because there was no room for them in the inn...

first of all...apparently, the shoes are/were a hit. thanks for all the affirming comments. :)

sometimes big h blows me away. this is the kid who at 2 years old was saying, "chugga chugga" and "ah-buhl" (translation: thomas). nothing else. you get the theme we had/have going.

today i pick him up from school. i didn't have the goo with me. she was napping at home. i left the monitor with my next door neighbor, and she has the code to the garage. works out lovely. i pick him up and he immediately tells me he wants me to see his "cammmaaaa cameeeeyeee." right. you got out of that about as much as i did. his teacher proceeds to tell me that he made a camouflage chameleon today at school. of course. because we always use those words. together.

so we get in the car, and i asked him how school was. he normally responds with "um, we did puzzles and read books and played and eated." today, his response was too much. "um....

wait...first i have to mention that big h begins every sentence or thought with either um or hey and a person's name. anyway...

"um, i played chase with boy (name not used to protect said boy) and girl. we runned real past (fast). boy tried to hold girl's hand, but girl said 'um, no thank you, boy. i don't pink (think) i going to need your help.'"

and then, he said, "hey mommy, bad boy hit other boy today on the playground." "oh no, big h. was he ok? did he tell the teacher?" "um, yes, he do ok. and i say 'bad boy, dass (that's) probably not nice.'" "that was so nice of you, big h." "yeah, it was."

he's so humble.

then, we get home and he is DYING to get into baby's room and get her out of her bed. but, as usual, he got sidetracked. he found a nativity scene that kelly gave buz and me when we were first married (maybe just engaged?). it's a little wooden barn. when you open the doors, the characters come out. he began to play with it and ask questions. (luckily, the goo was still asleep, so i didn't rush in to get her.)

"mommy, what is this?" "it's the manger scene." "what's a mager (manger)?" "it's kind of like a barn where animals lived, and that little manger is like a little baby bed full of hay, and it is where jesus was born." "does it hurt?" "well, i don't think so." "why didn't he get borned in a hopissel like baby gree-ya?"

ok, hmmm...trying to figure how much to give him at this point.

"well, because they didn't have hospitals a long time ago when jesus was born. and his mommy and daddy walked and walked and couldn't find anywhere to have the baby. and the only place was at this barn with all the animals."

"oh. poor jesus. mommy, they not have a car with a carseat like mine?"

i told him no, and that was it. all of the sudden, i think something clicked. and he RUNS through the house straight to the goo's room, opens the door ever so quietly, and screams, "gree-ya, gree-ya! you know what? jesus wasn't born at a hopissal!!!!! and his mommy and didn't have a carseat for him."

mind you, the goo couldn't care less. but God love him. i love that he wants to share things with her.

ok, fast forward to tonight. since daddy is working late being head honcho in charge of the hospital's project, we (ok, I) decide to take the family out for dinner. it is a nice enough day. i am trying to be positive here. it is "nice" enough to sit outside, and big h is thrilled about this idea. so the employees, who by the way are some of the nicest around, help us with our high chair and food and drinks. we sit outside, and we start listening to the music they have going. my kid has some rhythm. he did NOT get it from his papa. :) all of the sudden while eating his rice and cheese, he starts bopping his head, not knowing that i was watching. then, he starts shimmying (word?) his shoulders to the beat. and then he says, "mommy, this is my faborite song i ever heard in the whole world. is it yours?" note: neither henry nor i have ever heard this song before, but it has a great beat. and then, he proceeds to say, "yeah, yeah, get it on, mommy." there is nothing sweeter or more innocent? :) by the way, the "that" he is referring to is "my groove." yes, kids do pick up on what you say. and apparently, buz and i say "get your groove on" when someone is dancing.

love it.

took these yesterday when we went to visit my old presby buddy, lowra, and her kids. her youngest is 5 days younger than the goo.

i LOVED their brick. obvious, i know.


"don't mess with my sister"






he is so tough. (or just thinks so.)

to help me get over the hump

my buddy, bitsy (aka "biscuit" around our house) decided i needed a pick-me-up from the recent trauma, otherwise known as the weather change. so she bought me these:

she found them on sale for $24.83. TWENTY-FOUR DOLLARS.

i couldn't be more tickled. my spirits have been lifted. now, don't go thinking that i am pumped about having to sweat profusely and always wear my hair curly because drying it is pointless, among other unpleasantries that "summer" here in north texas brings. but if i can do it a little bit cuter, i am better off.

thanks, biscuit.

so long, farewell...

to winter janet.

it's been a tough day around here. one sign read 80 degrees. that's EIGHT-ZERO! february.

my heart is sinking as write this.

supposed to be only 73 tomorrow. whew -- so glad we are having such a cold front. my mother-in-law has to tell me today, "oh honey, it snowed here today." that's just salt in my wound.

now, you might say, "keep your chin up. surely, there is more of winter left." hmmm...you've never lived in north texas. once it hits the 70s, it'll never go back down. never.

so tonight, as i sit in my own depression, i will mentally prepare to say goodbye to her. winter janet, we hope you enjoyed your stay here, ever so short. we love you, and you will be greatly missed. go ahead -- pack up your sweaters. put away your cute little black boots. lock the closet door because there is no need for coats for a long time. and tell summer janet she's back in business. let her know that the season in which everyone throws caution to the wind with regards to "fashion" is upon us. go buy mosquito spray for big h. because every summer of his life, he has gotten that one mosquito bite that has led to a massive scar on his cute little face, due to his picking habit. i have no idea where he gets that. get out the sunscreen. put away the recipes for soup and casseroles. and look for the ones containing fruit and yogurt. get out the razor. better start putting it to use again. go buy "summer deodorant." you know...the kind that works even in the 41 straight days of 100+ temperatures.

ugh...just writing all of this has given me an upset stomach.

i realize some of you live where you get snow, and i have read your blogs. i know you're complaining because, what, you can't get out of your driveway or something? please. there is no sympathy from me coming your way.

all that to say -- let's have a moment of silence for winter janet's departure. we'll miss you.

p.s. and for those of you praying today, big h's haircut went fine. even though he now looks like he's 17. (yes, people were praying about big h's haircut. he's weird. i've said it before.) his last haircut was when the goo was 2 WEEKS old. that's how long it's been. it was time.

before:

after:

big h *WANTING* to take a picture with the goo!!!! this is HUGE!

nothing good happens after midnight

dear parents of our babysitter last night,

what can we say but wow? your daughter is nothing short of amazing. i pray tonight that others will talk of the goo and big h like we are talking about your daughter. you've done great work to raise such an incredible young woman. she was courteous, very cute (not that it matters but an added bonus), excited about being here, polite, had a great work ethic, and was extremely caring.

i know we came home late tonight -- the first night to have her over -- but the way she handled herself was incredible. i will apologize over and over again for staying out as late as we did. i promise, we had NO idea our movie would be so long. i hope you felt safer knowing i was following her home.

what a heart for Christ. i don't know what you prayed about for her when she was little (or hadn't even been conceived yet), but things are going to be great for her, and you should be SO PROUD!

thanks again for letting her come over, and we hope to see her very soon.

love,
big h and the goo's parents...





we had a new babysitter last night. we have been searching for a babysitter for a while. (don't get your panties in a wad, biscuit -- i'm talking high school girls.) i have asked said babysitter several times, but she has never been available. last night, she was available. and to say we liked her would be an understatement. she was so prompt and when she walked in the door, she hugged me and said, "oh, it is so good to finally meet you and put a face with a name." i'm serious. she really did. i showed her around. in the midst of us redoing the floor, the house has become, should we say, um...cluttered? now, i am obsessive-compulsive about some things but having an immaculate house is not one of those. i really, really wish it was. but it's not. but to have clutter on top of normal clutter. well, that makes for a lot of clutter. but, i digress. i told her that if she wanted anything besides dr. pepper, she would be up a creek. her response was, "oh, that's ok. i'm not a soda drinker." she proceeded to tell me that our home was beautiful and so nicely decorated and that we had such great taste. i tell you that not to brag because those of you who know me know that decorating is definitely NOT my strong suit. (you're wondering what in the world buz saw in me? i don't clean. i can't decorate. oh, and i don't like to cook. it's like a bachelor pad around here.) again...off the subject. she asked us what we were going to do and told us to have fun. we showed her where the remotes were for the tv as well as where the computer was. and her response was, "oh, that's ok. i brought my pre-cal homework to work on." i wanted to check her pulse but thought that might be inappropriate. we got ready to leave, and i can't explain how good it felt to know that big h and the goo would be in her hands. so we walked around a couple of stores without anyone wanting to touch anything. so liberating. then, we had dinner, and we got to eat it right when it came out, and it was still hot. and then we headed to our really long movie. i don't remember the last time buz and i held hands in a movie theater. and now for the part where you learn how incredibly hip i still am. when we were sitting in the movie theater, i thought it would be a good idea to let babysitter extraordinaire know our plans and our ETA. so i "texted" her. now, before you start thinking i'm still in my 20s or something, i don't know if you say, "i texted her" or "i sent her a text."

she was supposed to be home by midnight, and when our movie was over, i looked at my watch and it said 11:55! i felt so horrible. i called and told her we would get home as fast as we could. on the way home, buz and i talked about we would both feel better if i followed her home. because you know, my dad was FAMOUS for saying, "nothing good happens after midnight." i hated it when i was a junior in high school, or say a sophomore in COLLEGE, but now that i am a parent, i feel the exact same way. don't tell him -- it will give him a big head.

all in all, wonderful evening, and i pray her parents let her sit for us again. or that she even wants to sit for us again.

made it to church today. much needed. always. dropped the goo off, and the girl signing her in to the infant class asked if there were any specific instructions. nope. "does she need a bottle?" nope. "anything we should know?" nope. this is so foreign to me. when we would drop big h off, our instructions went a little something more like this.

"ok, he will probably cry. and it will probably be pretty loud. but i swear he's not hurting or in pain. and he isn't sick. he just has a loud cry. he will probably never smile, but i promise he's not upset. now, if you want to try a pacifier, you can. but he will probably not take it. there is really nothing you can't try. swing. bouncy. exersaucer. your arms. whatever. just know that he will probably cry. and it will probably be really loud. but...he really is a sweet baby."

and to this day, we have NEVER been paged for either of our kids. and yes, i am knocking on wood as i write this.

headed to the mall for some play time for big h. i promise we have made it to at least 4 different malls in the past week for various needs. needs being a loose term.

random note: listening to "waiting for a star to fall" by boy meets girl on the ipod right now. anyone wondering at this point if i have any friends?

hmmm...miscellaneous thoughts running through my head. have NO theme for tonight. no one funny story that will take up six paragraphs. just things i was thinking about tonight.

1. the goo is brilliant. in the morning, she wakes up *early* and rolls to her side where she is somehow able to turn on her own mobile and put herself back to sleep and sleeps for another hour and a half. love it. genius. where does this fall in the philosophy spectrum? sleeping "props" or soothing herself to sleep. don't know. don't care.
2. big h has begun telling us stories at bedtime. he clears his throat (i'm serious) and begins with "unce upon a time." tonight it was "unce upon a time, there was a boy named me, i mean, ah-nee." he always ends with "and wivved happuwee ebber affer. dee in." i love it. it is priceless. the kid is a riot.
3. i've happened upon a new (not really new, just noticed lately) phenomenon. it's the stay-at-home mom sense that even though you are in your 30s, you often feel like you're in 7th grade. this being evidenced by the fact that most of the kids in big h's class this year are going to new schools next year because of some changes in his current school. and i was so the last to know. seriously, i felt like it was monday and i was overhearing the details of the sleepover that i wasn't invited to that had occurred on saturday night. everyone was telling me that "my kid and her kid are going to the same school next year" and "well, i talked to sally sue's mom and we've decided to put our kids in the same school." i wanted to come home and tell my mom that the girls left me out. so dorky. and then at the end of last week, the mom of one of big h's friends came up to me when we were picking them up and told me that the school that she was going to put her kid in had an opening and she gave me the info. i felt like the head cheerleader had just asked me to the homecoming after party with her and her friends. ugh -- takes me back. to a place i don't ever want to go again. and i'm 31 years old. what in the world? and i promise i have no deep-rooted self esteem issues. i really don't.
4. listening to "suddenly" by olivia newton-john on my ipod right now.
5. big h is starting to have a compassion that i am so moved by. today, we were at the mall (shocker), and he had obeyed for several days in a row and so i told him we could get a toy at the toy store. his first question was "hey mommy, did baby obey? i've always wanted her to have a toy." melt. and his second question -- "hey mommy (everything starts with hey...), we get dr. g (pediatrician) a present today? i must get him a fun toy to play with." all this from the same kid who is very clear about what's his is his and what is someone else's is also his. laws of a toddler.
6. the goo has just started laughing. not cute little giggling. no. FULL ON laughing. hysterical. and was it me? think again. buz? nope. big h. he was playing peek-a-boo with her, and i promise she was at the peak of her happiness scale. the girl is madly in love with that boy. she has the key into his world. no one else does. NO ONE.
7. my valentine's day was perfect. my husband is the best around. (i say that as though i have never said it before.) big h, the goo, and i went to bible study and lunch with our buddies, brooke and mason. buz took the afternoon off. i got to go help weentrab with a wedding. mainly provided some moral support and hopefully some comic relief. when it was over, i called and asked buz what he wanted for dinner, and he let me get whatever i wanted. so for our romantic valentine's day dinner, we enjoyed some delicious cuisine. put the kids to bed and opened presents. we got really romantic this year. i got him a white dress shirt and some trousers, and he got me a bowl to put mail in and a big frame for the hallway. we discussed that valentine's day is just one of those holidays that come and go for us. we normally eat at souper salad because he says, "that is the biggest gesture of love i can offer -- to eat somewhere i can't stand." guess that's one way of looking at it. :)
8. this picture is for my dad. here's to you, ace.

is it sad that this is all i can come up with? so for you, grandparents, i will leave you with some recent pictures.

(big h watching "gree-ya's" show with her. making LOTS of comments throughout. surprise, surprise.)

(see...she smiles. smiles BIG.)

(the girl loves the moment right before bath.)

(no, i did NOT put lipstick on my daughter. look closely. that is spit up.)

(such a tough guy.)

Dedicated to the hardest job: motherhood

I have to admit I was very nervous taking care of both kids when Janet left on Friday night. To review some past performances when Janet ventured out:

1. When Henry was about 6 months old I gave him 2 tablespoons of Triaminic nighttime instead of 2 teaspoons. (Poison control said he may just be sluggish).

2. When Greta was 5 months old I laid her on the side of the bed, not realizing she had learned to fall forward. (and off the bed onto the ground).

3. When Greta was 5 months and 5 days old I learned that the BUMBO does not prevent falls off of the couch. (even with that wide base)


Needless to say, I implemented some very successful strategies you can share with your spouse the next time you want to go out of town for a few days.

10 keys for successful weekend

1. You can never watch enough Veggie Tales. Most DVD's now have a REPEAT feature.
2. 7:30 am may be too early to put the baby down for morning nap, but 8:30 is okay.
3. 5:30 pm is not too early to put the baby down for the night. (see infant Motrin or children's Benedryl label)
4. Blockbuster Video opens at 10:00am. The animated section is usually to the left by checkout.
5. Toys being saved for potty training rewards can be used for bribes in an emergency.
6. If you move the exersaucer to different parts of the same room during the day, you can maximize the time the baby will stay quiet.
7. Bath time is a privilege. It can be taken away if you decide the Henry, eerrr, your child needs to be put to bed early.
8. There is nothing wrong with pajamas during the day. (this helps the child adjust to the mothers absence).
9. Call your wife periodically during the time she is gone and tell her how well things are going. (this will decrease phone time during BONUS HOURS).
10. Finally, clean the house Sunday afternoon, and remind the 3 year old how much they miss mommy. BIG DIVIDENDS once she walks through the door. (This also buffers reaction to keys 1-9)

BONUS HOURS: It is possible to rent two movies (SAW 3, X-Men) and one Playstation video game and enjoy all three between Friday night and late Sunday afternoon uninterrupted. Pay attention to KEY #9.

BONUS BONUS: Remind your wife every day how special she is, and how difficult her role is. Remember she pulls it all together. You're just a part of her day. I love you pretty.

buz

dedicated to all things buz

no, this is not because wednesday is valentine's day. (honestly, buz and i spend valentine's day at souper salad. i know, he is for real. we both hate crowds. and so the first valentine's day we spent together, he suggested we go somewhere that i wanted to go that he didn't. you know...to show his love for me. you should have seen his face when i said, "souper salad." hysterical.)

my spouse kicks A! this weekend was very big for all of us. especially for the goo and for me. this was the first weekend we were away from each other overnight. (well, other than when buz was in cardiac ICU. but that doesn't count, right?)

nance (my mom, for those of you who don't know) asked me to go to an arts and crafts fair this weekend. (stop laughing.) i dragged my feet forever because i was really nervous about being away from the goo. but finally this past week, buz threw out the "why don't you leave on friday and come back sunday morning?" i'm sorry, what? after a "discussion" about him not making me feel guilty about being gone (cue back of the hand to the forehead), i decided to go for it. some of you with older children are feeling so sorry for me right now. he got home on friday afternoon and was kindly nudging me to go. i kissed the goo and told big h i was going to spend some time with nana. "um, ok, mommy. see you ya-yer. i wub you." i just kept telling buz thank you and i love you over and over again. and then i did it. i got in the car. and of course, i started crying. sometimes i really love being a girl. what, with all the emotional freedom and all.

arrived in oklahoma city and went to straight to old navy without having to get anyone out of a carseat. i SO live on the edge. met up with nance and we headed to target. i mean, i was out of the house and i wanted to close the shops down.

sheer craziness walking up and down aisles reaalllly sllloooowllly. with no agenda.

went to breakfast yesterday morning with nance and her friend and her friend's daughter and niece, neither of whom have children. what would i say to these girls? would i have lost all socialization skills? i was surprised -- i managed to carry on a conversation about something other than pee-peeing on the potty and amoxicillin and nap time and car seat safety. i was so proud of myself.

arts and crafts fair was a huge success. seriously, stop laughing. it really was a great time. then, nance and i just piddled for what i think may have been 17 hours straight. we lingered at dinner and did everything at such an incredibly beautiful pace. woke up this morning at EIGHT THIRTY! had some breakfast and headed home.

oh...the point of this post. the whole weekend, buz kept calling me. not to ask questions about basic baby care or tell me both kids were crying at the same time. just to tell me they were having a great time but that they really missed me.

sometimes i forget to tell him. buz, i love you. i appreciate you! i am so glad you are my best friend! you are the best daddy around!

manly man

i just know my son will be a manly man.

this evidenced by his response to my question this morning. today we had bible study at church, and he LOVES going to the nursery. picked him up and asked if he had fun. "oh yes, mama." what did you do today?

"well, i did crafts. i can't believe i've always wanted to do that."

(one of my favorite things he says is that he can't believe he's always wanted to do something. we're not sure exactly sure what it all means. but coming out of his mouth is so stinking funny.)

and when buz got home and he told him that he had made crafts, he was quick to tell him he made crafts with PINK! HEARTS!

and the absolute highlight of my day yesterday (and the answer to buz's "what was the best part of your day" question) was when big h and i started talking to jesus. i was thanking him for some things, and then he interrupted. "um, ze-zus, sank you YOTS for me getting to be line leader at school. amen." i mean, doesn't that pretty much sum it all up? yeah, and he wore his buz costume and boots to school yesterday. one of his teachers was out last week because her son was sick. and so i asked him as we were getting out of the car if he was planning on wearing it the entire day. "nope, i must just show ms. kyra. she was at home last night." (translation: last night means anytime in the past.) so when we got to school, he said very LOUDLY and in all seriousness, "ms. kyra, i sorry you not here last night. you better? i show you my buz costume. now i take it off, ok?"

yeah, that's me. rolling. on. the. floor.

and for those of you dying of curiosity...yes, we got the door unlocked. with a screwdriver. ???

never a dull moment

about an hour ago, henry was trying to decide what snack he wanted and managed to lock the pantry door. thankfully, he wasn't inside. but hmmm...anyone know how to pick a lock? it's the door with a lock that we haven't changed, so we don't have a key for it. nice.

she did it!

we, the wisners, are a family with "milestone delays." big h didn't roll over until he was 9 months old and didn't crawl until he was 10 1/2 months old. (of course, he decided to walk around 11 months. stinker.) and didn't talk until about 2 1/2 (and that's pushing it.)

today was an incredible day! first of all, we got up and made it to church. (ok, that wasn't really what made it so incredible.) but gosh, we have been missing it so much! we got dressed and ready, and (drum roll please) big h was excited to go!

of course, our super crazy church decided to "observe" superbowl sunday with only 3 services. which meant that our normal 9:00 service that we are always so proud to make was at 8:30. darn them. oh well. such is life. left the goo in the nursery to get some lovin'. dropped big h off in his class (proudly carrying his backpack and all). and headed in for all of our 30 minutes of the service.

came home and played. big h played puppet show and the goo played with big h's trains (without him completely LOSING it). i put her on her tummy, which she despises with all that she is. and all of the sudden, plop! there she is looking at me again! i didn't know what to do with myself, other than call everyone i know (or just the grandparents). get after it, goo! we are so stinkin' proud of you!

then, it was becoming quite clear that big h was not going to be taking a nap. he just wasn't "weepy, mommy." and if big h has not taken a nap by about 2 or 2:30 in the afternoon, we would rather him not take a nap at all rather than take a nap that late or we know nighttime is going to be a bear. so we either give him a car nap (that is a very real word around our house) or do our very best to keep him up all day, so he's ready for bed around 5:30. ok, not really. (not too far off, though.) we always ask each other if there are any errands that need to be run. and today, i had some. so big h got in the car and before we were out of the alley, he was gone. so i ran some drive through errands and then headed down to return something of the goo's. this was one of the coolest experiences i have had with a child. big h and i just hung out together. like buz and i do. we went inside and he played while i made my return. since we had nothing else to do, i decided not to watch the clock. we would move from section to section, me looking and big h playing. and he was totally cooperative. (notice the surprise in my voice?) we had such a great time. then, i decided to push the envelope and go shopping for a minute. he was fixated on getting green apples. he had asked for those before he ever fell asleep. so he assumed every store we went in was the "apple factory." we went inside, and it was clear that this was not the apple factory. so i was going to ask one of the salesman something, and he walks up to her and says, "hey lady, you know where my apples are? the green ones?" i so wished she was someone who would have appreciated his age and humor and just plain cuteness. but since she was all of 19 and didn't own anything in her closet that was NOT black, she wasn't amused. it was funny. it was.

finally, he was getting weary of going into stores that were clearly NOT apple factories. so we got in the car and headed for the nearest "grokey" store. and his response -- "oh, mommy, we are prolly goinga find some lots of apples. lots of green ones. lots of big ones!" and everyone at the grokey store knew exactly what big h was looking for. and lots of people hoping to help up find those green apples. he was just about as happy as a 3-year-old can be.

headed home and the whole way big h was saying, "oh mommy, we prolly must tell daddy we brought some green apples. and we didn't brought any for baby gree-ya cuz her is too yittle."

i. love. this. kid.

i have to say -- i didn't watch one SECOND of the super bowl. don't feel bad for me. we tivo'd it. i will watch commercials later. i know the colts won. seriously, don't feel bad for me. i'm ok with not watching it. we decided not to do anything for it either because our previous plans got "cancelled" because our date apparently had other stuff to do. like, i don't know...buy and sell a house. whatever. (bff, we saved you and bob some superbowl sandwiches.)

both kids are in bed. my sweet buz is sound asleep. and i sit here with a smile on my face. i love my little family.

i love big h. i love that he only gets his hair washed about every other week. i love that he makes up conversations with each and every one of his toys. sometimes they are not even with toys. can be tables, water cups, shoes, seat belts, etc. i love that when he gets hurt, he calls it an "ow-see." i love it that it has been 5 straight days of not wearing his normal shoes. i love it that his entire body lights up when "baby" wakes up in the morning. i love that the first thing he wants to do every day is watch baby einstein (and it's typically the same one everyday). i love it when he sings. i love it more when he dances. i love it EVEN more when he *lets* me dance. and i love it that he never eats a meal or goes to sleep without wanting to "sank zeezus."

i love the goo. i love that she saves her smiles for special occasions. i love that she has a dimple and no one knows it other than mommy and daddy...because of the previous reason. i love that one of those special occasions is when big h is around. i love that she has about 7 teeth and she's only 6 months old. (she probably does NOT love that.) i love the 3rd toe on her right foot. it kind of sticks out more than all the rest. i love that her hair is finally starting to SLOWLY come in. i love that she goes to sleep in my arms. and i love that someday, some boy who loves Jesus is going to fall in love with her.

and finally, oh how i love my sweet buz. i love that he continues to change jobs just to get us in a "better place" than before. i love that he is an incredible daddy. i love (most of the time) that he's a softie with big h. i love it even more that he has no idea how much of a softie he's going to be with the goo when she gets older. i love how he looks in a long-sleeve t-shirt, old grungy khakis, and running shoes. i love that the last moment of our day is the question, "what was the best part of your day?" i love that he loves me and would do absolutely anything for me and loves me for the woman i am. and i am madly in love with how much he loves Jesus.

sap. i know. it doesn't happen often, but boy, when it does. it flows, huh?

out of nowhere

yesterday, out of NOWHERE, it started snowing! i mean, what would my life be like as a meteorologist?

"oops, we didn't see this one coming. but we talked for DAYS about arctic craziness 2007 (which was equivalent to 1 day of temperatures below 38). we apologize to you, the public."

so don't think we didn't take advantage of it. now, this will come as a surprise, i'm sure. but big h wore his buzz lightyear costume. and his new boots.

can we talk for a moment about these boots? he wore them to school yesterday. THE FIRST TIME HE HAS EVER WORN ANYTHING OTHER THAN HIS *SHOES* TO SCHOOL! and he's been going to school since august '05. this is big. wore them to school. showed everyone at school -- teachers, friends, administration, custodial staff. you name them, he showed them. and for almost 510 days, give or take, i have been trying to get him to wear ANY OTHER SHOE. and all of the sudden 2 days ago, he meanders into the goo's room and takes what we thought were going to be her shoes and decides they will be his new kicks. (big sigh) not only did he wear them to school yesterday and the entire time he played in the snow, he wore them to the mall today. (shaking my head in disbelief and a smidgen of frustration.)

i digress.

anyway, it snowed yesterday. if you live in chicago, please don't laugh at us down here. when it snows, we're talking about a 1/18th of a half inch of snow. but if it's white anywhere outside, we run for the coat closet and put on all of our winter garb. because who knows? tomorrow it may be 69 degrees, and we will have to locate our capris and flip flops.

he had a great time with dad. and since i brought my camera, he had to bring his. (translation: thomas the tank engine view master) so hilarious!

today was an incredible day. nothing was done prior to 1:30 in the afternoon. stayed in our jammies, laid around, played with trains and all of the lightning mcqueens we own. you're thinking, "there is only one lightning mcqueen." yes, but they make so many versions of that same car for the parents of boys to make more $$. we headed to the mall. didn't go with anyone, so we weren't rushed to get out of the house, which meant we weren't late. just the 3 of us. and big h is starting to really care about the goo. i mean, he wanted to make sure she had a toy before she got in the car. after all, he had a toy before he got in the car. he wore his winter hat, and so he wanted to make she wore her winter hat. and so on.

made it through pottery barn kids without getting out of the stroller. 1) yes, my 3 1/2-year-old still rides in a double stroller with his 6-month-old sister. back off. we're keeping it that way until he decides he's too big for it. 2) our pottery barn kids excursion usually somewhere around the 6 or FOURTY-SIX minute mark. literally, act of congress to leave that store. "mommy, there's so much neat things here. i can't believe i've always wanted to love this store." (i love my child's grammar. we'll work on it later. right now, we're just pumped that he expresses himself period.) walked out with only 2 things for the goo. clothes. played at the play area without telling anyone how to do so. also a big accomplishment. my kid has a tendency to be a know-it-all. lunch and sprinkle cookies and multiple elevator rides. you can't beat a day like that.

yes. you can. daddy arriving home from work EARLY!

two posts in one 12-hour period.

i don't know what to do with myself. it is 8:19 in the morning, and BOTH of my children are still asleep. i had to make sure it wasn't 8:19 at night. but i have checked so many sources that tell me it is 8:19 in the morning.

.............

spoke too soon. doesn't it always happen that way? and so now, big h is in our bed watching "glass slipper ball" with his cinnamon rolls and no-nee (aka milk).

but let me tell you what i accomplished this morning before everyone woke up. got to talk to buz. so much fun! got to tell him about my dream which included getting in an argument with my husband because he didn't support my being a back up singer for lionel richie as a career choice. :) don't ask. showered (HUGE). made my bed. made big h's lunch for school. made sure there were plenty of diapers with his name written on them. prepared his snack. read my bible study book. checked email. packed the goo's bag. she and i are going to my friend elizabeth's to see her 2-week-old. and loaded the rest of the dishes in the dishwasher. people, that's more than i get done in a DAY!

off to get the goo out of bed. great start to my day. i should do this more often.

a parrot and a broken record

there was an incredibly insightful employee at a local pharmacy working the counter that big h and i walked up to. we were checking out, and henry and i were having a little conversation of sorts. finally, she (appearing to NOT have children of her own, due in part to her age) said, "i guess it's kind of like living with a parrot, huh?" from then on, i cannot get that analogy out of my head. it really is like living my life with a parrot around. sometimes that is scary. like the time that buz got home and big h said, "are you still mad at mommy?" oh, had i been able to crawl under the table.

i know some of you know what a tough time we had when big h wasn't speaking. i had so many mommy issues: being jealous of others' whose kids were speaking, etc. and every well-intentioned person in my life would tell me that there will come a day i wish he would just be quiet. i have to say that that day has never come. don't get me wrong, sometimes the sheer constant noise i could do without. but the talking. nope. i love it. i prayed and prayed for that day, and now that it is here, i love it. i love hearing the things he comes up with. today, he told papa on the phone that he thought it was probably snowing in the ozos (translation: ozark) mountains. the other day, he was so distraught. and when i asked him what was wrong, he said, "oh mama, rocket's anchor is stuck at the bottom of the arabian sea." (for those of you little einstein fans, you know what he is talking about.")

yesterday, he was having some cheese crackers (that are mighty tasty, i should add), and i asked if i could have some. and in his blunt honesty, he responded with, "mommy, i think you are too big to have any of these crackers." i mean, he could have cushioned the blow just a little.

sometimes i don't blog at night because i don't want to sound negative. typically, these feelings come from that little person weighing in at about 38-40 pounds. there are days i am SO AMAZED that such a little person can get to my very core. my. very. core.

(big sigh)

so the said little person is in bed. mind you, not asleep, but in bed. is it sad to admit that there are days when that is the best part of my day?

my little person is going to go straight to politics. it's just in his blood. as an update, "potty training" has taken a backseat for now. (note: potty training in quotes because i'm not sure anyone who would take witness to our life would actually refer it to as such. it's basically a way for big h to get peanut m 'n' m's pretty much whenever he wants. and after the first two poops i had to scrape out of his underwear, i made the executive decision that daddy and i needed to do more "research" before we went head first into this thing.) so tonight he had already had his bedtime snack. (i won't even tell you what it is and has been because you pediatric dentists out there would turn us in.) and he had already had his 67 eggs treats for going pee pee in the potty. i told him that if he needed to go pee pee again, he wouldn't get anymore eggs treats. he said ok. he says ok but really means, "well, i see what buttons i can push next time." so i hear that oh so sweet delicate voice saying he needed to go pee pee. i reminded him that he would not be getting eggs treats. he said...ok. all of the sudden, out of nowhere, he starts crying. i mean, really crying, saying he was "soooooooooo hungee." in the boy's defense, the kid has eaten everything in sight today. all 3 meals and miscellaneous snacks throughout the day. the 3 meals part is when we know he is really hungry. so i budge (i know some of you are SO surprised) and say that he can have a graham cracker. he does his best to hold up 2 fingers and says, "two pees." i say one, he says two. you get it. so i go in and break the graham cracker in half and give him "two." (i SO outsmarted him.) he says three. i break it one more time. at this point, i am laughing. and then, he says, "mommy, i would like my broo (blue -- graham cracker box is blue) crackers in a sack." i'm sorry, what?

when did i become a waitress?

so as a joke, i laughingly said, "sweet boy, would you like basil or oregano on top?"

and he answers. "yes, i would like basil."

and now he is in his room crying (whining) saying, "oh mama, i would like basil on top of my broo crackers."

the kid does NOT know what basil is. (of course, i'm sure some of you are surprised to know that i know what basil is.)

the goo is on antibiotics. again. bless her heart. she now has 3 teeth, and her pediatrician told us on monday that her top FOUR are coming in. torture for my little peanut.

date on saturday night was SO MUCH FUN! went with some friends (pattisons, you know who you are) to houstons. kelly, i'm sorry, but i have to write this down. it was absolutely DELICIOUS!!!! then, because we are parents, we went to barnes and noble for some coffee and to look at potty training books. big h cried a LOT when we left but was fine afterwards. the goo did not fair as well as we did not know she had an ear infection yet. oops. poor ace and nance. we have another date tomorrow night. TWO DATES IN ONE WEEK! we can barely stand it. praise JESUS!

finally, some pictures from the evening.


i mean, look at those cheeks. and i hate it for her that she is "between sizes." shoes, that is. 0-6 is just not cutting it. and 6-12. well, look at them. it's like she has on my shoes or something.


and let's comment on the goo getting some more hair. we just keep praying. :)



yes, it is january, and we are STILL wearing our halloween costume. there is humor on so many levels with this picture. the costume itself. the costume at dinner. the massive-sized 3-year-old sitting in a highchair in the costume. the mack truck on the high chair accompanying big h for dinner.


and now...to the child will not even put on a different pair of shoes. this is what i walked into tonight. so weentrab, my hats off to you. you did it. you got my child to actually put something else on. now, we'll see what he chooses for school tomorrow. :)

and i mentioned the goo's photo shoot last week with the oh-so-talented weentrab (who just happens to be one of my best buddies). here it is.
http://sugarphotography.blogspot.com/2007/01/playing-with-goo.html

first of all, just look at those pictures. and then...notice who graces the TOP of the blog. the goo herself. gosh, don't you just want to eat her? that's talent, folks. thanks, weentrab.

the verdict is in

she did it. actually...

i did it.

the goo and i were separated today! and if you could see me as i type this, you would laugh at my girly, somewhat hormonal tears that stream down my face. my baby is growing up. (don't laugh.) i mean, you'd think i would have the same feelings about henry getting older too.

but someone once told me that when you know it is your last, there are just so many different feelings involved.

here me, oh grandparents. greta is our last child. period. not entertaining thoughts of EVER having another.

so all of the goo's firsts are the lasts for us around here. and it gets me a little weepy.

big h was all pumped to go to church. (night and day difference from when i say we're going to school. i won't get into that tonight.) :) so dropped h off, and then i walked ever so slowly to the class where she would be. they checked her in like she was heading off to boot camp. i was teary even while they were getting *all* of my instructions. they are the nicest group of ladies around these parts, so i was resting assured that my sweet goo would be in good hands. once i finished telling them *all* of my instructions, one of the ladies finally said, "mom, go have a good time. enjoy yourself. henry turned out fine, didn't he? don't worry -- we'll give her lots of lovin." and so i began the walk from the nursery to my classroom. took a deep breath and just knew the pager would go off.

and i'm here to tell you. didn't. go. off.

i was elated to go get her. i was almost as excited as i was in 7th grade when i got to go get my guess zipper jeans and guess vest out of layaway from the brass buckle. ok, maybe a little more excited than that.

good report. they said she did great! she played with toys. she drank her bottle. she "night nighted" with one of the ladies. i'm sure the lady was *ok* with some snuggles with the goo. no one gives better snuggles than my peanut.

henry walked in and without even seeing anyone said, "hey lady...where's my gree-ya?" he saw her and said, "oh, hi sweet girl." melt.

gosh, who knew this would be such a cheesy night for me?

we all took naps. hallelujah.

we all woke up in good moods. hallelujah times two.

and we are SO looking forward to tomorrow. daddy gets to go to henry's school for "donuts with dad." that is wonderful on so many different levels. i don't have to take h to school. buz does. :) h gets donuts for breakfast. h gets to introduce his friends to daddy.

and i get to have a girls' day out with just the goo. and weentrab.

oh yeah, the goo gets a photo shoot tomorrow. she is really excited. scratch that. mommy is excited.

and one more topic of exciting news around the wisner household. hold on to your seats.

we have a date on saturday night. i'm serious.

my parents are coming into town to do house stuff. we won't see them really at all, but they are providing us with an incredible service saturday night. kelly, i'm sorry, but i have to share this. here is what we are doing. go ahead. tell me it is -4 degrees. just to get back at me.

that's about it.

backfire?

we've started off pretty slowly with this whole potty training thing. my pediatrician (who big h absolutely LOVES) told us that h is not going to be a pull up guy. he is going to be a straight to skivvies (sorry...underwear. long story.) kind of guy. he is so black or white, 1 or 10, on or off little fellow that pull ups are just too middle of the road.

seems that henry only wants to go pee pee at night time before he goes to bed. hmmm...

and then gets on an insane sugar high. i think from the time we started the "wind down" process until he was actually asleep tonight, i counted that he went pee pee 5 times. and he really went. really.

so that makes FIVE trips to the "eggs treats factory." (sidenote: henry calls any place where food is served a factory. a hot dog factory. a pizza factory.) and we don't just give him 1 peanut m 'n' m for pee pee'ing. we give him 3 or 4 in a little baggie. it's all about how the treat is delivered. yeah, so after the 67th peanut m 'n' m, he officially physically crashed.

not sure why nothing works during the day. maybe he's more hungry at night? (gets that from his mom, i guess.) but he is such a stinker. i mean, he's no idiot.

took the goo to her 6-month check up today, and i couldn't love this little girl any more. got there, and she was asleep in her car seat. melanie (the nurse) was probably so relieved to see that it was only the 2 of us. that the louder of my 2 children was occupied with schoolwork this morning. got her undressed and weighed her. and i promise not ONCE did this punkin make any noises other than coo sounds. everyone commented on her cuteness. i'm not going to lie -- she is cute. and i can say that because i am her mommy. did all the well visit checks. got loved on by dr g. got shots, cried for 6.4 seconds and then was back to smiling.

she and i had such a fun day together. we picked up h, and i got a glowing report from his teacher. i'm not always this conceited, but when i actually have a reason to be, don't think i won't brag on my little people. she said that he informed her of every time he played with someone nicely. bragger. teachers' pet. oh please, Lord, don't let my kid be the one that the other kids want to beat up on the playground. :) but she just kept saying that he did such a great job playing with other kids today and having buddies. my little man. God love him.

we actually had a smooth journey to school. course, it might have been because i told him he could have a sprinkle donut on the way and maybe also because i let him wear his buz costume. mind you, he did NOT wear a costume for halloween. probably because that is what you are supposed to do. so he chooses january 23 to do so. whatever floats your boat, big h.

nothing of much news today. obviously. so for those of you who stayed with me through this incredibly boring post, thank you. you are the faithful ones.

pray. tomorrow, i put the goo in the church nursery for the first time. nervous. i'm a geeky parent. i admit it. but am secure in myself. i just pray it goes well. we'll see.

just some fun from the point and shoot the other day.

the goo about 4.3 seconds from falling out of her chair.

my kiddos getting some sugar from their dad, who i call "daddy disneyland."

again, i PROMISE she is not always serious. she just saves her smiles for special occasions.

the goo -- 6 months (also prior to her falling out of the chair)

motherhood 101

you may want to grab a cup of coffee or a dr. pepper. this may take some time.

first of all, i'm sure all 3 of you have been waiting on the EDGE OF YOUR CHAIR to find out the update of henry's first mommy-less playdate. however, i couldn't bring myself to write about it in my state of mind the last 3 days. but now that i am in better spirits about my son, i can bring you the latest WONDERFUL report of big h. i arrived at CJ's house very refreshed and ready to start the weekend. she proceeded to inform me that "henry is such a well-behaved and sweet-spirited little boy." i'm sorry, what did you say? she told me that he was so great at sharing. she said he had incredible manners and that he said please and thank you the entire time he was there. he was fascinated with CJ's baby sister who just turned one (not surprising). he ate his entire lunch. (what?) and he told her that he had just gone potty and needed to have his diaper changed.

what?

a first. a first. incredible.

i was beaming from ear to ear to hear such a great report from CJ's mom and was so excited that he had done so well. and funny -- CJ had to be put into time out while big h was there, and he asked CJ's mommy what time out was. :) classic. i'm sure she's like, "what an angel. this boy doesn't even know what a time out is." no, his mom doesn't mess around with the time outs, she just goes straight to the spank or ignore tactics. but love it that she thought he didn't know what it meant to be in trouble. bless her heart. then, she asked me if i thought the goo was going to be my "wild child" or "temper girl?" i asked why, and she proceeds to tell me that CJ was such a mischievous little boy and had such a temper, and h was so mild-mannered. i'm literally on the floor laughing. ON THE FLOOR. again, bless her heart. so i replied with, "yeah, you just come to our house next time with our toys and play on our soil. blood will be shed. you will see a different side of henry." but all in all, i was so proud of him. so as a reward (don't laugh), he didn't have to take a bath on friday night. i know. rewards for my kid have to do with hygiene. gross. but that's just the way he is. for some reason, we didn't think through one of our mottos that we learned early on with big h. "if you want henry to do something, never, NEVER stop doing it. not even for a day." we forgot. guess who pitched the grand mal fit on saturday night at bathtime? we're idiots, i tell you. idiots. and sunday night. and a less intense one last night. UGH!

my kid has issues with all sorts of things that never cease to amaze us. they come and go and come again. currently, one of our strongest is the transition from clothing to jammies and from jammies to clothing. when we are ready to go somewhere in the morning, he whines so much about putting on his clothes. i mean, this is a daily beating for me. greta lays on the floor next to us patiently wondering what in the heck someone did to her poor brother. nothing, greta. nothing. clothes, henry. all we are doing is putting on clothes. and we put them on EVERY morning. these are not daily surprises that i am springing on you. *big sigh*

so we fought through the clothing battle and got in the car with all of our toys, including the kitchen sink. who says boys don't have security blankets, of sorts. henry has a security toy of the day.

we turn into the parking lot of school, and he is mumbling under his breath, "i not want to go to cool. i not want to go to cool." *big sigh* something big is probably coming.

i go to get him out. mind you, it is freezing. not figuratively speaking. it is literally freezing outside. not that i minded one little bit because that meant winter janet was wearing a sweater. praise jesus. anyhoo. i put his shoes and socks on. (those are always the last to go on.) and i get him unbuckled. i walk around the car to get the goo out of her car seat base. thank the Lord that she is still in her infant carseat or i would have had a nervous breakdown. i come back around, and henry has taken his shoes and socks back off and has buckled his seat belt. Lord help him. so i proceed to "help" him do these tasks ever so gently. we are kicking and screaming the whole way to the front door of the school. i had had it. i sat him down on the concrete with the goo actively catching a cold and let him know that he had two choices, both consisted of going to school. we could STOP CRYING and go inside and have fun or we could go to the car and calm down and have a talk and STOP CRYING and then go inside and have fun. he didn't make a choice. so i made it for him. we went to the car, and i all but threw the goo back in the car seat base. (at this point, she's wondering if this is what life is going to be like when she gets to be henry's age.) i proceeded to tell henry that mommy and daddy worked very hard (actually just daddy works) to give him this wonderful opportunity. i actually went so far as to tell him that there are kids who don't get to go to school. (i'm trying not to laugh.) he has friends who will miss him. he has teachers who will have 1 less child to love on. and jesus wants him at school to learn more about him. (yes, i went there.) so "we" calmed and went inside. i felt obligated to tell his teachers that we were late in the mornings because that is when most of our "teachable moments" happened. they're listening to my story and looking at my kids' tear-stained face. hmmm.

but finally, we were together, just the goo and me. we headed for weentrab's house to pick up some things and have a quick bite to eat. then, we headed to the hospital to visit sweet elizabeth's new baby...coleman charles byrd. adorable.

and here is where i failed at motherhood 101. i'm thinking about not writing it, but i can't not because i would feel sorry for someone like me if this happened to anyone other than me. i consider myself pretty prepared most of the time. i get to elizabeth's hospital room. ever since i had henry, i try REALLY hard not to take henry or now greta to the hospital room so thenew baby can be the center of attention, and none of the attention is on either of my children. well, right now, that is kind of next to impossible. so instead, i try to go at one of the goo's best times so she's quiet and rested and just cute to look at. so she's getting a little fussy, and i KNOW she's hungry, but i don't want to leave elizabeth's room yet because we are having such a great time together. so i ask if i can feed greta in her room. not nurse greta. feed greta. she's all for it because we're having a great conversation. i get greta out of her car seat, and up her ENTIRE BACK is a LIFE SIZE poop stain. nice. perfect. there is no way i can divert this from ANYONE'S attention. this is big. i am mortified. elizabeth, in her southern hospitable way, was saying i could borrow her ONE-DAY-OLD's new shirt. i'm sorry, are you kidding me? your kid was literally born yesterday! i am not going to borrow it for my five-month-old. plus, it won't fit anyway. so, i just feed her while she's soaking wet. vomit. she eats great. then, i try and figure out how in the world i will change her without getting poop in her hair. this is disgusting. and i look down to see the goo just laying on elizabeth's bed smiling from ear to ear. i love this girl. so in true white trash fashion, i leave her bib on, without a shirt, and put her pants back on. and mind you, she's got her ski cap on because it is, after all, freezing outside. (see picture. i am STILL appalled at myself.)



we pick up henry at school, and i am in much better spirits. he is excited to see me. i love that. greta doesn't have a shirt on. so i tell him that on our way home, we are going to stop at the grocery store because i need to get a couple of things. he tells me that he needs to get something for baby and something for him. toys, he means. oh my, he is so spoiled. so we arrive at wal-mart. why, oh, why did i pick wal-mart? why not kroger or my local tom thumb? we walk in and he immediately recognizes that "this is the store with the new doc!!" (from the cars movie. dad got him a toy the other day. dad caved.) so we get all of our items. and he is still requesting to go see the new doc. i, like an idiot parent who failed motherhood 101, replied with, "we can go look at the new doc, but we are not buying him." my kid is 3. does he have the capability to go and say, "yep, that's him. i'll just wait?" so because i have been stressing about the whole potty training concept (my kid turned 3 in october, and doesn't do a pull up, big boy underwear, nothing), i decided to try something. i told him we could get the new doc but we could only get him out of the box after he had gone pee pee in the potty. he said ok.

long story short. he wanted to just sit on the little potty in the living room and watch cars. so classy. my kid on the john in the living room. (sidenote, our "living room" hasn't been a living room since big h was born, so i've kind of given up anyway.) dad comes home wondering what in the world his son is doing sitting on the toilet in the middle of the living room watching a movie. i take him to the back to explain said situation, and all of the sudden, i hear, "mommy, i did it. i did it!" i go in there and lo and behold, there is urine in the pot of the little potty. at this moment, i'm almost crying. i hug him like he's just accepted Jesus into his heart. and he wants to go pour the pee pee into the big potty. we do that, flush, and he wants to wash his hands with soap, and "get um ree-yee keen, mommy." i'm still crying. we go back in the living room, and he says in that sweet little henry voice, "mommy, please you open my new doc now?"

i tell him that from now on, everytime he goes pee pee in the potty, he can have some eggs treats. (translation: peanut m 'n' m's.) so when his movie is almost over, he says, "mommy, i went again." i'm like, "yeah, right," and there it is -- pee pee in that potty again! (i know...you're thinking, "janet, you have GOT to get out more.") and of course, i didn't think he would go again, so we don't have any peanut m 'n' m's, so i ask if he wants to go with me to the store to get some, and he was all pumped about. we take his bath, which was not trying at all tonight. praise the Lord. and when he gets out of the bath, he says that he would like some more eggs treats. i proceed to tell him that eggs treats are only for when we go pee pee in the potty. "oh, ok mommy." he marches his naked little 3-year-old body into the living room (nice.) and goes pee pee. shock has overcome my whole body. so, of course, the kid gets the m 'n' m's.







(pictures to document my child having NO PROBLEM sitting on the toilet watching his shows. oh, and you can't see anything private in this picture. no worries. excuse the insane amount of clutter. yuck. and these aren't the finest pictures ever taken, but hopefully you get it.)

i barely remember why i was mad earlier.

and the last big monumental event of the day. you say, "can there be more?" oh yes. i'm wearing my wedding rings again. so? well, when i nurse, i can't wear my wedding rings because they dig into either henry or greta's skin. well, this morning marked the last morning i will ever nurse a baby. i'm sad about it. i won't lie. but i am less stressed. and it is for the best for both of us.

oh, my little man

(ok, here's the preface: for those of you who do NOT want to read something dorky and highly cheesy, please feel free to visit another website at this time.)

this morning something big happened. big h went to play at a friend's house.

without me.

this is so big. this is a FIRST! tears upon tears when i actually realized what had just happened. i am overwhelmed with pride.

a little history. henry has little friends that he plays with. most are the children of my friends or buz's. so they are kind of friends by association, if you will. so he started mothers' day out last year and absolutely loved it. so we signed him up again. around october, he came home one day and said that he had "a new friend called CJ." not a friend named CJ or just a friend CJ. a friend called CJ. i inquired about this. his teachers informed me that there was a new kid at school, and big h had befriended him. so cute. well, CJ is into trains. selling point #1 for this kid. CJ is a boy. selling point #2. (there were only 2 boys in his class at the time.) and CJ liked big h. selling point #3. so i started seeing his mommy at school when i would drop h off and pick him up. finally, his mom asked if we wanted to get together sometime. i, of course, said yes, feeling like i had said yes to a first date with someone. getting together with other moms is kind of like stay-at-home mom dating. it's a strange phenomenon. i digress.

so this morning, i told h what we were doing today, and he couldn't believe it. honestly, i don't think he could understand how in the world we could see CJ but not at school. still a very hard concept. he asked if he could play with his toys when he got there. i told him he would have to ask. so i suggested we practice asking. "CJ, please i play with your toys?" (in the voice none other than henry's. priceless.) so we get there, and CJ and his mommy come out to greet us. there is 3-year-old conversation between the boys about trains and being glad to see one another. cute enough. and then h whispers, "mommy, i ask now?" i didn't know what he meant, but i said sure. and he says, "CJ, please i play with your toys?" i'm crying at this point. then, we get out of the car, and he wants to wear his backpack. (thanks, bff.) crying more. then, he marches off with his friend and turns around and says, "mommy, you be back, huh?" and that was it.

now i'm home feeding the goo and going to lay down for a minute, as i don't feel so hot. reason for me not staying to play in the first place.

thank you, CJ's mommy. i owe you one.

will send update of the morning.

my little man is growing up.

some recent pictures...

for no reason.

you've heard me talk about my child's interest in photography. this is big h trying to take a picture with a tripod. all his idea. "see mama, you put your eye on this black thing and take a picture, ok?"

and big h telling us where to stand. bossing us around. :)

big h and dad working in the garage. safety 1st.

the goo in her christmas dress. you'll notice that the right side appears a little darker than the left side. yeah, that's my pitiful attempt at cleaning up ALL of her spit up right before i took the picture.

and i know this isn't that great of a picture, but i HAD to get one of her smiling. she DOES smile, i promise. :)

we are slowly coming back

well, there is light at the end of the tunnel. the wisners chose to ring in the new year with a trip to the pediatric urgent care on monday. we are always looking for a good time. we didn't really notice that he didn't touch his dinner on new years' eve. we just thought he was too caught up in the moment. monday morning he wakes up and doesn't want breakfast. ok, now i assume something is wrong. when big doesn't want "TWO DINGS AND SOME NOH-NEE, OKAY?" (that is in caps for a reason. he says it extremely loud.) translation here: 2 eggos (they make a ding noise coming out of the toaster. hence, ding.) and noh-nee is milk. always has been. probably always will be. why? no idea. in the beginning stages of his communication, he was making up some way out there words. noh-nee stuck. even though he can say milk, doesn't matter. noh-nee it is.

back to my sob story.

he lays around all day on new years' day. doesn't sleep at all that night and joins us in our bed. translation: no one sleeps. we don't have a problem with those of you who have kids who sleep in your bed. my brother's kids do. but we don't get ANY sleep with henry that close to us. lays around all day tuesday and all day wednesday. finally, wednesday afternoon, his fever is STILL 102, and i am worried. so i take him to see dr. goebel, who henry thinks is actually part of our family. he loves this guy so much. wants to hug and kiss him and will do almost anything for him. strange.

no strep. no flu. suggests getting a chest x-ray on friday if fever is not down. but is stumped by this viral infection of sorts. mind you...h hasn't eaten since sunday. he lays around all day yesterday too. but by this time, mom is ready to get back into the real world. feel a breath of fresh air. pretty sure the goo is sharing cabin fever with mom. so today, we brave it. we meet bff at the mall. we were late. i HATE being late. (bff, i can't apologize enough. again...i am SO SORRY for being late.)

i don't think h was ready to brave it yet. there was lots of whining to be done. lots of fits because we couldn't stay at the puppet store longer. fits because we couldn't buy anything at the puppet store. (since when does my kid know anything about puppets?) whining because we had to go eat lunch. whining about what to have for lunch. whining about having to leave the lunch place because that meant a nap was in his future. you get the drift. i'm sure bff was pleased to enjoy our company. we were a joy to be around. the goo, on the other hand, was well...the goo. she fell asleep in the baby bjorn. how does one fall asleep in this contraption? who knows. but she did. i love this little girl.

home for naps for all. ah...

dad came home and we were off for some exquisite dining. pizza slices at sam's. where else can you get a piece of pizza, kids claritin, enough shout for 2 months, and enough garbage bags for 4 months ALL in the same place?

who knows what tomorrow will hold? but at the rate we're going, the sky's the limit.

nothing says happy new year like...

seriously, i don't think i can remember when i last got this excited! tonight we had the pattisons over.

big h gets along with their kid so well. they play together, only not together. if that make sense. so i fixed tostadas (i am so incredibly fancy) and homemade guacamole and a black eyed pea salsa that my buddy davis gave me the recipe for. the taste of mine doesn't even come close to hers. but then again, she fixes hors d'oerves for me just when i come by to pick up some hand-me-downs. (you just have to know davis.) buz got champagne. i mean, it was the whole nine yards. this was no half-a__ party. i bathed, nursed, and put the goo to bed. and then, it was time.

time to break out the hickory farms beef stick (which buz calls the meat log), smoky bar, and sweet hot mustard. i look forward to the ceremonial opening of these products all. year. long.

and to my surprise, the pattisons were equally excited. poor buz. he could've cared less. a disgrace, i tell you. his loss.

and it was everything i hoped it would be.

so now before we sit in front of dick clark's new year's rockin' eve, buz and i are getting ready to go over our yearly personal "goals" and how we can love each other more and perhaps differently over the upcoming year. over some sparkly.

and, of course, some more meat log.

happy new year.

(and for some reason, blogger will not let me skip lines. hmmm...oh well)