Where's the sarcasm emoticon?

Do you know what I love?

I just love when I am able to grab a quick shower in the morning. I really do.

And I love when I can find some warm clothes in a hurry. Nice.

I also love when I can pack Josiah's lunch in 45 seconds flat. Mwahahaha.

Finding a hat to cover my still soaked hair in order that my hair not turn into a helmet of icicles and make me a Medusa look-alike makes me very happy too. (Of course, the hat keeping me warm is lovely too.) Yep, I love that.

Love love love when the other boys don't throw a fit about not being able to go to the corner with us to catch the school bus.

I LOVE when we don't miss the bus.

But do you know what I love the most?

I just love it when I get back inside my house after having put Josiah on the bus and having waved at the bus driver, look in the mirror, AND see that I look like Alice Cooper with my leftover eye makeup having run in the shower. I. Love. That.

Excuse me while I clean up my keyboard. My sarcasm seems to have dripped all over it.

Be Careful Who You Go Home With

Nathan came home from school today proudly carrying his adorable little pie pumpkin. He picked it out for himself at Port Farms which is where the Pre-K and Kindergarten classes went for their field trip.

Aw.... Isn't that a cute li'l pumpkin?

So little.

So round.

So orange.

Aw.

Well. This isn't the actual pumpkin Nathan brought home.

I'm not releasing the real pumpkin's identity until the family has been notified.

Little did the pumpkin know it was entering .... the HOUSE OF HORRORS.

First, Nathan cut it open with a butter knife. (So it would hurt more)

Then he pestered me to make it into a pie. (More like he wanted me to dispose of the evidence)
He helped me scrape the guts out, then put the poor little pumpkin parts in a pan of water and bake it down in the oven at 350 degrees to mush before the skin itself was removed!

MWAHAHA MWAHAHAHAHA!

ehem.

This is all that's left of the cute li'l pie pumpkin.

For now.

Lots of Bodies

Overheard on the way to Nathan's Pre-K.

Nathan: "See that?" *points to the cemetery as we drive by* "There are BODIES in there."

Noah: *surprised gasp* (This in itself had me laughing inwardly.) Then a comforting "That's okaaay."

Nathan: "It's NOT okay! People DIED! From our TOWN!!"

I wish I had real life DVR so I could rewind and see the expressions on their faces as they had this passionate discussion. Is there anything cuter than a 4 year old and a (nearly) 3 year old having a serious discussion? Probably not.

Questions are Good, Right?

It's school time again and Nathan is attending Pre-Kindergarten this year. Yesterday, his first day went so well that he claimed he wasn't ready for us to pick him up yet. Apparently we were NOT missed. Nathan said he did spinning and crocodiling (which he demonstrated for us).

This morning as we were getting ready for his second day of school I had him sit on a chair so that I could tie his shoes for him. It was then that he asked me, "Why do you have big chestses?" I quickly ruled out answering "Because I'm a girl" since he sees a lot of little girls without "big chestes" and didn't want to have more questions this morning about why they don't and, well.... I just said, "Because I'm a mommy." That line works for so much!

If you are having a hard time figuring out what "chestses" means, just remove the double plural and you'll get down to the root word. Okay? Okay.

P.S. Don't worry. We'll work on correct terms and pluralizing another day.

Racing Report

Our family went to the Lake Erie Speedway this weekend. There was noise, cars, speed, noise, spin outs, breakdowns, noise, wrecks, and bleachers.

I think the boys liked the races. I am certain that they loved the bleachers. My conversation went a lot like this: Oh my cow! Can you sit still please! Look at those cars. Sit. Here. Which one do you think will win? Stop bumping the people in front of us. Did you see that? Hold still. Get him over here! I missed what happened. Your car came in last again, John.

We ended up leaving early (which was already past the boys' bedtime) but we had watched several short races.

The next morning I had Josiah write in his journal. (I'm trying to keep him in the practice of writing while school is out...unlike me.) He wrote something like this: Last night we went to the race track. I brought my money but my mom told me I couldn't buy anything. Really?? That's what stuck out to you? Not the wrecks? the spin outs? the cars? Well... glad I could make an impression.

Brown Nosing Comes Naturally

Sometimes you get appreciation when you least expect it.

Not long ago, Nathan asked me if they could go outside. I told him and Eli, "Sure. You can go in the backyard." Most often this is followed by a whiny "But I want to go out front!" (If you have children, I'm sure you can imagine the sound of this statement accurately.) However, this time Nathan exclaimed, "Oh, THANK you, Mommy! That is so nice! I really like you for my mommy!"

What? Where did that come from? And please keep it coming. Thank you.

Size-wise

My nephew, Eli, caught his first catfish! HUGE. LIKE A FOOT LONG! Only it wasn't.
Amazing how a little perspective changes things...

Actually, things are still the same; now you just know the true size of the matter.

(Eli still didn't want to get anywhere near that fish though.)

Tough Yet Sensitive

Our family went to the park last Saturday evening. The boys played on the playground, ran on the tennis courts, and ventured toward the trees. Then we did it. We walked through the woods to the other side of the park to play on the other playground, the old playground (which is more fun than the new playground).

The path through the woods is wide and well worn as well as full of mosquitoes. Okay. Maybe not full but I was bit twice. Twice in a short little walk. And as we walked I noticed a little bump on Josiah's eyelid. "Josiah, I think a mosquito bit your eyelid! Did you feel that?" No. He was oblivious and even after I pointed it out, he could hardly tell it was there. I was amazed that he didn't feel the bump on his eyelid that looked sort of like a blister but not as transparent. One other thought that occurred to me was that I couldn't see a bite mark in the middle of the bump. Then we were distracted by cool things like lots of playing, walking, and watching a father and son practice batting before going home and getting the boys in bed.

Little did I know that things would be different in the morning....

One glance and "WHOA! Um. Josiah, your eye is swollen." *flashback to the little eyelid bump* When I asked about it, he said it didn't hurt and it itched just a little bit. I gave him some children's allergy medicine hoping that would relieve the swelling. Josiah was embarrassed at the thought of going to church like that and started searching for his pirate eye patch. Soon I noticed scraps of paper laying around. Hm. It wasn't long until I head an outcry from Josiah; Nathan had grabbed and crumpled the eye patch Josiah had been making for himself. It was then that I realized just how self-conscious Josiah was feeling. His self awareness is developing and shutting out the carefree obliviousness.

So he and I started afresh and made an eye patch together. I cut it out and found a strap. He came up with a clever way to attach the strap and decorated the front. Then we attached a cotton ball on the inside for comfort. Perfect.

Only it wasn't over. Josiah's eyelid was still red and swollen and almost swollen shut for awhile. We decided to wait it out and just make sure that whatever it was wasn't spreading. (Why do these things always seem to happen when the doctor's office is closed?) Finally, on Monday we could see improvement but Josiah still cocked his head to the side in order to look at you since his eye wouldn't open all the way.

With his top front tooth missing, a bottom front tooth missing, AND his eye swollen, he looked like he had been in a serious fight. Belinda said that he should have a shirt saying "YOU SHOULD SEE THE OTHER GUY."

At least with the noticeable improvement, the worrying and wondering came to an end. And eventually the swelling did too.

I'm not sure if we'll get Josiah back into the woods anytime soon...

Blogger's Block

You may have noticed that I haven't had much to share lately. No, that's incorrect. I just haven't shared much. I'm hogging my kids and their cuteness. Not intentionally, no. I think I have blogger's block. (You know, like writer's block?)

Today I was reading a friend's blog and she had two, no three good reports and I LOVE good reports. (especially when they are a long time coming). I left this comment:

I love hearing good reports! We should set up a service that searches out, confirms, then passes along good reports. Kind of like the News... but the opposite since they mainly deal in BAD reports and broadcast to millions (they hope) at once and my service would be more personal. A phone call. A note. A special delivery.

Then I thought to myself... maybe I should stop slacking off and start blogging again. I love sharing the joys in life, the blessings in the midst of difficulties, the humor of having kids, and, well, whatever comes to mind.

In keeping with the good reports...
Last night, my cat used his scratching pad instead of my carpet. (gasp) Miracles happen all the time. Okay, so that isn't a miracle but it is good and miracles DO happen.

Illiteracy is No Excuse

Josiah took it upon himself to clean and organize his dresser top two evenings ago. I was thrilled and joyfully noted that all my cleaning and organizing is not going unnoticed and I ignored the thought that it may have been a way to stall bedtime. Cleanliness comes before bedtime!

Not surprisingly, the other two boys raided his newly visible area and ate and/or wasted most of his remaining Easter candy when Josiah was at school the next day.

If there one thing I hate to see wasted, it's chocolate candy!

This morning I noticed a sign posted on Josiah's dresser. It stated:

If you take some thing from my dresser you will haft to pay 10$.

At first I didn't see the "10$" part and I thought "Whoa... that's some threat! This guy is serious about protecting his stuff." Noticing the "10$" on the end makes it less physically threatening and seems quite wise to me. Now I'm thinking of creating a Money for Messes program myself.

Too bad the other boys can't read your sign yet, Josiah.

The Library is "Base"

Some days there is only so much little boy bickering, whining, and fighting a person can take without getting sucked into the yelling game. Yesterday was just one of those days. I had to remove myself from the situation in order to retain my sanity.

So I escaped to the library by myself where I looked for novels that I love to read by authors' whose writing I enjoy. *contented sigh*

I found two by one author (Ted Dekker) and one by an unknown-to-me author which I thought I would give a try. Both John and I should enjoy these three. Then I selected two more from Francine Rivers which will be just for me. *contented sigh again*

But I didn't leave my boys out completely. When I went to the children's section, I spied this: Walter the Farting Dog. It could have been in neon lights. I mean, there aren't many things funnier and more entertaining to boys than farts! Farts. *snicker snicker* The only thing more amusing to my boys is "poop". Poop. Bwahahaha! She said "poop"!

Book report: I think this is the best farty book I've ever read. There is boys' laughter and delight with every page. The end.

Wishful

Rainy Days

Disturbing Disappearances

Strange things have been happening around here... (cue eerie music)

Things have gone missing and not just any kind of things... things that are vulnerable have seemingly vanished without a trace.

These are well loved and well worn things... better known as worn out or BrOkEn toys.

Only one or two mortally wounded toys have disappeared at a time and ONLY every other day or so. It has not been frequent enough to arouse the notice of the young toy "caretakers". (I use that term loosely.) It happens when everyone is distracted or in the dark of night. Once it even happened when the boys simply looked the other way.

You may wonder how I have noticed....

I confess: I did it. I personally disposed of the toys... and I LIKED it. I did it quickly and quietly and I'm certain that I'll do it again. The urge is just too strong to resist.

This house has been a broken toy sanctuary for far too long; the boys' protests cannot protect the misfits if they are not vigilant.

Mwahahaha!!

Yesssss... I did it and I'll do it again.

Signed,

The Serial Toy Killer

Treasured Moments

Noah gets into his favorite and well worn book.

Go Dog Go!

Mostly Well Most of the Time

People have asked me how I'm doing and I know by their eyes that they are referring to my miscarriage. Most of the time, I am well.

Sometimes sadness sneaks up on me. At school lunch duty last week, being in the midst of all the children, I started thinking of all the different personalities and wondered what my child may have been like. I was feeling blue the rest of that day.

You may think that being around babies or pregnant women might cause that reaction but they don't to me. Rejoicing in the blessings of others brings healing.

Sometimes it is the casual comments of an acquaintance that jolt me. For example, I missed a week of work and one of my co-workers was wondering about the accuracy of the schedule since one person had not been there the week before. I told her that that had been me and that I would be here now needlessly explaining I had missed the previous week because I had had to go to the hospital. In response, she compassionately said, "Oh no, I hope everything was okay." I could not say that it was. "No. It's not okay. I had a miscarriage." To this she responds, "O my God, I'm so sorry. I don't know what to say." (Sometimes that is the best thing to say.) I tell her not to feel bad but now I'm sorry that she's worried and uncomfortable.

A friend whom I had not seen for a long time saw my boys and asked about them and their ages. "This is Nathan; he's four. This is Noah; he's two. And my oldest, Josiah, went in through another door." She commented on how big they are getting then pointing to Noah, she said, "He's your littlest? I guess you don't have a baby anymore!" That sinks in to my heart. "No. No, I don't" I don't tell her just how accurate that statement is. She was simply enjoying my children.

There have been other moments that grief has reared up but I am mostly well. Hope and joy remain.

"I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!" ~Psalm 27:13-14

Wardrobe Malfunction

I was getting ready for church on Sunday morning and my slacks are a bit long (because, yes, I'm short) so I need a pair of shoes with some height to them.

My silver platforms! At least that's what I call them. I'm not good with the whole shoe name world. "These will work great", I think ... until I crouch down to put shoes on one of the little gentlemen and I hear a SNAP then SLAP. That's right. The sole to my shoe just broke off. But the heel is secure.

So do I find other shoes? I need height. I can't wear brown with my black and grey ensemble!
Time is running out... I must decide quickly and I do. I grab my tube of super glue and glue that sucker back together. Success!

We finish getting ready, gather everything, and head out the door. As I come down the steps, the sole comes completely off again. There's no turning back now. Oh, no. The boys are in the car. I grab my sole and drive us to church with super glue tucked inside the diaper bag.

The shoe is still walkable but I'm off kilter and not able to glide so I assess the situation again. To glue or not to glue?

I look at my broken shoe; I look at my healthy shoe. Suddenly, it is clear to me what must be done.

I crouch again. Bounce a little. And I CRACK then pull apart my remaining good shoe. Yes I did. Now they're even.

This was the last walk for the silver shoes.

Good-bye, Shoes. You were fun and did your task well... even in your structurally compromised state. May you rest in peace.

P.S. I'm very thankful that I did not fall on my face even IF it would have made a better story. And what's up with the pictures posting sideways? I certainly don't know.

Just a Thought

Some thoughts just seem more complete on a Post-It.

Through the Eyes of a Child

Not long after our miscarriage, Nathan, my 4 year old, approached me and asked "Is the baby still in your belly?". (I hadn't told him yet since I didn't know how much he would understand.) So I answered him, "No, Honey. Something happened. I had to go to the hospital... Mommy and Daddy are sad because we couldn't see the baby or bring the baby home." Then Nathan asked, "Is the baby in heaven?" "Yes", I said, "Jesus is taking good care of our baby."

With his new knowledge, Nathan made some quick plans. "Let's go to heaven and see our baby!" I had to tell him, "We can't go to heaven until Jesus comes to get us or until we die and go to heaven." Not a problem. Nathan fit that right into our schedule for the day. "First we'll go to Grandma and Grandpa's house then we'll die and go to heaven."

Nathan is such a delight.

And He said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. " Matthew 18:3

Big Plans

He didn't walk a mile... but he did try a few steps. Being big is a lot of work.

Encroachment

Josiah, is there not enough space in this house designated for your toys?

Must they take over my counter too?

Perhaps you need some shelves....

It looks like Bike Night around here.

I wonder if that Lego man is just a little bit nervous.

Ponytails Are Safer!

Some young, single, fashionable women may wonder why it is that mothers with young children tend to wear their hair in ponytails. Well, I'll tell you...

Once upon a time (exactly 48 hours ago) in a place very close to here (approximately 8 to 10 feet from where I now sit), I attempted to take a quick shower. Now I only had two young ones in the house and I let them play in the fenced-in backyard thinking that perhaps there would be less screams of bloody murder if they had more room in which to entertain themselves. Well, I was right on that account.

As I am enjoying the warm water washing away the tiredness and dirt and stickiness and, well, you get it, I get so far as to finish shampooing when Nathan knocks on the door. (No surprise there.) "What?", I ask. Nathan's voice comes through the door, "Noah got out the gate!" "WHAT?!", I repeat. "GET HIM! GET HIM!" Yes, I did sic my son on his brother. I hurriedly rinse off and grab a towel hoping to God that I don't have to run out front in this state or that the neighbors are gone or inside or something, anything other than outside to witness this spectacle that is unfolding.

I rush to the side door and, thankfully, am able to stop short. Noah is in my car. No, he's not allowed to play in my car but he's not in the street and the neighbors can't see us! I tell Nathan to shut the car door. Yes, I did. I had Noah shut inside the car because he doesn't know how to open the doors from the inside yet. Now with Noah under wraps, I commanded Nathan to stand by the door and keep an eye on his brother.

With my children once again contained, I could rush through getting dressed before promptly retrieving Noah from the car, yelling something about never leaving the backyard without permission until enough loud words had been spoken to satisfy my angst.

Then I took a dog leash and tied that gate shut.

The end.

P.S. My hair just had to go without conditioner until the next available shower. No hair was damaged during this story.

A Love Letter

My Sweet Little One,

I have loved you from the first day I learned of you. I have dreamed of you and made plans for you. I've wondered if you would be another little gentleman or my first little lady. I wish I could have held your gaze, touched your tiny fingers, and counted your little toes. To have met you face to face was my heart's desire.

I wish you could have been here longer with us.

Now we must wait.

Though my heart breaks with longing for you, I know I will see you one day on the other side of eternity. I love you.

Spiteful Sofa

Dear Couch,

I hate you. Let me be clear. You are supposed to be "a piece of furniture on which several may sit or one may recline; also, a bed, or any place of repose". Apparently you haven't read the dictionary OR you are so hateful yourself that you certainly let me "recline" but did not allow me to sleep comfortably. All I required of you was a place of rest so I could avoid the germ-coughing husband. Instead, I was mostly sleepless and my back and hip hurt. I concur that if I plastered my back against your back, things were greatly improved but I have a need to move sometimes. So was that some kind of power trip to keep me close? That's no way to cuddle.

Feeling spiteful and a little sore too,
Sarah

P.S. I did go to Bed and it was delightful!

P.P.S. Josiah spells your name "calch". So there. I hope your offended... until I need to sit on you again. This letter is all about the sleeping aspect. I know, I know. You make a fine seat especially with the help of pillows.

Robot Wives are Mostly Nice

The boys are watching Dave install a new screen door at Grandma and Grandpa's house. (They wanted a new door just because the old one started locking them out all the time. Whatever.)

During this time, I have learned that Nathan has a wife! A robot wife. He built it himself. (Yes, he does watch Phineas and Ferb. No, I don't think they have ever built a wife on the show.) His wife doesn't let him have sawhorses but she does let him have a tractor. His wife also wants him to touch the toolbox.

This is all news to me. He has kept this under wraps until now. I'm just glad that I'm not the only one enforcing some restrictions around here anymore. Maybe he'll listen to his robot wife since he built her and all.

The next time he doesn't like what I have to say... I can just "remind" him that his wife says "You have to eat your vegetables."

I can work with this.

Let Me Sum Up - Post It Style

If you would like to make your own post-its, you can click on SupahMommy's Post It and play along!

Questionable Phone Manners

We were having a family discussion about April Fools Day. Okay, I was telling my kids about April Fools and I was laughing about one particular joke I and my friends pulled off but when the joke was revealed the jokees didn't think it was funny. In fact, they were downright mad about it. But we still thought it funny and we laughed and laughed. You remember the one, Heidi?

At one point I told Josiah,who didn't even fall for the "your shoelaces are untied" joke (Smart Alec.), that our good friend loves to fool people on every April 1st and will come up with elaborate schemes to pull them off involving multiple people. Then Josiah started asking me all about the schemes and the hows and the whys and the whos and the *sigh*. Let's just say he has a lot of questions. After trying to answer some of the questions, I came up with a brilliant idea.

"Do you want to call Becky and ask her if Randy fooled anyone today?"

Josiah must have thought this is a good idea too because he agreed to it so I dialed my cell phone for him and handed it to him. *whew* Mission accomplished.

His phone conversation goes like this: wawawa (That's Becky. Imagine the Charlie Brown cartoon's adult voices, please.) "Did Randy joke anyone today?" wawawa? "Did Randy joke anybody today?" wawa. wawawawa. Then Josiah pushes END.

I am incredulous. "Did you just hang up on Becky?!" Yes, he did because obviously I have failed at teaching my children phone manners. *hangs head in shame* So I did the only thing I could. I called Becky back and talked to her for a few minutes ... until we drove through a "dead zone" and my phone hung up on her AGAIN.

So I called her again. And this time I said both "Hello" and "Goodbye"!

I'm so sorry for pestering you, Becky. It may happen again.

An Exercise in Futility

Why, Mr. Tiger, are you attempting to clean yourself while you continue to lay in the mud?

What? What's that you say? Why... yes, I am cleaning my house today. Point taken.

I Love Post It Notes

Do you have any random thoughts today? You can play along on your blog by clicking on Supah's Post It Note below OR leave a comment here OR, even better, play along AND leave a comment!

Pacing

Do you ever feel like you are going and going and getting nowhere?

This guy was determined to get into the other side of his exhibit. Unknown to him, the zoo keepers had cleaned his pool and were in the process of refilling it. That side wouldn't have been safe for him. He was frustrated and just kept walking in and backing out... over and over again.

Perhaps your frustrating delay is for your own benefit too? Often only time will tell. So what do we do? I think we just do what we know to do and try not to "borrow" worries about tomorrow. Sometimes it just helps knowing you are not alone.

Everyone Gets Tired Sometimes

And I'll be sure to snap your picture when you fall asleep... especially on a road trip.

This is Micah. He is using the Slump method. It's when you just relax where you're sitting and don't even bother with the head nods. It's a good way to prevent the Open Mouth side effect though you may have Stiff Neck syndrome later.

Holly used the I'm Going to Get Comfy and Sleep method. This method requires a pillow and whatever else you can put between you and the hard wall of the vehicle. This method does have its risks. Notice the slightly parted mouth but her neck muscles will probably remain unknotted.

Dave goes for the Relaxing at the Beach method. This requires a seat in front of you to either prop your legs against or over. The Slump and Slide move keeps you from the Open Mouth and Snoring risks. Although I could say he was snoring and he couldn't prove otherwise since he and all the other witnesses were sleeping at the time...

My Dad managed to pull off the I'm Really Awake but Resting my Eyes look. He was definitely out though. It's a good thing he didn't use the Head Back method; he would definitely have the Snoring effect and startle himself awake.

And since I'm a good sport... I took a picture of myself sleeping.

It took me a few tries since I couldn't stop laughing and then I woke up everyone else with my hysterics.

But I was determined. Pretty good, huh? It's the I Don't Have Anywhere to Lay my Head but Back method. Open Mouth is a given with this particular sleep position. Micah told me the only thing missing with my picture was some drool. I wish I had thought of that.

Or maybe I should be mad at Micah for insinuating that I drool...

The Effects of Spring

Spring is here!

And with Spring came Spring Fever. Noah has a severe case of it. His case of Spring Fever is so bad that no weather conditions dampen his pull to the Great Outdoors. No amount of "Wait" "After lunch" "In a minute." "Not today." or other related terms are acceptable. His mantra is Must. Go. Out!

It is so bad that I've had to bolt the doors. No, not the dead bolt (he knows how to undo those), I have to do the latches that are up so high he can't reach them with a chair. Otherwise, if I do such things as shower, vacuum, go upstairs, or turn around for a moment, he's gone!

Welcome, Spring. I do hope you are bringing your warmer weather with you too. For Noah's sake. And, well, all of us. Hopefully before I find a tower built to the heights of the door latch? Please?

P.S. The flower pictured above is in the Dominican Republic. I wish my yard were so green.

Freedom is Work

Noah recently moved into his "big boy" bed. He is thrilled about it. However, he is adjusting to the freedom this bed offers. He quickly realized he can get up and investigate the rest of the bedroom after the door closes for the night.

We'll hear movement above us as John and I are downstairs. Sometimes Josiah or Nathan will come downstairs to file their latest grievance. "Noah is opening and closing the closet door." "Noah is turning the nightlight on and off." "Noah keeps talking."

Then one of us, usually me it seems, will go upstairs and "remind" Noah that it is bedtime and he must lay still, be quiet, and go to sleep. He will reply, "Okay."

So far it hasn't been necessary... but the crib is still up and I'm not afraid to use it.

So Noah is learning that you must be responsible with freedom or you can lose it.

Speech Meet: The Showdown

Josiah participated in a Speech Meet on Friday. It all started with memorizing a poem and reciting it for his class then he came home excited that he was selected out of his first grade class to advance to the Speech Meet. This meant that he would go to another school and recite his poem there.

I didn't know until last week that it would be an all-day event. When I brought Josiah to the school Friday morning I learned that there were seven other schools involved and over 200 students. The day would be packed with speech, science, math and reasoning.

His group was to recite during the first session and I was able to stay and watch. After finding the correct classroom, there were 24 first through third graders reciting their selection to the other 23 students, three judges, and the parents that were there.

I was nervous for him. He knows that poem extremely well but I wondered if he would recite it clearly and loudly or if he would rush through it. I noticed his face blush when it was his turn... but he did it! He recited the poem clearly and loudly enough. (When I was in school I purposely misspelled a word in our Spelling Bee so that I wouldn't have to advance and do it again in front of a big crowd. I was that shy.)

At the end of the day, John and I were able to come to the award ceremony where he got a ribbon for doing an "excellent" job.

You may notice in this picture how much he loves being in front of a crowd. (Did my sarcasm come through?) How did all the other kids do? Pullease. I'm sure they did fine but I only had eyes for my son. I am so proud of him!

This is the poem which he chose to recite:

Chums
by Arthur Guitterman

He sits and begs, he gives a paw,
He is, as you can see,
The finest dog you ever saw,
And he belongs to me.

He follows everywhere I go
And even when I swim.
I laugh because he thinks, you know,
That I belong to him.

But still no matter what we do
We never have a fuss;
And so I guess it must be true
That we belong to us.

And this is Cairo, Josiah's very own chum. And mine.

Manual Speed Golf

Either Josiah created a new game or.....

There are high levels of cheatin' goin' on!

Awkward Moments Day

As I drove home from work this morning, I heard on the radio that it is Awkward Moments Day. Finally! This is definitely my kind of holiday! Now..... What is the best way to celebrate this day? Do I reminisce about my awkwardness? Do I purposefully go out and put myself in new awkward positions? That could be fun ... AND more awkward for the other person. Then I could laugh and say "Happy Awkward Moments Day!" and, of course, they would be relieved that they were supposed to feel awkward and they would then "pay it forward" as any good deed should be. Or else, they may get really mad and hit me. In that case, I would feel awkward calling the police. I wonder if the police have any funny awkward stories to share...

All this rambling is somewhat awkward. Somewhat awkward is probably not good enough for Awkward Moments Day though.

I will confess an awkwardness: A lot of the time I will over analyze what I say in person to someone I don't know well. I rule out conversation starters as "too much information", "not interesting", "don't want to go there" and instead of conversing since my brain has locked up, I just stand there trying to come up with something anything to say. That's awkward. Why can't I just blurt out my weirdness and deal with that awkwardness instead?

Can you think of your most awkward moment? Or a recurring awkward moment? OR if you make someone else feel awkward today, please tell. Thank you and Happy Awkward Moments Day!

Random Thoughts Post It Style

After reading Shell's Post Its every week, I decided today is a good day to participate. Click on SupahMommy's Post It below to join the fun.