too tight

So, here's this shirt that I REALLY REALLY want but i know when it arrives I'd just force it over my belly and stretch it all out because some people have patience and i just do not. I do not wait for sales or, go home and *think about it*. If I love it, I buy it. So, this is a problem for several reasons- I don't look at the price, I don't budget, I don't comparison shop, I haven't used a coupon since...ever, I don't recall the price of things in my head so that when you say "that's a cute hat" I can say "3.50 at the thrift store or $350 at Nordstrom." I usually know which store it came from (because I never go to Nordstrom or the mall and it helps that I haven't been inside a store other than a thrift store in like, 8 months, except in Paris). So, chances are...it's from the thrift store or from Etsy. The other problem with me not being able to get this shirt right now ("Daddy, I want a goose that lays GOLDEN eggs!") is that I'm crafty and make things for myself and I'm tempted to just write the phrase on one of my huge maternity shirts with a sharpie...but somehow I don't think it would have the same effect. I can just see us all at Trader Joes me...pregnant and sweaty trying to keep track of what organic goodies are going into the three mini-carts the kids are all pushing...and I'm wearing a shirt with a furiously scribbled "I hate children" on it. No. It's just not the same as the innocent shoppers smiling at me and my adorable brood, striking up a conversation and then taking a closer look at my sweetly embriordered shirt and I get to see their horrified faces. That would be much more fun.

I guess i'll have to *sigh* wait.

So, yeah, i don't price stuff, it's a flaw. But i'm KINDA thrifty cause i really don't go to the mall, or target, and if i must shop i try to go to a little local business, we don't use paper towels (much to the frustration of all our visitors), have never ever paid for cable TV, don't buy garbage bags (we use grocery bags and minimize trash), don't buy much individually packaged food stuffs, the kids don't wear bibs, (this is a really cheap thing i do- slightly embarrassing because i used to be a waitress and would be so ticked if someone did this at my table) me and the kids go to Bennigans for lunch and i order the monte cristo and 4 glasses of water- the kids occupy themselves with moving around the ketchup, sprinkling salt & pepper around the area, and 3 sets of crayons and puzzle menu that our waitress has so kindly provided, they drink from their hard-to-assemble-with-lid children's cup (which they do not need- even Sloane can drink well from a glass) and need refills. Then we all split the monte cristo sandwich and fries, "3 extra plates and mustard, please". Which amounts to a TOTALLY not healthy, oh so irresistible, filling lunch for the 4 of us at less than $10!
Because I am not cheap i do leave a big fat tip. It would just be wasteful to order more food, kids meals or something- I find they are usually a waste. It's much better to split the american sized meal for 'one adult'.
So that's my inconsistent money policy- but I'm sure it all balances out and i know i shop less WAY WAY less than most people i know...but more frequently than my Dad. He hasn't been to store (other than home depot) in the last 12 years...i'm serious.
I haven't spoken to my mom today but i can bet she's been at a store within the last 12 hours. So, that's where I'm coming from...and i have parts of each.
The confession is that I'm REALLY AWFUL about waiting for things- the upside is that i'm rarely late because i wouldn't make anyone else wait. So, at least that's a good thing, right? And it would be really funny if I wore that shirt and that's a good thing...making people laugh is nice.

that's my girl

This morning Billie was in the hammock with her book- which is actually a children's encyclopedia...because normal people just read encyclopedia's...don't they? and that's something bill and i spend at least 1 hour a day doing...reading in the hammock. Bill and I do not read while we are swinging, though...maybe we do...but we don't usually swing superman style. i just had to snap a picture. and then there is Sloane...wandering the yard while pouring bubbles on her dress (it's early so she wore that for a full half hour before dumping something on it- and i swear she really does have a nice face...when she's not doing a toothy fake camera grin).
i am so happy with the way the kids rush home from the library and we just have an hour of silence while they both head to their chairs, couches, or spot on the floor with their new books. They can't wait to dive into them all and see what the stories will be about. there was a time when we'd come home and they'd both be asking for the video we'd chosen from the library...now they never do that.
books are so much fun right now...and that's especially good because i'm not one of those 'active' moms at this point. I'm a bench mom at the park; reluctantly dragging myself up only to catch Sloane from perilous heights and distant wanderings (i'm cool with heights that could cause only minor injuries and wandering within 200 ft- hey, it's the third kid...you can't be that concerned for 7 years straight).
I really want to write about(and photo showcase) my crafty projects but i'm trying to fill you all up with kid- information so that you might be able to stay awake while reading it.
at least bill is active- he's been biking to work and hitting up the gym several times a week...even drinking water...so you know that's drastic and he's determined to get in shape. I, on the other hand, am hoping to loose at least 10 lbs at some point in August and i gave Sloane a ride in the wagon last Tuesday- hopefully that will tide her over for 8 more weeks because i am NOT doing that again for a while!!! things that involve movement are so beyond me at this point. it's not like i don't get enough sleep. lights were out at 9:30pm last night...yeah, i'm ready to have a baby and not a belly!!!

disturbingly distended

Here are some, slightly disturbing photos of my belly- taken by Billie and the reason we do not own a full length mirror. I guess this is why people keep assuming that I am due this week.

exposed

something is up with blogger- i know, i know...you've been telling me that for weeks and i've been too busy laying in the hammock to do anything about it. maybe i'll change to a cooler blog site....one day when it's rainy or something.
we're all good. baby Sprout is all good and has about 10 more weeks to grow before making an appearance outside the womb.
Sloane is cute and dirty. I love sewing dresses for the girls and we are reading Tik Tok of Oz and swimming all the time.
as you may have noticed (especially if you look at the last picture) one thing i have avoided teaching the kids is modesty. neither of them have any idea that people aren't supposed to see you running around nudey booty. When we were in France, in the metro, all the billboard ads are right at eye level so you can't avoid them and there was this lovely one at least 30 times at each station of a mom and daughter tanning on the beach- the mom was laying stomach down on the sand and her sweet little girl was laying on her back, thereby rendering her mother's attempt at a golden back tan ineffective, the little girl was spending her beach day in her undies. The ad made me want to go to Greece and seemed like a happy beach vacation. But i only thought of that after i was shocked to see a 'revealing' ad so life size of a child. That's my inner American prude.
What is the deal with everyone acting like a 4 or 6 or even 8 year old has some bits and pieces they have to keep under very close wraps. Though I do cringe when Billie goes down the playground slide wearing a dress and hangs one leg over each edge...I haven't been willing to tell her to keep her dora the explorer underpants out of sight. I mean, who is going to be scandalized by seeing some dora undies? That's my bikini hang up. Why do little girls need a bikini top? And why do their moms bother to do all the adjusting it takes to keep 'covered' after every jump in the pool. A kid hops out of the pool with her bikini top around her neck and her mom rushes to her as if she's janet jackson at the superbowl or paris hilton at...well, anywhere!
puh-leez.
so, that's just something i was thinking about.
on the other end of things though- i wouldn't let my kids wear a belly exposing shirt, or a shirt that said something skanky like FLIRT that i've seen other 6 year olds wearing, and i wouldn't let them wear pants that had something written across their bottom so that attention would be drawn to look there. is that contradictory behavior? i don't know...i'm sure i can reason that into sounding like i have a principle that makes sense.
i'll be better at keeping up with the blog. lately it's just been more doing and less blogging about doing.
Ha! Isn't it appropriate that i follow up my last blog about stuff i won't let my kids do with more stuff i won't let my kids do?! i did that without even thinking about it. basically, i'm just all in love with my little world where the kids don't go to school so Bill & i spend more time with them than anyone and they get to learn what i think is important. (they're brilliant, artists, be kind, be polite, earth worms, building, imagination, reading, math, science, nature, art in all it's forms, bugs, geography and all the fun stuff)

you can do anything you want...except THAT

it's been a while. i know...i know...but we had REAL stuff happening here. Auti Di had a medical scare and family came in from all over, cousins, grandparents and great-grandparents. There was a quick recovery and the fun family meals ensued.
So, what I've been thinking about lately (because Nanna Pat is here and my friends have been talking about their parents) is why daughters & sons turn annoying with parenthood. we're all "No McDonalds! No candy! No soda! Car seats! Organic apples! No movies, no TV and absolutely no soda! Stop giving them too many toys! and for the love of pete don't offer them caffeinated beverages"
My one friend told me her Mother-in-law said she felt criticized when she told her she didn't want her son to have the Easter Egg kit that comes with wheels and excessive accessories (how many accessories does an egg need after all) that turn your eggs into cars, trucks and fire engines. She just wanted him to have fun coloring eggs, hiding them, seeking them, mixing colors, turning his fingers blue and being creative. "He already has cars and trucks...why does everything have to turn into a car or a truck?" she asked me.
We are all so fascinated with a traditional, simple holiday. We've grown up with so many choices that just plain old regular sounds pretty fun. I myself have tried the purple glitter option and now non-glitter sounds nice. You can do more with a paper doll you made yourself, get inventive with colors & egg designs, come up with amazing stories to act out when it hasn't already all been done for you in the boxed kit from the store.
When we were little they had us in riding around in back of the hatchback with our friends (seatbelts? who needs 'em?), we didn't wear bike helmets, who cared if our shoes gave us blisters- you 'broke them in', we listened to Michael Jackson & i, for one, knew all the words to Like a Virgin by Madonna. We saw people smoking on TV, saw our Moms smoking (gasp!), we had Barbie role models and knew our Moms were on diets, Dad went to work just like Mom and mostly everyone's parents got divorced. (That's a word we s-p-e-l-l so that the kids don't even know a thing like that happens sometimes). That's how protected my kids are. A few times they've asked how I have 'two Dads' and we sort of gloss over it. Bill has told the kids that a step-Mom is a Mom who lived on the stairs in the olden days. We'll tell them when they're older and we can afford to send them to therapy for all the damage we've caused in providing them with this 'happy bubble' for their formative years.
I do think our generation is a little TOO kid focused and I totally feel like I'm on the super-lenient side of letting things slide with the grandparents overlooking our 'rules' because I'll look the other way during candy in the morning rituals, let them see an un-approved movie (not repeatedly on video or anything- but once, as a special treat...it won't stick in their head if they only see it once right? Jackson is watching Stuart Little as we speak which has to be the WORST kids movie ever with more demerits for having the same name as a super fun book which it does not resemble at all, the adoption story is DISTURBING and there are lines like "are you ready to handle his 'uniqueness'?...we don't usually encourage adoption outside of your own...species" like, what IS that? but i'm just going with it...see, how laid back i am??? i don't mind if they roll around in the mud...just don't tell them about d-i-v-o-r-c-e...and don't mention that Santa Claus isn't real...and pick them up when they cry...and don't inhibit their artwork by showing them how to draw a stick figure 'correctly'...and do NOT give them soda...and yes, you do have to bring a carseat...and make sure they say please and thank you...and get them a healthy snack...and don't say that you're putting on make-up so that you can look 'pretty'...and don't make them pick up their toys, i don't care about that...and don't give Sloane juice because she'll have diaper rash...and she needs her white noise machine to have a good sleep...
well, i guess there are a few rules. so, this blog is dedicated to Nanna and Nannou- who have to deal with them most of all. Bob takes them to whatever movie he wants, Dad is a hippie so he has more rules than i do, and George lets us be the guide and shrugs it off. (is a blog dedication even a thing?!-- let's pretend it's something special...for Mother's Day, ok? you're with me right?)

Nanna and Nannou- thanks for putting up with Bill and I. Thanks for being wonderful and finding a way to get past all the 'no's' and make sure the kids fall magically in love with you so that they have all the fun I had with my doting Granny, Paca, Grams and Gramps. Geez, I loved those summers when I would get anything my heart desired and was loved no matter what I did.

I just thought I should add- it's not just to be bratty. I really AM trying to teach them love, respect, avoid advertising, keep them from getting cancer via bovine growth hormone, trying to let their imagination be their best 'toy', letting the world be their classroom- learning happens all the time here, and helping them not to judge others based on the way they look or just because they don't have a Britax car seat (though, I'm pretty sure everyone who reads this does). Mostly just love, it's a holistic approach.