Summer is Here!

yeah so i know it's really the "FIRST OFFICIAL DAY" since school just got out, but can i just say i have a feeling this is going to be the first summer i've actually enjoyed since the one before my senior year of high school? these past two weeks i have played with the kids in the yard, eaten those silly frozen kool aid popcicles, splashed in the pool so much i got those little concrete blisters on my toes, laid in the sun and felt the heat radiating on my skin, lounged on the back deck in the hammock, eaten dinner outside, done yard work (*gasp*), had field day at neal's school, played in the sprinklers, washed my car (van) in my swimsuit while getting everyone all sudsy and squirted everyone down with the water hose. LIFE IS GOOD! Oh yeah. now granted, it may only be days before i'm ready to pull my hair out with the "he hit me", "he's looking at me", "i'm hungry", "can i go outside", "is it time to go swimming yet", etc etc etc but hey at least i'll be tan, my yard/house work will be done, and my kids will be able to say "I had a blast with my mom this summer". still looking forward to the movies and library on rainy days, some silly arts & crafts, and maybe a nap or two, a trip to six flags, two weeks vacation with chris, the boys, and my stepdaughter, and of course, by august, the first day of school, lmao.

yes, life is good, and summer, well let's just say they had it right in school, work 9 months and play for 3! everyone deserves a summer break, even mommies!

Raising Boyz

I found this on a new friends blog, she as well has 3 boys. AHHHH how true this rings!

Raising Boys The following came from an anonymous Mother in Austin, TX.... Things I've learned from my Boys (honest and not kidding): 1. A king size water bed holds enough water to fill a 2000 sq. ft. house 4 inches deep. 2. If you spray hair spray on dust bunnies and run over them with roller blades, they can ignite. 3. A 3-year-old boy's voice is louder than 200 adults in a crowded restaurant. 4. If you hook a dog leash over a ceiling fan, the motor is not strong enough to rotate a 42-pound boy wearing a Batman underwear and a Superman cape. It is strong enough, however, if tied to paint can, to spread paint on all four walls of a 20 X 20-foot room. 5. You should not throw baseballs up when the ceiling fan is on. When ceiling fan is used as a bat, you must throw the ball up a few times before you get a hit. Ceiling fans hit a baseball a long way. 6. The glass in windows (even double-pane) doesn't stop a baseball hit by a ceiling fan. 7. When you hear the toilet flush and the words "uh oh", it's already too late! 8. Brake fluid mixed with Clorox makes smoke... and lots of it. 9. 80% of men who read this will try mixing Clorox with brake fluid. 10. A six-year-old boy can start a fire with a flint rock even though a 36-year-old man says they can only do it in the movies. 11. Certain Lego's will pass through the digestive tract of a 4-year-old boy. 12. Play Dough and microwave should not be used in the same sentence. 13. Super Glue is f-o-r-e-v-e-r. 14. No matter how much Jell-O you put in a swimming pool, you still can't walk on water. 15. Pool filters do not like Jell-O. 16. VCRs do not eject "PB &J" sandwiches even though TV commercials show they do. 17. Garbage bags do not make good parachutes. 18. Marbles in gas tanks make a lot of noise when driving. 19. You probably DO NOT want to know what that odor is. 20. Always look in the oven before you turn it on; plastic toys do not like ovens. 21. The Fire Department in Austin, TX has a 5-minute response time. 22. The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make earthworms dizzy. 23. It does, however, make cats dizzy. 24. Cats throw-up twice their body weight when dizzy. 25. Those who pass this on to almost all of their friends, with or without boys do it because: a. For those with no children - this is totally hysterical! b. For those who already have children past this age, this is hilarious. c. For those who have children this age, this is not funny. d. For those who have children nearing this age, this is a warning. e. For those who have not yet had children, this is birth control.

Baseball is Dangerous

So tonight it's baseball game time for Neal. Get there about 25 minutes early and Neal is warming up with two other kids and my dad. Mom and I are sitting back watching and laughing at Jacob and Zach wanting so badly to participate. About 15 minutes into warm up, Neal walks behind the kid swinging the bat. The kid hits full swing as Neal gets to his side and WHACK! Baseball bat to the face. I hear this blood curdling scream, my mom GASP, and Neal hits the ground. It all played out in slow motion. It was horrifying. We both run over and Neal is lying on the ground, face all bloody, screaming. Everyone is surrounding him and dad and I take a closer look. I was literally shaking, and I'm not one to usually react that way, I'm usually pretty calm. My dad scoops him up, I grab my cell, and my mom yells out "I've got the babies" as my dad and I run out of the park. The van seemed so far away. As we're running I call Chris and tell him to meet us at the ER. Too much traffic and a train later (about 10 minutes lol) we get there, and in behind us walks Chris and my parents and the babies. A friend is working the registration and we were back in like 10 minutes, thank God b/c the place was PACKED OUT! 3 xrays and 20 minutes later, he has a broken nose, we knew that. Unfortunately there's nothing they do for that, but luckily there were no fractures to the facial bones, it hit to the left side, so we were worried about his cheek bone and sinus cavity, but thank heavens there was no damage there. We follow up at the end of the week with the ENT. This is his last week of school, hence field day, and he has to take it easy. Oh well, could have been worse, could've done a lot more damage than it did. My poor mom, she was soooo upset. Her stepdad passed away Thursday and we didn't know until today b/c my parents were out of town. So today has been a bit emotional to say the least. It's funny I remember his 4th birthday I cried harder than he did when he crashed on his skateboard and skinned up his face, that perfect little face, I was so worried about a scar, you can hardly even make it out these days. Ahhh if I make it to the boys adulthood, through more broken bones and more stitches and broken hearts, without a nervous breakdown, I'll be surprised.

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Be Still My Heart

chris had to work really late last night, it was like 3am when he got in. i was still some what awake. when he came to bed he kissed me. i went to put jake in bed, who had some how wound up in our bed, little booger. and then headed to the potty. anyway, when i made it into the bathroom the shower light was on, which chris never leaves on, so after peeing, i went to turn it off, to find on my vanity the most beautiful bouquet of flowers and a card. the card was goofy but what he wrote was so sweet and words that i so needed to hear from him.

a weekend with the sickies

god if one more person pukes at my house i'll commit myself! zach seemed fine saturday, but jacob was puking. then saturday night i was zach's turn again. then my turn. i spent all day yesterday on the couch watching DVD's, even turned down a chance to go shopping sans kids with rachael, now you know i'm sick if i choose the couch over shopping. i made it into the office today, but i'm definately dragging. this being sick stuff is for the freakin' birds!

8 Years Ago Today

8 years ago today i found out what it was like to love someone more than your own life. to feel as if no matter how hard life got there would always be a reason to live it. 8 years ago today i realized that despite the hate and anger and pain in this ruthless world, there was still love and happiness and bliss. 8 years ago today i stared into the face of my future, the face of my world. i saw my heart outside my body. 8 years ago today i took the most important role i can ever have in my life, i became a mother.