The 12 Days of Mommy Christmas

On the first day of Christmas, my children gave to me- a toy that i fell on, hurt my knee.
On the second day of Christmas, my children gave to me-two baskets of laundry.
On the third day of Christmas, my children gave to me- three sleepless nights.
On the fourth day of Christmas, my children gave to me- four dirty cereal bowls.
On the fifth day of Christmas, my children gave to me- five straight days of whining.
On the sixth day of Christmas, my children gave to me- six years of laughter.
On the seventh day of Christmas, my children gave to me- seven bedtime meltdowns.
On the eighth day of Christmas, my children gave to me- eight broken dishes.
On the ninth day of Christmas, my children gave to me- nine good morning kisses.
On the tenth day of Christmas, my children gave to me- ten "I love you, mommy"s.
On the eleventh day of Christmas, my children gave to me- eleven good night hugs.
On the twelth day of Christmas, my children gave to me- twelve months of pure bliss.


MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Picture!

I am too tired to write tonight, due to the fact that I baked all day today. Literally, ALL DAY! My kitchen and everything in it, including my children, are covered in flour and chocolate. Even the baby bump is covered. On the upshot, the dogs were very happy to help clean up!

Here is my 6 month belly pic, actually taken like 2 weeks ago, but I'm a loser and just now getting it up. Sorry. Sue me. I have no money but lots of cookies!

I Sit In Awe........

As everyone was posting what they were thankful for, I decided I'd write not what I'm thankful for but what I'm in awe of. There are so many things that just boggle my wee little mind right now, (which may be in part that there is a human child taking up residence in my gut and that it is a constant reminder of how crazy life is, or in part that as I get older I realise I'm not the All-Powerful Lary of Oz.) Whatever the reason, here you go!
I'm in awe of my husband. And not just his weirdness, which is pretty awe-inspiring in it's self. I'm in awe of how he is able to work 12 hour nights in a job that rarely sees anything good and still be able to come home and make a fort with his kids. In awe of how he helps around the house on his days off (he is amazing with the steam cleaner!) and how he is ready to welcome our next child into the world in spite of all the horrible things in the world that he sees everyday.
I'm in awe of my parents. They have done so much for us throughout the years, from driving me and my sister to dance classes an hour plus away, even in the worst of Oregon winters, to leaving their beautiful mountain home just to move closer to us. To Homedale. The arm-pit of Idaho. Which is just sheer craziness in itself!
I'm in awe of my sister. She has moved her family across the states to take care of other people's children that really need her. She has more patience in her big toe (which is rumored to be a really big, big toe. Heeheehee) than I have in my whole body. She manages to raise her own 3 kids and cook huge quantities of food for the huge quantities of kids in her house. Her own son is allergic to pretty much everything, so she has to make him his own food most of the time. I doubt I could do that seeing as how I live on potatoes & cheese, both of which he is allergic to. If he were mine, I'd probably stick him in a bubble just so I could eat my cheesy potatoes!
My friends. I have many wonderful friends who amaze me each day. Friends who have dealt with or dealing with loss that I can't even imagine. Yet they still get up every day and take care of their families with a smile on their faces and take time to help me if I'm having my own bad day. Other friends who have gone through divorces, custody battles, health issues and horrible childhoods and yet these are the same people who would drop everything for me anytime. These people are really angels on earth, even if their halos are a little crooked sometimes.
The people I don't even know. Some people who are friends of friends, or cases that Ian works on, or even the random people on face book that we befriend accidentally, these people are warriors. Their own personal stories make me wonder what I ever have to be whining about!
And so I sit on my ever-expanding bottom and pat my ever-expanding babybump and give a shout out to all of you who have impacted so many of us in good ways. May you have a wonderful holiday season and tip a glass (of juice, so I don't feel left out!) to yourselves. You deserve it!

Things I Never Thought I'd Say!

So, back in my younger days, I had a vision of where I would be when I was almost 30. (Yes, I still have 6 months until that day and I'm not wasting it!) I visualised a clean house, a husband who worked 9-5 and came home to a hot meal every night, a few well-behaved children who could read by age 2, a yard full of clean, quiet animals, a garden that has never seen a weed and laundry that is washed, dried, folded and put away instantly. How boring would that have been??? Instead, I find myself married to a amazing cop who works nights and hasn't seen the sun in centuries. Who will happily eat anything I put before him as long as it comes with a strong cup of coffee! We have two children with a third on the way, who didn't learn to read by age 2, but who can sing any Bon Jovi song you can name. Who keep me constantly laughing and rolling my eyes. The yard full of clean, quiet animals? HA! We have filthy dogs who refuse to clean up their own poop and a fish tank of fish that end up in the toilet more often that not. A garden I have given up on once I realised that those weed things grow better than anything I plant and do I really want to be playing in the dirt with all that dog poop around?? As for the laundry............. Well, anyone who has been to my house knows that laundry is my Nemesis. My cryponite. The evil thing that is lurking behind every doorway in my house, just waiting to pounce on me and prove yet again that I am not Donna Reed. Or even Roseanne. Sigh.

So here are some things I never thought I would say. Enjoy a good laugh at my expense!

"Honey, your Glock is too heavy for this purse. I should've brought a different one."

"No, I do not want to look at your poop. I don't care if it's red!"

"If you don't finish watching this movie, you will not get to go outside!"

"So did you get P.C. to obtain a urine sample?"

"I just flushed the last frog."

"You know, if you'd all stop eating I wouldn't have to keep cleaning up the kitchen! I fed you yesterday!"

"Dog, if you eat that roll of toilet paper i swear I will flush you like a frog!"

"Honey, the neighbor is here. Could you please put on your robe? And maybe pants?"

"You had better have taken that sample of pot out of my purse before I go to the airport!"

"You kids had better get in bed so I can watch Dog the Bounty Hunter in peace!"

"No, you may not lasso your sister."

"Whoever is sneaking across the living room instead of being in bed had better run because I've got Daddy's taser!"

"No, you may not lasso the puppy."

"Aly, please pick up the fly body after you squish it. I hate stepping on them."

"Ok, fine! You can lasso daddy!"

Pictures!

We all go crazy in a yellow submarine!

My 4 month baby bump! Awesome picture courtesy of my buddy Kim.

Pumpkin patch.

With Miss Idaho, the sweetest gal in potato land. Aly is plotting to steal her crown.

At the Oregon Coast.

Ian on his 32nd birthday. Notice how he switched the candles.

Kary offers you her protection.

Kary, a beautiful fairy

Aly. Gee, I wish she was photogenic!

Takashige, Party of Five!

I'm trying this blog thing again to catch you all up to speed with our lives.
A tumbleweed blew by.
Now you are up to speed!
In truth, a lot has been going on here. We got a new puppy, we are having a baby, Kary is growing, we are having a baby, Aly has a loose tooth, we are having a baby, Ian has been working a lot, we are having a baby, I am getting a baby bump, we are having a baby. Get all that?
Before all of you bug me about how we swore we were done having kids, I just want to say that this is the last one. I promise. Pinky swear. Cross my heart. But what if it is a boy? Won't it need a brother to play with? No, no! We will be done! We are very excited about the pregnancy and planned to have our first spring baby. Green grass, sunshine and a baby? What could be better?
And, no, we are not finding out what it is. If it comes out a kangaroo, we will love it. If it has Dumbo's ears and Pinocchio's nose, we will spoil it rotten. So we refuse to give into peer pressure and find out, but don't take it personally! We love you and just want to use this as a fun way to torture you!
The other addition to the family is Gibbs, our Border Collie/Australian Sheppard mix. we got him at a flea market and he doesn't even have fleas! Our goal is for him to be trained as a k-9 for Ian's work when he retires/sells Bosco. He is a smart little guy and should be great for the work, if Aly would put him down long enough for him to learn anything! I caught her pushing him in her doll's stroller and I think he liked it! Time to toughen that dog up!
Ian's work is going great, he still enjoys keeping the streets safe from bad guys, bad drivers and bad cows that wander into the road. The Army Reserve is keeping him busy as well, I really think the entire Army would crumble if he wasn't there!
My job at the library is still lots of fun. I survived my second year of Summer Reading Program, a.k.a. Running Of The Bulls. I'm not kidding! Tell kids they get free stuff if they read and they will gladly trample their best friend for a Hannah Montana bookmark! After i recovered from summer, I started back up story time. It is such a joy to see young kids get so involved in the stories, and cookies!
Aly and Kary are doing great. They are both growing up way to fast. They have their own personalities and strengths but get along quite well. They are so excited for the baby and are very into the baby's growth.
I will post pictures later when I can find the camera. I wonder if it is in my sock drawer since my socks are where the camera should be....................