Summer Fun and A Clean Front Hall Closets.

Summer has taken hold, sucking me under into a world that blogging takes last place.

But I am alive.  ALIVE!

Today it will rain all day and I have laundry to catch up on.  Yes I mention the mortal mommyblogging enemy.

And a  book to finish.

And a double birthday party to get ready for.  13 more days until I have 30+ people journey from all over my great state to pay homage to my two wonderful children.

But for now I will leave you with my new and improved front hall closet, which always seems to fall hard after a cleaning.

I hope these extreme measures of organizing work.

 S-shower curtain hooks from Wallie World  to hang my very pathetic purse collection and those very environmental friendly grocery bags I always forget to bring with me when I go grocery shopping.

Nice Huh?

Add a vertical shoe rack also from Wallie.  Shoes on the ground is the biggest mess-maker, hoping this keeps them organized!

Baskets on top for hats and scarves.  Next week I might buy matching containers to store them, but this should do for now!

Spring/summer coats. The black bags contain all the stuff that needs to find it's rightful owner. 

The metal skirt hanger is for drying out all those wet gloves, hats and scarves come winter.   Works like a dream!

Please ignore the plastic bags on top: Supplies for above mentioned homage.

Hard to see from the glaring light of the flash, and the white on white, but this is an accordion style hook placed at kid level   

Let the kids hang up their own coats I say.

  Independence is the name of the game here.  

INDEPENDENCE I SAY WILL RULE THE DAY!

"A clean house is a happy house."  Someone said that right?  Can they come and clean the rest of my house?  I am fricken exhausted.

Joey Sparkles

I am in kitty heaven: Meet JOEY SPARKLES the newest member of our home....

....and no you can't have him.

One More Angel in Heaven

Sometimes in the mix of copious blogs you miss a good one.  SummerM, one of my oldest, most opinionated, why I love her, blogger friends linked this video on Twitter....

FromYouTube:
Carla Zilber-Smith died May 21st, 2010 of ALS, but at her funeral, she had one final surprise: a video that she had kept secret for over a year, even from her own family, that brought the audience (because of course her funeral had an audience) to laughter, tears, etc.

If you want to read more about Carla, go to carlamuses.blogspot.com, where she blogged for several years. Carla is the subject of the upcoming documentary "Leave Them Laughing: A Musical Comedy About Dying," which you can find out about at leavethemlaughingfilm.com.

Beautiful, no other words.
How awesome would it have been to read this woman as she lived her moments, which to me is the best part of blogging.  May she rest in peace always.

Last Day of School

It's scary and frightening and exciting all at the same time.
I dropped off Nolan today and I cried.  Not because I was going to have two children in my house 24-7 without a break, but because my boy is growing and getting bigger and there is nothing, nothing I can do about it.
I can't imagine the sort of excited energy he will have when I pick him up today.  The idea that sitting in a classroom is done, and endless hours outside is heaven for a little boy. 
I know we will make it through these warm, hot, humid sticky months and wonder where our time went. 
Just when things get crazy and I am ready to ship him off to year round boarding school I can come back and look at this post.  A reminder that it is all good.

A kid can't live on ranch dressing alone

I look over at the three year old and see her, minus dipable carrots,  eating the ranch dressing from the bowl with her fingers.

Yum!
This gives new meaning to unexceptionable double-dipping

Of course I don't put the carrots on the plate for my health, I hear they are kinda good for you. 
But what do I know I am just a mom.

A Poem

Today I will tackle the couch

long and lean

it beckons me

to lay

to sit

to relax my tired bones

To let rest

all the things

that need

and have to get done

The people who need me

to maybe take care of me today

I have nothing interesting to say.  Nothing.  Nothing.  Nothing.  I am a cavernous hole of nothingness.  Nothing.  Nothingness.  Boring and trite I am the most pathetic blogger ever.
So I leave you with Nothing.
Sorry.

May 25, 2010

As I write this there is a storm outside.  Thunder, lightning,  hail and high winds.   Did I ever tell you I am a little afraid of thunderstorms?   I am.  That sense of the unknown.  The load noise.  The flashes of light that come out of nowhere.  It seems like a childish fear, I have a natural reaction to pull the covers over my eyes, as if a large piece of cloth will protect me from the chaos outside.
I know I shouldn't diminish my fear, it is not childish to be afraid.  Thunderstorms are a dangerous beast and fear is warranted.  I do know though that I have to remain calm for the kids.  Laugh away the fear.  Proclaim "Strikes!" when the loudest of the claps shake our home.  Try hard not to put my fear on to them. 

 

May 21, 2010

Mommy House Rules:

1.Band aids for gushing blood only.

2. Hands to home.

3. Feet to home.

4.Any appendage that could touch your sibling  to home.

5.Ask and you shall NOT receive.

6.Be a good example to your sibling and friends.

I have invented these rules to help with the hell that is sure to come come summer.  I am scared.  Frightened. I am shaking in my flip-flops. Not only do I have my own wonderful children, but I also have another little guy during the day.  At any given moment it go from pure bliss to total chaos. 

My first step to prep for summer was to get the oldest into some kind of camp/school thingy, and thankfully the school district remedied this step.  "N" will go 4 days a week for reading tutoring, which he needs and then science and math programs.  The science and math programs are geared more in a entertainment way, I am sure some experimenting will go on.

"M" will have to stay by my side one more year considering all the park and rec programs are for 4 year olds, and she just is not there yet.  I was none to please they took away the 3 year old ballet program this year, she has been gearing up for it all year (sad face).  I am hoping some other place will come up with a dance class that is affordable.

Summer goes fast, and I know all will go well.  If worse comes to worse I always can run to the farm (mommy's house)for a short respite.  

It's good to have a plan.

 

May 19, 2010

Volunteering is a sport.  It should be in the Olympics.  I'd win the gold this week.  It never seems to stop when your kids are in school, there is always something for you to do.
This week I went from field trip chaperon to preschool snack helper.  Board meetings to fundraisers it is what a mom does, or what a crazy mom does.  Whatever. Semantics.
If you are a mom, in some way shape or form, you have to be crazy person.  Sane people would not put up with all this shit.
Anyhoo I love to volunteer.  Scratch that.  I love it except when I am not calling my mom in tears.  Because I do that.  Call my mom in tears. Sad for many reasons...
1. I am 33.
2. I realize when my children are 33 they will probably call me on the phone in tears and this means my job as mom is never really done.

Back to volunteering, it is a great feeling to help.  It is a total selfish I know, and I don't care.  We don't usually  submit ourselves to thing that make us feel awful.  Things that make us feel like shit.  We do thing that lift our spirits.

I volunteer too because I am not out working in the trenches.  I am at home working my ass off, but sadly that doesn't amount to jack when you go back out in the work force.  If I can pad my resume with a few board positions and volunteer items the more the merrier.  Again selfish, but necessary.

Now with all this volunteering I need a nap....

 


 

May 16, 2010

*So ends a "husband works" weekend.  12 hour shift means I have the kids all day, all weekend.  We have reached the point that I don't run to every cry.  I ignore the fighting, in fact I  ran into the bathroom yesterday and turned on the faucet then flushed to toilet, twice, to drowned out the noise.

*I finished reading As Cool As I Am.  I am also fascinated by men who write "coming of age" tales and the main character is a teen girl.  They must have been a teen girl in another life.  Or they are really fascinated by teen girls, which is kind of creepy.

*I also read The Opposite of Love, which has been sitting on my book shelf forever.  When I finally finish a book I have been  putting off there is this great sense of accomplishment.  If I can finally finish Wuthering Heights
that would beyond that great sense; I will have to throw a party. This book is a great sore spot for me, every time I start it I cry.