I was the one who got in trouble today

my son found out that I put

"No gifts please!" on his birthday party invite!

you think it's a inconvenient when they can figure out what you're spelling

it's twice the pain when they learn to read

we have to work a lot harder to keep things secret

the birthday package from my parents in Japan?

"Mom, it says there's a lure in here! Can I open it?"

package on the front porch?

"That's from lego. It's for my birthday isn't it?"

and today when he saw the invite, "Moommmmmm!"

you get the idea...

so I'm off the have "that" talk again.

BIG trouble

in the bath tonight my B was trying to keep her hair dry
but of course, as always, it got wet
"that's not SUCH big trouble" she said
"now if your arm was torn off... THAT would be BIG trouble!"
it instantly reminded me of being in labor
they always ask about pain
how is it? what is it on a scale of one to ten?
all in an attempt to convince you that you are not meant to be doing this unaided
the first time I was asked this question I was in hard labor
my response to the pushy nurse was
"about a four! if I was lying in a ditch, my limbs cut off and in labor... that might be a nine!"
Coach apologized and said, "she has a big imagination."
so I'm glad to see that my daughter can also imagine worse
you could always be in bigger trouble than you already are!

Coming Across the Wedding Towels

sometimes an unfortunate event will turn out to be just what you needed
that was the case today when my daughter decided to empty my linen closet yesterday
well not "empty" more like.. no it was "empty"
she wanted "baby blankets" for her dolls
and I told her she could use them
little did I know that she would climb up onto the shelves in the closet
and root around until she found all the little girl blankets,
knock all the other blankets down when she pulled them out
and walk over them several times carrying hers back and forth
I had little choice but to take the rest of the things out and start from scratch
in the process I once again came across a set of beautiful virgin white towels

the coach and I were given these towels for our wedding
we have yet to use these towels
I just can't stand the thought of grubby little hands getting a hold of them
every so often I will take them out and contemplate putting them into circulation
then I quickly put them back in their drawers
and we continue using the old ones
often I am upset when I find my family members using our beach towels
most likely it's my fault for hiding the nice ones, not turning over laundry often enough
and leaving an unorganized closet
now there will be no excuses
the closet looks quite presentable
and tomorrow go and buy a set of towels that are navy or some such color

Finally!

my little guy got the coolest christmas present
but there was a problem
it's made of duck cloth and smelled like dead fish
"mom, it's REALLY stinky!" was all he would say
so no one has used it
last night I FINALLY washed it
why didn't I do that three months ago?
now it's sitting outside in the sunshine and getting lots of use
and just in time -
it's the first day of spring!
this day could not have been more perfect
up early for soccer, breakfast with friends, neighbors kids running in and out of the house
and I have a party to go to in a few hours!
maybe I'll even be able to remember where I put my new lipstick?
I couldn't ask for more
until I have to leave I'd better get back out there and enjoy this sunshine
Happy First Day of Spring!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!



Last night the kids all went to bed in green pajamas
just in case they saw each other after midnight...
the pinching was to be avoided at all costs
today one of them noticed how many
different shades of green we have in our life
I am reminded of how it was my favorite color growing up
especially the green of the rice field
will they ever get to know that green?

men in pink

if REAL men wear pink
my little man is as authentically as male as they come

and don't blame his mama and sister
our favorite colors are red and gold
he's just drawn to it
his papa who was an anthropology major says that it was the color of masculinity eons ago
and if psychologists are correct pink, especially bright pink has the ability to lessen irritation and aggression if only for a while
which would be perfect for this little guy...
maybe men and pink do go together

delight!

we got to spend the day with our sweet new cousin today

we never dreamed that we'd get to see her again so soon

makes us wish our other cousins lived closer too

when I looked at her I felt as though I knew her already

and I realized it's because she looks like my girl!

which makes her even more endearing...

we went home and took out all the baby photos

talk about hours of entertainment

I hope we get to see eden again soon

having a new cousin around is the second best thing to having your very own new sibling

eden

bea

oscars!

my boy decided he wanted to be a part of the Girl's Only Oscar Party this year
his role? the bartender!
his reasons were completely monetary
as you can see his bar was complete with a tips jar
being in the restaurant business I guess we shouldn't be surprised by our little entrepreneur?
he even dressed for the occasion... it was a pajama party!
B's favorite part? getting to hang out with her own personal Chanel make-up specialist!
who was of course trying to get her to say, "thanks, it's Chanel!"

jumping the gun

today was the first warm day of the year

and these kids cannot wait to swim outdoors

I wish I could bring myself to tell them it's still going to be a few months...

out and about

I ran errands with my sweet girl today

we're getting ready for our annual girl's oscar party

flowers, movies star shades, chocolates, etc.

she had a lot to say

"mom, do you know that you're famous?"

good to know. i had no idea!

and "when can I get those things on my teeth?"

what things?

"you know those shiny things where you can change the colors?"

(thank goodness she was not talking about a grill)

how does she know about braces? and changing colors?

I can see her checking out the big kids at the dentist office

this child is definitely a watcher

we also happened upon a VW bug

something I've been trying to get a photo of forever

they come in a beautiful blue/grey/green color

I love color but a name for this one alludes me

(it's a tad more green and grey than in this shot)

I've been looking for it for a long time

it's the perfect color for my bedroom walls

so we snapped a shot and headed to the paint store

we settled on tranquility for the bedroom and beehive for the kitchen

I think I'm getting close to deciding

as we got close to home she asked,

"are we getting back into our territory?"

spoken like a girl who usually spends her days fighting battles with her brothers

thank goodness for our girl time!