Alex Quote

Alex: Birthday! Birthday! Birthday!

Me: Who's birthday is it?

Alex: Yours, Mommy!

Me: I know! I'm excited! Are you going to get me a present?

Alex: Yes...a BIG train!

Me: Awesome!

"Not Me!" Monday

Happy Monday to you all! I'm in a small depression after having hubs home with me for the last 7 days. When no one was around to change Blake's diaper this morning, I decided the smell had permeated the house enough and I figured it would be just plain cruel to leave him in it until Paul came home. So here's to another "Not Me!" Monday! Check out MckMama's blog for more!



While eating lunch in the kitchen, I most certainly did not see my three year old bend over to wipe his nose on the table. That would have been gross and I of course teach my children manners. They never wipe their mouths on their shirts, throw food they don't want on the floor, or chunk sippy cups at my head. So there is no possible way he wiped his nose on my table! Don't laugh...seriously, I teach them manners!



I did not find already chewed purple gum spread all over the train table and underneath the track. I did not ask Alex where the gum came from. He certainly did not tell me that hubs left it on his bedside table. And when I didn't ask Alex why he put it on the track? He surely didn't tell me he was trying to use it to keep the pieces sticking together. And I absolutely, positively was not secretly proud of the little fella for being so ingenious in his problem solving!



Nope, not me! I'm not that Mom!!!

And last, I was NOT completely overwhelmed this week by the love in our families.

I didn't LOVE seeing Matt and Kaitlyn for 4 days, even if we did spend the majority of it laughing at each other doing the Wii Fit. Gotta burn off that turkey!

I didn't LOVE making pies for Steph's Homeless Dinner or visiting with her and her friends.

I definitely didn't LOVE seeing my boys wrestle and tumble with my family. Certainly didn't LOVE seeing the looks on my in-laws faces when we, as a surprise, put up their outdoor Christmas decorations for them and didn't LOVE sharing a Thanksgiving Mexican meal in Tucker. We didn't have a blast playing trains with Big Papa. And my heart did not MELT when I saw my 3-year old give up 2 of his favorite snakes to a baby (3 months old) that didn't have a home or toys. I didn't LOVE putting up our beautiful Christmas tree with hubs, in the quiet of the evening with a good glass of wine. And I didn't LOVE hearing sweet Blakey laugh uncontrollably when we wrestled.

I really didn't enjoy this last week at all!

Oh, wait! Yes, I did all those things. I was that Mom!

They're Working! They're Working!

So, sweet Blakey has gotten a nasty cold. He's been kind of congested for awhile, but the last 3 days were rough. You know, the no sleeping, no eating, really fussy, drooling like crazy (2 new teeth coming up). Same old, same old with him! I've been watching his ears, waiting for them to drain. I've seen nothing! I called the pediatrician and they told me I needed to talk to the ENT, the tubes should be draining. Because if he did have an ear infection and the tube wasn't draining, then it was probably blocked and not working. So we did, in the midst of not having phone service again this weekend, speak with the ENT and he said Blakey needed to be seen at the pediatricians office on Sunday and if it was truly a blocked tube, we needed to be at the ENT Monday morning.

Needless to say, I was very discouraged. We knew this was a possibility, but I guess we were just hoping and praying Blakey wouldn't have to deal with it. Anyway, after seeing doc on Sunday and the wonderful news that the ear tubes are clean, in place and working....we have successfully made it through our first cold without antibiotics or an ear infection! And despite, the not eating, not sleeping well, drooling baby I have...this is one happy Momma!!

Wordless Wednesday: A Day Late and a Dollar Short

So, Wordless Wednesday is not only a day late, but it's also not so much wordless. I'm not sure these pics can be appreciated without the explanation, that we not only spend HOURS driving our train, but Alex now decorates it....with any and every toy he has. He pulls buckets, cars, snakes, alligators, trucks, ramps, and anything else he can find off his shelves and just places them on the floor next to the track. That kid cracks me up!

"Not Me!" Monday

Happy Monday! This is my first attempt at "Not Me!" Monday! Check out MckMama's site for more! Have fun!

I did not let my baby eat an apple today that he had started yesterday and found on the floor! Because I am not desperate to get that baby to eat. And I definitely didn't praise him for doing so!

I certainly didn't pretend to not see my three year old drink a side of marinara sauce that came with my calzone, because I was not trying to have a real adult conversation ...I mean, he was quiet! And doesn't marinara sauce have a bunch of antioxidants?

I do not have like 13 loads of laundry and 3 dirty bathrooms to tend to today!

I did not spend the afternoon making a homemade pumpkin cake and then get tired and just use store bought icing!

And lastly, I did not get on the scale this morning and realize I still have 12 pounds of baby weight left. And because of that, I did not have 1 piece (okay 2) of that pumpkin cake with store bought icing!

Thankful Thursday

1. The cool weather...love it!

2. That Blake ate...seriously ate...for the fifth meal in a row. If you've walked this road with us, you will know that this is definitely something that we are so thankful for and know why we count each one of them.

3. My coffee date with a sweet friend tonight.

4. Trains...and boys....

5. My husband who's driving home from Thomson early so that I can go on my coffee date!

6. That my boys drop everything they're doing if I say, "Do you guys want to watch 'Jack's Big Music Show!'?" and run to their chairs in the living room...it's adorable...

7. My sweet Alex has turned into quite the snuggle bug lately...

8. Puggles

9. The Falcons winning season....this is more something Paul's thankful for, but because they're winning...believe me, we're ALL thankful!

10. That no matter how rough of a morning it's been, we can all start fresh after nap time!

Boys and Trains

I will never understand. I don't think I'm meant to. Paul understands. He gets it. He sees it. All three of them. Together. It bonds them. Alex talks about it all day long. He tells strangers in the pediatrician's waiting room about his train. "No, it's not a passenger train, it's the Express," he corrects a man who was polite enough to indulge him in his passion. What???

Paul just put together our electric train in the playroom. It's usually brought out after Thanksgiving with the Christmas tree, but Paul wanted to do it a little earlier this year and now I understand why. All you have to do is look at their faces. All three of them. They are in amazement. Each one captivated. Around and around and around. Watching. Waiting for it to reappear from behind the couch. Pressing the horn over and over. Changing the path of the train. Paul loves it. Alex LOVES it. Blakey LOVES it. Mommy doesn't get it.

But, I do get that it bonds them and I LOVE that. My children have a "thing" with their dad and I LOVE that. They have other "things" but this is one that the three of them have together. That they look forward to Paul walking through the door even more than they did before and I LOVE that. Just to be able to do the train with Daddy because it's just not the same with Mommy. They know that I love doing it with them, but not the way Daddy does. That is just between my boys, and I LOVE that.