Even though not everyone is excited about getting his picture taken....I love this picture because I got all my BOYS in the same shot!

There was a time, BC (before children) when I pictured summer break with my handsome well-behaved children.....it went something like this.....

Rising in the morning naturally by our own bio-clocks....mixing our own organic granola in the morning, crafting macrame wall hangings, swimming, catching fire flies....maybe one more trip to the craft table before bed time.......

And then my reality set in....really the only thing we do on this list is go swimming.

I really have every intention to let them catch lightning bugs, but the West Nile mosquitoes swarm at that time. Also with the coming climate apocalypse, there aren't any to be found. Perhaps because of all the chemicals we douse our lawns with .

Now I look at my summer calendar and see vast expanses of gloom and doom, I must find something for these rascals to do. Last summer was the first year the two oldest ones began to fight. It was exhausting before that, but it became even harder mentally last year.

I used to scoff at the moms who sent their kids to these summer "camps." Something, I may add, we never had growing up. We just drove our parents nuts. "I'm bored."....."Go out and play."
And we did usually. I'd be gone from morning til night....coming back occasionally to eat.

Anyway....This is the first year I'll be entering the world of the summer camps. The older two will do two Vacation Bible Schools, one science and technology camp and one soccer camp.

This is why I work....to have enough money for the extra stuff...for Q to go to a special kindergarten, for soccer camps, organic fruits....and good shoes for the baby.

Plus I get to eat my Chick fil-A salad and Diet Coke in peace.

What a blessed life I lead.

For these reasons, we are best friends

It is not uncommon to find these two getting into things. I just happened to notice they had snuck away and were very quiet. When I walked upon this scene.... in fact if I weren't around them, who knows what they could get into.

mother's day is everyday

Hello,
Happy birthday to my So.Cal sister!

To celebrate, I spent the day purging. I am overwhelmed by the clutter.
When the boy that Q carpools with asked him what he wanted for his birthday. He sighed and said, "really, we have too much stuff. The toys are just everywhere." The girl I share driving duties reported said it was as if MY voice was coming from the back of the SUV.

So this dear heart of a friend kept Q for a playdate and I tackled the toy room.

I'm ready to get real about the clothes in my closet too. It is true by the time I can fit into stuff again, I'm not going to be the same person anymore.

Here is one tidbit from the kids' traditional mother's day papers they fill out.

My mom is as pretty as....."MY DOG LEO."

Speaking of Leo, have I mentioned I've got the best dog EVER.

the asylum

It really is a wonder I'm not crazier than I already am.

Sometimes I wonder if I have unwittingly been put into one of those psychology experiments, where scientists are observing me to see if I will really lose it.

The characters walk around here in imaginary states, babbling gibber-jabber, creating strange new characters and voices. My 7-year-old greets me in the morning with no good morning or hello. It is, "you know, if you rode on the alien express backwards you would end up 750 billions years ago."
My four year-old utters strange expressions at nearly every utterance. Lately he finds the words "yell" and "fart" particularly amusing. So imagine greeting the clerk in the grocery line, she will make some sweet comment and ask the small child how he is doing. He responds, "Yelling." blink. blink. stare.
She looks at me for a translation or an explanation of his Torette's Syndrome.

Words in sweet children's songs are laced with the words, "fart" or "yell." So much so that I don't even notice anymore. In fact, I'm not even sure I know what the right words are anymore.

pictures from our spring break in Florida

My boys....growing so fast