Naptime Under The Golden Arches

Mikey is still adjusting to his toddler bed.  I never planned on taking him out of his crib so young, but his constant Houndini escapades have dictated otherwise.  Bedtimes have been difficult with no bars holding him in and naptimes are now non-existent. I'm thinking everyone is a bit sleep deprived lately.  A temporary condition I'm sure, well, at least until they hit the teen years, lol

After a sluggish start yesterday, I finally got motivated enough to get everyone dressed at 1pm & run much needed errands.  First we went to my work to pick up last week's paycheck and then we went to the bank to deposit my millions. After the bank it was off to the grocery store.  But on that fifteen minute drive to the grocery store something glorious happened.

Both kids fell asleep in their car seats at the same time.  YES!!  Naptime returns.....   My mind began spinning, how can I let them sleep and still get some quiet me time in?  Then in the distance the answer came to me....

 Sprouting from the horizon as if it were a sign from God, I spied the Golden Arches.   Perfect! I'll go through the drive-thru and get something deliciously unhealthy to eat.  Then savor each greasy bite while the toddler's nap behind me totally unaware.  I got a cheeseburger and diet coke and then pulled into an empty parking space. I locked the doors, turned up some tunes on a soft rock station and even found a magazine I've been wanting to read in the van.  Yes, I found a bit of heaven on Rte #1.... 

I guess it was a bit too peaceful, because I ended up nodding off too.  I woke up about 30 minutes later. What a sight that must have been for the customer's that were parked next to me.  I wondered briefly if they felt any sympathy for this exhausted woman, or if they laughed while I dozed gaped mouthed and drooling.  But that thought only entered my mind for a moment.  Because the only thing that really mattered to me was....

Naptime returned yesterday!  And I embrace any naptime these days, even under those glorious Golden Arches.  Thank you McDonalds, I had a wonderful time yesterday...    

Happy Father's Day. Dad!

My Dad with Sammi as a newborn....

Taking a break from my regularly scheduled journal entries to wish my Dad a very "Happy Father's Day".   

Dad,  there has never been a time in my life when I didn't feel loved by you.  Thank you for always being there to listen, to give me advice, to help me with a recipe, to give me a hug, to tell me a silly joke,  for instilling a love of gardening (tho, I will never use chicken manure, lol), for calming my fears about thunder storms,  for believing in me, for being a great role model, for being my hero.....

Dear Mom and Dad,

I remember the good times,
they're not so long ago.
Allowances were a dime,
sled rides in the snow.

I remember....

Dad at the piano
playing "Paper Roses".
Mom always there
to kiss bruised knees and noses.

Summer cookouts,
eating chicken by the tons.
I didn't want to stop
until Dad was done.

Car rides, songs,
my favorite request.
Sing "Now Is The Hour"
sang as a duet.

Toothfairies and Easter Bunnies,
all roles played so well.
Lots of laughter, funny jokes
at supper time to tell.

Trips to the beach,
running in the sand.
Afraid of the waves,
I'd hold Dad's hand.

Mom's singing voice,
what a beautiful sound.
Playing the guitar
as we danced around.

Sleepy Sunday mornings,
going off to church.
Sitting in the willow tree
upon my favorite perch.

You came to all our concerts,
track meets and the rest.
Sour notes, win or lose,
for you we tried our best.

I especially remember....

Christmas time,
the fun I always had.
Decorating the Christmas tree,
"Hey, where's Dad?"

Stockings filled, new pajama's,
the smell of tourque' pies.
Presents surround the Christmas tree,
stacked high up to the sky.

I thank you for all the memories,
and all they mean to me.
Your laughter and love,
the greatest gifts,
Will be your legacy....

Written by Michelle S. aka s0ngbird1962

Happy Father's Day, Dad!  ~~I love you.... 

 

Confession

Ok, I'm going to admit it....

I'm having a tough time adjusting to no nap-times during the day.  No nap-times means;  no mom time, no time to pick-up the house and actually have it stay that way for more than 5 minutes, no time to go to the bathroom without company or whining from the other side of the door, no time to get a break from playing referee, no time to take a proper shower,  no time to have a drink without being asked for a sip, or take a bite of food without having little fingers trying to claim it as their own.  Counting the days until they start kindergarten, lol.   Ok, so that's not true, (not wishing for time to fly) but today it feels  true.     

I just felt like the worst Mom today.  I yelled too much, put them in the corner and even spanked twice. They laughed at me.  They were just into everything and are so destructive.  I don't remember Spencer being that way.  Maybe I just didn't notice it because there was only one child then?  Mikey swung on the livingroom lamp & broke it (the 3rd one in about as many months), they got into a large container of raisins and proceeded to dump them all over the kitchen & bedroom floor, that'll teach me to try and pick up the livingroom.  They took all the cushions off the livingroom furniture and crushed little goldfish crackers on them, then pryed the screen off the window, that'll teach me to try and pick up the kitchen.  Argggghhhhhhhhhhh....

Today I cried.... I locked the toddler's in the livingroom with a gate and cried.  Seems silly now as I write this, but I was just so tired and overwhelmed.  How is it that a 1 & 2 year old can bring an adult to tears?  Who's in charge here anyways?  Sure as heck didn't feel like it was me today....

I finally surrendered.....the cluttered house won.  I decided to bring them outside to play on the deck.  I snapped this picture of the terror tots giving each other rides on their trike.   They are very lucky they are so darn cute!    But they'd be alot cuter if they started taking naps again..... : )

I hope that tomorrow I'll have more patience, thinking I might need some help....

                                 Hey God?

                                                    ......It's me, Michelle  

How We Met

The above pic is a self-portrait taken on our honeymoon, April 15th, 2002

**Links are in blue

For the past week, my journal has been featured over at   AOL People Connection: Local Community.  Thank-you AOL, it's still there today, but not sure how much longer it will remain.  After the paragraph description of my journal entry, there is a question.  "Where did you meet the love of your life?"  ...I've decided to put that answer in my journal.

First a bit of history from my past:  I married for the first time when I was barely 22 yrs old.  We dated for 2 years and I truly thought I would live happily ever after Once Upon A Time .  That fairytale was not to be, however, because my ex turned out to be an extremely controlling and abusive man.  I never saw that side of him until after we married.  If he could not control me with his words, he would strike out physically.  The first time he hit me was within the first two months of our marriage.  Talk about the honeymoon being over....  Because I do not like to even think about that time of my life, it's still too painful, I will make a long story short.  After one last assault on April 29, 1998, and after almost 15 years of marriage, I filed for divorce. I have never regretted that decision, my only regret is I didn't find the courage to do it sooner. My divorce was final January 9th, 1999.

Shortly after my divorce a few single girls from work and I went to check out some local single dances.  I knew immediately that scene was not for me, but I went with the girls three more times.  I admit, it was fun dressing up and going out with them, and more importantly, I realized that I was still desireable.   After many years of being called fat & ugly, one tends to believe it's true. 

One day at work (April 1999) the girls and I began talking about internet dating.  On a whim I decided to place a personal ad on AOL Digital City.  In my ad I stated that I was not looking for a serious relationship, just someone to have fun with during the summer.  Within a week I received 74 replies!  I would bring the replies and pictures into work, and the girls and I gave many of them nicknames.  Mike was dubbed "motorcycle man".   Mike was also the last person to reply before I removed my ad.  After weeding thru the masses, I decided that 5 of the guys were worth meeting.  I've heard about dating nightmares from the internet, but I consider myself one of the lucky ones.  Three out of the five guys I met were truly nice people.  Two were definitely players.  

What attracted me to Mike initially in our conversations online was his sense of fun.  He had gone sky diving twice, he scuba dived, he rode a motorcycle.  He was someone I could have fun with.  After a week we decided to meet at a race track.  In walked this big handsome guy carrying one single yellow rose.  We had a great time and felt an immediate connection.  A connection that terrified me.  That fear of commitment almost broke us up in the first year.  I felt our relationship was too good, I waited for the other foot to drop.  It never did and our love flourished.  On June 14th, 2000 Mike proposed to me at our favorite cabin by a stream in the mountains.  

Fast forward to present:  We got married on April 14th, 2002.  Two years and two babies later, we are still going strong.  Our love continues to grow and change.  Children tend to do that to a relationship, lol.  I know that I have found the man I will grow old with.  And to think I found him by placing a personal ad on a whim. 

Fairy tales do sometimes come true....

:::Riding off into the sunset on his motorcycle:::

Bad Mood Busted

Yesterday I had such an irritating day.  I was irritated because the toddlers would act up the moment the phone rang,  I was irritated  because the car in front of me drove too slow, or because the car that drove by my house went too fast.  I was irritated when I went grocery shopping and had no place to put the groceries because we have a brand new toilet for Mike's Mom in the back of our van.  I was irritated that I forgot that darn toilet was there and bought soooo many groceries.  I was irritated that that brand new toilet has been there for 6 days now and is still not installed.  Furthermore, I was irritated that because that new toilet has not been installed, we have her toilet tank water dripping into our bathroom. I was also irritated that I had forgotten about Spencer's baseball banquet at 6pm and I was supposed to bring a hot dish.  Yup, I was just downright irritated.  

So, last night when Mike decided we needed to bring our boat out for a test run, I did not want to go.  I tried to talk him out of it but I was beginning to irritate him, lol.  So I grudgingly went (We left the kids with Grammy).   I'm soooo glad he talked me into the boat ride.  The ocean was calm & the sunset was incredible.  The clouds were a beautiful blend of pink and red with golden flecks that glowed on the mirror-like water. It was so peaceful... I literally felt all the irritations of the day melt away.   With the exception of two other fishing boats we passed, it seemed that the ocean and sunset were created just for us.  Happily the good mood carried over into today.....

Today was just about perfect.  In the 70's, clear blue skies and no humidity.  I decided to bring the kids to the beach.  One of the things I love most about this tiny town is that it's only minutes from the ocean.  It was lowtide when we arrived, so with buckets and shovels in hand we went exploring.  We found  lots of shells, clams, snails, hermit crabs and a baby lobster.   We even took off our shoes to wade in the ocean....  We discovered one rock that was literally surrounded by hermit crabs.  As I was picking out 4 of them to put in the bucket to show the toddlers, Mikey suddenly screamed.  Poor lil guy got pinched hard by a hermit crab, it made his toe bleed.  He wasn't so thrilled about hermit crabs after that, nature lesson over....

When we got home I attempted to put them both down for a nap.  Sadly, I think their nap days are numbered.  I'm bumming....  Today was a day of discovery for Mikey.  At 21 months old he not only discovered that hermit crabs pinch, but he discovered that he can get out of his crib.  I heard this little voice proclaim "I did it!!" and then the patter of little feet running thru the kitchen.  Sammi was right there celebrating with him.  Unfortunately it wasn't a fluke, because he did it 4 times after that.  Yesterday this unexpected gain in independence would have irritated me, but today I feel like celebrating too.  Grape juice anyone??

 

Michelle's Top 10

You know it's time to go grocery shopping when......

1)   Your teenaged son whines "Mom there's nothing to eat in the house"....and he's right.   

2)  You discover your toddler eating dog kibble and you don't stop him.  Hey, protein IS protein....handing him a spoon.

3)  Your faithful ole' dog leaves you to beg at the neighbors table....

4)  You begin analyzing which fish in the aquarium would taste best....

5)  You tell the kids "let's pretend we're on 'Survivor'" and then feed them only rice for supper.  Ok, so I might throw in the fish from the aquarium....

6)  Your 21 month old son who is no where near potty trained, is now wearing pink Cinderella pull-ups.

7)  You open the freezer & it's empty except for two very dead frozen 10 year old piranha.  Hubby refuses to part with them...

8)  You find actual bites taken out of the plastic play food....

9)  You find yourself wondering..."Is Jello a food group?"

And most importantly....

10)  There's no more chocolate left in your secret hiding place....

Guess who needs to go grocery shopping tomorrow...  ; )

HUGE Smile!

FINALLY!  I'm back...........

It seemed like forever, weird how 7 weeks could feel like "forever."  Remind me to NEVER ever attempt to fix a problem with my computer again.  Still not exactly sure what happened, but the guy who was finally able to fix our computer said we had "major software problems."  After I deleted the trojan virus the computer would not even boot up. Anyways, the nightmare is over and Happy Days are here again.  :::truly smiling:::

The loss of my computer seemed to be the start of a losing streak for me... Not only did my computer crash, but I lost my cell phone, my car/house keys and a diamond from my wedding band.  (All still lost....)  Thought I might be losing my mind.  But hey, at least I didn't misplace the kids.... 

On the bright side I did gain a few things too....  

I gained five pounds from watching too many talk shows & kiddie shows while on my forced AOL hiatus.  Also, all those baby socks that always mysteriously disappear each time I do laundry, reappeared.  Suddenly I had this HUGE pile of baby socks, some didn't even fit anymore. :::scratching head:::  Do washing machines regurgitate when full?  Thinking my washing machine is hungry again tho, because I swear those baby socks are beginning to disappear once more. 

Speaking of gaining & disappearing....

While I was away, I gained another year to my life or did another year of my life disappear?  On May 8th, I turned 42!  That's only 8 years from being 50.  Life slow down!!  I have friends who think I'm crazy to have "started over" by having babies at age 40.  Some of them are now becoming grandparents (now THAT would make me feel old, lol).  I don't think I'm crazy, only blessed.  It's definitely hard to feel old when I have two toddlers under-foot all day.  I love my life, most days....

The last thing I gained in the past few weeks is a black stray cat.  Well, sort of.... I keep trying to "ungain" him.  He's found a way to move into our basement.  Mike keeps shooing him outside, but the eviction never lasts very long.  I'll go downstairs to do the laundry and there he is, peering at me from a high shelf in the corner.  Hmmm, I've never been superstitious but just maybe there's something to black cats and bad luck.  See? I'm not losing my mind and losing things, it's the cat's fault!  Or maybe......

He's a cat burglar.  Yeah, that's it.... 

Main Entry: cat burglar
Function: noun
Date: 1907
: a burglar who is adept at entering and leaving the burglarized place without attracting notice

Creeping around in stealth mode while dressed in black fur.  Next time we catch him we'll check to see if he has pockets.  Hey, give me back my cell phone, car keys & diamond! 

**Going to check the basement now....