Just hum the ZZ Top Song "She's Got Legs" while you watch this video. I can't figure out how to load songs on it!
Seriously, she does this EVERY TIME you lay her down to put clothes on her or change her diaper. Her own personal way of being difficult!

Playdough Juice

After being a mom for 4 years to my wonderful kids, I find that we have something I like to refer to as "family" language. My husband's mother and her family have a language all their own, and Chase & I have incorporated some of this language into ours (can't give details b/c it is like speaking in code and if you ever hear me say some of the words, you will know what I am talking about and that ruins the fun!). But, after 4 years, we have developed some "family" words that are only understood by the 4 of us (Caroline, not so much...yet). Here are some examples:
-Hotelo....this is what John calls a Hotel. He first said this 2 years ago while we were in San Diego and said "mommy, let's go back to the hotelo". It just stuck. It's really cute, too.
-White Steak....John LOVES steak. So, to get him to eat pork chops and fish, I call these "white" steak. He ate a bite of fish the other night and said "mommy, I love white steak. It is good for me"
-4 Minutes....This is what i say to him when we need to get ready to leave somewhere. I say "John, you have 4 minutes, then we have to go". Other moms often look at me like 'what? 4 minutes'....I guess most moms say 5 minutes. This started when John was little and I would say "it is time to get out of the tub now" and John would say "not yet mommy, 4 minute".
-Playdough Juice....this is a funny one. So, one day, John was playing with playdough and was curious as to what it tasted like, so he ate it. Of course, it doesn't taste good, and he quickly figured that out. He spit it out and then took a big swig of juice. Later that day, Chase gave him a cup of Juice, thinking it was the same cup John had that morning. It wasn't....and God only knows how old it was. John took a big drink and got this awful look on his face and said "Daddy, this is yucky. It is playdough Juice. I want new Juice!"

Baseball

Fun day at the Ranger's Game on Sunday. Caroline LOVED the ice cream! Although they are not selling the ice cream in the rangers "hat" cups anymore. Just a stupid bowl now. How magical is that?

Do You Smell Something?

Growing up the middle of 3 girls, I was not exposed to many "boy" things that a sister is exposed to if she has a brother. So, it often stuns me when my 4 year old boy says or does something extremely gross. I have a "list" of things I never thought I would hear myself say. It goes something like this:
-Take your finger out of your nose
-Put your wee-wee away
-We only pee-pee outside, at home, and in the backyard. NOT in the front yard

Now, this is my favorite one....and a new one, too:
-No, I do not smell something

And, of course, I do smell it. The entire DFW area smells it and it stinks. Here is how the conversation goes:
"Mommy, do you smell something?"
"No, I don't. Why?"
"Betause I just TOOTED!".....he is laughing hysterically at this point

BOYS.

Mother's day

We had such a nice Mother's Day. Chase really went all out and put alot of thought into the whole day. It was so nice. First, and foremost, he let me sleep in. That was great...even if I couldn't fall back asleep and ended up with only a little 20 min. cat nap. But that is my issue! He then made a big brunch, complete with eggs, hash browns, french toast and mimosas! Yum! Then we just tooted around the rest of the day and went to Central Market to have an early dinner and let the kids play on the playground. John loves this place and it is nice that you can get a really good meal AND sit at a nice table and watch the kids play. Caroline hung out in her stroller and ate puffs, some chicken (little pieces I gave her of mine) and was generally her sweet self. John did not have a nap that day, so he crashed at 7pm, Caroline was down at 7:45pm and that left just enough time for Chase and I to sit on our front porch, with the new chairs that were my mother's day gift, and enjoy the last few minutes of the day. I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. The nice thing is, Chase really did go all out for this special day, but he (and John & Caroline) let me know I am appreciated all throughout the year....

I cough, You cough

Entertainment provided by Caroline

Day 5, Night 4

We are 4 nights into the "new" routine of me not laying with John until he falls asleep. He is doing great, getting up just a few times, with a gentle reminder from me that if he stays in his bed that we will go to Target and he can pick out a special toy. Last night, he got up twice. Each time saying he is "hundry". He ain't hungry. But, it's a stall tactic and you have to admire the persistence. I took him back to his room after he got a box of raisins (by the way, I found this morning that he had 6 boxes of uneaten raisins in his room, hence the "he ain't hungry" hunch) and tucked him in. This was 9:30pm. I then went to sit on the couch with Chase and watch ER....I have not seen this show in so long and I just LOVE it. Although, I think that Abby and Luka are going to split. Back to my original topic - So, at 10pm the show was over and I thought - Great! He is asleep! So I walk back to his room and the little toot is laying in his bed, eyes wide open. I can see b/c he insists that his lamp be on, which I don't mind. I couldn't believe it! He must be planning on taking us to the cleaners with this "special toy" at Target! Good thing was that he stayed in his bed! We watched a little bit of the news and then I walked back to his room and he was fast asleep! 1 more night to go!
We have had our new fridge for a week now and I am still just as madly in love with it as I was on day 1! It is so nice and big! I have been thinking about it alot lately, though, and feel a twinge of guiltiness thinking that we have this big fridge just for 4 of us....I think of the families that don't have much and probably have an old fridge without an ice maker and probably have 5 or 6 kids. They probably would love to have my fridge, but can't do it financially. Then I realize that every thing Chase and I have, we are grateful for. I know that I can have nice things and not feel guilty(or try not to) because I am grateful and acknowledge that. Also, even if we didn't have those things, I would still be happy and grateful. Chase and I work very hard for ourselves and our family. Chase likes to say that we work so we can take nice family vacations. The vacations is what makes a permanent memory...that is what lasts forever. Also, I think about other people I know, people that take money as just a given. That it will always be there, that the nice things will always be there. They aren't grateful...(I think, anyway) that they feel they deserve it b/c they work so hard, or whatever. I don't feel I deserve anything. I feel like I am given things (right place, right time theory), both by my hard work and the kindness of God. I feel sorry for people that get caught up in the things without being grateful. I knew one person at one point in my life that had so much STUFF that this person never truly appreciated anything (I think, anyway). Everything was just there for the taking. and always would be. And I realized at one point, that I NEVER wanted to be like that. I am truly grateful that God put that person in my life so that I could learn that lesson. I know that was the whole point of that person being in my life at that time....now I realize that. Everything happens for a reason, and hopefully, you learn and grow from it. Even if tomorrow, we didn't have any things, I would still be happy that I have my family, my heart, and my life. I would be sad that I don't have my nice, big fridge....or my minivan, but I would still be grateful....

John

With the arrival of Caroline, and all that new things she does/explores every day(she can blow a kiss now, it's cute, except for yesterday when she put her little hand up to her mouth to blow me a kiss and her fingers got stuck in her nose), I feel like I write about her too much. So I am going to write down the cute little things John has done/said the past few weeks. He really is a funny kid.
-We got a new refrigerator. He was so excited because I told him that he could open the freezer door himself (our old one was not a side by side) and get his waffles. He likes to eat frozen waffles. Gross, I know, but he likes it. So when my mother in law came to babysitt Friday night, John said to her "Yook, dida, I got a new rigerator. See, (pulling it open) there is my juice, and my butter, and my fruit, and my bej-a-tabuls..." He went on and on naming all the food in the fridge!
-Yesterday, I was in my bathroom and about to pee-pee (TMI, I know, but it's part of the story) and John saw me and said "Mommy, don't tee tee on the floor". He told me this b/c that is what we tell him ALL the time!
-I was just getting out of the shower this morning, both kids were still asleep in their rooms and I had the monitor in the bathroom with me. I was toweling off and I hear Caroline crying. Then I hear this, through the monitor:
"Dood Morning Taroline, why are you crying?"
"Do you want your mommy? Yes, you want your mommy"
"Here, Taroline, here is your nu-nu. There. That's better"
It was so damn cute! I went into her room & John said "Yook, mommy! I gave sissy her nu-nu!"

Bedtime is going much better, too. Last night was the first night I laid with him, but then got up and left the room. He asked me where I was going and I said that mommy had to clean up the kitchen. I told him that daddy was on the computer, paying bills, that Caroline was in her bed, Kramer was outside and what I was going to do. It seemed to help, but then about 10 min. later, he came out of his room. I asked him if he wanted to see what daddy was doing. So I walked him over to the computer, then took him to Caroline's room, then showed him that I was almost finished in the kitchen. I put him back in his bed and told him not to get out and that I would leave the door open so that he could see me in the kitchen. I was finished and had to watch the rest of Medium standing near the sink pretending to do something, but it worked. I really think he just wants to be out there, with us, and that if I tell him what we are doing and act like it is no big deal, he will fall asleep on his own. That is the plan, anyway.