I believe I owe yall some pictures...

To the extent anyone is still checking in, I thought I'd try to catch up on February and March before all the fun of April gets underway. Those two months totally snuck away from me, but not without some fun, frolic and photo-making opportunities.

The kids were supposed to both be out of school for the Friday and Monday of President's Day weekend. But, due to Snowpocolypse(s), both ended up with snow make-up days. On different days, of course. It actually ended up working well, because I got to spend a quality day with each of the kids doing what he or she wanted to do. Evan's day off was the Friday, and with perfect weather on the horizon, we decided to go golfing. Keep in mind, this was the first time I'd been golfing since before I got pregnant with Evan, so my expectations for myself were fairly low. My long game far exceeded my expectations and my short game fell well short. But Evan had a good time, so that was all that mattered. We even had time for lunch at the golf club terrace before heading out to pick Pressley up from school.

Pressley's day with mommy was the following Monday and she chose to get pedicures and go to the mall. She's not even 5. The weather had turned considerably more February-like by then, so I was just happy she chose indoor activities. Here she is getting her pedicure. So cute.

During the intervening weekend, we headed up to the lake to spend some time with Lynn and Tut. Saturday was absolutely delightful, so the kids got to fish, "swim" in the hot tub, collect shells and rocks, and other outdoor fun stuff. We could not have asked for a better day there in February. It was a total surprise gift. Sunday was cold, but Pressley was undeterred. She got up Sunday morning and put her bathing suit back on and could not be coaxed into appropriate clothing. So, we made her wear her coat over her bathing suit to go down to the dock. She's a hoot.

Finally, at some point in February, Evan earned his first purple stripe to go on his yellow belt. He is still thoroughly enjoying karate and moving on up the ranks. It is so much fun to see how much he's learned.

By now we've moved to spring sports. Pressley is playing soccer and Evan is playing baseball. So, my next post will undoubtedly feature updates regarding their sporting accomplishments. For now, I'll just leave you with this tease... You have never seen a cuter child in a baseball uniform and baseball cap than my sweet Evan. He is a living doll. And he's doing pretty well actually playing too!

Some confessions from a bad parent

I initially titled this post "Some random thoughts on some things." But, by the time I got to the end, I realized that the collection was not so random. It was basically a collection of confessions including impatience, tasteless indulgence, bribery, and some more impatience thrown in for good measure. Feel free to leave parenting tips in the comments. Apparently I need them.


1. The silliness. My least favorite parenting trait is that I have a very low tolerance for the silliness. I mean, honestly, if they are not fussing at each other, not being ugly, and not hurting anyone, why should it matter to me if they are being silly? But, seriously? It does. I cannot help it. Particularly in the car. Do you think you can literally feel that your head is about to explode? Because I think that is what this feels like. Most often, I do some deep breathing exercises because I understand that blowing up because of silliness is, well, silly. And the kind of thing that may leave a sour taste in their mouths for years to come. But once (ok, maybe twice), I have found myself saying... "HUSH!!! For the love of all that is good in the world... Just....hush!"

2. Twinkle Toes. Can someone please explain this phenomenon? And also tell me who is responsible for possessing my body (and my intellect) just long enough for me to give in to it? What? You are not familiar with Twinkle Toes? Well, let me describe. And then I may even show you a picture.

Twinkle Toes are shoes made by Sketchers for little girls. They are basically painted with every kind of gaudiness known to man all over the canvas part. Then. THEN. On the rubber part of the toe, they are covered with jewels. But not just any jewels. Jewels that light up. Oh, yes. It is the height of tackiness. And I have bought a pair for my otherwise-fashion-plate-of-a-daughter.

You can't really see the jewels so well here, and you definitely can't see the lighting up, but this will give you an idea. I'm also not sure these are the same ones she got, but they are similarly colored and similarly gaudy.

Yes. There is a hole in the sole of her boots and all the "leather" is scuffed off both toe boxes. Yes. It is too cold still for her to wear the new sandals I have already bought for summer. And, yes. I have discovered that her sneakers are a full 2 sizes smaller than what her foot currently measures. But, did I really agree to this??

3. Lovies. They are wonderful. And, they are terrible. They are wonderful when they are present and accounted for. Clean and fresh. Doing their job of soothing. But they are rotten when they are missing, or filthy, or the cause for the late night crying.

Pressley lost her Bunny this week. Last night, she discovered him missing and she was distraught. Luckily, she was too exhausted to cry about it for too long, but she was very sad. I looked everywhere I could think of to look for him, but I am also well aware that the kids play with Bunny almost daily, and his adventures have him traveling far and wide within this house, and I've seen him in some of the darnedest places. I knew I would have trouble thinking of all the random spots Bunny could be hiding. So, instead of thinking like a child, I decided to bribe a child to do it for me. I explained to Evan how sad Pressley was about Bunny being missing and told him I would pay him ten bucks if he could find Bunny before bedtime tonight.

It took him about 10 minutes, but he found Bunny on the top shelf of the organizer that hangs from Pressley's closet rod. Behind some other stuffed animals. Either he was a party to Bunny's being put there, or he was properly motivated by the reward. I don't care which. I'm just glad Bunny is safely in the arms of my lil' P, who will hopefully be sound asleep as soon as she finishes talking to herself.

4. Manners. Do little boys ever learn them? I am exhausted from trying to teach them. I think I can feel the circles under my eyes getting darker with each time I say, "Chew with your mouth closed." Or, "Do not eat that cookie like a rabbit. Take bites of it like a real boy." (Yes, that is an actual quote that I say frequently. Go figure.) I suspect I have many more years of saying these very same things. (In addition to "Stop smacking. I should not hear you chewing from all the way over here." and "Eat over your plate. The crumbs under your chair will not vacuum themselves." and "Please slow down. No one is going to take your food away from you. Well, unless you keep eating like a rabbit, and then I will take it away and throw it in the trash!"