Nobody did it!

I remember growing up and having my dad pace around the house asking us kids how something got broken. And a lot of times . . . nobody did it. I mean it nobody. He always thought it was sooo strange like we were maybe trying to hide something. But yesterday, I realized, sometimes nobody does do it. My husband pulled up the blinds in the nursery and the window was cracked from top to bottom on the inside. The crib in nowhere near the window, the baby doesn't throw things, the other kids go in there to get a toy or a diaper once and a while. There is no explanation. NOBODY lives and my house now!

My air duct is cleaner than yours!

Is that bad to say? Well, the only reason it is clean, is because I HAD to clean it. Isn't that the only reason anyone cleans the air ducts? I had just sat down to enjoy my dinner and my daughter wanted to share and accidentally spilled my full cup of milk on to her sister who sits above a vent. Well we grabbed towels and I thought we were doing OK until my son says, "mom, it is going into the vent." I didn't have the time right then, I had a soaking baby and other kids trying to eat. Dad was gone for the night and so, on to the next thing. While the baby was in the tub and I was trying to get dishes done and encouraging homework and reading, my 4 year old informs me the baby has pooped in the tub. Stop the dishes, out with the baby, cleaned out the tub. Bleached the tub. Rinsed the tub. Started a new bath, by this time the baby was not interested in the tub anymore, screaming, fits, baths, dishes, teeth brushed, homework and bed. No vent cleaning. The next morning my project began. Mirrors and flashlights in tow, shop vac, scrubbing sponge, cleansers and 20 minutes later. . . my vent sparkles. So I think that is worth bragging about. It is cleaner than yours, right?

"It doesn't care!!!"

"It doesn't care!" This is what my almost 7 year old daughter has been saying lately when "She doesn't care" or likewise "It doesn't matter" to her. She doesn't even catch herself saying it really. I will ask her, "who is IT?" and she looks at me like I'M crazy. So it is starting to catch on a little.

On the subject of funny things kids say. My 4 year old daughter said, "Did I see what I saw?" She is in that stage where her sounds and words frequently get mixed up, so there are a lot of funny things that come out of her mouth. My recent favorite was when her dad kept teasing her about something and she was obviously not finding it funny anymore and I said, "Hun, you are . . ." and before I could get out what I was going to say, she filled in the blank with ". . . a jerk!" I don't think she has heard that a lot and doesn't really know what it means, but it fit and it was funny!!!!

Here are a couple more I can think of: I will keep adding when I can remember more.
Cute little cutie! (K) about her baby sister
Handydowns (K) hand-me-downs
bo-ing = boring
anoise-ing = annoying
Mom, say where Lilly is (when hiding)
People Beauty and the Beast (not the cartoon movie)
catty=kitty
click clock=tick tock

Once there was a snowman . . .

So I have been trying to get a bunch of unfinished projects done, so I can get to the real important, most needed project, huge, yucky project ever - MY OFFICE. It has fallen completely into an abyss of shambles. Not only is my office crazy but the "storage room" that shares a room with my office is also falling apart. I just need some undisturbed "time" to get in there and do something and I keep putting it off. So, because I am a procrastinator in every definition of the word I am doing other much needed projects first to make sure I don't have any more excuses. For example, when I have to pack for a trip, my bathrooms NEED to be cleaned, the floor MUST be mopped and the garage NEEDS to be rearranged. Maybe I should just plan a trip . . . actually this is probably why I am taking time to blog, I have stuff to do.

So this is one of the projects. A snowman kit that I bought about 3 years ago. It is unfinished wood. You paint it and glue in the dowels and you are done. 3 years? Well, I had 3 sets of the snowman and 2 sets of a jack-o-lantern kit and kids that every time you get anything remotely different or fun out want to "help." And that is nice, when you have the time. Anyway, I got these done.

Now I have to go to the post office. Oh, it looks like the office might get done after all. (I HATE GOING TO THE POST OFFICE!)

I can't take it anymore!!!!

It is official.  I am starting a blog.  I can't take the pressure I am giving myself anymore.  I read my friends' and family's blogs and think, "they are so fun."  They have shared events big and small, written letters to children, voiced opinions, shared insights, etc.  But most of all they are DOCUMENTING their lives and their families.  I need to do this.  I forget details so quickly and with my children changing all the time, I need to take some time and write the cute stories.

So, the story to start will be the story behind the title of the blog.  Why are we going backwards?  Don't we feel like that ALL THE TIME?  We try so hard to keep up and prepare and get stuff done and go and go and really, are we going backward or forward?  For me in my life right now it seems backwards is more often the case.  

I think this hit me the hardest on our family vacation this last summer (2008).  We left Sunday afternoon to drive to San Diego.  We had it all planned out, let the kids sleep and do the long trip in one day.  When we hit the Nevada/California border - no joke - we passed the sign that said California and ten feet after we were stopped in traffic.  We learned that everyone in California goes to Las Vegas for the weekend and goes home on Sunday evening.  It was a two lane road, we were going up an incline and you could see the cars for miles.  We moved inches.  Minutes just kept passing and the cars just kept crawling.  The kids kept asking, why are we going so slow?  When will we get to go again? We did see signs of an accident which only caused more stress in the little van that was also becoming smaller.  Now an hour had passed and we had moved maybe 7 miles.  Again, we were stopped, but the other lane was slowly slowly moving and our 3 year old daughter looks up as a semi is barely moving forward next to us.  She then yells from the back of the van, "why are we going backwards?"  That was the stress breaker we needed.  Dan and I laughed for a good five minutes, tears, side aches and stiff cheeks.  The other kids didn't understand why we were laughing so much and we had to try and explain through the laughter how it really did seem as if we were going backwards!!