Miss me?

I didn't blog today... because I was a) busy and b) lazy. All congruent. Anyhoo.

Oh, and recovering. Because yesterday I took all the kidlets to Houston for R2's neurologist appointment. 45 minutes there, nearly 3 hours in the doctor's office, and an hour home. I need a vacation. Here's a little glimpse.

then today, I climbed in the dumpster (twice) to retrieve a cash gift card someone had accidentally thrown away, and then the letter with the activation code... I then defied the tacit order to skip Christmas and bought a tree, by myself, brought it home and set it up by myself. Because I am hardcore. And it's CHRISTMAS.

Smartypants wants to answer YOUR holiday tradition and etiquette questions! Make her day.

Smartypants is a little melancholy today. Hit me with your funniest.

Froot Loops and Sesame Street. Kids have it good.
Sometimes, when I am immersed in the cares of this world- betrayal and friendship and love and hate, I wish I could just zip back to an age when stress was my cheeseburger falling apart.

Simple
but increasingly complicated
loving someone
and hating what they do

the wounds of a friend

Trusting
Forgetting the possibility
that all at once
the dagger could strike again

faithful
the wounds of a friend

The park was a big hit. We're going again today... glorious cold weather means NO bugs! Which means I can go outdoors! For a little while, anyway. I don't care for the outdoors. A nice book and a window, I'm good.
Why no pictures of Toby's adorable little face, maybe you're asking. Because Toby in motion has no time for the paparazzi.

Sometimes, in the morning, I am thinking about everything I have to get done. And the pressure, it gets to me, man. I start making lists, and wasting time... I need a manager. But the only guy who has applied is a perfectionist. Luckily, lately he's been geeking out on his iPhone so much, I am getting away with it. But I have to figure out how to fit 3 lives into this one. Plus the literal 3 people who have to be fed and so on. The pressure, man.

Stuck

Yesterday we went all around the world. That is, to the library and LaPalma and the paint store and etc etc etc. Oh, and to R2's horseriding.
Then, when we got home. I put the boys inside the house, and walked back out to get Brynn. Slam! And that quickly... they locked me out.

So here I am.... 190 degrees outside with no cell phone or keys and two happy little boys inside. At least Bean was with me. I knocked to no avail... looking in the window, no boys in sight. I figured they were either upstairs chewing on electrical wires or downstairs in the kitchen playing drums with steak knives (it's not unlikely, I'm just saying).

So I knock some more and finally go next door to my neighbor Fabio's house. Yes, that is his name, and no, he is not. So I call the MOG and go sit on my porch. And then I try ringing the doorbell a LOT and knocking very loudly. And eventually I see a little fuzzy blonde head coming down the stairs. So I am yelling through the door, open and so on (you know) and he is giggling and shaking the doorknob but he has no clue what I'm talking about.

So Bean and I go back to our lawn chair. Soon, Fuzzy is joined by his brother, Bad Mischievious, who bangs on the window and yells cheerful things to me. He also shakes the doorknob, and knocks on the door a little. Very helpful. And then he climbs up on the windowsill with a firm grip on the wood blinds I don't want to have to pay for. But really, I'm just happy he is where I can see him.

Soon, Daddy comes home and opens the door, which is very exciting to everyone for a variety of reasons. Then he goes back to work and the boys are very mad at me for closing the door so they can't go with him.
Whew.

Today, I'm packing. Toby is being quite helpful by taking things out of boxes and putting them in other boxes.

ABC.....Q

Human nature watching around here... the pecking order around small boys is very interesting. Graceson is definitely the Alpha male (assuming that means the boss) and Toby is the rookie. Izzy is kinda, well... the Beta male? The sidekick who defers to the Alpha, kinda thing. And R2 is exempt from the order for the most part. If anyone steals his toys, they do it gently. And when he steals their toys, they either let it go or take it back gently. Nobody screams or hits Richy. That's pretty cool.
Toby doesn't know the way things work. He might have a little bite of G's sandwich, or wear I's backpack, or take anyone's toy, and then he is shocked and outraged by the outcry. He has it good with the ever passive R2 as his sidekick.
It's funny. And loud.
Just now I was changing someone's diaper. and all the others crowded around curiously. "Does it stink, Jekkisa?" "Is it yuck?" "Pee-yew!" and so on. Very helpful.

Ms. Smartypants is back! Monday's edition will be All about Animals! So ask your animal question today through Sunday.

Le Blog is slow this week. Do I need to get pregnant?

where angels fear to tread

Only a brave or stupid woman would be blogging with this many little boys in her house... especially since they are all downstairs and I am up. BUT I can hear all their individual little voices and shrieking and the toy laptop and so forth... so here I go.
Lunch of mac and cheese with hot dogs yesterday. Everybody was chowing down except Graceson... he is looking disgruntled. So I say, "Hey- eat your food!" After a few more prompts, he says in an annoyed tone. "I need some ketchup!"
Of course, ketchup.

It was a good day... a few fights broke out. Some definite commandment breaking what with the stealing and coveting and not honoring the Sabbath by taking a nice long nap.
(As I write this, I have been joined by Toby, and R2, and then Graceson informing me that Izzy needs a spanking. Now Izzy has joined us as well. So there you go.)

Our garage is now separated into what the MOG calls "the sheep and the goats", that is, what is to be kept and what is to be donated. We have taken advantage of "large item Thursday" by our trash guys and emptied A LOT into the landfills and such, securing for ourselves our place in the carbon footprint hall of fame. So progress is being made. Slowly.

And I, I am existing. I am relatively happy and at peace. I just feel like I'm speeding past goalposts that might be important but they're already gone. I need to breathe. I need to find the secret place somewhere in here.

clarkish

If there is ever a forehead shortage in the USA, you know where to look.

---

Today, tomorrow and Friday I have Steph's boys in addition to my trio. So far so good. I mean, yeah, there's been some screaming and hitting. But I'm sure I'll settle down soon.
Joking. Put down the phone.

Kids continually amaze me with their ability to play. R2 has always been more of a sidekick, in that pressed against your side breathing on your neck continual presence kinda sidekick. So Toby always surprises us by being allured by toys. Off he goes. The problem is that any toy being enjoyed becomes an object of desire for all the other boys. So they fight over it and R2 stands kind of nervously back and then later when they are all fighting over the new toy, he sneaks over and gets the old one.
Good things come to those that wait, they say.

Lunch should be fun. I think I'll start now.

We're off to the library with the Rob Clarks... and La Palma... and maybe the talking tree.

I suggested to Steph that maybe the dates were wrong and she has another couple of weeks.
It was not well received.

Quick pre-storytime blogging here... today, the cousins are going to the library with us... as well as Stephanie and her large pregnant-ness. Watch me have to deliver this baby on I-45.

More later.

---

Back from the library... I need a vacation. Toby is formidable in his own strength. But combined with Graceson and Izzy, what are mere mortals before them?
It was wild. And fun. Now, the part of the show where Toby takes a nap. May it be 3 hours.

I'm thinking about organizing a hen-party of sorts to come and get rid of all my stuff and start packing. Maybe a couple of type A's and a couple of whatever I am for moral support.

Feelings....

This is awesome... As always, I have no control of the links it shows after this video... I didn't see any yucky ones, but there's a lot of psychos out there

Tired again. I think Brynn is teething. OR, she's just had it up to here with sleep. No more sleep. Ever. And then this morning, Toby awoke the dawn, and his brother. So there you go.

Today was our first day of homeschool/preschool. R2's attention span is pretty nonexistent. But I think I can stretch it if I keep pushing him a little. I bought a cool craft-making kit with popsicle sticks and googly eyes and such... that will have to be used whilst Animal is sleeping. Holy moly. Today, we were just peacefully coloring a picture. And Toby colors for a minute, and then he tastes the crayons a little, and then he finds the markers and takes off all the caps and throws them on the floor. And tastes the markers. "Yick!" he says. Yeah. And then he draws a line on the paper and tastes the marker again. "YIck!" Yeah. And then he starts sweeping his arms madly side to side, and obliterating his paper and all the capless markers and sloggy crayons. So then he pauses for a moment to survey the wreckage with a teal-tinted smirk. And then, he's up on the table after R2's paper and crayons. I apprehended him, but poor R2 had lost concentration, if you can imagine. Then we worked on a puzzle. Sort of. Maybe school needs to happen during naptime.