Now that's what I call Christmas!

Blogger note: our DSL has been down on top of all the holiday craziness... I have had this post for over a week just never got around to posting! I had big plans to add pics and all, but it just didn't happen with dial-up.... so better late than never!

Now back to the post!


Let's just say that I got out of my nightgown at 9 PM, threw some clothes on, drove home, and got back into my nightgown and got into bed......but I am getting ahead of myself....

Christmas weekend started on Friday with my boys in tow for a few hours of work (why my daycare was closed I have no idea). Friday night we had a birthday party for Ben with friends and family. Lots of kids, lots of pizza and cake...lots of fun.

Saturday I spent the majority of the day locked in our backroom wrapping presents. My sister called saying that Christmas Children's Mass was at 4:00 not 6:00 so I stop wrapping and do a "chicken with her head cut off" dance trying to get the kids ready 2 hours earlier than scheduled, only to get a call as we are leaving that the church is packed and over flowing 1/2 before the service even starts. We then decide to go to the 6:00 Mass which in fact turned out to be 6:30 so we sat in church for an hour before the service started with two wiggly 3 yr olds and a 6 yr old who wanted to know why that man was strapped up there on that wood thingy....(time for CCE classes I guess).
Saturday night we had dinner, then got the kids into their PJs and took them all in the car to look at the lights in the neighborhood. Did you know you could fit 4 adults and 5 children in a small SUV? We got home and settled everyone down into their make shift bed on the living room floor and put on Polar Express. The kids were out within minutes, but we all stayed up to make sure they wouldn't wake up while we were bringing the presents out. My mother and sister had never seen Polar Express so we watched it through the end. When it was over, all four of us satred to bring the presents in and place them under the tree when the grandfather clock started to chime that it was midnight... we all stopped in our tracks and my sister said, "No way" and the same time that my mom said " Oh my gosh... Santa is here!" We all teared up at the irony!
Christmas day.... an explosion of 5 children's gifts everywhere... Darth Vader mask, leap pads, power touch books, Cinderella'a stage coach, etc.... the house was filled with blinky flashy lights, singing and talking toys. The only fighting was with the two 1yr olds. No one could tell who won, but there was alot of crying and slapping.
Had lunch, took a nap, laid around some more... packed everyone up and came home...
All in all a lovely restful Christmas!

Stick a fork in me....

....cause I am done....
After a week of bed times at 1:30....
Forgotten cookies....
Sugar cookies....
Nestle crunch cookies....
Chocolate peppermint cookies (that ended up in the trash)....
Christmas wreath cookies....
Peanut butter rice krispie treats with chocolate drizzled on top....
Taking above cookies and putting them into containers for friends, neighbors and daycare teachers....
Shopping in aisles too small for 3 carts to get through (can you just wait... I am trying to LOOK at the toy to see if it is the right one)
Christmas CD's HAND delivered so that friends could at least enjoy it a few days before Christmas

I just can't be HER... I WANT to be her.... but I just can't... I want to be THAT mom.... I want to be THAT aunt...THAT friend...but I just can't......I am too damn tired.... this wasn't nearly as much fun as I thought it would be......I am now shifting to the
"My house isn't going to be that clean, but you should be able to walk" girl
"The cookies may not be from Martha Stewart, but they taste real good with the wine and conversation" girl....
"I may not have made that from scratch, but it was MADE and heated in my home that is now covered in Christmas lights so please appreciate my garland, not my home made recipes" girl...

My door is open... Merry Christmas....I am probably taking a nap in the bedroom....

There is a whale outside

On this rather yucky rainy thunderstormy morning, this is the conversation in my house:

Max: Mommy... MOMMY!! Dere's a whale!
Me: A whale?
Max: Yes mommy, a whale!
Me: Where is there a whale?
Max: Outside ...(thunder)... see mommy, right dere...a whale!
Me: No baby that's not a whale... that's thunder.
Max: Thunder? ...oh... okay.... (walks away kinda deflated)

Why didn't I just let it be a whale... it was more fun that way!

What the hell am I doing?

I was going to go to bed early tonight....

It's almost 1:30....

Gee, I love the holidays.....

Didn't need a quiz to tell me this one....

You Belong in New York City

You're an energetic, ambitious woman. And only NYC is fast enough for you. Maybe you'll set yourself up with a killer career Or simply take in all the city has to offer.

What City Do You Belong In?

Happy Birthday, Baby Ben!

My sweet baby Ben,

Here is your story:

Daddy and I decided in the Spring of 2004, that we wanted to leave ourselves open to the opportunity of a new baby brother or sister for Max. We knew that we wanted you guys to be at least 2 years apart. In April, I was having some similar feelings that I had with Max and I remember thinking it would be a great birthday present to find out I was pregnant. So I went to the store and took the test at work. The test didn’t show 2 lines so I quickly stuffed it back into the box and shoved it back into my purse… oh well… maybe next month…

The next night I was working late and I got a call from daddy:

Daddy: I found it….
Mommy: Found what?
Daddy: Hello….IT… I found it….
Mommy: WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT??
Daddy: Oh my…. You have no idea…
Mommy: No idea about what? What are you talking about?
Daddy: You know the box you left on the counter? It has 2 lines….
Mommy: WHAT?!?!
Daddy: You heard me…
Mommy: When you are holding it, which direction are the lines going?
Daddy: I know how to read a pregnancy test!

I was through the roof with excitement! I knew immediately that you were a boy. Your name came from the middle names of daddy's daddy, Pops, (Benjamin) and my daddy, Grandpa (Thomas). I knew that you were going to be just as wonderful as your big brother and people would spend the rest of your lives asking if you were twins because you were so close in age. My pregnancy was uneventful until the end. My blood pressure was rising in the same way it did with Max, so my doctor put me on bed rest as a precaution.

You were born on Wednesday, December 08, 2004 at 1:05 pm. I heard you cry and I knew you were perfect. You were 8 lbs 4 oz and 20 inches long. We spent a lot of the first few days of your life snuggling together in my hospital bed and getting to know each other. You have been mommy’s snuggle boy ever since. Your favorite place to be is right in each others’ face.

Your red hair, blue eyes and million dollar smile have charmed everyone you have ever met. You have an incredibly sweet disposition and rarely get fussy. You are an observer by nature. You love watching things around you and your favorite thing to watch is your brother. It took you a while to start crawling because you felt there was just no need. Just when we were getting concerned, you flopped over and started following us from room to room…”Is this what you wanted me to do?” You are SO close to walking!! You stand there, start rocking on your toes then plop on your bottom and smile.

You love to dance, your favorite food is oranges, and your favorite toy is whatever toy your brother is currently playing with. You know your boundaries and love to tell everyone around you. You will crawl right up to the Christmas tree, almost touch the ornaments and start violently shaking your head and hands while repeating “nonononononononono” over and over again. When we smile and say, “Yes sir, no no touch”, you smile and wander on to the next exciting thing that has caught your eye.

We are so blessed to have you in our family. I thank God everyday for you and your brother. You have opened my life to so much love that sometimes I feel like I could burst with joy.

Happy 1st Birthday, my baby boy!

Love,
Mommy

It's up....

After 2 very long days, Christmas has exploded all over my house... inside and out....

... and with the way I am feeling right now....

I t ' s N e v e r C o m i n g D o w n ......

I will except my white trash title and sleep until next year when it will be fashionable again....