Friday Moments - Birthday Edition!

Hey Gang!

Friday Moments with Soule Mama again today.

If you have a moment to share - please leave a comment with a link!

Yesterday, while the Big Boy and I watched an episode of Handy Manny together, I looked over and found him doing this:

Sorry for the blurry photo - I had to work fast.
Hilarious, no?

I've been meaning to tell you guys about our ghetto-big-wheels, too.

In a bizarre act of neighborhood hijinks someone swiped our big wheels and took it for a joyride. We found it a couple days later in a ditch down the street - sans seat.

But lack of a seat doesn't stop my Wee One.

"Dis my yoda-cycle."

Yesterday, we had a few dragonflies visit the yard - and the boys were totally mesmerized.

If you click this photo to see it full-sized, you can see
the dragon fly on the ground,  right next to the shadow cast by the table.

Then there was this really cute moment with the Big Boy

"Will you pway wif me, mama?" Smile
Man, this kid's got my number.

And last but not least, while we were away on vacation a smart little bird made a nest in our playhouse. And laid two lovely blue eggs.

So cool! Except now we have to stay out of our playhouse. 

Happy Friday, gang.

Any big plans for the weekend?

Wish List

So tomorrow's the big day.

Bad Mama's birthday!

Here's what I'm wishing for this year:

I would like 1 baby-with-a-hat-on

Cute.

1 iced caramel macchiato from starbucks

chocolate chip cookies

birthday hugs

Even though sometimes he squeezes too tight and pulls my hair. 

I want to go back in time so I can smell the newborn baby smell. I know this is creepy, but please tell me one of you mamas knows what I am talking about.

I want to go see the new Harry Potter movie

I want to get this horrible orange paint off my toenails

I'd like the big boy to take a nap

Fat chance

I want to talk and laugh with my sister

I want a few minutes to read a good book

Did I mention baby-in-a-hat?

So cute!

I want thinner thighs

I want a good haircut that makes my thighs look thinner

I want clear skin (for God's sake I'm in my thirties! Come on now!)

I want an extra helping of patience and gratitude

I want everyone who reads this blog to know how much I appreciate your visit and your comments - they make my day.

Bluffing

This post could also be titled "Don't play poker with the Big Boy".

I lie to my kids all the time. (Like I always say, it's not called "Good Mama Moments".)

They firmly believe that the Dunkin' Donuts sign reveals whether there are munchkins available on any given day.
"Munchkins Mama?"
"Sure Bud, let's see what the sign says."
Then we drive by...
"Oh no! No munchkins today, we'll have to try again tomorrow."

***

I got so tired of re-assembling things around the house that I hid the screwdrivers and told the Big Boy they were lost. 

"I dunno Bud, I've looked everywhere for them".

***

I also use to my advantage the fact that my children only have a memory retention time of about 10 minutes. 

"Can we go to Grammy's house?" they ask.

"Sure!" I say, knowing that in 9.5 minutes they will have forgotten this entire conversation. 

Well, Gang this shady behavior on my part has finally caught up with me. 

The other day, the Big Boy was examining my pre-vacation pedicure.

"What's dis?" he says, pointing to my pink toenails. 

"It's paint, Bud. I painted my toes pink so they're pretty."

Thoughtful pause. 

"Can you paint dem orange?"

"Sure Bud, I can paint them any color."

"Can you paint dem orange wight now?"

"Oh sorry Bud, I don't have any orange paint, but (here comes the bluff) next time we go to Target we can get some orange paint."

Well let me tell you, we went to Target yesterday and as I made my way past the health and beauty section the Big Boy bolts down an aisle and returns with...

Orange.
Sigh. 

 "He-yah you go Mama! To paint da toes orange!"

The Wee One began chiming in with, "Yellow! Blew!" but I thoroughly ignored him. 

A woman of my skin tone is not meant for this color.
PS if anyone says the word "cankle" there will be hell to pay. 

Alas, the days of bluffing the Big Boy may be coming to an end. 

The kid might actually be smarter than me. 

This n that

I gotta admit I've got a bit of writer's block today gang.

Usually these posts come flying off the keyboard, but today I've been sitting here - poking through our latest photos, starting and stopping, contemplating a "Right now" post, or perhaps finally telling you  guys about the two sunless tanning lotions I tried.

Alas I'm a little stumped today. Which probably means I've got something on my mind, and a wordy, thoughtful post will be born over the next few days.

For today, I've got a few bits of randomness I'm going to throw out there for your enjoyment.

First of all, I'd like to thank my CSA for getting some vegetables into my stubborn Wee One.

Sorry for the grainy photo - they asked for these carrots at like 6am. 

Right before we left for the Cape, we spent an afternoon at a friend's lake house and with all the excitement of beach vacation I forgot about these great pics.

Checking out the situation.

It certainly didn't take them long to warm up.

Finally, they don't make the towel-with-a-hood in the Big Boy's size - so he rocks a mighty sweet bathrobe when he's done swimming.

King.

Let's see, anything else?

Oh yeah - 4 days till my birthday. 

HOT!

Goodness gracious - it's been hot here.

Hoo-whee.

The worst appears to be over, and we have somehow survived.

Did I mention we don't have air conditioning? No, not even a window unit or two.

What did we do with ourselves?

Well we spent a lot of time in a less-than-usual amount of clothing.

We ran through sprinklers (even the grown-ups). And splashed around in our wee kiddie pool.

And we were extremely fortunate to be invited to a beloved friends surprise birthday party (Everyone say,
"Happy Birthday, Amy!")

Why so fortunate?

She has a pool. 


So we spent a blissful Saturday afternoon splashing, celebrating, and generally making-merry.

The boys had their first taste of tootsie rolls, thanks to a pinata.

This is a towel with a hole cut in the middle where a hood is attached.
Absolute genius. From Lands End. 

The Wee One likes him some tootsie roll.

The jury's still out for the Big Boy.

"What is dis?" he kept saying - as if he was
unsure this odd item was actually food. 

What did you do with your weekend?

PS - my birthday is Friday. 


Just sayin'.

Friday Moments

Friday Moments with Soule Mama again today.

If you have a moment or two to share, please leave a comment with a link!

Here are the best photo-moments from our vaca...

"Cool" personified.

Handsome, ain't he?

It's moments like these that  melt a mama's heart, no?

This face requires smooches.

Oh concentration!

For my local friends - hope you are surviving the heat.

Any good plans for the weekend?

Thanks, as always for stopping by.

Sunshine and rainbows

Good morning gang.

How's it going?

Lately I've been writing a lot of sunshine-y posts. In truth, things have been pretty good around here. It's been awhile since I had a day like this one.

I think it's some combination of the boys going through a "mellow" period, and me having carved out a work-life balance that is starting to work for our little family.

But, sunshine and rainbows just don't last forever. You've gotta have some rain in order to get to the rainbow, right?

So, let's chat about the Wee One, shall we?

This little man of mine is an energy vampire.

He is exhausting.

A need machine.

And all he wants is me.

"Mama? Maama? MAMA!"

He cries whenever I leave a room - even if I am heading to the kitchen to get the gosh-darn snack he just asked me for.

He would like to be in my lap or on my hip every single, solitary moment of the day.

I thought perhaps he just needed a daily dose of my absolute, undivided, brother-not-around attention. So I tried sitting with him yesterday doing crayons - and he was delighted - but his desire for 1:1 time is like a black hole.

Bottomless.

Endless.

I am trying very hard to breathe, stay present and find compassion for him these days - but I feel a bit exhausted and drained.

I feel frustrated that I can't meet his needs, and I feel guilty that perhaps he wants Mama so much because my attention is often divided.

Anyone out there ever go through a phase like this?

How do I give him what he needs?

Firsts

It's hard for me to write about the Big Boy.

He's getting so, well, big.

And in this mama's heart is a sea of pride and panic.

Watching him squeezes my heart sometimes, especially when he's trying something new.

While we were on vacation, the Big Boy got some special activities during the Wee One's naptime (shh, don't tell him.)

Mama took him to his first ever movie on the big screen.

And Hubs took him mini golfing (twice).

I have no photos of our movie excursion, but let me tell you - it may have been the best two hours of my life.

It took some convincing to get him in the building, and even more convincing to get him in the theatre, but once he was there, man - oh I'm choked up just remembering it.

He sat literally on the edge of his seat the entire time, sharing a huge bag of popcorn with me, laughing at the funny parts, and asking "Where's Mater?" every time his favorite character left the screen.

Then of course, there was the mini-golf.

I don't know if "bliss" quite captures his feeling about it.

Go ahead, ask him what his favorite part of vacation was.

So big.

When did he get so big?

Remembering and forgetting

As you may or may not know, vacationing with small children can be somewhat challenging.

The changes in routine led to sleep problems and crankiness.

The cute, but un-child-proofed, cottage was ripe with potentially deadly ant baits and exposed electrical outlets.

But.

I've already started to forget my annoyances, and only remember the funny, cute, and hilarious moments.

Like this one.

The Wee One spent several mornings herding the seagulls.

"Look Bud!" I say, pointing to a seagull.
"Chicken!" he says, running off to give chase.

And then of course there were brotherly moments.

You know I love me some brother-love.

By the end of the week, the Big Boy had begun taking his bro everywhere,
"Come on! Less go!"
"Come ovah hee-ah"
"Wook at dis!"

And while the Wee One was generally amenable to playing with his brother, he did have to keep an eye on the swimmers.

Watch out, Hasselhoff.

"Wife-gahds. Keep you safe."

And after a long morning of  beach-fun. Sometimes, you just gotta rest.

What, you thought he left the tools at home?

Good stuff.

We're Back!

Hey Guys!  Oh we missed you!

Hello?

Anyone?

Oh Hi, Mom.

Umm. Anyone besides my mom still visiting this Bad Mama?

***



Anyway, we just got back from our annual summer trip to Cape Cod.

Oh man, I am still sandy, sweaty, and digesting pounds of fried seafood and homemade ice cream.

Bliss.

I learned a few very important lessons, though.

1) The packing of rain gear officially deters rain.

2) The fastidious application of sunscreen does not deter a pink nose.

3) I am not meant to be a gardener.

See Dad? I was only responsible for this one plant.
This is why I joined the CSA.

4) Ants can smell pineapple juice from miles away. Do not leave pineapple juice laden cups in the sink. Ever.

5) And what did you learn, Wee One?

"What's that Bud?"
"Dat da oh-shin!"

6) I'm sorry sir, but that large hat on your head does not draw my eyes away from the Speedo you are wearing. Men in Speedos are amusing.

7) No matter what the circumstances, the Big Boy awakes at 6:00am. Don't bother fighting it.

8) But, sun and sea can lead to a rare and beautiful event

Naptime.

9) Do not invest your heart in a sandcastle, especially with a nearly-two-year-old-Godzilla-wannabee nearby. Jerk.

10) There's no place like home.

***

Vacation

Hey Gang,

Hubs is on vacay again this week, so I think I'm going to join him and (gasp) take a week off from blogging.

Be back next Monday.

Don't forget me?

xoxoxo

M

Friday Moments

Friday Moments with Soule Mama again today.

If you have a moment or two to share, please leave a comment with a link!

I'm back to breaking the rules today - here's some moments from our trip to the farm to pick up our CSA share yesterday.

Handsome lads.
Did someone say GapKids photo shoot?

Note the big boy's face.
Priceless, no?

Serious face.

Teaching my boy a love of basil.

Any good plans for the weekend?

Big Boy

Someone got a big boy haircut.

But he'll always be my Wee One.

Forgive me as I dedicate this entire post to this baby boy of mine and his new hair.

This is what he does when I say "Smile, bud!"

Oh love. Love. Love.

Vacation

Hubs is on vacation this week and next so my blogging might be a bit less regular.

My apologies.

What are we doing with our family time?

Well, we're fighting about footwear.

"Hey Bud, you want to wear your sandals today?"
"No want da socks and shoo's."
"It's 90 degrees, you know."
"SOCKS and SHOO'S, MAMA."

And we've been chilling by the pool.

"Waterin' da fwow-wers."

What have you been up to?

Independence Day

Good Morning Gang!

How was your weekend?

Mine? Well...

It was festive. Not gonna lie.

And, there may have been matching outfits.

What? Matching outfits? Good Lord.

I make this look good.

There were homemade snow cones.

And naked baby feet.

Of course we had to find some relief from the heat

Oh the paparazzi.

Oh it was good.

Laughs, food, sun.

Boston fireworks on TV. (Okay fine, I went to bed.)

How was your weekend?

Celebrating

Happy 4th everyone!

Our day will be filled with hot dogs, hoodsie cups, sparklers, family, friends and laughs.

I couldn't ask for more.

To my non-USA based readers (Hi Cate!) I hope you're having a great day and I'll be back tomorrow.

Much love,

Melissa, Hubs and the boys.

Friday moments

Friday moments with Soule Mama again today. Though I am totally breaking the rules once again - two photos, lots of words... alas - bad blogger.

If you  have a moment or two to share, please leave a comment with a link!

In this week's moment - I was taught an important lesson by the Wee One.

This is what happens when you forget to remove the sidewalk chalk before backing out of the driveway.

Colorful, yet squished.

The ruination of chalk was completely unacceptable to his Wee Highness and so he picked up every last crumb of chalk he could wrap his wee fingers around and brought it to me:

"Nuddah, circle stah, Mama."
"That chalk is too small, bud. I can't draw with that."
"NUDDAH circle stah, MAMA!"

So, as punishment for my carelessness, I spent the afternoon scraping my fingers on the pavement trying to eek out drawings with one shard of chalk after another.

Guess I'll be more careful next time.

Happy Friday Gang!

What's on the agenda for the weekend?