Gross & Grosser

Aidan & Noah were up until 2:30 this morning, puking. Just to make matters worse...so was I!!!

The house stinks. I've done probably 20 loads of laundry, washing all the sheets in the house. I think we've come out the other end. The are sleeping, haven't eaten much, but have kept it all in. We've watched 5 hours of Noggin.

I'm hoping that Santa sends me a maid.

Santa's Little Helpers

Ahh Friday

My dog is lying in pile larger than the approriate sized bed for a 110 lb dog,
my son is in his underware in reindeer ears doing yoga on my mat,
my fridge echos, there is an empty bottle of wine (only one),
I could weave a shawl from the lint on my rug,
my bathroom smells like we're potty training
--BUT--
Aidan and Noah are in *dry* big boy pants,
all boys have had baths (Sam this morning and A&N last night),
we donated food to the food drive this morning,
we've built a transcontinental railroad this morning,
I haven't ordered out once this week,
Sam's been on time to school every day,
we've made cheerio/noodle/dried bean christmas trees and four batches of cookies
and had time for THIS.

Thank goodness Scott comes home today!

I had so much fun taking Mikey's quiz, I made my own!

How well do you know Leah?

Just getting things staight

Sam: Mommy, sometime, after Christmas, in January, can we make a fire in the fireplace?

Me: We can't put a fire in the fireplace because there is no hole for the smoke to go?

Sam: How will Santa get down the chimney?

Me: Santa is magic.

Sam: Does he have magic on his hands?

Me: Yes.

Sam: Does he have magic on his feet?

Me: Yes. He also has magic reindeer.

Sam: I know that, Mommy.

Glad we cleared that up.

In the spirit of the holidays

Since fun, entertaining bloggers seem to be taking the holidays off. I’m trying to be more regular.

My story of the day is of my sweet son with a good soul. I was trying to prep Sam for the Gingerbread Shop, the insane event during which the school releases kids and their cash to go Christmas shopping for air fresheners, whistles and coffee mugs. I was explaining that we were making a list for people he was shopping for and suggesting gifts he might find. He said, “and then I will give those presents to kids who don’t have any.”

Totally different conversation:

Me: We are going to the grocery store after school. We are going to get some groceries for families that don’t have enough food.

Sam: Grandma doesn’t have enough food in her refrigerator.

Me: That’s because Grandma doesn’t like the grocery store, not because she can’t buy her own.

Potty Training

We went for big boy underpants this morning. Not because we con't have enough, but because I cannnot keep up on the laundry. They spent the entire morning dry throughout our errands. YIPPEE! Then came home to saddle their heinies with Bob the Builder and Lightening McQueen.

I think Aidan has turned a corner because he is toting around a tiny lion, which he is taking to the potty, rewarding and praising for peeing on the potty. I heard him say, "Zou nice dry. Good job! When zou go, RUN to potty!"

If you can't laugh

All week long I've been trying to post a blog. We've made it through week one with Scott gone. We made it to school on time (mostly) on the three days Sam went. I got Christmas shopping done. I even did two GNOs. I only ordered pizza for the boys once. I exercised every day.

The last item in that list is the only thing for which I can take full credit. Gina, Mom, Dad, Betty are the reasons I was able to get out and really get stuff done. Thank you seems not only redudent but insufficient.

The last item on the list is also the inspiration for the title. I have a low impact piece of exercise equipment that is not exactly exciting, but it's better than nothing. I flicked on the Exercise On Demand channel. It is a cornucopia of fitness fun! (yes, I'm really serious) So finishing 21 minutes on the exer-snoozer, I watched Cardio Hip-Hop to see if I liked it. Looked good.

Insert giggles here.

I have no rhthym. And tried this little routine on my area rug that has no pad underneath. I almost fell, and I think that would have been a better visual than me trying to do Hip Hop. My dance teacher once told me I was the only person she'd ever known who couldn't count music and move at the same time.

I broke a sweat and laughed the whole time. I think I'll try Power Pilates.

Cookies Anyone?

Sammy woke up on the wrong side of the bed yesterday. Noah took every opportunity to show me that he had no regard for any limit. Aidan was along for the ride. Too hard to swim upstream.

The stage being set, Sammy had a terrific day at school. His name was under the happy face and he came home beaming and energetic. Aidan and Noah were really good all day especially considering our day included the car wash, the mall and Wegmans. They wore big boy pants all day, which are hardly "big", but they aren't diapers. YIPPEE!!!

There were 87 people in every aisle in Wegmans with a mean age of approximately 87. It was easily the longest grocery shopping trip ever. We had to make two stops at the potty (15 minutes each), got daddy lunch, waited in line at the coffee, deli *and* fish counters, ran into three people I know through The Body Shop at Home, chit-chat with the octogenarian whose ass Noah grabbed, and finally navigate my way through the sea of Cadillacs and Jaguars (it *was* the Amherst Wegmans) to get to pick up the groceries at the carry out station.

Fast forward to post-nap, which was only a 45 minute reprieve, Sammy came home (see above) and we were right back to 7:30 this morning. Scott & I were committed to our discipline which was to take away Noggin for the afternoon. Now they are usually allowed to watch some TV, we try to keep it to a reasonable amount and educational if possible. They wouldn't get fed most nights were it not for Noggin though. We did take it off the table because Sam was so tough early. If you've met my son, than you know that he would remember if we went back on our punishment and I'd pay for it for the rest of my disciplinary career. They teamed forces and were going berzerk. This led us to the following.