Potty Mouth

Yes, I can be a potty mouth at times. I admit it. But, it's not like I'm dropping the horrible f-bomb left and right or anything. I just have a few choice phrases/words that I often mumble under my breath or not so under my breath if the occasion presents itself. And, many of them are not even "potty mouth" things, they're just things that I would rather my children not say. Such as, "Oh my GOSH!" with a huge sigh afterwards. This one is usually due to the boys getting into something. Or, "Seriously guys. This is RIDICULOUS!!" Again, when they are doing something they should not be doing. These are two phrases the big boys use all the time, and I have to admit it can be pretty funny. But, I do have one word I say that is a little higher on the inappropriate list. It's dammit. Yes, it's a favorite of mine. And, I usually don't even realize I'm saying it and it's usually when I *think* I'm alone in the room and drop something or hurt myself. However, the all hearing ears of my 3 year old and 2 year old have picked up on this word. Isn't it amazing what those little ears hear when you think they are busy doing something else on the other side of the room or not even in the same room as you are?! Well, the other night while Robert and I were eating dinner, the big boys were playing with their barn and trying to put their trucks inside of it and use it as some sort of auto repair shop. Evidently their trucks were broken or something, who knows. But, the trucks would not fit inside the barn and the next thing I know, both big boys are saying, "Dammit. Dammit!!" as they attempt to shove trucks into their little barn. I tried to ignore it, but after a few times I reminded them that dammit is not a very nice word and that they should not say it, and neither should momma. We'll see how it goes. But, I do take responsibility for this one. And, I apologize in advance to everyone because you know they won't ever use that word again until we're sitting at Christmas dinner or something! I can already see how it will go. One of them will drop or spill something and a big 'ol dammit will come out. So, as I've mentioned in posts before, I think watching my potty mouth will certainly be one of my New Year's resolutions!

First Snow

We had our first snow this morning, only a dusting, but enough for the boys to be excited. We bundled up and the played for a minute (probably less!) before getting in the car to head to the gym. It was barely 20 degrees, so our time outside was short lived. But hey, we got out in the snow a little bit and I even remembered to take a few pics!

Graham decided to sit right down in the snow! And yes, he was pretty wet by the time we made it to the car. He was also not happy that his hands were cold. He screamed the entire way to the gym!

Marshall liked the snow much better than Graham. He insisted on putting on my gloves instead of his!

Patrick went an immediately threw snow balls! However, he had not put on his gloves yet and was pretty upset when the snow melted in his hands and made them cold. I see a theme here! My children do not like having cold hands. But, who does?!

Decorating for Christmas...Personal Touches

Hmmm...Notice something a little odd about this picture?? I looked at our tree the other day and noticed that the boys had added their own personal touch to our decorations. Nothing like a dirty sock and even a Toys R' Us coupon on a Christmas tree!

After taking a couple of years off from decorating the outside of our house, I decided to dig out all the outside stuff and put it up. They boys love looking at all the lights on their house and it has definitely put me in even more of a holiday mood!! No dirty socks in the garland outside...yet, anyway. :)

Top Ten Signs It Might Just Be Time To Wean

10. Your child is over 12 months of age
9. Your child is capable of feeding himself table food
8. Your child drinks out of a sippy cup and cup just fine
7. Your pediatrician asks at every visit, "Is he finished nursing yet??"
6. Your child's older siblings walk him to you whenever they think he needs momma milk
5. Your child attempts to gain access to his momma milk by going down your shirt
4. If going down your shirt is unsuccessful, he lifts your shirt and crawls under it
3. Your child asks for momma milk by name, even if he's got a sippy cup right in front of him
2. Your child gets a giddy, goofy grin on his face and kicks his feet and claps his hands if you tell
him he can have some momma milk
1. Your almost 16 month old knows the workings of a nursing bra and will unclasp it, nurse and
close it back up when he's finished!



Yes, Graham is showing all of these signs. I think if might just be time for him to be done nursing! He's down to just a few times a day, which is nice. However, I do miss the "nature's boob job" that I've had for the past couple of years, as things are a little um, lower now that he's nursing less. But, I do have so much more energy and I am not ravenously hungry all the time since he's not sucking all the life out of me these days. So, once we get through our holiday travels I think we will be spending some time focusing on weaning Graham (of course I've been saying this since he was like 6 months old!) and even attempting to potty train Marshall.

Language Explosion

Graham's vocabulary is exploding! I swear, it has happened over night. Just today I have heard him say half a dozen new words!! My favorite so far is "Actic" for Patrick. Patrick knows Graham is calling his name and he answers, it pretty sweet. Graham also saw some batteries from our flashlight and pointed to them saying, "battery!" I just love it. Especially when at dinner he looked at me and mumbled, "Wanna ite, momma!" So, a bite of momma's dinner he got. It's so great to hear his language blossoming. Patrick was a very late talker, and to be honest I was a little worried. Marshall talked extremely early, and it looks like Graham is pretty much on target. I think there is something so exciting and special about hearing the voice of your child say words for the first time.

Wordful Wednesday

Yes, Patrick is wearing my boots. And, he even has my boot socks on, too. He thought he looked pretty good when this picture was taken! Hmmm....if he ever goes through some crazy cross-dressing phase maybe we'll be able to trace it back to this! ;)

Best Laid Plans

Yesterday I took a stroll through Home Goods (love that store!) while the boys were with the sitter. I saw this cute little "Time Out" chair and thought it would be great for the boys. Well, not so much. When I brought it home they fell in love with it. I explained that it was our new "naughty spot" and when they misbehaved they had to sit in it for a few minutes. The totally missed the point. They ended up carrying it around the house, sitting in it and pouting as if they were in trouble. We'll see what happens when they actually have to sit in it at some point today, as someone is in time out every day!

I spent yesterday morning, before the boys woke up, Goo Gone-ing my kitchen floor. The boys had made cute signs for Daddy's promotion announcement at work Monday. While I was digging through our arts and crafts bin to prepare, they got into the foam letter stickers and decided to make a "snake" with them across my kitchen floor before using them to make congrats signs for Robert. I didn't really freak out at the time, as whenever they stick stickers on things (my Waterford vase!) they usually just peel right off. Not these foam letter stickers!!! They were S.T.U.C.K. Urghh. I finally ended up finding the Goo Gone stuff and had to let them soak in it for a while before I could get them off. I also ended up having to mop the kitchen to get the greasy Goo Gone off of my floor. Lesson learned. And, Goo Gone is pretty fabulous stuff!!