Things are still nuts around here and I'm definitely still behind on life. The kids are eating mac and cheese for dinner in plastic bowls in the living room in front of the TV.
BUT one major triumph this week has been tackling the toys once again. I filled two large bins and a trash bag with stuff I intend to donate. I'll give the kids a month or two to realize that stuff is gone, then it's out of my life forever. If they don't see it, they usually don't think about it. Fingers crossed.
Angus likes the new floors. He has an impressive farmer's tan happening on his thighs.
Auntie Wendy sent us some fun things in the mail.
Angus said the sweetest thing to me the other day. It will for sure melt your heart.
He looked at me and said, "You're my best lady. I just keep on loving you."
I know. That's why he's still my favorite even though he tortures me daily with irrational 4-year-old behavior.
If I'm being honest, they're all my favorite. I tell them all that too.
This is Addie doing homework:
"This is the best coloring job I'm doing. I'm so good at writing my name, see? That is the PERFECT E!
Addie's Addie. It doesn't get much cuter than a tiny little firecracker like her. She still yells at me regularly but not as much as she did when she was four. She just has a lot of feelings that are so very hard to contain. And I'm her safe person. She can be 100% angry or 100% excited and she knows I'm going to love her anyway. She behaves really well at school. At least that's what she tells me.
I made the mistake of taking her to the post office with me after I picked her up from school last week. She wanted to go home and play, not go to the boring old post office. We walked inside and I walked to the right where the line formed. She walked to the left over by the mailboxes and folded her arms and glared at me. I let her stand there for a while until a few more people walked in and blocked my view of her. So I said loudly in a stern voice, "Addie come here." She replied, in the very echo-y building, "UUUGGH! You're the worst mom EVER!!" Everyone looked at her with a very surprised and impressed expression on their faces. I then said through clenched teeth, "GET OVER HERE." To which she replied, "UGH FINE!"
A well meaning stranger behind me bent down to show her pictures of her dog. I cringed, knowing what was coming. Addie rolled her eyes, grunted and turned her back on the stranger. I laughed sheepishly and told her not to be rude, which did nothing of course.
Without having children with such personality, one might really judge a mom who's child acts like that in public. I swear we discipline her regularly and firmly correct her when she's being a jerk. It's just not that simple. She is who she is. And if I'm being honest, I love her feisty attitude more than I don't.
Just know that if your kid acts like that in front of me, I will not judge you. Promise.
Winter is also my favorite. She told me Sunday that she wants to be baptized. Wonderful news of course. But then she plugged her ears the entire way to school yesterday because I was playing "church music" on Pandora.
Mya, another favorite, decided to play cello this year. Cello. Yeah the giant string instrument. Her teacher and Dan and I tried to talk her out of it. Her teacher said it would be really hard switching from the violin to the cello AND missing two weeks of school to go to the beach. He pretty much said that it was a very bad idea and she shouldn't do it.
She basically said, I want to play the cello, period... in a nice Mya way of course. And guess what. She came back from the beach, practiced with some fellow cello playing friends and is totally caught up and doing great. She wanted her teacher to be more impressed, but was still happy with herself for proving everyone wrong. Go grrrl.
Addie and Winter received a couple of bags of Barbie things from a friend to add to their already overflowing collection. They were excited.
These may be the best thrift store find yet. Winter's new shoes. Sparkly AND leopard print. That pretty much sums up her style. She was ecstatic.
Some people think taking pics of their unconscious children is creepy but I think they are some of my favorite pictures. Winter loves sleeping with eye masks. I've never even tried. It sounds terrible.
Angus didn't like the pink sheet he was sleeping on I guess...
And look how cute.
Mom's still with us for a week or so. Since I'm "home-schooling" Angus this year, we took a little trip to Descanso Gardens because we love it there.
It's not going great with the learning.
Me: Angus, the B says?
Angus: AAhhh!
Me: No, that's the A.
Angus: Oh, yeah.
And later reading him a book about the letter L, (pointing to a picture of a lady)
Me: This is a...LLL LLL
Angus: HUMAN!
Then I pointed to a picture of lace and said, "This is LLL LLL..."
Angus: Spider Web!
In his defense I did read the first three pages thinking the L was an I. But it kind of does look like an I. I wondered why the little Boy with an I on his shirt was collecting all the things starting with L. Normally I'm pretty smart for the record.
Good luck to his Kindergarten teacher.
Our neighborhood pool is still heated. Let me know if you're in the area and you want to swim!
Happy Saturday!
