Best Cake Ever!

Yesterday was my birthday and I am ever closer to middle age...how does that happen so quick? (I've been organizing  and cleaning out some boxes from the attic this week and I found all the scrapbooks I made in high school and college. It doesn't seem like that was all that long ago- but I  graduated high school 20 years ago!  And I now have a son entering high school....it's sort of surreal they way time passes.)

So, with my birthday and all, my husband organized a little dinner and party with the kids. It was great- but the highlight of my birthday? My cake. Tustin, my 13-year-old had the honor of frosting the cake- and it was priceless! Just thinking about that cake makes me smile. So, so funny.

He has quite the flair for pastry decor don't you think?

Out of all the cakes ever made for me, I think this one will be my favorite.

New Discoveries

I'm testing out this BlogPress app on my phone. My blogging consistency has taken a major dive--so we shall see if being able to post from my phone helps at all. It may just be that I have lost my mo-jo with this family journaling. That would be sad for our future posterity, as I'm sure the day-to-day happenings of our lives will be high on their list of favorite reads. Right? ....
I stepped outside the kitchen for a moment while Warren was eating his breakfast today. Upon returning, I found him happily feasting on Nutella and Peanut Butter, leftover on the counter from his siblings lunch-making. He was in hog heaven and very pleased with himself. I must agree with him though- I would take spoonfuls of Nutella over cereal any day




I think I'm going to have a problem on my hands though. He knows where I keep this stuff, so I imagine I'm going to find him sitting at the counter smeared with ooey goodness more than once a day.




Dont you just love that-just woke up, hair crazy, still slightly smushed up face look- that babies have in the morning? I do.
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Some of our latest....

1. Warren got sick with that Coxsackie Virus, that was running rampant in my neighborhood and ward, due to the fact that it is super contagious. Lovely! The poor kid was covered with awful sores and blisters all over his legs, hands, feet and even his face and mouth. He seemed to get it the worst out of everyone I knew. We were miserable and quarantined for about 5 days. He's healthy and happy now, but has scabs all over him that are taking forever to heal. Even on hot days, I keep him in pants to avoid the creepy stares people give us!


I've been told that most all my kids must have had it before, and just never had outward symptoms....maybe just a random fever or something. It stands to reason that Warren would be my one to get it full blown like this. He gets everything!

It is supposed to be like chicken pox. Once you've had it, you are immune. I hope they are right.

2. Laura had her ballet recital. She was one of the fish caught in a net by the sorceress. It was very cute.



3. Tustin officially became a teenager. I'm still a tad taller than him, but I'm sure he will be looking down on me any day now. Teenage boys grow like crazy! Its the weirdest phenomenon to witness. Overnight growth spurts seem to be the norm. And they are always hungry!

He is my biggest helper with Warren. I'm not sure I would have kept my sanity this last year if not for him. I can always rely on him to hold the babe, play with him and even change diapers and get him to sleep. I'm a lucky, lucky mom.


I can't post any pictures of our summer happenings yet because we are still in school!! New York tortures us for another 4 days. Lame!!! Every year when we trudge away until the end of June I get so annoyed!


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Location:Dance Recital etc.

Here are a few things making me smile this morning.....

----Laura, (my child who lives her life through song), is parading the house singing the National Anthem. However, she really only knows the first couple of lines, and the first one she sings like this.....

" Oh you say you can see!..."
( now if you are not clear as to what is a little off there.....then you might want to brush up- along with Christina Aguilera!).

----Second, my oldest keeps sneaking my phone and changing my home screen picture to crazy photos of himself or others....so that when I go to turn it on, I am surprised by whatever he has stuck there. It's one of his favorite pranks. This morning when i picked up my phone, i was greeting by this:



It totally freaked me out! Now I cant stop laughing. I might even leave it there until his next crazy photo is posted, because it makes me smile every time.

---and last, warren helped me make brownies for Kimball's class picnic yesterday and he thoroughly enjoyed himself...





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A thankless job

Today I watched the news and now I am ticked off! See- this is why I don't normally watch the news. It so often ruins my day. I freely admit that because I rarely watch the news I am thus ignorant on many issues. Sue me!! I just cannot handle the daily barrage of negative, negative negative!!!

Take for instance the lovely information I was given today while watching NBC news- all within the first 20 minutes!----

- 2 young boys are missing in NJ,
- an eleven year old girl was sexually groped by a passing stranger when she was out on the sidewalk in her neighborhood in Queens,
-there was a shooting in Harlem... 2 people are dead.
- and to top it all off?-An idiotic and  self-important politician named Hilary Rosen had the nerve to say that because Mrs. Romney had been a stay at home mom, she has "never worked a day in her life!!!!!"

I could spit fire people!

What's worse? When confronted with her ridiculous statement she "clarified" by saying that stay at home moms just aren't aware of today's economic issues. Aren't aware??!!! Only women who go to work are aware of economic issues??!! That statement is so outrageously stupid!!! Aaaaagghhh! If I were in the same room with this woman I might resort to violence!!!

I would guess that Ms. Rosen felt liberated in making such a  comment because Mrs. Romney is wealthy. That is a hollow justification  for implying that motherhood isn't work-  or that it is somehow ONLY work for women who are also employed outside the home. I am so sick of the politics that vilify people for no other reason than that they are successful. Yes- the economy is screwed up right now. We all agree!  But  having money means her experience as a stay at home mom has no value?  Having money means that she doesn't know how to struggle or work? Being wealthy makes staying home to raise her children easy? I don't think so!!

Women who in one breath tout their beliefs that women should have equal rights and choices, and then in the next breath spew insults  at women who make  different choices than their own deserve a good ole fashioned spanking.....with a big ole wooden spoon!

Yes- I stay home with my kids. Now-- I could list all the things I do in a day to somehow try and prove that I actually do work and that my existence has value- but the three of you who read this are also stay at home moms and don't need to read it.

Motherhood is a hard and mostly thankless job- whether you stay at home or not! It is also the best and most important job that any woman can do...

Just my opinion people! This is my blog after all. :)!

It would seem that Warren's little baby ears have a giant "welcome" sign attached to them beckoning any and all bacteria to come, kick up their feet and relax for a good long stay. As far as I can tell, the bacteria have whole heatedly accepted his invitation and are thoroughly enjoying their cozy, rent-free existence.

But no more, I tell you! We are cutting a drafty window in the wall of their toasty lodge and blowing them out of there! ( Translation: we are scheduled to get some tubes put into this babes ear drums.)

Warren has had horrible ear infections since October- (Although I have to wonder if they didn't start way before then, and I just missed it, never having had a kid with ear issues before this.) Even when they aren't infected they are still full of fluid and pressure. He has been miserable. He doesn't sleep well, and you guessed it....neither do I. This is my first child to have chronic ear issues. It's terrible!!! I have never gone through so much infant Tylenol and I have never before experienced such prolonged sleep deprivation. If I get so much as one 3 hour stretch of sleep every few days I consider myself lucky. I am a walking zombie most days, plagued with thoughts that perpetually sound like this: "uuuuuuuuuhhhhhhh.......ummmmmmmmm....uhhhhhhhh." 

That's about it. My brain is totally shut down. I no longer have coherent thoughts. It's been a lovely experience. 

I haven't written this whole time because "uhhhhhh....ummmmm....and uhhhhhh" don't make for very exciting blog entries. It's sad though because I missed documenting Thanksgiving, Christmas, 2 kids' birthdays and a myriad of other events. Funny how, even if mom gets no sleep and can't think straight, life still plods along and things happen. We still smile, cook dinner, wash the laundry, wipe down the counters, help with homework, do the shopping, etc., etc.. It all just keeps going.....such is the life of a mom.

After numerous visits to the doctor and eventually trips to the ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat specialist), we are going forward with the ear tubes. I have been told by many who have gone the tubes route that I can look forward to a much happier baby. (We had a couple of really healthy weeks right after Christmas and I think I met that baby. I really liked him.)  

I will say this- you learn to love and bond with a sick, troubled baby in a special way. You just can't help but desperately love a helpless little guy that so desperately needs you-- hour after hour in the wee of the dark nights. My heart aches that he is so often uncomfortable or in pain, and there is so little I can do for him except hold him, rock him and feed him. Thus, that is exactly what I do. I hold him- a lot! I rock him- for hours! and I breastfeed him- a ridiculous amount for a near one-year-old. (This kid isn't even close to being weaned!-but that is another story for another day).

I'll be anxious to see how the tubes change things for us. Maybe after a few full nights of sleep I will start to miss those quiet times we have together, just him and me, rocking back and forth, back and forth, back and forth......no, probably not, I'll take the sleep. We can rock during the day.

Halloween 2011

I did finally finish my kids' costumes so they didn't have to trick or treat in bathrobes or anything. It was so much fun to see them put these on. Laura made sure she had a book in her basket and sang and twirled everywhere she went, Tustin could be found practicing his sword fighting whenever we weren't watching (don't tell him I told you),  and Kimball?...On some level,  I  think that Kimball truly believes that with his costume donned  he actually becomes IKE from Fire Storm.  I love that about him, and hope he never grows out of it--- well at least not for a few years yet.

I wish I had better pictures...but we've heard that story before.

 Laura as Belle

 Tustin as Link

 Kimball as Ike

 and Warren as a spider, with me the web

Library Discrimination!

It is a beautiful day today, so I took Warren out for a walk to enjoy the sunshine and fresh air and to pick up a few books at our local library that happens to be about a 1/2 mile up my street.

**side story...I love books but stopped buying them about 3 years ago when our town sent an itemized tax sheet home which showed what percentage and dollar amount of our obscene property taxes was going towards the library... Turns out that we pay a whole lot every year for our library. A LOT! I could buy every book I ever felt like reading, and I read a bunch, in a 12-month period and still not come close to the dollar amount we pay for our local library each year. Thus, I vowed to get as close to my money's worth as possible and I use the library for all the books, music, and  movies that I can.

 Anyhoo......Our library has just recently re-opened after a long construction hiatus and I am always perplexed by the architectural choices that are made for these types of things. Our original library is a beautiful colonial style that was built in 1927, so when planning an addition shouldn't one stick with a similar look? Instead, they added a straight lines modern building. It's nice too, but I think its silly looking next to the old. What's wrong with keeping with  the traditional style? Here's a rendering of the new library from the architects (BKSK Architects). The picture has softened it up a bit...I think it looks much more harsh in real life. 

They did this at our high school as well when they added on. I don't get it.

Another issue I have with are new library is the change in flow.  The new floor plan is completely compartmentalized. It's like a hotel. You walk down corridors and hallways and go into various closed door rooms in order to get books from different categories. Where is the big open floor plan with the comfy ambiance that we used to enjoy? Gone----long gone! Here is what happened to me today at the library  that we pay out the wazoo for...

I wanted to find some more of  my preferred reading....fun no-brainer reads from the Young Adult section. (I know it's lame, but I love all the mindless vampires, werewolves, magical creatures and fairies etc., etc.. Are they great pieces of literature? Of course not! They are, however,  quick and easy and don't require much, if any, focus to read. I don't have the time or energy to read anything deep and involved, and I refuse to read anything depressing or disturbing, which is so often the focus of adult fiction. Who needs that? I just need a few fun chapters to fill the boredom when I am stuck nursing a baby every couple hours. ( yes...my 8 month old still nurses like a newborn.)

So......I checked the library directory and discovered that their Young Adult Section was moved to it's own location on the lower level. After navigating the elevators  and hallways with my giant jogging stroller I arrived at the door to the YA room. I opened it, and found the lights were turned off in there. A librarian approached me and said, "Oh...this is the TEEN room. ( emphasis on "teen" with an added raise of her eyebrows) We don't usually open until 1PM..... closer to when school gets out."

What?! So now, ---not only have they made the various books hard to get to, they are deciding who can read certain books as well? There are only certain hours that these books are available?

Where once a library was an open and "free" resource to find and check out any books that satisfied your hearts content, my new multi-million dollar box says I'm too old to enter the room that houses the very books I like to read?!! Rude!!!

After making it clear that in the future I would be discriminated against and barred from coming into that particular room, due to my apparent maturity, and especially before it's proper hours, she made an "exception" for me today and allowed me to "peruse." Seriously?!! Completely ridiculous!

I was so put out and offended that all those delicious reads lost their flavor for me, and I left the library without a single one. Now, in the future I will just have to drive to a neighboring city's library to avoid the raised eyebrows and dirty looks. Unbelievable!!

Speaking my Piece

A few years ago, at Halloween time, I wrote about how disgusted I was with the sort of costumes on sale for women and girls. Since I have griped about this before,  I will keep my ire to a minimum. (Or I'll try).

Seriously people! Enough is enough!!!!

 These days, Halloween stores and costume sections need to have warnings posted such as: "Not suitable for children!!!"  They have become no better than porn shops! Who buys all those trashy costumes? Who would prostitute their teenage daughters, and even their little girls,  in all those slutty outfits? What message are we sending to our girls when the ONLY costumes available for them to buy send an obvious message..."Check out my bod....I'm for sale!!!!"

It used to be that I could just avoid the Halloween stores, and my inevitable irritation,  all together  by going to the safe haven of a fabric shop to find appropriate costume patterns. Simplicity and Butterick, you have been my friends and my safe haven from the commercialized hoochie-witches and slutty-Dorothys.

Uh....No more!!! You sold out!!! Shame on you!!!!!

What did I find when I went to your pattern selections this year? Page after page of prostitute costumes! You have whored out Dorothy, Alice, Cinderella,  and Belle. Even innocent Raggedy Anne is now a royal slut out to sell her wares. Why would I want to sew that? Who would bother? There is no shortage of corsets, thigh high boots and cleavage bearing costumes on the shelves. I can buy them for cheap at any local Walmart or Target.

Can I just say how tense this subject makes me?  Our society is so screwed up!  We are training our little girls from a very young age- even at Halloween- that their value lies in their bodies and their sexuality. It is so perverse. Parents put their six year olds in slutty clothes and think it is "so cute!" No- it is not! It's gross! It's wrong. Stop it all ready!

Every self respecting woman and mother needs to take a stand and say NO! If everyone of those stupid costumes- or patterns-- or clothes on the racks---are left on the shelves catching dust, then someone will get a clue.... right? If they aren't making money....they will have to be retired and we can look forward to a future where the innocence of Alice in Wonderland, and our little girls, is just that---innocent.

I have said my piece (or is that "peace?")...at least until next year.