What do you call...

...5 kids, 4 adults, 3 sleeping bags, 2 cars, 1 baby, and a whole lot of A/C?
Answer: a party with the cousins!
Hooray for the Andrew & Courtenay South family! We had such a great visit with them Saturday. The kids had a blast playing together and then we all "bonded," almost literally, as we practically froze to death eating out. [Word to the wise: bring a coat when eating out in Texas. It may be hot outside, but they like to over-compensate by cranking the a/c.]
Unfortunately the visit was pretty short. We did our best trying to keep them longer, but all we got was a sleepover party for the kids and movie date for the parents. But we'll take what we can get!
Thanks so much for visiting! Come back soon!

the Munchkins


Andrea & Lacie


Hailey, Eric & Macey


Courtenay & Andrew's nose and chin

Andrea-ism

I had just explained to Andrea that she should NOT run and charge my stomach because I had a baby in there, and she would hurt the baby. Okay, I was more worried about my own pain since the baby has a good protection of fat layerage around it. Anyway... the following conversation ensued:

(Andrea): I have a baby in my tummy?
(Net): No, just mommy.
(Andrea): And Daddy has a baby in his tummy?
(Net): No, only mommies have babies in their tummies.
(Andrea): And Daddies have hammers?

A Dramatic change...

Okay, it's been a long time coming (5 1/2 years!). But here are the "before" and "after" pics of the kitchen. Keep in mind that our kitchen is still not completely finished - lots of final touch ups to do like the molding, painting the beadboard, etc. But I figure if I don't post this now I will never get around to it. Oh yeah, and the "before" pics are from what we originally started out with, from when we moved into the house.
Enjoy! I know I do!! :)


BEFORE: looking into the dining room



AFTER...




BEFORE: from the dining to the kitchen adjacent...



AFTER...




BEFORE: looking straight on in the kitchen...



AFTER...




And here's one of the "in-between" stage...




Crazy, huh? Amazing the difference knocking out a wall, walling up a door, adding a floor, replacing cabinets, cupboards, counters, sink, oven/stove, light fixtures, and nasty old wallpaper can make! Oh yeah, and the help of a few years plus a few thousand dollars. But who's keeping track?

Clarification

okay, so since I've already confused a few poor souls from my last cryptic post, I figure I ought to clear things up.
Yes, I'm pregnant.
No, I'm not 5 months along.
Yes, I'm due in November.
Yes, I have a lot of "baby weight," but since it's from a previous baby and not this one I'm going to just say that I'm further along than I really am, but still be honest by stating the real due date.

(During my last pregnancy I told a nosy store clerk that I was a month further along than I really was and she still asked, "How many do you have in there?!!" Stupid, stupid woman.)

Sorry for all the secrecy. I should have already been in to see my doc, but since I haven't and therefore haven't heard the heartbeat and had that confirmation that everything is okay so far it kind of makes me nervous announcing anything. But apparently I didn't need to bother announcing it! haha...errr.....hmmm.... Sad.

Might As Well

After 2 weeks in a row of enduring awful and insensitive remarks to me at church I have decided I've had enough. I realize that the well-intended-but-grossly-mistaken people behind the remarks were probably not meaning to make me feel bad or self-conscious, or like punching them in the nose. Just like people who don't know you made the meal are not meaning to tell you that you're a bad cook when they spit out the food and warn you not to eat it because of how horrible it is. Regardless, it is neither fun nor complimentary to stand there and try to keep your dignity intact while being emotionally assaulted by the dim-witted who obviously gave no thought to what their words implied.
So...
when next you see me DO NOT ask, "is this your 3rd?" and point to my belly. And DO NOT ask, "Have you been pregnant this whole time and I'm just the last one to find out?!" Because, as much self-restraint as I have, I don't know that I can keep my leg from violently twitching in your direction any longer.
Instead, you might say, "I heard a rumor that you're pregnant and I thought you look so fabulous that there just is no way that could be true. But just to be sure I thought I might check with you so as to clear it up."
To which I will reply, "Why thank you! Actually I am 5 months along, can you believe it? ... although I'm not due until November."

Markism

"It's a good thing about babies ... they change just often enough that you don't get bored."


(Mark said this when Andrea was just tiny. Somehow it came up today and I thought it was still funny enough to share.)

Andrea-ism

(Andrea): "Mama, thank you for saving my life."
(Net): "You're welcome, but how did I save your life?"
(Andrea): "Because you're a mama."


*That should be the headliner for some pro-Mom campaign ad!

Silly girls

Lately the girls have really gotten "into" hiding. I think Andrea started it. She'd pile all her blankets and Lacie's on the floor and then hide under them and hold perfectly still so I wouldn't know she was there. And she really has fooled me quite a few times!
The other day I had sent Andrea to her room and after a few minutes of crying Mark went in to talk to her. He had been in there talking to her for a while when all of a sudden the closet doors swung open and Lacie jumped out with a big, "ROAR!"

Andrea-ism

(Andrea): Hey Mama, Daddy is a King and you are a Queen.
(Net): So what does that make you?
(Andrea): Happy!

Bologna

So I've never been an avid lover of bologna. Sure I liked to peel the red tape off the edges as a kid, but never drooled over the thought of it. Until I was pregnant with Andrea. Then I dreamed of bologna sandwiches at night. A lot. But I never did eat one. I mean, who has bologna in their fridge without a kid around to justify it? Thing is, I had the same thing with Lacie - dreams of eating bologna sandwiches. And I'd wake up in the morning first thing wanting a bologna sandwich. But never did eat one. Not sure why. Well, now I think I do. I think it was a subconscious protective agent kicking in to get me resist. Why? Because once I started finally buying the stuff and feeding it to my kids this last summer, I gave in and had a bite. And another. And a whole lot more. Until I was hooked. And now I find myself in BIG trouble if we're out of bologna. Not just because Andrea freaks, but because my body now craves it. Seriously! Nothin' better than a plain white piece of bread with a single slice of bologna folded over. Except I have to have more than one.
Oh yeah, and the reason it's bad? They have like 6 grams of fat - per slice! Ach!
Life is so hard.

the Effects of Having Kids

You know your role as "mom" is getting to you when...

1: Your body is trained to sleep only 6 hrs at a time.
2: Your days and nights are "mixed up".
3: Personal hygiene is at an all-time low.
4: Unexpected visitors while using the facilities or showering is perfectly normal.
5: A "balanced" meal is when you can make it through dinner without any tantrums.
6: You have a special relationship with Ronald McDonald.
7: Going to the grocery store by yourself is as good as winning the lottery.
8: The idea of exercising regularly is overwhelming, yet on a daily basis you heft a toddler, an infant, the infant's carrier, a 10-lb diaper bag, your purse, the toddler's stuffed horse, 2 bags of groceries, and a gallon of milk.
9: You find yourself saying everything in sing-song.
10: "Games" are what you call clever ideas to trick kids into eating, cleaning, bathing, etc.
11: While standing still you find yourself rocking back and forth - even when you aren't holding a baby.
12: Barbie, Cinderella, Ariel, & Belle are frequent guests in your home.
13: Your house is littered with little shoes.
14: Swimsuits are not your friend.
15: You find yourself looking to Elmo for wisdom and advice.
16: Your doorknobs are all covered with "kid-proof" protectors that only make it hard for you to open; not your kids.
17: "Going potty" is something you celebrate.
18: You have a zillion pictures of your kids, but can't find a recent one of you.
19: You consider buying frames for the "artwork" on your walls as opposed to cleaning it off... again.
20: You avoid your kitchen in attempts to forget how desperately it needs cleaning.
21: You know the location of every bathroom in every store and the fastest route to each one.
22: Goldfish and Kool-Aid are staples in your pantry.
23: You start wondering if Calgon really can take you away?
24: You have every kid song from every kid movie memorized. And then you find yourself singing them in the checkout line.
25. In one day you change from a princess to a horse, to the monster, to someone walking her dog, to fellow lion, to doctor, to toy-fixer and doll-dresser, to the mermaid nemesis, to storyteller, to exhausted in bed.

the Girls

Lately Lacie has gotten into the whole "dress up" scene. A little more than I like -- she changes clothes about 15-30 times a day! Sometimes her creations are pretty strange. Other times she's just adorable!




Andrea has really gotten into the building "bricks." She builds (and re-builds after Lacie knocks them over) castles all day long. Some of them really are pretty incredible. What a cutie!

Andrea-isms

(Andrea): "Mom, can we watch another movie? I very don't like this."
(Net): "Well, we're going to finish this one and then we can watch a different movie."
(Andrea): "No. That's not a great idea."


(Andrea): "I'm going to climb up and over this (the couch)."
(Net): "No, Andrea, please don't."
(Andrea): "But that's the plan!"

Hmmm...

Lacie is obsessed with hats. Although they don't actually have to be real hats. And she doesn't necessarily have to wear them. But someone must!

Poor Mark

My poor husband. He's so tired. He works a lot. He sleeps when he can.






Yeah, he'd be pretty mad if he knew I posted these!

What were YOU doing at 3:30AM?

My head was just hitting the pillow when Mark's head shot up and off his pillow. He jumped out of bed and yelled, "Get in the bathroom!" before running to get the girls from their bedroom and bringing them in to join me. Poor girls were pretty groggy and not really sure what we were doing in the bathroom so early, let alone all together with our blankets, but overall they were really good sports.
In case you're unfamiliar with this scenario, or you don't live in Texas, this is all code for 'TORNADO.' Yeah, the whole sounds-like-a-freight-train-rumbling-past-the-window is a dead give-away. Which, by the way, is what we heard at 3:30am.
As it turns out, the tornadoes were actually North of us, but we still had winds 60-75 mph, and a lightning show that made it unnecessary to turn on any lights! It was pretty crazy. Mark and I were glued to the TV for the next 1/2 hr making sure we were in the clear before returning the girls to their beds and trying to get some sleep ourselves.
The funny thing about it all was that my first (or maybe 10th) thought was that I was glad I've been getting our 72-hr kits prepared, and that I'd just bought a whole slew of batteries at Sam's Club the previous day. I say funny because in reality, a tornado is not something you're going to need a 72-hr kit for. In fact, where we are located, there are very few scenarios where the area would be so devastated and so far from help that we would need to rely on our 72 hr kits. It's a bit frightening to think of what that would entail, actually, but my point is that I feel like my obedience in getting prepared brought me peace and comfort in a bit of a scary situation. Cool, huh?

My super-duper-wonderfully-amazingly-fabulous famous muffins...

...that I stole from Connie.

But really, these muffins are AWESOME. And not because they're so incredibly tasty, which they are, but because they are so ridiculously easy to make, that for a non-muffin maker like me who happens to love muffins, they are the best! And, my kids LOVE them. And I mean love. And so did Caleb. And William. They each had 4 or 5 or so. See? Proof.
So what are these muffins?

"Pumpkin Spice Muffins"
1 lg can pumpkin (NOT pie filling, the actual pumpkin stuff)
2 boxes spice cake mix

Mix in large bowl. Spoon into muffin pan. Bake. (10 mins @ 350)
Presto! Magic! Hooray! Wonderful! Marvelous!

AND... since it's pumpkin, if you really want to be cool and don't mind complicating the easiest recipe ever, it's a really good one to sneak pureed veggies into without anyone ever knowing!
Is that cool or what?!


(Oh yeah, thanks Connie! )

Assaulted on the Freeway

So it was around 10:30pm and I was driving home from McKinney, which, by the way, is WAY longer of a drive than I thought. I had just picked up my 3rd-in-a-month craigslist steal, when all of a sudden there was this BAM! It was dark and a little rainy, so I couldn't see where it came from and then again, BAM! BAM!
Worried, I started looking around wondering what the heck was going on and BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! ... BAM! ... BAM! BAM! ... BAM! BAM! BAM! ... BAM!BAM!BAM!BAM!BAM!
I couldn't see it because the rain had started to pick up, but there was rubber-ball-sized hail suddenly pounding my car like crazy. It was so loud and so hard I started to get scared that it would break my windshield and knock me out or something! And it wasn't long before the hail was covering the road and it felt like I was driving on marbles -- on the freeway, through what was now a torrential downpour! It was awful! I've driven in rain that was so hard that I had to pull over, but it was never accompanied by wicked hail!
And the whole time I was driving I just kept thinking, "Oh! My poor car! My poor, poor car!"
Yep, sure enough, it took one heck of a beating. Stupid hail.

Fun girls

Except for the funny expression, Lacie was looking quite regal eating from a big chair in her princess dress.



Andrea has enjoyed running around in her new panties. Hey, I guess if that means fewer accidents from taking too long getting clothes off...

Happy Birthday to me.

So my birthday didn't quite go as planned... rough morning, Andrea wet the bed, girls fighting, sick, got up early to wait for the contractor who showed up a few hours later - just as I had given up and gotten back into bed, girls wouldn't nap, house still in chaos under construction, etc.
What to do? ... Go shopping of course! But instead of the regular, I decided it was high time to take care of the wreck that has been our yard. So we headed to Home Depot Nursery and came back home loaded with goodies.
The weather was PERFECT for working outside. The sun was shining and it was just chill enough that working up a good sweat felt great. Man it felt good to work outside and be productive! And Andrea had a blast making friends with the neighbor girl, Mia. She looks a couple years younger and doesn't speak any English, but apparently that doesn't matter when you're running around like airplanes.
Here is my finished product. (I'd show a 'before' picture, but that's just too embarrassing)



Afterwards, Andrea and I headed out to get a movie and birthday cake. The girls went bonkers when we let them have both the Texas Sheet-cake AND birthday cake. Pretty funny. And they were so cute about singing Happy Birthday and making sure I had candles to blow out. Andrea was most concerned about presents, despite how many times I had tried explaining that the flowers and kitchenaid were my presents. Mark chimed in that we were all sitting in Mommy's birthday present (kitchen remodeled), but she didn't really get it. There was no wrapping paper anywhere! How could there be presents? In a last-ditch effort, she slipped into the blessing, "and please bless Mama to have lots of presents to share with Andrea..."
Ahh, the mind of a 3-yr old...

Hooray for Sister Lucio!!

Okay, I am just plain spoiled! I have the best Visiting Teachers ever! They always come visit, which is more than I can say for myself, and they are constantly asking if they can help, how, when, and then following through. And they are constantly treating me to sweets (both are professional cookie-makers) and yummies like homemade empanadas and tamales (!!) and full-on dinners. Seriously!
Tonight I was spoiled yet again -- for the second time this week, Sister Lucio made and brought me dinner! Yeah, I know, I'm lucky.



Here are the girls -- all giddy over a real Texas dinner. King Ranch Casserole, Texas Sheet-cake, and a huge salad.
THANK YOU PATRICIA!!

Binky-Monger

Here is my little binky-monger. She loves binkys. The more the better.

ABCs of Me

Tagged by: Mialisa

A- Attached or single: Attached, and quite attached at that.
B- Best Friend: I'd say Mark, but I really haven't been a very good friend to him lately.
C-Cake or Pie: Depends on which is closer.
D- Day of Choice: Friday. It means I have the weekend to look forward to.
E- Essential Item (s): Internet.
F- Favorite Color: Pink.
G- Gummy Bears or Worms: Worms - they last longer.
H- Hometown: Bountiful, UT.
I- Indulgence(s): Sweets, pizza, toys for my kids.
J- January or July: January. Love the snow.
K-Kids: Yes.
L - Life would be incomplete without: Food.
M- Marriage Date: November 9, 2002.
N- Number of Siblings: 4 sisters (2 older, 2 younger); 2 brothers (1 older, 1 younger). It doesn't get any more middle than that.
O- Oranges or Apples: Apples! All the stringy rind parts on an orange make me gag.
P- Phobias or Fears: I fear how I will die. I hate pain.
Q- Quote(s): "I'll stay quiet until the water reaches my lower lip and then I'm going to mention it to somebody!"
R- Reason To Smile: The Office, Brian Reagan.
S- Season: Fall. I love it when the air is crisp.
T- Tag Six: I tag Lisa, Alyssa, Molly, Jen, Rosie, and Courtenay.
U- Unknown Fact About Me: I have my yellow belt in Judo.
V- Vegetarian or Oppressor of Animal: Salad is what food eats.
W- Worst Habit: Staying up too late.
X- X-Rays or Ultrasounds: Ultrasounds. Is that even a contest?
Y- Your Favorite Food: Italian - lots of tomato sauce and CHEESE.
Z-Zodiac: Aries.

My girls.

I have to take a moment and say how much I love my kids. They are crazy, hyper, sassy, whiny, clingy, stubborn, independent, creative, imaginative, industrious, curious, devious, energetic, manipulative, funny, brilliant, beautiful, wonderful girly girls! And I love them!
Today I had someone (Jenny) tell me about her experience babysitting them and how she just cracked up at how imaginative they were, and yet amazed at how happy and self-entertaining they were. And how Andrea, at 2 weeks of being potty-trained, let Jenny know she had to "go" and then when she was done excitedly yelled at the top of her lungs, "I DID IT!"
And then there was Lacie, who took all the goldfish crackers over to the blue chair rail to have them go 'swimming.' And when Jenny tried cleaning up the play-doh Lacie looked at her very seriously and said, "No, no, no," while shaking her head as if Jenny had been very naughty. So funny!
It is so fun to see them finally wanting to play with each other instead of only beating on each other, although now that means that they're both little cohorts when it comes to mischief. They definitely give me a run for my money! But they are good, sweet kids who are happy and want everyone else to be happy. They adore their Daddy, they love sharing a bed, they love dressing up like ballerinas, they love Oreos and Capri Suns, they love taking baths so that they can play in the bubbles and be mermaids, they love climbing on the couches, they love hiding under their blankets, they love going to the store, they love McDonald's, they love screaming, they love being outside, they love digging in the sand, they love reading books, they love movies, they love having things on their heads, they love my shoes, they love Barbie, they love talking to Grandma on the phone, they love looking at pictures of themselves, friends and family, they love saying the prayer, they love Uncle Joe & Aunt Sally, they love attention, they love each other.
And I love them.


Sweet Andrea!



My Lacie-monkey
(Lately Mark has been asking her, "Where's my monkey?" to which she replies, "oooh ahhh eeeee!")