Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Kids....You Gotta Luv Em

Rylee was sitting next to me on the couch actually letting me read to her when out of nowhere she pats my belly. It was like she had never seen it before. She was amazed by it and kept looking at it from different angles. As I am looking at her looking at me I'm wondering what is going through her 3 year old head. And then, as all 3 year olds do, she said what was going on in her head. "You got a baby in your belly?" "Uhhhh Nooooo" I answered. But I couldn't help but laugh because she was so serious.

This brought back memories of comments from all three of the kids:

"You have a little belly and a big belly?" Rylee upon coming eye to 'little belly' contact with me in my workout pants.

"Mommy, you have a belly like Santa Claus. I love your belly" Molly patting my belly when she was about 3.

"Your bum starts waaaaayyyyyy up here (presses the small of my back ---- yes i wrote back) and ends waaaaayyyyy down here (presses against back of my thighs). Again Molly, probably a week or so after the Santa Claus comment.

"I love your legs, they are just like fluffly pillows" Cody while settling in for a little nap on my lap, I'd say he was about 3. I'm seeing a pattern here.

"Mom, at least you have 6 pack legs" Molly after riding her bike behind me while I was running with Rylee in the jogger. "Uhhhhh thanks Molly but that would be CELLULITE". She was trying to make me feel good because Cody had just explained to her what 6 pack abs were and when she asked me if I had 6 pack abs I laughed and said no.

Ahhhh the joys of motherhood. I have to go now. Time to do some situps and leg lifts. LOL

Sunday, August 24, 2008

River Shots

Pictures from the river. The kids going down the "falls" and horsing around in the water.






Archery Shots


Archery in Stamford. Cody and I shooting and then some pictures of Molly and Rylee enjoying themselves along the way.















































I love this shot of Rylee. She's such a princess. Definately not attire normally worn for a hike through the woods!

Time to say Goodbye to the Weekend

Weekends are usually jam packed for me. Sometimes, I look forward to the work week because the weekends are so so busy. Especially during the kids' sports that over-ride each other. Like when soccer is overlapping with hockey or when lacrosse starts and hockey is winding down. Summers, from July through August, are typically our "slow" time. That is to say that there is generally only one or two things scheduled. This weekend was all about enjoyment. And some self-reflection and appreciation.

Weekend at a glance:

Friday night school shopping with Molly and her best friend. I really did well, biting my tongue when she was picking out things she didn't need and paying too much for a wallet (it is her money after all) but my tongue would have come off if I didn't stop chewing on it when she walked out of Hollisters with 3 shirts and a sweater and no money left. Sweater $39.99. Two short sleeve t-shirt (that were so thin I don't even feel right calling them t-shirts) $24.99 EACH. Long sleeve t-shirt $34.99. That put me over the edge. I marched my fat ass back in that store with the bag and the receipt and came back out with her money. I did let her keep the sweater but WTF!!!

Street hockey on Saturday morning. The games were very close and very competitive. My highlight ----- one 12 year old boy yelled "Jesus Christ" while getting roughed up protecting the goal. I was keeping score and said "Hey there D, no swearing". He stopped right in the middle of the play, looked at me with honest to goodness confusion and responded "Jesus Christ is a swear?" OMG too funny.

Boating on Saturday afternoon and into the early evening. So. Much. Fun. Who knew sitting in the middle of a lake tied up to two other boats could be so much fun? Rylee loved it and Molly was such a fish. She spent the majority of the time in the water instead of on the boat. My friends got a kick out of the two of them and how good they are. No crying or whining or annoying anyone. They are fun to have around!

Picked up Cody on Saturday night. He had so much fun on vacation with our friends. They totally spoiled him. He went to the water park, he went para-sailing 800 ft above the water, he played laser tag, and they stayed in a 4 level condo that was right on the beach. He was so happy to see all of us and we were happy to see him too. It was a long week without him but so worth it.

Archery on Sunday morning. I couldn't get the kids up and out by 8:00 so we missed shooting the course with some friends but we still had a good time. Cody's bow just got fixed so it took a few adjustments and a little while to get him shooting in groups again and the practice shots for me were all over the place but I didn't take the time to make any adjustments. And then, right before we were heading out to the course Rylee's dad came out of the woods after finishing the first half. Archery was something we used to do every summer and I have to admit the first couple of times I went last summer were a little hard on me emotionally. This year I have been fine with it but I did get a little shook up the first time a few weeks ago that he was on the same course as me. It took me until about the 6th target to finally calm down and then I've been fine ever since. Til today when he was with HER at archery. My head started swirling: I mean archery is my thing not hers. Her thing is horses and it does not bother me in the least when they take Rylee to a horse show or whatever but why, I was thinking, does he have to bring her here???? So my feathers were ruffled the first half of the course but then I calmed down like I always do and by the time I met up with them so Rylee could leave I was absolutely fine. HER and I talked about the kids and work and some other things and everything was back to normal. In retrospect, I realize that I just need baby steps sometimes. So now when she goes to archery I'll be fine. Til she starts shooting, and then I will need a little time to absorb that and then I will fine again. It just takes time. And she's a good person and I'm a good person and he is even a good person and it all works out eventually. So now I feel good and strong and I shot SO much better the second half of the course, which is all I wanted to do.

It was such a warm and beautiful day so after archery we decided that we would go swimming. Since we didn't have Rylee we could go in the river instead of the pond so we grabbed a couple of the kids' friends and we headed over to the Green River. They had a ball floating through the rocks and down the river and then challenging themselves by swimming against the current. At first I was sitting up on the hill relaxing and listening to their screams of fun. And first Molly and then Cody came up to see when I was going to jump in with them. So I went down the hill and waded into the river and soon I was swimming against the current too and Cody was showing me how to do the doggy paddle the right way (who knew there was a wrong way?!) and their friends came up and they started showing me how they go down through the rocks. It was fun and I felt like a kid myself. After a little while I was standing on a rock watching them and I thought "Damn I am so lucky in so many ways". First, the river was absolutely beautiful and so refreshing and I'll bet there are so many people that could never get to enjoy that kind of experience. We live in such an awesome place in the country and I just love it so much. Second, the kids are 14 and 12 and they still want me around some of the time. It dawned on me when they were so glad that I came down to jump in with them. Every one of them couldn't wait to show me something they tried and then wanted me to try it too. Third, I have some really really great friends. I know that all the time but it really hit me today because the weekend was so good because of all of my friends who just take such good care of me and my kids.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

No Chicken Here

I did it. I did it and I can't believe I did it. 8 1/2 inches donated to Pantene Beautiful Lengths. There's a story and some history about this that I may share sometime soon. Not today because we are off to the lake to go boating and swimming and RELAXING!!!

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Wordless Wednesday: Chop Chop Tomorrow....

.....if I don't chicken out. But actually, now that I see the back of my hair from this view, I can't wait to get it cut tomorrow.


Friday, August 15, 2008

TGIF: No Kids for the Weekend (almost!)

I know so many parents that say they could never handle a weekend without their offspring. I. Am. Not. One. Of. Them. I am so looking forward to having some free time this weekend. I may visit a friend. I may paint my bedroom. I may read a book (doubt it-but maybe a magazine). Or, I may do nothing. I may do nothing. I may do nothing...I like the sounds of that.

I am not entirely kid free but the little one is staying with her dad from 9:00 tonight til whenever I decide to pick her up on Sunday. This is a first so we'll see how it goes. All three of my kids take after me that they love to be away from home so I know she will be fine. Cody is heading to the ocean with a friend of his for the week and Molly will be around but only as much as a 14 year old hangs around Mom. I will be bringing her to street hockey Saturday morning but when I leave to go to a friend's surprise 40th at 3:00, she's heading to my mother's for the evening.

And I will be with friends, during daylight hours. Wow. Normally, when I want to do something with friends, minus the kids, the start time is after 9:00 pm. That is when I feel as though I can leave them with my mother or father or home. After they have been settled in. Not. This. Weekend.

So again, I may visit a friend. I may paint my bedroom. I may read a book (doubt it-but maybe a magazine). Or, I may do nothing. I may do nothing. I may do nothing...I like the sounds of that.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Wordless Wednesday: Putting Faces to Names

Here I am. Molly and her friends snapped this before one of her hockey games. Yes we are in a bathroom. Some day there will be girls' locker rooms at every rink we play at!



This is Rylee....she's all strapped in and on her way to hockey. That's where she is every Saturday and Sunday from September to April every year. She loves it though.




This is Cody....we were 4 wheeling in Stamford back in April. Yes April, with lots of snow still.


This is Molly.....she loves to take pictures of herself, as do all her friends. What else would they do with their cell phones? LOL

Monday, August 11, 2008

All About Me.....and My Family

Wow, I seemed to have finally found some time to sit down and start my very own blog. I am completely new to this and will learn as I go but I am sooooo excited. I got hooked on a friend's blog that I discovered after our 20th high school reunion in November and have been shamelessly stalking hers ever since. Her writing is just awesome and she has some really great stories about her adorable young girls and her life in New Jersey. I never knew she was so funny and talented and smart and I have enjoyed reading all her posts. Since I am a blog virgin, I will inevitably be stealing ideas from her from time to time. Like the 102 random facts post that I just re-read and that you have to read. Pause while you go check it out....See, isn't she awesome?

I am pretty much from and part of a modern day dysFUNctional family. That is to say that holidays and parties can and do include my mother, my father, his wife, my ex boyfriend's mother, his children from his ex-girlfriend, sometimes his siblings and their kids and then of course all my wonderful and very understanding friends. It is unusual (or not when you are from these parts) but it works and what doesn't work gets worked through....that is just the way it is.

I have three really awesome children that drive me crazy but as my 14 year old says, that is what kids are supposed to do. And when I have to ground her I use her reasoning and tell her that is what moms are supposed to do. Her name is Molly and she is so funny and and pretty and very friends oriented. She reminds me of me in many ways and once I realized that, our relationship changed for the better. A professor told me once that the things that irritate you about someone irritate you because it is a reflection of you and the things that you are not happy with in yourself. I tried to discard that because I thought he was just rambling but I got into the habit of re-evaluating my thoughts every time I found myself annoyed with someone and for the most part, I have found him to be correct. And I find that with Molly. I never work really really hard at something and I am definitely not a goal oriented person, and neither is Molly. But I have learned that that is not a bad thing, just a little different than most people and she will find her way, just like me.

Cody, my 12 year old, is just the opposite. He gives 100% every time and he is highly competitive (unlike me who slows down in running races so I don't get the person in front of me nervous). His first hockey coach gave a speech after they won a tournament and when it was time to say something about Cody, he said that Cody epitomizes what every coach wants in a player. And that sums up Cody as an athlete, as a student, and as a friend. People think that he should become a politician. He wants to be an engineer and he would be good as a salesman or a chef or a wildlife biologist. His interests run wide and deep (like me!) and he will be successful no matter what he does.

Rylee, my three year old is a trip. She is such a natural athlete and she has the memory of a [insert animal w/ great memory here]. She always amazes me when we drive by something or go somewhere and she can tell me who she was with the last time she was there and what they did, etc. She has the attitude and language of a 14 year old...hmmm...wonder where she gets that. Her favorite expressions are OMG, what the heck, Noooo way, and her favorite songs are Shut up n Drive, Keep Bleeding, Summertime, and Rockstar. Last year it was Suicidal....there is absolutely nothing like walking up from the lake with your 2 year old 8 steps behind you singing "Su-i-cidal, Su-i-cidal" over and over while aimlessly strolling with her bucket of sand toys. Just great.

I have an ex-husband who is the father of Molly and Cody. I always credited him with staying around these parts after our divorce because he is not from here. But, in September, with three days notice to me he packed up and moved to South Dakota to be near his father and brother. The kids were able to fly out at Thanksgiving to see him and meet their relatives for the first time but have not been back since. I'm guessing it will be years before he has the funds to fly them out again.

I also have an ex-boyfriend who is the father of Rylee (yeah I'm from NA, kids with multiple dads LOL). To say it was a surprise pregnancy is an understatement but things happen for a reason and I can't even imagine life without her. We were together about 7 years and split up in February of 2007. A month later I lost the best job ever and the rest of 2007 followed that same downward spiral. Everything is back on track now and we (the kids & I) are a work in progress.

So there is a quick intro to me and the kids. I'm really looking forward to posting about the funny things that go on in my quirky little life and I hope the kids will enjoy it one day. I know Molly will hate that I write anything about her so I may keep it my little secret for a while.