Why? By Clarabelle

Because I can.

Why the heck not?

Nanny nanny boo boo.

Justgoawayfrommeisaidnooowwww!

Do these look good on me mommy?

Weekend

Fresh air and fun.

Sick of It

I'm so glad this isn't me anymore, as it was a year ago.  That was something I was totally sick of.

We have had such a lovely spring.  The first week in March we had a snowday at school, and the next week we woke up to spring and it really hasn't disappointed yet.  A few hot days, a few cool days, some rain to make us not think of drought.  It's getting hotter now though, and Chris had to work this weekend.  This was his first weekend that he had to go back in the afternoon, so he's basically at work, home for lunch, and then back at work.  Yuck.  Totally sick of it already, and it's just beginning for the next 5-6 months....

Baby Belle had her 9 month checkup, even though she's almost 10 months old...oops, usually so good about that...and she has ear infection number 5.  We're on our way to the ENT, hopefully to just schedule the darn tubes surgery.  I'm so sick of ear infections.

And finally, I'm sick of being sick.  I feel like I have not been very healthy in a year now.  Trying to figure out what I need to change to help myself.  After Chris comes home from work I have to go to the Urgent Care because I am pretty sure I have Strep Throat.  I basically can not talk, or eat.  I've had it enough times to know what it's like.  Fortunately, it's usually not accompanied by fever or anything in me.  But I sure hope none of the other girls get it.  At least Baby Belle is on antibiotics...but I'm SICK OF BEING SICK.  We haven't gone a month since probably November without SOMEONE in this house being sick!

Kid Pics

Monday was our anniversary.  Sunday we all went out to dinner.  (However, Monday Chris did make a fabulous steak dinner at home!)  We gussied every body up -- everybody meaning kids mostly -- and toted the camera too.  It was probably one of our best dinners out too.  I don't recall telling anyone more than 100 times to eat their dinner.  No one fought, and I'm fairly certain whining was at its all time low.  

(Note, I really did not edit these.  I just didn't feel like it.)

So here are the results:

 Before dinner.  

 During dinner!  Hello give me more people food!

 I really like this picture of daddy, so I had to include it too.

 Daddy and Big Belle.  

 Mommy being hug-attacked by Clara Belle.

Totally horrendous picture of us, but it was taken by none other than

Clara Belle, so I had to include it.  Cool ceiling of the restaurant, no?

And Now You Know

  File these tidbits under things you don't need to know but now do.

1)  ClaraBelle does not want to be 3, and she said no she is "not going to be three".  She is "going to be 2, and then she will be 6 when she wants to be".  So there.

2) Watching Chris and I enjoy some cool beers with an incredible steak dinner (way to go Chris, that was FABULOUS!) ClaraBelle announced that her teachers give the kids beer everyday before their nap.  Obviously I know this isn't true, but the mental image it conjures just makes me laugh hysterically.

3) "Nanny nanny boo boo" is her new favorite thing.  It annoys the poo out of me.

4) She has a 'thing' we must do.  For a while now, she has claimed Chris and I wholeheartedly and often.  "You're my daddy." or "That's my daddy" or "You're my mommy".  So everytime she would say "You're MY mommy..." I would say "You're MY ClaraBelle".  And heavens-to-Betsy if there's a time I'm just not in the mood to say it, she looks at me and says "but you're supposed to say I'm your ClaraBelle".  And then I scoop my puddly self off the floor, and give her a big hug.  

And before I know it, in the other room I hear "nanny nanny boo boo"....

Anniversary

8 years ago today....

...a lifetime to go.

And THIS is the comeback post...ugh

It's not fair.  Why is it that no one has formally announced to me -- and yes, I mean me personally -- that the world is scheduled to end.  As in, we are mere days away.  I read headlines, I haven't seen that anywhere.  Until today.  And that's only in a couple of places.  A creepy sign on a local elementary school (not ours) announced it (which I think is completely wrong, but that would be another post entirely), and then I see an article in our local paper.  Is it just this small tiny sand speck on earth that is concerned?  Why isn't the internet plaguing us daily with a minute to minute countdown?  There's a lot to be done in less than a week.  I certainly think that someone should be sending out a letter to each and every person, explaining the process.

And, what if, it doesn't end for everyone.  What if this turns into the "not if she's the last person on earth" type of scenario....  I just think we all need to spend some time thinking about the what ifs a little more.

About a week or so ago, I might have just said the world might as well have ended.  I had  several posts I could've written and published, but not one of them would've had anything positive to say.  Baby Belle is finally recovered from her 4 week illness, but my milk supply is severely depleted from her not eating, so we are transitioning her to formula.  Which brings us to more pooping issues.  It seems like someone in the house is always having a poop issue.  Scooby is teaching us all, the hard way, not to leave anything on the floor, or he claims it.  As in, chews it to pieces. Unfortunately, he has also tried to claim a couple of things that he shouldn't...meaning some pieces of furniture.  And now he's having intestinal issues, we are worried there is most likely the tube of a yellow Tinkerbell chapstick nestled somewhere in his gut....

I just got over a cold.  It was quick and none too devastating, but did leave me extra short tempered and doubly exhausted which led to several days of grumpy mama.

4 weeks left in the school year.  4 weeks left of our school.  It's all starting to become a reality as we make plans to pack up our classrooms.  We still don't know where we will be assigned for next year, but have our hopes that we will just be moving with the year round program.  I will save my frustrations about this another day.

I'll try something more positive tomorrow.  After all, with the world coming to an end, we need to enjoy every minute we have left.

This us an example of one of Clara Belle's favorite shopping past times: taking things off shelves and lining them up. She cleans it all up as well, which is why this is all okay.

A few weeks ago in a sports store she was lost amongst rows of socks as tall as she was. We found her with about 20 pairs of those socks neatly lined up on the floor.

Here we have many many bottles of something like 5 Hour Energy. I really need to snag one or two of those bottles....

Life Lesson

A few days ago, we found these new little friends in a bush just shy of our kitchen window.  We are assuming they belong to the cardinal couple who always spends time in the same area.  What a delight, rejoicing in new life.

 The girls were amazed and I was impressed, because not one of them mentioned how positively ugly baby birds are.  I did.

 The eyes are hardly open.  There are a few feathery type things on the wings, but their pink skin was just about transparent.

"Birds' Eye View"

When we went to take a quick peek today, so far only one little peeper lifted his head out of the nest.  We're hoping the other two were soundly sleeping, otherwise we will have some life lessons to discuss.  But all in all, a neat experience.

The Big 3

What a wonderful day, and a wonderful weekend.  

Happy Easter

I'm a bit late on the activities of late, but I'm very happy to say that Baby Belle is FINALLY feeling better!!  She is eating and laughing and babbling and doing all of the stuff she hasn't done for 3 weeks, AND, most importantly, she is not screaming hysterically.  In fact, she has yet to utter more than just a slight whine.  I am so relieved, on many levels.  I was worried that my happy content baby was gone for good.

This one isn't the best as far as photographic quality, but it was snap now or no picture late.

The Easter Bunny was kind enough to drop off baskets early, and he hid the eggs out in the front yard this year.  That worked wonderful, as daddy had to work and would've missed all the Easter Egg hunting fun.  So while it was really hard to wait until 10:00am, the weather was perfect by then.