Would You Rather

Mark and I have been making an effort to spend one-on-one time with each of the kids every night. Mark and Nick will hang out, while Lainey and I do, and then we'll switch. Albeit brief, usually 10 - 15 minutes per kid, I've really been enjoying it and the kids now ask if we're going to have "special time."

During our time on Wednesday, Lainey kicked off a game of "would you rather" and it was the most amazing 10 minutes I've spent with her in a long time. It started off pretty tame with questions like, "would you rather hug me or kiss me," but quickly escalated to the more disgusting side of things...let's just say I was given many  choices involving the ingestion of poop. But, poop questions aside, I really loved learning  bit more about my daughter and how she processes choices and what her preferences are--there were some surprises!

Some of my favorite exchanges:

Me:  Would you rather have a broken arm or a broken leg?
Elaine: Easy. Broken arm, so I could still walk.

Me:  Would you rather have a pony or a cat?
Elaine:   A cat. I could hold it and cuddle it. I could fall off a pony and hurt myself and then I wouldn't like that pony anymore.

Me:  Would you rather marry Todd or Chad*?
Elaine:  Todd. Chad eats his boogers.

Me:  Would you rather shave your head or live without the iPad for a year?
Elaine: Forever?
Me: Not forever. You'd shave your head once and let it grow back. You'd lose iPad for one year.
Elaine: (without missing a beat). Shave my head.

Me:  Would you rather spend a whole weekend alone with Daddy or me?
Elaine:  Hmmmm...that's a tough one. How long is that?
Me:  Two days.
Elaine:  Will you take me to Dunkin Donuts?
Me:  Yes.
Elaine:  Will you take me to Dunkin Donuts BOTH days?
Me:  Sure.
Elaine:  Hmmmm. I pick Daddy. (And then she erupted into those amazing giggles of hers.)

There was a lot of thinking and even more laughter! I hope we make this a regular activity in our house!

*not the real names just in case "Chad's" mom ever got ahold of this blog.

One Lucky Mama

I was greeted into my Mother’s Day by a very excited Nick who belted out the best “Happy Mother’s Day” ever heard, followed by his infectious giggles and a full-body hug (‘cause that’s the only way my boy knows how to do it!) Lainey managed to glance up from the iPad briefly, but didn’t really join the program until she realized Nick was getting all the attention. I opened Nick’s gift he made at school and we immediately went to find a spot to hang it. Luckily, there was a nail in the wall of the office just waiting for something to adorn it. Lainey read the poem from her art project and then the “fill in the blank” worksheets she did about me. So great! Mark gifted me two sets of silver earrings…tiny “Es” for Elaine and tiny “Ns” for Nick. I’ve lost several pairs of earrings recently, so as usual, he got me the perfect gift.

My favorite..."My mom is as smart as a me"...or maybe the beauty mark she drew on my cheek..
 

We did a quick breakfast and then headed out for Six Flags! I wanted to take the kids this summer and had a promo from work for discounted tickets. I though perhaps Mother’s Day might be less crowded and it was! Short wait times all around and we got there right as the gates opened, so I was able to sneak on a few big kids coasters without taking too much time away from the family. The day was beyond gorgeous and we had the added bonus of meeting up with our favorite family, the O’Grady’s! It was a really fun day with no meltdowns although there was a small pout session from Lainey when the families went our separate ways for the last ride of the day, and she refused to say goodbye to Molly, Maggie, and Jason. Once I got her one-on-one, it turned out she was just confused about the situation. Once she understood, she pepped back up, and we hurried to catch up with Mark and Nick for the Roaring Rapids ride. So, sorry to the O’Grady’s, but yay for us finishing on a high note! Both kids loved the ride, even if we were a bit chilly in the wet aftermath.

Family Fun Day!

 

Yay for friends!

CRASHED!!!

Back at home, it was the usual Sunday whirlwind of preparing for the week…most notably preparing for the construction to FINALLY begin on our new kitchen!

Being a mom isn’t the easiest, and I’m certainly not the best, but they kids seem to love me anyway and I’ll take some tantrums and backtalk in order to get all that sweet love and adoration.

Hoping all the mamas out there had very special days!

 

Mom, I remember that time...

 

 

Today is my mom’s birthday and Sunday is Mother’s Day. I don’t think that this time of year ever won’t be emotional, but given recent challenges and with Chris’s wedding on the horizon, I’m feeling her absence particularly strongly right now. I’m thinking of her and remembering her and feeling the need to record those memories. This certainly isn’t a “best of” list and nothing is retold half as well as she would have done, but it’s my simple way of honoring and memorializing her. So, enjoy a few pieces of Pam. I remember…

·     That time she got in a “war of the bird” (aka middle finger) with a teenage kid who cut her off coming north on US-23. I still remember who the kid was, so if he was 16 or 17, I must have been 10 or 11. The incident happened around the Bob Evans/Wesleyan Woods area and the battle of raised fingers and hard stares continued until the kid split off to Sandusky Street and we continued on towards the Williams Street exit. My response, “well, that was interesting.”

·     That time she signed up every, single year to be class mom in elementary school and chaperoned just about every field trip that I remember. She threw a mean class party and she always bought treats for our field trip group even thought it was against the rules (probably couldn’t get away with that today—nah—she still could).

·     That time we saw a man roughing up a woman in the U.S. Store parking lot (which also was the parking lot for a hole-in-the-wall bar and our church) and Mom stopped the car and called for her to get in. We didn't know the woman, and she didn’t get in the car, but the man charged our car and Mom (safely locked in the car) kept him distracted long enough for the woman to get away. No cell phones back then people, but Pam Anderson wasn’t about to turn a blind eye and drive away, even if her young child was with her. That was scary, but maybe one of the best lessons about responsibility that she ever gave me.

·     That time when I got in a physical altercation in high school (not my finest moment) and came home sobbing, because I thought I might get suspended. Mom’s first response was, “Damn it, Kylie. You hit with an open hand, so it doesn’t leave a mark!”

·     That time she instinctively drove me straight to Dairy Queen to ease my first heartbreak.

·     That time she played along with all the smartass college dudes who sent emails or voicemails to “Pamela Anderson.” She always said you could tell her apart from the Baywatch babe, because she didn’t have her wedding ring tattooed on her finger.

·     That time she taught me the best hangover prevention…Alka-Seltzer and Advil before bed. Evidently, back in her heyday, mom could drink them under the table and was pretty disappointed at my inability to a) hold my liquor and b) drink scotch.

·     That time she got a four-week-old Lainey to stop crying and to fall sleep asleep immediately, just by laying her on her chest and humming. Aw, man, that’s the one that really gets me. Okay, here come the tears…

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Muncie Mania

Reunited and it feels so good...

 

If it’s hard to meet a new friend in your late 30s, it’s a miracle to meet a soul mate. But, a little over two years ago, I got my miracle with Kourtney. We met through work and a casual lunch one day sparked a friendship that I hope will stand the test of time and location.

 

Kourtney took a chance on love and a new job in January and moved from Chicago to Muncie, Indiana, and we went from seeing each other almost every day to not seeing each other at all (thank heavens for unlimited text plans or we would be in serious debt). But, texts, social media updates, and phone calls only do so much, so I made the trek to Muncie this past weekend to see her face and her new world. It was a lazy weekend filled with good drink, good food, and lots of laughing. It was so nice to know that our friendship could pick-up right where it left off. You know you have a comfortable friendship when you’re both willing to admit that what you really want on a rainy Saturday afternoon is a nap. And nap we did! And it was glorious! Seriously, probably the most decadent thing she could have given me! That Kourtney…she just GETS me!

While I have many regrets from my last job (oh so many regrets), I’ll never wish I hadn’t taken the position, because I gained a wonderful person, confident, supporter, friend, and soul sister. K&K forever!

 

Penny for Your Thoughts

Lainey was playing a math game on the iPad where she needed to identify different coins. For some reason, that still mystifies Mark and me, she could not determine between a nickel and a penny. It was only when it showed the back sides, so our assumption is she was confusing the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials, but c’mon…the penny is the ONLY “brown” coin!

Mark tried to help explain it to her, but Lainey knows everything and doesn’t need help from anyone, so he finally gave up and walked away. And Nick walked in…and immediately started correctly identifying the coins. I was completely shocked, because I had no idea Nick had learned anything about money, but he was all over it. After several turns for Nick, Lainey took back over, but STILL misidentified the pennies and nickels. After a few wrong choices, Nick called to me, in an all-business voice, “Mom! Bring me a penny!” I held out a handful of coins, and he correctly selected the penny, which he firmly gripped between his finger and thumb and then thrust it about three inches from Lainey’s face. “THIS is a penny, Lainey. See it? It’s brown! It’s the ONLY one that’s BROWN!” Then he slammed the coin on the table and stomped out of the kitchen.

I know we’ve often joked that Lainey is really smart and Nick has such a “great personality,” but seems Nick’s wheels are turning pretty fast up there. He may keep Lainey on her toes after all…

Chicago Reader

Lainey has made amazing progress in her reading over the past few months. We love having her read to us at night, and it's super swell that she can read to Nick when we need them distracted for a bit. Much better than the old iPad crutch (although, in all honesty, that's still our #1 go-to distractor). Although she's been reading pretty fluently since Christmas, I still get surprised by it. Like when we were driving the other day and she asked, "Mom, what's 'Best Buy'?" I was really confused about where the question came from and then realized we just drove past Best Buy. Duh. Or my favorite of this past week:

      E: "What’s ‘sos’?"

     

      M: "Sos?"

      

      E: "Yeah, ‘sos.’ S-O-S. He’s sending it out."

The Police’s “Sending out an S.O.S.” was playing on my itunes. Ha!

Buuuttt...there are some adjustments we need to make given Lainey's newfound literacy. Like, no more spelling out things to talk in code. And definitely no more unchaperoned time with our phones! She likes to send text messages to family members, which is great, but there is no way to filter incoming texts when the phone is in her possession and we definitely get (okay, okay AND send) not-safe-for-kids texts. I learned this the hard way as I listened to Lainey read an R-rated text while the phone was in her hands. Funny thing how those four-letter words are so perfect for early readers to sound out. Oops! She also scrolled through a series between Mark and me and found a conversation about herself. "Hey! Why are you guys talking about me on here?!" Luckily, it was about how she was feeling after a fever scare and not about our research for 5-year-old military academies or what the Easter Bunny needs to pick-up at Target. Close one.

She's growing up fast, this one. You know, I always was a little nervous about moving past the toddler stage. Would it be as fun? Would I still be head over heels once they aren't "cute" anymore? As usual, I had nothing to worry about. She's even more fun and way more interesting. And even as the chubby cheeks and endearing toddler speak fade away, I fall more in love every day.

The Brandi Babies Turn 4!

It’s been end of days at our house…fevers, vomiting, coughing, sore throats, pink eye, and the grossest of gross, lice. The kids are on the mend, but Mark and I are on a death crawl to the weekend. And, yes, I realize it’s only Tuesday.

We managed to take the germ infestation on the road to Moline to celebrate Nick and Eleanor’s birthdays over the weekend. Nothing says “Happy Birthday” like a ticket to urgent care (I am praying that ticket has not been cashed!) In fairness, when we departed Chicago, we only had Nick on the mend from the flu and minor colds for Mark and me. Lainey’s pink eye and lice issue didn’t appear until Sunday morning. You have not felt like a failure as a parent until you hand over a prescription for pink eye and then ask the pharmacist where you can find the RID. Could there be two ickier things? I’m just hoping we didn’t share with the rest of the family (especially after we brought the stomach flu two Christmases ago). Not so worried about the lice, but the pink eye…that stuff spreads. My very pink eyes and I are proof (and I JUST bought a new mascara!). Godspeed Southern and Western Illinois, Brandis. May you come out unscathed! We love you for loving us, despite our afflictions!

But, enough of the sick and ick…we had a really nice time with everyone. We enjoyed an afternoon at the park, pizza and basketball that night, and basically just enjoyed each other’s company. The stars of the weekend, Nick and Eleanor, continue to be an awesome duo and it just melts my heart seeing them together. I hope they continue to grow closer over the years. I wish we were all able to get together more often, but I treasure the moments we grab!

Happy Birthday, Brandi babies!