The M Party of Five

Keeping up with The Joneses

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 19:01:00 +0000

You've lived there. You know, next to "The Joneses." The place where you are always trying to keep up with them and in some cases compete and surpass them. I've lived there. No, really, right next to them, our neighbors were actually Mr. and Mrs. Jones. And we kept up with them. Then we moved.

The thing about "keeping up with the Joneses" is such a waste of time. I've been there, I know. The grass is always greener and your life will always be better and you will always be happier "if only we had...." That is a bunch of hogwash (insert worse word here). We had the hand-scraped hardwood floors, stainless steel kitchen with the granite counter tops, fabulous staircase, study with bookshelves, fancy dining room, valuted ceilings, outdoor fireplace, and more square footage than we actually lived in. No kidding, I lived there. The fact is though is that it did not make me happy. I thought that once we moved into that house I would never again utter the words "wouldn't we be happier if we had....." Truth is, things don't make you happy, people make you happy. That house cost more and my kids still spilled apple juice on the hand-scraped hardwood floors just like they did on the other floors in our other house. The granite counter tops got sticky just like the laminate countertops at our other house. The kids still made a mess of their bedrooms just like they did at our other house (only this time I had to climb a fleet of stairs to clean them). You know what wasn't just like our other house? How much longer it took me to clean that square footage that we couldn't live without and the amount of money that it took to heat and cool the rooms with the vaulted ceilings.

That was then, this is now. Like I said, we moved. This time we got a more "sensible" house....one more our style. We don't have hardwood floors, we have carpet (even though when it is time to replace the carpet my husband is pushing for hardwood floors), our counters aren't granite and our appliances are white. There is no fabulous staircase, it is all on one floor (so yes, I have gained 5 pounds because I'm not doing stairs a hundred times a day anymore). I can stand on a stool and touch the ceiling (this fact alone dropped our electric bill $200). You know what else? We are a happier family because of it. We love our house, we love our life, and we love each other. There is no more "keeping up with the Joneses," we keep up with ourselves (this is a big enough chore with all of the extra-curricular activities).

Madison watching tv....I think it was "The Fresh Beat Band" (notice her complete pause and awe of what she was viewing)

Audri and Tim: Pelican Cove

Molli and Morgan: Pelican Cove

Madison eating her morning Cheerios (maybe it was lunch or supper, she eats Cheerios all day)

Maddie the dog...once again proving she has a hard life.

Designer Jeans and Honesty

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 02:42:00 +0000

I saw a woman in the Wal-Mart parking lot the other day that was getting a stroller out of her van. I commented to her that she must be a mom too (at the time I was getting Madison out of her car seat). She laughed and said yeah, she had four girls with the oldest being 9. This woman then went on to say that she was lucky if she got a shower three times a week (note: she was wearing gym shorts, T-shirt, ponytail, and a visor....I was too, just in different colors). She was honest. I don't think most women are honest about it. Some are, I am. I don't have a job (one that pays me anyway, although I'm waiting for the someone to pay me my $100,000 since the national survey says that stay-at-home moms deserve this salary...check still hasn't come but I keep holding out hope) and I find myself with no time to take a shower every morning and get decked out in my designer jeans. I don't even think I could find my designer jeans in my closet if I wanted to, I'm sure they are in there under all of the stuffed animals that are waiting for their "stitches" and the clothes that need ironing. I'm also sure that they will still fit, never mind that I wear elastic-waisted shorts seven days a week so my view of my "size" is probably not the same as the size reflected on the tag in my designer jeans. I've always wondered how (and really why??) stay-at-home moms get up early, get their showers, put on their make-up, do their hair, get dressed in the latest trend to take their kids to school and then go home to have the baby spit up on them or finger paint smeared on the legs of their designer jeans or the bleach to dribble down the ruffled shirt or twist their ankle cooking in the kitchen while wearing the latest wedge sandal. These people exist, I have met them. Or I have met what they want people to believe they are. I am not this person, I am not like these people; nor do I want to be. I get up, hair goes in a ponytail, gym shorts and a t-shirt are my wardrobe, and flip flops are on my feet. If I have to go out in public, my red visor is on my head (even if my shirt is pink, I still wear the red visor). There are exceptions such as doctor appointments (which the kids go to every week it seems and I always get spit up on or a snotty nose wiped on my shirt because they can't stop crying due to the fact that their finger got pricked; which means the blood from the finger is on the back of my shirt where the kid is holding on for dear life while wiping their snotty nose on the front of my shirt) and trips to the school. But for the most part I only get to take a shower around midnight when everyone is asleep. I'm not complaining because I wouldn't want my life to be any other way.

This past week was the beginning of the school year. Morgan started 3rd grade and Molli started kindergarten. Madison has been sick all week which has made the week that much more stressful. I haven't slept in a week. I haven't slept more than four hours a night in a week (and these are not four consecutive hours). So if you see me in my gym shorts, t-shirt, and visor, don't look at me as if I could have dressed better because for the love of God, there is no way that I could have had the energy to pretend that I care how I am dressed.

Morgan's 8th birthday (Morgan and Molli)

Morgan and Molli at the Bernice Pool

Madison, Morgan and Molli

Madison's 1st birthday

Morgan: first day of 3rd grade

Molli: first day of kindergarten

Morgan and Molli

Pictures and Not Much Else

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 17:49:00 +0000

Let's see.......it has been one month and 18 days since I last posted. Really, I can't believe that much time has passed. Not much has changed, Tim's car probably needs to go to the shop, my house is still a mess, and I am still eating candy in the closet. Madison had tubes in February, Molli had tubes in March, Tim had an appendectomy in April....at the rate we are going, we are averaging a surgery a month...let's hope that the trend stops soon since May is approaching. Which also means that school is ending soon....thank God. I don't know who is more ready for summer, the kids or me (I think me....no more car pool lines!). I have to go do laundry so I am going to post some pictures and write more later.

The 3 Goofballs: Molli, Morgan, and Madison

The lazy pets: Samantha (cat) & Maddie (dog)

Morgan & Molli dying Easter Eggs

The Easter Loot

Morgan & Molli anxiously waiting to see what the Easter Bunny brought.

Madison wanted Tim's glasses more than the bunny.

Madison....excited

Molli and Morgan reading the letter the Easter Bunny left them.

Morgan and Molli

Morgan, Madison, and Molli

Morgan and Molli

Madison

Morgan, Madison, & Molli. Madison was attacking Molli's dress....she wanted the red bow.

Morgan, Madison, and Molli

Hiding out in my closet...

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 19:37:00 +0000

My den looks like a toy store exploded in it. My kitchen looks like, well, let’s just say the dishes need to be done. My laundry is piled to the ceiling. Madison hasn’t slept in three nights (neither have I). Molli got tubes in her ears yesterday. Madison went to the doctor this morning (she has a sinus infection). Morgan’s stomach hurts. Tim has a sore throat. And I just sat on the floor in my closet (with the door closed and the bathroom door closed and the bedroom door closed) and ate a cookies and cream ice cream bar (at least it was Weight Watchers) with 3 closed doors between me and the world……And then I opened all three doors (mainly because one was being banged on) to rejoin the world of the messy house and whining kids. At the mere mention of the fact that I might not feel well sends my kids into a panic attack. They immediately start asking who is going to take care of them and cook supper (why the name “Daddy” doesn’t pop into their heads, I have no idea). It’s amazing, I can look around the house and think I am not doing a good job of anything really, but they think I’m Super Mom. Strange how different our perspectives are.

Tim’s car is back in the shop (seriously, I’m not kidding) for the fourth time. This time his wiper blade wasn’t working. For those of you who own an American car, that thought may not phase you. For those of you who own a foreign car with tons of stupid sensors and motors for things that should be simple and straightforward, you can probably commiserate with me on the amount that this piece that is making the wiper blade work incorrectly costs. I’ve renamed his car, it is no longer named Zoe, it’s MP (money pit).

Madison feigned interest in sitting up this morning. After 10 minutes of it, she won’t do it again. At least I have the pictures to prove that she did it. Maybe she can fit this into her schedule again tomorrow.

Molli got tubes in her ears yesterday. This was the second time (the first time was when she was a baby). The main difference is between a baby getting tubes and a 5-year-old: babies cry afterwards, big kids are drunk afterwards. It did give me some perspective on why the babies cry, though. Apparently they feel drunk and confused. It was actually somewhat amusing to listen to Molli talk. Every time she made a sentence she would follow it with “but I don’t know what I mean.” To be honest, I had no clue either; nothing she was saying was making any sense.

Morgan says that her class gives her a headache because they talk too much. She is the only one this year that has not gotten in trouble for talking during class. I often wonder how any child of mine can achieve that. I remember my “conduct grade” from elementary school; let’s just say it wasn’t good because I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. It’s amazing that my kids can, go figure.

Now I am off to wave my magic wand to make my house clean….

Madison sitting up

Madison still sitting up

Madison is beginning to get tired....

....and she got tired.

Molli shopping at Toys R Us

Molli playing with Madison

Madison

Molli and Madison

Morgan and Molli drinking their "coffee" (mostly milk and sugar with a tiny bit of coffee)

Morgan and Molli

Madison

Molli and Morgan watching a movie in Morgan's room

Morgan

Madison....back at the doctor's office

Molli at the doctor's office

Morgan and "Cha Cha"

The thinks we think...

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 00:02:00 +0000

"These people need to learn how to drive!" That was not said by me, that was said by Molli, the 5-year-old in the back seat. She said this while we were driving home from school today because I was mumbling something about how I got cut off in traffic. Oops, I wonder what else she has heard in the car while Tim or I are driving? When Morgan made the comment, "They need to get better crossing guards, this one sucks!" on the way to school this morning (Tim usually takes her to school), I realized that maybe our kids listen to us when we think they aren't. I need to make a mental note to check what I say before it comes out of my mouth before my kids tell someone something I said about them. I know this sounds bad, I try to be a good role model, but people in cars make me mad. They really don't know how to drive. And the cashiers at the grocery stores are not friendly. And the baggers at the grocery store are clueless (I mean, really, who doesn't have the common sense to not throw the canned food on top of the bread??). And the people who work at the drive-thru don't ever get the order right. However, that being said, maybe I shouldn't say things in front of my kids that I wouldn't want them to repeat in front of others. We'll see how that goes, I will add that to the list of things to do. After all, I am sure that at some point, somewhere there are good drivers on the road other than me, friendly cashiers, conscientious baggers, and smart drive-thru workers. If y'all find them, let me know.

So today was Dr. Seuss's birthday. Molli wanted to know if that meant we had a doctor's appointment. When I said no, she wanted to know how she was supposed to tell him happy birthday. Oh the thinks that kid thinks (I'm hoping you got the Dr. Seuss reference there). Because today was being celebrated at Morgan's school, I had to make cupcakes. Unfortunately I only had to take 6 cupcakes to round out the people that had already volunteered. Which means that there were 18 cupcakes to be left at home. Believe it or not, I didn't want to eat those 18 cupcakes so I took them to Molli's school so that her class would eat them. I came home and had a piece of the chocolate pie that I made last night. But at least I didn't eat 18 cupcakes.

Morgan and Molli got haircuts today. Molli got a little trim, but Morgan got three inches cut off her hair. She has been walking around like a runway model. She said that she hoped that her Daddy would recognize her because she looked so different (good news, he did).

We are having company for dinner (in about an hour) so I guess I had better go clean the kitchen, bathe the kids, feed the kids, take a shower, and cook dinner.....let's hope I can get that done in the next 58 minutes....

"One fish, two fish, red fish, blue fish" cupcakes

Molli going to school

Morgan and Molli. Morgan was reading Molli a "good night" book.

Madison

Morgan and Molli playing in Molli's room.

Molli being Molli

Sweet sisters

Morgan's new haircut: 3 inches cut off!

Molli - I wouldn't let her have another cupcake.

Living by Murphy's Law

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 16:24:00 +0000

Murphy's Law....if it can go wrong, it will. We (as a family) seem to be late for everything (except work and school). It seems as if we just can't get everything together, no matter how much of an effort we make to be on time. Everytime we get ready to leave the house to go somewhere something, inevitably, always makes us late. There is always a left shoe missing, the favorite bracelet is misplaced, the cat can't be found (we have to make sure she didn't run outside during all of the confusion of getting five people out of the door), somebody forgot to potty and has to run back inside, diaper has to be changed, we forgot to get the dog inside, Madison's clothes are wet and she has to be changed....the list goes on and on. Are we the only family that this happens to? I swear the girl that cuts our hair must tell us to be there 15 minutes before she actually wants us to be there. I cannot tell you how many times we have had to call her to tell her we will be a few minutes late. I remember a time when I was on time everywhere I went, I didn't have a husband, I didn't have kids, and I had no responsibilities....I had much rather be late everywhere than to not have them.

Tim and I decided to be smart and sell his car to buy a cheaper one (he only uses a car to go back and forth to work, so this made sense to us). So we bought a 1998 Mercedes (yeah, we sold a Chrysler to buy a Mercedes to save money). We got a good deal on the car, paid cash, and drove it home. Then realized it needed four new tires. Tim drove it for a couple of days and then decided to take it to a mechanic....it needed new bearings, water pump, brake pads, a tune up.....our "good deal" seems to be going down the drain at this point. Then we got the bill and it didn't seem so bad. Drove it for a couple of more days and took it back to the mechanic. Now it needs two new coils (whatever that is). Maybe he can drive it for a couple of more days.....

We raked the yard (we have 5 massive oak trees in our back yard) on Saturday, we hadn't raked it since all of the leaves fell in the fall. The kids helped us (Molli refused to wear shorts, so she raked while wearing a dress and a hairbow). We had huge piles of leaves. We were planning on bagging all of the leaves on Sunday because it was so late on Saturday when we finished. Apparently it was really windy on Saturday night, all of the leaves blew all over the yard.

We were actually on time to church Sunday morning (I'm pretty sure that is the first time that has happened, ever). Morgan sang in the children's choir (which is why we were on time). Madison decided to give the preacher her comments during the sermon.....

I am about to print out my hundreds of coupons to go grocery shopping, let's hope the printer doesn't run out of ink....

Morgan and Molli with Morgan's best friend, Devin

Morgan, Molli, and Devin going to the pond to see the ducks

Tim and his car back at the mechanic's....

Madison watching the rest of us rake leaves

Morgan raking (we've since bought her a bigger rake)

Molli raking in her dress and hairbow

This picture does not do justice to the amount of leaves in our yard...

Pink lemonade break...

Madison got exhausted watching us rake the yard

Morgan and Molli's science experiement. After stirring the citric acid and baking soday, something is supposed to happen

....and it fizzed and foamed and went everywhere.

Madison's mohawk

Morgan and Molli

Apparently church wore them out

Madison's new sleeping position: on her side

Willpower on Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 18:29:00 +0000

I did it; yesterday morning I fought my urge to drive through McDonald's...and Krispy Kreme. I drove straight home after taking Molli to school. And baked a cake. So I'm not perfect, but I'm trying. The good news is that I have only had 3 slices of that cake since yesterday; I could have had much more. I hope this means my willpower is coming back, it's been on vacation for about a month (it should have taken me with it, I need a vacation too). I feel like Molli did the night we caught her in the guest bedroom watching TV and eating chocolate (it was 11:30 at night; she had been in bed for hours). When we asked her what she was doing, she replied (as she had chocolate all over her face) "I can't help it, I'm just a hungry, hungry, candy-eating machine!" She and I have a lot in common.

I finally made it to "Week 2" in my Organize Now! book (I have been on Week 1: Organize Your Mind since January). This one is "Organize Your Schedule," and one of the things is to keep a notebook by your bed so that you can write down things to do when you think of them....this is going to send me back to Week 1 where I was supposed to "get a minimum of seven hours of sleep per night." If I am supposed to sleep, the last thing I need is a distracter like a list beside my bed; I will be making lists all night. Tim will love this, he will wake up in the morning to a list of things to do that I have thought up for him all night.....somehow I don't see him being supportive of this "week," maybe I should skip on to Week 3 "Organize your Cleaning Schedule." As I write this, I have a pile of dishes and laundry to do, not to mention bathrooms to clean. I used to have a maid. Tim didn't think that maid did a good job, but I'm here to tell you, she did much better than I do. It was so nice to come home from work on Friday and the whole house was clean and the laundry was folded. But then again, I had a job, and I am thankful that I can stay at home now with the kids. So that makes me the maid.

Morgan is having a friend spend the night tonight. This is her best friend, and she is so excited. Molli is excited too. It makes me remember what it was like to be a little kid and get to have friends over, sleep didn't matter, and you wanted to stay up all night long. My how things change.....I don't think there is enough money in the world to make me want to stay up past 10:00 (I'm stretching it here), much less all night. How in the world did we used to have that much energy? I'm glad I did at one time, but I sure don't anymore.

Molli and Madison in Madison's room

Madison...I asked Molli to help with Madison and I walked in to find all of Madion's toys around her and on top of her.

Molli, tasting the cake batter

Molli fell asleep on the way to Morgan's dance class

Morgan at dance class

Morgan attempting to keep her balance

Morgan the ballerina

Tim....he got suckered in to going to dance class too

Madison stretching out on the floor while waiting on Morgan

Molli and Tim entertaining themselves while waiting on Morgan

Molli telling Tim how he was playing the game wrong...

Madison watching Molli and Tim

Molli and Morgan...Molli was excited that we could now go home.

McGriddle Eating Taxi Driver

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 16:23:00 +0000

Yesterday I had the idea that maybe I should put a sign on my van "Mom's Taxi," incorporate myself and write off the money I pay in gas to haul my kids around. I wasn't kidding. Have you filled up your car lately? It's a major expense, it was up 7 cents from last week when I filled up. It's tax season, I think of these things. There should be some kind of reimbursements for stay-at-home moms (or any moms for that matter) that have to take a kid to school, go home, go back and pick her up, go back home, go pick the other kid up, go home again, take a kid to dance (stay because you can only afford so much gas), and finally go back home. That adds up. I'm telling you, I'm going to become my own business, I see no other way.

To top that off, there are these seven pounds hanging over me (or on me, however you want to look at it). It's becoming a problem. The problem is that there is a McDonald's on the way to Molli's school. They sell McGriddles. I love McGriddles. But I have seven pounds to lose. I'm doing the Weight Watchers points, I can only have 29 points a day, the McGriddle is 15 points. Problem with the McGriddle, it has friends named hash brown and Coke. These friends have to come along for the ride too which adds another 7 points. You see where this is going, I can't eat for the rest of the day (which does not happen) because I am out of points. It has gotten to where I am ashamed to log onto WW and do my daily tracking because I feel as if the computer is judging me when I type in "McGriddle." Did I mention that I pay for the McGriddle & Friends with change from my loose change cup because I don't want the charges on my debit card because then there would be proof that I was going to McDonalds. I figure if people don't know, it doesn't really count. I have a serious problem. However, I am happy to say that I did not go to that McDonald's today. I drove right past it. I drove to Krispy Kreme. Now, I will hand it to Krispy Kreme, they tried to make it harder for me to get there. I had to wait at a 5 minute red light, turn into a bank parking lot, and drive through the Wal-Mart parking lot to get there, but I did it. And that chocolate-iced, custard-filled doughnut was completely worth it. It even made it not so bad when Madison started screaming from the backseat. The sweetness from the doughnut stopped me from channeling George's dad from Seinfeld (you know, the guy who says "Serenity Now!"). All kidding aside, I think this sweetness addiction is getting serious. I need professional help. I wonder if there is a support group for this? Maybe I could start one...SEA...Sweet-Eaters Anonymous. I could serve doughnuts and coffee.

Thank goodness the weather is nice because Madison and I are going to have to walk an extra lap around the neighborhood this morning....

Madison getting ready for a stroll....I need an extra lap

"Mom's Taxi" going to dance class

"Mom's Taxi" arrived at dance class with 3 passengers

Madison waiting for Molli's dance class to be over

Morgan reading while waiting for Molli's dance class to be over

Molli doing her best ballerina impression

Molli doing some sort of pose

Madison ready for bed after the day's excitement

Morgan ready for bed

Highlight of My Day

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 20:15:00 +0000

Apparently I am not that great at following resolutions, I need to get better. It is practically a month later and I am just now posting my second blog. I still haven't lost the weight I vowed to lose, I haven't read another book, but I have spent a lot of time playing with my kids. I bought a Zumba Fitness DVD and as I watched it while sitting on my couch, it looks like it would be a great workout. Now if only I could get the energy to get off of the couch and actually do it I could lose my seven pounds. As far as organization goes, I am still on Week 1: Organizing your Mind. I almost have that one down......maybe in another week I can move onto Week 2....

Madison still prefers her bottle to baby food, but I have to say I don't blame her. Have you ever tasted that baby food? Not very appetizing, and the texture isn't great either. Maybe I should try making my own baby food. That would probably save money. She still hasn't started sitting up (she is now 7 months), however, she does enjoy standing up (and bouncing up and down) in her saucer. She had to get ear tubes two weeks ago, and that turned out to be a great thing. Now she will sleep in her bed as opposed to her swing.

Last weekend, Morgan and Molli decided that Tim and I needed to do another cook-off. The first one was a couple of months ago and it involved pancakes. Supposedly it was a tie, but I think that Morgan felt sorry for Tim and voted for his last minute (obviously Molli voted for me). This time, however, we had to make cookies, from scratch. Now, I didn't have a problem with that, but I thought Tim might. He surprised me (I think all of us) though and made peanut butter chocolate chip cookies that were actually very good. Although, I won. I made heart-shaped chocolate sandwich cookies with cream cheese icing and sprinkles. Tim keeps telling me that the only reason I won was because of the presentation. I tried to tell him that when trying to win over kids, it has to have sprinkles.....

I wish that I had been the founder of Build-a-Bear Workshops. Anyone who has ever been into that place has got to feel the same way. Tons of kids spending their parents' money to stuff and dress a toy that would have cost half of that if bought fully stuffed and dressed in a toy store. Again, it is about the appeal to kids and the kids drag their parents in that place. That being said, we visited a BBW last weekend where Morgan and Molli stuffed and dressed a rabbit and a bear, and seemed to have the time of their life. I need to get a second job to pay for the trips to BBW.

This weekend Tim bought a new car. Well, new-to-us car. We spent all day driving around trying to find one, then had to go get new tires for the car. The next day was spent in the driveway washing and cleaning the new-to-us car. The kids like to name the cars so they have named Tim's "Zoe." Poor Tim can't catch a break, everything is female.

Now we are off to the pharmacy (CVS) to buy formula and diapers. I have figured out that with my coupons and the store sale and the "extra bucks" the store emailed me, I can buy formula (brand name) and diapers (brand name) for a total of $13. And that is the highlight of this 32-year-old mother's day today....

Molli dressed up for "Cowboy Day"

Madison

Morgan dressed up for the "Fairytale Ball"

Madison playing with her feet

Molli and Morgan washing Tim's car

Morgan washing Tim's car

Morgan and Molli at BBW

Tim, Molli, and Morgan at BBW

Morgan, Audri, and Molli at BBW

Madison in her saucer

Cookie Cook-off. Tim's is on the left and Audri's is on the right.

New Year's Resolution

noreply@blogger.com (Audri) — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 17:31:00 +0000

My New Year's resolution (one of them) was to start a blog. Not that I have anything to say that anyone would be interested in reading, but I thought it would be a good way to record our family's life. At the end of the year, I will see if this was worth it. I am a little late on getting started as it is already January 27, 2011. So far I have done some of my resolutions....I decided to lose weight so I began Weight Watchers. It's not as encouraging when your spouse has already doubled what you have lost in the same time span, but at least I only have nine more pounds to lose....we will see how long that takes. Also, because I never seem to find time to read a "grown-up" book because I am always reading kids books, I have decided to read at least one book a month (again, we will see how that goes). I have, amazingly enough, squeezed in time to read one book: James Patterson Cross Fire. I have also decided to organize my life so I am trying (week-by-week) to follow the book Organize Now! I have been on "Week 1" since January 9. Week 1 is entitled "Organizing Your Mind"....I will let you draw your own conclusions about why I am still on Week 1.

I can't believe that Morgan is halfway through the second grade! She reads more than any kid I have ever seen. Right now she is into mysteries and absolutely loves Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew books. Morgan also loves math (apparently she takes after me) and likes to do big math problems in her head.

Molli will be in kindergarten next year, and it dawned upon me the other night that I didn't know if she knew her ABCs or if she knew how to count past ten (you can tell she isn't the first child). I was pleasantly surprised to find that she knows all of her letters, can pick most of them out when shown to her, and can count to 25...who knew? Maybe I should ask questions more often....I will put that on my list of things I must remember to do. I do know that she wants to be a "fairy princess." For Christmas, Santa brought her the book The Very Fairy Princess. Now she thinks the book is about her.

Madison turned six months old this month....I can't believe how far we have come in six months! Even though she is six months, she refuses to sit up. It's not that she couldn't if she didn't try, she just doesn't want to. She is finally eating baby food after a couple of months of absolutely refusing to take anything but her bottle. Although, she only eats rice cereal, bananas, and prunes (of which I am not too fond of her eating). She has developed quite the cute little personality, she loves to cuddle and rub noses.

Oops, I hear the little one waking up, I had better go before she starts screaming.....