Something is not right!

In the middle of the night
Miss Clavel turned on the light
and said, "Something is not right!"

As usual, life with kids has ups and downs.

Life has ups and downs without kids too...but there's no way for me to know that for certain. Things in my domain cycle from
Fantastic!
to
"Something is not right!"
usually for me life requires the "turning on of the light" for me to notice just how bad things are. Today the light is on.
I saw it flicker yesterday:
Melanie was sitting sedately in her booster seat sometime in the afternoon.

Maybe she'd been coloring? I don't know.
But suddenly she bangs her hand up and down on the table and YELLS
"You be quiet and listen to me NOW!"


(Now who's horrible lack of manners, respect and love could she possibly be imitating SO precisely, we wonder?)


That was just a glimmer. Today she was much worse.

Potty training, which I thought was complete (she has the odd accident every week or so, but otherwise perfect), was a COMPLETE disaster today. COMPLETE. Probably nothing went where it should have today.
By the time I tucked her in bed for the night, I felt my voice was strained.
From YELLING. Yes, yelling.
And my body drained.
From ANGER.
That is terrible.

It has come to that.
For a while now.
Once again.

So what's the next step?
I guess it will be to once again go back on my knees
and admit I just can't do it.
I need help.
Tonnes of it.

Time to, once again, realize that these are God's children, not mine.

Time to respect them (again).

Time to love them (again).

Time to stop loving myself quite quite so much (AGAIN!!).

I need to spend some time, once again, trying to figure out what each of them needs. Spend GOOD time with them, not just guilt laden pretend good time.
If I start this way, hopefully, they'll start listening better...
because I'll be listening better!

Then maybe I won't feel like yelling anymore.

Part of the reason things have deteriorated this much just now, I suspect, is because of the forthcoming trip. It's hard to focus on here when I'm thinking of there.

If the older two really get so bad, what does it matter? I can fix it when I get back, right?
Or Daddy can fix it while I'm gone!
(evil cackles)

Yup, I have been full of horrible attitudes lately. But now I'm truly sorry for it.

First I must be mended,
then I'll have a hope with the kids.

Thanks Chris!

Last Sunday someone at church said she had a package for me from someone from S--. But she didn't have it on her, or know who it was from...so ALL WEEK LONG I was left speculating. She remembered yesterday though. :) It was from Chris!! With some clothes that had been borrowed--plus the above mystery shirt. It looks vaguely familiar, but I really can't place where it's from. Maybe it was mine and I never wore it? Or maybe it was just a bonus 'cause I'm so special! It's not actually a maternity shirt, but I think it shall do just fine for the next couple of months! What do you think?

Thanks for the surprise Chris!!

As for my belly, you can see it is no longer slim. *hahaha* This Sunday another lady talked to me and said
"Roze, you sure popped out all of a sudden!"
So I confessed:
"That's not the baby yet--that's just all the loose stuff leftover from the last pregnancies that has no place to hide anymore. I've been sucking my tummy back for a few weeks now, but it was getting to be too much work."

Glasses upon glasses

Full of pun and artist flair,
As usual.

Can you see the wonderful clarity that my new camera gives? Perhaps not, but that's 'cause I still need to figure out how to use it better.

A confession: I have learned that complaining constantly can cause camera to come. Congrats me. :) Now I only need to figure out what to do with my HUGE STASH of dead AA batteries. Perhaps one of you would like to do a science experiment on anything relating to battery disposal, battery leaking, or battery acid burns? Any takers?

Are you scared of monsters?

How about a Goofball monster?

I am! Life can be horrific with him at times!! The scariest moments are usually when he attacks me with goobers and dripping drool--usually when my mouth is open, or my face is vulnerable.

I think we'll house the Matthew Monster in the basement somewhere in a dark corner so that we can live in peace upstairs! ;)

Crushed

I am mortally crushed that no one has reminded me to unwrap my curtains and show you the unveiled completed result. *sobs*

To show I have no hard feelings (I am feeling particularly generous right now *chuckle*) I have shown you the spectacular results!

The matching panel is also complete, and hanging up in the cocoon as I type. I'm pretty sure I did it in half the time, perhaps even closer to a third. I could do the math for you...but as no one cares *sobs* I won't waste my energy and brain power on that now.

It's actually pretty embarrassing how long the first one took...but NOW I actually know what I'm doing, and eliminated a lot of mistakes and time consuming errors--none of which you will be able to see on the curtain, due to my painstaking labour.
*pats back profusely*

Conversation of Myself with my Other self

ROZE says, "I'm feeling crabby."
roze says, "Well, at least that is something definite to work with!!"
"It's lousy."
"Well, snap out of it, then!"
"No.
Nobody gave me tea in bed this morning.
Nobody got me dressed this morning.
Nobody cleaned my house for me this morning.
Nobody did anything for me today!
What did I do to deserve such neglect?"

roze says, "ROZE, ROZE, why is it so hard to realize that the world doesn't revolve around you?"
"It doesn't? You must be kidding!"

She was kidding, right?

The Curse on the Substitute Mailman

Seems like every time there is a mailman that is doing our route, and is not our regular mailman, he gets stuck. There is a meddlesome manhole that catches them every time they slip a little too far to the right, and they can't get out without the help of a trusty tow truck. Philip even offered his help to the very first stranded mailman. The second one didn't get the offer 'cause Philip wasn't there to give it...poor guy. Not that the first guy accepted the help anyways...nor would it have done anything useful...

Can't wait 'til the next time our mailman calls in sick or takes a holiday!!
I think I'm a bit sadistic. :o

For lack of a big enough pumpkin shell

My man certainly has troubles. Every evening that he is obliged to leave me unattended, he designs a time consuming "all-important" project or two to keep me busy.

This is all an attempt to keep me out of trouble in his absence.

Note the hunted look he has in his eye as he comes in on a late night to check up his wife.

Generally speaking, the project itself, and the amount of work done or not done, has little or no importance at all. This evening's project was scraping and sanding walls and doors to prep a room for painting.

I'm not sure if there ever is anything I can do without avoiding trouble.
*cackle cackle*

Bitter Disappointment for You

There is actually no Mommy911. Only in my imagination. But a friend, or two, or helpful enemy even, will do just as well, if not better in an emergency. And they're generally free. ;)

I have, now that we've been here a while, a mental list of 4 and more (depending on the situation) of people to call if necessary.
Why?
AM I PARANOID?

Picture this:
Husband at work.
Two toddlers solely under your responsibility.
Van broken down.
Power out.
Snowstorm.
Labour contractions starting--with no definate end time: baby could arrive in an hour (or less) or in a few days.

The above scenario (almost all imagined) played in my mind very very vividly less than a year ago...so ever since then I've had mini back up plans.

AM I paranoid?

a little white lie

"Can I ask you a few questions for a quick survey?"
"Uh..."
"It'll only take about ten minutes."
"OK."
...
44 minutes and 57 seconds later we're done.

(timed by my lovely new phone that I got replaced for free because it got dropped too many times and no longer worked and the warranty was extended so they replaced it for free and I didn't like their choice of replacement so now I picked out my favorite and now have a lovely new phone with a built in answering machine which you should call and leave a message in 'cause it's so much better than voice mail and plus it saves me 8.95 per month) I hang up.

Good thing I multitask. I should have hung up at the ten minute interval. Maybe next time when I'm feeling less generous.

I did, however, get a lot of satisfaction out of the phone call...since 25 minutes into it the surveyor was getting frustrated because her co-workers were all going home but she had to finish up with me first.

It wasn't mine fault though.

*chuckle chuckle*

Fabric

My fabric is in!! It just needs to be measured correctly (my original yardage was way out) *blush* and shipped here. YAY!

Time for me to get my project plan fine tuned, and then DO IT!!

I'm getting nervous!

Maybe I can't sew a straight line after all.
Maybe I'll make a big mistake and sew it all sideways.
Maybe my machine will blow up in my face and spew out parts at me.
Maybe I'll cut everything the wrong size and waste all the fabric.
Maybe I'll sew my fingers instead.
Ouch.
Or maybe just maybe
everything will turn out.

Skeletons Buried Under My Couch

My youngest child wonders what his mother has been hiding from him...some strange mysteries from the past perhaps?


This matter requires some further attention...


Ah! I see a complex problem from the past! It appears to be wanting attention.


Yikes! Another skeleton! I DO have problems!!


What sort of skeletons do you have that are creeping out from under YOUR couch?

Maybe I should get some counselling after all

Everything has been driving me crazy lately. Not least of all, being three wonderful cherubs. Some days I think that I should send them off for a week or a month so that I could get my act together, and then I'd also appreciate them more again. Get my act together? Yes, my act. Like, my housecleaning act, my everything wife-ly and mother-ly and organizing-ly and renovation-ly and seamstress-ly, and all that-ly act.

My house has been especially annoying too. Ugly paint, and peeling walls is ok to live with when you know it's temporary. But it's been over a year now, and it's been feeling a little too untemporary by now. STILL waiting for the fabric to come in (hopefully this week if I'm not being ripped off completely). Maybe by this weekend. Once it's in we can have a better idea on exactly what shades of blue and yellow we want. And then MAYBE we can actually go nuts with the brushes, but until then...I decided to get some decorations to cheer up the atmosphere and to maintain what little left I have of my sanity.

I'm very pleased with my center piece. It looks great. But there are always too many books and papers stashed on the table beside it, which kinda puts a damper on its effect. Anyone have a gold colored magazine rack for me? And the candle lid can come off...but it is a scented candle. Why do all candles have to have girlie scents? I could use one that smells lie oil and gasoline exhaust. Like the chainsaw exhaust I enjoyed sniffing the other day.


I added this red ribbon myself, and designed it myself. So lovely. I am so talented--some days. Maybe one day I'll get around to making a whole bunch more smallish ones and add them to my two other decoration pieces

to sort of unify the look.
Maybe one day I'll get around to it.
Stay optimistic my shrink would keep saying. ;)

Consisting of various kinds of stuff

Oh man there's so many pictures to sort through!


I bet you can't guess what one of my favorite activities is! I do always have to make sure she's actually laying down in bed, since she's the sneaky one in the family. She likes to stand up on the very edge of her bed's "headboard" so she can reach the light switch, and then she flicks it on and off until one of her clueless parents clue in. Or she smuggles toys in bed. :o


We have an affectionate girl in the family. Not sure where she learned that from--perhaps from one of our visitors.


Melanie has developed a very fake laugh. She can work herself up with this geeky laugh until everyone laughs at the geekiness of it, and then it's all the real deal.


Yup, it's about bedtime, I'd say! It's much to late to be blogging...but I'm addicted now! :o


It's been so long, and I'm sure there was an important story here about some miserable miserableness. But it wasn't today. I forget most crimes against me with a good nights sleep! So I'm giving you some advice--tick me off later in the day, then the grudge doesn't last so long. (There is the disadvantage that I may be so angry it keeps me awake for hours, and then I'll be cranky the next day anyways. :p )


My blog is just so lovely, that even people in my very own house feel they need to reread it, just to catch all the poignant phrases I have recorded for their pleasure.


More quality time with some "out of town" family. All our family is out of town, so that's pretty safe to say. ;)


I made playdough today. Got green food coloring all over my pants. I'll see tomorrow once they've dried if I managed to get it out. If only I could blame the kids...maybe I should! After all, I was demonstrating to them the science of blending food coloring into the playdough when I did it. Yah, I know I'm highly intelligent. :)


I wish I never taught them to say cheese in front of the camera. It causes more problems than it fixes. *sigh*


Warning! Never lift hand blender out of liquid you are blending while it is still blending! This is only a tiny section of the disaster--had to show you my WAY too much pumpkin puree too. Never again (hopefully) shall I buy a jumbo pumpkin and cook up the whole thing. Next time I'll make sure it gets wasted into a jack-o-lantern. After all, I don't even like pumpkin pie. *deep sigh* Dad, can you come over so I can make you another six pumpkin pies? I've got 12 cups left over! Oh wait--might even make 12 pies actually! Yikes! Any good non-pumpkin-pie pumpkin recipes?


Highly recommended "activity books" for little kids. My mother in law gave me a few of these when Nathan was two, and he loved them. Melanie has started too, and is just as enthralled. I'm
pretty impressed with how the books progress from simple and easy to much more difficult. Quite well done--and I consider myself hard to please when it comes to children's material. On the right picture, you can see Nathan's work on the top two (mazes and cutting), and Melanie's on the bottom two (coloring and sticker/pasteing). They are the easiest levels, and work they're way up. With Nathan, I remember occasionally he didn't have enough practice with a certain step before it progressed, so I imitated a few of handdrawn ones, and gave some extra time off to get a bit older, then he got it.

Confessions of a non-lady:


I broke down and bought a hair dryer the other day. Not sure if it helps me any. But it was fun spending the money. Heehee. ;) Fashion tips please! Anyone want to come over and give me some hairstyling tips. Warning--must be simple to follow, and take no longer than five minutes. I have a five minute attention span when it comes to self-beautification.

And in the fall, I like to watch the leaves falling from the trees.

The above is a quote from Ole Risom and Richard Scarry's book "I am a bunny." Philip's favorite. Still. If only the kids would like it more...then he could always read it aloud without embarrassment.


It started dreary looking, and rain was predicted for our walk. But it cleared up and was lovely and warm (warm for me, chilly for everyone else). I even saw a white tailed deer hide in the bushes, but only for a few seconds. The more social members of our party, and the children, however, missed seeing this beautiful, elusive creature. I guess that only leaves me as a witness.

We went for a walk here again. There probably are better walks around, and perhaps, even closer ones. But this one used to be closer before we moved. So anyone who has visited us for any length of time has probably gone here. But I still like it. Or, perhaps, am liking it more. I think it is growing on me. I may even, as time goes on, begin to enjoy the landscape in Ontario. I confess that it has already, in three years short time, become less flat.


Don't I just have a natural artistic flare?


Dead organic matter rotting on the dirt, only to become dirt too. Oh yeah, and people walking by too.

I love fall!! On the subject of leaves...we had 17 bags of leaves picked up as yard waste last pick up time. That was only two weeks worth too yet! I nearly cried when they took them away. Such a shame! Just imagine what a huge pile and what huge fun I could have had in that huge pile. But now my yard is neat. *Sigh*


Just to prove that me and my baby did come along! Just in case you thought it was the deer that had been taking all the pictures.


A bridge over troubled waters.


Looking at the sights we've all seen before...but still is worth seeing all over again. After all, it's necessary to have fresh air far away from houses and with as few people around as possible, right Dad? That's the best way to invigorate me. :)

So...who wants to go for a hike? Last week Derek asked if I would come with him. Oh! Oh! I do believe that if I didn't have kids I'd have hopped on a plane that very moment. OK, maybe Phil would have stopped me too...but he was at work at the time. :o


More wildlife. The teeniest tiniest turtles I ever did see. Very cute! There were two of them, plus a squished one. They had to cross the path to get to the river. They're so small, so I assume that the just hatched recently. Isn't it amazing how God has made them so slow, but still born knowing how to get to the water?