Extra Credit

In an effort to boost my grade on my mommy report card, I spent this afternoon and this evening doing stuff with the kids instead of putting laundry away, cleaning out the closet with Duane and sorting through baby clothes.

We took a family trip to COSI this afternoon. It feels like we haven't been there FOREVER and the boys had a great time.

Ryan wore this hard hat at least half the time we were at COSI. It didn't matter that he couldn't see out of the darn thing, he'd just put it on and start running until it fell off. I think we have a future football player in our midst.

"Mom, it followed me home. Can I keep it?"

"Look, I even built a house for it (with Daddy's help.)"

"Pleeeeeease? I'll hug him and squeeze him and call him George."

Wesley spent a lot of time playing the helicopter. Here he is turning the propeller. He was so funny! He'd tell everyone how high we were flying and to hold on tight. He checked the fuel several times and even flew us to the library.

Despite how this picture looks, this little fireman has not been hitting the fire water. This goofy face is the one Ryan makes whenever you ask him to smile for the camera. Perhaps we should stick to candids.

Ryan working the wind blown look.

That was pretty much the afternoon. We came home from COSI and took naps. Well, at least Ryan and I did. I think Duane caught a "z" or two while Wesley watched t.v. But I decided to continue my quest for mommy extra credit by allowing the boys to paint after dinner. Wesley painted in the kitchen and did a great job. Ryan has never painted before, so he worked on his masterpiece in the dining room with me.

My little Picasso.

Ryan didn't really get the concept of watercolors. He'd put his paintbrush in the paint, THEN put it in the water, THEN on the paper. Let's just say it was heavy on water and light on paint.

Thank goodness it's bath night. As you can probably see, Ryan has paint on his face here. What you can't see is the paint in his hair and all over his hands.

So...do I get extra credit?

Mommy Report Card

I feel like I am failing at being a mommy this week. And it's not like one big thing has gone wrong, it's a bunch of little things that make me feel like I should probably be fired from this whole motherhood thing.

1) I dropped the "B" word at a pedestrian while driving WITH my kids in the car. Yeah, good mom award right there.

2) I got so mad at Wesley that I yelled at him in a really scary voice that made him jump and cry and look at me with actual fear in his eyes.

3) I routinely take Ryan off my lap and deposit him on the floor so I can get Wesley ready to go. I know this doesn't sound like a big deal, but Ryan wants to sit on my lap so rarely and when I do have to put him on the floor, he screams and cries and I end up getting annoyed.

4) We had not one, but TWO notes sent home from preschool this week. The rational part of me knows that they are well intentioned notes asking us to practice essential school skills with Wesley at home. The irrational part of me reads the notes as saying, "You are a slacker mom and your child is immature - even for a four year old."

5) I haven't arranged any play dates with Wesley's friends from preschool. Today when Grandma H. picked him up, he didn't want to leave because he didn't want to stop playing with his friends. Aside from the short notice, Grandma doesn't really know any of the parents. And of course I don't since I almost never get to drop him off or pick him up from preschool. I mean, I kind of know a couple of parents from the birthday party and open house, but not really. Plus you need to factor in that Wesley goes to Grandma's after school, so any play date would probably have to be there. Weekend play dates are complicated because of my work schedule, and I'm not sure how comfortable people would be bringing their kids to our house because we live so far away and in a "transitional" neighborhood (sounds better than saying a crappy neighborhood).

6) I almost never read to Ryan. Duane reads to him every night, but I almost never share a book with him. Never mind the fact that he usually won't sit still for books except at bedtime. I'm convinced I am stunting his mental growth. Add to the fact that he has a VERY limited vocabulary and it makes for major mommy guilt.

I guess I'll just try to accept my "F" gracefully.

Little Rain Man

Sometimes I really worry about Wesley. I know I joke about him having OCD, but he just gets so focused on things and WILL NOT let them go. Take tonight for instance, he wanted to pretend to be a cat named something. I don't remember what the name was, but it sounded like a different not so nice word. Duane told him he could be a cat, but that he had to pick a different name. Wesley kept saying he wanted to be a cat named (whatever it was) - over and over and over. He finally got sent to his room because he would not/could not stop going on about wanting to be a cat named (whatever it was).

And it's not just the cat thing. He'll tell you same thing at least 5 to 10 times in a row. Every single night we hear him say, "If you put things on my plate that I like, I'll eat it," as soon as he sits down to dinner. And he says it over and over and over during the course of the meal until we end up getting angry at him.

It's almost like he can't control it. The sentence seems to get stuck in his brain to mouth loop and he has no choice but to repeat it. Is this normal preschool age behavior, or should I worry?

Preschool Multi-tasking

Riding a rocking horse, drinking some juice and watching tv.

Play-Dough Pals

More photographic proof that brothers can play together and get along. At least until the younger one starts to eat the play-dough.

Not Me Monday

I did not completely skip giving the boys baths on the night Duane played poker. And if I did, it wasn't because I am almost never in charge of bath time and despite being a mom since 2005, it still intimidates me.

I know I didn't give Wesley a piece of chocolate from my secret stash, allowing him to know it exists and where it is hidden.

I certainly didn't cringe when Duane brought Wesley home with a foam battle-axe and sword from Target. I mean, gee, how could that possibly be a bad idea.

I am not dreading several people close to me both starting their diets this week. And if I was. it's not because I am too lazy to exercise and enjoy food too much to really watch my weight. And it's certainly not because I lack the willpower they have.

Food Coma

The W. family just returned from dinner out with Uncle Kirk and Aunt Sus - and what a dinner it was! We went to this place called Dirty Franks - a hot dog place downtown that I have heard nothing but good things about from my library friends.

The place itself wasn't quite what I expected. It's quite small and while the menu is very kid friendly (hello, hot dogs, fries, mac & cheese), it was a little chaotic with the boys. Especially since there were no high chairs and Ryan had to sit on Duane's lap. Definitely not ideal, and I could tell Duane wasn't thrilled and it was hard for him to eat with Ryan a) squirming and b) trying to feed Duane forkfuls of food, but Duane didn't complain and was a great sport.

The food was good though. Ryan had an octopus shaped hot dog on a bed of mac & cheese (although he didn't eat much), and Wesley plowed his hot dog and a bunch of Kirk's fries. The rest of us subscribed to the "take a bite and pass it around" rule and got to try a TON of fun things. Wesley even tried a new food! Ok, it was funnel cake, but still, it was something unfamiliar that he tried and liked.

Ryan tried a lime slush and drank about half of it. The rest of the time he was trying to drink Duane's soda. The little guy put quite a hurting on it too. I have a feeling it's going to be a long night at the W. household. I have visions of Ryan, hyped up on caffeine, zipping around the house full speed until he crashed someplace and we just let him sleeps where he lands. Let's hope it goes a little smoother than that.

Overall, it was a good, greasy, fun way to end to the weekend.

A New Chapter

I spent part of this morning sitting on the couch finishing a teen book I was reading. There was a very sad twist to the plot that I didn't expect and I gasped, my hand flew to my mouth and my eyes teared up. Duane and the boys were watching TV in the same room and Wesley got really concerned and asked me what was wrong. I told him that the book I was reading was very sad.

Wesley thought for a minute and said, "Don't worry, Mom. I'll write you a new book and it will be happy."

Now that's a boy that loves his mama!

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Duane and I were in the kitchen after supper tonight, when we heard Wesley singing in the dining room. I asked what song he was singing and he informed me that he was singing the "I don't love you song to Ryan." I asked him to sing something different, but truth be told, I'd be more worried if I didn't know that they really do play together most days - sometimes even nicely!

Last night they played a game of "crawl through the tunnel and chase your brother." Ryan would crawl behind the couch, come out and start running. Wesley would crawl behind him and then start chasing Ryan around the living room.

After that, we went upstairs. I had the bedding stripped off of Wesley's bed. He looked at it and exclaimed "Thanks for turning my bed into a trampoline, Mom!" He and Ryan must have bounced on the bed for a good twenty minutes, laughing the whole time.

Then there's photographic evidence of them playing together nicely.

OK, so Wesley is putting a book on Ryan's head, but no one is crying or hitting or yelling, so it counts as nice play in my book!

Breakfast IS the Most Important Meal of the Day

It's no secret that Wesley is a picky eater. What you might not know is not only is he picky, he's also pretty regimented - at least when it comes to breakfast. Every day Wesley eats some mini pancakes and a scrambled egg for breakfast. Sometimes there is fruit, sometimes there is bacon, but there is ALWAYS pancakes and eggs.

This morning I fixing breakfast for Wesley at Grandma and Grandpa H.'s (as I do most mornings he has preschool). I cut a banana, made the pancakes, made the eggs and then Wesley saw a package of maple rolls on the counter. "Maybe I could have one of things for dessert after breakfast." Sounded like a good idea to me! I'm always up for dessert.

So after Wesley ate his breakfast, I put about a quarter of a maple roll on his plate. He took a big bite, then said, "I've had one of these before at Grandpa P.'s. Or maybe it was when I was a baby. I can't seem to remember which one."

Speaking of eating (although not breakfast), Ryan SLAMMED some buffalo chicken lasagna last night. He completely cleaned his plate! It's so nice to have one child who isn't picky.

Animal House

Apparently we are walkin', talkin' and livin' like animals these days.

Our cat Sanders came into the bathroom as Wesley was getting ready this morning. Sanders looked around and let out a BIG meow. Wesley looked at the cat and replied, "Hey Sanders! That's a mighty fine tail you've got there! Do you like stripes on your neckties too?"

Then there was Ryan's trip to the animal house. Grandma and Grandpa P. do some dog sitting and Maggie and Abby (the dogs) were visiting today. Grandma scattered a few Cheerios on the floor for the girls and, quick as a wink, Ryan dropped to all fours and started picking the Cheerios up with his mouth just like the dogs! No need for a vacuum when Ryan's around.

Dinner Conversation with a Four Year Old

Wesley (in between bites of hot dog): I feel like there's a really big booger in my nose. Could someone please get it out?

ACK! And you wonder why we don't have company over for dinner more often.

Not Me Monday

I certainly was not so paranoid about the "snowstorm of doom" that I asked my mom to take the boys to our house (where Duane was waiting for a repairman) just so I wouldn't have to drive in the snow in rush hour with two kids in the car. Not me.

I know I was not the person who spent part of the morning convincing Wesley that it's good to have some boogers in your nose because it helps keep germs and other bad stuff out. I was also not the person who told him that he currently has the perfect amount of boogers, while Ryan has WAY too many!

It couldn't have been me who gave Ryan a piece of chocolate just to get him to stop crying. I'd never do that!

I did not stay at preschooler's birthday party where Wesley knew everyone and I knew no one just because he asked me to. And if I did, I certainly didn't ditch my boots and play on the bounce stuff too. And even it it was me who did both those things, I know I didn't end up having to ask Wesley to go on a couple of the inflatables just so I'd have an excuse to do them too.

I certainly did not cry (again) when I say The Princess and the Frog (again). Really, I am a grown woman and a mother of two. There's no way I cry at Disney movies.

Birthday Bashes

Yesterday was pretty much one big party for Wesley. One of his preschool classmates, T. turned five and invited the whole class (and his "other preschool" class) to an indoor bounce party at one of those places that has a ton of inflatables set up inside. Wesley was so excited about all morning and even drew a special card for T.

To be honest, I was kind of hoping for a drop and go party; after all, Wesley knew nearly every one there. However, when the option was given for parents to stay or go, Wesley asked me to please stay. It ended up being a good thing because I got to spend a little time with a couple of the other moms and get to know them a little better - including the moms of A. and J. - two of Wesley's best buds at preschool. I even found out that his best boy bud - A. - is going to do pre-K at the preschool next year, which is something I'd like Wesley to do.

In addition to getting to know some of the moms better, I also got to watch Wesley play and interact with his school friends. I loved watching the kids lift each other up and pull each other through some of the inflatables. I loved seeing them race around and laugh together. I even got a kick out of seeing J. (girl) plant kisses on A's (boy) mouth and vice versa. A.'s mom was horrified and kept telling A. to stop it, while J.'s moms both thought it was funny.

After the big bounce party, we went to Grandma and Grandpa H.'s to celebrate Aunt Sus's birthday. Aunt Sus spent a big chunk of her celebration helping Sho and Kei design and paint their pinewood derby cars for boyscouts. They are going to have some of the coolest cars around!

Needless to say, Wesley and Ryan were pretty worn out by the end of the night. Poor little Ryan was laying on the floor, playing with toys with only one hand. Wesley was pretty tired too, but not too tired to make a couple of snow angels in the yard with his daddy when we got home around 9:30. Wesley asked to sleep in the "big red bed" again too. Duane tucked Wesley and I under the covers, then said, "I smell something. It smells like it's spoiled rotten!" while gesturing to Wesley. Wesley didn't get it at all and answered, "Yeah, I smell it too!" What a great day!

Baby Bowling

While Duane and Wesley ran a couple of errands tonight, Ryan and I broke out the bowling set he got for Christmas.

Setting up the pins.

Wow! Check out that form!

Looks like he's serious about this one.

Oh! But he missed the strike!

Who'd He Get That From?

This morning Wesley complained about his knees hurting as he was walking down the stairs. My knees bother me most days and I even had some aches in them as a kid. So I said to Wesley, "You must have gotten Mommy's knees." Wesley looked me up and down before saying, "Mom. I can't have your knees, your legs are much bigger than mine."

I'm not sure which parent he gets his imagination and creativity from though. A few minutes ago he brought me a ball and a slinky. He wanted me to cut slinky so he could use one of the "curls" to make the rings of Saturn!

I'm a Big Boy

Somewhere along the way, Ryan has decided that he is now a big boy. He only wants to color with the "big boy" crayons. He carries his dishes out to the kitchen (sometimes) when he's done eating. He prefers to sit at the yellow table rather than in his high chair. If you cut up his food, he'll take the largest possible piece, preferring instead to have a whole instead of a part.

I think I could deal with the "I'm a big boy" thing if he had a few more words in his vocabulary. Right now he's pretty limited to:

• Mama
• Daddy
• Grandma/pa
• kitty
• ball
• vroom
• sippy (if you know what you are listening for)
• brother
• ball
• Bobo
• butterfly

We joke that he's the strong silent one, but he gets SO frustrated when he can't get his point across. We end up with a lot of screaming fits that I'm sure would be resolved if he had the words to express himself. Yes, I'm essentially saying, "Hurry up and learn to talk so I can tell you to be quiet!"

Feeling Blue

Wesley borrowed a page from the cartoon "Olivia" today. He colored four pieces of paper completely blue and annouced to Grandma that he was in his "blue period" for art. What a little ham!

The Fun Returns

Today was the first day in over two weeks that I had to get the boys up and out the door at our "regular" time. Oh good heavens, what a joy that was.

It snowed last night, so I knew I'd want to leave the house a bit early today. I got myself ready, dug out hats, boots, coats and mittens for the boys and loaded up the van before waking the little darlings up. Of course, it was still before 7:00 when I flipped their lights on. Wesley sat up in bed and looked very confused, so I started in on getting Ryan ready first. He wasn't thrilled about getting up so early, but he was pretty good about it. Then we went into Wesley's room.

The moment I told Wesley to get out of bed he started SCREAMING at me, "Why won't you let me sleep? I want to sleep! I just shut my eyes and now you say I can't sleep." The child would not stop screaming! I made many a threat trying to get him out of bed and down the stairs, but he would not stop screaming. I don't think he quieted down until we had him completely dressed.

Unfortunately that bit of calm didn't last too long because once we got his coat and mittens on, he couldn't keep hold of his bear or his straw cup of milk. He's drop his cup, whine loudly, pick it up, then drop it again - with the whine getting louder. On top of this, Ryan was refusing to walk because he hates his boots.

Somehow I got the boys out to the van and the car started. I turned the radio and the defrost on. Duane had already cleared the windows off, but I wanted to keep them clear and I wanted to hear the traffic report. Cue the tears and the screaming. Wesley started wailing, "I don't want the music or the wind. Turn the wind off! I can't sleep when there's wind." UGH!

Thank goodness traffic wasn't bad and it didn't take very long to get to Grandma's. Of course, Ryan tripped and fell into the snow on the sidewalk. It probably wouldn't have been too bad, except that he refuses to wear mittens, so his hands and his Bobo were cold and soaked. Then there was the fight between the boys over some toys before I left Grandma's for work. Good thing Wesley redeemed himself by having a great day at preschool and eating all his dinner. Who said getting back in the swing of things was a good thing?

Not Me Monday

I did not fix myself a big cup of strong coffee at 9:00 at night in a misguided attempt to keep me from diving into the bowl of candy on the microwave. That would just backfire about midnight when I couldn't fall asleep.

I did not give up and let my toddler sit under the table at a restaurant. Even though it was the only way to keep him quiet, it would have kind of embarrassing - especially since the table he chose was NOT the one we were sitting at.

I was not actually kind of happy to go back to work after two weeks off.

There's no way felt guilty about Duane getting up with Ryan before 5:00 AM while I slept. Even if I was the the one who had to go to work, it felt a little wrong.

I certainly didn't somehow manage to spray myself in the face with the sink sprayer when I was the only person in the kitchen. That just would have been embarrassing!

There's no way I'm kind of burned out on reading right now. And even if I was, I certainly wouldn't have reacted with absolute horror when Duane suggested that I not read anything for a week so I can start over fresh and enjoy it again. ACK!

The Holidays are Over

Well, the holidays are definitely over at the W. household. Oh, I'm not talking about the decorations being put away, going back to work, or preschool getting ready to start back up. Nope. I'm talking about any sort of brotherly love going straight out the window.

Wesley didn't get up until almost 9:00 this morning and by 10:00 he was sitting on the steps for tackling his brother and punching him in the head! And what did Ryan do to cause such an extreme reaction from his big brother? He dared to touch Wesley's kitty cat camp play set. The horrors!

While sitting on the steps, Wesley informed me that he didn't want a baby anymore. I told him that was too bad, because Ryan wasn't going anywhere. "Yes he is!" Wesley answered. "He needs to go live someplace else far away where he can't play with my toys!" We finally decided that if there was something Wesley didn't want Ryan to play with, the best thing to do would be to take it up in his bedroom and play with it there.

Wesley packed up his kitty cat camp and took it upstairs, cackling (yes, cackling), "I'm going to play in my room all day and all night and Ryan will never touch my toys! Never! Ha ha ha!"

Back to the Grind

Shhh....I have a secret to tell you. I went back to work today after 14 days off and really had a great day. I was alone in my department and got so much done. I felt refreshed and relaxed - like I actually took time off. Amazing.

Happy New Year

What a way to start 2010! A Buckeye Rose Bowl win, too much food, and an evening with family and friends.

Ringing in the New Year - Part Two

Some photos of the W. family New Year's Eve. There was Chipotle and McDonalds. We watched "Finding Nemo"

We played with cars.

We played with toy hammers.

We played with dinosaurs.

There were cheesy bathtime grins.

And bath crayons!

And little brothers trying to tell big brothers how to do something.

Soon the little guys will go to bed and Duane and I will ring in the new year with cheesecake and a movie. Happy New Year to all!

Ringing in the New Year

As many of you know, I am not a gal who is big on New Years Resolutions. I've tried writing them down, choosing really practical things, and what-not, but they never seem to stick. This year though I have two resolutions I"m going to make. I'm trying not to think of them as resolutions, but as changes to my life.


The first is to spend more time with the people I love. I have already made a promise to one friend that we wouldn't let a month go by without seeing each other - even if it's just to grab a cup of coffee. Now, she reads this blog, so this is her little reminder too! :-) Duane and I gave two people the gift of our time for Christmas. A dear friend of the family is going to be taken to dinner by the W. family. Grandma W. was enrolled in the "Dinner of the Month" club, where the W. family will have dinner with her once a month. It sounds like such a little thing, but so often we look up and weeks and weeks have gone by and we haven't seen people! Life is too short not to spend with those who mean the most to us.

Along those same lines, I am going to start keeping a gratitude journal. Every day I am going to write down something that I am thankful God has graced me with. I know not all of them will be earth shattering, but that's kind of the point - to focus on the little moments and the gifts from Him that we often take for granted.

So that's it for resolutions. We're going to spend this evening eating Chipotle and watching TV. Not exciting, but there is no place else I'd rather be.

Happy New Year!

Another Day of Vacation

Here are the oh-so exciting highlights of today.

The refrigerator repairman came today. The good news is that the fridge is still keeping food cold, the bad news is that the parts that need replaced are going to run upwards of $300. Oh well, still cheaper than a new fridge. The only thing that really annoyed me was the fact that when the repair man called to say he was on his way, he treated me like a "silly woman." Normally I would have words about that, but I had a killer headache and two kids to deal with, so Duane came home while the guy was here. Still annoys me though.

The boys and I had an outing with Grandma H. today. We went to this coney island place near our house to eat. Wesley did such a good job. He was sweet and he ate his lunch. Ryan was a little beast. He screamed when I put him in a high chair. He rolled around on the floor. He insisted on "stirring" my iced tea. He barely ate anything except ketchup. Here's the proof:

Sweet little Wesley. Clean face, full tummy, cute little toy.

The Ry-baby. Covered in ketchup and boogers and just looks ornery.

After lunch we headed over to the conservatory. They are running special programs every day this week since kids are on vacation. Today's show was a pair of magicians. They were terrible - big on banter and short on tricks. Grandma took Ryan for a walk (ok, really a run) while Wesley and I watched a little of the show. We snuck out after about 20 minutes. What we did enjoy was the kids Chihuly play area. The boys were fascinated by the plastic pieces and spent a good half an hour playing with them. Again, Wesley did a great job sharing the pieces with other kids and encouraging everyone to work together.

Despite how this picture looks, Ryan actually did play with the pieces and didn't throw them. He loved climbing in and out of the little boat to move the pieces back and forth.

We've spent this evening taking down all the Christmas decorations. Wesley must have gotten something out of the magic show because as we were putting the decorations away he informed me that he was a "matitian" and showed me some of his "amazing" magic tricks. Let me tell you, they are almost as good as his jokes.

Tomorrow I may take the boys to the North Market - depends on how they are acting since it has the potential to be a painful trip. We might go to the "big" library and I do have to take the cat to the vet for a follow up appointment. Ah, the joys of vacation.

Little Plumber Boy

Ryan has recently discovered the bolts that hold the toilet down. He is fascinated by them and I often find him hanging out by the toilet, trying to remove the bolts. Thus - the Little Plumber Boy is born!

Not Me Monday

I did not find it incredibly funny that Ryan kept referring to his Uncle Dave as "Daddy" - especially since Duane has been having such a hard time getting Ryan to call him Daddy and not Mommy.

I did not fall off a bar stool at my Dad's on Christmas in an effort to rescue Ryan when he didn't need rescuing. And even if I did, two days certainly didn't pass before I could straighten my arm again.

I did not have to send a cranky little four-year-old to his Grandma's bedroom TWICE on Christmas Day so he could re-evaluate his attitude.

There is no way Ryan got TWO toys with hammers in them. That would just spell danger for my house.

I didn't volunteer to do grocery shopping the day after Christmas just because I knew the store would be quiet and I needed a little time to myself.

It couldn't have been me that nearly had a mental breakdown at how disorganized the church potluck was. I mean, type-A personality aside, isn't "disorganized" the definition of a church potluck?

I would never ever have tried to eat my weight in Hershey kisses in a misguided attempt to deal with the fact that the fridge nearly died.