Try, try again

Life is hard. Some days are better than others, but even really good days are filled with lots of failures, triumphs and hard living. Sometimes it's overwhelming, especially when you feel like you have more failures than triumphs. Sometimes I feel like it gets so overwhelming that my temper gets short and my mouth gets fast. These are the days that I NEED to stop and remember that my babies have lives that are just as complicated for them as mine is for me.

For weeks M would climb up the step stool and either fall off or cry because he was stuck. It annoyed me a little because I worried when he was hurt and I had to run to rescue him when I left the bathroom door open, yet again. Today he taught himself to get down!

On this day, A made it her business to learn to balance on the curb. Serious stuff for a two year old. There were scrapes and crying, but she did it.

I think what makes life so wonderful and awesome is that it IS hard and when you put your all into it, you feel alive whether you triumph or not.

We're gearing up

I love, LOVE parties and we're getting ready for baby girl's third party. Here's the invitation (with a few changes for privacy) that I endangered my children to get reprinted. A friend mine, Tiffany, designed them and she does AWESOME work!! Check her out.



And just because he's so cute and Tiffany does such a great job, here was M's for his first birthday. Again information is changed for privacy. So, I know you've already started to call me but momma's not home.

Oh Chuck, how do I love thee???

My wonderful cousin and godmother to my first born is the bestest aunt ever to my kids. One of the many things that I love about her is how she loves to dress my kids like the Brajolina kids of our neighborhood. Early this spring she bought Allie and Martin the cutiest pairs of Chucks and although it's like wrestling with a drunk monkey to get them on my kid's feet they sure do look cute!!!

Case in point.

Well today I spent about $20 in gas and risked my life for these damn shoes. The day started out ok. After a long weekend out of town, I decided to forgo working out to consign some clothes and bank some cash for the kids' fall wardrobe. I made it across town when I realized I only had one diaper for my baby boy. Usually not a problem, but for some reason that God only knows (or maybe no reason all, just for giggles) both of my kids always have to poop in this store. I'm not exaggerating one bit. Huge, mondo poops every single time!! I took a deep breath and just prayed that this one time, He'd make an exception. Yeah, you're not holding your breathe either, huh? A went in the potty, thank god, but M used up his very last clean diaper and I knew we'd need another one before we headed home. I could have chanced it but I knew that if I pressed my luck the gods would laugh at me for sure, so I HAD to buy a really cute diaper.

After butts were clean, we stopped at Chick-a-lay as A would say to have lunch and I won't bore you with the details of flying nuggets, screaming kids and the law of physics when it comes to my butt and the playground tunnels. So after their bellies were full, my heart started to flutter with the anticipation of naps coming. I changed the kids, strapped them in and off to dreamland we went... or so I thought. Once we got home I noticed that I lost one of M's chucks when I took them off to change his diaper! DAMN! I drove all the way back across town, searched the parking lot and when I didn't find it I went into Chick-a-lay and still no luck. I couldn't believe that I was so upset about a shoe! I circled the parking lot a few more times and then called it quits. I pulled onto the street and headed home, when I saw it!!! In the middle of the street, a busy street, a busy 4 lane street! I put the car in reverse and parked it. Left the kids in the car and when the coast was clear I ran out into the busy, 4 lane street to get a size 4, blue, converse shoe. Probably the dumbest thing I've done in my life this week. When I got back into the car both of my kids were cheering for me, so maybe it wasn't a total loss to be a hero in my kids' eyes.... well and Chuck too!

Just 10 minutes

Dear Lord, what is it about me talking on the phone that makes my children morph into ankle biting, banshee screaming, hooligans ? I was already dreading making the call to Snapfish so I waited until they were quietly playing in their rooms, but not too long because I know it doesn't last more than 10 minutes.
Surely a quick call to customer service to reorder my daughter's birthday invites wouldn't take longer than that, right?
So I waited. They took off to the train table and I peeked in. Glorious! I picked up the phone and dialed. Good lord you would have thought I rang the bell in a WWF match.
Maybe M is just screaming because A took a train. Small stuff, I'll just be quick.
The Snapfish guy answers, with a heavy accent. Damn, that'll add a few minutes. I get through the spiel about how the photo cards look crappy and the color is off and then all hell broke loose. A is screaming now too and M is following up with his part of the duet. I think I heard something about a boo boo and I ask the gentleman to hold on for a second, while I explained to A that mommy is on the phone and that they needed to go play.
Phbbbtt yeah right.
I think instead of words coming out of my mouth I must have spit acid on her boo boo, which I still haven't been able to find by the way. I panicked. I ran into my room and closed the door. The guy still needs the last part of my account number but I forgot where I left off, so I huddle in the far corner of the room and I start over. Well that confused the hell out of him so he's now calling me CrisCrisabella. gah. I explain and start over. The kids are banging on the door and screaming so loud I'm sure I heard the house alarm beep.
I think I hear the idiot on the other end of the phone say something about holding on, but I'm not sure.
I scream, you know so he can hear me over the kids, "HUH! I'M SORRY, WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY. "
Then he screams back, " HOLD ON MA'AM AND CAN YOU PLEASE TAKE CARE OF YOUR KIDS!"
What can you do but laugh. Yup, pass me the mother of the year award! I had an outsourced, customer service rep. from a photo service company tell me that I needed to take care of my kids. Great.

Add Him to the List

Tropical storm, Edouard was like a bad lover. Lots of build up, he couldn't find his rhythm and when he came ashore I was left wondering "What the hell was THAT?"

So after stuffing our pantry with beans and weenies, spraying our carpet from hauling busted bottles of water, sweating while dragging in patio furniture and all the other prep for a hurricane, we just ended up with a cleaner yard and lots of much need moisture.

Thanks, Edouard for keeping us on our toes and although I think you have the most ridiculous name for a hurricane (great for a foreign lover though) I'm glad we got the hurricane that couldn't follow through.

China-free toys

Just in case that is another mom out there with a 2 year old girl, who is about to have a birthday and doesn't like to buy toys from China.... I've posted a link to A's wish list for her birthday with a few ideas.

Just sign the bill Bush!!

Well it looks like we were heard. A bill from the Senate has gone to President Bush's desk and will hopefully be signed soon. woohooo!!!

If you remember, we, well I, decided to ban China toys from our household this past December. It caused a huge uproar and upset quite a few people in our family, but I just felt that the safety of my kids was more important that mounds of toxic toys. And really, do we need that many toys? The shear volume of plastic that invaded my house for one, YES one, child was absolutely amazing. I mean one second, I'm sitting in a Chinese restaurant rubbing my huge belly talking to my husband about how our house cannot, will not, turn into a day care and that we needed a plan to hold back the troops of family with toys in hand for their very first granddaughter/niece/cute squishy baby and the very next second, I'm stepping on peek-a-blocks, rescuing Chicken Elmo from a flapping tirade and walking robo puppies all day long. But they're all gone now! Thank God! The toys, I mean, not the family.

The holidays were rough, probably more so for our family than us. We tried to keep the focus on the celebration and not the toys. We've celebrated M's birthday and again, we did ok. I think some people were hoping that we had forgotten about our China protest, but not so. Well there was that one really bad, BAD day when we were trapped in the house with the plumbers.... I set a few China toys free to save the little bit of sanity I had left, but they've since been rebanned. I know, I know but hey, it's not like China hasn't done it, right? So now A's birthday is coming up and I was almost going to cave, but then this sweet little reminder showed up on MSNBC today and I remembered that what I'm doing is making a difference and I'm sticking to my guns. No China toys for A this birthday, and why should we? Don't we deserve better?