Drew Bear

Football kicks off this weekend, so I might not have time to post this later...

It's our first born's birthday - I am so proud of the young man he is becoming. He plans to go to Auburn (playing football, of course) and then to the NFL. Not sure that will happen, but I know he will work hard to get wherever he wants to go.

He amazes us each day. I won't say that he never makes a mistake or loses his temper, but so do I. He's just a really cool guy and we couldn't be happier to be his mom and dad.

Why it's good to have family

When you need a pick-me-up, they are there... Thanks mom and dad for the coolest wine glass and coming to see us Monday - a highlight of my week :) I love you guys!

The Truth

These days, I am home with Bo and Ellie. They are pretty much on the go constantly. They may watch 15 minutes of tv, but that's all they care to watch. Then it is on to something more exciting.

Ellie wanted to watch a few minutes of Dora this morning as I was folding laundry. Bo was playing 'jet ski' with his Bass Pro Shop toys in the sink upstairs. I know that I have to check on this play every now and then (before he floods the house). I went upstairs and noticed that Drew's light was on. As I walked in, I noticed legos scattered on the floor and paper shredded all around his desk. I know I made his bed and straightened up no more than an hour prior to this. Then Bo comes in.

Bo: "I didn't come in here."
Me: "Are you sure? Did you play with the legos?"
Bo: "It was an accident. I'm sorry."
Me: "Why is there paper all over the floor?" (I couldn't tell what it was from)
Bo: "I didn't eat any candy."
Me: "What candy? Did you eat candy here?" (then I remembered that Drew had a pack of pez in his desk)
Bo: "Well, he should've put it way back on his desk where I couldn't get to it."

Ah... I realized he has no idea what the 'truth' is and what a 'lie' is. This isn't easy to explain to a 4-year-old. I had to really break it down to him and I think he gets it. I guess that might be a pitfall of having four kids. Sometimes you assume kids understand concepts that the bigger ones already do. Anyway, after explaining the 'truth' to Bo, telling him things and making him decide if they are true or not ('Mommy slept in Bo's room last night" - not true. "Bo ate candy and knew it was Drew's" - true), he cleaned up the mess.

I count this as one minor mommy victory this morning.

Nine years ago...

I was D-O-N-E. The sweet baby I so looked forward to cuddling would simply not come out. This picture is actually from just a few days before we delivered him. We had a yard sale - why we chose to do that in August, I have no idea...

Having Drew is not more important than the other births. It's just different because that's when I first became a mom. So, I am reminiscing a little this week and thinking about what an incredible 'job' I have in raising these four people. Expectations are high for them - we want them to be smart, healthy, kind to others... But most importantly, we want them to be happy.

The 'H' Word

Hate is one word I can't stand to hear the kids say. I don't even like them to say it in reference to certain vegetables (although I strongly dislike brussel sprouts).

I saw a teaser on the Today Show for a segment on 'The Most Hated People in America'. Seriously. Is this necessary? To me, it almost goes beyond meaningless gossip, not to mention - how is this NEWS? I am not saying that the people on the list are good people. I have never met any of them and I do not trust the media to give me enough information about anyone to judge them - oh, and it's not my place to.

Everyone is someone's child. I just hope I can help my kids maintain a slight bit of their innocence and teach them that such a strong word isn't necessary - ever.

Birthday Parties - Grown Up Style

We had four different birthday parties this past weekend - insanity. We missed one, but enjoyed the three we did go to. As for the 'raising myself' portion of this blog, the biggest eye opener to being home full time with four kids is that we do what we can do and don't worry about the rest. I have so little stress now. Right now, my house is a disaster. There were 10 kids roaming through here yesterday and I am still recovering :)

Back to birthday parties - I am distracted this morning...

What if grown ups had parties like kids? We could have play time at a park. We'd swing, slide and play tag. Then, we could have cake and ice cream. Finally, the birthday adult could sit down with all their friends around them. Present time. Gifts wouldn't be big things. A new potholder. A cool magnet. A makeup bag. A new shade of nail polish. Little things. And you could tear through them and your adult friends could giggle about it. As a farewell, everyone would get a goody bag. I vote for a chocolate bar in the goody bag.

I think it would be fun. Random? I know.

Finally, we are venturing into trying the mediterranean diet. We had the realization that, even though we think we may be 24, we are not. We are approaching 40 at lightning speed. Time to think about longterm health we suppose. I have created our menu for next week from the Eating Well website. Here's to health! Maybe instead of the chocolate bar in the goody bag, I should have some plain nuts for heart health.