Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Sisterly Love

 
Sisters are the greatest, at least that's what I tell my kids. I remind them when they are arguing or annoyed with each other that 1. it's normal to feel like that and 2. that they are so SO lucky to have each other. I tell them how I always wanted a sister and was lucky enough to marry into six sister-in-laws, but nothing beats that built in best friend.
 
(I also tell them that while I was happy to have a brother, he just didn't look as good in dresses. Mom, do you still have that picture of him dressed up as a Girl Scout Brownie??)
 
I saw this on Facebook and had to laugh because even though they are eight and almost six, they still pick out clothes that look like each others and sometimes want to be coordinated.  They definitely don't want to be matchy matchy all the time, but it's still fun to do every now and then.  I also said a silent "thank you" that those disgruntled looks are few and far between and patted myself on the back for raising well-adjusted sisters.
What Addi and Sam don't look like
This morning, Addi wanted to take some pictures with Leo.  I'll admit, he's a pretty great muse - just look at how cute he was last night!
Leo, cozy on the couch
I took the pictures, got the kids off to school, and headed to work.  I was flipping through my phone at lunch and saw the pictures, and as I zoomed in I realized, maybe they aren't quite so well-adjusted.

Sam, loving being with Addi and Leo, not a care in the world
Addi, 2.3 seconds after yelling "GET AWAY FROM ME SAM!"
 

2.5 seconds after I told Sam to get back in the picture and for
Addi to be nice or else. You can really feel the love in this one.
And Sam, proving that Leo loves her and really loves her kisses. 
I think 1/2 that dirty look on Addi's face is aimed at her mean, mean mother.

Sam left Addi's room a bit miffed that she didn't get a solo selfie with Leo, so she yelled for me to come take a picture of her and Bandit.  I happily cooperated.

Bandit kind of has the same look as Addi did in her pictures, don't you think?  At least HE can't slam doors.


Monday, February 24, 2014

Handy Manny

When we moved into our house, we had a formal living room that we made Addi's playroom.  After about two years Jay spent a few long days and built some cabinets for storage (with 12" tall shelves that fit my scrapbooks!), but the room was still a playroom.

Now, six years of toys and six months of Sugar thinking the room was her personal toilet have gone by, and Jay and I realized over the last year that the kids really don't play in the playroom anymore.  Well, they play school, but that's it. The days of the room being a daycare, a zoo, a volcano - they are mostly gone. So we decided that a playroom isn't what the Ralphs need anymore.  What we really need is a room to scrapbook do homework.

First, the carpet went out, hard wood was installed, and the cabinets were fixed. 

Next up was paint and a custom window seat cushion (thank you Pinterest!) and some furniture.



And to seal the deal, Jay hung some doors that have only been slammed four times by Addi.
 
I LOVE the new room, the kids have done a lot of homework in there, and my scrapbook supplies fit great. :)


Where have we been?

It's been a while since I posted. We have been beyond busy with life, birthdays, home repair, snow, snow, and a ton more snow.  I'm assuming that this is how our lives will be from this day forward - swimming practice, homework, book reports, basketball, meltdowns, and pure exhaustion, but I hold out hope that it's just a phase.  I don't mind all the running around, but the disorganization and chaos is bound to do me in.  Blogging and sleep are close to the bottom of my To Do list, but I'm hoping they both make a comeback soon.

I did, however, manage to get away for a day and spend some time with some good friends and scrapbook, drink a few drinks, and unwind.  Good friends, some memories, and a bloody mary that was more of a meal.  Great day.

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Ice ice baby

Once upon a time (which is code for I can't remember when), Sam had a drink with ice in it. She left the room for a while, came back, and said, "Mommy, where did you put my ice?"

I said, "Your ice melted. It's gone." 

She looked at me, turned to Jay, and said, "Daddy, did you take my ice?"  He answered that no, he didn't take her ice, it melted and was gone. 

She asked me again, and I tried to explain what melting meant. She asked Jay and he demonstrated. Then she continued asking over and over and over.  Her little three (or maybe four??) year old brain just didn't get it.  "Melt" meant nothing to her. 

I think of that often because it was the essence of innocence to me. Now at almost six, we have way more moments when she obviously knows more than us.  The cute, innocent moments are farther and farther apart. 

God must have known my heart was sad with Addi turning eight this past weekend, because  he gave me another pure moment with Sam. Both girls had to go see the dentist on Monday for cavities and a possible crown for Addi, and it was my turn for doctors appointments. This was Sam's first cavity so we were curious to see how she would do and I knew I might not be able to take the girls back to school after, depending on how the appointments went. 

The actual filling was a non-event. She got the special bubble gum gas and was back out of the chair in ten minutes, so I assumed I'd be taking her back to school. After Addi was done we loaded up the car with instructions to have soup for lunch and headed home to eat.

I was making lunch when Sam came in the room and said, "Mommy, can we take this thing out of my lip now?"  I looked and said I couldn't see anything. She pointed to her numb lip. "Right here Mommy! They put something in my lip! I can feel it! It's big!!"

There was no convincing her even after looking in a mirror that her lip was just numb.  Just like that two (or three) year old, she was all innocence.  
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...