Positive Motivation

Today is the first day of the rest of my life.

This is the mantra by which I try to live my life. It's hard to try to keep my focus. We live in such fast paced times, and it seems like everyday just blows by. There is much we could all do to better ourselves but we get caught up in setting up a perfect situation prior to beginning something new. Why do this? Why not start making a better choice today? Why not change your life today? If you want to make a positive change, why no do it immediately. I am going to make a positive change beginning today. This is how my very busy day has gone and will go:


7:30 am Wake up, get dressed fix kids breakfast. We slept late
8:30 Astronaut and Squirrel to the ped for well child appointments
10:00 Big kids to school, stop by book fair and buy each kid a book
10:40 Drop Squirrel off at school and read her class "Where the Wild Things Are" and "Lily Brown Paints"
12:00 Home to toss in a load of laundry and fix Side Salad some lunch
1:00 Homework
2:30 Bus stop, to meet kids
3:15 Back home
3:20 Blog-I mean, help kids with homework, cook dinner
5:00 Take Lettuce to work
5:30 Pick up the mommy-mobile from the shop
6:30 Leave for class
7:00-9:30 Class
9:45-10:45 Gym...

It's a lot. But the very last item for the today is one of the most significat. I haven't been in the gym for ever and at my annual check up, my NP told me that I could stand to lose a few pounds. I haven't gone to the gym in months. So, today, I will begin anew. I will go Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, and either Saturday or Sunday. I need to do this for me and for my kiddos. I may even take a class. The point is, I don't have to wait until the first of the year, the first of the month, the first of the week, any special time to begin. I can begin today.

Because today is the first day of the rest of my life.

My Perfect Princess

If any of my children is me all over again, it's my Princess. She is a true diva, late to her own birth. She stayed an extra 10 days before her eviction/induction. Our running joke is that she stayed in because her hair wasn't right. This child was born with a doobie wrap. She was due a week before my 21st birthday, but born 3 days after. This was NOT a good thing. Princess was my hardest pregnancy. Six straight months of vomitting during which I lost 20 lbs. My whole weight gain was only 16 pounds. She was 7 pounds 19 ounces and only 18 1/2 inches long. (A wee bit bigger than her mama, who was 7 pounds 1 1/2 ounes, and only 18 inches long). She was born rather quickly; I went from 6 cm dialated to her being in the isolette in about 20 minutes, epi free. That short birth is probably why her head wasn't very cone-y. We are both Sagittarius' and have similar dispositions and similar taste. We even look alike. Our baby picks are nearly identical. Except I think she is much prettier than me. She has this big doe eyes, with impossibly long eyelashes. They literally look like butterfly wings, they are so long. Sometimes I can't believe this gorgeous creature came from my belly.
Me at four:
She at four:


She stayed on her own schedule, not walking until she was nearly 14 months, not talking until about a year and a half-but spoke in full sentences immediately. She was very petite and looked like a little walking doll. In fact, I bathed her in the bathroom sink until she was nearly 3.

But now she's tall and lanky, like the horse who happens to be her Chinese sign.

Princess is a tough cookie. Her doc took her tonsils and adenoids at the tender age of 4. Dora accompanied her to the hospital for surgery that day. It was one of the most nerve wracking days of my life. Surgery and the whole anesthesia thing terrify me. But Princess was a trooper.



To be candid, she was born at the wrong time. She should have been a firstborn child, the oldest or an only. She is so competitive, has so much drive but she feels so limited and inadequate because Astronaut can do more than her. She gets so frustrated when he does things she can't, but at the same time, she is very advanced. Not to brag, but this child is quite possibly a prodigy. She taught herself to tie her shoes and write her name at 4 years old. While amazing, it is a major factor in her school behavior. She was bored silly by pre-K and it showed. I got a lot of calls home last year.

I love my mini-me. She is a challenge. I imagine her teen years will be memorable. And I can't wait until she is all grown up so we can do things together.

Sweet, isn't she.

Checkin' in

Hello, all!

I've been busy with midterms and first birthdays. That's right! Our side salad is now one years old. We celebrated in style at the local Mickey Ds. I think it's okay to have a McNugget or two on your birthday-you only live once...

School is...school. I am just exhausted. If I could figure out a way to pay off my student loans and have some sort of stable income, I'd say screw it and just be a SAHM.

Lettuce and I had a talk about breastfeeding. I know his family are pretty anti-breastfeeding so I wanted to gauge his feelings on me continuing to do so. He was totally fine with it. He can see the benefits in the health of the ducklings. Astronaut sleeps in his undies only, year round. Literally. The boy walks around in just underwear when it's snowing outside. He never gets sick. Lettuce and I have been together since he was 3 1/2 and he'll be 9 this year and he has never been sick. I breastfed him until he was 13 months old. The girls on the other hand, weren't so lucky. Princess was only breastfed 4 months. She immediatly stopped growing. She had tons of earaches and her tonsils removed at 4 years old. Squirrel was EBF until 6 months, though we started solids at 4 months. She had a combo until she was about 7 or 8 months. The ear infections were constant and she got tubes at 9 months. Whoa!! I've gotten a bit off topic. Anywho, Side Salad will be getting the good stuff indefinitely, that's the point. And here's a pic of us nursing in public to celebrate.


Ciao!

Picture Blog: Nature Walk 2/21/09

Haven't been blogging much lately

because I have been busy in real life. This semester, I am taking a full class load, including a field experience in a real classroom where I have to teach lessons to real kids-psychadelic, I know. It's a pretty heavy classload. Plus, I have to be Mommy, which is a full time job. And I try to squeeze a little gym in there sometimes, too. I haven't had much time to blog. I really miss ya'll. Spring break is coming soon, so I'll inundate you with blogs and pics then :)

Happy Chinese New Year!

Ni hao!

It is the year of the Ox. We celebrated in style with a dinner of roast duck, orange ginger tiliapia, steamed broccoli, fried rice, and Chinese noodles, with tangerines and fortune cookies on the side. We toasted with sparkling apple cider.

Squirrel and I originally went to the local Asian market in search of duck. They had duck, of course, but it was looking at me through the plastic. Literally. The ducks they had were "Buddhist style," which as far as I can tell means that the head and feet are still attached. My goal was to introduce my kids to new foods and I didn't want to terrify them so I went to Bi-Lo and got a less personable water fowl. I roasted my duckie and glazed it with some Iron Chef Orange Ginger sauce.

Here is the duck, who we affectionately called "Mr. Duck-Duck." Forgive my ugly roasting pan. It gets the job done.

Anyways, the food was much lovlier when plated.


Here is a shot of the table decorated with a pyramid of tangerines and plums.

It was a lovely meal and the kids enjoyed it. They also discovered that they like duck. Misson completed with flying colors.

Today was my Princess's party :)

Today, Princess had her birthday party. It was a full month after her birthday. We had it at the marionette theatre, of course. "Beauty and the Beast" was playing and it was fantastic. She had a blast and got some nice gifts.
Here of the party guests. My Princess is in the middle holding Side Salad. The Astronaut is the one in the glasses and Squirrel is down at the bottom in the pink

Princess, holding one of her gifts: a Tinker Bell blanket.

And another that all of the kids got excited about: Operation.



Getting ready to blow out the candles on the awesome custom mermaid cake! Here's a shot of the cake just for Smoo, who unfortunately had to miss the party.

Boiling Water

I was just thinking about something that happened few years ago, when I was momma to not as many kids. The Astronaut and his buddy were just hanging out. They were a couple of kindergardeners and were hanging out after school. His buddy was going to stay for dinner so I was making soup-shrimp and corn chowder to be exact.

They were watching cartoons and I was standing in the door way between the dining room and living room, talking to the boys. I'd placed a pot of water on the stove to boil to begin my soup. We were just chatting when the following dialog took place.
Astronaut: Mommy, the stove is on fire.
Me: No, that's just steam from the water starting to boil.
Astronaut: But it has fire on top.
Me: That's not funny, A. Mommy can't burn boiling water.
Astronaut: Mommy, you need to call the fire man.
Me: (agitated) A, for that last time-OH, MY GOD THE STOVES ON FIRE!!!!

I put the fire out with baking soda. And threw away my pan. And endured the laughter of 5 year olds, who retold the story to everyone for weeks.

Let's just keep this one a secret between you and me.

But here is something that is not a secret, the New Year's Survival Pack. It will help you get organized and lose weight in the new year. I think the meal planning guide is absolutely fab.

Places I want to go

Have I ever told you that I love to travel?

I don't get to do it much and I haven't really been anywhere that far, but I love it. When I was young, we used to go to Florida every year-Daytona Beach, Kissimmee, or Orlando. My grandparents used to take us to Atlanta ever summer, too. I have so many fun memories. I love short, impromptu trips, too. We used to dash off to Charleston, Folly Beach, and Spartanburg when the mood would strike my mom.

The furthest away from home that I have been would be New Orleans, back in 2002. I had so much fun, even though my car nearly got stolen in Gretna. It acutally turned out to be a plus as we got to stay nearly a week extra with insurance remimbursing the stay and meals. I will never forget eating at The Court of the Two Sisters. It was hands down the most beautiful place I have ever eaten in. It was also there I met the love of my life, crawfish. Mmmm, I drool just thinking about it. I also love to eat and isn't that the purpose any vacation-to eat?

(Photo by Terry Thibeau)

But there are so many places I would love to visit. Greece is at the top of the list becasue of the food, weather, culture, food, art work, and food. And the food. I would also like to go to Egypt. Again, the history and the culture attract me. I don't know much about Egyptian food, but I am sure that it is delicious. I want to go to Spain. Food again, and I love the culture and language. And the food. And the siestas. I want to visit Japan because I love the culture. The food is interesting. I actually just ordered bento boxes for the kids and me. I'll save that for another post though-I just wanted to whet your appetite. China has so much culture (and food). It would be amazing to go there. I think I'd like to go to Kenya, also, and take the kids on a safari. Finally, I would love to go to Brazil. It seems like such an exciting place. Acutally, I'd like to hit Peru, too, while I am down there.

And Israel. I definitely would like to eat there. I mean, visit.

Where have you been? And where would you like to go?

Oh, and I joined a gym today. More on that tomorrow.

A new year, a new accomplishment!

On December 30th, Lettuce had surgery. It was supposed to be an outpatient surgery but do to unforeseen circumstances, they kept him overnight. He's fine now, came home on New Years Eve.

While we were there, Side Salad took a step. That's right, he took a step. My little monkey. He is 9 3/4 months old. This is the youngest any of my children has walked. Astronaut walked at 10 months, the divalicious Princess at nearly 14 months, and the mischievous Squirrel at 11 months. I am so proud!


Here is a grainy clip of my little darling stomping across the living room...obviously Santa didn't get that memo. I got a crockpot and a rice cooker.

My Resolutions

Christmas is over.

There are only 4 days left in 2008. Soon, this year will be over forever and a new year will be upon is. That means it's time for resolutions again. Yipee.

2008 was a rough year for many, but for me it was blessed. I had a perfect, healthy babe. I brought my GPA up a bit more. I did okay financial. I think I did better than expected for someone who hasn't worked since June 2006. I came out nearly unscathed from a horrific car accident. I am happy, healthy, and whole. So what if I haven't lost a pound of baby weight. Their are people who lost their life savings in the Madoff scheme.

So for 2009, I refuse to try to "fix" myself. I am going to forgo the promises of chaning myself. I am constantly changing and evolving anyway. I am organic like that. Instead, my focus is going to be on enriching my life and the lives of my kids. So these are my resolutions:

1. Once a month, we we go to a restaurant that serves food of another culture. Prior to going, we will do a little research. We will find the country in our atlas and on our world map. We will look at pictures and listen to music. Then, we go eat. I know I want to do Japanese, Indian, Greek, and German. I need some other. There's Thai and I am still seven short. Any suggestions? I think we have a Somalian or Ethiopian restaurant. Still need six.

2. Every first Sunday, it's dollar day at the state musuem. We need to be there. On Jan 4, we will be seeing a Leonardo da Vinci exhibit.

3. Zoo once a month, too. We actually do that almost every month. We go more when the weather is nice. So, we missed November, but we can still make December.

4. Read the entire "Chronicles of Narnia" out loud. We are already halfway through "The Magician's Nephew."

5. Gradually move all of our produce to the organic side.

6. Grow at least one veggie and/or fruit this spring. That's a biggie because we are apartment dwellers.

7. Spend less, save more. Put that sewing machine, that crochet needle, and those knitting needles to work.

8. Learn to knit. Even if I have to find a YouTube video to show me.

9. Make the kids hats and scarves for the winter. But not gloves, because gloves are super cheap. You can get 2 pair for $1.49 at Target. I want to make hats as gifts for next Christmas, too.

Oh, and don't forget:

10. Lose 20 lbs. They are New Year's Resolutions

Right before visions of sugar plums danced in their heads....

I love Christmas.

I love the magic, the mystery, the fun, the suspense, the traditions. Childhood seems so short now. I try to make Christmas as magical as possible for my kids while they are young. They believe in Santa. We have things we do. I want them to have traditions so that they are their uncles and my age, they can reminisce. Tonight, we set out the reindeer feed for Santa's crew. It's birdseed and glitter. We sprinkled it out in the yard. They loved it, though the Astronaut felt it necessary to give it a taste test-yuck! Then the real fun began.

The kids decorated cookies and a gingerbread house. They did a great job. The first time, we decorated, then baked. Didn't go so well. The kids piled on the sugar and sprinkles and all of the sugar carmelized-then burned. Plus the kiddies handled the dough so much it got really thin and hot. So the second batch, we adults made the cookies, then baked. Then I whipped up some quick frosting (powdered sugar, plus milk and a dash of vanilla extract) and the kids decorated them. This turned out much better and we had Santa-worthy cookies.

The Squirrel and her fractured gingerbread man

The Princess and her snowman

The Astronaut and his snowman

Then we decorated a gingerbread house. It was fun. Then everyone got washed up and went to bed without many complaints.

I have to go move the gifts downstairs. I only have a few hours until they are back up. They'll be up with the sun and I have to make breakfast, then start on dinner. I hope all of you are having a wonderful Christmas too.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!

Help, please! I have a cookie conundrum....

We are having a cookie decorating party for the kid on Christmas Eve. It will be my ducklings and Smoo's monkey and turkey. The kids are 8, 6, 4, 3, 9 months, and 1 month. We'll probably have some extras, too. We initially planned to bake with the kids but since they are on the younger side, we are going to bake in advance and let them decorate. What kinds of cookies should we make? Smoo is making chocolate chip and I am going to get some Immaculate Baking Co Vanilla Sugar cookies and bake them. (IBC makes the BEST cookies ever!)

My conundrum is this, we want to make 4 types of cookies. I make 2 and Smoo makes 2. What other kind of cookie should I make? And what other type should Smoo make?

I want something that I can use my snazzy cookie cutters on. I was considering gingerbread, but my kids don't seem to like them that much. I like them so maybe I will still make them. Any suggestions (with recipe or recipe links)?

Christmas Dinner

I think that there will be around 18 people at my house this year, more than I have ever cooked for before. I am working on my menu because I need to do my shopping sometime between now and Monday. Here's what I have:

Appetizers:
Shrimp and cheese dip with chips
Veggie tray with ranch

Soup:
Butternut squash soup

Main Course:
Turkey
Ham

Collards
Green bean casserole by Smoo

Macaroni and cheese
Rice
Dressing
Candied yams

Bread:
Yeast rolls
Crescent rolls-thanks to Pink Lemonade and Pillsbury
Cornbread
Buttermilk biscuits


Beverages:
Apple cider
Grape juice
Sodas
Egg nog
Hot cocoa

Dessert:
Apple pie
Blackberry cobbler
Red velvet cake-can you make that too, Smoo?
Cookies that the kids decorated on Christmas eve

Have I left anything out?

Oh, and a gingerbread house, of course!

Stuff I want for the kids

Christmas is rapidly approaching. I have been eying some things online for the bunnies. Here ares somethings I heart:


A stainless steel water bottle for each kid. I worry about stuff like BPA. The panda is $15 at Amazon. Bigger bottles are $18 to $20, depending on size.








The entire "Magic Tree House" series, by Mary Pope Osborne. My son absolutely loves these books. He learns without knowing that he is learning. Does it get any better? They are about $4 each on Books-a-Million.




A Putumayo Kids collection! I pretty much want every single cd they make. Right now, they are running a buy two get one free special so my top three are Brazillian, Latin and Animal Playgrounds. We already have the Sesame Street Playground (courtesy of Megret at Muse Reviews) and the kids love it.Pretty much any set of blocks by HABA. Oompa has tons, ranging from about $25 on up. This set, the Fantasy blocks, is $37
The Oak Leaf Layered Puzzle from LivingPlaying which is only $16.99.
The Star music wand. It makes music when you tap it on things. Perfect for a princess at only $9.95 from Natural Pod.

What are you getting your little people?

My Astronaut

This is the Astronaut holding the Side Salad.

The Astronaut is a really, really good kid. He is that kid who is always well behaved and helpful, kind and generous, insightful and thoughtful. Sometimes, I can't believe he is mine. Astronaut is 8 years old and in the second grade.

He is my firstborn and I love him so much. A has been there for it all, all the ups and downs of my adult life. I had him when I was 18, just four months after graduating from high school. He was my reason. The reason I worked, the reason I went to college, the reason I did everything positive that I did. He still is, along with his sibling.

That's it. I just thought I'd do a post about him. He is a special guy

I am thankful

I am thankful for so much this year. My family and my children, my health, my life. All the love that fills my home. I am even thankful for Lettuce, though we are currently on the outs. Thanksgiving was lovely. My mom was here and all four of my brothers. My oldest brother brought his fiancee and two of her kids. Lettuce's little brother Junior came, too. Though we didn't get to go to Charleston, I still had a great day. My oldest brother and I split the cooking. We had:
Turkey-me
Ham-me
Macaroni-him
Collard Greens-me
Black eyed peas-him
Rice-him
Gravy-me
Cornbread-him
Apple Pie-Mrs Smith
Cookies-Tollhouse
Cranberry sauce, jellied and whole berry-Ocean Spray
Sherbet punch-me

It was just delicious.

[The only problem was Meddler, the aunt (Lettuce's aunt, his dad's sister, a family member who does not know her place and often instigates issues between us) wanted to come and get Squirrel. I am going to do a post about that next. Anywho, I think it's inappropriate to 1) treat one child specially while ignoring the others, 2) expect a three year old to spend time with you instead of with her immediate family on Thanksgiving. I didn't want drama, so I let her go, but I am not happy.]

After dinner, all the adults fell asleep on the couches and floor and then we woke up and played Scattergories, our favorite game other than Monopoly.

Happy Turkey Day, ya'll!

Wordful Wednesday

This is my first WW. I found this old pic. It is from about 1985, when there were only two of us. I am about 3 and my little brother is about 1. He and I are so close. He is the father of 4 (1 bio kid, and his fiancee has 3) and I am the mother of 4. Our kids are 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 3, 15 months and 8 months old. They were all here yesterday, along with his friend's 2 year old and my BFF's 3 year old and 8 day old. That's right, 11 kids. Pure pandemonium, but insanely fun. The contrast between yesterday's circus and the peacefulness in this picture is so very stark. But this pic, that's where it all started.

My "Large" Family

The average woman has about 2.1 kids. I have 4 and I am not even 30. So we are labeled a "large" family. And being that I am pretty young, I honestly can't say I am done yet. Now, both Lettuce and I came from "large" families; we are both the oldest of four children. We are used to this. In fact, I don't really think I have that many kids. 6, 7, 8, that's a large family. I think we are normal. Even though it appears that we are above average on the kid count. Anywho, my number of kids seems to floor everyone I encounter. Typical scene:

Stranger: Aww, what a cute baby! Is he your first?
Me: Thank you. No.
Stranger: Your second?
Me: No.
Stranger, with eyes bulging incrediuously and speaking slowly: Your....third?
Me: No.
Stranger, rolling prostrate on the floor while gnashing their teeth and foaming at the mouth: Your FOURTH?!?!!
Me: Yes. I have two boys and two girls.
Stranger, face turning purple and pupils dilating: OH MY GOD!!!!! YOU DON'T WANT ANYMORE, DO YOU??!?!!??
Me: Well, maybe one or two more. I love being a mother.
Stranger spontaneously combusts.

That was a dramatization. But people are awfully presumptuous. They ask all sorts of invasive questions. Obviously, they think that the niceties of society will prevent me from making snarky answers. Obviously they are wrong. Here are a few of my favorite answers to silly questions.

Stranger: I hope you got your tubes tied.
Me: No, I am not spayed.

Stranger: Are they all yours?
Me: No, they followed me from the produce section.

Stranger: I would never want to have that many kids.
Me: Well, with kids like mine, it's easy to see why I want more. But all kids aren't like mine so I could see why some people don't want more.

Stranger: I don't know how you handle all those kids.
Me: We don't all have the same limitations.

Stranger: You have FOUR kids?
Me: Well, four with me. I left the rest at home.

Stranger: Are you going to have anymore?
Me: Well, we do have one more empty seat in the minivan...

If you ask a stupid question, you will get a stupid answer. What annoys me is how people feel as if they have some sort of bearing on how I form my family. Even my family does this, though not as much as they used to. Probably because of the answers they kept getting. So, here is a list of things you should never say to a MoM:

Do they all have the same Dad?
Why did you have so many of them?
Just HOW old are you?
Why would you do that to yourself?
I hope you are finished?
Did you get your tubes tied?
I hope you got your tubes tied?
Why didn't you get your tubes tied?
Anything involving getting tubes tied?

If you see a MoM, the best thing to do is just congratulate her on her beautiful family and move on. It will make her day. It's not easy being the MoM, but there is no greater reward than looking at your children interacting with each other. It is an awesome sight. It's stressful job but I wouldn't want it any other way.

About Me

Well, this is my first foray into blogging so we shall see how it goes. First, let me introduce our cast of characters:

~Main Characters~

I am a twenty-something. I am a college student. I have 4 kids, two boys and two girls. As far as birth order, if they were a sandwich, my boys would be the bread.

A, the future Astronaut, is an almost 8 year old second grader. He can subtract 4 digit numbers from each other, but often leaves his homework at school. He is the sweetest, most loving, most easily distracted child ever. He is also very sensitive and has a strong sense of what is fair.

T, the Princess, will be 6 in a few months. She is a kindergartner and quite possibly the smartest child I have ever encounter. At 4, she could write her name and tie her shoes. She can read some now. She wants to be a princess and a doctor when she grows up. If anyone can do it, she can.

J is the Squirrel. She climbs and jumps off of things like the couch, her bed, her table, the kitchen table, the pool table, her play kitchen, the window ledges, her dresser....She is a most amusing child. Her mispronunciation are the stuff of legends. Diego saved the baby "jackwater."

Little T is the baby. He was a big one, over 9 pounds. He is the most adorable little thing ever. I just love him to bits. He is my acronym baby: ebf, cd, nc'd, bw because I ap. His hobbies include: playing with Mommy's face, pooping, scooting across the living room backwards on his belly and unfastening his diapers. He goes by the nickname Side Salad.

Lettuce is my significant other. He is a unique fellow. Very unique. I am not sure that's a good thing.

~Supporting Cast~

Meimei is my mother. She has 4 children, of which I am the oldest and the only girl. She is smart and sweet and I love her.

Big R is my oldest brother. He is a few years younger than me. Little R is his son, my 13 month old nephew.

Sarge is my middle brother. He is not actually a sergeant. He's a private in the Army.

Fasju is my baby brother. He is still a teenager.

Pops is my mother's husband.

T is Little R's mom. K is Big R's fiancee.

That's all I can think of for now.