Tell Me About It

We tell it like it is

I've struggled for a few days with whether or not to post this story. I was afraid I would embarrass my kids if they ever read this, but Allen and I told it enough in the last few days that I decided to get it written so we can look back, remember, and laugh. Just know that in our home, we call it like it is. We don't use silly names for body parts just because they are young children.

At bedtime each night, the toddlers are stripped and sent to sit on the potties before getting into pajamas. It looks something like this. Last Wednesday, this is what happened as the three were sitting. . .

Ben started fiddling with his penis, as boys tend to do, then looked up and told me "Benis!" I smiled, pronounced it correctly, and said "You're right!"

Maddie looked over at Ben, pointed, and said, "Menis!" I corrected her pronunciation and said, "You're right!"

She looked over at Jon's, pointed, and said, "Penis!" "That's right, Maddie."

A few seconds later, she started looking down at herself, but didn't see one.

Allen started getting Jon into PJs as Maddie stood up and leaned over looking for a penis on herself.

She leaned more, . . . then more, . . . then more . . . still looking.

Right about then, Will stood in the door, and very proudly shared his vast knowledge, "Maddie, you don't have a penis. You have a amus."

I stifled the giggles and hid my smile as the conversation continued.

I told Will that it was pronounced "anus - with an N," just as Allen explained that everyone has an anus.

Will continued, "But if everyone has an anus, and only boys have a penis, what do girls have?"

Allen and I answered simultaneously, "A vagina."

Will, shaking his head in disbelief, "Vagina? . . . . that sounds Mexicany."

That punchline happened at the exact moment I was catching Maddie from doing a somersault across the bathroom as she was still trying to find a penis. I had to shut the bathroom door so the kids would not notice that I was laughing so hard I was crying.

Hearts and Flowers

Our Valentine's Day definitely turned into a weekend full of hearts and flowers. Before you rush off thinking Allen and I are hopelessly romantic, I'll let you in on a secret. We are head-over-heels in love. But even with a pile of Valentine wishes for my sweet love and our children, we completely and totally forgot Saturday was Valentine's Day. I guess everyone will open cards this evening.

Thursday, we headed for Austin. It was a tolerable trip since we stopped in Waco for dinner with my parents. We got to Austin around 8 pm and got the kids ready for bed. It was the first time the triplets have slept in a hotel, and the first time Allen and I have shared a room with them. Since they were out of sorts with a messed up schedule and in a new place, they cried. Someone called the front desk and they came to make sure we were all okay. The fact that we couldn't just let them cry it out added a different level of stress to the situation, but we got through it.

Friday, we took the kids to play outside at the Arboretum. It was a gorgeous, nearly 80-degree day, and it was great for us to get the fresh air. We wandered with them, let them climb statues, and watch the ducks and geese, the we grabbed some chicken sandwiches headed for the wedding rehearsal. The wedding venue was at Villa Antonia, a beautiful location overlooking Lake Travis. With a few new toys on hand, I kept the kids from being disruptive until we got through th rehearsal. When the kids practiced walking down the aisle, I told them to act like ducks and follow Allen and me. Normally this means they walk in a line behind me, sometimes quacking quietly. That is just our "word" for follow Mama. I expected a few little "quacks," but I didn't expect Ben to bend over with his butt out, and his arms folded into wings, as he rushed past Allen in me waddling his little duck-butt and flapping his duck-wings. (No, he didn't do that at the real ceremony, just the rehearsal.) We got the kids back to the hotel and luckily they snoozed a bit in the car. We visited with family that had arrived until it was time to head out for dinner. Dinner was an awesome affair at a delicious barbeque restaurant. It was laid back and as cozy as can be for as many people as were there. Since there was an enclosed patio and the weather was still beautiful, the kids enjoyed running around outside. One of my favorite moments was after dinner and dessert were over, but everyone was still enjoying each others' company. Jon, not realizing anyone was watching, had climbed up on the bench and just stared into the big pans of cobbler. As he licked his lips, I took out the camera, but didn't let on that I was watching him. I could almost read his mind as he reached for the big serving spoon, but then he abruptly stopped. I had expected him to try to eat from the spoon and I was ready to jump, but he surprised me when he first reached for a plate. The evening was quite enjoyable especially since we had so much help with the kids. Uncle Gary, Aunt Carmen, Aunt Michele, and Grandma Ann each helped out so much, and Allen and I were allowed to just enjoy ourselves. Since Randy and Shelley (aka: Nana & Papa) were the hosts for the dinner, I tried to keep the kids "out of their way," but as always, they were happy to help and happy to hold, and they, too, were a big help to us. Ben was exhausted, and stopped to lay on a picnic bench. Then he jumped up and went to tell everyone, "bye." Then he rushed out the door of the party room -- luckily someone caught him. When Ben was carried to me, I asked where he was going and he told me: "Bye-bye, Mama. Sleepy." We left soon after that and the kids went to bed very easily. Saturday was another busy day, and Valentine's Day (even though I forgot that part). After breakfast at the hotel with all the family, Allen and I and the kids took a detour from the wedding festivities and went to meet my Aunt Anne, Uncle Jim, and cousins Kathryn and Jamie. It was the first time they had met the triplets, and since we were so close, I am so glad we got to visit with them. The kids got to feed chickens, go for a walk, and just play. Maddie slept most of the time, but we all had a great visit. Next we met family for lunch and then took the kids to nap at the hotel while the rest of us got pretty. Before we knew it, it was time to get to the wedding for some pre-wedding family photos.
The wedding was beautiful, the bride was even prettier. I know a bride is supposed to look her very best for her wedding, but Jenn was unbelievably gorgeous that day with her inner beauty and happiness radiating through her pretty face. As I did my best to keep the kiddos quiet, I couldn't help my heart from swelling with love for my husband as I heard the wedding words and remembered our own vows. I was also overwhelmed with joy that Jason found someone to make him so very happy. After the ceremony, there was a dinner and dancing, and we got to see a side of Will we don't see too often. At the rehearsal, Will became quite friendly with Jenn's niece. By then end of that evening, she was introducing him to her family as her "boyfriend, cart-Will." He told us she was his girlfriend, too, but that part doesn't surprise us anymore. In fact, we acted like it wasn't a big deal, but the other kids oohed and aahed and the two young ones realized that got them attention so they kept up the act. What we didn't know was that Will would dance ALL . . . NIGHT. . . LONG! When he got the nerve to get on the dance floor, he quickly got the little girl dancing. He impressed many with his dance steps and the spins he helped her do. When she grew tired of dancing, and the dance floor got crowded with "big people", Will found a small balcony and did his own dancing up there. At one point, we looked over and saw FOUR photographers with their lenses focused on the little blond boy dancing on the balcony. Maddie fell asleep soon after she finished dinner, but Jon and Ben kept going for awhile. Allen and I each held one of the little boys while we danced together to "Unforgettable." Had the song been a minute longer, they both would've been asleep, but as it was, only Ben was out. Another time, Allen and I was cha-cha-ing and almost had Jon asleep, but to no avail. He and Will lasted all night long and even helped throw rose petals as Jason and Jenn left the party. We put the kids in pajamas before buckling them in for the ride back. As we assumed, they all slept in the car. The hardest thing about each of us carrying two sleeping chidren through the hotel was the three-inch heels on which I was trying to steady myself. We all slept hard that night.

Sunday we slept a bit longer than the other days, but then had breakfast with the family again. When we headed home, we stopped in Waco for lunch, and Allen's parents and grandmother followed us there. It was so nice enjoying a few moments with both families. We finally made it home, and decided to just sit and relax.

Just a shout out of thanks to everyone that helped with the kids. I can't thank you enough, and it was wonderful to see you! Who did we see? Nana and Papa, Grammie and Ruffy (the kids great-grandparents), Grandma Ann (great-grandma to the kids), lots of great-aunts and -uncles, in more ways than one: Chuck, Gary, Carmen, Michele, Robert, Barbara, Carrie, and Jim; a great-great aunt and cousin: Babe and Janet; and lots of family friends. I hope others got some good pictures, because I never seemed to have my camera out at the right moments.

Another Beautiful Day

Yesterday: donut with sprinkles, zoo, Mexican food, Walgreens, detour to collect pinecones, temperature approaching 70, sunshine all day

Will's loves to stop and watch Phineas, the rhino. The first time we saw him, he was only three days old, and it was Will's and my first day without others with us. Will said, "Mama, my baby rhinocerous sure is getting big!" We had a lot of fun on such a beautiful day. I pointed out some "unique animals" to Will in a way he didn't understand . . . "Ah! Will look! Over there. See those?" He looked and looked but didn't see the animals in the cage. "Look, Will. It's an orange conicus! Wow!" He still didn't get it. "How 'bout those? Do you see those? The brown picnic tablicus?" Finally he understood I was being silly and he just laughed and laughed, then found another one for me "Look, Mama! Isn't that a nice lighticus!" We had fun being silly like that the rest of the day. It also meant I had to read the scientific names of all the animals after that. His favorite to remember: Bison bison bison. Usually we are at the zoo with the family or even friends, but this time it was just the two of us. Rather than rushing from animal to animal or having to chase after kids, we stopped and read most of the info boards. The thing that he kept asking about was what endanged animals were. At the gift shop, we found a book that has kept his attention, but also mad him sad (the snakeskin boots, leopard jackets, deforestation.) Nothing made his as sad as when I read the lion-board. "Mama, what is prey? What is a kill" I explained to him that lions eat other animals. As we stood in front of the zoo lions, we could see zebras and kudu just beyond them. The exhibit has moats between the animals, but you can't see them, so it looks like a savannah with elephants, giraffes, warthogs, zebras, kudus, ostriches, and lions seeming to be in the same area. Will burst into sobs with huge tears when I told him sometimes lions eat zebras. I finally calmed him down by telling him we would go find a zoo-keeper who could tell him what these zoo-lions ate. He didn't believe me when I said those lions didn't eat zebras. Luckily, as we turned the corner, a zookeeper was coming out of the same area. Will asked if he could go talk to that stranger, and I said yes. So he asked her what the lions ate and she was so kind and patient, explaining until he no longer had questions. Those lions eat deer and cow bones, and ground meat. Will and I later joked about the lions eating hamburgers and liking them really rare. Another bunch of questions came when we were looking at the snakes and spiders -- explaining which were poisonous or not. I read the info about the brown recluse spider and it explained that this was not one we wanted to be bitten by, and it liked dark places. Knowing Will and his fears, I tried to find the happy medium between telling him the truth, but not bringing on nightmares. When we were leaving that part of the zoo, he started putting his hands in his jacket pockets, and just froze. "What's the matter, Will?" "Mama, I think my pockets are dark..."

After we picked up the little kids from Mothers day out, we headed home. The kids played while I did a few things, then I helped Will with his Valentine's for his party. Last night, we also headed to WalMart to pick up some diapers. The little ones prefer to walk around, but I didn't have the patience for that. I finally got Maddie to quit crying by setting a box in the cart and telling her it was her Princess Throne. (One day this week, I asked Maddie what her name was and she said "Princess!") She LOVED sitting on the throne, and then Ben had the idea to have a footstool, too. That's what you see here.

Photo Challenge: TEXTURES and PATTERNS

After many months of not participating, I am jumping in again. Brenda's Photo Challenge theme this time was chosen by Donna: textures and patterns. I have a few to share that I've taken in the last month.

A pile of knotted-blankets: A box of bizcochitos:

A night-time drive on a busy highway:

An unhappy boy in the shower:

Yes, they are some odd photos, but they were some extras. In an attempt to capture my life in photos and improve my photography, I started a project at the beginning of the year. Like many others, I am simply calling it my 365 Project. My goal: to take a picture a day for a year and capture my "everyday." Some days it's hard to pick "THE ONE" and other days, it's a challenge for me to find my camera and make sure the batteries are charged. A few of the photos are also on this blog, but my 365 Project is going in a regular scrapbook -- and yes, it's mostly up to date. I just put the photo in a photo album and print the journal tag. Done. I plan to post those pictures weekly -- if nothing else, you might get an idea of what "normal" is around here.

Lovin' It!

I am loving the dates with each of the kids! I was a bit nervous about it at first, but now I find myself looking forward to it each week. Yesterday was Ben's day, and we had so much fun together. Although it started out with Ben kicking, screaming, and biting me since I was taking him away, it ended up rather nice (isn't that the same thing I wrote about Maddie's date last week?)
It was a cold morning, but the weather report said it was going to warm up, so I had already decided to spend the day at the zoo again. Ben and I got there around 10 and it was still chilly, so we each wore two jackets. As soon as he realized where we were, Ben started asking for the lions. He was pretty interested in the rhinoceruses, and then he saw the elephants and giraffes and was amazed. Since it was his day, I let him set the pace. It wasn't much of a stop at any of the animals before he would say "Bye-Bye! Now lions." It was sort of funny that he wanted them since they take the longest to get to from any direction. He did get a kick out of the penguins, but again, it was "Bye-bye, pen-gen. Now lion!" When we got to the lions, he squealed with delight . . . for a minute. Then it was "Bye-bye lion. Shhhh. Sleeping." We had lunch overlooking the giraffes, elephants, and zebras, and Ben was thrilled each time something moved. It was awesome to see and hear his joy -- I should just say it was contagious. I loved soaking up every one of his delights and feeling it from my heart to my toes. A day spent with one of four is so very, very different. All my senses are focused on one kid -- feeling his warm hand in mine; watching his smile and the sparkle in his eyes; hearing the thrills and trills in his voice; listening to him talk, and talk, and talk, not understanding all of it, but loving it, just the same; smelling the scent of his freshly-shampooed hair and the smell of salty hot dog on his fingers; and all the while not having to worry about where the other three are and what they are doing to each other. I am learning more about them as I have each on their own. Ben usually seems like the dare-devil, but he has a timid streak. He wouldn't go near animals without me close by. He preferred holding my hand to walking freely. Walking into the dark reptile house? Ben wouldn't go into the dark, or through a door unless I was holding his hand or carrying him. He was just as curious about the squirrels, waterfalls, and pebbles on the sidewalk as he was the elephants and lions. It turned out to be a sunny, beautiful day that eventually hit the low 60s, and I'm glad we spent most of the day in the sunshine. We ended our day walking around the mall -- or rather, I walked, while Ben napped in the stroller. When we went to pick up the other kids, Jon spotted Ben at the door and gleefully ran to him, shouting, "My Ben! My Ben! My Ben!" That was just plain cute. When we got everyone in the car, I told Ben to tell the kids what he did, and he said, "'r-raffe" Will asked if he saw the giraffe at the zoo, and Ben said "syes!" Then Ben told them he saw elephants and lions and pen-gens and frogs and shoes. Shoes? I guess I forgot to tell him to keep part that a secret. :)

When we got home, the kids were tired, but not tired enough for another nap. We gathered all the pillows in the playroom, opened the windows, and felt the breeze on our faces as we laid in the sunbeams. The perfect way to nap -- except that all four kids ended up jumping on me instead. Why is it that an adult lying on the floor looks like a horsey? I don't think they've ever seen a dead horse, let alone ridden one; so why, why, WHY do they insist on being cowboys when I'm resting?

Another list of Randomness

It seems like every couple of months I get blog-tagged to post random facts about myself, and, although I wasn't blog-tagged this time, I spent so much time creating my list for Facebook, that I decided to post it here, too. If you read my list on Facebook, it's been updated with a few extra details, updates, and links. Consider yourself "tagged" and share your list of 25 things with me.

1. I always thought it was immature to marry a high school sweetheart, so we waited until after college so we could call it “college sweethearts.” However, I still say I married my high school sweetie, and I have absolutely no regrets.

2. My friend Jennie and I own a scrapbook store called Chasing Rainbows, but now I live a long way from it. . . .so she gets to have all the fun. . . .and all the headaches. . . .and I try to get up to Independence,Kansas, to visit a few times a year.

3. Twins run in my family. I had a feeling I was pregnant with boy-girl twins before I had a sonogram. I was so convinced there were twins that I spent the 45-minute drive telling myself not to be disappointed if there was only one baby. When we told our parents we were having triplets, they thought it was an April Fools joke since that’s the type of joke we would pull. It wasn’t a joke, and I started bawling when they didn't believe me, because I still couldn't believe it myself.

4. I’m an overachiever. . . .as much as I can be as a housewife and mom. I was aiming to have two kids and ended up doubling that.

5. My husband and I planned on each of our kids having two family names, but coming up with six names at once was too hard. It was challenging finding family names that we liked that still sounded good together, so we cheated on the triplets. They each have one name that is intentionally a family name, and the other name, we just liked. Their names are William Everett, Benjamin Clay, Madeline Alivia, and Jonathan Rand.

6. I cheered the Steelers to their Super Bowl victory yesterday. I was born in Pittsbugh, PA, and lived there until I was 13 when my parents moved back to Texas. I lived in Kansas for six years, but considered myself a Texan even though I’m technically a yankee. I moved back to Texas a year and a half ago and it’s great to be “home.”

7. I love to blog – it is my therapy and my scrapbook.

8. When my kids are with me in public, people often say nasty things, not even realizing they are being ugly. I hope I can learn how to respond before they are old enough to understand the words of strangers. Don’t ever tell a mom in front of her kids, “It must suck to be you.” Or “I’d have slit my wrists to have had that many.” It just isn’t fair for the kids to hear that crap.

9. Allen and I are going to Greece for our tenth anniversary this summer. We got the idea from a scrapbook paper line. Yes, I’m serious – it’s called Santorini.

10. I have enjoyed reading these “25 Randoms” lists and have noticed that ALL the people I graduated high school with love to read – not a single one surprised me; we are all nerds who started college when we were 15 and 16.

11. I am addicted to books. I have trouble getting rid of them, but I rarely re-read them. It is a pleasure on which I’ve never felt guilty about spending too much money or time.

12. When I focus on God, my life seems so easy.

13. I love color and probably have a different answer each time I’m asked to name my favorite. I don’t think yellow has ever been a favorite, but of all the colors, it makes me happiest.

14. When we bought our home, every wall was taupe. We had many of them rooms painted: red dining room, yellow kitchen, yellow and green living room, purple bedroom. When we had to pick a color for the office we added on, I said, “We need blue.” I somehow convinced Allen and now the office is now greenish-blue and it (mysteriously?) perfectly matches my favorite tote bag. I think we are mostly done painting, but Maddie’s room may have pink and/or orange walls when we get to it.

15. I was only five when I had my first crush (on Peter Siska), but I’ve had a crush on my Allen for half my life. Will has a crush, but it started at age 4 -- yes, it still is Ella.

16. I have lost 33 pounds in the last three months, and I am thrilled to fit in the same size jeans I wore in high school. I never thought I'd be happy or proud about my weight, but I worked hard enough at it that I'm happy AND proud. Last week I bought a pair of size-6 Levi's! Allen has lost even more, and I'm just as proud of him.

17. When I worked, I liked trying a little of everything before I settled on a career. I’ve been a babysitter, lab assistant, receptionist, day care worker, camp counselor, waitress, consultant, chemical engineer, high school science teacher, sales clerk, and retail manager.

18. I still have my favorite jobs, wife and Mama. The benefits are great, but the hours are long.

19. I like to cook, but I love to eat out because I enjoy someone else cleaning up.

20. My favorite days of the week are Tuesdays (Bible study and lunch with Allen), Wednesdays (day out with Will), Thursdays (day out with Maddie, Ben, or Jon), Fridays (pajama day), and Saturdays and Sundays because Allen is with us all day. It would’ve been faster to say I’m not a fan of Mondays. I really don't like Mondays.

21. Allen and I worked at the same place for a little over a year. I hesitated to quit that job because I’d miss my lunch dates with him. Somehow, we still manage two or three lunch dates a week, but now we have the kids for company. I know we eat out too much.

22. My hubby and I have a babysitter once a week so we can go to a ballroom dance class and then go get groceries. It is our night out, and we sometimes hold hands in the frozen foods aisle. It’s late enough that the store is mostly deserted so people don’t look at us strangely if we practice our new steps as we push the cart. So far we've ChaCha-ed, Bolero-ed, and Mambo-ed through Albertson's and Brookshire's. Tonight we start West Coast Swing, but we only need milk.

23. I’m a mom. Last week I couldn’t decide which event was more exciting: a kid pooping on the potty for the first time or hearing two-year olds say “I luff you” for the first time. I’m thinking the latter since I’m tearing up thinking about it. Also, only a mom will kiss a kiddo that has so much snot on him/her that the dog's hair has stuck.

24. Until I was around 12, I thought I should be President of the United States because I was born in February.

25. I know I’ve got it great, but some days I need to be reminded.