mommypalooza™ ~ a daily dose of mommy mayhem.

Gas meme: $3.19 for me.

I was able to score gas for $3.19 a gallon today at Costco in my neck of the woods.  How about you?  What are gas prices like in your 'hood? 

I thought this might make a good meme for the blogosphere, so if you're reading this, post the meme on your blog too.  Oh, and send me a comment while you're at it!

My little fish.

N is really enjoying his swim lessons.  They're almost over for this session but in the few short weeks he's had them, I have seen such a noticeable improvement in his confidence level while he's in the water. I always knew he had the technique down, but I don't think he quite knew it.

His instructor has been phenomenal at pushing him and boosting his confidence.  I think our floatie days are over.

 

 

New blog editorial goes bust.

I've had a blog post ready for publishing since last week, but since my computer died just before then, I had to put it on the backburner.  It's a new regular feature I am hoping to host here every Monday.

Since I wasn't able to get my new computer up and running in time, I've once again, had to post-pone the new idea until next Monday.  So, for now, enjoy a lovely post about N's swim lessons.

Backyardigans LIVE!

D and I took the kids to see the Backyardigans show today at the Midland.  The show was somewhat entertaining in my opinion, but the kids seemed to really enjoy it.  I suppose that's really all that matters.

 

  

 

Surprise visit.

My dad drove in from Austin late this afternoon for a quick visit with the kids.  It's about an eleven hour drive and not a pretty one, but my dad was set on coming so I figured, who am I to argue?  The drive was I am sure tiring and he'll have to turn around and drive back tomorrow since he has to be at work on Monday. 

He came specifically to make a delivery.  In addition to the cowboy holster sets he had for N & W, he also had N's birthday gift.  It is a very cool (and very large) Batman toy that comes complete with a blaster with foam bullet thingys. Very cool.  Very boy-friendly.  And, very appreciated by N, who up until now, did not own anything Batman! 

It's always nice seeing my dad.  I miss him so much and we had fun going out to dinner for some down home KC barbecue while he talked about football, my siblings, etc.  The kids definitely enjoyed his company.  The only downside was that he had to leave so soon.  N & W love giving their Grandpa "cool dudes" - a.k.a., a special handshake he does only with them and my brothers.  They love their Grandpa!

Five Things: Quality Time.

I have enjoyed getting to spend some real quality time with W as N is in school each day now.  I can tell that he kind of looks forward to certain treats each day as well.  Here's a few extra special treats W has gotten a taste of while his big brother is in school:

• Being able to listen to whatever he wants to in the car.  The moment I step back into the car from unloading N at school, W begins to shout out what track he wants to listen to.  Since big brother isn't in the car to object, the radio is all his!
• Extra cookies!  A few times after N's drop-off, W and I have been known to hit a Target store (or two) and he's enjoyed being able to get a cookie from their bakery while I shop.  It's something that he asks for each time we're in Target now, and I am always happy to oblige.  He rarely gets that only child treatment so it tickles me to be able to treat him like it every once in a while.
• Solo storytime.  W enjoys being able to pick out a book that he wants to read, rather than being stuck with whatever N would pick out.  We've enjoyed our own one-on-one cozy storytime and today we even made it to the library after dropping N off where he loaded books up into his kiddie sized backpack.
• Naps in mommy's bed.  W usually goes down for a nap a short while after we return from leaving N at school.  And, more often than not, he gets to enjoy taking those naps in our bed.  I love his little dimply smile as he makes his way across the poofy down comforter and jumps in, pulls the covers way up to his head and says, "gewd-Naaaht!". 
• Extra hugs and kisses.  Now what kid wouldn't enjoy more of that?  It's nice to not feel pulled in two different directions sometimes and to be able to just smother him with hugs, kisses and tickles!

The kids grow so fast, I don't even see them doing it.

Tonight while at N's group violin class, two of the moms commented on how tall N is getting.  I gave them a tight-lipped smile and nod as if to agree, but truthfully, I hadn't really noticed. 

I am positive that he's definitely grown, but it's just crazy that I actually don't notice it all that much unless I stop to really pay attention.  Of course, there's the small, subtle hints that he's growing like the fact that he needed a complete new jeans wardrobe (lucky kid), and the fact that many of his shorts now actually fit him like short-shorts or hot pants rather than the baggy, boyish cargo shorts they once were.

I just wonder what it will be like over the next ten years or so when he begins to inch up on me and (hopefully) pass me up in height.  How crazy it's going to feel to have my little N looking down at me, no longer able to jump into my arms (without breaking my back) so I can kiss and tickle him.  How I wish I could simply stop time.

Blogging hiatus may be in sight.

It's going to be a bit tricky to keep up with blogging over the next few days since I am down to one computer.  That's right peeps - my laptop crashed yet again last night.  Thankfully, I was able to (with the help of my wonderfully smart and tech-savvy husband) backup all of my important files and photos from it safely.

For now I am in the dungeon of our basement stuck in front of my seemingly ancient desktop forced to check email and other sites on, rather than on my convenient laptop.  Things should be back on track by early next week though.

Until then, I'll do my best to keep up with blogging, but I am not promising anything.

What we're reading.

 

Our reading habits totally go in cycles around here, as I am sure it does for most families.  Right now the kids have really been digging these books:

• Do Stars Have Points?  - N recently checked this out from his school library and D has been wonderfully reading it to him.  It's over 40 pages long but a very interesting scientific book.  N's been learning some great new vocabulary like orbit, gravity, and Big-Bang theory.  It amazes me how excited he is about space exploration and the whole study of planets.  He always asks so many questions. Thank God my husband, the genius, is able to answer them!
• Disney-Pixar Storybook Collection - The kids received this ginormous book for Christmas this past year and love, love, love to read different stories out of it.  There are stories from some of their favorite movies, yet they never tire of hearing them!  What's really cool is at the back of the book there are two large sheets of Disney themed stickers that the kids like to pick from after reading.
• Spiderman 3: Spiderman's New Suit - N just received this book for his birthday last weekend, but he's read it I think just about every day since then!  D reads it to the kids without fail every single night before bedtime and they love it.  It's not too long, not too short and definitely entertaining!  It's also very kid-appropriate, which I am of course a fan of!

What interesting reads are your kids exploring right now?

Five Things: A Mom's Courage.

• Going into the mall or other dedicated shopping establishment with your kid(s) and without a stroller.
• Showing up for a playdate someplace as the only mom who didn't bring snacks for her kid(s).
• Grocery shopping without a container of Cheerios.
• Taking your kid(s) with you to go bra shopping.  And at Nordstrom, no less.
• Taking your kid(s) out to lunch at CPK right across from Sprint headquarters during the busy lunch hour because you're really craving a margherita pizza - BADLY! [really, I don't know what I was thinking on this one!]