I'll take "no more children" for $800, Alex

So I'll start this post off with TMI: Somehow I forgot to pick up my birth control this month. I don't know how this happened - it's on auto-renew, and I picked up my anti-crazy meds so you'd think I'd have gotten it but no. And then when I realized and really needed it, I kept forgetting and now it's too late and I've just decided to wait until next month and start it clean.

So of course there's that little niggling thought about having more kids (don't tell C, he'd shit a brick). It's not that I want another baby, or even another kid - I love my children dearly but my are they a handful and I really don't have the brainpower to answer eight million more "Why?" questions. It's just ... baby. Baaaabbyyyyyyy.

Anyhow, tonight was Reading Night at the school. C does not go to these things, so I take the kids. Me and the two boys went to Cody's (I'm not changing the grammar on that, I'm just going to watch while you take a red pen to your computer screen) and I had a nice although slightly exhausting dinner with them, and then I picked up the boy whose mom works through Reading Night and I became Single Mom with Three Boys for an hour.

Holy horse shit, that's not happening.

Henry sat on my lap and let me read to him while the two older boys (the extra kid is in first grade) raised a little hell and I whisper scolded them to sit down and read and no you cannot throw that paper airplane you made from your homework pass and damn it sit down and read or wearegoinghomethisminute. It wasn't that bad but man, it was exhausting, and 49 minutes later when we got back to the car I told them that next month, next month they will sit and read.

Tomorrow C is taking his mom to the car show and I will be lone wolfing it for the evening. I'm making pizza, and it's movie night and am I being too optimistic to think I might be able to get the nine foot Christmas tree out of the attic on my own, since C doesn't want to think about these things quite yet?

Christmas

I have a general idea of what to get Spencer, but I have no idea what to get Henry. Tell me things to get a three year old when he already pretty much has all his brothers stuff already?

Procrastination

Spencer has never had an issue going to bed. Whenever we set his bedtime, he's also within minutes of going to bed (much like his father, really). There was a couple weeks when he was three that he would wake up and try to climb into bed with us but it went away almost as quickly as it started. With the time change we moved his bedtime earlier and now my nearly 6 year old (ack!) Goes to bed between 7:30-7:45 through the week and 8:00 on Fridays.

I've mentioned that Henry has been waking in the middle of the night, and that has gone down to about twice a week (last night three times) but also since potty training has started he gets up immediately upon going to bed to pee again even though he goes five minutes earlier. Tonight he also needed his bedding fixed because it was "tangled", peed three times, and twice just stood in the hallway like a Chucky doll.

He probably should go to bed later, but it's just not possible to give a three year old a later bedtime then a five year old. Right?

In the meantime we'll just put him back to need eight times while he procrastinates on sleep.

A good weekend and a list of concerts

This weekend was just the kind of weekend I needed. There was Disney in the rain (what? We wore raincoats!) Christmas decorations out the yin yang and snow machines, an evening cut short by pee (seriously, dude, enough), and carbs galore at Cracker Barrel. There was a morning of cleaning my house from head to toe and then retreating to my room to paint my fingernails and my toenails and watch This Means War and basically ignore everyone for a bit. There was really good red wine and the last of the Fizzing Wizzbees and a very abrupt bedtime when I all of a sudden couldn’t keep my eyes open.

So I was thinking about what to blog about, and Stephanie wrote about her concert love of Matchbox 20 which made me think of all the bands I have seen in concert. And so for your Monday morning enjoyment, here’s a list:

New Kids on the Block (once as a young one and once a few years ago)

Debbie Gibson

They Might Be Giants (17 times. Yes, I know. Once was the kids show and I brought the kids. Once was two weeks after Spencer was born, and I got a babysitter. Once was driving to Asheville NC after a hurricane)

OK GO (twice)

Frank Black (he really needed the Pixies, sucked on his own)

Billy Joel

Black Crowes

Grateful Dead (April 1995, last concert held in Tampa Stadium before it was torn down, and 4 months before Jerry Garcia died)

James Taylor (three times)

Alanis Morissette

Tori Amos

Collective Soul

Cranberries

Sum 41

MxPx (twice, once when they were still Magnified Plaid)

No Need for a Name

Taking Back Sunday

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

Barenaked Ladies

Flogging Molly

Garbage

Plain White Tees (three times)

Rockapella (four times? Possibly five)

Lacuna Coil (twice)

Muse

Tom Petty

(edited)
Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

I think this is a full list, but there were probably a few more. I left out bands that were at music festivals that I went to but I didn’t pay any attention to, but I included a few that were at festivals that I went specifically to see or watched their entire set.

Who have you seen?

I am a sheep, but it's a funny sheep

So this auto bot thing is going around - I first saw it on Miriel's blog, and then several others and now mine. I don't have anything so say about them though, because they are mostly nonsensical, and while I think they're funny, I can't imagine anyone else would.

The Ninth just has eaten my parents were readers.

I've always been a good sport!

It's amazing and sending some to my favorites.

It holds the book together.

He doesn't know how much I pay attention??.? do better
with myself.

Indeed, it's an elementary school REUNION! Let us both
sleep!

Ours usually ask her to do emergency polo shopping so
he's clothed for Wii.

Except when Spencer knows the whole squash tomorrow.

Happy vacation Having three kids tablets, but I used skim
ricotta and getting back in the German gift shop and I'm exhausted.

I'm a bottle of NOT in bed w us at 530 and I joined her
behind the toy car!

Counting the Fault in our drinks from each time

Wait, Dad, I didn't feel bad about velocity, destiny,
hydrate v dehydrate, and a lot of fun though!

Stars Matthew Mcconaughey and Channing Tatum, gyrating
with an eggplant?

Must be on the Night for Avengers

Oh, there was when I told Henry no rest for the rest of
times that I won, with my baby Jesus, people.

you can still get through today and we have no idea what
do I really need a handle on these tapping dudes outside the one in the late
90s, so I would have left my phone in our midst.

I need to be over.

Privilege

The other day I was driving, and as I was driving my nice newish car (which I bought new) I was thinking about the holiday we had decided to take. After Christmas, we want to take the kids up to see snow, and decided on a small town in North Carolina.

Somehow, my mind clicked over to my own childhood. There were a lot of bad parts but there were a fair amount of good parts too. However, we lived very small and were pretty low on means most of the time. I don't really remember wanting for anything toy-wise, and I had a bike and one year I remember having one of those little trampolines. I grew up fine, and mostly knew the value of a dollar (except when I, like all other college students, got in a mild amount of credit card debt and also didn't know how balance my checkbook).

I remember thinking, when I decided to go to the local university (which was the only college I applied to because I had scholarships but couldn't afford room and board if I went away to school) - I remember thinking how far the drive was. It was 50 minutes each way, and took me from my little suburb into the big scary city. My mom warned me about the big scary city, but now I live there and have for ten years.

Anyhow, all of this is to say that as I was thinking about how my children are growing up, and all the privilege they have that I didn't even think possible, didn't even know I was missing. They've been to six states, on an airplane, on car trips. We are not wealthy by any stretch of the imagination, but we are comfortable. They have it good. I hadn't left the state until junior year of high school with my marching band. I hadn't been on an airplane until my senior year of high school (also with the band). I still haven't been out of the country, I don't even have a passport (one of these days). My kids go to Disney nearly every single weekend - every weekend! When I think of this, sometimes it blows my mind. Every cotton pickin' weekend! I went to Disney once when I was four or so, and for my ninth birthday I went to Epcot.

I hope I am able to instill in my children how good they have it. I hope I can show them that they are privileged and to be generous to others. I want to raise generous souls.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Late night bits

I think it's been years since I tried to post actual words from my phone, but the iPad is dead and laptop isn't worth the trouble, so excuse any terrible  autocorrect gaffs.

** I feel like I did all the blogging I could possibly do today, as I was having a small meltdown/anxiety crisis and I emailed all day about it. Thank you so much, friends, for helping me through today. I am going that the main panic is over; my rational mind knows it's not an issue now I just need my subconscious to agree.

** remember when I said that Henry potty trained quickly and had no problems? Well strike that. This week has not been good.

** I really need this weekend.

** The kids watched Goonies tonight. I did not realize/remember how much language was in it, or the dead bodies. Spencer seemed to stay interested though.

** Christmas music has started on the radio - I'm psyched.

** yes, 8:45pm is "late night".