"What you see is what you get..."

That's what one person said about my late grandfather at his funeral on Saturday.

I look back at the post before this one, and the reactions of some of the people I repeated that story to and wonder why they didn't find it as funny as I did. 

Andur's just like me.  What you see is what you get.  If we have an opinion about something, you'll know it.  I have to remind myself not to talk too much and to think before I speak... you know, not to be an open book.

So, what Andur said might have been a bit brash, but, that's him.  That's me.  That was my grandpa.  I never intend to offend anyone, and seriously try to watch what I say, but sometimes what comes out is, well, it is what it is.  Take it or leave it.  ;)

Depends on how you look at it.

So, we're going to a funeral.  I've been to a few, but my kids haven't been.  I actually want them to have this experience, I'm all about having them well-informed and answering their questions and giving them the opportunity to be able to handle such things.

When I told them we'd be going to a viewing and what it is, they both had their own thoughts about it.

Andur:  That could be cool.  We'd get to see a real dead guy!

Natalie:  That's not cool! It's very, very sad!

She's wearing green pants to the funeral.  "They're a sad green."  (At least they don't have holes in the knees.)

And today at breakfast, she prayed that we wouldn't cry at the funeral. 

It'll be interesting to see how they both do. 

Eat at own risk

Usually, my kids take their lunch to school (aka cold lunch), because it's cheaper.  Andur hates this.  He'd have "hot" lunch everyday if he could.  But I'm not spending $2.25 every day so he can eat hot food when my probably-costs-me-$.50-(if that)-cold-lunch will do just fine. 

I give him hot lunch money on his birthday, and maybe the last day of school.  And today. 

We're leaving for a funeral this afternoon so I didn't want to mess with lunch box mess when we're trying to walk out the door, so I gladly forked over $4.50 for my kids to dine luxuriously for one day.

After explaining to Natalie (who's never even wanted hot lunch) how to do it, Andur says:

"I love hot lunch, especially on Friday because it's mysterious what they have!"

I can see hot lunches haven't changed much since I was a kid.  ;)

Glad the camera was nearby...

I found them like this (this is one of the kids I babysit):

This is Quin "blowing bubbles".  He has a toy hammer cover and a screwdriver.  He would dip the screwdriver in the cover several times and take it out and blow on the end.  He then brought it to me to blow.  Love it! Notice his pants NOT on his stinky bum? We laughed at him last night for stripping so he's been doing it over and over again... 

Not the swooning type

Andur's at Spanish Club this afternoon, so Natalie and I were all by our lonesome after school.  I had the radio on, when Taylor Swift's "Love Story" song came on.  When it ended, we were both exclaiming how much we love that song and she asked if Romeo was a famous singer or something.

So I told her the real Romeo and Juliet story.

After I concluded the part about them both offing themselves out of woe and misery (lol, sorry), she cocks an eyebrow and says quite frankly:

"That's dumb."

HAHAHAHAHA!!!

I do so agree. 

She then said, "Why would you kill yourself just because someone you love, died?"

We'll see how she feels after her first break-up, but let's hope she holds on to that level-headedness.

Good to the very last drop!

Quin's been going through a not-eating-as-much-as-I'd-like-him-to phase. 

He's starting to get over it, now:

We all like to read the cereal boxes in the morning, even though we've read them all at least three times, each.  (My older kids like to compare notes as to whose cereal has more calories, etc.)  Now Quin's been joining in.  He likes to point out the letters he knows.  (And the ones he doesn't... lol)

Invincible

When I was a kid, I used to think that the way things were, was how they always were and always would be.

Now that I'm an adult, I know better.

Still, that doesn't make it any easier to accept the fact that life happens, people get older (including myself), people grow up and move away (again, myself, included), things change, and people die.

My grandpa died yesterday.  He's been pretty sick for a couple of years, and he was barely there (so I hear), so it was time and expected. 

But does knowing all of that make it easier? No.

My other grandpa died right before Andur was born.  I remember the phone call and how shocked I was.  He can't die, he's Gramps.  Strength, wisdom, humor, patience, unwavering faith and love, all bottled up inside one man.  He can't die.

My grandpa who passed yesterday used to tell me I had potatoes in my ears.  I believed him.  He's actually the one who gave me my first taste of beer.  (He's not a member, and used to give me a quarter for getting him one out of his fridge.)  He'd grill hamburgers the way I like them, black.  He used to have an endless supply (in my child-eyes) of Big Red gum in the room we were never allowed to play in.  He had the biggest train set I'd ever seen in his basement.  He gave good hugs and laughed a lot.  How can a big, strong man like this, die?

I actually do pretty well with death, probably because my mind doesn't quite wrap around the whole finality of it all...

But when did I get old enough to see people I know and love, die? Time really needs to slow down a bit.

Buried alive

Another of our family goals this year is to do more physical activities together... last week, we had a snow day while Quin was napping.  (He was sick or he'd have joined us.)

Matt on his throne that was really supposed to be an igloo but collapsed:

Natalie and I buried up to our necks on the throne - only fun for a few minutes when you're claustrophobic:

Andur, in all his attitudal glory:

Natalie, my poser:

My pig head before...:

...and after Matt kicked it in the head:

Andur's snowman, playing baseball:

Natalie's snowman, wearing Andur's ski mask for a hat:

Tomorrow, it's Rec. Center day!

f-R-eely adapted

So, I just finished reading Dracula for the first time, ever, the other day, and decided I wanted to see the movie version as well.

I got the older version, which isn't rated (and quite lame, I might add), and the newer version.

The new version's rated "R".  I normally don't watch R-rated movies, but I figured I've read the book, so how bad could it be, right?

Like soft-porn bad. 

Really.

I was disgusted by the little "add-ins" this director ruined a perfectly good story with.  I didn't finish it, needless to say, and am quite ashamed of myself for going back on something I don't allow in my home. 

What really makes me want to kick myself, is, right when I got in the car after renting the stupid thing (good thing I only spent $.79 on it), Andur pipes up with, "What's it rated?"  My spiritually in-tune son was guided to say that, I think.  I haven't asked him about it, yet, why he said it, but I'm for sure going to commend him for calling me on it and reiterate why we don't allow such smut in our home.

Heart-clogging goodness

As I was warming up some left-over mac & cheese for my boys today, I noticed a very greasy pooled substance at the bottom of the dish I was scooping it out of.  As I was rinsing it out, it solidified into something whitish.  It was then that I realized I used enough butter for two boxes of macaroni, whereas, I only made one.  (I thought it tasted a little off...)

Poor kids.  Bleh!

Ancient

Yesterday, Andur came in the kitchen barefoot to get something from me.  In the process, he stepped on a random piece of sequence.  Apparently, it's been around for a while, for this is what he said:

"Wow, this thing's old! I mean, Natalie's had this thing since I was in my mid-eights!"

I love that kid and his spunky know-it-all logic!

It's immaterial.

In my last post, I was talking about how we don't spoil our kids.  Some might even think we deprive them a little.  (And by "some", I mean those who spoil their kids. *wink*)

Anywho, I was thinking the other day, and talking with my husband about this... our kids aren't into material things, anyway.  Sure they'll love the latest coolest toy, but if we ever get it for them, they'll play with it for maybe a week, then it gets put away and forgotten about.  The same goes for Christmas and birthday presents.

So, as we were discussing this, as we have before, we realized something.  Our kids really do have great imaginations and really don't need toys.  Sure, they revert back to certain ones or find one they haven't played with in a while, but for the most part, they just play with each other.  Or read.  Or draw.  Natalie's faves are always stuffed animals.  Andur? Guns or video games (which he only gets one hour a week of  - we're so mean). 

We still buy them the occasional toy, but very rarely, and around Christmas, we always go through their toys and get rid of the ones they don't play with anymore.  This last Christmas, we were able to give a big box of very good toys to a mom who said she didn't know how she was going to do Christmas this year.  I hope that's something my kids will always remember, and that they'll always hold tight to the finer things in life and know that those are things that money can never buy. 

Well, unless it's a good book.  ;) Even then, I usually just buy it with my library card.  ;) ;)

Keeping up with the Joneses

I remember when I was in Junior High, I really, really wanted an I.O.U. shirt.  They were SO COOL.  Everyone had one, it seemed, but me. 

I was the oldest of nine kids and therefore got a lot of hand-me-downs from my cousins or went shopping at the new & used store where my mom used to work.  I hated this. 

I don't remember how I did it, but I was finally able to save up enough money to buy my very own I.O.U. shirt.  I went to the mall, saw one on the mannequin in the window, went in to buy it and... didn't.

I had worked so hard to save up for that dumb ultra-trendy shirt, and when I finally went to drop my wad for an ordinary piece of material with some stitching on it, it suddenly lost its luster.  I just couldn't see myself spending that much for one lousy shirt.

So, I went to other stores and bought several items instead of just one.

My kids are getting to the age where their friends have more than they do or better than they do and they have a hard time understanding why we don't spoil them like other kids' parents do. 

For example:  The little boy I babysit has an older sister the same age as Andur.  For Christmas, she got an iPad.  An iPad, for crying out loud! When she told me this, my jaw dropped. 

I couldn't believe her parents had gotten her such an extravagant (and too old for her, in my opinion) gift! This same girl also has a couple DS systems.  Not just one, mind you, THREE.  (I've seen them.)  She also has just about every single toy my kids mention when she's at my house in the mornings.  Her mom validates these claims, and was so shocked when I told her my kids did not own one game system.  (This was before Christmas - we bought them a used Game Cube.)

I try to explain to my son why we don't indulge their every whim... I think I've even told him my shirt story... and he seems to understand, but still wonders why sometimes.

I guess my point in all this is I certainly hope I can teach my kids the value of what's really important, like my parents taught me.  We never had matching living room furniture, or matching towels, or matching sheets, even, but I tell you what - I had the best childhood anyone could ever have.  I was taught the value of work, the value of play and using one's imagination, and I was surrounded by people who loved me.  My friends on several occasions told me they liked it better at my house than their own, or wished they had my parents.

I only hope my kids can grow up with similar memories.  :)

Life with an almost two year old

I thought this was funny when I found it... seeing as I'm the one who left it that way.  Quin had taken my original bookmark, crumpled it, and left it somewhere not close to me.  Then he brought me things, this spatula being one of them.  Then he tried to call Papa, so I grabbed the closest thing to me to use as a bookmark so I could quickly stop him from calling someone most likely not Papa.  I don't think I got much read that day.  Haven't been able to read much lately at all, really, due to events like this:

That'd be salt.  I caught him gagging on it on video... it was pretty funny.  And we found salt around the vicinity for quite a while after I cleaned it up.

Ever wonder what the inside of a learning apple looks like? Well, wonder no more:

Christmas day Quin must've eaten something not cool because he up-chucked it right onto the keys of his brand new toy.  I decided it was worth taking it apart to clean out.  All of the above you see is all screwed on... on TOP of the backs of the keys where the puke seeped in... lovely.  So, many screws later, it's taken apart.  Then Quin pulls it off the counter and all of this

(puke included) goes everywhere.  The little thingies to the right? Yeah, two per letter.  One couldn't be found.  ONE.  I think I searched for TWO HOURS for that stupid thing.  Finally, (Divine) inspiration led me straight to it and I was able to piece the stupid thing back together.  Good times.

This is where we do our ABC learning, one letter at a time:

Lickin'em clean:

Learning the color blue:

Clone Trooper Quin:

Giving rides:

Peaceful:

And happy:

(He's wearing all the stockings.)

I've forgotten how much fun it can be.  :)

To disturb or irritate esp. by repeated acts.

For one of our family goals this year, we're working on showing each other more respect.  One way we're hoping to accomplish this is by using our words.

Andur's really branching out with this new experiment:

A:  (Very calmly) Natalie, would you please stop, you're paranoiding me.

N:  What's "paranoiding"?

A:  I'm not really sure, but please stop, that sounds retarded.


No fights resulted in this, mostly just laughter.  It's all good.  :)

Who would you believe?

My version:

There was a white truck in the left turn lane - to turn LEFT, though no signal was on.  I pulled up in the right turn lane - to turn RIGHT.  The white truck turned RIGHT.  I layed on the horn before, during, and after the back right side of her truck scraped across the front left side of my car.  I followed her, thinking she'd pull over.  She didn't.  So I kept following her for four blocks, honking my horn and signaling her with my hands to pull over the whole time.  I stopped behind her at a stop sign, laying on my horn and signaling I was going to call the police.  She kept going.  I drove home and called the police.

Her version:

I didn't know I hit her or that anyone was even there.

Yeah.  Right.

A couple scrapes, a small dent and $657 and change later, I'm happy she was blind, deaf and dumb.

Mysterious Ways

a.k.a. How the Lord works.

I need a crown (for my tooth, I already own one for royalty).  My mom wants me in Colorado February 4th.  The main level of our house gets too cold.  My son's school nurse insists I have him see a doctor for a variance of things.  In other words... I NEED MORE MONEY.  (And the school nurse needs to invest in some chill pills.)

Simple solution:  Have someone side-swipe your car whilst leaving a parking lot because they're in the wrong turn lane, therefore causing damage, though, not so much I can't live with it but making their insurance pay out the nose to have it "fixed".

Good times, I tell ya.

What are you, nine??**

Andur turned nine this last month. NINE. (I know, I can't believe it, either.)


The car seat law here in Wyoming is they have to sit in a booster till their nine. Doesn't matter that the kid's almost as tall as his mother and more than half her weight (dude, I know), they have to sit in one.

Till their nine.

It's pretty stupid.

Size really does matter, people!

Anywho, he's out of one, now, so it's all good.

You know, cuz he's nine.


**If you can tell me what movie that's from (recent) I'll give you a virtual high-five because it's a super cool movie that I probably shouldn't enjoy as much as I do but I think it rocks. So there. It's probably that part of my self that enjoyed "Night at the Roxbury" so much.