what a wonderful day

I spent the morning in my jammies. The afternoon cleaning bathrooms. And the evening working on this. My About Me layout for 3Scrappy Boys.
Now I sit looking up Hokie stats and learning that they LOST today to Georgia Tech. Bummer. Oh well.
Family's been on my mind this week. Family is forever, ya know. It's taken me quite a number of years to realize that. 38 to be exact. :) I'm hoping to reconnect with extended family and really reach out to immediate. Perhaps I come off as aloof when I don't mean to. It's easy to be out here in cyber space, blogging and scrapping and going on with my day-to-day life. And then every Saturday I do the Sunday church service projection and I'm pointed right back to the heart of the matter...family.

I have been burning this candle for HOURS today. A candle given to me by my first grade class yesterday for my birthday. This brings a huge smile to my face. The aroma - oh, this is just so homey, so wonderful. I even took it upstairs with me when I got cleaned up today. :) It's been by me all day while I've been scrapping. I'm back home, baby!!! I've been printing pix, scrapping for ebay and myself, and lovin' every minute of being creative. I've missed this since school started. It's good to be home.

Camden's not feeling well tonight. He had a fever this evening and fell asleep before 8:30. So I KNOW he's ill. No church for him tomorrow. Bless his heart. He goes and goes and goes. And when he's sick, well, he just stops. God bless you, Camden, with good health for tomorrow.

And while I'm on good health...God has answered a prayer! Al doesn't have cancer!!!!!!! What a blessing. This wonderful man has a growth in his lungs, but the doctors don't believe it's cancer. Thank the Lord!!!!!! I cannot imagine the relief he's feeling, but I imagine it must be akin to starting over. What a blessing.

Like father like son

Camden started Cub Scouts tonight and Benjy got two Darth Vaders. A big day for all in our house. Sounds simple, huh? Well, Cub Scouts is the beginning of a new era for Camden. Curt was an Eagle Scout and is not ready to volunteer as a helper to other young boys trying to achieve the same thing. Camden is so proud. He came home, took off his uniform, and gently laid it out. So proud. Makes his momma proud, too.

As for the Darth Vaders, well, Benjy is Darth Vader for Halloween. And he has talked about nothing more for more than a week now about NEEDING TWO DARTH VADERS. He's not been rude, or a beggar. Just convinced. So, since Camden had his special thing tonight, I spoiled Benjy by taking him out for two Darth Vaders. Cheap enough. Easy enough. And already one has a broken arm and a missing helmet. But the smiles and animated playing he had were soooo worth it all.

Rescue Heroes

Camden's decided he's not ready to part with his gigantic collection of Rescue Heroes after all. Yesterday he dragged nearly every action figure, vehicle, animal, backpack, and accessory to the side yard. I swear, it looked like Fisher Price exploded. Of course, I got to help put it all back in the garage. After having the night to consider the mess of toys, he told me this morning that he still wants them. Scrapped are the plans to sell them on ebay. (Much to my relief, actually.) So today, while he was at karate earning a High Five for his knife hand strike, I lugged his toys back up to his room, set up the command centers (he only has THREE!!!), made space for the huge Rubbermaid box filled with the heroes and their baggage in his closet, and surprised him with the whole set-up. It was kind of like Christmas.

I'm really quite happy he's holding on to these guys. The've been with us since he was three years old. It's nice to know that he's not outgrowing his boyhood so quickly.

On another note, he was in class with me again today. Another wonderful day for me to share my classroom with my son. He is a smart little boy, but it is a bit trying to separate Mom from Teacher mode. No news yet as to tomorrow. I'm actually hoping he'll come with me so he can go to Chapel with us, as we do every Tuesday. I think he'd really enjoy that.

Camden's been going to school with me since the teachers in his district went on strike last week. He'll join me again tomorrow. Thank goodness he's still learning. And we're not doing a bad job in tiptoeing around each other as we discover the difference in me acting as Mom and me acting as First Grade Teacher. All in all, it's been wonderful to have him around my school; I am loving sharing it with him.

daily happiness

I got up today at 6:20 a.m. - nearly an hour late - and still made it to school on time, even with getting the boys ready and dropping them off on my way to school. Whew!

Camden's school district is on strike as of tomorrow. I should be freaked, but I'm not. I'll just take him to my school where he'll be in my class. I feel so much peace about this. I'm ACTUALLY EXCITED! Of course, I've told him he'll get no special favors, no slack. He must follow the rules and do the work just like everybody else. But I'm really looking forward to having him under my wings tomorrow. :)

Monday Monday

But it's OK. It was a great Monday!
As far as Mondays go.
The boys got up, got dressed, brushed their teeth, without any arm-wringing on my part. What a blessed way to start the day! (That's my daily happiness, too!) We got everywhere on time!
My kids at school have earned their chip party for good behavior. They're just the best class. And, to top it all off, Camden came home, WILLINGLY read a book to me and studied his spelling words. Wow. That child would do just about anything to play his new Playstation game. :)
Busy week ahead. Tomorrow is the start of three crazy nights - PTG meeting at my school tomorrow night, Camden's open house at his school the next, and Cub Scout sign-ups the next. Whew, I'll be glad for Friday to get here. I may sleep all weekend long.

daily happiness

My boys are sleeping safe and sound after an afternoon at the Pittsburg science museum with their dad while Mom spent the afternoon hours at Craftique checking out the primitive crafty things. (Mom, you would LOVE this place! I missed you so much when I was there - and not because I wanted you to buy me one of everything! hehehe.) Yes, my boys are wonderful. Safe. Sound. Happy. Blessed.

PS - No, Mom, I didn't make it till October with the Halloween costumes...........they wore them today. ALMOST PERFECT FITS! But, still, out of the wrappers. But, not out of the house! :) ;) :)

Halloween already???

We went to Target tonight - twist my arm!
Mainly, we went to buy the Star Wars Lego Playstation 2 game since it just came out on Tuesday. And, believe me, Camden has never let a spare moment go by without telling us that the game was "available on Tuesday!" So, we went to get that, so I, feeling a bit sad for Benjy that he had nothing, we ventured to the toy section. On the way, I found some stationery that just called out to me, so I got it. Then, in toys, we found the Star Wars action figures. Benjy didn't want C3PO and Chewbaca. Nope, he wanted the Dark Side folks, Emporer Palpatine and one of his goons. As if that was not enough, the boys found the Halloween aisles while I was in the school supplies clearance section. I found a box of 12 highlighters for $2, which I need for school next week, while Benjy and Camden both found their HALLOWEEN COSTUMES MORE THAN A MONTH BEFORE HALLOWEEN!!! Benjy wants to be Darth Vader. No surprise there - hey, he can even SAY it this year! Camden is Anakin. For those of you not versed in Star Wars trivia, Anakin is the guy who turns into Darth Vader after a scary little fall into a volcano's lava pit. Yick. I'd truly post pix, but we've told the boys they can't wear their custumes till October. Seems unfair to keep them till Halloween, so I thought we were doing pretty great to get through September, if we actually make it. ;)
Daily Happiness:
Talked to Jodie tonight. So proud of you, girlfriend! You take care of YOURSELF. I love you!!!!!!!!!

Not only am I neglecting my blog lately, but I'm also not even taking pictures. I've not scrapbooked since mid-summer, and I haven't even found the energy to send out a few thank-you's to Camden's school transportation folks for helping get him from his morning daycare to school. Gotta make a list and get these things done!!!
OK, here's a little thing inspired by another blog, Ali Edward's Daily Happiness blog. It's really simple. List a happiness for each day. Well, if I can just get on here, I can do it. :)

Today's daily happiness:
Camden and Benjy both wanted to have dinosaur egg oatmeal for dessert tonight. How cool is that?!

Yesterday's daily happiness:
I put in a prayer request for Camden at yesterday's staff devotional time. (And that time, alone, is worth an entire month of daily happinesses.) Camden had been so angry the previous afternoon when he came home and I told him he had to do homework. He just ranted and raved after having such an awesome day at school. He eventually settled down and quite grudgingly did his spelling work. But, in the time it took him to complete it, he could have done a week's worth. My prayer request was for God to help him with his anger, give him patience and wisdom. And to give me and Curt some of the same. After all, it's a loooong way till self-suffiency in college for this little guy. That afternoon, Camden came home from school, happy and delighted to tell about his day. He did his homework with Curt, but didn't do spelling bec. Curt didn't know about it. When I came home, he only complained for a snitch of a second and then obediently spelled his words as I called them out to him. Not another fuss. Not a single tantrum. Just complete cooperation. Wow, God answers our prayers and gives us exactly what we need. Thanks be to God!

Mom and Benjy at play

The cool thing about having Benjy at my school for two days a week for preschool: I get to sneak kisses and hugs when we pass each other. It's not often, but today we had Wet and Wild Field Day for the afternoon - preschoolers through the 6th graders. Benjy was on a team of mixed ages, the youngest of 10 kids. I was with his group, so I got to watch him interact with the other kids. One fifth grader just latched right on to him, holding his hand, teaching him the water games, letting Benjy take his place, and encouraging Benjy to SOAK him every chance he got. Benjy was absolutely precious. Six months ago, I would never have believed he would be communicating in such a fun and animated way. But he was! Totally into all the attention he got as the baby of the group. He even hammed it up some, showing off and relishing his role as the star. What a blessing that I got to see that. What a blessing that God put me at this wonderful, awesome place. My school is my mission. It's right where I belong.

Rocket Boy

Here is a shot of Curt and me on our last morning at the beach.

Al Greene and Benjy having a V8 Juice tasting party. Al and dear friend Bernice came up last week and stayed a night after touring Falliing Water nearby. They were so wonderful. I just giggled my head off at Al. He really has a way of making people laugh. And that Bernice and all her points of light. She's just all around a dear and wonderful friend.

The boys and I had one last pic on the dock at the beach. I just found this on my camera today, so I thought I'd share it. :)

Rocket Boy Camden - He got up this morning, dressed himself for church before I'd even crawled out of bed, and made himself comfortable launching himself off the spinning chair tipped over on its side. Crazy kid. I just love his spirit.

Just some random thoughts today.

I've finally caught up on checking the message boards out at 3 Scrappy Boys. I'd missed chatting with the girls there, and every time I thought to go over, I knew it would take more than the couple of minutes I had. This weekend I spent an hour checking out the posts and posting myself. The gallery's next. Can't wait to see what everybody's been making. Now, if only I could get caught up on scrapping! I'm so unmotivated, even though I have about 3 or 4 kits hanging around just begging to be used. I think I'll send an order off to Kodak and when the pix come back I'll be ready to rock.

We bought our first ever matching set of furniture yesterday - a leather sofa, loveseat, chair and an ottoman. I think we're finally grown up. In our nearlly 14 years married, we've never bought a set of anything (unless towels and sheets count). :) It's to be delivered on the 12th. Can't wait to lug this old loveseat down to the basement and redo the family room!

OK, that's it for now. Adios!

Long time....

OK, so it's been a while. Since my last post I've been thinking....
* Family is forever. (Thanks, Aunt Sandy) Family is what keeps me ticking. (God is what makes me tick.)
* My blog log-in didn't even work last night!
* School is wonderful. I've never been in a place where I felt totally, completely RIGHT. I have that now.
* My boys deserve the best I can give them. Last week I came home, kissed them, loved them, and promptly dragged out my books and lesson planner. Next week. I'm gonna give them ME.
* I miss talking to my sister, my parents, my friends.
* God has blessed me with a wonderful opportunity. I have a "mission" - to teach. That is my calling. I'll happily live up to that. I'll also live up to my calling as a MOM. I'll come home from school next week, curl up with my boys, and LOVE THEM. Yes, that's my other calling. To love my boys and train them up to be strong men, like their dad. :)
* I have got to take some pix of my family this holiday...... :)

Home, but technically, still on vaca!

Wow, I must say my favorite vacation EVER has been the one we just took to Hatteras Island on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Just beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. It was a spur-of-the-moment trip, planned when I blurted out to Jack and Lois, our dear friends and former neighbors from Virginia, that we should go to the Outer Banks together this summer. Well, it took Lois no time to find the most wonderful home for us to rent, and we were off. This place, the Lazy Parrot, was paradise, the perfect place to wake up and fall asleep each day, sandwiching our 4-wheel-drive outings to the sandy beaches up and down and beyond the island. I can't say what was so magical about this trip. Perhaps it was that it was our first family vacation with the four of us - Camden, Benjy, Curt and me. All together. Perhaps it was just the pure wonder of Hatteras Island. So different from any other beaches I've seen. Not commercial. Just pure sand, shells, and sea. Well, and some darn good seafood, too! Perhaps it was Jack's cooking. Man, I've MISSED that cooking since we moved away. (sniff sniff sniff) And, maybe it was the joy in the boys' eyes as they skipped in the surf, boogie boarded on the waves, and dug holes in the biggest sandbox there is. We're ready to go back. From now until next summer, we're saving vaca money each month so we can do the island again with Jack and Lois. There's really no other place to go now that we've been to Hatteras, now, is there?!

Some favorite moments from vacation:
~ OK, totally silly, but I LOVED putting my clothes in the dresser drawers in the master bedroom of the house. Insanely silly, yes, but still, it made the whole place feel like home, if just for a week.
~ Reading an entire book: Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. THIS is a good read. Probably my fave in a long time.
~ Camden and Benjy really bonded here. They played together, needed each other's company, WANTED to be together. They were truely friends here.
~ Reuniting with Jack and Lois. We were practically inseperable when we lived next door to them. We ate with them, played with them, camped with them. Heck, we loved them, and we still do. Being back together was perfect. Just perfect. :)
~ Sitting in the hot pink plastic deck chairs on the back porch.
~ Sleeping in. Going to sleep early. ahhhhh.
~ Hunting for seashells in what I called the "seashell graveyard" off Billy Mitchell beach with Curt. What a wonderful husband. He knows me. Really KNOWS me. He knew I wanted conch shells so badly I could taste it. And he found me not one but LOTS!
~ CNN. Yes, even on vacation, I need my news.
~ The sound of the ocean crashing on the sand. One day the waves were so rough, none of us would jump in. And still, we fished, hunted for shells, and played in the sand. Playing, content, not missing anything. Just happy to be together listening to the roar of the ocean.
~ Knowing that God is the amazing One behind all of this. And I guess I should thank Him for the streak of perfect weather we had, too.

Yes, Sir!

Last night my Tiny Tiger and, well, big Tiger - hehehe - tested for their next Tai Kwondo belts. And they got them!!!
Camden tested first and received his second orange belt with the Tiny Tiger patch on it. Because he's a Tiny Tiger, he tests for half-ranks, so next time he'll go for his yellow belt.
Curt, not being a Tiny Tiger, tests full ranks, so he earned his yellow belt and I got only one crummy picture of him. To top it off, I had taken the boys out for a quick dinner between Camden's and Dad's tests, and as we walked back into the convention center, Curt had just FINISHED! I couldn't believe we had missed his shindig. That bummed me out, but I was still proud to see him helping out with the board breaking and mixing with his peers. (I sound like such a teacher, huh? "He plays well with others." "He's highly motivated." "He enjoys helping others." hehehe That's just weird!
I'm just so darn proud of both my Tigers! Love ya, boys!!!!

Being a Blaisdell Babe

Proof - you can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl. We returned to farm country this weekend, back "home" to Blaisdell Drive. It was muggy, hot, oppressively sticky. But we couldn't have had a better visit with old friends we knew for far too short a time. It was a breeze to step into my role as a Blaisdell Babe, laughing and joking, relaxing and watching the boys run around from house to house, yard to yard. The only thing that would have made it perfect would be if we still owned our home there.

We stayed with Kirsten and Tom, and they couldn't have been more wonderful hosts. I got my baby fix holding Baby Kaelyn Lee (Jodee and Rob's new week-old girl).
She's just beautiful and so tiny and delicate and pink! Stan and Dave - again and without a doubt the coolest couple I know - were there, and even Wanda and PJ made it back from Cleveland in time for us to drag them outside for a driveway party. What a night. Like I said, it was just so easy to pick up where we left off a year and one month ago. Now, if Curt could get a job back in Columbus, we'd have it made in the shade. Well, at least it's a bit cooler in the shade.

Camden and Benjamin had the best time. They ran freely with the other kids, always somebody to play with, run with, cross the street with, and find a snack with. We're sad that we don't have that kind of street here in Pa. No sidewalks, no front porches. This neighborhood is a backyard kind of place. Or an indoors kind of place. We just don't see others often, and people seem content with that. On Blaisdell Drive, our children kept us bonded together, and that was OK because we actually liked each other. So while the kids ran the hood, we stood around in driveways and sat on porches, just being neighborly. And now that we've visited Blaisdell Drive for the first time since leaving, I realize that we were far more than good neighbors. We were great friends. And I miss each and every one of them.

I love you, Blaisdell Babes!!!

You know you live in 2006 when...

1. You accidentally enter your password on the microwave.

2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.

3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of 3

4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.

5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have e-mail addresses.

6. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home to help you carry in the groceries.

7. Every commercial on television has a web site at the bottom of the screen.

8. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn't have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.

10. You get up in the morning and go on line before getting your coffee.

11. ! You start tilting your head sideways to smile.
: )

12. You're reading this and nodding and laughing.

13. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.

14. You are too busy to notice there was no #9 on this list.

! 15. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn't a #9 on this list.

AND NOW U R LAUGHING at yourself.

Isn't that too true??? It was posted on a message board I visit, and it cracked me up! Yup, I'm a true child of technology!

A few simple things

This post is for all the simple little things I forget to celebrate in my day-to-day life:

Camden tells me I mow better than Dad: "You make curvy lines. They're stylish." I made really curvy lines today when I mowed, just for him.

A healthy person should take 10,000 steps a day. I bought a pedometer yesterday and took 13,000+ steps today.

Benjamin told me, "Mom, you're pretty." :)

Talked to my friend, Sandy, today after church. Just love chatting with her about teaching, our school, vacations.

Curt wants to watch the Tour deFrance; I want to watch coverage of Tiger Woods' win in the British Open. Curt says: "I can't believe we're fighting about sports." Too funny from two of the most non-sporty folks on the planet.

Tiger Woods won the British Open!

There's a cute box turtle living under a bush in our front yard. Camden and his friends have decided to name it Louie.

The sun came out tonight, after a day of clouds. There's no way I can see the sunset and not think of God, his majesty, his love for us.

My beach album

I've finally finished my digi album from my all-girl beach trip. The digital kit is from Shabby Princess - shabbyprincess.com - and is called Popsicle Summer Mini Album. It's so awesome - all done and ready for me to slide in pictures and add text boxes for the journaling. Easy as pie!

sweet surprises in an ordinary day

* Got an email from my friend Stanya with pix of her renewal of wedding vows with her husband, Dave, by none other than Elvis himself in Las Vegas. Isn't she just gorgeous? She and Dave are the coolest people I know. :) Congratulations, hon!
* Camden, while jumping and diving and splashing in the pool asked when summer would be over. I told him it was half-way over. "You mean summer's half-way over?!!!! Yeah Baby! School's gonna start!!!!!"
* Unpacking some teacher boxes at school, I found the sweetest pictures of Camden when he was a baby. My Baby Camden. :)
* Benjamin came to me during my meeting at school today and whispered in my ear: "Mommy. I need go poppy." I gladly slipped out to take him. And he not only peed, but pooped, too! woohooooo
* Curt came home at 3:30 today.
* My diet coke from Wendy's was really, really, really big.
* I took an hour long nap this evening.
* It was in the 90s today, but thanks to our covered back porch, it felt closer to the 80s. :)
* Tomorrow is a go-nowhere day. :)

Respect My Peeps

Check out this cool shirt Curt bought me today from Target! Love this!
We've had the most relaxing weekend here - hanging out by the pool, reading, talking, planting, laughing. We picked raspberries yesterday and Curt turned them into slushies. Yum! Camden has jumped, cannon-balled, splashed, and flipped in the pool for HOURS. Benjamin even ventured to walk around the inside perimeter of the pool, never failing to hold onto the edge and then scream with joy when he made it back to the ladder. So cute.
I'm reading the number 10 Stephanie Plum book by Janet Evonovich. My books are so out of order, but I'm still loving them. I'm number 87 on the wait list for her number 12 book in the library. I may get to read it before Christmas if I'm lucky! Lately reading has been the best joy. And to beat it all, Camden is doing so well reading some simple books at home with me. Such a joy to hear that little guy sound out words and understand them.

I've been on a paper-roll this weekend - creating with paper and not my computer so much! I did this layout of Mom and Dad's wedding day with my new 3 Scrappy Boys kit. And then I found this baby picture of me and wanted to do a page about this crazy long name Dad made up for me when I was a little girl. Love this name. I can still say it FAST, but slowing down is tricky. :) This is the name I told my kindergarten teacher on my first day of school. It's the name I tell my students every year when school starts. And it's the name I still write in cards to Dad. Course, now with email, I'm a terrible card sender. Must get better about that.

Surprise

The kids and I decided to surprise Curt today and bring lunch to his office. Only it wasn't exactly a surprise because we had to call him first to make sure he was going to be there. So it was a quasi-surprise. :) The kids loved playing in his office, looking at the maps on the wall, playing Star Wars at his desk. And to make the whole lunch even better - I packed! No fast food. No pizza. Just a bunch of sandwiches and some pasta salad. Well, I guess I should admit here that I did stop at McDs for milkshakes for the boys. :) I was so proud of Curt. He looked so darn handsome in his black shirt and happy smile. So nice to see him someplace else, to surprise him, to give him a bright spot in his busy work day.

Monday Monday

We went to Kohls today ~ LOVE that store! Even if the boys are with me begging for every toy in the place. Benjamin had 5 light sabers attached to his shorts, they were drooping over his pull-up, and he was looking like a Star Wars gangster. Of all days to have walked out of the house and left the camera sitting on the table. UUUGGHHHHHH! Still, I did snag a deal - a cute Liz Claiborne denim skirt and white top. I'll be sylin' myself all the way to the poor house if I don't get some control! And the boys got some cute new jammies - summer ones so they don't sweat bullets when they sleep at night in those crazy fleece ones I finally had to hide.

I'm pooped tonight. I think all the late nights last week have caught up with me. I'm gonna spend the rest of the night curled up with my Janet Evonovich novel and then turn out the lights and snooze. Nothing like waking refreshed and ready for that morning cup of coffee!

The layout is actually a paper one - and I rarely make paper layouts for myself anymore! The picture came from one of those sketch machines at Chuckie Cheese. I went nuts chasing the boys around trying to get them to smile for that danged machine. This is the best they could do for me. Cute and lovable, huh?!

These pictures were taken last week when we went to the Children's Museum in Pittsburgh. Here are Curt, Camden, and Benjamin putting together a bunch of pipes and fittings at the "build your own water fountain" exhibit. A soaking wet and wonderful adventure that properly wore our all three of my boys. :)
We had a cookout tonight with our next door neighbors. The boys played with their kids from about 3:30 till around 9:30. The night ended at dark-time with all the kids except for Benjy in their jammies. They really wanted to have a pajama party, but it just wasn't a good night for it. (Is there ever a good night????????) One day, I promise. :) At any rate, our two went to sleep peacefully sharing a bed in Benjy's room. Safe and sound and snoring. Gotta love that!

Bad Day

"Cause you had a bad day
You're taking one down
You sing a sad song just to turn it around
You say you don't know
You tell me don't lie
You work at a smile and you go for a ride
You had a bad day
The camera don't lie
You're coming back down and you really don't mind
You had a bad day
You had a bad day"

That's the soundtrack to my day, which went a little something like this:
7:30 a.m. - I'm awake. It's quiet. Curt's already at work; the boys are still sleeping, and not even Emma is moving. I get up and head downstairs for coffee and the Today show in peace.
8:00 - My world is rocked by two little boys running down the steps in their jammies. I'm smothered with hugs. It's a nice way to delete the solitude from my morning. ;) I fix cereal for the boys and head upstairs to get dressed.
9:30 - I'm reading my Bible when I hear Benjamin doing his screamy cry, stomping up the steps on tiny size 10s, and whining his way to me. I give a quick hug, assure him he's fine and send him on his way to play "war wars" with Camden.
10:30 - We load up and head to the library. Camden requests our favorite tune from his Bible School CD. Benjamin wants to hear "Bad Day."
11:00 - I'm thinking I'm in heaven when I find the newest hardback John Sandford book, Marley & Me, and a recent Janet Evonovich novel right at the front of the library. Not that much luck, though. Turns out Sandford and Marley are both "dummy books" set out to attract readers to the waiting list they harbor. Rats. I'm number 19 for Marley and 67 for Sandford. No lucky number 3 in it for me. I should have known this was a foreshadowing of my afternoon.
12:00 Noon - Camden and Benjamin are checked out. ($18.85 in fines from those videos we were too lazy to return on time last fall. An expensive little lesson.) And, I've signed them up for the summer reading program. I'm thinking what a good mom I am to encourage this love of reading in my sons. I'm thinking how easy-peasy it'll be to cross off our little puppy spots on the reading log. I'm thinking this library is really nice and we should come more often. Then the man behind the desk hands Benjamin a bag of tiny stuffed puppies and tells him and Camden to choose one. Only Benjamin didn't hear the last part. He only saw that bag and Camden reaching his grubby paw into it. He went ballistic. And I mean all out, totally ballistic. Screaming. Crying. Yelling ---- "MYPUPPIESMYPUPPIESMYPUPPIESMYPUPPIESMYPUPPIESMYPUPPIESMYPUPPIES". You get the picture. This continued throughout my pleas for him to understand. I finally chose a puppy for him, handed it to him, and had it thrown right back at me. I know people were looking at me. I'm sure some were even judging me: "Clearly she's not in control here. That child shouldn't be allowed to behave like that. If I were his mother, I'd turn him over my knee." Yeah, I knew they were thinking that. I had a flashback to Camden and me in the Roanoke library three years ago...similar temper tantrum...similar stares...and me picking him up and telling him, "You just wait till I tell you mother!" Hmmmm. No, I couldn't possibly get away with that one again. Camden would rat me out for sure. Instead, I calmly - and I mean I was so calm I could have received an Oscar - steered the screaming Benjy out of the children's section, through the door, and to the top of the stairs. Then he realized my nasty trick and stopped. It took another 5 minutes for him to jump up and down and scream for his puppies before I was able scoop him up and carry him out of the library without looking like a kidnapper. Now some may be wondering why it took me so long to do this. Why didn't I just do it to begin with? Well, I don't know. I guess I thought that by being extra calm and by giving him some time to get over his own tantrum, maybe I'd help him.
12:30 - McDonald's. There's no way I'm making lunch after all that. Happy Meals make a Mommy happy. I even let them have the fries instead of the apples. Camden again wants the Bible School song; Benjamin insists on Bad Day after Camden's tune ends.
1:00 - The boys are HAPPILY playing with the next door neighbors. The Dora the Explorer house goes outside where they all play. You'd never know Benjy had such a BAD DAY.
2:30 - I bring the boys in for a little quiet time. They watch a couple of short videos about airplanes that they checked out today. I revel in solitude and scrapbook for a bit.
3:30 - No nap for Benjy. He's wired and playing chase with Camden. He gets mad - not sure why, but gets over it quickly.
5:00 - Camden goes outside to play with his friends. I told him to sneak out quietly so Benjy wouldn't know. hehehe. So far this is working.
6:10 - Curt's cooking dinner and I go for a walk with my iPod. Among my walking tunes today: Beast of Burden, Domino, Sunday Morning, Seasons of Love....
6:45 - I'm home, happy and energized from my walk. I grab a V8, which Benjy grabs from me, and eat with my family on the back porch. Camden gets me a new V8 juice.
7:15 - The kids are again playing with the neighbor girls. We invite the parents over to the porch where we all chat till nearly 9 o'clock.
9:00 - Bathtime. Avatar on Nick TV, ice cream, and then storytime. Benjy falls asleep so Curt takes him upstairs where he wakes and SCREAMS for Mom. Here we go again. I continue reading to Camden till the end of the book. Then I grab Benjy, snuggle with him, and hold him close. It must be so hard to be 3.
9:45 - They're in bed where Benjy cons me into reading from his Star Wars chapter book he checked out today. And the little booger actually lies there and listens. Amazing. I swear I think he's following this inane story!
10:00 - We're watching Iron Chef America on Food Network. Curt really loves the cooking. I just like Alton Brown's voice. So familiar and soothing after such a "bad day".

Me and my mower

Please, sit down. You must. I know you won't believe this, but I actually MOWED THE YARD TODAY.
And to prove it, check me out!
As I sat watching the boys swim today, I decided I needed to DO something besides clean the house or nap. Mowing the yard seemed like a good bet. The grass was looking shaggy. Curt had planned to do it, so I knew it really must need it. And frankly I was bored. I didn't want to go back inside and clean, organize, or watch the boys play Star Wars. Again. So I mowed the grass. It took me a good 10 minutes to figure out how to get the daggone mower on. Once that happened, I was bookin'!

How wonderful and perfect was it that America launched a space shuttle on the fourth of July? It seems almost destiny that we'd finally get a shuttle off the ground on America's birthday. Godspeed, Discovery!

Saying Yes

Sometimes it's just easier to say "no". But today we didn't. We said yes when Camden asked if we could go the the Children's Museum. We actually didn't even bat an eye. We just said "YES". The museum sits in the heart of Pittsburgh, and today was a beautiful day to head down there. Camden had been there before on a school field trip, so he was an expert tour guide. The best part of the whole place was the water works on the top floor where the boys got to make boats, float boats, splash in water, and build their own fountains. How cool is a place like that?!

As if the day couldn't get any better...Camden asked at dinner, "Do girls like it when boys' hair sticks up?" I told him yes, if it wasn't sticking up all over. I think Camden's starting to care a little bit!!!