Tuesday, November 30, 2010

My super picky eaters

I always hoped my kids would be good eaters.  I feel terrible for parents who have children who only eat white foods... Or chicken nuggets... Or mac n cheese.  Having constant battles over food does not sound like fun to me.

Unfortunately, I was not spared in that department.  My kids scream and cry over food just like every other kid I know.  Serving foods like broccoli, green peppers and onions are highly likely to cause tears, wailing, and gnashing of the teeth.

But I do think that in most households, the kids are not screaming and crying because their daddy ate the last of the zucchini and they wanted more "bikinis" too.  Or there aren't enough banana peppers on their sub and mommy won't share hers.  Or, Sam won't share her plate of black olives.

We also regularly freak out when there aren't cut up green peppers to snack on at will or Sam's soup has more broccoli in it.  Both serious offenses if you ask Addi.

Luckily we keep extra cans of black olives in the pantry and convincing Addi to add them to her soup, cereal, or PB and J calms her down immediately.


Decking the Halls

After a fantastic Thanksgiving and a packed Black Friday adventure starring Jay, me and 5,000 of our closest friends, Saturday morning we decided to decorate for Christmas.  I thought the girls would want to help but after being told 16 times that the ornaments were not bouncy balls, horses for their barbies to ride on or decorations for their dollhouse, they drifted off into Addi's room to play Polly Pocket and Pet Shop.  I checked on them and they were playing so nicely, I just had to take a picture.


I headed back downstairs and after a bit, checked in on the girls again.  Except Sam was no longer in Addi's room.  Because she was in my tub, spraying her baby clean and otherwise soaking everything in sight.
After drying her off and convincing her that her baby looked great, we headed downstairs to finish the decorating.

Our house is festive, we finished our Christmas shopping and didn't have to fight a soul, Sam's baby is clean... all is right in the world at Casa de Ralph.

Friday, November 26, 2010

Life Lessons, via Addi

I am well aware that someday soon, my kids will be smarter than me.  They learn so much every day at school and you can practically see the stuff smooshing into their brains.  I know it's just a matter of time.  Them getting smarter makes it harder for me to slip things past them or distract them when they don't get what they want.

Thanksgiving day, I was attempting to distract Addison so I could talk to my mom about potential gifts for the girls.  Last year I would have just talked to my mom about it in front of Addi - this year, if I start spelling something she immediately knows I'm talking about her.  I asked her to run to the garage and get me a Coke Zero, then started talking to my mom.

A few minutes later, Addi walks in and hands me a Gatorade.  She loves Coke Zero just as much as me so I know she knows what it is, so I said, "Addi, this is Gatorade.  Mommy asked for Coke Zero."

She looked at me and said, "You get what you get and you don't throw a fit."  Then, smiled sweetly.

Interesting turn of events for me, don't you think?

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Watching Summer Fade Into Fall

With the change of the seasons comes leaves falling, cooler nights, and darker evenings. Which really translates into two kids who are cooped up in the house, are bored silly and really, really like to drive their mother crazy.

A few weekends ago I started what, pre-kid, would be a few hour project – cleaning out the kitchen cabinets. Post kid, it’s taken almost a month.

When I got to the island, Sam and Addi were very, very excited. Turns out, an empty island is a great place to hang out, play, or even take a nap.

Seriously, what did I do with my time before them?


Friday, November 19, 2010

Good Moms...

...Totally let their kids eat Dairy Queen for dinner.  Right?

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

My Check List

Training for my new job = check!

Getting all my ducks in a row at my old job = check!

Making lists, checking them twice, for the upcoming holidays = check!

Running 3x a week to prepare for my ½ marathon = check (and ouch)!

Updating my blog = ummmm…………..



New updates coming soon. I promise.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Her inner artist

Lately, Addi is ALL about the art.  I'm very happy to report that she has picked paper as her 1st choice of places to draw, so I can support her new passion without buying stock in Magic Eraser.

Last weekend I saw Addi working very patiently on this...
I said, "Wow, Addi, that is a GREAT picture of a school bus!"  I mean, look at the detail.  It's got the stop sign, the mirror, the wheels...  I was so impressed.

And, she ran crying into the other room. 

When she calmed down she filled me in... It is a picture of me.  Then, she scribbled on it and yelled that I didn't understand.

I'm thinking the cash I have saved on Magic Erasers should go straight to duct tape for my mouth.  Or possibly therapy.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

She's got skillz

Thanks to several hundred pieces of candy on Halloween, Addi had all the energy in the world to perfect her new skill.


Any estimates on how long until I find gum in her hair?

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Strike a pose

I don’t watch Project Runway. I don’t subscribe to Vogue. Because of my arthritis, I spend the winter wearing shoes that could easily pass for orthopedic wedges. And yesterday, I almost wore pants to work that I had hemmed with scotch tape.

All those things aside, I do like to look nice and be in style when possible. I do own jeggings that I wear with tall boots, and it would just about kill me to wear a sweatshirt to the office. I am by no stretch of the imagination a fashionista like my friend Erin, but I do ok. And if I can get a great deal on a cute new outfit, all the better.

I recently spent what seemed like a lot of money on a tshirt - $30. Do you like it?

Yes, you read it correctly. It says I am training to run a ½ marathon – 13.1 miles to be exact. My BFF Jenny and I ran our first race last summer and were looking for another 5K to run to keep us motivated, and somehow we settled on the Indy Mini-Marathon on May 7 instead. I was WAY too scared to sign up last year. And hitting the “Submit” button on the application this year was a pretty frightening ordeal as well. But, with a LOT of training, I know I can do it. My good friends (and fellow May moms) Mandee and Kim also signed up, so the four of us will make it across the finish line, somehow, someway.

First things first…. I need the courage to actually put ON this shirt.

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