Laundry Soup

Laundry….oh Laundry…how I loathe you!!  Not the having to wash you or dry you because frankly that is quite satisfying especially since we have machines that do the work.  Getting something clean that was once dirty is fan-freakin-tastic!  But it is the folding of you that I can’t stand.  Like I’d much rather clean the boys’ bathroom toilets then fold laundry.  And believe me, that’s saying something!

I don’t think it would be so bad if I had the time to do everything right away or if I was able to create a system that would work and I could stick to.  Put the dirty clothes in the washer, then the dryer, and then fold them as soon as they were finished to avoid all the billions of wrinkles that are created the moment you take them out of the dryer.  But I don’t have time to do that.  Most of the time, I’m in such a rush to get the 6 loads of laundry done in between running the kids to school and sports, running errands, going to appointments, play dates, blogging, and of course I must make my daily trip to Starbucks, that by the end of the day, the laundry is sitting in huge piles on my couches.  It literally looks like a big heaping, out of control bowl of laundry soup.  Sorting and folding this “soup” can take hours depending on how many loads of laundry went through a complete cycle that day (we won’t even get into the wet loads I’ve forgotten in the washer in the evening and had to re-wash them the next morning). 

All soups have different ingredients to them.  In the case of my perfected Laundry Soup the one ingredient that has a tendency to leave a bad taste in my mouth is socks.  I’ve seriously proposed to my husband that we move to a warmer climate where socks never have to be purchased, worn, and therefore never have to be washed, lost, or paired together (if you’re even lucky enough to find the matches).  With four boys we have socks coming out of our ears.  Crew socks, sports socks, shorty socks, school socks, dress socks, holiday socks (of all freaking things).  You could easily sit on the couch pairing socks for a solid hour with four boys in the house. 

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wished to live in The Jetson’s home so that I could have a machine that will fold my laundry for me.  It can’t be that far fetched can it?  I mean they made a washer and a dryer, why couldn’t they take it a step further and make a folder??  It’s much more reasonable than asking for a laundry fairy!

Apparently Buggy doesn’t like the Laundry Soup either.  Whenever he sees a pile of laundry on the couch it is like a beacon calling to him to come over and pull every single piece of clean clothing off the couch and onto the floor.  In a matter of seconds he has it all down sitting around him.  He methodically takes each piece that is in front of him and throws it over his shoulder, one by one, only to turn around to the pile he just created behind him and start in again.  You can see his frustration mounting as he starts to realize that his efforts seem to be futile and finally he just gives up, crawls over the pile he made on the floor, turns around and gives it one last disgusted look and literally growls at it.  My feelings exactly Buggy and how I wish I could do exactly that and get away with it. 

All soups have one ingredient that makes them special, unique, like no other soup out there.  It’s an ingredient that makes you want more, and count the days until you get to have it again.  For me, that ingredient is Buggy.  I’ve actually found myself putting clothes on the floor just so I can see him work his magic on our little soup we’ve concocted.  As always my Buggy has a way of making the ordinary, boring, annoying tasks more fun and interesting and somehow a great memory is made out of it. 

What don’t you like about doing the laundry?  Is there something you do to help make it fun and less of a chore?

Sunday Sweetness: By Leaps and Bounds

I enjoyed my last Sunday Sweetness post so much that I think I may just make it a weekly thing, or at the very least a bi-weekly thing.  I hope you don’t mind.  I love recapping the week and starting the next week on a happy, positive note.  Not to mention that these sweet moments are the ones I want burned into my brain, never to leave.  But since I suffer from the: I’ve-had-three-babies-so-therefore-I-have-perpetual-mommy-brain disease, I need to write them down, have them be permanent somewhere or risk the chance of them being lost into the abyss of the mommy brain. 

My Buggy!  Well, full name is Love Bug Babalicious thank you very much!  He is 14 months old this month.  He has been growing so much, and way too fast in this mommy’s opinion.  In a short few days he has learned to climb the stairs <insert panicked mommy face here>, cruise around the coffee table in the family room, wave bye-bye, and say “Thank You” in his ever so cute as a button way of “Daaa-Dooo, Daaa-Dooo” and some version of his brother’s names that I can’t even begin to type. 

He has been pointing at things and telling me all about them in his adorable baby babble.  He has been able to climb up into his brother’s stuffed chairs and act like he is literally the king of the house giving what sounds like order and direction to his faithful subjects.  He loves to open and close, and open and close, and open and close my kitchen drawers.  Just recently he loves to empty all the contents of said drawers but is smart enough to put it back after he’s done (mama taught him well).  He already enjoys multitasking (do I finally have a child who represents part of me?) and will carry a block in each hand and one in his mouth while crawling/cruising/climbing stairs. 

He has an amazing gift of love, when he gives you kisses when you ask him, you end up with an entirely soaked face and a strange awareness of where each and every one of his taste buds are (I know, that’s only a thing that a mommy could love…and I do, I SOOOO do).  He will lay his head down on my shoulder and let out an adorable “awwwww” as he gives me a hug. 

But he’s still a baby, he’s still MY baby.  He doesn’t like to be left alone if there is the slightest hint that we are leaving a room.  He still loves to snuggle with me in the same formed-to-my-body-position that he took as an infant while I’m rocking him to sleep.  He loves to have his palm kissed and his face, cheek, and head caressed while trying to drift off to sleep.  He loves when I sing Edelweiss to him and it immediately calms him down. 

So while he is growing by Leaps and Bounds each and every day.  I hang on to every piece of baby that is left.  I soak it up, breathe it in, and bask in all that is Buggy for he will be taking the world by storm in just a few short blinks of an eye.

How have you recorded your children’s milestones when they were babies?

Branching Out With a Little Bird

It’s not like me to try new things.  It really isn’t.  I’m the type of girl that likes things to stay the same.  When going out to breakfast at a restaurant I still order the same thing I did as a child, French toast (can you blame me?  French toast is too yummy to give up).  I know what French toast will taste like (hard to screw it up) and I know what to expect.  If I ordered something different I wouldn’t have that same security as I do with my French toast. 

I don’t adapt to change very well either, even though I should and I’m trying to raise my children to be flexible individuals.  I distinctly remember when I was a child, the year my parents decided to move the Christmas tree from the place it stood for YEARS, just around the corner and I was completely disappointed.  It’s almost ridiculous when I think back on it.  But that was me, I liked things to stay the same, didn’t want the traditions to change.   

It’s something that I’m working on.  This blog was the first step.  I’m finding my way here, finding my voice, and finding out that I’m not crazy!  YAHOOO!!! 

                                                                                                        

By the same token I’m finding that I have so much to learn and I’m excited about it.  In order to learn more, I need to be open to trying new things.  UH-OH! 

So I finally took the plunge and did something that was completely out of my comfort zone.  Something that was extremely intimidating and scary for me. 

I gave into the suggestions, gave into the “go ahead and do it” even though I was scared that I would somehow revert to that high school girl who wasn’t cool enough to hang out with the “popular” crowd.

What is it that had me shaking in my boots?  Joining Twitter!  That’s right; Twitter intimidates the heck out of me.  But I did it, I took the plunge (look over there---à) and you know what?  I’m glad I did.  The people there (and here) are warm and welcoming and help with every little question you might have about the whole process.  LOVE IT!  I feel like I’m growing as a blogger (VERY slowly but still growing) and as a person by branching out. 

So since I’m feeling all empowered today, I’m now encouraging you to try something new in the next few weeks.  Try a new meal, try a new outfit, try a new way to style your hair, try a new bottle of wine, try a new game with the kids, visit a new place, or try a new approach to parenting. Try anything and let me know how it goes! 

Have you tried something new lately and were glad you did?

Things That Simply Should NOT Be On TV

It seems that it no longer takes talent or skill to be on the television these days.  All you have to do is fight with someone, eat something gross or try to fall in love in the blink of an eye.  Heck, even I’ve fallen prey to watching a few of these so called shows.  What are your choices when that’s all that is out there?

But I saw something on the television last night that (after spitting my drink out of my nose) had me laughing in hysterics wondering whatever happened to the good ol’ days of decent television content. 

It was a 30 second commercial of all things that threw me into this quandary.  Check it out and let me know what you think.

Ummmmm….yeah.  That’s just all kinds of funny as hell bad right there.  After I re-established my composure (it took awhile), I found myself longing for something more thought provoking on the television (yeah I know it is just a commercial) than an animated corn dong dog to sell antacids.  No disrespect to Tums…heck I ate them like candy throughout all three of my pregnancies.  They are fabulous and I'm convinced that they saved my stomach lining!  I just cannot believe what it takes these days to grab the consumers’ attention.  Are we so numb to decent program, with good acting that we need this type of content to stimulate our brains enough to keep watching?  

Have we lost all our creativity that we have resorted to animated food attacking people….or is this considered creative?

What have you see on TV lately that has left you going Ummmm…yeah.  That’s Bad!  Or do you enjoy where TV programming has ended up?



Rival Me This

If you have a sibling, then you know exactly where this post is going. 

Sibling Rivalry…as a mom it has become a riddle to me.

I have a younger brother so I know all about the typical sibling rivalry.  It’s simply part of growing up and now that I’m an adult, I can see that it actually can help you deal with others later in life.  Imagine that. 

But as a mom of three boys, there is another side of the story…the mom side.  First, I must apologize to my own mother for putting her through all the sibling rivalry stuff back when I was a kid.  I had no idea how frustrating, and pull your hair out crazy it could make you.  Now I do, and I’m getting my payback (not that you would ever wish that on me) in full.

My two older boys can fight like dogs, about anything.  I’m not kidding…ANYTHING!  It usually all revolves around who gets to do something first.  It’s all about being first.  Be the first to come in the house, the first to walk upstairs, the first to wash up before dinner, the first to get into the car when we are going somewhere (there have even been skinned knees as a result of this one).  The simple act of getting to the bathroom to wash their hands for dinner can turn into an all out brawl.  Don’t get me started on who gets to the red swing on the swing set first!  UGH!

Fighting over equality is second in the running.  They have to have the same amount of everything.  I really try to be conscious of keeping it all fair but I have to say that I simply don’t have the time to stand over them counting out every single fish cracker to make sure that one child doesn’t have more than the other.

Believe it or not, even though the constant day to day battles to be first or to have the same make me want to bang my head against the wall, I can say that I’ve been there as a child and can somewhat understand (somewhat…I said somewhat). 

The one thing I don’t have experience with is the fighting over toys.  I can guarantee that my brother never wanted to play with my Barbies, or My Little Ponies, or Care Bears, and he definitely didn’t want to play with my baby dolls or my Strawberry Shortcakes (uh-oh…I do believe I’m dating myself now).  I without a doubt had no interest in playing with his GI Joes, or He-Man, or army figures, tanks, and bazookas.  So we had a break from each other when we wanted to play with our toys.  But with three boys, there is fighting over toys.  Who is playing with what, who is touching what, who has a specific car that the other needs to go off his newly built super duper racing ramp.  Who gets to play Batman (because there is only ever one Batman mommy…there can’t possibly be two), or Spiderman, or Superman. 

There is simply no break in the rivalry.  Which is why I’m convinced loony bins were created!  Well, loony bins and wine.  

But I have to say, when the stars align and the boys play nicely together…there is no better sound or vision in the entire world.  They are a team working together to build a great castle or to fight the bad guys together!  It may be short lived, but it is those moments I conjure up in my mind when they fight over who gets to pee in the toilet first!

I would love to hear how other mothers do with this aspect of parenting, so I have to ask……

How do you handle the rivalry between your children?

The Humor of Boys

Well, specifically the humor of MY boys.  Let’s just get this out there, I simply don’t get it.

Big T and Sweet Pea are at the age where they like to tell jokes, but they aren’t quite at the age yet where they understand that the joke has to make sense in order for it to be funny.  I laugh along with them because I of course don’t want to hurt their feelings…what kind of mom do you think I am anyway?  But even more to the point, the way they act when they think they are funny, IS what’s funny.  Not the joke itself.  Most of the time I’m thinking in my head “whaa?...wait…huh??  Like this one.

Did someone say launch…or lunch?  BWAHHH HA HAAAA

Or this:

Knock, knock…who’s there…I don’t know, who?...I don’t know who, who?  I don’t know, mommy…who’s there?  Ummmmm….

Then they finally get one that can actually be defined as a joke:

What do you get when you cross a Crocodile with a Rooster?  A Crock-a-doodle-doo!

BA-DUM-DUM

Then there is the physical humor.  What it the world makes pushing, kicking, and falling down, so darn funny?  Why is it when Big T pins Sweet Pea to the floor they are both laughing in hysterics??  When someone accidentally gets hurt during some rough housing the tears last for seconds, then they start in again and the laughter resumes.  Why is spinning your brother around in the backyard like a boomerang--only to let him go so he goes ramming into the fence--humorous?

I couldn’t get out of this post without addressing the obvious.  The one thing that will have my boys laughing for hours and hours at a time…potty talk.  I am totally amazed at how much enjoyment the boys…ALL the boys in my house get out of potty talk.  Anything that has to do with the bathroom and what happens in there gets enough giggles and rolling on the floor hysterics to make any comedian jealous.  Doesn’t matter if the topic is air, liquid or solids…the hysterical tears of laughter just come barreling out of the boys in the house.  It never gets old for them, it is always funny, and I’m told that this kind of school boy humor will never go away. 

I…just…don’t…get…it! 

But I do know this, I absolutely LOVE watching and hearing them laugh! 

Do you understand your children’s humor?

Who IS This Murphy Guy Anyway and Why Does He Have a Law?

Apparently he was Captain Edward Murphy and worked as an engineer at Edwards AFB in 1949.

Well Mr. Murphy, this whole law that “anything that can go wrong, will go wrong” didn’t really bother me until I became a mother.  When I was younger I would use the expression all the time without even thinking about it.  Would let things roll off my shoulders and not give it a second thought.  After all, it was just “Murphy’s Law.”  Now I’m singing a different tune.  Because quite frankly now Mr. Murphy, you and your law tick me off! 

Listen, to some degree, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt.  How could you know that a flippant comment you made about a rocket sled experiment (yes, I did research it) would catch on so quickly and even make it into the dictionary?  I’m sure it fell into the “who knew?” category in your brain.

But for me, now that I’m a mom…this law has the power to totally de-rail my day.  It sets into motion things that I wouldn’t dream of happening.  It ranges from the little things.  The huge traffic backup when I’m on my way to pick up my child, or the scratch on a child’s face the morning before he goes in to get his pictures taken.  Or the night that your kids are starving and the meat you were going to cook for your meal suddenly has gone bad in the 24 hours since you bought it so you go to plan B and order a pizza.  The pizza is delivered, you pay the driver, call the salivating kids to dinner, open the box to discover that it’s the wrong pizza. 

Then there is the extremely annoying.  For example, who would even think that at the exact moment I’m trying to put a baby down for a much needed nap because he didn’t sleep well the night before, a jackhammer would go off right outside the bedroom window?  Or how about the night that one son gets his finger slammed in a door, and another gets an ear infection is the same one night that my husband has to work late when he rarely ever works late?  There’s also the time where I had to get out of the house to run errands only to discover my car battery was dead.  Or how about a fire engine zooming up the street just as I’m walking out of the baby’s room after putting him to sleep?  Or the door to door salesman who is pounding on the front door once again right after I put the baby to sleep? 

Do you see a pattern here?

Yeah, Mr. Murphy my biggest beef with your law is that it interrupts my childrens sleep (among other things), which in turn interrupts what little time I have to get things done around here, or hey…maybe even sleep myself.  It messes with the daily schedule and has the potential to throw everything off course for the day. 

So your little “saying” that you sent out into the universe all those years ago has a ton of power, and no doubt you’ve received a lot of flack from it.  I hope you’ve chosen your words more carefully since then. 

How has Mr. Murphy’s “Law” de-railed your day?