It's All a Blur

D: I bonked the Deedles.
Me: Oh dear. Will the Deedles be okay?
D: Yeah.

D: I need to go to Pocano (Camano)!  To the beach!  With my sharps (shovels)!

C: Someone sailed this wood across the ocean just a thousand-fifty years ago.

D: I need the wipe!
Me: A wipe?  Why?
D: I need the wipe one to color right there!
Me: White.  Got it.

Me: Did you have fun at Sarah's?
D: I ate noodles and carrots and go outside and then to the gym!
Me: Did you have sleeps at Sarah's?
D: Shhhh!


(3/24) Work day for Dad & me,, and Sarah had the boys.  Even though I went straight home after work, it still only gives me an hour or so with the littles before they go down.  Tuesdays are always such a blur.


(3/25) Today was C's conference, so Nanan came early to watch the kiddos while I went to that.  He's doing well in school and seems to be having a great year.  The teen had an appointment with her lawyer after I got home, and that was rough, to say the least.  I thought we also had counseling, so we bolted out the door only to discover it wasn't this week, but next. It did give me time to take her out for coffee and talk.  Big changes coming up and I handled them all poorly.  Yaaaaay.


(3/26) Today totally blew up too.  Sarah's kiddo was sick, so she couldn't watch the boys when Dad left for work. Thankfully, Grandma could though.  I managed to get the teen a counseling appointment so left early from work to grab her from school and go to that.  Then we followed up therapy with some retail therapy and chocolate, because hello? Necessary. Then home to spend the rest of the afternoon in the sun.

(3/27) Work day for me and Dad had the kiddos. He took us out for a sushi dinner at one of our favorite haunts afterward.  We ran the teen over to a friend's house and then had movie night back at the house.  C watched Guardians of the Galaxy and I got to see Gone Girl once he had gone to bed. And Dad actually hid downstairs to write, which he hasn't done in a long time.  Good schtuff all around.


(3/28) I took the men up to Camano to meet Nanan and go to the beach this morning.  We stopped by Toys R Us on the way out and grabbed some new sand toys, as most of our toys have fallen victim to the Cass-puppy. We grabbed a picnic lunch and sat out in the sunshine to eat.  We spent a really nice afternoon cruising around the beach.  Dad took the the teenager to Comicon today where she got to take a picture with Jewel Staite (from Firefly). She dressed as Fiona from AdventureTime and was asked to dance up on-stage (blackmail!) and for pictures. Sounds like they had a very fun time!  The boys requested "macanoni & hot dogs" (gag!) for dinner, so I let them have at it.  They also played outside in their "base" for a bit before I had them come in.  The little row boat + the pool + the woodpile make an excellent base, apparently.


(3/29) Fun morning ~ Dad made us a fancy breakfast of Dutch Babies and D put away 6 links of "hot dog" (sausage).  We had the artist for Dad's webcomic, The Sorcerer's, over and set the teen about actually reading the comic as homework.  Mid-morning, she and I discovered the local clothes closet was open, so dashed out to see what they had for a bit. She scored a few cute things, and although it was kinda small, it was worth the trip.  Once we got back, I threw lunch at the boys and then put them down for a nap.  Dad ran the teen over to a friend's house on his way to work and I scored some quiet time to read.  We got our chores done when the littles got up and then ran out to fetch the teen.  The littles were sure on a tear this evening and I think I may have lost the last shred of my sanity.  I was ever so glad when bedtime rolled around and I could shut off their light.  Shew!


(3/30) How is it the 30th of March?  Seriously?  Ugh.  Back to work with Dad and me today.  Bigs are going with the grands to the Pacific Science Center and the littles are headed to Sarah's.  Hope everyone has a good day!

The Village and the Villagers

Me: You guys are loud.

J: Yeah! Boys are loud!

Me: Hey, buddy.

C: Hello, and I am here to eat your brains.

Me: You have 20 minutes of Moby Max and your Rock 'n Roll to do.
Teen: No, 10.
Me: No, you did less than 40 yesterday, so I'm being nice by calling it 20 left.
Teen: 10.
Me: 20.
Teen: 15.
Me: 25.
Teen: 18.
Me: 30.
Teen: 20.
Me: Deal.
Teen: *pause* SHUDDUP! I hate you!

Me: Are you sleepy, D?
D: Yeah, I am tired.
Me: Do you want to go to the restaurant or back to the Treehouse?
D: I need to go to the restaurant and be tired.

(3/17) Happy St. Paddy's Day!  The leprechauns left treats for the kids, even though we failed to catch one again this year.  Dad & I worked today and Sarah had the kiddos. We met at the gym and got in some workout time, and then I headed home to put the boys to bed.  That's how fast Tuesdays go.

Ancient legends say everybody can cast a spell.
That isn't true. You need training.
Most are from temples.

(3/18) Work for Dad, and I had the kids today.  Nanan came down and we took her to the Imagine Children's Museum.  We let the twins tire themselves out and then went and grabbed burritos from one of our fave Mexican restaurants and brought the twins home to have the requested bagel lunch. Mom and I visited all the way up til it was time to go grab C from school.  She stayed with napping twins while I went to get C.  Then she stayed when I went to go fetch the teen from her school dance, running into my 7th grade math teacher who was there picking up her 7th grade granddaughter.  And she stayed when I ran the teen back to school for choir at the wrong time... and through running the teen up north to deliver her at the right time.  Sorry, Mom.  But I am ever so grateful that she was there so I didn't have 3 extra tag-a-longs! Grandma & Granddad attended the teen's choir concert, which ended at 9pm, and took her out for ice cream after.  Yay, grandparents!!


(3/19) Work day for Dad & me and Sarah had the kiddos.  I had a party to attend after work, so Grandma & Granddad went and grabbed everybody from Sarah's house.  The twins were so off their games and just lost it.  Grandma put J upstairs to chill out, and he promptly fell asleep.  D decided it was a good night to eat everything in the house, and had like 3 plates of dinner, dessert and was still chirping for more when I got home.  I put them to bed shortly after and had a few minutes to spend with the bigs, but not a whole lot.


(3/20) Work day for me and Dad had the kiddos. The bigs were off from school today and got to have a more or less lazy day.  The teen's social worker visited mid-morning at the ungodly hour of 10:30a, so she had to be awake! I hid downstairs, and worked through most of the drama ;)  After I got off work, we took the fam out for Chang's.  The twins were bananas tonight, and kept knocking fake plants off the railing, trying to climb the walls, and jumping on the booths.  We decided to bag dessert and just run home to sugar them up there.  D is really into camping, so I tried to get him to settle by drawing a picture.  He had me draw him & J in a tent, the teen and I next to the fire, Dad got his own tent, and he put C waaaaay up on the mountain.


(3/21) End of the year bash for hockey today.  Dad & C went out to that and the rest of us lounged around in jammies.  We watched some kid TV, read the same book a half dozen times, and avoided homework like champs. After the boys returned, we got the bigs to do their chores and at least start on homework for real. And then Dad ran the teen up to stay with her sisters this weekend. She's had a hard week, so I'm super glad it worked out for her to go up.  We hosted game night tonight and the twins treated everyone to quite the show after they went to bed.  Since their room is right above where we game, we got to hear them jumping, mattress tossing and seeing just how loud they could yell.  Rob came bearing wine.  He was smart.  ;)  Hubs and I had the evening to ourselves after the crew left and our big boy went up to bed.  I did what I always do and fell asleep reading on the couch.  Clearly a well-practiced partier.

D: Look!  I found another camping!

Uh....not sure I want to fly Imagine Air

(3/22) Busy day today. Dad made us a yummy scone breakfast, which I ate on the way to the gym.  Sarah and I then went to the Bux and from there, to Target to try on swimsuits... because there's nothing more fun than trying to twist and turn into bits of fabric when your arms are noodles, yes?  Yes.  Successful there, we went home to grab our kiddos and to meet up at the pool for family swim at the aquatic center.  We met up with the teenager there and all had a fun time.  I brought home exhausted, hungry kiddos and quickly threw lunch at them before putting the littles down.  Since the littles didn't go down until almost 3p, I let them sleep until about 5:30p.  I made a dinner that everyone hated, so moved them all on to showers/baths and homework.  The littles were up long after they should have been and I went up and grumped at them around 9p, because seriously... Mama was *done.*

So... this is nap time.

Note the mattress on the floor

(3/23) Happy Monday!  Work day for Dad & me, school for the bigs and Sarah has the littles.  The grands are taking the bigs out to see Cinderella tonight.  C turned his nose up at watching a "girl movie," but Grandma thinks she can smooth things over with SPK.  I'm quite sure she's right.

The Unlucky Ides of Pi?

While driving ~
J: No crash, Mama!  No crash!
Me: I'll try not to!

D: Stay, Mama! Mama, come back!
Me: I'm just going for a walk; I'll be back in a bit.
D: No!! Choose something else!

C: I made a grabbeling (grappling) hook to put on the ceiling so that we just don't have to walk anymore.

Perched on the couch

(3/10) Work day for Dad & me, school for the bigs, and Sarah's house for the littles. The littles have discovered the dirt pile + tractors at Sarah's house, and the big boys have been making bug traps.  Good ol' fashioned dirty fun!  I made homemade chicken nuggets for dinner tonight, but the littles wanted fish & chips, and kept telling me what good fish it was.  I guess that's a compliment?


(3/11) Busy day!  I was off with the littles, so we kicked off the morning at Gymagine, where we met Granddad and Grandma.  They treated us to Starbucks and a cookie after.  We visited for as long as the twinadoes could sit still, and then I asked them if they wanted to go to the park on the way home.  It was kind of drizzly when we started out and downright yucky when we got there.  I took a very loudly complaining D to the Imagine Children's Museum instead and turned them loose for an hour.  Then home for naps.  The teen appeared just as I was about to wake them to go get C, so I asked if she'd mind staying home for a little bit while I ran to get him.  She didn't, so they got to have a nice nap.  D clearly woke up on the wrong side of the bed though and was in full on D-saster mode all evening.  I ended up putting them in the bath and to bed early... but then, of course, they screamed until nearly 10pm.  Not crying-screaming, just screaming because it's fun to scream.  Send ear plugs.  And Benedryl.


(3/12) Work day for Dad and me, and Sarah had my boys.  I had a reception for work, at which I stayed a little longer than I had planned... but it was nice to hang with my work peeps in an out-of-work setting.  Thankfully, Sarah had just enough time to get to her son's concert and I didn't keep her too late.  Shew!


(3/13) Work day for me, and Dad had the day off.  He went to a planning meeting in the morning for the teen, and Granddad came to watch the busy bodies, and unleashed their terror selves on McDonald's.  The teen went to scary movie night at the Boys and Girls Club this evening, being Friday the 13th and all.  And C went with Nanan to a play at the Seattle Children's Theatre.  I love that he gets to do the same things I did as a kid!  Dad had a meeting with his creative team which left me alone with my book after the littles went down.  BEST. NIGHT. EVER!


(3/14) Much needed sleep in day.  Sarah and I went out for a walk in the drizzle mid-morning and I left kiddos doing chores and homework.  I returned to do my own chores and then ran out to do errands while the little guys napped.  We had our gaming group over and a bunch of pies to celebrate Pi Day!  Most delicious holiday ever.


(3/15) Busy day today.  Dad ran the teen over to church and then went shopping and I got the boys ready to head over to Jamie's 4th birthday party at Sarah's house.  I cannot believe he's four... that means the twins are 3.5.  Eeps!  The kiddos did great at Sarah's and the twins sat so very patiently while Jamie opened his gifts.  D got a little squirmy toward the end and said he wanted presents too, so I sent him into the playroom.  He came out with a bag of some miscellaneous things, and opened them in front of me.  Too cute!  The littles took a nap at Sarah's house while the rest of us went out for a rainy walk to coffee.  Once we had returned and the littles were up, it was time to head to Grandma & Granddad's for an early Irish dinner.  Corned beef & cabbage.  YUM!  The littles ate too much earlier, so of course weren't interested, and D fake cried all the way through dinner.  We capped off the night with cupcakes and berries.  J ate all the frosting off his cupcake and put it back on the platter so he could grab another.  So my son.


(3/16) Back to the grind.  Dad and I have work today.  Sarah has my littles and Grandma & Granddad have the bigs.

Friday night snuggles <3

Not-So-Springy

Littles: No poops at gym! No poops at Costco!

From C's homework:
Homework: What do you like about being president?
C: YESS!
C as interviewer: Will you get rid of school?
C as president: YESSS!

D welcomes me to breakfast ~
D: I'm so glad you're here!

(3/3) Took today off because I still couldn't get through a conversation without coughing up a lung. Feeling slightly better, I took the boys to the park and parked myself in the sunshine for an hour.  It happened to be National Pancake Day, so we attempted to go to IHOP for dinner, but they had a line out the door.  We were all the in the mood for pancakes, however, so hit Denny's, where kids eat free on Tuesdays (bonus)! My small army was pretty well behaved.  Huzzah for all that!


(3/4) Work day for Dad, and I had the kiddos.  I called Nanan to see if she might be able to come early so we could get the teenager's hand looked at after school.  I picked the teen up, we grabbed snacks and headed to the clinic.  40 minutes later, after we've finally gotten checked in, they tell us they have no x-ray tech today.  They don't think it's broken, but we can go downtown to try to get another appointment or leave with an RX for a brace and some pain meds.  I chose the latter.  I dropped off the script and learned the first place didn't have the brace, so they sent me on to a medical supply store.  The medical supply store didn't have it either, but was happy to send us to an orthopedics clinic where we had to wait for someone to see us, fit the brace, and then tell us authorization should come through in a week or so and we could get it then.  ARGH.  On our way out, they said to let them know if this other medical supply store had it and we get it sooner.  I drop the teenager at our last appointment for the day and hurry over to the last store, which fortunately DOES kind of have what we need.  It's a soft version of the brace, but it will do!  And we get to do this all again in a week if her hand isn't better.  Joy!

Leprechaun trap

Aww

(3/5) Hey, look at that, I made it to work!  Dad had the kiddos in the morning and then Sarah had my boys in the evening.  We met at the gym after for Zumba.  My boys are now saying "No poops at gym. No poops at Costco!" and yet their track record is still 100%.  Sigh...


(3/6) Work day for me, and Dad had the kiddos.  Dad ordered us lunch from the sub shop and I got to join them since I was just working downstairs.  I came up after work and visited for a little bit before splitting to head to book club.  All of us book clubbers were tired and we wrapped up much earlier this time. Hopefully we will all like the next book.

D getting his workout

Here lies C.  Couldn't wait 5 mins for dinner.

(3/7) Hockey for C this morning.  I was going to take the littles to Zumba this morning, but D woke up with a fever, so we held down the couch instead.  I went painting with the girls and created another *cough* masterpiece!  Sarah and I went out for lunch and enjoyed a sunny afternoon.  The teen had a visit and didn't reappear until after our gaming group showed up.  Poor Deedles was still feeling pretty punky, so didn't argue at all when I put the boys down a little early.  Hope he feels better soon.

(3/8) Last hockey game of the season today for C!  We all went, and Nanan, Rob & Josh came out to cheer C on too! The littles entertained themselves by hiding my coffee cup (after I was done, of course) in the lockers and then playing on my electronics once they tired of that.  We went out to King Noodle after to celebrate.  The littles LOVE soup so it was a huge hit.  Daylight Savings was today, so I woke the boys from their nap at 5p and took everyone to the park.  We picked up the teen at the mall around 7p and went to go fetch a pizza.  So much for getting on a new schedule....


(3/9) Work day for Dad & me, and Sarah eventually gets all the boys. I know this summer will probably be a bear, but I sure am loving this springlike weather!