KyKy

This cutest girl turned three yesterday, as you know. And it's so fun to celebrate Kyla. The good Kyla (because you know there are two). The one who makes me smile all the time. The one who walks around singing, "Opera and the Queen." The one who answered my whispered, "Your love is my drug" with "I like your beard."

Not the one who told me, "I'm going to throw Carter in jail!" And definitely not the one who said, "Carter is MY baby. ONLY mine. Not yours!"

Because most of the time, Kyla is still the happiest little girl around. But she's three. And she's going through her "toddler puberty," which means that SOMETIMES she has to make life miserable. And we don't celebrate her on those days. Just most days. Especially her birthday.

For her birthday, Kyla had to have, of course, a scooter of her own. And instead of a party, she opted for the new Shrek movie with her siblings. And then she prayed at dinner, "Thank you we can go to the Shrek movie." Ah, may she always be so easy to please.

Of course, turning three meant she had to give up her binkies. When I informed her that I was going to cut the nipples off all her binkies, she asked, "Cut off my nipples?" No, honey. Of course not. I'm going to cut off something that will hurt you much, much more.

We lined up all the binkies...

She had one last suck on each one...

And then I cut them off.

And she told me, "I'm going to cry without my binky." But she knows that now that she is three (and doesn't suck on her fingers anymore, like she did when she was two), she is too old for a binky. And her teeth are starting to show it. AND her orthodontist daddy isn't too happy. She was sad, and cried for a while.

Then she cried again at bedtime. I gave her one of the "nippleless binkies" to take to bed. She told me, "it won't stay in my mouth. I don't want it." Then she cried some more. And finally fell asleep. It only took a few minutes. I was expecting worse.

So, again today we are celebrating Kyla. I took her to Coldstone for her free birthday ice cream. She has been playing with all her presents from grandma and the neighbors. And mostly she has been reminding me how lucky I am to be her mom. Everyone should have a KyKy. Because besides having the best smile and the best little singing voice (which earned her a quarter from a white haired man in a tool store last week), she has the best little heart. She is the most likely child o' mine to share, to make peace, and to love. I love you! And your love really IS my drug.

P.S. Both Kyla's quotes at the beginning are from popular songs on the radio. "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy and "Your Love is my Drug" by Ke$ha.

The Kyla Dictionary

Today is Kyla's third birthday. To celebrate, here is a list my brother compiled, called "The Kyla Dictionary," all actual words out of her mouth.

Chaspick - Chapstick

Lips kiss-lipstick
Peckeroni - Pepperoni
Cool - Pool
Feeder - Heater
The Weed - The Wii
Chucky Charms - Lucky Charms
Quarter - Porter (Damon's Friend)
PEW-p - poop

FEW-d-food
Cado - Carter
"Loading, unadulterated loading" - wicked
Swimsoup - swimsuit
Fruit nacks - fruit snacks
hicking up - hiccuping

es-git-exit

Happy birthday KyKy! Much more to come.

Translator Needed

I am convinced that my kids and I are not speaking the same language. What I assume is proper English is coming out of my mouth, but somewhere between my mouth and my children's ears it must transform to Spanish or Japanese or Horse Latin. And we obviously need a translator to help bridge the gap between what I'm saying and what they're hearing. Here are a few examples:

DAMON- I said: "Clean up your bedroom before you leave for school." He heard: "Leave everything exactly as it is."

I said: "You can have some more fruit if you're still hungry." He heard: "Open a package of crackers for yourself."

I said: "Turn off the tv." He heard: "Sit on the couch and watch America's Funniest Home Videos, laughing at the top of your lungs."

ALLIE- I said: "If you're hungry, you can have a banana." She heard: "Hide in the laundry room and help yourself to a pack of fruit snacks."

I said: "Go upstairs and get in the shower." She heard: "Stand in your room naked with your arms folded."

I said: "You can't go next door until your hair is combed and your bed is made." She heard: "Go anywhere, anytime you like."

I said: "Don't forget to bring your bike in the garage." She heard: "Leave your bike out in the rain."

KYLA-I said: "Stop touching Carter." She heard: "Poke Carter in the eye."

I said: "Damon can color on the cereal box. I don't care about that." She heard: "Damon, mom said stop coloring on the cereal box!"

I said: "Don't bother Carter while he's sleeping." She heard: "Climb in bed with Carter and lay by him."

I said: "You can't have any more Gogurts today." She heard: "Open the fridge and get yourself another one."

I said: "Don't touch Carter in the stroller." She heard: "Pinch Carter as hard as you can."

Anyone want the job?

The Facts

The facts are these:

1. The kids are more comfortable with a dirty bathroom mirror than a clean one. Maybe smearing toothpaste all over it the moment it's clean makes them look better? If so, maybe I should try it.

2. Damon does not have a single pair of jeans without a hole in the knee. And he has probably gone through 6-7 pair this year. I'm beginning to wonder if he crawls around on jagged rocks at recess.

3. I am no good at wiping my kids faces. Or wiping the table and counter. Or wiping the girls' bums after they use the potty. I should do better. On at least one of those. But which one?

4. If Carter survives his siblings without injury, it will be a miracle. Being the youngest of four does have its perks, like the time earlier this week when I found Kyla sharing her Dum-Dum with him (which he seemed to thoroughly enjoy), but he is also more likely to be put in harm's way. A couple of days ago, I was helping Jeff move some furniture around in his office while Damon was holding Carter. Carter was crying, which Damon didn't like, and Damon decided to take him in the other room to put him in his bouncy chair. Carter continued to cry, but I assumed he was fine. WRONG. A couple of minutes later, Kyla comes running into the office and says, "Carter is falling out of his chair!" With a burst of speed that could challenge the likes of Usain Bolt, I ran into the kitchen to see that, in fact, Carter was in his bouncy chair. Unbuckled. On the counter in the kitchen. And he was balancing precariously on the edge of the chair mere seconds from falling. I caught him just as he slipped out of the chair, shaking a little at just how close he was to serious injury. Damon, after being chastised, felt terrible, but thanks to Kyla's natural instinct to always be where Carter is, he was fine. And KyKy got an extra scoop of ice cream for saving the day.

5. Allie seems to have my decorating sense. Which is to say, no sense at all. Jeff had a fake plant at work that he brought home. Allie saw it and said excitedly, "Dad brought home some weeds!" And some good looking weeds at that.

6. These last few days it has been too cold to play outside, and the kids have had to play together. Amazingly, they have been having a lot of fun together. As evidenced by this picture.

I'm not sure exactly what they were doing, and why Kyla and Damon look so guilty, but one thing is certain. Those jeans Damon is wearing have a hole in the knee.

Last Week

We finally got around to having Allie's birthday party on Saturday. She invited all the kids in the neighborhood and a couple from her primary class. She determined the schedule of events. We started by having all the kids make necklaces and bracelets. This was a much better plan than the other crafts we considered, because even the almost-3-year-olds could string beads by themselves.

Unfortunately for Damon (probably fortunately if you ask him, though), none of the boys we invited were able to make it, so he became the lone male presence. And one thing we have established is that 3-6 year old girls think he is HILARIOUS.

Allie really wanted to play Duck, Duck, Goose; Twister; and Musical Chairs, but only AFTER she got to open presents. Really, she wanted to open presents the moment everyone arrived, and only compromised by waiting until after the jewelry was made. So, after games and presents we had cake and ice cream. We tried to go for the double decker rainbow cake, but at the last minute, I added a little more milk to the frosting and it got runny. Hence the reason the cake looks like it's melting.

The inside was pretty, though.

At the end of the party (a very easy party, with everyone extremely well-behaved, I must add), Kyla was seeing everyone off and made the mistake of closing the front door on her thumb. It swelled up like a tiny sausage and I was afraid it may be broken for a few hours when she refused to wiggle it, but she is a tough girl (sturdy, some would say), and after a nap on the couch, she was fine.

Last week, we also lost our garage door opener (GDO, from here on out). At the Dollar Tree. Here's how it happened. Allie has been known to play with things that are not toys. Most often, I find things from the kitchen in places that they shouldn't be. Some of her favorites are the cheese grater, spatulas, a rolling pin, and various whisks. But she also sometimes likes to play with other things that she should leave alone. Like the garage door opener.

After visiting the Dollar Tree last week, I pulled into the driveway and found that the GDO was missing. I asked Allie where it was, and after she searched her belongings, including the lip gloss she had just bought, she announced that it was missing. And that she thought she left it in the store. WHAT?! I racked my brain, trying to remember if I had actually seen her with the GDO in the store. I couldn't. And since we had browsed most of the store, I couldn't begin to imagine where she might have put it down. So, I called the store and asked if they would look for it and call me if it turned up. When the day passed without a call, I began to think it was gone forever. I informed Allie that she would have to give me the $10 she had received for her birthday in order to help pay for another one, and she tearfully agreed. Multiple rounds of questioning failed to uncover just what exactly she was thinking when she took the GDO into the store. All we learned was that she wanted to push the button.

The next day, I drove back to the store to look for myself. And when I asked the cashier, she smiled and said they had found it! But someone had thrown away my phone number so she couldn't call me. Relieved, I followed her back to the office where she retrieved it. Another worker told me that in her 11 years at Dollar Tree, she has found 5 GDO's. Seriously?

Anyway, we were all thrilled that it had been found, and Allie was especially happy that she wouldn't have to give up all her birthday money to buy a new one. Because now she can go back to the Dollar Tree and buy more chapstick and lipgloss.

This picture has nothing to do with any stories, but Carter has been loving his baths lately. And he is outgrowing that little tub. And I'm not looking forward to putting him in the real tub when I have to bend over and strain my back. But he's happy.

I Love Being a Mom

For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be a mom. Well, except for those few years as a child when I wanted to be a pediatrician. Or those years in junior high when I had my heart set, inexplicably, on being a graphic designer. And forget about that degree in Elementary Education that I have. I never really wanted to teach school. For the majority of my life, I knew I wanted to be a mom.

Partly, I am sure, it was due to the example of my own mother. I thought I had the best mom in the world when I was growing up, and now that I am getting older, I am certain of it. My mom is amazing. And my sister, Heather, did an awesome tribute to her, which you can read HERE. Like Heather, I am so grateful to have the best mom around. And my kids know that they have the best grandma in the world, too. Recently, I told the kids that they are going to get to stay with grandma at the end of the month for a couple of days, and Allie yelled excitedly, "Get ready for the sugar!"

After Carter was born, my mom came and stayed with us for two weeks to help make the adjustment to four kids. When she was getting ready to leave, she hugged me and said, "You may think we are so different, and have nothing in common, but you love being a mom, just like I do." I have thought about that many times since, and I know that she is absolutely right. I love being a mom. Despite all the sleepless nights, the times my own food has grown cold while I am serving everyone else, the endless piles of laundry or the fact that someone always seems to be crying, I wouldn't trade my "job" for anything else.

I love knowing that Damon will laugh heartily at any little joke I make.I love listening to him read books I loved as a kid. I love watching Allie and Kyla play pretend together for hours at a time. I love watching Allie's eyes light up when she discovers she can do something, like swim or cross the monkey bars. I love the way Kyla pulls her pants down and moons me as she crosses the house to the bathroom. I love the way Carter watches me move around the kitchen, hoping to catch my eye. I love snuggling with Carter after he has been bathed and lotioned.

I love all the little things I know about my kids that no one else does. I love the way I get excited about holidays all over again, just imagining how excited my kids will be. I love watching them learn about the gospel and to see the light in their eyes when they express their love for Jesus Christ. I love my kids more than I ever thought I could. I love being a mom.

I know I complain about it sometimes, because being a mom means that you have very little time for yourself. And sometimes the sacrifices I make for my family seem to go unappreciated. Which is why I'm so glad someone decided mothers needed their own day of recognition. Yesterday the kids let me take a nap and cleaned the house for me. Damon gave me a calendar he made at school, and Allie gave me some homemade "roses" that she made at preschool. They all told me that they loved me. And that is all I ever wanted. Well, except for the time I wanted to be a basketball coach...

Carter at Three Months

There are a lot of things I want to remember about Carter at three months, and right now it seems like I won't ever forget, but I am sure that I will.
1. For the past month, he has had one stuffy nose after another. Just when it seems like he is breathing clearly, he gets stuffy again. It doesn't really bother him, except at night, when it always seems to get a little worse. I am constantly dripping saline in his nostrils and sucking "boogies" out, which he hates, and only seems to help a little bit.
2. He always seems to have a bloody nose. I'm sure it's from all the "boogies" I am sucking out.


3. He is a little piggy. He eats 5-6 ounces every three hours (sometimes even 7 ounces) throughout the day. And many, many times he cries when his bottle is gone.
4. My milk is just about gone. It's not worth pumping anymore. Instead, I am defrosting the frozen milk I have stored and mixing it with formula. And Carter isn't digging the taste. :(
5. He is starting to be more predictable at night. Typically, he will fall asleep around 9:00 and sleep until 2:00 am. That is his long stretch. After that, he wakes up every two or three hours (more recently with this latest stuffy nose), and I will usually give him 4 ounces if it has been at least three hours. I fold a flannel blanket in half and bind his arms next to his body with it. He sleeps a lot better this way.
6. He also sleeps in his bed 90% of the time (hooray!). I am considering moving back to my room (Jeff's room, really--the kids have started calling Carter's room my room), but I'm afraid I will be back and forth all night. We'll see if I am brave enough this weekend to leave him all alone. He will sleep in his bed for naps, too. If I think he is tired, I will lay him in bed, and he will usually fall asleep on his own (although sometimes he refuses, or I guess wrong. We're still trying to figure it out!). I can't believe how much that has improved over the past month!
7. Carter is either very interactive, or completely ignores me, trying his best to look around me. There really isn't much in between. He started tracking objects this month, and I like to watch him follow me (with his eyes) as I move around the kitchen.
8. He has given us a few awkward giggles, as though he is embarrassed by the sound of his own voice. Inevitably, he ends up "hicking up," as Kyla would say.
9. While I don't own a scale (I don't need that kind of pressure!), I do weigh myself while holding Carter at my MIL's. According to her scale, he weighs about 15 lbs fully clothed. I am guessing he is actually more like 14 lbs, but still. Getting hefty.
10. He is also outgrowing his clothes very quickly. His 3-6 month onesies are super tight. I think he will probably skip the 3-6 month phase and go straight to 6-9.
11. He loves to suck. If he can't get his binky, he will suck on his hands, my shoulder, anything nearby.


Now, for comparison's sake, here you go:

One Month

Two Months

Three Months

In Which Allie Turns Five

Yesterday was Allie's birthday. One she has been looking forward to for about 11 months now. But before I would allow her the joy of turning five, I insisted that she get her hair cut. You may recall some of the struggles this child and I have had over the years with her hair. She can go to bed with it clean and brushed and manage to wake up with it matted and tangled. I'm not sure how she does it, but it's really amazing. Oh, and she hated me taking pictures of it looking this way, even when it was for my blog.

Tuesday, on the way home from preschool, I pulled into the parking lot of Craig's 7$ Cuts and told her that it was her lucky day. She wasn't going to have to deal with her crazy mom snapping pics of her first thing in the morning any longer, because she was no longer going to look like a Mop Top. She wasn't happy. She didn't want to get her hair cut any longer. She tried to talk me into coming back another day. But I wasn't going to be swayed. Especially since Tuesday was $5 day at Craig's and I saw no reason why I should have to pay an extra $2 just to make her happy. So, I promised her a Dum Dum and she caved. With her new short do she was ready for her birthday.

Jeff was leaving to go out of town at 7:00 am, so I told Allie if she wanted to open her two presents before he left, she needed to get up early. She took me seriously and wandered into my room at 6:30. The only other day she has ever been up that early on her own was Christmas morning. At least I know she has it in her. Her first present was a Barbie dress from Grandma and Grandpa. After the appropriate amount of hooting and hollering, she opened her other present, a scooter, and pretended to be surprised.


As Jeff was leaving, I didn't feel that I could take on a birthday party all alone, so I told her we would have to postpone it for a week or so. She wasn't thrilled, but she didn't complain too much. And although I definitely didn't want to spoil her, I wanted her to have a good birthday and I wanted her to know how much I love her. And I was kindly asked to "stop spending our money," after I accidentally cost us $300 to fix the computer and then forked out another $40 for a cleaner called Advanage when the guy came in and cleaned the hard water spots off my shower. So, how do I make her birthday special without really spending much money?

I made her waffles for breakfast (her request).
I let her take a bath in my tub (something they never get to do).
We went to Toys R Us where she got a balloon, crown and spent her $3 gift card (I pitched in another $3 so she could get a boy Barbie for the harem at home).
We went to Sonic for her free Wacky Pack.
I let her ride her new scooter around the house all day, because the weather outside was, well, frightful.
We went to Chuck E Cheese with our friends/next door neighbors (with the 31 tokens I found leftover from our last visit).
I made her spaghetti for dinner.

And at the end of the day she said, "Thank you for all the wonderful things." I think we succeeded.

The other kids had a good day, too. Just not with quite the "pampering" that Allie got.

This love sported his Jazz wear (thanks again to Ann M for his three shirts, so he can support his team every game!).

This love had nearly as much fun as Allie. She was invited into the bath with Allie and got her own Wacky Pack. She also attempted the scooter, which she is surprisingly good at.

And I love this pic of the boys.

Happy Birthday Allie! We wouldn't be nearly the same family without you. Here are the top five things I will remember about you this year:

1. You have grown tremendously academically. You can color, use scissors, and are learning to read. You are definitely ready for kindergarten.
2. You love Barbies. Nearly everything you wanted to buy for yourself was Barbie related.
3. You are the best big sister. You are usually so willing to share and Kyla adores you. I love hearing the two of you playing together. It is one of my favorite sounds in the world.
4. You are incredibly good at remembering song lyrics. Some I wish you would forget (like when you were riding your bike the other day singing, "I wanna take a ride on your disco stick").
5. You are such a girl. You love skirts and leggings, makeup, and high heels. You want to look pretty, and I love that about you.