What have I gotten myself into?!?

Last night I got a glimpse into what Abby and Andrew will be like in 4-5 years and boy will we have our hands full. A couple of weeks ago I was asked to be a teacher for the 10 week WAK (Wednesday’s Activities for Kids) program at church. I agreed because 2 of my friends were going to be co-teachers with me so I thought it would be fun. We found out last week that we have 4th and 5th graders; wow is all I can say. It gets very loud with 22 4th and 5th graders.
Our lesson was on Solomon so we asked the kids if they could ask for anything what would it be. We got a range of answers from an endless supply of chocolate to a Nintendo Wii. But we also got thoughtful answers. The loudest and most obnoxious boy in the class said that he would ask God to make his brother normal (his brother suffers from severe cerebral palsy) and the quietest girl in the class asked for a sister (her mom was in my bible study class so I know she is going through infertility issues) It was really touching. We also asked the kids what problems they have had to ask God for help on. We got a lot of problems with bullies and siblings. We also got a few of the girls saying that they have a problem with self confidence. I guess some problems never go away.
They are a precious group of kids and I can’t wait to get to know them better.

Wordless Wednesday

Before and After . . . the kids' bathroom

Well, the kids’ bathroom was the last room to be finished and it is my favorite by far. Marty gets all the kudos for this one because he did everything. All I did was help pick out the paint and the accessories. He’s the one that wanted to redo the floor and put up the wainscoting (which I think both are a huge improvement) I am so proud of him because it turned out great. Let him know what you think.

Hi, my name is Robyn. . .

And I am addicted to strollers. Yes, you read that right strollers. I have come to realize that I have a small obsession with strollers. We have 5 strollers. Let me remind you how many kids we have, just 2. You ask why do we need 5 strollers? Well, honestly we don’t, especially since Abby rarely rides in a stroller anymore. I just like them. We bought our last stroller over the weekend and I promise I am done. I quit. I will say that I love the new one though. We went to the mall the other night just because I wanted to push it. I know, very very sad. They say admission is half the battle. So I now make my problem public and I promise no more strollers, well unless a really cool one comes out.

Every child does it. Part 2

Last time it was Abby, this time it is Andrew. No, he didn’t cut his hair but he did something that “every kid does”
Marty is on the phone with his mom and gives the kids each a box of raisins for snack. Do you see where this is going? Andrew comes to Marty with a runny nose and a little teary eyed. Nothing unusual because his nose and eyes always run. Well, he does it again. This time Marty looks a little closer and yep, there’s a raisin up Andrew’s nose. Why? Why do kids do this? Marty then goes to look for the emergency flashlight so he can look even closer. The flashlight is no where to be found. Yes, the kids have taken and hid our emergency flashlight
Only one raisin made it up there. Let’s hope he learned his lesson, but I’m not going to take that bet.

Ok, so I wrote this yesterday but never got around to posting it. Here’s the update. We get to church and Marty is getting Andrew out of the car seat when he notices another raisin. Yes, there were 2 up there. One made it out in a timely fashion; the other was in there for oh about 9 hours. Poor baby. I had to take him home so I could get the tweezers because it was way up there. When I got it out, it looked more like a grape than a raisin. Lovely thought huh. He’s no worse for the wear but mommy and daddy are a little concerned for his future.

Wordless Wednesday

2 year well check

Ok, so I was a little late this year, but we finally got Andrew to the doctor for his 2 year well check. He’s growing and developing great, albeit a little small but we knew that. He weighs 24 pounds (5%) and is 33.5 inches tall (50%). He has finally surpassed Abby at this age. Up until now Abby was always a little bigger. At 2 years old Abby was 23 pounds and 32 inches. Maybe there’s hope for him after all. Maybe he will make it to 18 month clothes one day in the near future. He did have to have one shot and his big toe picked. It traumatized Abby more than it did Andrew. A few snuggles and a promise to go to McDonald’s pretty much did it for him. His iron test came back great. YIPPEE. We have always battled anemia with Abby so it was a huge relief to know that Andrew is in the clear. Oh, and he didn’t cry at all when the doctor examined him. This is a huge deal. My little man is growing up.

Wordless Wednesday

They are always listening

Abby “Daddy’s gonna whoop those boys and mommy’s gonna jump the fence”

Interested in the story behind Abby’s comment? Sunday night is family night, so this past Sunday we took the kids to play putt-putt. Abby is surprisingly really good at putt-putt and Andrew, well he just likes to hit things. After putt-putt Abby wanted to ride the go carts. So Marty graciously agreed to take her. There were probably 6 other carts on the track with them and Marty was doing really well. He stayed back a little so all the other cars wouldn’t scare Abby and boy was she having a good time. She would squeal and wave to Andrew and I every time they went around. Well, the other carts caught up to Marty and Abby. There were 2 guys that I guess thought they were at Atlanta Motor Speedway or something, they had already spun out once despite numerous reminders to be careful over the loud speaker. One kept riding Marty’s tail and finally got so close that he bumped them pretty hard. I guess the mama bear came out in me because I immediately jumped up from the table and screamed that’s my daughter, be careful. Abby told Marty that the bump scared her but she then went on enjoying the rest of the race. Walking back to the car Marty and I were talking about what had happened and I told him that I was about to jump the fence if I had to. Marty then tells me “I know, I wanted to whoop some . . . “ Well he left it at that. Getting in the car Abby asked Marty what he was going to whoop, so he filled in the blank with “the boys” So now, Abby is going around telling everyone, I believe she told Ella yesterday on the phone that “Daddy’s gonna whoop those boys and mommy’s gonna jump the fence” Well, see if she tells her teacher today, but it wouldn’t surprise me in the least. Classy of us huh?
Moral of the story, little ears are always listening.

Happy birthday to my one and only!

I know it’s an old picture, but it’s one of my favorites.

Finally, Marty has caught up to me. According to Abby, we are both 52. Ok so she’s only 20 years off. Happy Birthday Marty. The kids and I are truly blessed to have you; you are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I am sorry that Andrew woke up at 6:26 this morning and that you were already playing hide and seek by 9:00 am, but I’m sure you didn’t mind at all. I hope you have the best day ever and know that you are loved more than words can express. I love you.

Some are right, some are way off.

Here is the card that Abby made me at school for Mother’s Day. Too cute.

How do you know?

So how do you know when kids are playing you or not? I ask because I think we were played last night. Abby had her church choir concert last night and has been looking forward to it (or so we thought) for weeks. She was so excited last week when she got to practice on the big stage. So last night we go eat at the church like we do every Wednesday night. During dinner Abby seemed not like her self. We kept asking her if she felt ok or if she was nervous. I think that’s what did it; I think we planted the idea in her head. As I start to take her to her class she tells me that her throat hurts and she thinks she needs to spit up (throw up) So I rush her to the bathroom and nothing. I ask her if she wants to go to her class or go home and she says that she wants to go to her class for the concert. I take her and she starts crying. Again, her throat hurts and she thinks she needs to spit up. She finally tells me that she wants to go home. To this point I am thinking that she is going to throw up any minute. As we walk down the hall, she asks if she can go watch the concert. Hmm! Once we get home she laid on the couch for oh about 5 minutes. Then the rest of the night was spent riding her bike and playing with bubbles. I’m not sure if she was really sick, if we pressured her or if she was nervous. I’m not sure we will ever know but she has promised to give us our own concert tonight

Wordless Wednesday

What a week!!

Wow, are kids are really putting us to the parenting test this week. Calgon take me away! So Abby cut her hair earlier in the week, well last night was Andrew’s turn to test mommy and daddy. I’m still not sure if we passed or failed miserably. Our bedtime routine consists of getting jammies on and reading a book in Abby’s room. Depending on the night Andrew will join us in Abby’s room for the book. Last night was one of those nights, but Andrew just didn’t want to and wouldn’t cooperate. So instead of fighting with him, Marty and I agreed that it would be better to just put him to bed and finish the book with just Abby. Andrew didn’t like that idea one bit, he pitched the second biggest temper tantrum I have ever seen. HUGE I tell you. We are in Abby’s room reading and all the sudden we hear Andrew’s door open. I take a quick inventory as to who was missing and the only one was Andrew. Yes, he had climbed out of his crib. I know they are two completely different children but Abby never even tried to climb out of her crib. So, we tell him that is not allowed and I rock him a little to try to get him calmed down. He stops screaming so I go to put him back in his crib. Well, this is when the biggest temper tantrum starts; I guess the first one was just the warm up. Marty and I stand outside Andrew’s door listening. We hear him jumping in his crib and don’t think much about it until we hear a loud thud. Yep, he did it again but this time we are pretty sure he fell, or jumped, out of the crib. I think he really scared himself that time because when I put him back in his crib he laid right down and didn’t try it again, nor did he pitch a tantrum. Needless to say, Marty and I both went up there about 15 minutes later to give him some love. Marty rocked him for a good 20 minutes and we hope he went to sleep with happy thoughts. Parenting is hard work!
After all the events this week, Marty thought it a good idea to give me my Mother’s Day present early. I love, love, love it. It’s a locket key chain from red envelope. If you don’t know what red envelope is, go check it out because they have some of the best things. I have already put the pictures in, so next time I see you feel free to ask to see my keys. What a great husband I have, presents always brighten the day.

Update

All is good!! I can tell that Abby cut her hair but no one else can. It was way better than what I was imagining. Thank goodness!! We talked about it and hopefully got it through her hard head that she does not cut her hair, ever. Oh she also said that she cut Andrew’s hair, but we can’t find where. Oh my, and I though Andrew was going to be the one to keep us on our toes!
Sorry no pictures.

Every child does it, right?!?

So I get a call from Marty, nothing unusual about that. He’s been working on the kids’ bathroom (I can’t wait to show y’all because it’s going to be the best room in the house) and the kids were awfully quite. That’s usually not a good sign and in this case it was true. Here’s what Abby tells Marty when he finds them in our bathroom:
A: Ok daddy, here’s the truth. Since mommy thinks my hair is too long (I LOVE her hair and am in fact very envious of it) I cut it.

I wanted to cry! She used her childproof scissors that were in the junk drawer that has a child safety lock on the drawer. Marty *says* you can’t tell but he also said that there is about a 2 inch lock of hair in the trashcan. She cut it from the bottom on the bangs side of her hair, if that makes any sense. I feel bad because she did it because she thought that I thought her hair was too long. I’m guessing this is coming from the fact that I have been pulling it up into ponytails lately since it’s getting warmer. Now I’m also having mommy guilt because when I talked to her on the phone I was in shock and I sure I didn’t get across what I really wanted to and not the way I wanted to. I will let you know tomorrow if you can really tell or not.

WooHoo

I just got off of the phone with the Admissions Director at DCA. I wanted to give her a heads up that we will be taking Abby out of school for vacation and also get her opinion. Well, it went so much better than I had imagined. She said that Abby will miss out on bonding time but from what she can see in Abby; she will be just fine. She also said that it is great family time and she is glad to see families still see the importance of vacation. Such a load off my shoulders, I was really dreading making the phone call. Looks like Abby will be having school by the pool. How many more days do we have?!?