Shabby Miss Jenn

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Fourteen Years

I can't post without a picture so let's just get that part out of the way. Here are a few shots of my kids with their cousins. All the kids had a teacher workday so we met up at Mom Mom and Pop Pop's house for a fun day. No, you can't tell they were having any fun, can you?


So, on to the real topic of the post...

Fourteen years ago Ed and I were married. ( Well, actually 14 years plus one day- I'm up way too late!) Hard to think back to the people we were 14 years ago. It is amazing how much we have each changed and grown.

Tonight, as I was getting the kids ready for the babysitter's arrival, Harrison asked why they were going out with us. As I explained to him that 14 years ago it was just Daddy and Mommy I could see Liza's face show complete amazement. What? Mommy and Daddy without B, H, L and L?? Her response to me, after she processed this idea was, "Poor Mommy". And you know what? I agree. Don't get me wrong. Ed and I were very happy for the five years we were married before the kids came along. We thought we were "living large". We slept in, had fun, went on trips, went to the movies, ate out, etc. Sure, we have traded some of those things in or modified them slightly.

Sleeping in now means 7:00 or 7:30 ( not 10:00 or 10:30), we still have fun but now have more people to share it with.

We still go on trips but really just in between sport seasons these days. Potty breaks are no longer put off "just thirty more minutes" and we actually stop during meal times.

Instead of going to the movies we have family movie nights or watch shows we have DVR'd. And of course, we have popcorn in our individual popcorn buckets- and soda too!

Going out to eat has been transformed into teaching the kids how to cook. They pick what they want to make and I assist. My kids WILL know how to cook!

So, yes, times have changed in 14 years but I know all too soon we will returning to a time when it is just me and Ed. For now I will enjoy the times here and there that Ed and I get to ourselves. Our 14 years together have been so worth every minute of every day. All I have to do to see the value in our past years is to look at the four little faces of my kiddos :-)




Sunday, November 15, 2009

Moving at Light Speed These Days


OK, so a while back I thought to myself how I have to get back into the blog thing. When I print this sucker out I don't want huge gaps in it! So, I haven't been the greatest at getting back to it but I have been thinking about it. That counts for something, right?

We continue to be super busy but I am seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. Soccer for Harrison ended this weekend and football will end next weekend. ( Alleluia!!) I will get my Saturdays back for about 5 weeks before basketball starts. And, I will have an extra night a week without having to shuttle the kids from here to there. Yipee! So, now that we will be around a bit more, perhaps I can post a bit more.

So, to get you caught up on everyone:

Ben is doing great. He is in a fantastic class and he is learning to push himself and work his hardest. He is learning there is no substitute for doing what has to be done. He has done really well in football, which I love and hate. I keep hoping he will outgrow his love of the sport. Who wants their boy getting tackled?

Harrison is really taking off in kindergarten. He suffered his first "note home" last week. He had to move his "car" off the green road onto the yellow road :-0! When I asked him why he said he was "just having fun in centers". Well, I guess there could be worse things, huh? He didn't hurt anyone, say anything mean, or be disrespectful. He was simply having too much fun. :-) The first time this happened to Ben, he fell to pieces. Harrison??? Not so much. All I got was the sly little sideways smile that let me know he knew he shouldn't have gotten in trouble.

As for Liza, she is growing like a weed. She keeps reminding us that she will soon be four. Why? Because in our family you get to go to Disney once you turn four. The boys have already told her all about the place and she just wants to go. I'm not sure who wants to go more- her or Ed :-) Liza is also looking forward to her little Christmas dance. She is excited that her daddy will be coming to watch her. I can't wait to see it. Dance for 3 and 4 year olds is so entertaining!

And finally, Louisa! That girl is surely our last baby! I tell you, she is going to do us in. Her favorite room in the house is the bathroom. The toilet brush, the toilet, the toilet paper- all such fun things for a baby. Her favorite place to escape to? The boys' room- upstairs! If she even thinks their door is open she will crawl down the hallway in no time and scurry up those stairs. She is our wild woman. She is our most curious baby by far and baby proofing has to go to a whole new level with this one!

As for Ed and I, we are well. We are getting ready to celebrate our 14th anniversary. Kind of hard to believe 14 years have gone by!

And because I can't post without a picture... There's a shot of Ben up there from today. I was playing around with some settings on my camera, trying to see how I can set the camera up to do the processing that I want rather than having to pull everything into photoshop to get it like I like. I think I may have found some settings that will work for my "around the house" type pics.

Now that things are slowing down, and we might be around the house more, perhaps I will post more. One can always hope ;-)