am hoping to post a video clip, with the help of my beloved husband (meaning he does it for me) but that is not what this post is about.

I decided to take Max with me, partially because he knows all of the songs and I thought he would enjoy it, and partially because that would give the subs for my room one less child to watch (in case you don't know, I work in the preschool in Max's room.)

So I let Max eat a preemptive cookie while we are waiting for the concert to start, and after he finishes it, he starts saying "Mommy. I have to go potty. I have to go potty mommy! PLEASE!" while holding himself.

People, he just turned two in March. I thought I would try potty training in August, while I have the month off of work to work on it. This is the kid who, last month, watched his older brother pee-pee in the potty, and when he was done shouted. "YEAH! AGAIN! AGAIN!" As if Pierce had just performed a grand magic trick. About the same time, he was squatting and playing in the bathtub, and when he stood up, he peed a little. He gasped, and then began squatting and standing up over and over again, trying to make it happen again.

Yes, this past month he has made remarkable strides in his vocabulary, as well as boundaries. I can say "Max, come here, please." And he does it! But potty training?

So, I answer Max's begging to go potty (which is, of course, happening right as the kids are loading on to the bleachers) with "we can try to go potty when Pierce and Lillian are done singing." and I catch out of the corner of my eye the appalled look of the woman sitting next to me. Max is a big boy, and is often mistaken for a three year old, and I am sure she thought I was horrible for making my potty training child wait thirty minutes to go potty.

So fast forward to that afternoon. My kids go to the "late room" while I clean up my room. And Max? Goes potty for the late room teacher!

So, I made a trip to Target last night, bought the Thomas underwear, the Dora potty seat, and a new pack of diapers. I am beyond skeptical, I am downright doubtful. I have never ever heard a story of a boy that was easily potty trained around his second birthday. But I will give it try. He is in undies right now, and has been for an hour. He has sat on the potty and flushed it about a hundred times, but no success.

Dear Max,
I am willing to spend Mother's day weekend at home with you, most of it in the bathroom, using words like "poopy" and "tinkle", because I am your mother and I love you. However, if you are not really interested in being potty trained, and you ask me when you are in third grade "Mommy! Can't I use the potty like the other boys? It's embarrassing that I wear diapers! The other kids make fun of me!" I will remind you that we already tried to get you to use the potty, and how embarrassing it was for mommy when you made her look bad in front of the other mommies for not taking you to the potty, and we will try again when you are in fifth grade.

Love, Mommy Dearest

one of my many excuses for not blogging...

2007-05-09T19:22:00.000-05:00

Yes, yet another living thing has found it's way into the Keith household. It is, however, not a permanent one. Ashton, who loves the kitty so very much, is also so very allergic. And we have no place to put a litter box. And ,.... because I said so! (I get to say that, cause I'm the momma). We have promised the kids we will keep it until we find it a good home, which is proving to be a little harder than anticipated. The good news is that I am pretty sure this was the addition to the family that was foreseen by Lizzie.

The kitty next to our gianourmous guinea pig (in the guinea pig's defense, it is a small kitty.)

Other "why I haven't blogged" excuses :

Soccer. 4 kids playing on 3 teams= 3 to 4 games every Saturday (not to mention Monday night practices on 2 different fields and Sunday afternoon makeup games). I am not complaining, though. It's a lot of fun, the kids love it, and Max plays his own soccer game during his siblings games. He can toss the ball in the air and kick it. It's crazy! He can also dribble a basketball, and hit a ball with a bat. (photo by Ashton)

Of course, I could blame my lack of blogging on all of the end of the year festivities; concerts, parties, field trips, or all of the spring birthday parties (we actually have one on Mother's day) but I know that is all pretty universal. Chances are, if you are reading this, you have kids, and therefore absolutely no sympathy.

I am very excited about this summer! Family camp is coming up in just a few short weeks, and although there is rumor of a bad weather jinx coming this year (just kidding, Elena, I am so excited you are coming), there are a record number of families coming from our church, and quite a few "old school" campers. It's totally worth the fourteen towels, six sets of bedding, sixteen or so pairs of shoes and such that I will be packing. Ashton will be going to week long camp for the first time, and Chad is taking the older girls to New York to see his mom. On a train! I am so excited for them! The younger kids and I will spend the week in Kansas City. That should be fun, too.

Hope you all are enjoying Spring! I leave you with an Easter pic of the kids.

I'd rather have the frogs and locusts, thank you

2007-04-18T19:20:00.000-05:00

Hey, what grosser than head lice? PINK EYE!!! And we have had it bad. Worse than bad. Horrible. I couldn't look Lillian in the eyes on Sunday. Have you ever seen the movie 28 Days Later? That's what her eyes looked like. Pink was an understatement. She had red eyes.

The bright side? At least Ashton didn't get it (I am knocking on the computer desk). Although Friday her beloved hamster, the one she inherited from her friend who moved to Germany, escaped from its cage. We spent hours looking for it. I cleaned under all my furniture. Maybe you people do that on a regular basis, but around here, if you can't see it, it isn't dirty. I gave up around 9:00 p.m. My dog ( my twelve year old dog) kept sniffing under the bed in our room. I looked, I swept away every last dust bunny, but I saw nothing. Max started jumping on the bed after we put his jammies on, and the dog began whimpering and scratching at the floor. I looked under the bed again, and noticed that the backing of the box spring had come undone a little. We decided to look, why not? And there he was! In the box spring of our bed! We quickly tacked up the backing, because if that rodent found its way in... I'd rather not think about it. Ashton was elated. Buddy is doing fine.

So I am anxiously awaiting the next plagues. I am guessing it will be the stomach flu, followed by strep throat, with some sort of icky rashy thing next, and then, who knows? Someone gets bit by a rabid squirrel? Can't wait to find out!

Here are some school pics of the youngest two. Enjoy!

great times for some "louse-y" for others

2007-04-12T16:09:00.000-05:00

I am having a difficult time keeping up with blogging, too much on my mind and too few hours in the day.

Work is still great, not much to write about. Great people, no drama*, and the better pay is oh so nice.

And we have a newly improved member in the Keith household:
I give you Max Keith! Now 84% less aggressive and binky-free since 4-5-07!

no longer the classroom bully is Max! He is much happier at school, and has even been caught sharing with (though nothing Wiggles or Thomas related) and hugging other students! I can't tell you what a relief it is. I haven't screwed him up! (yet).

Ashton, however, has made Keith history with the first Keith case of....buh buh bummmm... Head Lice!!!!

I can guess what you are thinking; "That poor child! Her best friend moves to Germany, she has five teeth pulled, and now head lice? Where can we send donations for her therapy?"

But honestly, she has such an amazing outlook, a wonderful attitude, none of it has broke her stride in the least. And I am okay with it now, too (after staying up until 1:30 sterilizing the house and children.) And hey, if I remember correctly (and I know I do) Chrissy had head lice on Growing Pains

And it didn't slow her down! She got to Play Annie in a horrible remake.

I mean really. Why would you even bother without Carol Burnett?

*I am aware that there may be some mild drama in my new work environment, but you won't find me seeking it. I have had enough of that for a lifetime

Pretty sure I want to be able to count all my chickens on one hand

2007-04-02T15:24:00.000-05:00

I love all my kids. A lot. I can't imagine my life without a single one of them. Although none were officially planned, none are at all regretted.

That being said, I feel my family is complete. Sure, I look at tiny baby toes, floppy heads, babies smiling in their sleep...and ache just a little. But I am really excited about all of the things my kids are doing now and will do in the future. I want to be a homeroom mom. I want to be able to watch their soccer/t-ball/basketball games, go on school field trips... (not to mention that I would like to one day be able to see the bottom of my hamper). And that is hard to do with five. I can't imagine it with six. And the grandchildren, people. There will be many, they will be spoiled.

So, when my personal Psychic Friends Network (ejk) mentioned a dream with a new Keith daughter, the same friend who has had premonitions about two Keith kids, and whose son had a premonition about another, lets just say I am not going to work too hard at getting Max out of our bed anytime soon. Maybe Chad can sleep in Max's toddler bed?

Oh, and when talking with another friend, I said

"hey, you should get together this Wednesday with my family and ejk's family for dinner."

And she said "what?"

I repeated myself, and she said "I could have sworn you just said you were pregnant."

So

dear ejk,

The future of our marital relations is in your hands. We will make no decisions without assurance from you that they will not result in a baby girl that looks like Max and has a masculine name. If you could please have another dream in the near (very near) future, it would be much appreciated by me (and probably even more by Mr. Keith)......pause for ecckks, and ewwws. Thanks in advance for your speedy response.

Sincerely,
Mom to plenty

Attention crazy people: This blog is not for you!

2007-03-28T15:45:00.000-05:00

I checked my stat counter today, (a "is this thing on?" kinda thing, since no one ever comments hint, hint) and was again amazed by the crazy google search phrases. I can't tell you how many variations of "lady pooped in her pants" I have seen, I think I mentioned "lady Angela spanking" before. This time I found "Laurie Berkner divorce", and "diaper punishment for girls". Say What?

Dear Crazy person in Sweden,
There is no appropriate punishment for potty training, they will get in in there own time. Likewise, there is no appropriate punishment for bad behavior that involves diapers in any way. This is true for both boys and girls. i can only hope your English is not so good and what you really meant was "Does anyone else feel like changing poopy diapers seems like punishment sometimes? Like when your kid eats raisins? or too many grapes? Or broccoli?"

Sincerely,
Jamie Keith

Right up there with "Allison wonderland"

2007-03-24T11:09:00.000-05:00

Pierce: "Hey mom. I know why her name is "Send-her-ella". Because they always send her to the dungeon or send her to clean everything...."

M.A.S.H.

2007-03-21T13:23:00.000-05:00

I live in a shack

I fly a helicopter

I am married to Jeff (from the Wiggles)

And I have seven children

Thank you, Ashton, for helping me remember a bit of what it's like to be eight.

Now "WAKE UP, JEFF!!" I have a feeling there are some diapers that need changing......

Knowing I probably stand alone on this one.

2007-03-16T19:59:00.000-05:00

I like to keep fairly up to date on what is happening in the world, but right now, I wouldn't know if we had gone to war with Canada or if they finally found the Loch Ness monster. I haven't watched much news lately, because I can't bear to see/hear/read about Anna Nicole or Britney Spears.

I know that a certain famous blogger has written several posts expressing sympathy for poor Britney. It honestly isn't that I don't have sympathy for a mother of two small children who is going through a messy divorce, I do, it's just I don't have more sympathy for her than every other mother who has small children and is going through a messy divorce.

Yes, she is in the public eye, but every divorce is experienced in the public eye. And while tabloids and magazine articles and t.v. celeb shows can be callous and brutal, they have nothing on the gossip that goes around schools, churches, and neighborhoods. Walking into a P.T.A meeting and having whispered conversations stop and glares and smirks comense , knowing that the minute you leave the whispers will begin again, do we really think that hurts less than seeing an article in The Enquirer? I also think it is highly ironic for gossip news hosts to point out that celebrities live their lives in the public eye. The general public can't feel too bad or they wouldn't flip through every tabloid that runs an unflattering story while they wait in line at the grocery store.

It's easy to express pity for a glamorous person who is disconnected, but if Brit had wound up overweight and unkempt in a trailer park, holding little Sean Preston on her hip in his t-shirt and diaper (from Wal-Mart, not a boutique), explaining how she was "just country" and that's why she was holding her baby on her lap while she was driving, or if we were confronted with videos of her partying nightly at hole in the wall clubs, showing her womanly tidbits, we would wonder why family services hadn't come to get her kids yet. I don't think that just because she has money and a highly paid manny she should get special treatment.

As far as the "I think she is self medicating" comments as to her drinking and such, I have to ask the obvious question; Isn't that what all substance abuse is generally about?

I guess I just feel that we should take a little of our concern and focus it more towards home. Because when you hear a local news story about a mother who has died and there are numerous possibilities as to the father, chances are that baby isn't going to end up in the lap of luxury. More likely foster care, and those are the children that sincerely need our support.

Mom to Many

Keithisms

2007-03-15T15:08:00.000-05:00

1.All of my kids (except Max) use or have used the contraction amn't. "I amn't hungry." It makes sense, it follows grammatical rules, and I am petitioning Webster for it to be put in the dictionary.

2. All of my children (except for Max, who just screams "MINE!") say or have said What I have instead of that I have. "Hey mom, you know that book what I have?" I think that might be kind of a British thing?

3. Ashton was in Kindergarten and had a homework sheet. She brought it to me for help, very confused. The object was to match the pictures of different foods with their beginning letters. She had completed all but one, and was left with a potato on one side and a p on the other. "I must have made a mistake somewhere, but there is only one b, and bread starts with b, right?" I hadn't realized that her whole life she had been saying botato, she honestly made it to kindergarten eating botato soup and botato salad.

4. Pierce likes to describe things as soaking. "Mom I am soaking hungry!" "It is soaking hot today!" This one brings concerned looks from people, who I believe are thinking he is mispronouncing the "f" bomb.

Ashton had 5 teeth pulled today, and today is the last day she will see her best friend for at least a few years. I think I may be taking it harder than her. Especially the teeth. Keep her in your prayers.....

Posting only because I feel obligated....

2007-03-13T15:30:00.000-05:00

And I'm not really sure why. Anyone who reads my blog either knows how hectic life can be with many little ones, or I am sure can sympathize. And it is not as though I am terrifically interesting...

Yet here I am. Posting quickly before I take the girls to their evening activity, as if doing so will make the world a better place.

All Keiths are well. YIPPEEE!!! (Trust me, this warrants caps and excessive exclamation mark usage.) There are still a few runny noses, an occasional cough, both with which are greeted with fierce glares from mom, meaning "don't you even think about getting sick again." The other day , Pierce told me his stomach was feeling funny. I said "no it's not." And I willed the stomach bug away.

We have been busy as usual. Ashton's best friend is moving to Germany this week, they have been together almost every day for the last two weeks, I am posting pics of Ashton and her friend and a turkey from the Oklahoma trails exhibit from the Zoo. Sheer randomness.

Cabin fever

2007-03-06T15:45:00.000-06:00

Wow. Today is the first day in two weeks that all of my kids made it to school. Every single Keith kid got this crazy "just-as-bad-as-the-flu" virus. That makes Keith history (let's hope history never repeats itself).

The effect on me? It is amazing to me how dependent on my routine I am. The past few months I have been doing a fabulous job of fighting of depression, but these last few weeks have been brutal.
I was happy to stay at home when I did (four score and two kids ago), and I am sure I would love it again given the opportunity, but when I am not expecting it, and when I am homebound with sick kids, let's just say it's not my cop o' tea.

But the good news? The fabulous news? Spring is slowly creeping in! I actually saw somebody mowing their lawn the other day, granted I think they were being a bit obsessive, or made they just had cabin fever, too. Who knows? Who cares? I saw a dandelion the other day! A beautiful yellow dandelion! We are going out of town this weekend to celebrate the coming of spring. Yeah, Spring!

Oh, and I? am the mother of five kids, age 11 to 2. TWO! My baby is TWO! Maybe we should have just one more.... :)

crazy talk

2007-02-27T10:22:00.001-06:00

Sick, sick, sick. That describes the overall health of our family. And my attitude about it. As in I am sick to death of all the sickness! I would believe it was a curse on our family, our very own plague, if I didn't know so many other families who have been hit hard this winter. And I know we haven't had the worst of it. I know several families who have had this extremely icky stomach bug that lasts for days, seems to go away, and then comes back to strike again just when you feed your kid something really gross like spaghetti. We only buy natural peanut butter, so my kids have avoided and peanut butter and salmonella sandwiches, and we haven't had strep throat once (and no ass strep, which is strep that presents itself, well I bet you can guess, like one friend's son had).

What we do have is this annoying "not the flu" virus. At first, we were ecstatic that Lillian didn't test positive for the flu. But now, on day 5 of fever, ridiculous congestion and drainage, and no appetite, I think the flu couldn't have been much worse, and at least we could have treated them with Tamiflu. And it's not just her, Ashton is sick as well. And Max just got better.

So here comes the part where I start to sound mildly disturbed. I believe the only cure for all of this is.... SPRING! Yes! Green grass rubbed across your cheek, pretty little blossoms, the sound of the wind blowing through new leaves, basking on a warm sidewalk, the first skinned knees of the new year, SPRING! I simply can't bear the teases we have had. We pulled out the capris and short sleeve shirts for the two wonderful 60+ degree days we had, only to cover them with sweaters in the days to come. I need, no we all need spring! Please come quickly, my favorite season of the year! Nurse the Keith kids back to health, lift my spirits, bring new life! That is my plea. May it be heard.

Mom to many (too many sick kids)

So I heard she got pinned..

2007-02-20T20:26:00.000-06:00

Wow! February has definitely been he month for Jordan! She is going to be Kim in "Bye, Bye Birdie". Although this discovery was initially met with some major sibling jealously on Ashton's part (who wanted to be Kim's best friend), she seems better after getting the script and seeing that she will get to sing most of her favorite songs, has a small solo in "The Telephone Hour" and will be in a lot of scenes. Jordan is ecstatic!

This week in why I love my kids

2007-02-18T19:55:00.000-06:00

1. The biggest news this week is that Jordan was accepted to Classen in the vocal music department! I can tear up the brochures for military school! I am ridiculously proud of her, she really did a lot of work, a lot of growing up this year to achieve this goal.

2. Pierce is sooo excited about learning EVERYTHING. He reads every sign he sees, if he can't read it, he will spell it and ask what it means. He is always counting/adding things, and loves to do inventive writing. He wrote several pages about our trip to the zoo today. "Wee sal seels." Yes, we are raising yet another okie, who adds an "l" to the end of any "aw" word. And he loves for me to sing to him at night, even though I have never sang a single note in tune (I don't quite have that Lizzee touch). He thinks I have a beautiful voice. His favorite song right now is "On top of spaghetti."

3. Lillian wants to read. The other day she and Pierce were having an argument as to whether or not Lillian was really reading a book. I told her that although she was not reading the words like Pierce was, that she was telling wonderful stories, and it is a great thing to be a storyteller. Not satisfied, she started making letter sounds "Ca, ca, cat. Ta, ta, turtle. See mommy, now I sound just like Pierce when he reads, so I am reading." She can now write Chad, mom, Max, and Lillian from memory.

4. Ashton loves riddles. She has been checking out riddle books from the library, and is proud to remember those she finds particularly clever. Like, "What is the first thing a bumble bee puts into your drink? His bee-hind."

5.Max, poor Max. He is still having a very hard time adjusting to mother's day out. He doesn't like sharing me or anything else with the other kids. He is very aggressive, and is even having nightmares about the whole thing. Two nights in a row, he would scream out, "No! No! Mine! Mine!" He is really taking one for the team. Pierce, Lillian and I are loving our new environment, I hate to see him suffer for the greater good. We had a great weekend, though. We borrowed a Laurie Berkner video from the library, and he loves it. I loves a change from The Wiggles and Dora. He also loved the zoo today.

this could only be more friggin' elegant if it were in a brandy snifter..

2007-02-14T16:17:00.000-06:00

Hope your Valentine's Day is filled with cheese...

General bitching,

2007-02-13T20:03:00.000-06:00

It's cold. That's an understatement. It's ?*!@ cold (insert your favorite explative). and I hate the cold.

I have a cold. An icky one. And it is interrupting several projects. The major one involves about eight years worth of pictures. I thought I would like scrapbooking. Not so much. So I had all of my pictures stored in picture boxes until last year. I got them out with the intention of buying regular albums to put them in, and Max dumped them. So I scooped them all up and put them back in the cabinet where they are stored. I have tried not to think of them too much, all those pictures, in no order whatsoever, but i couldn't take it any longer. So I pulled them out a few days ago, and have been trying to put them back in order. That's hard to do when you take Nyquil at 8:00 every night... And I pulled out all of the kids' last year spring/summer clothes to decide what I wanted to sell on Ebay. So there are piles. Lots and lots of piles of things, everywhere.

valentine's Day is tommorow, and we are not quite ready. I had to make one last trip to Target. I took the three little ones this afternoon, in the ridiculous cold. max was already poopy, he had done so on the way to take the girls to acting, so we ran straight in to the bathroom. "He's missing a shoe?" Some horrified woman pointed out. Yes, Max had taken one shoe and sock off in the car, and I hadn't noticed when I carried him in, in the freezing cold. And the other two? Were horrid. And that's a bit of an understatement too. Whiney, fighting, begging; horrid. Oh! And the top button of my pants? I realized it was unbuttoned when I got back in the van. Nice.

I'm eighteenminutes overdue for my Nyquil. Wish me luck for a better day tomorrow.

Sweet dreams

2007-02-10T12:49:00.000-06:00

One of the women I work with loves to find fun music for kids that doesn't make adult ears bleed. I have been a fan of Trout Fishing in America and TMBG kids cds for awhile,and I am always up for something new and NOT Dora. Max is still convinced that the Wiggles are the best, and doesn't show much interest in anything else, but if I have to hear Hot Potato one more time, I may shove a few hot potatoes in a few Wiggles. That's right, I'll wake up Jeff...

I was browsing through children's music and found this site which turns music we grew up with into lullabies. What a fun idea! You can listen to samples on their website, and while at first it might seem a little wrong to listen to "head Like a Hole" on a glockenspiel, it grows on you. Just another idea that cold have/should have been my million dollars...

2007-02-07T15:45:00.000-06:00

I had a bad "mom" day yesterday. You guys ever have those? Where you feel like the gorillas in the zoo are better qualified to raise your kids than you are? Where you are convinced that every other mother in the world has it more together than you do? Well, I have them sometimes, and yesterday was a bad one.

It wasn't that anything in particular went that much different than normal. It was just me, my attitude, my mood.

I woke up early, made it to work on time (been having a hard time with that), and had the house pretty much picked up before I left. After work, I came home, and we walked to pick up the girls. We played at the school playground. I let Ashton bring home a friend, and then I took them to their auditions for "Bye, Bye Birdie"

I told the girls I would stay and watch them, and I really wanted to. But, of course, all 3 younger kids were with me, and while they were not horrible, they made it pretty much impossible to really watch the girls. I stayed until they were finished singing, but had to watch from the doorway.

And then I cried. Most of the way home. I started thinking how many times Lillian had said "watch this mom!" at the playground and I had to respond with "hold on, I have to get your brother." I thought about the fact that we only read to or with each kid about four times a week, how we hardly ever let them have friends stay over. I cried for all the hand-me-downs they have to wear, the fact that we never go to the library anymore, that I don't feel like doing anything when we get home in the afternoon.

"why did I think I could do this? I can't even keep plants alive! We can't even remember to put the phones back on the charger at night! Why did I ever think I could raise five people?"

I came home and made dinner. Pierce said "Are we having chili? That's okay, I just won't eat."
Max cried while I made chili. I refrained.

I got on the computer after I had fed the children who were nice enough to eat the food I had made. I looked at Classmates for the first time in probably six months. There was a message from a good friend I hadn't talked to in about three years. It said she was now a proffesor of chemistry at a local junior college, she had been divorced, remarried, and in addition to the two children from her first marriage, she had three stepsons that lived with them. (If you are counting, that makes cinco, all boys, by the way) and?! she is pregnant! With a girl. And that will make six. More than me, people! I have no friends (away from the internet) with more than three kids. Her phone number was attached. I called right away.

See? That's why I believe in God, and that's the kind of God I believe in; although at times it isn't immediately evident, I believe God is practical. He gives pratical help, practical solutions to overwhelming situations. That was just the thing I needed to make it through the evening. I know it may not make much sense, but there it is. My faith is backed up by many small "miracles" if you will. coincidences, some may say, but they are too frequent and predictable for that. Always just enough to give me perspective, hope, and faith in other people. And I thank God for remember me enough to offer the help even when I forget to ask.

Oh! And I still can't comment? Something about my e-mail not being verified? And yet I can post? Blogger, I am sorry for all the bad things I have said (my fingers were crossed). Please stop making my life difficult.

Mom to many out

2007-02-05T22:16:00.000-06:00

I am feeling a little silly after Pam explained the whole commenting thing. I really am going to be the old lady who doesn't watch T.V. because she can't figure out how to use it. I am looking forward to commenting again, though.

I have been having a whole time with the kids growing up thing. We find out about Jordan's Jr. High application next week, so I am having to admit to myself that she is really going to Jr. High.

And to top it all off, Max turns two next month. I can no longer justify calling him a baby. I HAVE NO BABY! What am I supposed to do? I guess I will have to buy a puppy. Because I could seriously end up being just like this lady I was sitting next to at Jordan's audition. We were talking about our kids, and she said she had 11 year old twins, and a baby at home. I asked how old, and she laughed, and said, "I guess he's really not a baby. He's six years old. but he's my baby." Yeah. that will be me.

And then I my cd with camp pictures from last year came in the mail today. Yes, my husband made the cd, and yes, I have had access to the pictures for months, but there was something about getting it in the mail. I realized the pictures are almost a year old. They are of seriously smaller kids. Here's a sample, and a really cute current pic of Jordan singing. She does it a lot, and she does it well.

For only one comment today...

2007-01-31T16:40:00.000-06:00

You can help a poor, helpless blogger. WHY CAN'T I COMMENT??? Since I became a "new blogger", I haven't figured out how to leave comments. When I sign in with my old user name and password, it says they are incorrect. When I sign in with my new password and username, it takes me to my blog. WHY? Please try not to laugh too hard at me, and please help. I don't want to ask my husband. He is always "condescending computer guy" when he explains how to do these things (love ya, honey). Anyway, I await your help.

For Karen

2007-01-29T21:16:00.000-06:00

Karen requested a comment on her saturday post, but Blogger wouldn't let me comment. Ugghhh! So I decided to comment here,

When I had two children (yes, I do have some vague memories of that) I read an article in some parenting magazine about quality time. It suggested that if you could allot just 15 minutes of individual time for each child during the day, it would help improve parent/child relations. "Scoff, 15 minutes?! That is not nearly enough! Why I spend at least five times that amount on one on one time with my children!" Those were my come-back-to-haunt-you thoughts.

But the truth is, for mothers who are with their children collectively fot the majority of the day, it is easy to go an entire day without having really given an individual child undivided (not playing cards while checking homework, reading a book while changing a diaper, or folding the laundry and playing teacher) attention.

My four year old and my eight year old are the hardest for me to connect with. My four year old gets a lot of "I'll pretend to be Erika while you are Annaliese and I am also making a dentist appointment" attention, but I have to very consciously remember to give her true attention. And my eight year old is so much fun, she loves word puzzles and riddles... But the oldest always needs help with her homework, the six year old is learning to read, and Max is, well Max. So it is easy to take care of the seemingly more impotant needs and inadvertantly push aside the not so squeaky wheel.

But if you push them aside long enough, they can really start to squeak! One trick I have learned is to use an especially cheery voice while your little one is throwing a fit. Another is to whisper, or sometimes I have actually started acting like them. That works for Lillian, she always breaks into hysterics, but it just makes Max mad.

I know Jordan got ridiculous amounts of undivided attention, but I actually hovered too much. She has had the hardest time developing independence and problem solving skills. And a good sibling relationship is priceless. Knowing that they will be able to look back together and say "man, mom was a luittle nutso, huh?" gives me comfort (totally just kidding about that).

Anyway, in my humble opinion, it is the mothers who worry that they are not doing enough who reallly have nothing to worry about. Their kids know that they have always been and will always be loved.

Thanks a Bunch!

2007-01-28T12:00:00.001-06:00

A big thanks to whoever nominated me for the Blog Awards! I was so excited to see the nomination for best commenter, because I always worry that my comments are too long. And I can't seem to keep from frequently sharing my own similar experiences. But I love to leave comments! (as well as get them, hint, hint).

And to whoever nominated me for Blogger you would most like to meet? We'll be coming to your house next weekend! You can accommodate 7, right? Oh, and I hope you have Dora/Wiggles DVDs. Or else there will be a wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Seriously, Thanks! It definitely brightened my weekend!