Adventure and Attitude

I think children are pretty amazing.  Yes, I know that I sometimes tell you all of the outrageous things they do and how they may drive you to drink, but they are amazing! I am blessed to have each child that I have and I think it is awesome how each of my children came to me in a very different way.  Being that it is Tyce's birthday, I thought I would tell you about this miracle child! After Jackson was born, Ryan and I tried for about four years to get pregnant.  Believe me, we tried EVERYTHING!  If someone would have told me if I ran around naked clucking like a chicken for an hour and it would have resulted in a baby, I would have done it! When we decided to adopt it was a decision we had already been praying about and discussing long before we became "infertile".  In fact, we both can clearly remember a conversation we had in our first year of marriage where we talked about adopting some children and having some biological children.  I believe strongly t

I have come to the conclusion that my children's favorite game to play with one another is the game of "Tattle".  They have practiced it so often that they are pros.  Being the referee in this game is the worst possible position to be in and I hate to play - day after day after day after day after..... To play, you need the perfect high pitched whiny voice.  You must start each statement with a drawn out "Moooooommmmm!".  You must look super pathetic so all those around you will take pity on you.  You must catch your sibling doing, saying, or thinking something that may get them in trouble.  If they are looking at you, breathing on you, in the same room as you, or sharing space on earth with you it is time to tell on them!  To play correctly you must continue to find faults in their existence at least every 20 minutes.  If you want to step up the game, you can call out "Mooooommmmm!" more frequently. If you run out of things to tattle about yo

It is finally here. I'm not quite sure how I feel about it. I no longer officially have a "baby" in the house. Tyce is now a big four year old!  Gone are the days of rocking a tiny baby in my arms, getting up in the middle of the night, and of chasing a toddler covered in goo.  LOL!  I wish I could say that with a straight face!  Even though his age says that these things should no longer be occurring, they are!  Now the difference is that he is bigger, can talk back, reason, and run faster! He was super excited for his party and cake!  I made a dirt cake with gummy worms and creepy crawlies on the top.  He had to show everyone his special cake!  He thought it was so cool! As he opened each gift he yelled out, "Awesome!" and quickly riped open the next gift!  It was a whirlwind of flying paper and toy bugs, spiders, and snakes!  He moved to fast to get pictures of him all day! HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY TYCE!

I was put in exile on Sunday and was forbidden to speak for our entire ride to church. I found this very mean on the part of my husband and was not happy about it in the least, but I can understand where he was coming from. I went out with a friend who I hadn't seen in years to a restaurant I love! It was the perfect combination and I enjoyed myself immensely! I hadn't been to the restaurant in forever and now I can remember why that is! It seems I get a bit carried away there. No, I don't get carried away by dancing on tables ( that's at a different establishment ) or drinking sangria (although their sangria is really really awesome). I get carried away eating. It isn't just eating in general. It is eating a particular type of food that gets me in big trouble! They serve Tapas and many of their dishes have garlic in them. I felt a bit of a cold coming on so I ate A LOT of garlic! It was so yummy and it's good for you right? It is also a fo

I really don't need a television or any other type of entertainment in my home.  My children seem to be an endless source of entertainment - whether it is a positive source or not! The other morning Lola yelled from Tyce's room about his "privates". I went in to investigate what was going on.  Tyce was taking a pillow and putting it down his pants.  Quite a feat for a 3 year old with tiny little jammie pants on! When I asked him why he was doing that, he told me, very matter of fact, that his penis needed some air.  Hmmm... while I can't personally relate, I have heard of such matters, so I told him that it was fine to give his penis some air, but that next time he should do it when his sister and other people were not around. Not sure how the pillow factored into the entire equation, but I'm sure he had some good reasoning behind that one!

I am a dreamer plain and simple. When I dream, I dream big!  More times then not, Ry has to pull me back down out of the clouds!  That's ok because more times then not, my dreams become a reality!  They may not happen exactly when or how I wanted them to, but they do happen! I am also a person who remembers my dreams!  If you would have had the privilege of seeing me every morning, you would have been the recipient to many bizarre stories.  All of these adventures of course occurred in my subconscious, but with such clarity that they made for great stories!  I used to sit at lunch and entertain my co-workers with my dreams and I will often wake Ry in the middle of the night to tell him about a dream! (of course he loves that!!) I've dreamt about talking animals, wolves with glowing eyes, dogs rising from the dead, people having babies, going on trips or adventures around the world, and just about anything else you can imagine! There have been times I have dreamt ab

I rarely go to the mall and I am only about ten minutes away!  I thought that being so close I would be there often, but when you factor in that I have to take children with me, it kind of takes away the pleasure of it all and becomes more of chore then anything else! First, there really is no shopping when all of the kids go with you.  You better know what you want and where it is so you can get in and out fast or you spend an extra 30 minutes in each store corralling bored children out of clothes racks!  Second, there are too many temptations like sugary foods at the mall.  I do not want to have to buy a pretzel each and every single time we go there! Finally, the play area just plain creeps me out!  There are so many kids with runny noses slobbering all over the place!  Big kids plow over my smaller ones and parents are sometimes non-existent when their kid hauls off and smacks someone.  Don't even get me started on trying to get the kids to leave the germ pit!  I lie each

I have written about my little run ins with the police before and getting tickets for going five over - yes FIVE MPH over the speed limit!  Really?  Don't you have some bad guys to catch instead?  This weekend I was talking with my mother in law and she got pulled over for going too slow! I couldn't help but laugh and then keep laughing after she told us the story!  Going too slow!  She was actually just accelerating onto the road after having turned on it and then trying to obey the rules of the road with construction around!  When she drank out of her water bottle the cop thought she was a drunk driver!  If you know my mother in law you would know just how absurd this is!  She didn't get a ticket and was told to step on the gas a little bit.  Since my tickets, I almost get an anxiety attack when I see a police car behind me!  I actually start to have a feeling of loathing toward the car itself!  In order to combat that feeling I have come up with a plan. Here are

So I know I have been complaining a bit about how much homework Ry and I have to do with A each and every night and how difficult it is, but this afternoon I decided that I LOVE homework! This is why... I was checking over papers in A's folder to be sure everything had been completed and to see what else he needed to do and I came across this question and his answer: Think about one person that is special to you.  In a paragraph (4-5 sentences) describe this person.  Who is he/she?  How or why do you know him/her?  What is his/her personality like?  What makes him/her special to you?          Amy is special to me.  She is my mom. I don't think anything more needs to be said in that answer.  At least not for me!  Homework is awesome!

There are so many times that my children say things that just floor me!  Whether I am on the floor laughing or on the floor because I fainted from embarrassment or on the floor out of total surprise, I wish I remembered to write them down each and every time!  Here are some that I remembered to record! Mom, you know when Tyce hits me - that isn't love . - Lola I didn't pee my pants.  The pee pee just zoomed out .  - Tyce Turn off the music!  It is making my hips shake! - Tyce I didn't pee my pants.  My penis just exploded! - Tyce Lola to Tyce; " Did you eat chocolate? Let me smell your little cute little breath ." I hope my daughter continues having such great confidence in herself! Today she has told me that she is a beautiful singer, has gorgeous hair and skin, and is a rock star!! (all of which are definitely true!) 2/10/11 Lola just yelled at Tyce " Stop your behavior !" - sounds a little sophisticated for a four year old! 2/7/11

Hi.  My name is Amy. It has been six months since I have become a "Helicopter parent".  That is the first step right?  -admitting there is a problem?  A "Helicopter Parent" is one that hovers around the children to protect them and guide them in every step.  They don't let them take chances and learn from their mistakes.  The parent is always within reach.  If you saw my children play in the woods up in the trees and smashing pumpkins yesterday you wouldn't think that to be true.  However, I feel like I have become that way with A and his education. Each and every day I either send or receive emails from his teachers about what they did in class, upcoming assignments, tests, and quizzes.  At this stage, with a child whose first language is not the one he is learning in, it is necessary, but last night when I found myself helping him with his Spanish homework - Spanish  - the child is a native Spanish speaker for crying out loud!! - I was a bit in shoc

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The other day while we drove down the road and I listened to my son ask for a movie for his two minute trip, I couldn't help but think that I am doing my children a huge disservice by not forcing them to look out of the windows at what is passing them by.  I am very guilty of being in such a hurry with a goal in mind that I often don't take the time just to look around me!  I think it is time to go back to taking "Sunday drives"! My grandparents used to take my two sisters and I on drives on the weekends when we were young.  The three of us would sit in the back and put on our "life jackets" (that's what Grandma called them) and beg for stories from Grandma and Grandpa!  Grandma would tell us how she grew up as the only girl in a house of boys.  One of our favorite stories was when she threw eggs at her brothers from out of her bedroom window!  We would laugh and laugh and laugh while we drove looking out of the windows at the scenery that flashed by.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away, but when you have bags and bags of apples in your home after a trip to the local orchard, just one apple a day won't cut it!  So, yesterday my helpful assistant and I peeled and peeled and peeled one apple after another and made yummy crockpot applesauce and apple crisp! These are the times I am really thankful that I can stay home with the kids.  Yes, it would have been a lot faster and less of a mess had I completed the tasks on my own, but it would have been way less fun!  Just the conversation alone with an inquisitive three year old is worth more then anything I could ever hope to buy in my lifetime! We are still up to our knees in apples over here though!  Any suggestions for some other yummy apple concoctions?

We are experiencing in Michigan what some refer to as an "Indian Summer".  We are all back in our tank tops and shorts!  I don't know if it is the warm weather and all of the sunshine, but the colors of Autumn are spectacular!  The golds, reds, and oranges look even more vibrant then I remember from previous years! When fall comes around in Michigan it means that local farms become venues for families to visit as part of their weekend entertainment!  A place of hard work is transformed into a kind of amusement park! Many farms offer wagon rides, petting areas with the animals, corn mazes, apple picking, rides in little train like vehicles through the orchards, playing in hay bales, playing in piles of dried corn kernels, pumpkin patches, and refreshments like fresh cider and homemade apple or pumpkin donuts!  We love it and have been known to visit a few different farms during the fall! On Sunday we ventured to Schwaillier's Country Basket .  I used to take Ja