this is me when i was 22. blushing bride. June 21st 2003. one of the best days of my life. i love you roman.
DUDE. SERIOUSLY?
…the title of this post has been my response to a lot of what Malcolm has been doing/saying lately. for instance, when i asked him to pick up his toys and he flat out said ‘NOPE. not going to do it.’ …and then again, only a few seconds later, when i put him in timeout and he began yelling at the top of his lungs ‘I DON’T WANT TO BE MOMMA’S BOY ANYMORE!’.
ahhhhh. breath. it can be so hard being a parent and feeling your way through the darkness of these different phases and emotions. it is draining. yesterday i was ready for bed by 5:30 due to several bouts like the above. i was so tired, in fact, that i completely forgot about Mila’s dance class. mom suck. mom brain. mom whatever. i felt horrible.
so what am i getting at here…………..well, i feel the need to read. the need to hit the books and figure out what i am doing wrong or what i can be doing better to keep these little blow up’s at bay. it’s like the little man very suddenly jumped on the crazy train last week and i need to scurry and catch up. i got a book recommendation from my friend Vanessa’s blog. the book is called ‘raising happiness’. i’m only about 100 pages in at this point. i am hoping, of course, that it helps me pinpoint the reason for these outbursts and keep things a little less roller coaster-ish.
FRIENDSHIP 101
making friendship bracelets. old school– that’s how i roll. takes me back to my girl scouts day. i am not missing an ‘s’– i only went one day. the scout leader was having a nervous breakdown and, in tears, told all of us 7 year olds allll about her husbands philandering, which ended with a phone call to each of our parents to come pick us up early. but at least i learned how to make friendship bracelets. and to think i thought we were going to go horseback riding and camping. silly 7 year old me. oh memories!
these old-school lookers will be hitting the site faster than you can say thin mints. word .
LIVING WITH BABES
proof that living with toddlers must be a lot like living in a frat house. got to admire the work that went into messing up the toilet paper roll this badly. this photo does not do it complete justice. the entire roll (and there was two thirds left) was unrolled and rolled back up. so awesome.
COOL BREEZE
mila has always been the model patient….malcolm, not so much. but today will go down in history as the FIRST time we have not been stuck in the sound proof room where they stick the kids who scream bloody murder and scare all the other kids. THERE IS A GOD.
SUMMER LOVING
this time of year the kids and i always break out good ol’ Mamma Mia. hello, like, THE BEST movie EVER. well one of me fav’s at least. who can resist the sun, sea and amanda seyfried? not this girl or these silly toddlers sitting next to me. they know all the songs. and they dance to them. it’s quite entertaining. but you see, Mamma Mia is more than just a movie– it’s a feeling. that welcome-back-the-warm-weather-and-cool-breezes-and-feel-light-as-bird kinda feeling.
what are some things that remind you that summer will soon be upon us? here are some more of mine…
- the first night you can leave the windows wide open and hear the sounds of the bugs and dogs and chirps and wind chimes (that was LAST NIGHT. wooo!)
- the first time you hear a lawn mower and smell that ever-so-sweet smell of cut grass (still waiting on this one)
- the first BBQ…the full fledged, eating outside typa deal.
- getting the garden ready to plant
- stocking up on sidewalk chalk and bubbles at target
- putting away the long sleeves and pants and replacing them with short sleeves, tank tops and shorts
- the day you finally take all those extra blankets off your bed and put them away until next winter
SIMPLIFYING
maybe it’s this time of year. maybe it’s this time of life. whatever it is, i have had a real urge to simplify lately. take things down to the basics and only build it back up if absolutely necessary and needed. the kids have taken a hard hit from this simplification process…..bags of old, broken, over-used and unplayed with toys are OUT THE DOOR. TRASH. oh it feels so good. for ME at least. i don’t want the kids having all these toys. it’s not necessary. in fact, we have been avoiding having birthday parties with them just to avoid the excessive amount of toys that come along with them. yet, they still seem to collect more and more. it’s not a good thing because it doesn’t allow for a cultivation of appreciation in the little ones. it’s done, i tell you, DONE! the excess of toys are gone. we are down to the nitty-gritty; the tried and true and loved toys. what shall i tackle next?
….my closet. this has actually been an on-going effort that i expect to finally culminate with a few bags of donations this weekend. i am giving away about half my closet. you see, clothes are MY *toys*. i have such a hard time getting rid of things even if i have never worn them and know i probably never will (i’m talking about YOU, pink mohair sweater still with tags bought circa 2002). in order for a piece of clothing to make it in my closet from now on: I MUST LOVE IT.
…so here is something i LOVE: these new sunglasses from target. they are on sale RIGHT NOW. totally 80′s which makes them so rad. i already have a good pair of sunglasses that i love, but i needed some cheapies to go running in. SCORE!
MUD AND STUFF
breath in. breath out. ahhhhhh. how i needed a little vaca. even if it was short. this past weekend was just what the doctor would have ordered had he known the crazy busyness my life has been since april 2nd (when the new site was launched) with no end in sight. NOT COMPLAINING. but a girl could use a break! a break is just what i got.
we made the 9 hour trek down to Temecula, CA to run in the Temecula Mud Run with friends who live down there. the car ride was SO EASY compared to past car rides. the older the kids get, the easier and more fun road trips are….and BELIEVE ME– I LOVE A GOOD ROAD TRIP LIKE NOTHING ELSE. of course, i must mention as a side note that we are used to 14 hour road trips to my in-laws in arizona….so 9 hours? pssssh! ONLY 9 hours?? …………….CAKE!
the mud run was RAD. it was so much fun that i am hoping we can make it an annual trip. to make it extra exciting (for me, at least) it was held at the site of the USET’s (united states equestrian team) olympic jumping teams training grounds! as an ex-equestrian (and jumper!), i loved that. malcolm even did the mud run and i am so proud of that little man! it was a 5k and he did it with his buddy dean. roman and malc were team spinosaurus and dean and his dad (andy- romans best friend) were team skywalker. man did those kids get muddy. WOW. mila was too young to run but she made a great little cheerleader.
the kids didn’t know it at the time, but the day after the mud run husby and i had planned to take them to disneyland as a surprise. they have been there once before for malc’s 3rd birthday, but mila was only 1 at the time and wasn’t even old enough to be into the princesses yet. OH MY how THAT has changed. borderline obsession. might require therapy. of course i’m kidding but MAN. it’s like it’s bred into her. from where i am not sure because i was not into the disney princesses as a kid. while i have a hard time understanding the love she has for them, i must admit that it makes me smile to see HER smile….and so i indulge her a little here and there. without going overboard. is that possible?
and holy blasphemous burrito eater! i ALMOST forgot to mention rosies. ohhhh rosies. the home of the absolute best burrito i have ever, EVER had IN MY LIFE. (i’ve had a lot of burritos people.). roses started down in san bernardino, ca which happens to be roman’s home town. SCORE ONE. next, roman and i met and he immediately introduced me to rosies on our first trip to socal together. SCORE TWO. …..now we MUST stop every time we go down. the best is the bean, rice and cheese burrito with sour cream (if you like it, of course) and hot sauce. oooohhhh people, you MUST use the hot sauce. i mean, this stuff…..i don’t know WHAT they do to it, but it gets in your head. and sits there. and stays there. and makes you think about it and only it. anyway– not sure if that’s just an issue i have of my own or really the hot sauce but just trust me on this: THE HOT SAUCE IS GOOD. malc had his very first rosies burrito this weekend and bless his heart he used the hot sauce!!!
i guess the only other thing to mention is that it was my birthday on monday. woooo?! not sure these days. but we went out to cheesecake factory (yes- i know it’s a chain but we don’t have one in reno and there is one right down the street from disneyland) and it was so good. i totally ate EVERYTHING i am not supposed to be eating these days (for health reasons) and am still feeling the after shocks and probably will for another week………but………i think it was worth it. i mean heck, it was my birthday!
so, anyway. yay. that’s about it. quick trip. lots of fun. reenergized to keep tackling this mile-long-and-ever-growning to-do list.
HOW TO FILL YOUR WATER CUP
well if you’re not quite sure how to fill your water cup or you are simply looking for another method, you might consider this one mila has come up with. it’s fairly accurate and works like a charm ;)
WHAT I’M LOVING RIGHT NOW
oh wow, so my good friends zara and madewell are really working over time to win my affection. and yeah, we’ll just go ahead and act like that’s a hard thing to do. here is what i am obsessing over right now:
^ this sweater. oh yes, please. it’s retro neon goodness is perfection.
^ purple skinnys. nothing more needs to be said here. find them here.
^this bag and it’s leathery, coral prettiness is probably my top obsession of the moment.
^ this shirt is so cute and can be used in so many ways.
^ cute spring cardigan. find it here. love the corals and tangerines that are everywhere right now.
^ these are sweet shorts. mamma mia!
^ of course the color of these is killer, but so is the cut. love.
