"In My Mind and In My Car, We Can't Rewind We've Gone Too Far..."

That's right...the Willy's blog will soon be "rewritten by new technology" and we will be occasionally adding a video feature.

It all started with another broken digital camera. (another? YES! I have killed 4 digital cameras and will never spend over $100 on one...evah! Ok, so 3 of them came to us previously owned, but STILL WORKING nonetheless. Our home is the place where digital cameras come to die.)

The Walmart Black Friday paper was advertising a few digital cameras and for a few days, we talked about getting a new one, while they are on sale, but in the end we decided to continue using the one we have that kinda-sorta works most of the time, and wait until it completely gives up the ghost.

Walmart was also advertising the Barbie Diamond Princess Barbie for $5. (sweet!) This is specifically what Reese has told us she wants for Christmas so I was, of course, stoked that Santa could get his shopping done for $5 this year.

I also saw a teeny tiny crock pot that I really wanted.

Yesterday...
We had a great thanksgiving with golfing, about 4 other families, basketball, volleyball and A LOT of homemade pies. It was fun, but a late night for us and the kids, so...

4:45 am rolled around WAAAAAY too early!!! I sat in bed, debating whether or not it would be worth it to get up and go fight the crowd at Walmart for two $5 Barbies and a tiny crockpot.

Aaron was wide awake once the alarm went off, because he is used to waking up close to that time every morning, so he volunteered to go in my stead.

nice right?

He returned with 3 Barbies (one for Reese, on for Quin, and one for a friend's birthday present coming up in two weeks) and NO TINY CROCKPOT.

He DID, however, manage to purchase:
-a new digital camera (yeah, the one "we" decided not to get) which I am actually really happy about, so I shouldn't complain.
-a memory card for the new camera
-a removable memory drive thing for our laptop
-an MP3 player similar to the one we already own (see: Mothers Day)
-blocks that the girls already have
-2 movies we've already seen and a 3rd that the girls already have
-a princess version of a memory game we already have
-the hand mixer (that we just got rid of because I have a kitchen aid) that was on the shelf at Walmart right next to my tiny crock pot
-the food processor/chopper that was also right next to my tiny crockpot
-a V Tech game system for the girls that I just bought from a friend and is sitting in the top of our closet...which is the most hilarious, because as we went through the walmart ad the day before, I pointed out the hand held version and mentioned that I had just purchased a regular V Tech console from a friend, thinking that it would be the hand held kind, and I wasn't sure that the girls would really play with it, so once the girls were tired of it we should just donate it to the Children's Shelter. SO HE BOUGHT ANOTHER EXACTLY LIKE IT? Does anyone listen to anything I say in this house???
-a carrying case and a memory card for the
-265 dollar DIGITAL CAMCORDER

Seriously.

It's like a repeat inventory of everything we already own. Except for the digital camcorder...we don't have one of those, but still! $265?! Is that really how much they cost?

I sent him in for 2 Barbies and a tiny crock pot and he spent $500.
$12.80 vs. $500

What. The. Heck.

When I asked him "WHYYYYYYY?" and IF he was going to spend that much, why not on a new DVD player for the kids to replace the broken one, or a new wireless router to replace the broken one (so we can move the computer back to the desk where it belongs) I'm SURE they had door buster deals on both of THOSE items...they're electronics!

He said that everyone was fighting like mad over everything, so he got caught up in the excitement and figured he'd better get one of everything too, just in case we needed it.

Everything?
Everything except a tiny crock pot.

This is EXACTLY why men should stay home with the children and women should handle the Black Friday business.

I went to help a friend out with some cleaning this morning, and stopped at WM on my way home to pick up my tiny crock pot. It was the very last one, but I got it, and it only cost me $3.80 after our Walmart Associate discount. Woot! I'm having me some Sweet Baby Ray Lil' Smokies and chips with queso dip tonight!

Aaron is at Walmart right now, returning 2 of the movies, the MP3 player (seriously, whyyy?), the mixer, the blocks, the memory game, and the V Tech thingy, but NOT the camcorder.

So stay tuned... we will soon be featuring video footage of all the ridiculousness that happens in our home on a regular basis. If you get lucky, one of us will tape the other talking in his sleep.

Bad things happen when men shop...or at least when my man shops. I have learned my lesson and definitely should have just gotten out of bed at 4:45 this morning.

"Pour Some Sugar On Me!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

"Pack Up The Babies, Grab The Old Ladies, Everyone Goes, Everyone Knows Brother Love..."

The post title has zero relevance other than it is what we were listening to while we made one of our favorite fall dinners the other night. It's probably the easiest recipe I have, and it is a big hit with the kids, so I thought I'd share. Unfortunately, we ate them up before I remembered to take a picture of the finished result, so you'll have to use your imagination.

Meg's Mini Chili Bowls:
-1 tube pillsbury biscuits (or any brand...just don't get the "flakey layer" kind, they don't work well for this recipe)
-chili (your favorite kind, we use canned chili with beans)
-cheese
-green onions
-sour cream
-veggie sticks and dip or cut up fresh fruit for a side dish

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
2. grease the backside of a muffin tin with cooking spray (or let your 4 yr old do it and pay the consequences later when you de-grease your back splash and upper cabinet)
3. Have kids (with scrubbed hands...you can only imagine the places they put their little fingers) press biscuits over the backside of the muffins. Press down around the sides, so the biscuits take on a mound shape.
4. Remove plastic toys added by the smaller child.
5. Set the muffin pan in the oven like this (upside down with buns on top) and Bake about 7 or 8 minutes. (until LIGHT brown).
6. Heat chili while bowls bake
7. Remove bowls from oven and use a spoon or butter knife or your hands (ouch. Gee, I wish there weren't a giant hole burned into the top of my oven mitt AARON) to pop the bowls off the tin.
8. Fill each "bowl" with a few heaping spoon-fulls of chili and top with cheese green onions and sour cream.
9. Enjoy dinner by the fire. Even our little picky eaters love this recipe.

These little bowls are fun to make a few variations with. We usually fill them with chili, but have had them with pizza sauce and toppings, Ham and cheese, taco toppings (I think that recipe is called navajo tacos) and I've also let them cool and made individual fruit pizzas a few times.

Fun, Easy, and Yummy! Enjoy!

"Why Do You Waste My Time? Is The Answer, To The Questions In Your Mind"

Reese: Okay! (running into the living room from the kitchen) I'm ready for the game now!
Me: Reese, where are all your carrots?
Reese: I finished them. ...Don't check in the trash.

"Lead Me, Guide Me, Walk Beside Me..."

I know my post titles have been lazy...I promise to get back on it when I don't want to be lazy anymore. I've been listening to so much Christmas music lately, that I don't constantly have a power ballad stuck in my head. You're lucky that you didn't get Scorpions' "Winds of Change" Lyrics instead....which was the most recent resident song in meg's brain. (not quite sure how to relate the end of the cold war to library day with my kids)

I love days like today. We didn't do anything spectacular. The day was an ordinary day, we got up, had breakfast, did laundry and dishes (leftover from the weekend), snuggled under a blanket and watched a Little People video, Quincy surprised us with her ever growing vocabulary, Reese made a "cake" from play dough, I tried not to be frustrated when Quincy actually ate the play dough (she cried, kicked, and screamed "my cake! my cake! no yucky mommy, miiiiiiine cake!" as I wrestled her to the ground and scooped the slimy play dough remnants from her squirerl-like cheeks...one minute too late) gross.

We went grocery shopping, and to the library to to get some new books.

Our library visits usually follow a pretty consistent pattern:
We arrive and are greeted with a big warm welcome from the little old ladies at the front desk, who think that Reese is a darling, polite little angel, and that Quincy is a brilliant 9 month old boy, instead of a selectively mute girl who is about to turn two. They hear her speak three words and think she is a genuis, and are even more surprised that she is "walking already". Reese escorts her in a "motherly" (bossy) way that appears endearing, but she is really just jealous that Q is getting more attention.

Reese picks out 5 or six books that have at least 100 words per page, and an obnoxious pop up book and shows it to Quincy....who gets a dimple in her nose just looking at it, and she can't wait to get her sticky little jam-hands on that fragile 3-dimensional dinosaur and destroy it.

I pick out 1 book for myself (this week's pick: The Christmas Jars by Jason Wright..hopefully I'll find time to read it before book club next week) 2 board books for Q, and 7 age-appropriate (meaning they don't have 100 words per page...these are bedtime stories, and sometimes that means the less words the better) books for Reese to take home (one for each night until we return...though she usually picks one favorite from the first few and requests it every night after that, in addition to the new one).

In the meantime, Quincy has moved everything from one shelf to another, grabbed the entire stack of stuffed animals and stashed them somewhere behind the videos, and is now standing on top of the kiddie table with her shoes off, holding a naked barbie doll (where did that come from?) and singing "ashes, ashes" with 3 or 4 plastic scrabble pieces stashed away in her Louis Armstrong cheeks. I should get her started on sunflower seeds now. I bet she'd be able to take on 10 at a time by kindergarten.
Reese has discovered that her 100 words a page books do not have pictures, and is "angry at them" She hands them over to the librarian and says "yeah, these books are no good, you know I can't read those words yet 'cuz I'm in preschool" She then finds a princess book (what else) and heads over to a quiet corner to "read".

Quincy is on the third verse of "What A Wonderful World" (just kidding) before I get her down from the table and hand her a book with a baby on it. She points to the baby's nose, says "baby's nose" then picks a booger from her own nose and wipes it on the page.

I read a few books to Q, then Reese joins us, with a concerned look on her face. She had overheard the school aged kids near her talking about santa coming. She doesn't like this idea at all. "I don't like santa. I just want grandpa to come instead. He is not scary and he brings presents too, and he will come when I'm awake, not sleeping" I tell her that next week we'll get some books about Santa, and then she can decide how she feels about him.

We read a few more books, then repair any damage from Hurricane Quincy (not bad this time) and we head to the counter to check out where the little old ladies say "Ooooh leaving already?" in their best fake voices. Quincy says "bye, books" and Reese holds her hand in a cute kind of way and flashes a cheeser smile that will redeem themselves enough to be welcomed back in a week with the same nice, warm and fuzzy greeting they received today.

I love days like this. I am so lucky that I get to be the one taking my kids to the library, not someone else...because someone else might not think to get the book about Yoko the bunny, who's grandparents are far away, so she sends them a card and present in the mail at Christmas time. Someone else might not have purposely chosen the book where Ruby misses out on a special treat, when she doesn't let her little brother, Max, sell lemonade with her. I'm glad that I get to pry the scrabble pieces from Quincy's cheeks, because I know how to do it without being bitten (most of the time). I'm blessed with the responsibility of teaching my children to love literature enough to share boogers with the illustrated babies on the page.

I'm not trying to slam on moms who don't stay home or anything. We all need to get out once in awhile (I have a sitter coming tomorrow for two hours, so I can do just that) Everyone's situation is different, and we do what we have to do to get by and take care of our family.

But today...I just payed a truckload of bills. As I went over our budget (something I LOVE to do), I was reminded of how lucky I am that I get to be where I want to be, and doing a job I feel like I was created to do. Sometimes, it doesn't seem financially possible that we are thriving on one income. But somehow, we do, and that alone reminds us that we are showered daily with the blessing of time with our children, and the incredible gift it is to raise them.
That is what I am thankful for this week.

I hope that when my children have grown, I'll remember how good it feels to take care of others. It is humbling to know that I have been entrusted with two (soon to be three) little people who are totally dependent on me....that need my care and my nurturing. They are my sidekicks. I think need them as much as they need me....and they are teaching me so much more than I am teaching them. I hope they will have good memories when they grow up and remember "library days" with Mom.

"One...Twoooo, Free, Foooooh....Five books." She may not say much yet....but she can count!

"Seven Jeans, Ture Religion...I Say No But They Keep Giving"

It's true. I didn't "show" until nearly 20 weeks with the other two. This time will be different.
There are two primary joys that come from my already-growing belly:

1) It means I have a healthy little life thriving inside me. "Hey little baby, I hope you are enjoying all that mac n' cheese. And I promise to avoid popcorn for awhile. You made it VERY clear the other night that you don't enjoy the popped corn. We heard you loud and clear. We're going to have tacos tonight. Please don't make me throw them up. Just this once..." Love, Mom.

2) My maternity jeans are WAY better than my regular non-prego, normal, everyday wearing , pre-muffin top, jeans. Thanks to a friend that only had one child, then happily passed on her designer maternity wear to ME when I was pregnant with Reese, I am the proud owner of some used, but beautiful, Sevens For All Mankind and Joe's Jeans Maternity Jeans. There is also a cute pair with a red circle around the letter K and words San Francisco on them. K San Francisco? I've never heard of the brand before, and have no idea where they are from...but I LOVE them.

It's true that expensive denim lasts longer than regular denim. These jeans were worn for all of my friend's pregnancy, and two of mine...including the months of postpartum recovery where I didn't dare try on the pre-pregnancy jeans. This is the 4th time they will be worn regularly and they are barely starting to show the wear and tear I've put on them.

When I was pregnant with Quincy, I couldn't wait to dig into that box of maternity clothes again. I eagerly pulled out the sweaters and jeans and admired them as they filled me with memories of being pregnant with Reese. I thought I would feel the same way this time. Sadly, when I opened the dusty storage bin...I was less than thrilled to see it's contents. "AGAIN?" I thought. The shirts have stains on them (was I too fat and pregnant to notice I'd spilled my taco bell cheese sauce? I guess so...) and they are stretched from being worn to maximum capacity during those last two months when I was in denial and refused to believe I was still getting even bigger. The tops are not from high end maternity shops with designer labels. They are from Old Navy. FYI, Old Navy Maternity wear has a limit of two pregnancies per clothing item. It's time for some new shirts. I can't believe I even saved some of these things. Is it possible they fell apart and stained themselves while in storage?

Christmas for Meg will be tops that fit. and don't have stains. And aren't designed for a December baby.

Then there are The Jeans.
Have you read those Traveling Pants books? I read them all a few weeks ago, and honestly thought they were kind of lame (yet I kept reading...it's a problem of mine) but maybe I didn't understand The Magic of the Pants, because I have no jeans that I automatically feel incredible in. If only I'd considered the pair sitting in a box in my garage. I would have appreciated the books more. "The Pants=Love. Love the Pants, Love Yourself." -Lena Kaligaris

The Jeans. I DO have Magic Pants! Everything else in that storage bin was a total let down. At least I had the jeans to look forward to, right? I pulled out those Sevens and admired them. Then I put them on.

Wait. What's that?! A hole?! HOW?!

Oh.
Right.
I remember.

The day was a bad one. It was sometime in my ninth month of pregnancy with Quincy. I was running late for the little baby shower they were throwing me at Aaron's office. I had bad hair, felt fat, and had nothing to wear. I threw on a crusty sweater, but didn't care, because at least I had THE JEANS.

I quickly pulled on the jeans and somewhere above mid thigh I heard the horrid "rrrrrriiiiiiiiiip!" noise long before I felt the tear. The jeans were still in tact, but the stitching where the waistline meets the stretchy maternity panel had raveled (ahem...been stretched to maximum capacity) undone during my furious motions to pull them up over my pregnant hind quarters.

I know you are thinking, "yeah yeah, I feel real sorry for you, skinny Meg. boo hoo your pants didn't fit. welcome to everybody's world"

but it wasn't just ANY pants that didn't fit. it was THE Pants.

I don't care WHO you are, or what you look like...You KNOW it is still a SAD SAD day when you don't even fit into your maternity jeans anymore. I totally threw myself on the bed and cried like a baby, then threw them in the storage bin so I wouldn't have to look at them until after the baby was born.

Fast Forward 2 years and imagine my sadness this week, when after my anticlimactic unveiling of the stained, stretched out tops, I also re-discovered the tear in the Sevens. And the sad, sad "fat day" came flooding back into memory? Almost enough to make me cry again, I tell ya.

What's a girl to do? This may sound shallow, but I just can't go back to old navy maternity jeans after having had a taste of the good-oh so comfortable-always feel halfway decent-designer maternity jeans-life. And I am NOT paying $300 for maternity jeans. No offense, friend who made the original purchase... I will love you forever your generous offer, it changed my life...but I don't gots that kind o' lettuce to support a jeans fettish.

I still have the other pairs. They are nice, good, wonderful. But they aren't the EVERYDAY jeans. The default jeans. They are the shades of blue-that-only-match-particular-tops-blue.
I NEEDED my staple jeans back.

I took them to Hillary in desperate need to have them fixed. She disappeared into her basement, and returned 5 minutes later with beautifully surged jeans and they are already back on my pregnant butt looking fabulous.

She rescued them
See? Expensive denim lasts. Maybe they have nine lives.
And I still haven't had to buy any maternity pants! That money is going to shirts asap.
miracle pants. magic pants.
(that's not me, btw...it's an ad. I'd never tuck my shirt in. Ever. And I'd never wear those espadrilles...especially not in November. But the jeans are cute, right?)

Happy ending.

I'd Be Muffin' Without You Baby

Remember this post?


I forgot to add the pics of Reese's "muffin tricks". She was pretty sad when she could not balance 3 muffins on her fingertips like our friend the Moose. (see below)

She tried and tried, and got pretty frustrated every time they went tumbling from her fingertips to the floor. I tried explaining that we can't do everything we see in a book or movie, because most of the time, they are just pretend stories that came from someone's imagination. She seemed ok with our conversation and her frown turned into a smile as she devoured a blueberry muffin from her plate.

Later, I came into the kitchen to see this where she had been sitting:

Ta Da.

These Are a Few of JEN'S favorite things!

Thank You Jen! I just got this box of goodies from Jen (private blog) via my sister's Favorite Thing's Swap!

You can tell Jen is a mother, because she put a blingy play cell phone right on the top of the box. Reese knew immediately that it must be for her.

Jen, you sent me great stuff!!! Just look at that giant box! Both R & Q could fit in it (and did, once the presents were out). The contents? Let's take a lookie:

First and foremost: chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate. Enough to keep me, AND 5 of my gal pals happy at our girls night out movie tonight! (yes, I shamefully admit that I purchased tickets to see Twilight)

next up: magazines! This is something that I rarely purchase for myself, but really enjoy, so thank you!

Can you imagine the excitement on Reese's face when she saw a disney princess tin peeking through the foam peanuts? I thought she was going to have a heart attack. Really. I can't wait to open it up and share some Mom and Me time while Quincy takes her nap this afternoon. It is FULL of disney books, stickers, pens, a cd, and enough girly girl activities to keep her on her best behavior for a year. (yes. I bribe. and most of the time, it works.) Thank you so much, you are so thoughtful!

Is that a Handy Manny Toolset? Why YES, I think it is! I'm not sure who was more excited about this one, the kids, or me! Reese has already "fixed" her red table and the patio screen with the hammer. I can't wait to get her her first toolbelt. How cute is that little saw? I can't wait to play with it more.

Jen, this was supposed to be YOUR favorite things! How happy was I to find a FABULOUS gift card to QUIZNOS (seriously. Holy Cow. YOU are awesome. AND an incredibly thoughtful gift giver!) inside the cute black and white damask bag? (It will make the perfect diaper bag when Baby #3 arrives...who is going to be a HUGE after all the Sonoma Turkey Flatbread Sammy's I'll be eating! Gold Shooting Stars to you, Jen.

Did you know I only quit biting my nails 2 years ago? I gotta tell you, as much as I love not having ugly, chewed up fingers....nail maintenence is a pain! No wonder I bit them so much, my nails grow incredibly fast! Thank you for the nail kit, I'll take it as a hit to do something about my naked, unfiled, nails that are currently all different lengths.

I'll make Aaron some yummy cocoa to sip from the BYU mug, while he cheers for the Cougars as they kick Utah's trash.

I can't wait to try the bath products, or the scrubbie (although Quincy has claimed that...she calls it a "bunny") I have been needing to replace my current scrubbie, but haven't yet due to laziness, so thanks!

I just realized the mini album didn't show up in the picture, but I love it, AND I love the color. thanks!

PS-I'm not sharing the Dove chocolate with anyone but the muffin top.

Throw in the girly notepad and the Disney Princess puzzle and I have a very happy little princess of my own. I think I'll put her to work on it while I vacuume up this:

But wait! There's more...

and more...

Thank You so much. You made my day! I'm glad you enjoyed the goodies I sent to you! This was really fun...Thanks HolleeAnn for hosting the swap, you are so creative to think of something like this that would spread so much cheer! Just look at how happy those little girls are, rolling in the "snow". Yes I know it's 33 degrees outside and Reese has no shoes on. She did at one point. I think they came off in the excitement. As you can see from the previous picture, she eventually stripped down to her nightgown again because the warm clothes were getting in the way of her "Snow Princess" dancing fun. Quincy got to be the "snow doggie, but a girl doggie". Probably because she kept eating all the "snow".

"No, I Ain't Missing You At All"

Me: "Hey Doll! How was preschool?"
Reese: "Um, it was pretty good. Let's go home."
Me: "Ok, did you have fun?"
Reese: "Yeah. I didn't really miss you today though."
Me: "Oh. Well I missed you, but I'm glad you had a good time with your friends."
Reese: "Hmmm....What am I supposed to say to that?"

I love her.

If You Give a Meg a Muffin

Today is a Muffin themed day at our house.

Part 1: We read, If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Numeroff.

"If you give a moose a muffin,
He's going to want some jam to go with it..."

Part 2: Reese got so excited about the picture on the cover that she wanted to bake muffins of her own, put jam on them, and balance 3 of them on her fingers. I'm not sure how that last part is going to go down, but the baking muffins part will be fun. I love having little helpers in the kitchen.

Part 3: The muffin top
Some of you may have noticed I'm sporting a little muffin top of my own lately. I might as well make it official an announce that I am with child!


Yes, you read that right. I'm 12 weeks pregnant. We are thrilled to be welcoming another little Willy into our home. Reese has been telling people (her preschool teacher, primary teachers, friends, friends moms, the lady at the library, etc) that there is a "baby in mommy's tummy"...for about 7 months now. I'm only 3 months pregnant, so we're still not sure where she got the idea, but when we finally told her that YES there IS a baby in there, she replied,

"Oh. I know. It's a boy baby. We already haved a girl baby and I told Heavenly Father to give you a boy"
Again...we shall see in January, when we find out the gender, if Reese is correct. She also says his name is going to be "Bozee" and that ain't happening... So I guess if you plan on buying Lotto tickets any time soon, don't go with the numbers my 3 year old picked out for you.

One thing IS certain...considering the state of our economy, and the state of my nausea, now is a great time to invest. My suggestions:
This stuff has been faithful through and through. All 1180 calories a box. Kraft, I know you were a dirty word in our house at one time, but since we no longer feel the need to remain loyal to Schreiber products...I thank you whole heartedly for your faithful service with each pregnancy.

Also, a special shout out to the fried chicken. Colonel. Where have you been all my life? Or at least during the other pregnancies? I dreamed about the chicken twister last night. Mmmm....potato wedges.
And this stuff...
....it's miracle juice.

The girls and I are gonna go eat our 'Meg McMuffins' with homemade jam now.

It's muffin day. "Top of the Muffin to you!"

"Brown Paper Packages Tied Up With Strings..."

Sorry folks, with the struggling economy, it looks like Christmas is going to be a little tight this year. I thought I'd try to save a little cash and do all gifts homemade. HolleeAnn gave me the idea for these little beauties and I think they'll go great with the tampon earrings I have been fashioning for you all. You know how much I love a new pair of slippers!


These festive bad boys are guaranteed to keep your feet fresh, dry and odor free all winter long. Let me know your size (super plus? meduim?) and I'll get them in the mail to you asap.
It's like walking on pillows.

"Oh...All Through the Night..."

The Day From Ten Hells.

Seriously.
You can all start feeling sorry for me now.

Just to clarify...this was no "potty accident"...but an act of defiance from Child #1, who was angry about being sent to time out for another act of defiance.

Child #2 has a new molar that came in OVERNIGHT, but as a result she's also got a low grade fever and what feels like "diarrheas since Easters".
I feel pretty bad for her though, since there is not a lot I can do for her pain.
Hopefully, the rest will work their way through and her troubles will pass quickly.

Child #1 also has my sympathy, but only because kids who pull this kind of crap (no pun intended) usually end up in hard core therapy at some point in their adult life. I know WHY she did it. It's the only thing she feels like she has total control over, and she knows my face will turn 3 shades of crimson when I discover her naughty deed. But how do I FIX the problem? Don't say anything that involves a spanking, or heavy guilt. She is apparently immune to both, so don't even bother. My favorite part is that she first took off her clothes and underwear, and cleared the stuffed animals out of the way, so she wouldn't get them dirty. SHE KNOWS it's disgusting.
The worst punishment I could think was to not make a huge deal or satisfy the desire for attention. During her tantrum, she "broke" (took apart) the tower off her Barbie castle...so that has been moved to the garage until she shows enough respect for her toys to earn it back. She also had to finish her time out (because in my house, crapping on the floor is not a get out of jail free card), and of course I made her clean it up herself. She wasn't happy about that part, but I'm not happy about having to sneak in and Resolve her carpets while she's at preschool tomorrow, either. If you are a reader, and your children have done this..and they did NOT grow up to be a serial killer, please leave a comment below and let me know my child will turn out alright. Other advice/pity is also welcome. I'll find a prize for you if any of it works...not that I expect this to happen again...

What is it about Mondays?

FYI i took the photo while she was in the bathroom cleaning herself up...I didn't just leave the poop to hang out there for awhile, or anything. (not like that would have made the scene any less gross... but still, it's worth mentioning.)

"If I Could Cha-a-ange The World"

It's the Christmas Season. Be charitable!
Have you heard of the book, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World by John Wood?
Basically, this big wig from Microsoft went to Nepal and decided to take a bunch of books with him for the people there. The people were ecstatic, as many of them had never seen a book before in their lives. He was so moved by the experience that he left Microsoft and started a non-profit organization called Room to Read that raises funds to build schools and libraries.

AMAZING.

Two of the girls I work with at church have also decided to do something AMAZING! They started raising funds this summer and are getting CLOSE to their goal! I am so proud of them for all the hard work they have done, and want to help them in any way I can. Here is a copy of the email they sent to everyone they know:

Seriously. Read it. I am aware that half the crap on my blog could really go without being read by anyone, but these girls are on FIRE and what they are doing is actually worth the 1.5 minutes of life that you would ordinarily spend reading about poop, vomit or the daily mix of love and embarrassment that is my blog.

Hello,

This is Jamie and Heidi (for those of you who don't know us, we are 16 and 13 years old) and we need your help! We have a simple but very exciting idea that will change the world. We have recently learned about an amazing non-profit organization called Room to Read that helps build schools and libraries in Nepal, Cambodia, India, Laos, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, South Africa, and the newest country, Zambia. The organization benefits children that have not had the privileged lives that we have, with books readily available to us. Can you imagine growing up without story books, or never learning to read? Our goal is to raise $4,000, which will fund a school library for these children. "The concept of a school library is virtually non-existent in many of the communities throughout the developing world" (Room to Read webpage).

John Wood, the founder of Room to Read, uses a system called the "Challenge Grant" Model. This requires the community to provide about half of the resources for their new school or library. Usually, this takes the form of supplies and manual labor, because they cannot afford to give money. This system has worked extrordinarily well. The communities take ownership and pride in their schools, and therefore, maintain them well. These children are so excited to learn, they just need the opportunity.

We will be making peace bracelets and selling them for $5 each to raise most of the money. We would really appreciate your support, and we will be accepting donations that will go directly to this library. We'll appreciate anything from $1, to $100, to $1,000, because every dollar will count. If you are in the one to ten dollar range, please still send it because many hands make light work! Please help us make a literal difference in the world. With your help, we know we can build this library and hundreds of children will have the joy of books for the first time in their lives.

WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?!?!

• make a donation yourself
  
• sell bracelets in your community (contact us for more information)
• have a fundraiser of your own and donate the proceeds to the library (car washes, bake sales, etc.)

If you would like to learn more visit http://www.roomtoread.org/
We recommend you watch the video at:
http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/rough/2007/06/nepal_a_girls_l.html

And if you really want to catch fire on this idea the way we have, read John Wood's book, Leaving Microsoft to Change the World.

Thanks for your love and support!

As we raise funds here, we will be forwarding the money directly to Room to Read, where 90 cents of every dollar go directly to benefit the kids. Please make checks payable to ROOM TO READ and send funds to:
P.O. Box 5933
Bella Vista, AR 72714

We are going to do this!!!

Heidi and Jamie

Ok, it's me again...
I talked to Heidi this week, and they are over halfway there!!! I am so proud of them and as much as I want this project to be a success, I also love that they are giving the gift of literacy. Can you imagine how different your life would be if you couldn't read??? We are so lucky to live in a country where literacy not considered to be just a privilege for the elite. Most of you will not be interested in the cutesy bracelets they are making, but consider sending even $1 in the mail to support this cause. I KNOW a lot of people read this blog, and if Jamie and Heidi only have less than $2000 left to raise, to fund a school with a library, well I think we can help them get a little closer. Check out the Room to Read site, to see that it's legit, watch the video if you want, then get your checkbook, an envelope, a stamp and donate! The address info is listed above in Jamie and Heidi's letter.

It's a dollar.
For charity.
For literacy.
Send $5 if you can, and forgo the Taco Bell run this week.
Burritos for world literacy. It's a worthy sacrifice.

"And I Just Can't Get Enough, I Just Can't Get Enough"

We teach our kids important values in the Willy house.

My kids are awesome. Aaron was up before 5:30am, and Reese was awake by the time he left for the WM Saturday morning meeting. Before Aaron left, he got some toys down from the top of Reese's closet and told her not to wake me up. Reese played quietly until 8:50am when Quincy (love her) woke up. Beautiful! Even if Reese got up ridiculously early, I think she might be learning to respect the idea of sleeping in on a Saturday!

"With The Cleaver I Hack Them In Two. I Pull Out What's Inside, And I Serve It Up Fried..."

"...Cuz I love little fishies, don't you?"

can I interest you in a beverage? Some "Juithe", maybe? She's already a hostess!

I am glad that Reese has learned from Dad's example to always wear oven mitts when working near the wood burning stove.
My children have mastered the art of procrastination. They know I will put off the "time to clean up and get into jammies" call, when they are playing so sweetly together. Even with the dirty faces and shirts (from the dinners they didn't finish), who could resist "chicken and ice cream" from these little cuties?

"And I'll Be Co-o-o-o-o-o-ming Back For More, More, Ooooooh Ah ah ah ah!"

Dear Quiznos,

I have (a very good) reason to believe that you are putting some kind of addictive substance in your Sonoma Turkey Flatbread Sammies. Could you please just give me the recipe for that chipotle mayo so I can slather it atop everything I eat for a week, and get my fill? Those little sammies just get better every time I have them. I used to be totally satisfied with just one Sonoma Turkey Sammy.... Then I wanted two sammies.
Now I MUST have two, and would be even happier if you threw in an alpine chicken sammy for kicks. That be three sammies, Quiznos.

No longer am I excited that they are "only $2". You lured me in, got me hooked, and the figure has jumped to $6. Just give me the chipotle mayo and I'll be fine.

...and I don't WANT it in a smaller size. I want it supersized. Here is where you could learn a few things from Mr. McDonald. I want that mayo hung from a bag on a metal pole next to me and pumped into my system intravenously.

Ok just thinking about it is giving me the shakes...and it's only been 5 hours.
I'll be starting a support group soon. Our first meeting will be held at Quiznos.

PS-you really should do something about those yucky circular things you sell by the register. They are pretending to be cookies. You won't fool me there. Not with an Atlanta Bread Company selling warm chocolate chip toffee crunch cookies less than 3 miles away.

Sincerely, Meg

PS-this one is for 3 gold stars.
10 gold stars if you give me the exact recipe...from Quiznos...or if you show up at my house with a sammy.
...because I'm not above bribery.

"Oooh I Love to Hate You, I Love to Hate You, I. Love. To. Hate. You-oooou!"

This morning I tried to do my hair, but when I looked in the mirror I saw this instead:

Sorry Vinnie, I do not welcome back your style. Time for a haircut.

Any suggestions?

"You Are An Obsession, You're My Obsession..."

Everyone should have a quiet place to go sort their mind when life starts spinning out of control. The Montessori method calls it a Peace Corner. It should be calm, relaxing, full of things you love, and encourage thought and creativity.

I guess mine is my bedroom, where I have the treadmill, my blanket, a lamp, a book, a journal, scriptures, and a notepad for list making.

Reese's is the nook behind the big chair, where she spends a lot of time singing and playing and thinking we aren't listening to her boss her Barbies around, and takes "kitty" and a blanket to lie down and "not rest" when she "isn't tired".

Aaron's is the right side of the red sofa, with a blanket, a bowl of cereal, and a good football game.

Quincy's... is on a stool in front of Reese's underwear drawer. She is quiet, relaxed, surrounded by things she loves, and gets very creative with her "hats".

Q in stripey Elmo.

Q in Ariel.


Q in flowery training underwear, with Tinkerbell in hand.

I know I've already posted one pic similar to these, but I just have SO MANY more pictures JUST like this one from only the past week. My favorite is when she wears it over her face like a Mexican wrestler and cracks herself up as she bumps into things.


So I shouldn't worry, right? SO WHAT if my kid wears underwear on her head, like all the time. Some kids don't want to wear anything at all, and insist on running around the house naked. This is better than that, isn't it? Or at least it's the same, I think. When I taught preschool, I had a little girl wear a Snow White Dress over her clothes for MONTHS (what is it about snow white? Reese went through a very similar phase). I guess there is nothing wrong with it, if it makes her happy, right? Eventually, she'll outgrow it.

Or will she? Maybe I should be worried.

so...what items are in your peace corner?

"And I Know I Was Wrong When I Said it Was True That it Couldn't Be Me and Be Her In Between Without YOU"

Ever have a day where there doesn't seem to be enough of you to go around?
Yeah, those are my legs...and those growths at my ankles are my darling little helpers.

I wonder if the fact that I have sidekicks mean I get to have some sort of superpower. You know, like how Batman has Robin? Doesn't the superhero transformation usually involve some sort of blurry three day illness/metamorphosis stage... like when Peter Parker becomes Spiderman? Perhaps after spending 3 days in my bat cave, I have emerged as a superhero...or even better (yet somehow less likely) SuperMom.

Hmmm... what kind of powers did I develop during my foggy slumber?
Can I make laundry disappear?

I'm sure the Mommy Tug-of-War will dissolve soon...like when the Halloween candy and juice boxes they've been surviving on disappear, and the vegetables return.

But, I'm glad they missed me.

"Gosh Oh Gee, How Happy I'd Be If I Could Only Whistle"

(I'm having trouble downloading pictures from my camera, but I have MANY...hopefully I'll figure it out soon)

Isn't it funny how particular we can be about holiday traditions? We are such funny creatures...don't want to do anything that might change the feel, or take away some of the magic.

For example, I want the tree up until the day after Thanksgiving, and I want it DOWN the day after Christmas...for sure by New Years. I hate leftover Christmas decorations. So...there's the predicament...can't start too early, CAN'T drag it past the 25th. We finally have a pretty good system going to ease Christmas in, without suffocating the Day of Thanks and Giving.

Before our first Christmas, my mom bought us An Old English Christmas from a holiday boutique. She knew we would love it and we do. So much, that it has sort of become the only "pre-holiday holiday music" we will listen to before Thanksgiving. This is the 8th November it will make me very very happy. I highly recommend it to anyone...but especially anyone who loves an acoustic guitar and a viola.
I LOVE it, LOVE it, LOVE it. It makes me happy all November, year after year.

But, I require more than 25 days a year to perfect my "chestnuts roasting".

Then, like magic,
last week... HE came.
He's finally here.

The music echoed down the hall, through the cracked bedroom door, and onto my bed, where I lay wallowing in the sick bay.
He is magic.
Enough magic to bring a very sick meg out of the bat cave, to join her man in dancing with 2 little ballerinas in jammies in the living room

...and teach them all the choreography (perfected since 6th grade, thank you very much) to "Buon Natale".
He's magic.
Nat, baby....you've haven't been around for awhile. I'm so glad you found us,
and now that you're here...

Christmas is here.

..and it's here to stay.
...even though it's only Nov 10th.

"Let's Go Back a Million Years to the Very First Indian Prince..."

After an 8 month break from contacts, Aaron has decided to put the frames on the shelf and go back to to disposable lenses. Now that Summer is officially over, we can all go from hearing him ask us the question,

"Hey, does my face look red?"

to,

"Hey, do my eyes look red?"

I'm hoping he'll grow tired of my new favorite response :

"He Kiss a Maid and Start To Blush,
and We All Been Blushing Since....
Hunna Munna Gunda, Hunna Munna Gunda
Now you got it right from the Head man
The real true story of the red man
No matter what's been written or said
Now you know why the red man's red!"

I'd appreciate if you all would play along and save me from having every light in the bedroom turned on at 5am, while asks me these two ridiculous questions, as he gets ready for work every morning.

"Late at Night When All the World is Sleeping"

I went to bed at 6pm last night, for the 2nd night in a row. At 6:30, Aaron brought me food, which I ate, and fell back asleep. Sometime around 7 or 7:30, Aaron opened the door to my bat cave again and interrupted my slumber with,

A:"Hey, is Reese in here?"

M: (groggy) "What? no. I'm sleeping, close the door."

A:"Well, I can't find her anywhere, didn't she come in here?"

M: "Aaron. No. I'm asleep. Close the door....wait. You lost Reese?"

Aaron flipped on the lights and we found Reese right there in the bed next to me, sound asleep. I guess she'd told Aaron she was going to go "check on Mommy", and never returned. I don't even remember her coming in my room. Aaron left her in the bed with me, since she's on an antibiotic anyway, and slept on the couch. When she woke up this morning, she said, "Good morning, Mommy, I was worried about you. Are you feeling better? I'm much better, now."

She was worried about me. So sweet. My happy child is finally back! She then left for a donut run with Q and Daddy.
Because we want to teach our children that eating comfort food when you are sick is the best medicine of all.

"Don't Stand, Don't Stand, Don't Stand So Close To Me"

Isn't it ironic how one can run a fever of 103 before they walk into the doctor's office, have a temp of 97.1 while IN the doctor's office, and then have a temp of 103 again by the time he or she gets home? Not that it matters...
I am quarantined for the next 24 hours.
Mr. Bad Karma has put a plague over my house. Today we went to the doctor for the third time this week. This time for me. I have strep and a double ear infection. It hit me like a ton of bricks yesterday afternoon, and luckily, Reese is already on an antibiotic, so the strep germs/ghost of death will hopefully pass over her. Good thing I was super productive yesterday morning, because I plan on doing NOTHING but sitting around and waiting for my Augmentin to kick in. If only mothers could "call in sick" once in awhile. I think I need to use some "personal leave" time...before I end up requiring a "mental health" day!

Have any good movies?
Wanna play scrabble?
Wanna babysit?


I know, I know. You all are thinking, "Wa-Waaaaa". But seriously. Strep?!

"All I Ever Wanted, All I Ever Needed, Is Here In My Arms"

I feel like a rock star today.

Changed a really nasty diaper.
Did the laundry.
Did the dishes.
Fed the kids.
Put away toys.
Shined the kitchen sink.
Cleaned the bathrooms.
Got the candy cane out of Reese hair without having to cut it.
Changed all the bedding.
Swept the floors.
Vacuumed.
Discovered Pandora.com (seriously, where have I been?)
Got the kids to take their meds (see: ear infection central)
Lugged the trash to the curb
Dealt with Reese's temper tantrum (all because her socks were too small)
Sanitized the (very stinky) diaper pail
Attempted to teach Quincy who Bono is.
Packed up the Halloween decorations.
Scheduled lunch with Kasey over at our dear friend, Maria's.
...and it's only 10am
I know it's stuff I do every day, and the list will start all over again tomorrow (and probably involve another stinky diaper), but still, I love it.
What a nice day this is turning out to be.

Now I'm going to go snuggle with my children and read, "If You Give a Pig a Pancake"

"We're Burning Down the Highway Skyline on the Back of a Hurricane"

Bad Karma is BACK....and it only has eyes for my minivan.

A friend of mine called and said her youngest has outgrown her old bike and if I want it for Reese I can have it. It needs a little TLC, but nothing a fresh coat of hot pink glittery spray paint , a tire pump, and a mr. clean magic eraser can't handle. I'm going to pimp that ride and save it for her birthday. I waited until after I'd dropped Reese off at preschool and went over to pick it up. It was in the front yard and a little wet from the previous night's rain, so I shook it dry and put it in the back of the van.

When I got home I discovered a pool of rusty water all over the upholstery! No! It leaked! Anyone have suggestions for rust removal from fabric? Yuck.

Headed to a doctor's appointment. I got that feeling. You know, that "oh my gosh I am going to throw up RIGHT now, like RIGHT NOW" feeling. I was on the freeway and started to panic. I've been so concerned with Reese not feeling well that I'd neglected my own insides...which are very angry with me. I started to panic...and sweat....which is what I do when I panic. This made me feel gross and only fueled that RIGHT NOW feeling and I managed to find a walmart sack in the knick of time to throw up in as I drove down the freeway, with the men in black and white jumpsuits on clean up duty staring at me. Gross.

When I pulled into my parking space at the Dr's office, I got sick again and this time I jumped out of the car to throw up in the parking lot, but it was super windy and blew the vomit all over the side door of the van. Really. Gross.

my blog is like a 24 hour humiliation network. You'd think there'd be some kind of reality show for people like me...with a million dollar prize at the end.

THEN tonight as I was backing out of my garage to go to the church for my YW calling, I somehow backed out REALLY crooked (we still can't figure out how
I managed to do this) and swiped the other car in the driveway. I totally scraped paint down to the plastic on BOTH side bumpers. I'm really NOT thrilled about that one. Anyone have a buffer I could borrow?

I've inherited Sarah's bad "car-ma" and I don't even know how! Take it back, take it back!

Oh by the way...remember in my "poem" 2 weeks ago, how everyone was sick and I took the girls to the doctor and she said they're fine and just have a little virus? The doctor somehow missed a horrible ear infection on Reese. Reese has been insisting for 2 weeks that her ear still hurts, even though Doc said it's fine. I finally made an appointment with a different doctor and it turns out it had been SO infected that her eardrum actually burst sometime about a week ago. Ouch! I feel terrible for her! The doctor said it is so swollen inside that, at first, he thought she'd stuck a foreign object in her ear. Thank goodness for antibiotic ear drops and Zithromax! Hopefully, a happier, healthier, Reese will be returning to us soon. Also, thank goodness for second opinions! Quincy's mouth is looking better too, so we'll all be better soon. Yay for medicine!

"You Really Love Me Underneath it All"

We're so glad Quincy is finally dressing herself.

"He Sat Down Beside Her and Schmoked a Shi-gar, Schmoked a Shi-ga-a-a-ar..."

On Sunday morning, Aaron left for a presidency meeting right as the kids got up. When he returned a few hours later, Reese squealed with delight and said,

"Horray! Horray! Look Mommy! Daddy's home! Let's celebrate and have a smoke!"

what?

I looked at Aaron, and he smiled because he knew exactly what she meant. I was still in the dark, until I followed them into the kitchen and watched him open the can of chocolate pirouettes, perch one on his bottom lip, break a second one in two, and give half to each of the kids. I then learned that he has done this every night for the past week, when he got home from work.

My babies are smoking chocolate cigars. Now THAT calls for a celebration.