Just because...

Little Man rarely stands still long enough for me to catch him on film.

He's being "cool" with his sunglasses on.

Sunday morning, bright and early, Zee and I are taking the boys to the beach for 3 full days of rest, relaxation (as much as there can be with a toddler and a preschooler) and SUN. We'll be staying with our bestest friends and letting the boys be boys. My list of things I have to accomplish before I go is daunting (and causing my backs to have stress induced spasms) but we'll get there one way or another.

Oh and did I mention there would be sun? and a beach? (and maybe some muscle relaxers?)

Is there such a thing as being too responsible?

Part of me has always dreamed of being one of those people who could fly by the seat of their pants… be super spontaneous… pick up and go without a thought. Weekend trips to who knows where. Last minute trips with the kids to explore someplace new.

I’m not. Not at all. I’m a Planner – with a capital P. I have to figure out all the little details of how it will work and how it will affect all parties involved. For me, being spontaneous often feels like I’m being irresponsible. And being irresponsible is not an option… not for an oldest child and definitely not for a mommy with strong willed children.

Every once in while though, a thought will pop into my head. Something seemingly irresponsible, but super fun. It usually involves visiting someone or someplace that I love. (One of these thoughts ended me with student loans and 2 weeks in Germany. It was oh so worth it!) Last night one of these thoughts started to brew. It won’t go away. Not that I’m pushing hard for it to leave. It’s there tossing and turning. Trying to convince my husband that it’s ok. We’ll see how this turns out. If I can make it work.

My fingers are crossed.

PS.

Zee, I realize this is what your days are like because you take care of my children. I'm so sorry.

Hostile Work Environment

If you got up each morning and went to work to face kicking, screaming, hitting, biting, being told that you are hated, that your "coworkers" want to make you cry and having to repeatedly clean up poop... what would you do? I would quit. Unfortunately, I'm describing my morning with Little Man and quitting isn't an option. He's out of control and I don't know what to do. I feel guilty for going to work, mostly because I relish a day without the fights and confrontation. No one yells at me. When I ask a question, people respond. When I delegate, the work gets done. I feel like a person and instead of punching bag. But then I wonder if it would be this bad if I was here everyday. I'm at a loss...

I take YOUR picture!

I hear this phrase whenever Little Man happens to spot the camera. Unfortunately that seems to be pretty often lately. In an effort to divert his attention from the camera and taking scary pictures of me and our messy apartment, I introduced him to PhotoBooth. The results:

realizing what PhotoBooth does

playing with the effects part 1

playing with the effects part 2

The next series of pictures is what happened when Zizi showed him the options to take 4 pics in a row:

We now have over a 100 pictures like this and in x-ray effect (his two favorites). At 3 and half he knows how to open the program and get it all set up by himself... thank goodness for passwords.

The race...

... was Saturday and we've all survived. Many thanks to Zee and Wil for being so supportive! I couldn't have done it without them. Check out the results here. Scroll all the way to the bottom to see the most adorable Hospice volunteer there is!