Our Little Pick-Pocket

8 Nov

The following is written by Andrew (it’s my first blog):

This morning at 7:15, I was frantically looking for my wallet.  I looked on the nightstand where I usually leave it every night…not there.  I looked on the kitchen counter where I occasionally leave it when the kids are hectic coming home from school with me…not there.  I looked in the pants I wore yesterday just in case I left it in my pocket…not there.  I even looked in my car before I left just in case I took it out of my pants while in the car…not there.  I think we are seeing a pattern.  The thought crossed my mind that one of the two beautiful girls I live with moved it in cleaning or playing but they were both sleeping and I thought it did not matter too much at this point since I had to get to work.

Anyway, today is election day and I did not realize the consequences of a lost wallet until it was nearly too late.  I had no way to prove I was who I claim I am at the voting booth.  And just so everyone knows, your cell phone is not a “utility” to qualify for a “utility” bill and prove your existence, but your bank statement proves your existence.  So I did get to vote.  Beyond that, it was relatively uneventful.  I did need to find my wallet before tomorrow as I will be driving to Atlanta for work and it will be tough without a driver’s license and cash for gas.  So I told myself I had to find it tonight.

Well, when the kids and I got home, I laid Nate down for a cat nap since he was sleeping in the car and asked Nia if she wanted to help me find my missing wallet.  She politely said, “Sure!”  I looked in the same places as this morning: nightstand, kitchen counter, pants, car with the same result as this morning (I hear that insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly and expecting different results).  So I added to my search: under the bed, under the couch, under the end tables, under the nightstand, in the bathroom, in the hamper, in the garbage bags containing clothes to take to Good Will.  Then Nia says, “Maybe it is in your closet?”  I thought she was just being 3 and went off to her room.  Back into our room she comes, wallet in hand and says, “Look what I found!”

pick-pocket

I ask where she found it and she excitedly replies, “In MY closet!”  I make her show me and it was in her closet in her toy mailbox (it’s that thing with the butterfly on it).
mailbox

Turns out Nia had given one of the toy letters to Nicole last night – I guess kind of like a trade.  Let’s see – my wallet filled with credit and cash and proof that I can vote or her toy piece of mail.

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From the Mouth of Nia

7 Nov

“Momma/Daddy, I want you to turn around/go away so I can eat my brownie.” (She’s supposed to eat her dinner first.)

“But he likes it.”

“I don’t want you to yell at me.”

“Are we going to the circle store?”

“Momma, I want coffee.”  (don’t worry I just get her chocolate milk with whipped cream)

“Pinky.” (when wanting to watch one more Tom and Jerry cartoon)

“Bynastics.” (instead of gymnastics)

“Momma/Daddy, turn around/go away so I can make stinks.”

“Can I have my magazine?” (while on the potty)

“Oh, thank you.” (after you tell her you love her)

“Is this 3T?” (while shopping for clothes)

“Are you zha-zha?” (to Nate)

And of course…

“I wanna listen”

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Awkward

7 Nov

This is why you should always be nice to people.

Today I was driving the kids to day care when I came up on a bulldozer in my lane.  I wanted to get over in the next lane but a car was speeding up so I couldn’t get over in front of it unless I cut it off which I didn’t want to do.  So, I slowed down and got behind the car.  I then got back over in my original lane and sped up so that car couldn’t get over in front of me – that driver wasn’t going to have it though and I backed off when I saw that she was coming over whether I liked it or not.  While cutting in front of me, she threw me the finger – flipped me off – gave me the bird – whatever you want to call it – I got a good middle finger aimed right at me.  I smiled and waved.

Then it happened – she turned her blinker on and headed toward Nia and Nate’s day care.  I couldn’t believe it.

I parked a few spaces away from her to avoid the immediate wrath but as I was walking in behind her she gave me the “eye.”  She opens the door and, of course, doesn’t hold it for me or my kids.  Then, it got even worse.

She took her baby to Nate’s room!  Oh my God!  I thought – how should I handle this?  I’m going to have to cross paths with her because I have to drop Nate off.  Looking back at this I should have just let her walk on by and let it go but I said with a big smile – “have a great day.”  Her response?

“Fuck off.”

WHAT???  Nia was walking with me!  I was in shock!  Such language between the newborn room and the 2 year old room!

I know I deserved it though.  I mean, I shouldn’t have said anything to her.  The girls in Nate’s room could tell something was wrong with me so I told them and let them know I was no angel – but it was funny because they told me I should have went after her – that they would have my back.  Could you imagine?  One mommy taking another mommy down at the Christian day care?  HA.

Maybe I’ll get my chance.  After all, I have 9 more days of dropping the kids off at day care.  I’m sure Nate’s already taken care of her boy!

No seriously, I really have learned from this experience though.  It pays to take a deep breath and let things go – you never know who you might have to sit next to in church – or who will grade your kids’ tests – or give you a root canal…
The awkwardness and/or pain is just not worth it.

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Not Sold Yet

7 Nov

Our house is finally under contract and we have a closing date of November 30.  While it does make me happy, I can’t let myself feel relief yet. I’m just an “I’ll believe it when I see it” type person and I won’t feel real relief until it’s all over.

For example, today the “buyers” and their inspector guy gave our house the once-over.  We had no notice this was going to happen today and because I thought “hey, our house is under contract so I don’t have to be such a freak about cleaning anymore” – I decided to clean out our closest last night and sort through pounds of paper I’ve had stashed around the house.  Of course, I did not complete those ventures so I have 3 large garbage bags filled with clothes in our room and a basket of papers on our couch with another garbage bag on the floor there.

Also, Andrew found out the husband doesn’t like dogs – well, they met all 80 pounds of Joe-boy today!

This next thing is the most embarrassing one though –

I had a tube of petroleum jelly and a tube of diaper rash cream on our sink in our master bathroom because our kids needed these things last night and I didn’t put them away.

I can only imagine what went through their heads when they saw them.

I just hope the “buyers” don’t change their minds.

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Much More than a Bowl

31 Oct

Tonight, I watched a little girl entertain her little brother with a bowl. The laughter I heard coming from that baby was a sound that made me remember how truly beautiful life can be.

Every night we just kind of go through the motions – get home from work, feed the kids, feed ourselves, give kids baths, get kids ready for bed, put kids to bed, clean up mess from dinner/playtime/living, watch tivo’d shows until we both fall asleep in the living room.  I usually get stressed out when the kids make a bigger mess than usual because that means more work I have to do – but tonight as the kids were tearing apart my Tupperware cabinet – tossing bowls and lids across the floor and even into the next room – I just sat there and watched and laughed.

I saw a 10 month old follow his 3 year old sister’s every move. He then began letting out this sweet baby laugh when she put the loudest bowl on her head, spoke some ridiculous gibberish and then dumped her head to let the bowl clank to the floor.  This happened over and over again  – each time he laughed a little harder and each time the gibberish got a little more ridiculous.  (Something like, “ridabiga-ridabiga”  I’m not really sure how to type it since I really didn’t understand what she was saying.)

At first I just watched wondering why on earth he thought that was so funny – then I realized it doesn’t really matter and began laughing too.  It was a moment that I thought – I wish I had this on camera – but then I thought – I don’t want to miss any of it!

I know the next time I go to use that bowl for some leftovers I will remember how my sweetie used it to make her baby brother and her mommy so happy.  Maybe it will even make the food taste better!

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Our Little Tattletale

20 Oct

Nia, Nate and I were on the way to school when it all began.  We hadn’t made it 3 minutes from home when Nia says “Momma, baby spit up.”

I immediately find a safe place to pull over so I could get out of the car and assess the damage.

Poor little guy – he was such a mess.  I was kind of hoping for both of our sakes that all I would have to do is take off the bib and tuck it away until later, but this mess required a complete change of clothes and a baby wipe bath.

We got home and I had to carry him really awkwardly because I didn’t want to have to change too.  I managed to get him cleaned up and dressed and began scrubbing the yucky clothes as I tried to keep Nate away from the toilet bowl or shelf that can tip over on him – then I hear a little girl voice from the hallway, “Momma, where’s doggy?”

My eyes roll backed into my head and I thought – obviously somewhere he shouldn’t be because why else would she be asking me that.  I mean, if he was sitting right next to her I’m pretty sure (hopeful) she wouldn’t ask me where he was.

I opened the laundry room door that leads to the garage and there was Joey – halfway down the driveway.  I yelled his name in a panic and he froze.  As I was leading him back inside I tried to teach Nia why we just can’t let the dog outside like that but then I had to dive for Nate to keep him from taking a dive into the toilet bowl.

As I was driving the same route I just had 20 minutes earlier, I realized how lucky I am to have a tattletale child.  If she hadn’t told me – Nate would have had to sit in that yuckiness and the dog would be long gone.

Selective Sweet Tooth

15 Oct

What kind of 3 year old picks and chooses candy?  It really is unbelievable.  I mean, when a pinata breaks – you’re supposed to go running like wild to the pile of candy, grabbing handfuls and shirtfuls so you get more than the other kids who are insanely collecting any piece of sugary goodness they can. Not our kid though.

Today we were at a costume/birthday party and after what felt like 30 minutes of kids swinging aimlessly in the air at the pinata – the candy finally spilled out on the grass.

While the other children dove on their hands and knees to attack the assortment – Nia calmly walked around the children – looking for the candy she wanted.

She chose some Runts, several lollipops, some Dots, Nerds – she left behind all the small stuff individually wrapped and I think Bottlecaps – which are pretty yummy.

This isn’t the first time her selective sweet tooth showed itself – at her 3rd birthday party we over-stuffed a pinata with an array of choices – even then she still strolled around everyone – picking only the pieces that pleased her.

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“I’m not Nia…

15 Oct

I’m Little Mermaid!”

This is what I heard every time I tried to correct “Little Mermaid” today for not listening – being too rough with her brother – throwing a fit…

The first few times it was kind of cute – after hearing it more times than you can imagine – it was more than kind of annoying.

I tried telling her – “Little Mermaid wouldn’t do those kinds of things – princesses don’t act that way.  When you act that way I will call you Nia.”

To that – of course – she replied – “But I’m not Nia, I’m Little Mermaid!”

Little Mermaid

 

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Crazy Starts With…

13 Oct

As part of the development of Nia’s young brain – each week her teacher has the students bring in something that starts with a certain letter.  While this seems like a simple project – for some reason it drives me crazy.

The first time was something that starts with F.  I “f”orgot about it though – so being the “f”reak I am – I tore apart my car looking for anything that would make sure my kid wasn’t left out.  It was so awful too – I was walking in with her when I heard other parents rubbing it in – “We brought in a frog”  “We have a flag” and then there was the showoff (I’m super jealous for not thinking of it) who brought “food” to share with the class.  What did Nia end up bringing? Fingernail polish from my purse and a glass frame from the day care’s office!  I told the teacher I should get an F for failing as a parent – letting my kid basically bring poison and a breakable object to class!  What’s wrong with me?

To make up the “f”(ing) day – I made sure we tackled the next task just as nicely done as the one showoff kid.  When asked to bring in something round – we had cookies ready to go!

On “t” day I kept thinking of more dangerous objects – tools, toenail clippers (I think fingernail polish was still on the brain) – we ended up bringing in a stuffed turtle.

That brings us to today.  “H” day.  I knew she would take in a stuffed horse she has.  It’s pretty funny though because when I showed her what she was taking she yelled with excitement, “Pony!”  Ok – so technically it was a pony – but for the purposes of “h” day it was a horse!

So- all of this letter talk has Nia curious about what everything starts with – which is great – I’m glad she’s learning more – at the same time though – it’s exhausting. Driving to school today this is what I heard from the backseat-

“Momma – what’s baby start with?”
“What’s bottle start with?”
“What’s Nia start with?”
“What’s coloring book start with?” (That’s a trick question – I had to tell her a c and a b – try explaining that one)

The questions continued on – leaving me to think to myself with a laugh – what’s crazy start with?

For me there are two answers to that question – of course the letter c – but also it all starts with letter day!

Crazy Nia

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Nia & Nate’s Daddy

4 Oct

There are so many wonderful stories I can tell about this man.  So many times I’ve watched him be a great dad and I’ve told him I think so – but it just seems to mean more if he really sees what I see.

There is nothing more sweet than seeing your little girl light up when daddy walks in the room.  Hearing her say “My daddy’s home” and seeing her run over to him to wrap her tiny arms around his neck.  It is the most comforting and secure feeling and was one of the hardest things to have to come to terms with when those call-up orders came last December.  I just kept thinking about our Nia and how different she would be without him here.

He’s always there to cheer them up when they’re sad – never hesitates to make himself uncomfortable so they can be more comfortable – forgets about eating a bowl of cereal/any food/drink by himself because our little mooch Nia will want some – always lends a hand by giving the boy his bath and night time bottle – leaves work instead of me sometimes when the kids need to stay home or go to the doctor – – –

He makes them giggle like no other person can.  It’s the little things he does – either by tossing them up in the air and catching them (making me worry about head injuries or broken bones) or by rolling the boy back and forth using his head to push Nate around (making me worry Nate’s going to get angry).  Andrew always knows what’s best – he just shakes his head at me like I’m a worry-wart and then tells the kids “Momma’s silly huh?”  Nia, naturally, agrees with the one who’s making her laugh and says, “Yeah, momma’s silly.”  And the boy, well, anything his daddy does is pretty cool with him.  He just smiles and lets out a big baby laugh whenever daddy’s involved.

When Andrew gets angry though – boy oh boy – you don’t want to miss what might come out of his mouth.  I thank his dad because I’ve heard he had some great lines – but I think Andrew had the BEST one EVER the other night.  It was a warning to Nia who hadn’t taken her nap and was out of control – he said, “You’re going to make me so mad you won’t even believe I’m me.”  Granted – she’s only 3 and I think that was a little too deep for her to grasp – but I thought it was brilliant!  I repeated it a few times so I wouldn’t forget it.  “you won’t even believe I’m me.”  Wow.  And, I truly believe he is the one to blame for the “I wanna listen” line.  I mean nothing I could possibly even think to say could have spawned that one.  I think he might have said something like, “Do you want me to get angry? Well then listen.”  See?  As Nia would say, “Daddy did it!”

I think about the kind of dad he’ll be when the kids are ready to date/drive/get tattoos and I can’t wait to experience all of it with him. I’m so very thankful for him – as the father of my children and the love of my life.  Every day I wonder what I did to get so lucky.  I know I would not be the mom I am if I didn’t have a dad like him on my team.  I’m just glad he and I are in this parenting thing together.

Naptime Daddy

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