Putting Off the Inevitable

The time is rapidly approaching for a blog name change. I have to admit...I'm kind of attached to this blog name. It's been with us since the beginning. I'll dry my eyes as I think about the other things I have recently discovered I am quite attached to.

We were given new silverware for Christmas. In order to accommodate a large dinner crowd, I finally got up the guts to replace the old silverware at Easter. I nearly DID have to dry my eyes. I was replacing the silverware Travis and I chose soon after we were married. As silly as it sounds I remember feeling like our silverware style expressed something about us. I peeked at it the other day in the back of the drawer and it looks so dull and used. Just the same I'm attached to the set.

While on the kitchen topic I must mention our dishes. Plates, bowls, mugs, glasses. We chose these all shortly after we were married as well. Again, feeling the style said something about us. For the last few months we've had a serious problem...our dishes STINK! There are few things worse than attempting to take a refreshing drink of cold water and smelling WET DOG! What do we do? The thought of replacing the dishes really makes me sad. The thought of replacing the dish washer makes me ill. In this case I think being ill might be more productive.

For the benefit of those still reading, I'll continue...a name change. I wonder which name I would more likely become attached to..."Five Guys and a Doll" or "Four Guys and Two Dolls". What do you think?

Our Snow White

This morning Theron came running into my room, way too early, to announce his amazing discovery, "Mom! Charlie's hair is WHITE!"

Just about.

Dress Shirt Obsession??

white shirts=17
blue shirts=7
striped shirts=1
plaid shirts=1
total shirts=26

This is not the number of dress shirts found in our house to clothe a male body but rather the number that I just finished ironing and putting away.
I think you get the idea after viewing only one of the three closets.

Baby Genius?

One day, when Isaac was approaching his first birthday, I was at the pediatrician's office in sunny Arizona. I over heard two women talking who seemed to be strangers to each other. They both had new babies and also seemed to be first time mothers, just like me. After asking each other how old their babies were one of the mothers told the other that her six week old babe could sit up. I chuckled to myself knowing, from my wise nine or ten months of experience, that this was highly unlikely. The other mother continued the conversation by telling the first that her baby could, too (at a whopping three months), and that she also said, "mama and dada." I was relieved to give up my eavesdropping when Isaac's name was called to see the doctor.

I recently read a magazine article, "My Baby Can Read", that brought me back to this funny experience. The author called bragging moms "one-uppers". I wondered how many times I had been guilty of "one-upmomship" and know it must be more than I think. As quickly as I acknowledged that I might be worthy of holding this title I began to justify my actions, thinking, "But can't I tell my friends about the amazing, funny, or just downright cute things my boys do?"

And so...at the risk of claiming the gold medal in "one-upmomship"...I would just like to say that Charlie can be so irresistibly cute and smart (more on his whining abilities later) and here is the proof.

Outdoor Eating

The weather is slowly but surely warming up. We ate outside on the deck for the first time this season. We had grilled Salmon, rice, corn on the cob, and salad. It was a colorful and tasty meal. I wasn't quite quick enough to catch the meal before we devoured it. We finally had to tell the boys that they had to stop eating. Who knew they would love Salmon so much? It must be the amazing blond Chef who cooked the Salmon to perfection.

The after dinner activities involved three crazy boys and one poor red cardinal. He must not have minded too much because he kept coming back for more.

Meet Larry

After some extensive journal research I have determined that Theron has been calling Isaac "Larry" since June, 2007. This nickname came about when Isaac discovered Veggie Tales. Larry, the cucumber is one of the main characters in these Tales and quickly became Isaac's idol, especially when Larry played "Larry Boy" (a superhero cucumber).

Isaac has been caught, on many occasions, introducing himself to others as Larry. We frequently feel an urgent need to explain to strangers that we did not name our boy Larry.

Theron faithfully calls Isaac Larry. We often hear Theron yelling at the top of his lungs, "LAAAAA-RREEEEEE!!" The events that follow this yell are usually not pleasant.

Isaac hasn't been much of an artist until a few months ago when he started bringing pictures home from preschool that were more than a few effortless scribbles.

He came home from school with this picture of Larry Boy that he drew...or maybe it is a self portrait.

Blogger's Block

After a week off...

The boys helped Travis begin planting the garden this season.

They started off slow.

They planted two rows of sweet peas.

And now we wait...


CORRECTION: And a row of carrots. Travis would like everyone to know that there is much more to come.

The Safety Patrol

I made a quick phone call to the Doctor's office while driving in the car and when I hung up I heard Theron say from the back of the van, "Mom, did you know it is dangerous to talk on the phone while you are driving?"
Me: (Gulp) "Who told you that?"
Theron: "I learned it on the computer from the Safety Patrol. I know all about car safety."
Isaac: "Yeah, and you should never listen to your ipod and sing really loud while someone is driving because that will distract the driver."
Me: "Yep, you guys are right."
Theron: "Well, why did you talk on the phone while you were driving mom?"
Me: "Uhhhh..."

Some other valuable things that I learned during this lecture:

• When you are in the car you should always buckle your seat belt.
  
• If there is a fire in your house you should never open a door if it feels hot. You should go to the window and yell for help.
• If there is a fire man coming toward you, you should not run from him. You should go to him for help.

So...sorry to all those of you who were previously on my "call while driving in the car" list...you are being ousted for the cause of being a good example to my kids. They are always watching...