Fetch It Freddy {Freddie}

Who is Fetch it Freddy {Freddie} you might ask...

Or maybe you already know...

Freddie {a Hasbro toy from the 80's} was my motivation to stop wetting the bed...

I wanted Freddie oh so badly...

Badly enough that I never wet the bed again...

So at 10 pm last night I found myself at Wal-Mart...

Thinking of Fetch it Freddy {Freddie}...

Because Mommy promised Aidan Kale if he went to sleep sans binky...

She would go to Wal-Mart immediately...

And when woke he would have the dirt fruck he had been coveting...

Introducing ROCKY...

I have no idea how much Fetch it Freddy {Freddie} cost my parents...

But I do now have a very deep appreciation for any sacrifices they made to buy me a dog who fetched a blue rubber ball...

Because Rocky was NOT cheap...

I know he dances...

Talks...

Tells jokes...

Even dumps at your command...

But $60!!!!!...

{Of course it could have been the Gator Aidan Kale has been eyeing}...

Yes it could have been $300 worse...

But fortunately he will ask Santa for that...

Isn't It Ironic

Some mornings are a breeze...

We have a routine...

We walk out the door at 6:30 am on the dot...

Having drank our milk...

Had our vitamins and probiotics...

And Smooches...

This morning was not one of those mornings...

Couldn't find binky {we are phasing this out}...

Meltdown...

Getting dressed...

Meltdown...

Putting on shoes...

Meltdown...

Didn't want vitamins...

Meltdown...

Wanted vitamins...

Meltdown...

Wanted Mommy to sit on the couch and cuddle {oh how Mommy wanted to}...

Meltdown...

And then Bubby started to whimper...

And Mommy picked him up...

Meltdown...

Bubby down!

And finally Daddy got everything together...

My boys loaded into the Fruck...

And drove away...

Finally alone I finished getting ready for work...

And realized...

I already missed them...

A Few of My Favorite Things

The first evening it is cold enough for a fire...

The anticipation of Christmas shopping for my babies...

Having a heated discussion with my husband and knowing he isn't leaving...

Making up...

New jewelry...

Wearing boots over my jeans...

Finding the right boots at Payless...

Hosting Holiday events...

Humming Christmas carols in October...

Singing Christmas carols in October...

Sweaters that hide my belly's little pooch...

Letting my hair air dry and liking it...

Audio Books...

Halloween Candy...

Afghans...

Fall Festivals...

The smell of my Grandma's perfume...

Peanut Butter cookies with a Hershey kiss in the middle...

Pumpkin bread...

Hooded sweatshirts...

Grey's Anatomy...

A glass of wine with an old friend...

Checking things off my to-do list...

French Onion Soup...

Paying bills...

Forgiveness...

Coupons...

Day after Thanksgiving Ads...

Realizing this is not a dream...

Daddy's Little Helper

Daddy me help...

Daddy me fix...

No, Daddy me...

Daddy tape...

7,8,9...

Tada...

The Great Debate

"working moms who choose to work (vs those who have to work) are selfish"

“I wouldn’t outsource loving my husband, why would I outsource loving my kids?”

~Jessica Gottlieb

Ouch!!!

I am new at this mommy thing and honestly had never heard of this WAR {as it is called} until yesterday...

When one of the Blogs I follow enlightened me...

And I felt like I had been slapped...

I commented on this post...

Vented to my husband {who used his favorite phrase who cares what they think, I don't think that}...

And then did a little more research...

Finding this post...

A post that hit home...

And then it all made sense...

I was a casualty of this war...

I had been a victim of these types of comments and NOT even known it...

Because I could not imagine anyone being that cruel...

Surely they didn't mean THAT...

I am being too sensitive...

But it happens...

And then I hoped that I hadn't unintentionally offended anyone who stays at home with their children...

Who works inside their home rather than outside...

Because if I did, I am truly sorry...

I am a mother, you are a mother...

You can teach me things, I can teach you...

And in the end we do the best we can regardless of on which side of the door we work...

I rely on your support as a mother...

I want you to be vulnerable and honest...

Because sometimes only a mother can understand...

Which is why only a mother knows what buttons to push and how to say just the right {wrong} thing...

Attack something so precious...

That regardless of how confident we are in our occupations {office/home}...

It pierces our Achilles heel...

Is it because we are insecure in whatever choice we make...

Must we attempt to make ourselves feel better by assaulting one another...

I work...

I leave my boys every day and sometimes on Saturday...

Look through my blog...

Do my boys seem unhappy...

Does it appear that I outsource loving my children...

And yet there are SAHM blogs that I follow...

Sarah Mae, MckMama, Raechel Myers, MomBE and MADE2MAMA...

{To name a few}...

I respect these women...

At times I mimic them, borrow ideas, am inspired...

And I hope these Mommies {as well as my outside the home working mommy friends} feel the same...

We are held together by a common thread...

So thin and dainty...

As we navigate through each stage...

Not one is better than the other...

Just different...

With unique children...

For whom we pray...

Worry about...

For whom we hope...

For whom we love completely...

Let's wage a different war {together}...

Maybe that of child abuse and neglect...

Of supporting and encouraging women who choose life rather than abortion...

Of school violence prevention...

Of abstinence...

Of never being afraid to stand up for Christ...

Of being the best non-judgemental, loving, forgiving, contented example to our children...

Imagine the difference we could make...

Just imagine...

A Train Ride to Remember--The Conclusion

Once on the train...

Emergency restroom break complete...

Coats off...

Pictures snapped...

I waited for the train to warm up to its optimal speed...

Asking KKS when we would go faster than 10 mph...

Apparently the train was warm...

We were going as fast as we would for the next hour...

Even with a fussy baby...

A bored two year old...

And a dwindling amount of formula...

Thinking the ride would never end...

But it did...

We started toward the tractors that would haul us to the Pumpkin Patch...

And were stopped abruptly because the four John Deere tractors {that Aidan Kale was excitedly pulling us toward} were full...

I understood, KKS understood, but a very tired Aidan Kale did not...

MELT DOWN...

We waited for the next batch of tractors...

Loaded {last}...

And were transported {at a faster speed than the train} to the pumpkin patch...

Aidan Kale immediately saw the bounce houses...

I immediately thought food...

$11 later KKS and I scarfed a bowl of chili, hot dog and can of coke each...

While Aidan Kale had one more melt down due to limited time in the bounce house...

Result...

We called PaPa and had him come get us...

An hour train ride back to our vehicle sounded like an incredibly bad idea three hours after nap time...

While we waited we did have a little fun...

In a barrel train, feeding goaks and dashing down a hay slide...

Kam got a nap...

And PaPa rescued us just in time...

With one last melt down on our way to the van...

We finally arrived home exhausted...

Aidan Kale and I snuggled in bed...

For a 2 hour nap...

And when he awakened...

Melt down forgotten...

He managed an emphatic YEP when asked if he had a good time...

And once again that YEP...

The smiles...

The memories...

Made it all worth it...

A Train Ride to Remember--Part One

I have mentioned a few times during my blogging...

That there are moments...

Where I feel like I should get the Mommy of the Year Award...

I pat myself on the back a little too early...

Today was one of those days...

One of those I got this moments where in fact, I not only DON'T got this...

I don't even come close to the mark...

After a full day yesterday...

A later than normal bed time...

And an earlier than normal awakening {4:45 am}...

Our train ride to the Pumpkin Patch Day was off to a great start...

But we pushed through a whiny breakfast...

Refusal to get dressed...

And a fit over taking the new car seat to the truck rather than leaving it in the living room as a lounger...

And managed to load the boys, the backpack, stroller, EE players, camera, M.O.T.B and Daddy in a timely fashion...

{Still optimistic knowing Aidan Kale is a Woo Woo lover, which should supersede any lack of sleep}

And we found the quaint, little, in the middle of nowhere train station...

Unloaded...

And headed to retrieve the tickets...

Apparently in keeping with the train era theme nothing in the train depot had been updated...

And I was told in no uncertain terms that one needs to use the restroom before boarding...

Bad sign #2...

Oh, did I fail to mention bad sign #1?

In order to reserve your tickets for this excursion you had to contact someone at their HOME number...

Call repeatedly until you got someone on the line because the people who take the reservations literally cannot call you back {I reserved my tickets at 10 pm}...

And if you visit the website...well just don't, it is pointless...

So KKS told me to stand in the restroom line first...

I did for 20 minutes...

Which meant he did not have time...

Bad sign #3...

So KKS got to the be the one person who asked to use the Emergency Bathroom on the train...

With that being said we still captured some of the better moments...

Come back tomorrow for the conclusion...

The Leaf Doesn't Fall Far From the Tree

It was colder than usual...

And wet...

But we packed our bag and layered our clothes anyway...

Nama and Dapa followed...

Parking blocks from our destination...

Devoted to tradition...

Determined to give my children memories that will linger long after I am gone...

And if I am going to be truthful...

Determined to give myself the pleasure of watching their little faces light up, their legs dance, their hands clap and wave...

And I am grateful to be able to share these moments with my parents...

The way they shared my sister and I with their parents...

Because I know my children will one day recognize the importance of family...

Of tradition...

Of not letting Mother Nature stand in the way of a good old fashioned parade...

Just Like Mom

As I was cutting ghost, witch hat, pumpkin and bat shaped turkey, provolone and lettuce sandwiches...

Sitting out pumpkins and paint on the plastic spider web tablecloth...

Checking the frozen french fries in the oven {since that would be the only food item Aidan Kale touched}...

Stuffing Halloween bags full of stickers, bubbles and goldfish...

And putting the finishing touches on my Halloween decorations...

I was reminded of another mother...

Who would stay up until the wee hours of the morning...

Making sure Big Bird and Oscar held sturdy with toothpicks on a Sesame Street sheet cake...

Who broke all her fingernails putting together a Barbie Dream House...

Who made an amazing Christmas cake for her daughter's first grade class...

And whose children always had the best, homemade Halloween costumes...

And as I was walking the last little friend and Mommy to the door...

The spooky sandwiches consumed...

Pumpkins painted and drying...

I gazed at the ear to ear grin on Aidan Kale's face {as he ran through the living room finally stuffing cold french fries in his mouth}...

Nodding profusely when asked if he had a good time...

And my smile matched his as I felt the sweet bubble of successful mommy moment...

Hoping my own mother had many bubbly moments and even if all I did was nod my head with a mouth full, she knew...

After

And now 2 years, 4 months and 9 days later...

I have sore muscles in my neck and left arm from falling asleep cuddling...

I need to recover my cream colored dining room chairs in something a little more macaroni and cheese friendly...

The computer desk has been moved into the master bedroom and the office converted {almost} into a toy room...

I find that most sentences start with "Last night Aidan/Kamden..."

I sing Happy Monthday on the 6th and 14th of every month...

I make sugar cookies with no icing and eat the Hershey's kiss off the peanut butter ones because Aidan won't eat them if I don't...

I count school buses and know the location of every woo woo track...

I have felt the panic rise in my throat upon hearing screams of pain...

I would never spend $75 on anything for myself, but don't blink one eyelash before taking my children to the Emergency Room or Urgent Care when they might be sick...

Or when buying a $20 set of vehicles at Sam's that just happen to show up in my cart...

I often find myself humming the Hot Dog song, the Choo Choo Soul Soundtrack and If You're Happy and You Know It...

Occasionally I even break out into song...

I avoid the toy section in Wal-Mart like the plague...

I laugh more than I ever have...

I feel organized when the farm animals are in the barn, Noah is in his Ark, the driver is in the school bus and the race vrooms, frucks and wooooo wooooos are in their case...

I talk about poop at least once a day...

I have changed for what I wish when I blow out my birthday candles or watch a falling star...

I have slept in the floor of Aidan Kale's room just because he didn't want me to leave...

My husband and I have alternated sleeping shifts as our baby awaited surgery...

I walked out of a hospital room {feeling like a coward} because I couldn't watch them poke his tiny hand one more time...

There have also been times where I found strength I didn't even know existed...

I have poured myself a bowl of cereal {emptying the box} and watched it grow legs and walk away...

I know without a doubt that I would die for my children...

I know without a doubt I couldn't sacrifice them on a cross...

I am eternally grateful I don't have to...

Before

Before I was a mom....

I couldn't imagine staying at home, in my comfy leopard pajama pants, {purchased at a yard sale for $.25} all day long to cuddle my boys...

I didn't know the ache that would perch itself in my stomach from the moment I closed the garage door until I saw their smiling faces at the end of the day...

I couldn't imagine that the voice of a two year old would be sweeter than even the crooning of Etta James...

I didn't know anything deeper than my selfish desires...

I couldn't foresee that a story about a stranger's child would bring me to tears imagining how it would feel if he were mine...

As I prepared to wage their future battles...

I didn't know I could function on such little sleep...

And that my triumphs would be linked to successful discipline, sleeping throughout the night and creative ways to get a two year old to eat...

I knew I would love them...

I didn't know to the moon and back wouldn't even come close...

Or that without them I wouldn't feel whole...

I never knew the scent of a child could be so incredibly intoxicating...

And would trump most life events previously considered imporant {shoe sales, movies, TV shows, Girl's Night Out}....

I didn't know, I couldn't know...

The Great Pumpkin Search

We were supposed to go last weekend...

But our plans changed quickly due a much needed early nap...

Spontaneously we decided to move the search to Wednesday...

And it was perfect...

Just like my boys...