Mother's Day Sentiments...

     Well Mother's Day is right around the corner.  And here I am….celebrating my 5th one!  It has been such a special journey thus far.  I swear I love my kids more and more each day…and the rewards of motherhood only grow as each year passes.
    Yesterday when I picked up the kids from daycare, Michael spotted the gift that they made me.  He was so excited to tell me about it.  Conversely Aubreigh wanted it to be a surprise.  The two battled about it all the way to the car.  When I was buckling Michael in the seatbelt, he yells out "We made you a Picture Frame!"  Aubreigh immediately starts crying because he ruined the surprise.  So Immediately I played dumb, pretending I misheard Michael.  "Why would you guys get me Pickers?  I hate Picker Bushes!"  I don't know if she bought it, but she stopped crying for a big, so at least it helped:)

Aubreigh:  She is a bright and energetic 5 year old.  Actually both my kids are quite energetic and outgoing, which honestly shocks the heck out of me since I was super super shy.  Shy to the point where I was always wrapped around my mother's legs.  In fact today, I still have certain quirks that stem from it.  I call myself a phone-o-phone.  I hate the phone.  Absolutely hate it.  I always feel like i am bothering people and I never know when i should get off.  I also usually feel badly being the first to hang up etc.  I am much more in my element texting and email.  What a beautiful thing that technology is.  Ahhhh i digress…

Aubreigh has made me extremely proud this past year.  She has grown and matured so much.  Kindergarten has proved to be a wonderful adventure for her.  She is really doing quite well with reading.  I can't believe the explosion of words that she can recognize between now and December.  We have been reading this series of Junie B. Jones and have completed nearly 15 books so far.  She loves them, and so do I.  I love reading them to her and hearing her laugh and giggle.  She also amazes me with her comprehension.  She seriously knows more about the book than I do.  She can predict events and recall past situations from other books.  She seems to really be grounded and focused on work.  Her teacher told me that she is very social and friendly, but grounded as well.  I believe her quote was "She is her own person" which really means a lot to me.  Her teacher had all positive things to say about her.  I hope she keeps this same mentality as she approaches middle school when peer pressure really starts to rear its ugly head.  She can get a bit moody and jealous--especially of her brother.  She is a little bit of a drama queen.  And although i wish she could sometimes just roll with the punches a little more, I hear this is typical behavior of a 5 year old…and this is my Aubs and I love her for it!

Michael is going to be my class clown.  I think he is going to have a very easy going personality and make friends quickly.  Actually both kids are really great at going into a new situation and coming out with a friend.  It could be something as little as waiting in line for disney, and boom, here is a new friend of mine named so and so.  I think it is because they aren't really shy at all.  If they see something they want, they go after it.  And Michael has amazing eyes that you can just get lost in.  When this boy has a growth spurt, he is going to be a real heart breaker.  He is very animated and silly.  Always running around pretending that he is a super hero going to save the universe!  I think he also may have a passion for photography/videography like his mom.  Whenever i create a movie, he cannot wait to watch it.  He does like tv a bit too much though.  He also doesn't show the same interest in learning as Aubs did, however, i think this is just his boy behavior.  He does things that make me believe he has smarty pants potential…he is just to mature to realize it!

The one thing that I do love about both my children are that i believe they are both truly good and caring souls.  It upsets them if others are sad.  They feel sorry for those less fortunate.  And despite being spoiled, I do believe that they are truly appreciative of what they do have.  They are both very loving and tell me freely and often.  Another thing that i have noticed is that they really like boundaries and rules.  Sure, they may break them a lot and have to reap the consequences, but they like them.  How i know this is that they will constantly correct me if i am forgetting a rule, even if it is to their disadvantage.  They really are special kids, though.  They really really are.

Disclaimer:  If you come across this post and think I am a braggart, well I am.  I don't have this post set to private, but I don't think really anyone reads my blog anyways.  I just come across it every so often and read an old post that i really enjoy and realize I need to write a bit more.  Not like "everyday" more, because that would just be boring.  But at least a few times a year more.  My babies are growing so fast and I do a lot to preserve them.  And truth be told, I worry that someday I won't be around for them.  I realize that I am never promised tomorrow.  If something unexpected should happen, I want them to "know" their mother.  To know how much I cherish them and how they mean the world to me.  I want them to know that i am a bit silly, and try not to take life to seriously.  That I love being creative and tend to overdo everything.  Not because i am in a competition, but just because I love to push myself-ok, maybe i have a few issues with overdoing thing…lol.  I love the simple things in life like silly smiles and bedtime stories.  My heart melts every time they say "I love you" even if there are ulterior motives.  To know that I am generous and giving despite that I like to save a buck and buy nearly everything on sale and visit Goodwill frequently.  I want them to have great memories and maybe know a little bit more about why they are so great.  They weren't great just because it was Disney World or that i had a great camera and made great videos or that they got a mountain of gifts of christmas. It was great because I loved doing it…and I loved them and it was all this crazy love that made things this way.  And that these memories were great because we were happy.  And that happiness was not just handed to us.  We worked hard to make things this way.  We worked very hard to be this Family and it is something to never take for granted.  I think at her young age of 5, Aubs gets most of this.  She remind me often and sincerely that out of all things in life…."your family is the most important."

Ok enough sentiment.  I just had to get this down since apparently Facebook made a prediction that I would die in 2015 and I have to cover my bases, ya know?  And it never hurts to write a nice sentiment to reflect upon….in like 2025 when i can laugh at Facebooks prediction despite the fact that it wreaks havoc on my mind 24/7 now.  Oh and kids did you get that?  Your mom was a little bit of a cray cray too!

Mom Mom Jean

Happy Birthday Mom Mom Jean.  Click Play and then at the bottom right there is a square that will make the video full screen

It is mom mom jean's 71st birthday and we have compiled a little slide show for her!  Check it out!  Click on the link below and after hitting play, click on the square in the lower right corner to enlarge it!

http://www.youtube.com/edit?video_id=G_pHEdPPKoI&video_referrer=watch&ns=1

This is a tribute to my parents 50th Wedding Anniversary.  After clicking on Play, click on the square at the bottom right hand corner to enlarge to fit your screen.

Enjoy!  Some of the pics are classics!

Oldies but goodies...

Well today was another one of those sweet moments that make me just plain happy to be a mom.  My kiddos were waiting for me as I got home from work today.  Michael especially wanted to play so we went into the front room and started playing ball.  Aubreigh quickly joined in and we started doing Ring around the Rosie.  Michael got so excited to "fall down".  I started spinning around very fast and we were all dizzy by the end.  The kids thought that was great!

Then Aubreigh kept asking to play "Duck Duck Goose".  So we did.  At first I thought that it would be difficult, since Michael would be clueless.....but he did REALLY well.  He caught on quickly, and even if he didn't know the technicalities, he knew enough to tap you on the head and yell goose.  Mostly everyone was a goose but on occasion you just may have been a duck.  It really wasn't a structured game of Duck Duck Goose, but it just cracked me up watching Michael playing it, trying so desperately hard to fit in with his big sister.

Afterwards we played one more classic.....Hide and Seek.  This is one of Aubreigh's favorite games.  It is really funny to watch her hide in the exact same spot as I hid the time before.  When it was time to count I would go by the stairs and but my head down and cover my eyes and start counting to 10.  It was hysterical because Michael started doing the same.  I loved watching him imitate me.  However, the little guy could only count to two.  I would hear him saying one, two, two, two, two.  It was so precious.

Then it was time for bed.  Michael was so mad it was bed time.  The sheer mention of "Night Night" caused him to yell "No" and stomp his feet.  He eventually fell asleep while Aubreigh and I played a game of Uno Moo and colored some princesses with markers.

Another one of my simple, yet special nights!  The kids had a blast playing games.  They had more fun with me than they did with their toys and tv all day.  Definitely some oldies but goodies that I am sure will be played much more in our household!

Year in Review 2010-2011 Highlights

I do about an hour long video starting in August (when Aubreigh was born) and it goes to the following year. I like to have them completed by the next birthday. I am a little late with this one because it was over 1.5 hours long and my computer couldn't burn it. I finally broke it into 2 segments and that worked!

This is the final highlights clip.........

Ordinarily Wonderful

I really don't write a lot anymore. However today I feel compelled to do so. It wasn't because it was a grand day, party, or life milestone. It was actually, well, kinda ordinary.

I picked up a pizza on my way home from work. Then, our foursome gathered in the living room to watch the "Smurfs" which was free on demand. Not five minutes into the movie, we heard Mister Softee outside, so Aubs and I ran to get some. All the kids in the neighborhood were excited since we hadn't seen him all winter long.

Aubreigh couldn't wait to get a twist with sprinkles and we bought her brother the same. It was rather chilly so we ran back in the house to eat it. Of course Michael had a ball eating it. It was his first official Mr. Softee all to himself.

Of course I took a few pictures and then I could see that Michael was getting tired. I put a blanket and pillow and laid on the floor with him. It is this that I hope to never forget.

He was sticky and smelled of a combination of chocolate ice cream and papa johns pineapple pizza. He also had a random strawberry stuck in his clothes from the fruit he had after dinner.

Of course I took a wet paper towel to him a few times, but he was the sticky hands, dried hard streak of ice cream in his hair , a smidge of pizza sauce on the chin boy that I loved. I loved it even more when he would give me the big belly laughs as I tickled him, or as he pointed to different parts of the movie when Gargamel came on. And we snuggled.....for over a half hour. He was growing into a big boy now. But he was still my baby. And this baby boy was usually non stop all over the place!

Whenever I am away at work or out and about and I think of him, the first thing that comes to mind is scooping him up, tickling his belly, squeezing him to "reeces pieces" and smelling whatever meal had made its way into his hair, hands and face that day.

As he was getting tired, I asked if he wanted to go "night night" which he did and he started up the steps just as I suggested. I kissed him good night and tucked him in with his blankie.

Darren tucked Aubreigh into bed, but I had to go and give her a little snuggle as well. She was in a pleasant mood, despite the fact that she wasn't thrilled that it was her bedtime already.

She found some toy catalog that had come in the mail and was reading it while I tiredly lay beside her drifting off. I gave her a big squeeze and said "I love you"....and then in a squeaky, low whisper she said "I love you too mommy". My heart melted. I didn't realize I would get a response.

We laid there cuddling for a while. I was rather tired, and figured that I would just shut my eyes a bit. And that was when the compulsion began. This day was so very ordinary.....yet so very wonderful. I just had to write about it.

I hope to never forget cuddling that sticky sweet boy or hearing that wonderful mousey whisper from my little angel. And these are the very reasons why I will never take being a mother for granted.