Thursday, February 28, 2008

Math Genius

It may surprise you, but this post will actually be about Devin!

We drove by a house on the way home from school that has a 4 car garage. Devin said, "They have 4 garages."

WOW! I was impressed. He can count to 4. But, he had to count these 4 garages without using his fingers. He just looked and counted. And, he knew it was 4. I think this might be HUGE!

Then he said, "We just have 2 garages."

It's true. We only have two garage doors. And, we weren't even looking at our garage when he said that. Maybe his memory is astounding as Trevor's, too!

Plus, he's CHOSEN to take a math lesson at school for the last two days.

Oh, my.

I just have the most brilliant children.

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Fake Cough

Trevor has has a cough for about a week. It's getting better, but in the middle of it, I started giving him cough medicine at night and before school. Grape Cough Medicine. Yum.

Devin has had his share of illnesses this year, and somehow someway, he didn't pick up Trevor's cough. Good thing, too. I think it would have knocked him on his skinny little backside.

But, he's seen the cough medicine, and he's sensed it's grape-ity goodness. And, he covets his brother's cough.

He covets it so much, he's unleashed a campaign of fake coughing in hopes that my mommy sense gets confused and doses him unnecessarily. That hasn't happened. But, that hasn't doused his desire for his own taste of the dextromethorphan.

It's been several days since anyone has tasted the cough medicine, but Trevor has a little itch bothersome today. So, I said to Trevor, "come on! I'll give you some medicine for that."

Upon hearing the word "medicine," Devin came running after us, fake coughing all the way...

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Super Immunity System Kid

Remember how I said that Trevor has an Immunity System of Steel. He did. But, now, he just has a cough. We took his temperature, and it was 100.4. He said, "Is that a good sign?" We told him it was a good sign. It meant his body was killing the virus that was making him cough so much. His poor little cheeks are pink, pink, pink as are his eyes. And, he's got a cough. Did I mention that cough? His nose is running, too.

He's pretty chipper considering the cough and the pink cheeks and eyes (not conjunctivitis pink eye, but colorful pink eyes). I mean, he could be a turd. But, he's not. He's slogging on. I adore him.

I just went up to check on him because I hadn't heard him cough for a while. I felt his head and rubbed his cheek and considered how I love him, when OOPS! I woke him up. He looked upset, but he was really just disoriented. I asked if he needed to go potty because we've had moments where he woke up with a full bladder and a full on freak-out. He said, "No, Thank you."

No, Thank You.

My child is polite when being woken in the middle of the night.

I think this means that we're doing something right.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

It's here, it's here, it's finally here!

What's here? The SNOW, of course! The snow that I complained about in my previous post is finally here. And, this weekend, I was glad it was here. Because we PLAYED OUTSIDE in the snow. See, we built this snowman!


He's half snow, half rabbit poop. Who knew we had so many rabbits? We didn't until we rolled up all their poop in our snowman.

Here's another. I call this one, "Sad Frosty is my Friend."

Doesn't the snowman look dejected, all leaning over with his head down.

Hey, where's that kids snowpants and snowboots? Shoot! We left them at school. (They're still there for our surprise snow day today, but that's OK because it's too cold for even me to take them outside.)

Guess what else is here!

My first tomato from my

Aerogarden!

Now, I have about 10 tiny little green cherry tomatoes. I just hope I don't kill them before we get a chance to eat them.

Here's a little treat for you:

Can you see what both the cat and the kid are sitting on? The heater vents. Burrrrr, it's cold in here! All smart cats and kids know what to do when it's cold! Sit your fanny on a heater vent.

And, here's a picture of Devin in a box, but not just any old box...a computer box!

(You might notice Trevor there in the background, intent on playing games on the computer...and so it begins.)

And this is just a study in the faces that Devin makes:


Just because it snows...

DOESN'T MEAN WE SHOULD HAVE A SNOW DAY!

It's like the school district here thinks we're in Arkansas or Georgia or South Carolina and that School is DANGEROUS when it SNOWS.

We do have snow plows here. I've seen them. Snow is only dangerous during white outs and when they're aren't any snow plows.

ARGH....

UPDATE:
I've rethought my frustration with this. Some people live in mountainous areas around these parts, and I guess closing the schools in face of this gently falling snow is more for them than it is for me so I better just suck it up, snow plows or not.

Another UPDATE:
It hasn't stopped snowing all day. I agree with the district's decision to close the school and doubt my ability to get out of my own driveway which is pretty flat, and the snow plows have only been by once. So, I was wrong. Today was a good choice for a snow day.

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Cliches

You know how cliches are cliche because they are true? Like, you always forget how small babies are until you see a little newborn and you can't keep yourself from saying, "wow, you forget how small they are" as you marvel at their tinyness and your inability to truly remember that your child was ever really that small? You remember that? It happened to us today. Newborns are small.

Here's a quote that I like and want to record for posterity:

"Do your best and then let go of the outcome."

I may have paraphrased it and I don't know who originally said it, but I like it.

Friday, February 08, 2008

Is the Fire Department coming?

Yesterday after school but before work was over, Devin came into the office and asked us if the fire department was coming. This was enough to cause me to get out of my chair and ask him to take me to the fire that he claimed to have started in response to the question, "why, did you start a fire?"

He took me to the living room to our gas log fireplace. He pointed to the switch on the wall and said, "does that lamp turn on the fire?" I said that it did. He pointed to the light switch, and said, "does that lamp turn on the light?" (I liked the way he called the switches "lamps.") Then he pointed to the fireplace itself, specifically to the pilot light that produces a pretty big flame, and he asked me about that fire. And then, he asked again if the fire department was coming.

"No," I told him. "The fire department isn't coming, but thanks for checking."

I would have kissed him then, but lately he doesn't want my kisses just any old time. Apparently, they are, in his words "inappropriate."

Thursday, February 07, 2008

Buying Locally














You can find this search box permanently in my sidebar, too.

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Sleep Apnea...

A work peep just sent me this article: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22881407/from/ET/


It's about how kids with Sleep Apnea can be hyper and even mis-diagnosed with ADD or ADHD. The sleep apnea keeps them from getting a good night's rest, and the next day with the tiredness hits, they get hyper (think "Overtired"). I think that Devin may have sleep apnea. When he sleeps with me, his snoring often keeps me awake, and there are times when it sounds like he's stopped breathing or is struggling to breathe.

I don't think the sleep apnea will kill him. I don't think we have an urgent problem here. But, I suppose I should talk to the doctor about it. He does indeed have a mean streak, and there is certainly a chance that it manifests itself later in the day like in the example given in the article. I'm sure I've mentioned before that Trevor's teachers always told us how happy they were to have him in their classes. Devin's never did. I wonder if it could stem from sleep apnea?

If the solution to his sleep apnea, if he indeed has it, is as simple as having tonsils and adenoids removed, should I do it? Surgery scares me. Should I wait until kindergarten or first grade?

I don't know.

I know that labels, ADD, ADHD, LD, all of these can mark a kid for life and not always for the good. Probably, never for the good.

I just don't know.

Is a little hyperactivity such a bad thing, or is sleep apnea all by itself such a bad thing that I should get it corrected no matter what, and if it fixes his mean, hyper streak, so much the better? I don't want to fix it if that's just who he is. I like him just the way he is.

I really just don't know.

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Follow me on this...

Two kids are harder than one. A lot. I'm not joking. I think that two kids are twice as hard as one. For so many reasons. Take this past Sunday for example. We've started attending a Church. Can you call a Unitarian-Universalism Fellowship a church? I'm going to say that I can. It's just easier. After the service was over, I went to get my children. They were both in the toddler room, even though Trevor is clearly not a Toddler. But, he likes the climbing things in the toddler room. He's all about climbing. When it was time to get him, he shot past me, sans shoes, and into the hallway. I think he was off to join the coffee and cake communion in the fellowship room. I sprinted to catch him, picked up this squirming 5 year old, and took him back to the toddler room to get him ready to go.

Getting his coat and shoes on took about 5 minutes. And, that was bad. But, that he didn't want to leave with me? Embarrassing!

Devin saw this behavior and decided it would be a good time to act just like his hero, his big brother. So, I spent another 3 minutes shoving Devin into his coat and his shoes onto his feet.

It was a challenge. One that I am simply not equipped for! (I joke, I do fine. Normally.)

Are two worth it? Yes! Would I change anything? Heck, no! My family is perfect! Except for sometimes!

**********
Have I told you about Devin's fingers? They're long and graceful and I positively swoon to look at them. Trevor got my short stubby fingers, and I have my dad's short stubby fingers. I've never cared much for my fingers, but since Trevor's are just like mine, mine are suddenly lovely. Quite Lovely.
**********

Here's my take on global warming. The dinosaurs couldn't stop the Ice Age, so I'm not so sure we can prevent global warming. We've got a lot of chutzpah, we do, to think that we can control the history of this huge planet in this vast solar system in this never-ending universe. That we exist at all is a miracle of miracles of chance and happenstance and things that are completely out of our control. I've made all these conclusions based on shows that Trevor makes me watch about the planets and the dinosaurs. Anyway, even though I think global warming may be out of our control, I think it's smart to conserve. Draw your own conclusions about how conserving fuel would keep us out of places like Iraq. I think that on the off chance that humans are the cause of global warming, we should reduce, re-use and recycle. I'm down with that.

But, are my children?

Not so much.

So, I've told them about the Polar Bears.

See, the Polar Bears need the ice so that they can go fishing during the winter. The ice is key to their survival. I gleaned this bit of information from a nature program that Trevor insisted I watch. If we waste a lot of stuff, that contributes to the ice melting then the Polar Bears will die. Do you want the Polar Bears to die? I don't. I really don't! The Polar Bears almost got a finicky Devin to finish his meal the other day. Almost.

Save the Polar Bears. Eat your macaroni.

Monday, February 04, 2008

How 'bout that?

The Superbowl was indeed yesterday. I've got to tell my peeps at work they let me down by not talking about it enough for me to know that until Saturday. Danged peeps.

So, the Giants won. And, that almost made up for the Bears losing last year. I was rooting for the Giants. Know why? Because they were the underdogs, I'm a bleeding heart, and that's what we do, we bleeding hearts. We root for the underdog. Can I offer my sports commentary? I think there's truth to it.

Although the rookie offense made a few mistakes that could have cost them the title, the Giants' defense prevented the Patriots from scoring at nearly every turn holding them to a mere 2 touchdowns. There's no doubt that Eli Manning did a fantastic job as quarterback for the young team, but it was truly the Giants' defense that secured their place in Superbowl History.

I wrote that all by myself.

I could be a sports writer. Boo-yah.

Back to my life...

This morning, the kids kept each other company while I took a shower and the Computer Guy slept. When I was all neat and shiny and making their lunches, Trevor came over to show me something. Then, Devin ran over to join Trevor and he exclaimed, "Me and Trevor are playing together!" And Trevor added, "yeah, really good, too!"

And, this is why it's good to have 2.

Tomorrow, I'll tell you why it's bad to have 2.

Saturday, February 02, 2008

On my mind...

I think the oil companies should pay for the war in Iraq. I don't want any of my tax dollars supporting an un-winnable war for nation building and oil. I'd rather pay to rebuild New Orleans and make sure all kids have access to healthcare and find ways to break our dependence on foreign oil.

I may give my vote to an independent Ron Paul so the Democrats really should be scared of that guy. The only reason I may not give my vote to Ron Paul is that it might let a real Republican in the White House, and I just can't take that any longer.

No matter how hard I've tried, I can't break my Britney habit. I've continued to read about her never ending drama, and I continue to hope she can get better. I hope her recent involuntary commitment helps.

I make the best lasagna that I've ever tasted.

The Corner Room should take Shepard's Pie off their menu. It was atrocious.

I don't understand why my kids aren't perfect angels all the time.

I don't like my angry voice when my kids aren't perfect angels.

I think it's possible that my shushing is more distracting than my children pre-shushed.

Maybe 36 is too old for a bob.

If you cut in front of a lady in a line at the cafe at Barnes and Nobles, realize the mistake after you place your order, and apologize to the lady, is it OK? Even if she seems understanding and nice and thinks your kids are both cute AND the reason you cut? (They weren't. For some reason, I just didn't think she was in line because there was too much space between her and the woman we got behind. And, geez, all she wanted was a little cup of coffee.)

Is the Super Bowl tomorrow? If it is, the reason I don't know that for sure is because I don't work in an office where people would talk about it and because we fast forward through all our commercials and never watch the news because the local news is of really poor production quality and the news stories tend to be months old. At least, they were the last time I tried to watch. Months old news stories aren't news. They're olds.

That's kinda it.

Friday, February 01, 2008

Snow Days

Not really a benefit of work at home moms.

Plus, is it called a snow day if it looks like snow but it's really just ice?