Share this:

After hosting two back-to-back birthday parties for my boys last year, I decided I’d take it easier on myself this year and do one combination party. They agreed on a camping theme. That sounded like fun to me, so I got started. I designed the invitations myself so that I could use the elements in other party things like the favors. I like continuity, but I don’t do the licensed character parties with printed plates and such.

The weather was not good to us, but hey, who hasn’t camped in the rain? Especially in the Pacific Northwest. So, we soldiered on and the kids had a blast regardless of the weather. They played on the new play structure. We roasted marshmallows and made s’mores over the camp fire. That was possibly everyone’s favorite part. We did have to skip the cute little tents in the yard, though. Darn.

Here are some of the details from the party. I didn’t get many actual party pics because it was raining, and I was busy with s’more making.

These “hobo packs” were the party favors.

Campfire cupcakes and chocolate kiss “acorns”. Tasty.

What was inside the hobo packs; gummy bears, s’mores mix, compass, frog, and bandana.

 

Share this:

This year we decided to get a play structure for the kids. I found a really cool one. The kind of thing I would have traded my Halloween Candy for my entire childhood. So I convinced Modern Man that we needed to buy the kit so he could build it. It took some convincing, but I’m persuasive.

I had no idea how much work would be involved in this thing.  First, Modern Man had to cut down a tree to make space in the area we wanted to put the structure. He didn’t need much convincing to do that. Every guy likes to use power tools. Every guy likes to cut down trees. Am I right?

Then there was a stump to contend with. So, again with the power equipment. He got a stump grinder. He let Modern Boy run it. It was cool.

Then he brought in the heavy artillery. The ground had to be leveled. It required a tractor. (insert manly grunt here.) Dirt was moved and removed. Now we had a big mud pit. The boys were thrilled. We probably could have left it at that, but I might have gotten tired of the constant mud tracked into my house. Might have.

Then the building began. It took 2-3 men about 2 full days. With supervision from the Junior Foremen, of course. And many choice words from the construction crew. I even helped a little. It has a 2-story play house with balcony, steering wheel, telescope, rock climbing wall, slide, chalkboard, picnic table with tic-tac-toe, hanging rings, and yes… even swings.

It took 5 weeks in total to complete the whole project. A timeline I hadn’t really anticipated. But I also didn’t anticipate the enormity of the scope of work. It is now complete and being enjoyed. Modern Man rocks. And so do Grandpa and Scott. That’s all I have to say.

Share this:

I’m the horrible mom who doesn’t like to take her kids to the park. That’s right. I said it.

Here’s my problem. Municipalities spend many thousands of dollars on these amazing play structures with cool slides and climbing things that I would have given a childhood worth of Halloween candy for as a kid. So I bring my kids to visit these magnificent structures so that they can play and expand their minds and expend some energy. This is my goal in everything I do with my kids; expend their energy.

What really happens is that these municipalities, in their poor judgement, have installed swings. I hate swings. I used to love them. Now, when we come to these beautiful parks with these huge play structures there are always swings. My boys might go down a slide or two but then all they want to do is sit on a swing a be pushed. Thus, they sit and I expend my energy. This is not the plan.

“Push me higher!” they say. “Run under me!” they say. All I want to do is sit in the sunshine and watch my kids run like idiots until they practically pass out. That is my sole goal and intention, and my ultimate fantasy when it comes to park-going.

Yesterday my 4-year-old literally begged me to take them to the park. It was a glorious day. I was in a good mood. I took them to a park. What did they do? Nothing. My oldest sat on the grass under a tree. We have grass and trees at home, I said. Go play, I said. Nothing. My youngest wanted to be pushed in the swing. I’d want to be pushed in a swing, too, if all I had to do was sit there and enjoy the ride. This was not the plan.

Soon there will be a play structure in our yard. I’m thinking about leaving the swings off entirely. “Oops. I guess the swings weren’t in the box. Darn.”

Someday I’ll put the swings on. When they can learn to pump on their own.

Am I the only one in this camp? Tell me there are other moms who choose the parks without the swings. Are there such magical places? Do tell.

Share this:

We pass a small cemetery on the way to and from my son’s preschool. Yesterday, when we went home there was a funeral service. The boys asked me what was going on. Probably thinking it was a party or something a lot more fun. I explained that it was a funeral, that someone had died, and that people were remembering them and paying their respects before they were buried.

I thought I’d be hit with tough questions like, “what happens when someone dies?” and “will you die someday?” But what I got hit with was “How do people die?” This lead into a big discussion which I turned in my favor, using it to outline some of the things they shouldn’t do. Like play in the street. Or climb high things. Or ride motorcycles. Or leave the house.

Anyway… I was proud of my ability to think on my feet and turn it into a reinforcement discussion.

Fast forward 4 hours. My 4-year-old is complaining about some horrible injustice placed upon him by his mother – the oppressor. To which my reply was, “Life is tough.”

Without missing a beat, in walks my 2-year-old with the follow up, “And then you might die. And someone would put you in a box in the ground. Dead.”

Consequently, one of the older fish in the tank died last night. Crap. I hate foreshadowing. At least we had tackled the subject somewhat. And he didn’t get to go in the ground. He went where all the other fish in this house before him have gone. In the toilet. Amen.

Share this:

My oldest son and I have been talking about jobs lately. Mostly because of my mother getting a new job. She moved out to Oregon to be with us all about a year ago.  Last week she got a job at a great company and I was telling the kids about it. This is how the conversation went;

Me: I have great news. Nana got a new job!

Wy (4.5 years): Wow! That is so exciting. I’m so buh-pressed (translation: IMpressed) that an old lady like her could get a job!

Insert fits of laughter here. I had a hard time continuing the conversation.

There have been a lot of follow up conversations about jobs since. They weren’t as funny. Well, today as we rode in the car he asked me how to get a job. I explained that’s it’s a long and arduous process sometimes. It’s based on qualifications and schooling.

Daddy, I explained, had gone to several years of college after regular school to get what’s called a degree as an engineer. Then he had to get a job working as an engineer to gain experience. Then he got another job and another. (You get the drift) When he had acquired enough skills he was able to get the job he has now.

Wy: What kind of skills?

Me: Well, like designing machines, building machines, fixing machines….

Wy: And making paper airplanes! Daddy has skills making paper airplanes. I bet that’s how he got his job.

Me: Yep. I’m sure that’s what did it.

He has decided he’s going to make pizza to gain some skills. I told him that might be a good place to start. I also told him not to rush it. He’ll have plenty of time to work when he’s older. All in good time.

Share this:

We had a couple of big milestones to celebrate recently. My oldest has been successfully sleeping through the night without nighttime diapers, and my youngest is now potty trained and not sleeping with a pacifier. This is definitely cause to celebrate.
Modern Man came up with a plan. We would pick him up at work and drive to his favorite pizza place that serves great pizza and has a huge game area for kids. I had never been there, so I had my concerns. Would the game be age appropriate for our boys? Would they be able to reach them? Would they have fun?
It turns out we are the best parents ever. Who knew? They had a blast. We bought $25 in tokens for them to play with. They played just about every game in the place that they could, that didn’t involve shooting people. (there was only one!) They won tickets for playing. 506 of them to be exact.
Then we sat and ate pizza and toasted the boys’ achievements. The pizza was delicious.
After dinner we let the boys trade in their tickets for prizes. The oldest wanted handcuffs and a candy. The youngest wanted pink sunglasses, a pink bouncy ball, and a candy. Everyone was happy. Score!
Then we headed home for the second part of our evening. We were going to have a family slumber party. (Meaning we’d let the boys stay up late watching a movie in the dark and attempt to let them sleep on the floor together.) On the way home the boys decided what movie to watch.
We watched Cinderella in the dark until way past their bedtime. Then I put them to bed on the floor of the oldest’s room.
Ten minutes later I put them to bed in their own beds. Whew.

Best. Parents. Ever.

Seriously, we had the best time. We are finally at a place where we can successfully do these kinds of things. Modern Man and I are already planning what to do next. It’s possible we are more excited than the kids.

Share this:

OK, I know it’s past Christmas and I no longer need an advent calendar, but the kit was on sale. Need I say more?

I’ve been eying this kit all season and waiting for it to go on clearance. I have an advent calendar but it was broken and the little doors were too little to get anything into. Gotta have room for candy, right? Right. This one has much bigger compartments. Win.

When I brought it home this is what it looked like. Well… after I assembled it.

I painted it, covered each box in Christmas paper and embellished the front with numbers and other fun embellishments. Now it looks like this.

Ahh… much improved. And I am ready for next Christmas already! Yes, I like to think of myself as way ahead of the game instead of behind it. Those Christmas cards everyone got after Christmas, they are actually for 2013. See? Way. Ahead.

Share this:

I’m normally not a New Year’s Resolutions type of gal, but this year I have a good reason to make some changes. On December 30th I went to the emergency room with chest pains. We waited almost 2 hours and, because kids were restless, my pains had subsided, and the wait was still hours, I checked myself out and went home. (Seriously? I can see now why people die of heart attacks in the waiting room.) The next day, it happened again and hubby drove me to the ER once again. This time I was seen right away. They did a battery of tests that, thankfully, all came back normal.

We still don’t have any real answers as to what is going on with me, but it was obvious to me that some changes needed to be made. I talked to the ER doc about stress and it’s more severe symptoms. It’s possible that the pains were brought on simply by stress. Yikes.

So my resolution this year is dedicated solely to relieving and removing stress from my life. I’m sharing this with you mostly so I feel some accountability to those of you out there in internet land. But in an easy-going, non-stressful kind of way. (See, I’m already trying) Here is my plan.

1. Cook meals ahead. Meal planning is a major source of stress for me, especially when I haven’t even considered dinner until about 4:30 and everything is still in the freezer. Planning meals ahead has always helped my stress level, so I intend to get back to that. Even more, I intend to actually cook portions of meals ahead of time. I have friends that do this and I’ve always admired their forward thinking. It totally blows my mind to think of the time and stress this would save me. It’s time I jumped on the band wagon.

2. Find an outlet. I don’t do anything for myself right now. Probably a common mom trait. I need something that I can get away to do just for me. The doc says exercise is a great stress relief. I’m not big into running, treadmilling, stair stepping, aerobics or anything like that so the word “exercise” is kind of a four-letter one to me. Dance, however, has always been something I enjoy, with a side benefit of being exercise. So I am hoping to find a Zumba class or something like that to squeeze into my schedule.

3. Play more. I want to set aside time to play each day with my kids. Time that is just for them and me. Sometimes this stresses me out. They stress me out. My thought here is that paying that attention to them exclusively will satiate their need for me and my time and allow me more time to myself. I’m hoping. Stop laughing.

4. Sit with my cat more. It has been scientifically proven that sitting with a cat on your lap relieves stress. Done. I will sit with my cat more often.

5. Ask for help. This has always been a hard thing for me to do. I don’t like to ask for help. I guess that’s a pride thing. What I really want is for my husband to recognize when I need help and just offer it. This doesn’t happen. Am I right, girls? So I have to get better at asking. And not just from him. I have a great support network of friends and family that I can ask as well. Even though that’s hard.

6. Learn to say “No.” This is an important skill that I often have a hard time with. I’m a helper. I want to help people. I want to be involved in things. Everything. My health is obviously suffering for it. So it’s time I got better at saying no. That means recognizing my personal limits. This could possibly be the hardest one for me.

These, among other things still undecided, are the steps I’m intending to take to help relieve my stress and hopefully improve my health in the process. It’s going to take more examining of the things in my life that I’m currently doing and my current commitments to see if there are other areas I can make changes. Baby steps for now.

What are your resolutions? How do you relieve or avoid stress?

Share this:

Having two active boys has changed my parenting style. For my own sanity and health I’ve had to adjust my expectations.  I used to forbid crazy activity, wild shenanigans, tom-foolery, and anything potentially hazardous. Ha! I’ve learned to pick my battles. It saves my stress level.

For example, rough housing was out of the question just a year ago. My oldest was 3 1/2 and the youngest was 1 1/2. They were easier to control then. (Ah, the good ol’ days) It was simple to just separate them when they got too rough. Time out when the oldest hit the youngest, and so on.

Over the past year things have changed a bit. Strict “Don’t do that” has turned into warnings that always bear the final “if it goes wrong, don’t cry to me!” My oldest is the biggest offender. He is constantly wrestling with the dog, for example, and getting nipped then crying to me after I warned him not to do exactly what he did. He doesn’t usually find much sympathy with me.

The other day I busted them jumping off the fifth stair. I cautioned them against the activity and warned them of potential injury. Good mom. They didn’t heed my warning. Someone got hurt. He didn’t get much sympathy. And of course I always say, “Now do you understand why I told you not to do that?” Not that that changes anything. They were back to it shortly after anyway.

I’ve come to the conclusion that they are just going to have to learn by making their own mistakes, getting hurt, and so on. It’s the way life is, right? You have to learn by making your own mistakes. No matter the advice others who have gone before give you. It’s how we learn. I just didn’t realize that boys have such a crazy long learning curve. I had no idea it would take so many mistakes, boo-boos, bangs, time-outs and owies. I had no idea that I would have to repeat things thousands of times for them to get it. Maybe more. Heck, they haven’t learned a thing. I could go on saying the same things for years. They still do really stupid things and end up getting hurt.

My philosophy now is different. If I warn you not to do something stupid, and tell you the possible consequences, and you choose to do it anyway…. Don’t cry to me!

Have a safe and happy New Year!

 

Share this:

My dad doesn’t bake. Ever. EVER.

He showed up at my house today and said he had a project for him to do with the boys. Great! I thought. But then he said, “It’s a baking project.” Really? I was a little nervous. My dad, my kids, and a hot oven. Eek.

He described the project. Set a Rolo on top of a pretzel, melt it a little, then press a pecan into the top of it. Sounded simple enough.

The boys loved it! They did great, too. And I have to admit, it was so dang cute watching them do a little project with their PopPop. Good job, PopPop!

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! Enjoy your holiday.