Hey Mom, look at this!

kitchen remodel

2010-04-28T15:52:00.000-07:00

We are in the middle of a complete kitchen remodel. I will spare you all the gory details, but this is a MAJOR project - I had no idea!
For your entertainment pleasure I have made a list of our highs and lows of the remodel:

Highs
Stomping on big sheets of bubble wrap
Big boxes to play in
Grandma is here to help!
de-cluttering our kitchen
spending a lot of beautiful time on our patio - our coffee pot has been temporarily relocated out there, and I love having my coffee first cup by the pool :-)
eating out = no cooking!!!
My cabinets are beautiful!

Lows:
I can't find ANYTHING!
cold showers (for a few days)
Half of my kitchen stuff is on the carport
DUST DUST DUST
waiting - very hard to do gracefully and well.
Tired and overworked husband :-(

I hope to find my camera battery soon, so I can post some pics of the re-do, but so far it is MIA. I can't believe I didn't take a before picture!

An Apple A Day

2010-04-17T15:42:00.053-07:00

Apples are my favorite snack.

No cutting, counting or measuring.

No plates, cups or bowls.

Simplicity at its best.

I love it when things are easy.

And they love them!
And my favorite part: they can't scarf them down in 30 seconds flat!

Which of course means a few minutes of peace for the Mommy.

Maybe an apple a day really will keep the ~~psychiatrist~~ doctor away ~~from me~~!

Its Not About Me

2010-04-15T22:00:00.000-07:00

There are times I no longer wish to parent my children. I have never actually considered putting my child on a plane to Russia, but I have begged my husband to take them away somewhere - anywhere for just a little while. Usually these are just fleeting feelings that fade with a sloppy wet kiss or the words, "Mommy I love you AND I like you." I mean who can resist that?

But I have probably felt this way about my (hopefully) soon to be adopted children more than I have ever have about my birth children. They are totally adorable and sweet, but they are a mystery to me. I learn a little more each day about what makes them tick, but there are years of experiences and information that have been lost. Years of bonding and love. I totally get this article I Did Not Love My Adopted Child. It is hard to accept, as the author KJ Dell'Antonia wrote, that "even the best adoptive parent is just the cleanup crew." Ouch.

And there is that myth out there that as a prospective adoptive you will feel an instant connection with the child - that you will have a love at first sight experience. A moment where you instantly know you were all meant to live together happily ever...but I am not sure how often that happens. It didn't for me.

This thing called adoption has been one of the hardest things I ever done. Like Dell'Antonia I wonder about how it will affect my bio children,and I wonder if the boys will ever really love me.

I think it is important as an adoptive parent to know in your bones - to really know - that parenting is not about you. It isn't about me and whether my two little guys ever consider me their real mommy. They need a family. They need parents. They need love. Period.

I wouldn't be adopting them otherwise.

Dell'Antonia wrote, "Probably none of it will work out as anyone would have intended—in fact, by definition, it already hasn't. A perfect world would be one in which every child could be well cared for by the mother he or she was born to. That's not what we've got. A "successful" adoption story is one in which you can tell yourself that it worked out better than the alternative. That has to be enough."

Indeed.

Art 101

2010-04-10T07:30:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about color lately. It seems like everywhere I turn there is a beautiful display of Spring colors! Basket fulls of plastics Easter eggs, purple, blue, orange, coral, yellow, and fuchsia blossoms out the living room and kitchen windows, and even the colors of the carrots and peas in the garden have seemed especially bright and cheery lately.

We are also in the middle of remodeling our living room and kitchen, so we have been trying to pick paint, flooring, cabinet and counter top colors. I am surrounded by color choices! The other day I was out shopping for some artwork for our freshly painted walls, and I was so discouraged by all the expensive cookie cutter prints I found. I wanted something more interesting, but I quickly realized unique was way out of my budget! On a whim I decided to try my hand at painting my own. I impulsively made a stop at Michael's, and quickly became totally confused in the paint aisle. So many choices and strange products - where does a girl begin? I called my sister for some help, and she pointed me in the right direction.

I started with some really ~~cheap~~ basic paints-just in case acrylics

and I didn't mix. These were about $8. I like this set because it has plenty of colors to get you started until you get the hang of mixing and making your own shades.

I was a little nervous about painting on a canvas, so I got really excited when I found this pack of acrylic paper. It is very durable, thick and again, cheap - on sale for $3.99 to be exact.

I started by squirting some of the paint on to my makeshift palette - this is the "pizza pan" from my kids' Melissa and Doug wooden play pizza set. It works great for mixing my paints and I didn't have to buy anything! I think you could also use any old plate or saucer too. Acrylics are water based, so it should wash off in the dishwasher. Just don't use your good China, okay?

I was tempted to buy brushes, but I decided to go through the box we already had at home. I found several that worked fine for my purposes as a beginner. One came with my daughter's watercolor set! I think if I do a larger painting (I really want to do one for the living room) I will buy some higher quality brushes, but these work fine for now.

I saw a painting here Custom Family Forest Portrait a couple of months ago, and I decided I would paint my own family forest. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery, right?

This is my first attempt at acrylics, and this painting shows my husband, myself and our four little "trees". My daughter's tree is purple, but it looks a little grey/black in the pic The grand total for this project was around $12, and I have plenty of supplies to make more artwork for the whole house! I really like how it turned out, and I can't wait to frame it!

My friend Katie over Blah 2 Beautiful has some really great ideas for DIY artwork. Check it out!

Doggie Delinquent

2010-04-08T07:51:00.000-07:00

Hello, my name is Rachael, and I am a doggie delinquent.

I know you think I am a completely upstanding citizen. Maybe even a role model for your children. WRONG. You see, my dog has a habit of lurking near the door. She doesn't dart or frantically try to escape. She bides her time, and waits for someone to leave the screen door ajar and then she casually walks out, and if no one notices...she goes crusin'!

This tendency of hers didn't used to be such a problem, but now with four little kids and two tired and stressed out parents we just don't notice where that darn dog is as often. So, long story short: We got a visit from the doggie police.

No big deal yet, just a friendly, "You need to keep a better watch on your dog ma'am". Except for one little thing - my dog didn't have a license. As my two year old would say, "oopsies."

I know! Why not? I can hear all of you saying it, "C'mon Rach, you had to have known you needed one?" Sigh. I let it slide. I didn't think it was a big deal - it was an extra errand. An extra item on my to do list that I just never did...for four years.

Big mistake. Because as it turns out, in the Old Pueblo (as Tucson is called for those of you non-desert rats) failure to have a dog license is a criminal offense. Gasp! CRIMINAL?

Yup. I found myself in City Court this morning for an arraignment hearing. There I sat next to DUI, MIP and POD offenders trying to decide if I should plead guilty to the no dog license misdemeanor and pay the fine or take and pay for a "diversion class" and have the charges dismissed. My charge was so minor that they didn't even assign it an acronym!

I know, this can't be happening right? My dog is vaccinated, we have a doggie door, I take her for walks AND runs AND I buy her good "natural" dog food...I'm no doggie criminal!

Except that technically, I am. At least until I do my 4 hours time in doggie delinquent diversion detention school, which I am kinda looking forward to. It's not often I get to spend fours on a Saturday morning kid-free. If they had really wanted to punish me they would have made me bring the kids with me - that would have been criminal.

After I got back from rubbing shoulders with some of Tucson's finest, my son Jonas told me that he was so glad that the judge didn't send me to jail, but he was kinda sad because he would have liked to visit me there.
Boy oh boy.

Look Mommy, I diddled it!

2010-02-28T16:15:00.000-07:00

Meet my two year old, Josh. A super cuddly happy go lucky little guy.

My five year old daughter has decided it is time to potty train Josh. I was skeptical at first, but she has gotten him to do all his dirty business and most of pees in the potty for two whole days!

After he finishes, he comes running bare bottomed into the living room saying, "Look Mommy, I diddled it!"

Indeed.

She drags the poor kid into the bathroom every time she thinks about it, and he just does it. He does what she says...why doesn't he do what I say?

Would you like fries with that?

2010-02-22T22:12:00.000-07:00

I don't go to fast food restaurants very often. Years ago after reading the stomach churning book Fast Food Nation, I almost quit hamburgers and chicken breast all together.

But there is a place that draws me - and my children. It has clean tables - always. The play area is clean -always. And the employees are kind and professional - always.

It also has great coffee in the mornings, a sound proofed play area, and, are you ready? Free Wi-Fi!
Mommy nirvana, right?

But more than anything it is probably the "free food give aways" that bring me through the door most often.

Because let's face it. I'm cheap.

And so it was last Friday. We ate our FREE breakfast, the kids played, I caught up on my blog reading, and before I know it, it is time to go.

Now for those of you with multiple preschoolers, you know it is not simply a matter of picking up your bag and walking out the door. There are socks to put on (my kids always take theirs off when they think I am not looking, so that they can climb up the slide when they think I am not looking). Shoes to cram on their feet. Melt downs to avert. Jackets to zip. It is enough to make you wish you had just stayed at home in the first place!

And then after all that, I realize my purse is missing. Oh no. Did someone snatch it during one of the many times I dashed into the play area to tell the Js to quit jumping on each others backs and stop climbing on the safety netting?

No, it must have been that trip to the bathroom.

The potty run we had to make after the three boys had gone into the play area, and they had all already taken their shoes off and tucked them neatly into the cubbies. I was just getting ready to sit back down at my table (on the quiet side of the glass!) when my three year old looked at me and said with fear in his eyes, "Mommy I have to pee!" Before I could even begin to help them all get their shoes back on - because I really am a stickler about wearing shoes in public bathrooms - I had to climb up into the bowels of the tunnel to remove my two-year old who just sat their saying, "mommmmiieee!" every time I asked him to pleeese hurry up and slide down the slide.

I was exasperated (who wouldn't be!) by the time I had gotten all three of them in to the bathroom, washed hands and deposited them back into the play area.

Yes, I had left my purse hanging in the bathroom stall. Over an hour ago!!

The good news was I had my "new" phone in my pocket! For those of you who followed my lost phone saga, you realize the significance of that fact.

I stood there with the three boys swirling around my ankles, and I wanted to just sit down and cry. I didn't. All I could think was, "How am I going to get home? "Is my van even still in the parking lot?"

I finally decided I should at least go and check with the front counter just in case a kind soul had turned it in.

Then the tears started falling. I couldn't hold them back because sitting on top of the balloon filling counter was my cute little red bag.

My hearted lifted - it was as if suddenly, I just knew that God was watching out for me. He had my back, you know?

My life may not be easy right now or exactly how I want it, but He sees me - the God of the Universe protected my purse! It seemed like maybe He was honoring all my lame attempts and even the failures to parent the four precious children in my care.

Thank you to my Chick-fil-A angel who turned my bag in on Friday morning. You made this Momma's day!

Superman never made any money

2010-02-18T21:47:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about love lately. If you've been to a store in the last few weeks, you can't really avoid the word love. It's every where you look: emblazoned across boxes of cheap chocolate, printed on the chest of singing stuffed bears and even stamped onto to those chalky candy hearts. You can't get away from it.

When my first child was born, and I held that red, splotchy, squirming baby in my arms for the first time, I was certain that this was love. She was mine. And she needed me more than anything or anyone in the whole wide world. And it was love at first sight. Five years later, I know that the feeling I had that day was a mere shadow of the love that would grow between us.

But how do I love someone else's child with that same fierceness that I have for my daughter and my son?

I think maybe it has something to do with time and happy memories. The more happy times you spend with someone - anyone - the fonder you will feel for that person. So, if over time your positive experiences outweigh the negative, you get love.

But what if you don't have a lot of time and the person that you need to love isn't, well, particularly lovable?

Well, I'm not very good at it. Recently, I have failed miserably at doing what should come easily to a mother. I have failed at loving a child.

Here's 1 Corinthians 13 from The Message:

Love never gives up.

Love cares more for others than for self.

Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.

Love doesn't strut,

Doesn't have a swelled head,

Doesn't force itself on others,

Isn't always "me first,"

Doesn't fly off the handle,

Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,

Doesn't revel when others grovel,

Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,

Puts up with anything,

Trusts God always,

Always looks for the best,

Never looks back,

But keeps going to the end.

Thank God for the sunrise and the promise of a new day.