We’re Late, We’re Late…

…for a very important date. No time to say hello, goodbye we’re late, we’re late, we’re late. Any Alice and Wonderland fans out there?

This seems to be our mantra lately. Remember that cold I was complaining about a couple weeks ago. I still have it. It got much worse last week, then Flower picked it up, and Princess has been coughing as well. So we’ve been home coughing and feeling generally miserable. I’ve had this nagging feeling that I’m behind on everything for the last couple weeks. I’m going to use our current health status as my excuse for not posting just so you know.

Now I’ll bring you up to speed. We went to Grandma and Grandpa’s last weekend to help my great aunt celebrate her 80th birthday. The girls love to visit because Grandpa bought Princess a little red corvette when she was about 18 months old and she’s finally big enough to drive it. She and Flower terrorize the streets until the battery dies.

Tomorrow Princess and I are flying south for the weekend to visit Auntie C and Cousin H. Princess is pretty excited as this will be her first plane ride. I’m excited too. I’m also feeling some guilt because we’re leaving Flower home. She and Daddy are going to visit Great Grandma C with Nana and Papa this weekend. Flower will have fun, but I’m still sad I’m such a wimp and didn’t buy three plane tickets. I’ll let you know how the trip goes next week.

Photo Op

Princess is a poser. Flower refuses to look at the camera. Getting a photo with both of the girls looking at the camera is nearly impossible these days. Since it's been a long time since I posted any photos I thought I'd post a sequence I shot last month. It was a futile attempt to grab a quick picture of the girls on our way out the door one morning. BTW-I accidentally posted these in reverse order so if you want to see them chronologically start from the bottom and go up.

TGIF

We made it through another week. The weather is warming up and we’re ready for the weekend. Now how to get rid of the cold virus that seems to have taken over our house?

I can’t remember if I complained last month when I had a horrible cold but if I didn’t I will now. Dear Husband had a cold in March which made it way through all of us. I didn’t get it for weeks and mistakenly though I had dodged that bullet but I was wrong. I ended up completely miserable for a week in April.

Fast-forward a month. We’re all feeling great. We’re ready for warm weather and playing outside. Princess comes down with a cold. She had the exact same symptoms as last month. Cough, congestion, general grumpiness, you know the drill. Princess was under the weather most of last week. She wasn’t sick enough to stay home, just not feeling like her usual self.

Sunday she was feeling better. I thought it was a great Mother’s Day gift. Monday Flower was up most of the night so we knew she had picked up whatever Princess had. Tuesday afternoon I got it. Again. Ugh. Flower is better, she seems to fight these bugs off much faster than the rest of us. But I still have it. So if you’re wondering why I haven’t posted all week, I’m going to blame this horrible virus that won’t release its grip on me.

In other news, we had a lovely Mother’s Day. Tomorrow Princess is cheering at the Race for the Cure and the four of us are signed up to walk in the 1-mile race. Tomorrow afternoon DH and I are attending a house warming party for a co-worker. We’re looking forward to seeing their new house. Saturday evening may involve a birthday party for a friend’s 4 year old. The forecast for Sunday is 80 degrees so whatever is on the agenda will take place outside. Here’s to a great weekend!

Happy Mother's Day!

It's Friday and our weekend went from no plans and yard work to a parade in the rain (or snow from the looks of it), lunch with the great grandparents, an early Mother's Day celebration with different great grandparents on Saturday, and a day trip to out-of-town relatives on Sunday. The girls are watching the Wonder Pets Mother's Day special so I thought I'd take a moment to post a quick note.

I was about half way through my pregnancy with Princess on my first Mother's Day. We were visiting our parents that weekend and at church they asked all the mothers to come up front. The pastor said a few words and we all got a flower. I remember feeling a little strange with all the other mothers who were mostly my mother's age because compared to them, what did I know? I didn't deserve any recognition, heck, I hadn't done anything yet. In fact I wasn't really showing and didn't plan on getting out of my seat but Papa insisted. I was excited about becoming a mother, but I had no idea what a wonderful, amazing thing it really is.

Mother's Day is suppose to be about celebrating your mother and reminding her of the fact that without her you wouldn't be you. I don't just mean that literally. I'm very fortunate to have a wonderful mother. She's caring, compassionate, and always sacrifices for the good of her family. I can't think of a time when she has put herself before someone else, especially her children. She's the glue that holds everything together. Without her we'd never make it. I know there are days when she feels like she just can't do it anymore. I don't blame her. I know I couldn't walk a day in her shoes. But she always does, and I don't tell her how much I appreciate her often enough.

I think Mother's Day is also a time to cherish your children if you are a mother. I had a great life before Princess, but it's beyond belief now that I have her and Flower. They are both amazing people, even at such a young age. They make every day new and exciting. They make us laugh. They make me smile. I have no idea what we did without them. Life must have been really boring. I'd like to take all the credit for creating such beautiful children, but I know they are the result of God's blessings and a loving family. I'm a total believer it takes a village to raise a child.

So I guess this wasn't a short post after all. But all you mothers (and children too) out there will understand. I hope everyone has a great weekend. Happy Mother's Day! Love you mom!

K-

Gross Me Out

With all the recent talk about the H1N1 flu I’ve been thinking about our bathroom habits. Before the 12 year old boy in your starts giggling, I’m talking dental hygiene.

Some might say I’m a bit of a germaphob. Is that a real word? My sister-in-law, who shall remain nameless, is much worse than I am, but I have my moments. Being the mother of two children has weakened my phobia. Heck, I just don’t have the time to sanitize every surface of our house and constantly worry about who is touching what when we are out and about. I figure life is too short and we need to build up our immune systems anyway.

Even though I’ve mellowed considerably, I still have a thing about toothbrushes. I just can’t stand the thought of my toothbrush, or anyone else’s for that matter, coming in contact with a surface other than teeth. Sometimes I just leave the room when Princess is loading her toothbrush with toothpaste because I can’t stand to see her lay it on the counter. I clean the bathroom regularly, but still….

This morning Princess was brushing her teeth and I was combing Flower’s hair. Princess finished and began to rinse the sink out. She has a thing about dried toothpaste in the sink….drives her crazy. She’s rinsing the sink trying to remove a spot of toothpaste and it wouldn’t budge. She reaches over, grabs her toothbrush, and starts using it to scrub the toothpaste out of the sink. I may have over-reacted just a tad when I shrieked “Don’t use your toothbrush to scrub the sink!!!” and frightened poor Princess. She burst into tears and I felt terrible. So we snuggled a bit and I calmly explain to her why it’s not a good idea to use your toothbrush for anything except brushing your teeth. I hope I didn’t do any permanent damage.

Park-n-Play

The girls went to the park for a picnic with Nana and Papa on Saturday. Dear Husband was skiing….yes, in May, I know, will this snow ever end? I ran some errands and met up with everyone at the park.

Princess is a little shy around strangers. The big and little variety. She refuses to speak to adults she doesn’t know, which is mostly fine except when the cashier at Target gives her a sticker and she needs to say thank you. Princess usually doesn’t speak to kids her age either, even those she has been in tumbling class with for six months. Both DH and I are more on the quiet side in group settings so she comes by it naturally.

Flower isn’t shy. She’s the one we need to keep a very close eye on. I wouldn’t put it past her to leave the park with a stranger if they offered her ice cream and balloons. This frightens me but we’ll deal with it.

By the time I join the party at the park lunch was over and it was time to play. Princess took Papa to the swings and Flower took me to the train. A little boy ran over to Flower and tried to strike up a conversation. Flower replied to the best of her ability and made a new friend. Princess eventually came back to check on us and the little boy tried to talk to her. Luckily he’s young and didn’t take offense to Princess’ aloofness.

Princess finally warmed up to the little guy and the three of them played together very well. I was chatting with his father who told me he was three and not bashful which I had already deduced. They were a nice pair and the girls enjoyed the new playmate.

That evening at dinner we were telling DH about our day and I was describing the little boy’s father to DH because he looked familiar to me. Princess broke in and said “Mommy, I thought the man was Johnny’s grandpa but he kept calling him dad.” So that leads me to my next question. Do I look old enough to be someone’s grandmother, or do I look very youthful for my age because I don’t think Johnny’s daddy was much older than me?