What a good dad

Nathan, my brothers, and my dad had plans to go golfing last Saturday for kind of a Father's Day activity.  Braden really wanted to go, and instead of (like I would have done) telling him that he was too small, Nathan told him he could come and watch & hit a few balls on the driving range.  Well, they got to the course and there was a "No Spectators Under the age of 18" rule.  Nathan called me and asked me to see if there was a tee time at the other golf course across town.  They had one, but they also had the same rule.  

Instead of bringing him home and going golfing as planned (like I would have done,) Nathan let the other three go ahead and golf their 9 holes.  He spent the morning with Braden hitting a bucket of balls at the driving range and putting at the mini-golf course there.  

Surprisingly, Braden was a decent driver and a good putter.  Their final mini-golf score was Dad 42, Son 58.  Nathan says next time if we borrow some clubs Braden's own size, he'll be able to golf nine holes with the big boys.

I was so impressed with my husband for sacrificing his fun morning to not only avoid disappointing his son, but to make a memory with him too.  What a good example and a great way to spend Father's Day.

I've Been Tagged

My sister in law Kara tagged me - my first ever tag.  Apparently, this no cheating tag is intended to show our true colors.  Here it goes . . . 

#1.  Post a picture of your kitchen sink as it looks at this very moment.

If only our eternal salvation was judged on the state of the kitchen sink, I'd be in like Flynn!

#2.  Post a picture of your toilet.

What do you really say about a toilet?  Maybe this:  I realize it looks spartan, but I don't believe in toilet hats.  Though some people call them lid covers, they are really just a fuzzy hat for the commode.  Nathan wanted them when we first began rugging and toweling our house.  But I don't think a toilet needs a hat.  So it is bare.

#3.  Post a picture of your laundry room.

I wish it was a room.  Alas, it is a laundry closet.  But that is how I wanted it -- having the washer on the same floor as the bedrooms sure beats the heck out of hoofing it down to the basement all day long on wash day.

#4.  Post a picture of the inside of your fridge.

This is proof of the extent of my fruit obsession.  In this one view there are cherries, a giant bowl of grapes, a bowl of strawberries, and a drawer of apples.  That doesn't even count the contents of the fruit bowl on the countertop.

Also note:  in a previous post I referenced my 'yogurt shelf.'  You can clearly see that I have 18 containers of Yoplait on the bottom left shelf.  Unless they are being eaten, that is where they live.  Always.

This is is the door of the fridge.  We look a little condiment-happy, but hey - we like to keep our options open.  Although five different brands of barbecue sauce does constitute a lot of options... 

#5.  Post a picture of what your kids/husband are doing right now.

Rebecca has been in a big kid bed for a year and has not gotten out of bed once.  Not once.  She still waits for me to come in and get her every morning and after every nap. 

I like how Braden is smart enough to at least p-r-e-t-e-n-d that he was asleep even though he isn't.

Funny how the oldest one, the seven year old, is the only one sleeping with 3 dolls!

#6.  Show us your favorite shoes.

These Target specials have been with me for . . . a while.  I know they're dirty, the insoles are cracked and some of the stitching is separating, but they are the most comfortable sandals I have ever owned.  I cannot bring myself to get rid of them.  I even tried to find some replacement sandals just like them.  I wore the replacements a lot, but they weren't up to snuff, and last week they went to D.I.  I bet these are going to be like my dad's duck shirt - the one we begged and begged for him to give up and finally disappeared one curious morning when my mom accidentally-on-purpose threw it in the trash.  Don't get any ideas, Mom!

#7.  Your favorite room

Ever notice how lots of good conversations seem to happen in the kitchen?

#8.  Your closet.

I was being strictly honest about this blog-tag's "Right Now" clause.  Otherwise I might have repositioned the bra to be out of camera range . . . 

#9.  Your Dream Vacation

We haven't had it yet.  Our ten-year anniversary is next summer, and we're planning to go on a childless, grownup trip.  I'll post our top five (order changes daily) and maybe I'll take suggestions . . . 

1.  New York City

2.  A cruise to the Yucatan or Caribbean

3.  Mexico City (where Nathan served his mission)

4.  Washington D.C.

5.  Hawaii:  not likely because of the super-long flight and jet lag and Nathan's hatred of sand

#10.  Self-portrait as you look Right Now.

This was the hardest to be honest about.  I was caught at 9:30 p.m.  The makeup had long since gone (where does it go, anyway?) and I was just getting ready to sit on the couch with Nathan and watch a rerun of The Office.  This is probably what I looked like on Saturday, when my 23 year old brother, arriving earlier than anticipated to our Father's Day party and right before I had a chance to complete my 'morning toilette', looked at me askance and said, "Did you just get up or something?  You look different."  Thanks, Reed.

I have completed my tag responsibilities.  Now I tag . . . Karen, Amy, Natalie, Jill, and Anne!

Essence of Summer Happiness

I can't think of much that is better than an ice cream cone on a warm summer evening while swinging on the swings at sunset.

Contented

Today I am grateful for my family.  I have good kids:  obedient, funny, fun-loving, and well-behaved.  Every mom has days that she wants to give them away to the gypsies, but today is a day I want to keep them.  

Nathan is working hard at the office, and I am grateful he is such a hard worker for our family and is a good provider.  He is a good dad.  He honors the mother of his children, and he helps me discipline them instead of leaving me hung out to dry when the going gets tough.  He's willing to bathe them, change them, read to them, and do Huck-a-Monkey at bedtime.  He even lets them tag after him when he's doing projects so they can 'help' and maybe learn a little.  (You should have seen Braden fixing the sprinkler heads with him last week!)

On a sidenote, yesterday was house-cleaning day, and since it is summer break Cassidy joined Braden in the chores.  I did all jobs that required cleanser, and between the two of them they completed the dusting and vacuuming.  At the end Cassidy proclaimed how tired she was and then stated, "It feels so good to do service."  When I remarked that what she had just done was not service, but in fact, was a part of living in a family, her brow furrowed, and she developed a rather baffled look on her face.  I guess we'll work some more on the definition of service in that it mostly refers to things you don't 'have' to do!

Two Peas?

I like to call this

 Crib Legs.

Rebecca is our quietest and most easy going child. Though these are traits I have never claimed to have, the similarities between these two sets of corresponding pictures are striking.  (I am on the left, and Becca on the right.) 

Like mother, like daughter, anyone?

A Funny Girl

While driving in the car today, Cassidy asked if our house was 'on the more expensive side or the cheaper side.'  I explained to her that since we bought a large lot and our house has four bedrooms on the main floor instead of just three, it was a little more expensive than some houses in our neighborhood, but as houses all over go, it was probably on the 'cheaper side.'

She replied, "Well, I was just asking because I love our house so much and I think it is so pretty that I probably wouldn't sell it for a million bajillion dollars."  I didn't say so to her at the time, but I'd sell it for a million bajillion dollars.  I'd even just sell it for a million without the bajillion dollars . . . 

The First Three Birth Stories, Rebecca

Rebecca

Rebecca's saga began w-a-y before she was born.  When I was 29 weeks pregnant I went into preterm labor.  We got the contractions stopped at the hospital without too much trouble, but I remained on modified bed rest and oral nifedipine for the next six weeks.  I was dilated to 1 cm and 40% effaced, but stayed that way for a while.  Dr. B. told me I just had to make it to 35 weeks, and after that I could stop taking the pills and they wouldn't try to stop my labor at the point.  At a 34 week ultrasound my doctor noticed signs of calcification in the placenta and told me she would be surprised if I made it to full term.

I got to 35 weeks and . . . nothing.  Just Braxtons, and not very exciting ones at that.  Boo.  I had myself all ready to have this baby in August, and what does she do?  Nada.  Well, 36 weeks came and one day I had contractions 3-5 minutes apart for 2 hours.  And then they stopped.  Argh.  My next office visit I was to 2 cm. By 37 weeks no change but the baby had descended a little.   The doctor promised to strip my membranes at my 38 weeks appointment. Dilated to 2+ cm, but nothing came of the membrane stripping.  I was beginning to feel irritated at my little false-starter.  We set an induction date.

Rebecca was due on September 20th, and after all the third trimester drama, ended up being my only child to be induced! What a kick in the pants.  Since I had a history of  brief labors (my mom prefers to call them Fake Labors) we set my induction appointment for Wednesday, September 14th at 10 a.m. rather than the standard 5:00-6:00.  All the nurses on the floor thought Dr. B. was crazy to agree to it, and I heard more than one of them mumble, "She's going to back here in the middle of the night . . . "  

I showed up at 10:00, had IV and Pitocin started by 10:30, and was feeling great.  My mom and sister Katie arrived around 11:00.  I was still 2+cm after 1 hour of Pit, but contractions were getting a more noticeable and slightly painful.  Though I didn't really want it (I was remembering the sleepy+talkative=weird) my labor nurse convinced me to take 1/2 dose of Nubain around noon.  My doctor came to use the big blue plastic crochet hook to break my water at 12:30, and I got my epidural right after.  I only felt 2 contractions that were really bad and painful.  (That's the way to do it, ladies!)  I was 3 cm at AROM.  At 1:00 I made it to 5 cm.  My dad called from his cell phone in the parking lot to say he was finally able to make it after his morning business meeting and he was just in time!  After we hung up I got dizzy and asked Nathan to get my nurse to give me more IV fluids or something.  Well, I was dizzy because I was complete all of a sudden!  In came the doctor, and after 2 pushes out came Rebecca.  Katie got to cut the cord this time around.  I don't remember crying at the delivery of my other two children, but Rebecca had put me through 10 weeks of worry and I was so relieved she was healthy and the pregnancy was finally over, I cried as I stroked her head for the first time.

I was so glad that both my dad and sister were present this time around.  I knew it wasn't weird to have my mom there for Braden, and so I told my dad he would be invited if he'd like to come. He was unsure, and up until he walked into the room, I thought he might be planning to stay in the waiting room.  But he came, and I was so glad he did.  I remember he and my mom both teared up (it's called the Emotional Double Whammy) and my dad gave me a hug and told me he was proud of me.  They'll be invited again next time . . . 

As for all those skeptical nurses, Dr. B. and I had a good little chuckle.  She and I knew what was what, because of all the people on the labor floor - including both people in spontaneous labor and inductions that came at the crack of dawn to start - I was the first one of the shift to deliver!