Little Lamb :)

red light, green light

My kids are runners. They love to run. We are "those people" you see at the mall or in Target who let their kids run. I'm glad they love it and get plenty of exercise while out running errands; however, they do need to stay relatively close by, so we play red light, green light. When they get too far away, I yell (at a somewhat reasonable tone) "Red light." They immediately stop until I catch up, and then they wait for me to say "green light" and they're off again.

Sometimes I feel like our life is a big game of red light, green light. There are days, like yesterday, when I want to yell green light all day long. I want them to hurry and grow. I want them to stop puking on me, pooping on me, spilling drinks all over the table, crying because their hair bow is stuck, fighting about anything, fighting about EVERYTHING, saying "Mommy, watch this" 800 thousand times, begging to watch tv, refusing to eat their chicken nuggets because they're too spicy, etc.

Most days though are like today. I want to yell red light. I want them to slow down, stop growing so fast. I want them to keep doing the things that make me love this "job" more than anything else: like giving sweet little hugs and kisses, playing make believe, running through Target with abandon, pretending their toys just pooped in the parking lot and finding it hilarious, climbing all over Daddy, having dance parties in the living room, playing t-ball in the front yard, laughing when they're supposed to be drinking a bottle...you get the picture.

Today was a great day. Today was a red light day. Who knows what tomorrow will bring?

Seriously, where does the time go?

Todd's New Look

The old Todd...

The New Todd....

What can I say? I love it!

Rainy Day Fun

When the sky looks like this...

And the baby is doing this...

What a great opportunity for the older two to do something crafty like this...

But instead, they're doing this...

So I can start folding ALL this!

Dreams Really Can Come True

This is what happens when the kids keep begging for a
swing set and Daddy doesn't want to pay for one.

Looks safe doesn't it?

The Big Compromise

So, after 8+ years of marriage, you realize it's all about compromise. For example, when you want to watch Grey's Anatomy and your husband wants to watch The Office, you compromise. You plant yourself on the comfy couch in front of the big, old fashioned, 27 inch tv and send him upstairs to watch on the small screen, with the volume turned down because the baby is trying to sleep. (This scenario doesn't apply to us because my husband detests watching tv, which works out quite well for me.) But you get the picture.

Approximately 3 years into our marriage, the question of when and how many kids came into play. We somewhat agreed on the "when", but the "how many" was a hot topic. I grew up as the middle child of three spread out over 8 years; therefore, I wanted three. He grew up as the youngest of two eleven months apart, and therefore wanted two. Since we have three, you're obviously wondering, where is the compromise? Well, he agreed to three, but we had to have them close together. That is why I'm happily, but slowly going insane at home with "O", lovingly referred to as "the puker" (due to his severe acid reflux), "I", also known as "the negotiator" because he is constantly asking for 2 more minutes, and "EG", best known as "the diva" because, well, quite frankly, she's a diva. They are 4 months, 3 years, and 4 years respectively. Last but not least is "the vacuum". She has four legs and eliminates my need for a broom after every meal, and for that, I am always grateful.

Why blog?

So I guess I've decided to take the scary plunge into the blogging world. Why? Three reasons.

1. I'm trying to avoid Facebook.
2. I'm a terrible mother who doesn't make scrapbooks or even photo albums for her children to look back on and reminisce their lovely (crazy) childhood one day.
3. My stinkin' sister fell in love with a Texan, lives there now, and it's a great way to keep family updated on our daily lives.

The last reason doesn't really count because, even though she lives in Texas, we talk a LOT. An embarrassing amount actually. I think we are the reason verizon has an "in" network. You can thank us later.

As a new member of the blogging world, I promise to update at sporadic times so that you're always guessing and wondering when the next update will be and you waste countless minutes refreshing your screen to see what our family is up to. Because let's be honest, how can a mother of three young children update her blog daily when she is so busy cooking, cleaning, and educating said three children? (Or when she is busy rereading the Twilight series while she should be cooking, cleaning, and educating said children).

I also promise, as a computer illiterate person, to try to figure out how to post pictures soon, since that is one of the main purposes of this blog. If I can't figure it out, this blog will be over before it started and I hope you enjoyed this one post.