All About Bees....

Today I took my kids to see "The Bee Movie". During the first 5 minutes I heard a quote. Ethan actually was the one that remembered it and repeated it to me on the way home. It was during a "bee" graduation ceremony mentioned by the speaker. "You've worked your whole lives to finally get to the point where you'll work your whole lives". This struck a chord with me. I thought about it throughout the entire movie. The movie is about a bee that discovers he doesn't want to just work the same job day after day the rest of his life. He leaves the hive, meets a human, becomes friends with her, and has a few adventures. He discovers that honey is sold by humans. He finds where the honey bees are kept and decides it is completely unjust so sues the humans. The bees win and they no longer have need to work as much as they once did. They have enough honey to live on for a while so the bees basically take a break. Blah, blah, blah.......everything dies because without the simple jobs of bees everything is screwed up. Moral of the story: every job is important, even if it's little and seems unimportant. This kind of sums up my life in it's current phase. I do the exact same job day after day after day. It often seems unimportant. Laundry, dishes, toilets, diapers, feeding, bathing, dressing, cooking, homework, bedtime. Start over. And over. And over again. Sometimes it just feels like everything I do is ridiculously mundane. But, who would do it if I didn't? This movie made me feel like all the little things I do everyday add up to one great thing in the end. (Hopefully it ends up with productive, healthy, well-balanced adults.) Someone the other day asked me if I worked. The exact way it was phrased was "Oh, so you don't work then?" Ya buddy, spend a day in my shoes before you judge who works and who doesn't. My work might not seem important, but it is. It is.

A Day of Thanks.....

For Thanksgiving we gathered with some friends at the local church building. There were about 25 in all with enormous amounts of food both brought and consumed. There were also enormous amounts of children running free in the cultural hall. It was weird to not have Shawn with me. I guess it shouldn't have been, I tend to frequent activities without him by my side. I decided it's because holidays are supposed to be different than any other ordinary day or event. He was missed.

Ethan said "Why are you taking a picture of this mom. It's normal for me to be eating. It's nothing special." Crazy boy. He's special to me. Even when he's eating.

Landon used his plastic knife to consume his dinner, which mostly consisted of pretzel jello salad. I think he thought he was doing something naughty because he's not allowed to touch knives at home. I wasn't about to complain. I got 5 minutes of peace to devour my own plate of food.

Kennedy socialized more than ate. Girls. She had a great time because for once she wasn't outnumbered by testosterone ridden boys. No pictures of Jack during mealtime. I caught him once with a roll on his head causing hysterical laughter to the boy next to him. I chose to pretend he wasn't my child. To take a picture of the event would have been reminding people he belonged to me.

What is an event held in a church house if you don't have free reign of the cultural hall? This table rack with swivel wheels was the hit event of the evening. They took turns standing on it, and spinning it. I was just hoping I wouldn't need to clean regurgitated dinner off the floor due to this activity.

I'm grateful for so many things I don't even know where to begin making a list. I guess I can just say I'm grateful for the life I have and all the people that I'm lucky enough to have in it with me.

Fire Station....

( To listen to the video and not the music, scroll to the bottom of the screen and push pause on the player)
Me and the boys took a tour of the local firestation last week. Jackson was the expert, because he'd been there before, and the fire truck came to his preschool earlier this year. He took time explaining everything to me in detail in case I didn't understand what the fireman was talking about. He also had his own insights:

He was pretty proud to put on the fire gear. Landon loved the giant trucks. All day he kept saying to himself "kire tation, kire truck, big" over and over. I guess that means the trip was successful.

Bucking Tradition.....

I'm sad. Sad because the realization that this holiday season is going to be anything but "traditional" for me. Shawn is working a 48 hour shift starting the morning of Thanksgiving. "We've got to pay for Christmas somehow". I've got people to be with, and food to eat, so I don't feel sorry for myself. Just sad that this year Shawn won't be around to enjoy it with. Which brings me to Christmas. All growing up my most favorite Christmas tradition was the opening of pajamas on Christmas Eve. My mom would always wrap them in different paper than everything else so she could find them when it came time to open them. Or, she'd put some kind of hidden marking somewhere so she knew secretly which ones held the pajamas. Every year we'd ask "what time are we opening our pj's mom?" Every year she'd reply "what makes you think you are getting any this year? Maybe I'm not doing that anymore." Sometimes she'd be sneaky and when it came time to open our one gift Christmas Eve she'd let us choose the gift. We'd pick whatever we wanted, open it, and assume this was that year. Except then she'd say, "okay. One more. But I get to choose." Even though there was little surprise to this tradition, it was always my favorite. Maybe it was the comfort of knowing my Mom was predictable and loved us enough to do the same thing year after year because she knew we loved it. Whatever it was, it's my most absolute favorite tradition ever. I even got pajamas every Christmas after I was married until we stopped going to Idaho to celebrate the holiday. Pretty much anyone that sleeps in my Mom's house Christmas Eve will open pajamas. Even though most of us our married. And my brother Matt is too tall to fit into anything picture worthy. Lovely tradition. That is why I'm sad. This tradition is not going to be at my house this year. It has been around since Ethan was little. Almost 8 years I've either made or bought new pj's for my kids to unwrap the night before Santa visits. This year I'm being practical. Ethan and Jackson are like furnaces at night and prefer to sleep in tighty-whities than anything else. Kennedy grows so fast she gets new pajamas often enough that there is no novelty. And Landon. His drawers are crammed with remnants of Christmas past. Why should I spend money on something my kids will wear one night, then never again. If I had excessive amounts of money this probably wouldn't be an issue. But I don't. Is it crazy for me to buck tradition on practicality? As I've made up my mind, and am typing this up, Kennedy walks in. I ask her what her most favorite tradition our family has every Christmas. Her response? "Opening presents. Like the pajamas we get on Christmas Eve." I'm secretly smiling that practicality cannot win out this year. It wouldn't be fair to yank a memory of childhood. My children seem to love this tradition as much as I did as a kid. Traditions. I guess the good ones aren't allowed to change.

Play dates....

Jackson had one of his best friends over Friday afternoon to play because Friday is a no-preschool day and he gets bored while Landon sleeps. They played so well together. 10 minutes before her mom came to pick her up I mentioned that they should try to hurry and finish their game so it wasn't interrupted too quickly. I then took a moment to lay on my bed and read my people magazine. I accidentally fell asleep. I was abruptly woken when I heard the front door shut. Her mom had come in, put on her shoes and coat, gathered her things, and left with her while I snoozed on my bed. Pathetic. Just so you know, if your children are invited over to play with my children, I don't typically make it a practice to snooze my way through the play date. Chalk that one up to embarrassing parenting moment and move on.

Unintentional compliments....

Sometimes the best compliments paid are those that are given unintentionally. My daughter Kennedy is great at these. Mostly because she's a kid and doesn't realize what she's saying. The other day she was with the neighbor girl Abby in our living room. They were talking and kept referring to Abby's mom by her first name. I asked Abby why she called her mom by her name instead of referring to her as mom. Both girls started giggling. Throughout the giggles I managed to squeeze out an answer.
K: We pretend that we are sisters in real life and she isn't Abby's mom, you are.
A: You are the mom to both of us because we are sisters.
Me: Oh. Why did I get to be the one that is the mom?
K: Because you are better.
Then they went on their merry way. My daughter unintentionally told me I'm a great mom and worthy to be the mother of her choosing. Even though it was unintentional, I'll take what I can get. Great day.

No MaMa!

Yesterday was Landon's 2nd birthday. He was in denial. He in no way, shape, or form wanted us to recognize his special day. When he first woke up in the morning I entered the room singing a rendition of "Happy Birthday" sure to make him smile. His response? "NO MaMa!!" I tried several times throughout the morning to sing to him, and received the same response. I started to think it was maybe my singing voice until we went to Payless to purchase him birthday shoes. (His are lost and/or falling apart). When I mentioned the word birthday in correlation with shoe he took off running. There was no way he was buying shoes for this stupid day I was trying to make special. We left the store. After school the kids tried to talk it up to him and he got downright angry. "No birday to me." What kid doesn't want a day to be recognized and pampered? Landon. Until he saw me making frosting to attempt a cake. His eyes kind of glistened as I just handed over the bowl I was finished with. He was a little more pleasant after the icing was offered. After dinner I brought out the cake. I refused to forgo tradition on account of a non-compliant birthday boy, and had him sit at the head of the table as I laid the cake out in front of him.
That was the smile I was after all day. He blew out the candles with as much force as a 2 year old can muster. What?! I get ice cream too? That was the excitement I had been begging of him.

After filling his belly with the good stuff I told him we had presents. I didn't think he'd even know what to do with wrapped packages. He picked them up and tore into them like he was a pro. He got a "Mouse Cookie Book" and a racetrack. Looks like birthdays aren't all that bad are they Landon.

After tucking the birthday boy into bed I was reflecting on why a birthday would be so traumatic. It occurred to me the conversations I'd been having with him lately. "Landon, you are getting to be a big boy and big boys don't need pacifiers. Soon you will have to get rid of it." Or, "Big boys don't suck on pacifiers. We are going to have to quit pretty soon." Then to hear "Happy Birthday Landon! You are such a big boy now!" Birthday + Big Boy = No more pacifier for me. I hate birthdays. If I ignore it maybe it won't really be my birthday and I can always have my pacifier. I can't help but wonder if my little 2 year old is smart enough to come to this conclusion. If I hadn't seen Ethan come to similar conclusions early on I'd pass it by as coincidence. Birthdays aren't traumatic, but thinking you are going to lose your most favorite possession in the entire world because of a birthday is traumatic. Don't worry buddy. I think I might be as addicted to that thing as you are.

Printing...

Jackson has taken a liking to my computer. The kid can't even read yet and amazingly enough he can find his way from game to game throughout Nick Jr. and Disney.com. He loves to print. He has gone through entirely too many ink cartridges so I limit him to 3 a day. He sometimes has trouble counting and thinks 15 is the same as 3. A little while ago he brought me a recipe for chocolate muffins and said "We HAVE to make these Mom. They look soooo delicious!" I'm still confused as to how he knew this was a recipe? We of course made them. The batter was better than the actual muffin, but isn't it always?

Ouch!

Lyndsey and Katelyn, this one's for you. Thanks to Natalie and her waxing ingenuity, problem solved.

Words of Wisdom....

Kennedy and I were sitting at the counter the other day and we were discussing growing. How kids have to eat so their bodies grow healthy and strong. Adults have to eat to stay healthy, but if they eat too much they just grow "out" because they no longer grow up. Her words to me?
"Mom, it doesn't matter if you are fat." Pause. "You just won't look good." Lovely. The wisdom of 6 year olds. Good to know.

New York, New York.....

What a lovely place. I guess lovely isn't the best word. More like crazy exciting. This city never sleeps. Probably because all their rooms are so small they have a hard time sleeping. This is our hotel room off to the right. We stayed at the Roosevelt right on Madison and 45th. Best location ever. The lobby was gorgeous and very spacious. New Yorkers like to use every inch of space so they can cram as many people in one hotel as possible. This picture shows the entire room. I was standing against the back wall to take this picture. The bathroom is behind the bed. It would have been perfect for 2, but we had 3 in our party. We ended up sleeping sideways on the bed shoulder to shoulder with our legs hanging off. I wish I'd gotten a picture of what we looked like. The second night my mom put a pillow on the nightstand so her legs could stretch out. Horrible sleeping conditions, but WELL worth it!
I rolled into town Thursday night and we stayed in Jersey at the home where Kate has been a nanny for the past few months. Friday morning we took the train into Manhattan and then dragged our suitcases over 11 blocks and down 4. Sounds close, but when you are shoulder to shoulder with everyone in your vicinity, and you're dragging a suitcase, it seems like an eternity. We found where our hotel was and checked in. They had to hold our luggage because our room wasn't quite ready yet. It was then 1 o'clock and the morning bowl of cheerios had worn off. We decided to be super touristy and eat at the Hard Rock Cafe. Food was okay, nothing exceptional, but the atmosphere was fun. There isn't a picture of all 3 of us together because as we first got into the restaurant my mom said, "how many movies have you seen where you ask someone to take a picture with your camera, hand it to them, and then they take off with it". We were all too freaked out to hand over our only method of documentation to a complete stranger. Thanks Mom.

We decided the best place to see that day would be Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. Time to navigate the subways. Kate had been on one before but was following friends and didn't need to pay attention. We stood in front of the map for quite awhile, and then asked a few people. Turns out it wasn't as hard as we imagined. This same subway (the red line #1) would actually be the one to take us to all our destinations over the weekend.

Ellis Island was great. We got on the boat to take us there at 3:30 so we didn't have much time. We were told we could either get off at the Statue of Liberty, or Ellis Island, but not both. We opted to take pictures of Lady Liberty (as Kennedy calls her) from the boat, and then tour Ellis Island. Good Decision. My mom is teaching her next unit on Ellis Island to her 6th graders so she was excited to get actual pictures of the place. It was really neat inside to see where they herded all the immigrants before they were allowed into the good ol' U S of A. It was humbling to be on my side as a tourist and not as someone having to go through a major ordeal just to live in a free country.

We got back onto the subway and decided shopping needed to be next on our destination list. We hit a few stores, bought a few things, and then it happened. I found my true love. H & M. I've always heard about this store but never stepped inside one before. My life is forever changed. We spent a really long time there, spent way too much money, and then headed back to our hotel. Because of frequent stops at various street vendors throughout the afternoon we opted to skip dinner. We decided the next day to hit Canal street for cheap shopping, Chinatown, Little Italy, and maybe Ground Zero. I woke up early (due to our sleeping arrangement) and after I was ready to go the other 2 were still cozy under the covers. I headed out to find us some breakfast. Right on Madison out the front door of our hotel it looked like Canal Street had come to us. They had the entire road blocked off from 49th down to 42nd with nothing but street vendors selling everything and anything. I walked the length of the street and when I hit 42nd I ran into an amazing sight. It was some kind of mini-race, maybe a 5k or something, with every country represented. Italy ran by with their flag, then France, then the USA, and so forth. I only watched for 5 minutes, but it was actually breathtaking. Turns out it was in honor of the Olympic Trials going on around Central Park that same morning. I found a Starbucks for bagels and hot chocolate and headed back to rally the troops. We ended up spending at least 3 hours with the street vendors, and made 3 trips back to our room with bags of stuff. What a perfect morning. Since Canal Street came to us, we decided to just scan through it and make China Town and Little Italy our actual destination. Subway time. Only the subway that would take us to every destination was under construction. A little panic sets in, but we eventually find our way. We ate at a quaint little restaurant right in the heart of Little Italy, and by then were ready to head back to our hotel to get ready for Lion King. We talked to some other crazy tourists and decided it was safe to let them take our picture together. Safely back at our hotel we were exhausted. We decided to take a little rest until our Broadway experience. We hung out for about an hour and then decided we should see Times Square at night. The billboards are unbelievably large. Everything was so bright. I knew it was dark outside, but hard to believe because the streets were so bright. People were everywhere and it was really fun to just stand and see how many people you can possibly cram onto one city sidewalk. Unbelievable. I have to say that I never felt afraid for my life. I always thought that I'd be scared walking down the streets way past my bedtime, but I felt pretty safe.

We stopped in the M&M store to get a little treat to help us hold out for dinner until after the play. 9 bucks a pound. They sure know how to stick it to the tourists. Finally time for the play. I've been wanting to see Lion King on Broadway for 10 years. I remember the week it opened Rosie O'Donnell had them perform the first number on her daytime show. I was hooked and couldn't wait to one day see the rest. Just seeing the billboard was exciting. The theater was a fun experience. Sadly, the only shows I've ever seen have been put on by high schools or colleges. This was amazing. We were actually in the very back row, but could still see and hear perfectly. I can't even describe the special effects of this production without tainting the beauty. Definitely a must see. Show ended at 11:30 and we ate McDonald's for dinner. It was the only place that didn't have an hour wait, and we were starving. Back to the hotel to semi-sleep. The next day we had to check out, so we had to get a move on. We stored our luggage with the bell-hop once again and headed on the subway to Central Park. 1st stop: Museum of Natural History. This was a pretty cool place. My mom & I expected it to look exactly like "Night at the Museum" and kept comparing the exhibits to what the movie portrayed. Yes, we need something tangible to learn.

After the museum we walked around the park. It happened to be the day of the New York Marathon which I think is the shebang of all marathons. I couldn't believe the hoards of people. The runners were near the end and still running in packs, there were that many of them. It was fun to witness. Then we found the outside of the Metropolitan Museum of Art but didn't actually go inside. Pictures on the stairs would have to do.

Before we even left for New York, my friend Natalie let me in on a little secret. Serendipity. A quaint little restaurant in the upper east side that creates the most spectacular frozen hot chocolate. We were told it was a ways from Central Park and motorized transportation would be best. We opted for our feet to get us there instead. It took us over 2 hours. The walk was fun

though because we were able to see the cute little dwellings where actual people resided. We imagined the Huxtables, Meg Ryan, Friends, and every other TV show/movie character imaginable living inside. We also passed all the stores with titles we've only heard in magazines--Vera Wang, Dolce & Gabana, and various others. Since we didn't have 3 grand to drop on a purse we didn't frequent these shops. When we finally found Serendipity we were told it would be a 1 1/2 hour wait. We signed our names up, then headed a few blocks to an H&M to bide our time. More money spent, then back to the restaurant where we were immediately taken up to our seats. I can taste this delicious drink just viewing the picture. For those of you never having tasted it, just imagine the wonder.

We so wanted to see more, but it was getting dark due to the time change, so decided to head back to the familiar territory of Times Square. We got on a subway planning to stop at 49th to see Rockefeller Center on the way back to our hotel. I honestly don't know how we survived these subway adventures. When we got out of the subway and back onto the street we were amazed and surprised at where 49th actually was. It was on the other side of the M&M store we had been to the previous evening. Unexpected. We should not have been that surprised. I'm glad we are still alive and not stuck on the subway system today. We saw the famous ice skating rink, then headed back to our hotel to claim our luggage.

We debated on a taxi, but didn't want to spend the money. After all the food we ate over the course of 3 days we decided we could walk. Over 11 blocks, up 3 and we were back where it all had begun the 1st day we arrived---Penn Station. We were taking a train back to Jersey where my cousin Shelly would dine us and give us luxury treatment in her home before she chauffeured us back to the airport the next morning.

This trip was fun for a variety of reasons. 1-no kids. Just adult women being crazy in a city.

2-time with 2 girls I can't get enough of. We are all 3 so much alike it's scary. My mom opened her make-up bag the 1st morning and not only are our bags identical, they contain the same brand and type of moisturizer, mascara, deodorant, and soap. We haven't lived together in 15 years. Kate's were also the same. Funny. At times we were laughing so hard we almost literally peed our pants. We all ordered the exact same thing at restaurants. We all decided we don't enjoy sleeping the wrong way in a bed. 3-I found that we small town girls can get by in the big city without getting lost even if the subway is under construction. 4-H&M. That says it all. and 5-Nothing but good times. I could go on and on about this trip (not like I already haven't). Thanks Mom & Kate for letting me join you on this adventure. I can't wait until the next one. Lyndsey, I hope you can make it next time. Let's just be sure and get 2 beds.