Just a little info about ME!

This is my 500th post.

Yes, I have sat down at this computer 500 times and jotted down the thoughts in my head for the Internet community to read. I am sure my baseboards and flowerbeds have greatly suffered due to my extensive blogging.

Because this is my 500th post, I have decided to honor the tradition of posting 100 things about myself (which apparently I was supposed to do on my 100th post...but I didn't know that then!)

1. I was born in Louisiana.

2. I grew up in the same town of Arkansas all my life and am still friends with people whom I attended preschool.

3. My children are 21 months apart and used to be mistaken for twins quite frequently (not so much anymore...which is odd because they are closer in size than ever)

4. I have my Masters in Clinical Child Psychology

5. I presented my thesis at the American Psychological Association's national convention in 2001....a fact I often boast about to my husband.

6. I won an essay contest in Junior High and was awarded a $100 scholarship and a signed picture of William "The Refrigerator" Perry. Not sure if we ever cashed in that scholarship, but I am sure it would have paid for at least five or six meals at the Campus Center's Chick-fil-A.

7. I love to shop, but there are very few people who I actually enjoy shopping with (husband, my mom, close friends). Typically I just like to go alone.

8. I enjoy being alone. If I don't have some alone time each day, I am really grouchy.

9. I must start my day by being alone. This is the reason I wake up before anyone in my house. I enjoy the quiet of the morning and the chance to be by myself for a few moments. I have always done this...even as a kid.

10. I met my husband in college but did not date him in college.

11. Tobe proposed to me in a small Catholic Church in Mexico.

12. We are not Catholic.

13. Tobe and I had dated one week when we decided to get married.

14. We dated two months before we were engaged and got married nine months later.

15. We were best friends for three years before that, talking every day.

16. I spent two summers in Nairobi, Kenya.

17.While in college, I lived with this girl for four years. We were pot-luck roommates. I'd say the potluck thing worked out for us.

18. The first time I met Alison (see number 17) we were wearing the exact same outfit...which involved khaki and denim. I believe we wore a variety of combinations of that outfit for the next four years while at ACU.

19. Although I grew up in a small town with a private Christian university, I opted to travel 500 miles away and attend another private Christian university.

20. Number 19 was the best decision I have ever made because it allowed me to grow-up and discover who I really am. (and because a cute boy named Tobe attended there)

21. Tobe and I shared a class together the Spring of my sophomore year.

22. He never noticed me in that class.

23. I thought he was loud and obnoxious.

24. He notices me now and I never find him to be either 1. loud or 2.obnoxious.

25. My junior and senior year of college I lived with four other girls at 1017 Washington Blvd in Abilene.

26. We all still refer to each other as "roommates" even though it has been almost ten years since we lived together.

27.I am adopted.

28. I have an older brother who is two years, two months, and two days older than me.

29. I have a younger brother who is five years younger than me.

30. I used to treat my younger brother as my own personal baby doll when I was a kid.

31. I love to cook.

32. I have red hair...as do my mother and my grandmother.

33. I am secretly (okay, not so secretly) hoping Evelyn's hair will keep getting more red.

34. I love going to the movies.

35. I worked at a movie theater my Senior year of high school, where my friends were allowed to come up and hang out with me while I "worked."

36. I lived on a steady diet of popcorn, Coke, and gummy bears my Senior year of high school (see number 35). How I miss the metabolism of an 18 year old.

37. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday because everything is beautiful and everyone is excited about Christmas being right around the corner.

38. Celebrating my birthday is very important to me.

39. I was in labor with Isaac for 26 hours...fortunately there were drugs involved by hour 16.

40. I went on a three mile walk with my mom after my water broke with Isaac because I wasn't really sure if it had broken or not.

41. I was in labor with Evelyn for a mere 9 hours. She came so quickly at the end that a doctor had to be pulled from the hall to deliver her (the nurse had not called my doctor in time).

42. After Evelyn's labor a nurse accidentally knocked over the sterile container holding the placenta and it went flying through the air. For some reason, this is quite amusing to me.

43. I sometimes struggle with having a filter on what I say (refer to number 42...a story others likely do not need to hear).

44. I love driving around and looking at Christmas lights.

45. Chicken and dumplings is my all time favorite food...my mom usually makes them for me when I go home.

46. I am addicted to Sonic drinks.

47. I am a member of MOPS.

48. I have always loved to write.

49. I one time started writing the next "great American novel" on a road trip with my family. It was a Cinderella-type story (original, huh?) with a lead character named Sophie. Not sure what happened to that great piece of work.

50. I have been working on a social skills book since Isaac was a baby and wonder if I will ever really finish it.

51. I taught Special Education for four years.

52. I was named Teacher of the Year my last year of teaching. Tobe and I were lucky enough to attend a special banquet where I was presented a trophy. I was seven months pregnant at the time.

53. I had half of my thyroid removed five years ago due to a tumor growing on it. To my knowledge it did not fly across the room during the procedure.

54. Tobe wanted to keep my thyroid in a jar on the mantle as a conversation piece, but we were not allowed to take it from the hospital.

55. I would like someone to give me a $20,000 gift certificate to Pottery Barn so I could redo my entire house.

56. I tend to be shy around people I do not know well.

57. I tend to talk too much around people I know too well.

58. I am good friends with my parents.

59.I am terribly scared of snakes. My kids will never visit the reptile house at the zoo unless someone else takes them.

60. I love to go out for chips and queso with my husband.

61. I swam competitively as a child on a swim team.

62. I have a close group of friends from junior high and high school with whom I am still good friends.

63. I love The Office.

64. My favorite movie of all time is Gone With the Wind.

65. I love anything associated with organization/schedules/order.

66. In grad school I was the Graduate Assistant for the statistics professor.

67. Although I have done well in school, math is my weak subject (making number 66 difficult).

69. While teaching, I was certified to physically restrain out of control children.

70. I occasionally had to restrain children in my classroom.

71. I have been bit, hit, kicked and verbally attacked by students....but loved my job.

72. My dad and I went on several medical mission trips to Mexico when I was in high school.

73. I exercise on a regular basis.

74. I love to read and visit the library frequently.

75. Tobe and I met through mutual friends.

76. I love naps...I REALLY love naps.

77. I am currently growing out my hair to donate to Locks of Love.

78. My college roommates and I participated in the intramural ACU rodeo

79. We attempted to catch goats. It was not a successful venture.

80. I love rainy days.

81. I love to do craft projects but rarely find the time or space to do so.

82. I purchased my super-rad double jogging stroller on Ebay (NIB).

83. I did a very loud victory dance when I "won" the jogging stroller on EBay in the very last seconds of a heated bidding war.

84. I have been snorkeling off the coast of Belize.

85. Despite a fear of heights, I climbed to the tallest tower of Chichen Itza.

86. I have seen the Cubs play at Wrigley Field.

87. Tobe's friend Doug, at Tobe's request, one time put a "Happy Birthday" banner on the roof of my house in college....and accidentally spelled my name with a backwards "N."

88. When Isaac was a baby, I sliced my left knee open on the front license plate of my car and had to go to the ER for stitches.

89. Pre-children, my husband and his good friend took me to a concert on a weeknight that ended up not starting until after midnight. I was a little bitter the next morning when my alarm clock went off.

90. Tobe and I attended the largest anti-war rally protesting the war in Iraq in London in 2002.

91. The two best wedding presents Tobe and I received were 1. A paid rental car to use for our week-long honeymoon in San Diego and 2. Concert tickets to Matchbox 20 (thanks Mark!).

92. I occasionally miss shopping at the Mall of Abilene.

93. I love watching live, off-Broadway productions (My favorite is Annie...of course)

94. I have completed multiple 5K runs...some while pregnant.

95. I have seen Bruce Springsteen five times in concert....one time from the fourth row while pregnant with Isaac.

96. While pregnant with Evelyn, I saw the Dixie Chicks in concert (unfortunately not from the fourth row).

97. My accent becomes much stronger (and much more Southern) when I am tired or am at my parents' house.

98. I know how to run a multiple regression analysis (Jealous? See number 66.)

99. I have very little musical ability, yet make up songs for my kids all the time.

100. I'll be sad when blogging is a thing of the past.

Thanks for reading!

The Dislike of Change

Change.

I hate change. My tendency to be structured, organized, and the need to control just do not mesh well with change.

My husband is the same way, which means we will likely live in the current location of casa de phillips until our children ship us to the nursing home. Hopefully by then we will have at least redone the kitchen floors.

My dislike of change spills over into the retail world when certain items I love are no longer manufactured. Allow me to share a few of these items:

1. Bath and Body Works Japanese Cherry Blossom fragrance.
I love this perfume because it is sold at a low price and is great for those days when I want to smell pretty but don't want to use my "fancy" perfume. However, Bath and Body Works is apparently repackaging the entire Japanese Cherry Blossom line and is not restocking this particular sent until late November. I have hit three Bath and Body Works (and called two others) in search of this perfume, with no luck. Would it be odd to order 5 bottles online just so I have a stockpile in case this sent does not become available in stores ever again?

2. Quaker Granola Bites
These little packaged granola treats are a favorite of Isaac and I have been unable to find them in stores anywhere in the past two months. I even have a great coupon for them that is just burning a hole in my coupon organizer! I have emailed the company to inquire as to why I cannot find such wholesome goodness on the shelves of my local grocery store anymore. I will let you know what they say.

3. Starburst Twizzlers
Anyone remember when one could purchase Starburst flavored twizzlers? I am not a huge candy person but I did *heart* me some Starburst twizzlers candy. However, they suddenly stopped producing it a few years ago. My little brother and I did extensive research on the Starburst website to find the answer as to why they discontinued our favorite candy. Seems it wasn't enjoyed by the masses. It also seems that my little brother and I might need to get a hobby.

What is something that you have loved in the past but cannot seem to find in your local mega-mart?

***

Today as I dressed the kids, Isaac asked if he was wearing a "nice" shirt. I confirmed that indeed he was sporting what one might consider to be a nice shirt and commented on how handsome he looked. He then looked me over closely and said, "You look pretty today, Mommy." (He must like the tank top/jeans/ponytail look)

Stop my beating heart. Had we been within a mile of Target I might have purchased the entire toy department right then and there for such a sweet comment.

He then slapped his too big baseball cap on his head backwards (because apparently Mr. Greg wears his this way although I have never witnessed such a site in the ten years I have known Mr. Greg), handed Evelyn her yellow cat eye sunglasses, and we were off for our play date.

Love those kids and their unique sense of style.

Grocery Shopping 101

Grocery shopping...it is the bane of some people's existence.

Nothing can seem more agonizing than loading into the car and driving to the store, attempting to locate the one cart in a sea of 57 that does not have a squeaky wheel (or a television), finding needed items, saying "No" approximately 2,251 times if shopping with children, uttering a silent prayer that the bakery has not run out of free cookies for children, purchasing groceries, racing home before the ice cream melts, and then realizing upon unloading all the goods that you forgot to buy three of your most needed items.

Ugh.

Due to rising food costs and the desire to not spend so much time (and money) at the grocery store and in desperate hope to save my sanity for at least a few more years, I have recently revised my whole grocery shopping method. Here are my new shopping strategies:

1. I grocery shop every two weeks, ALONE, on a Saturday morning before the stores become too busy. Shopping every two weeks prevents multiple trips to the store, which in turn prevents excess spending (research has shown that 6 out of 10 purchases made while grocery shopping are impulse buys). Shopping alone saves my sanity. Shopping early on Saturday morning is the only time when I can go alone and not have to go in the evening or during busy shopping times.

2. I write out our meal plans two weeks at a time and then construct a detailed grocery list from these plans. Making a meal plan for each week prevents that 5:30 pm panic of knowing the family has to eat but have not a clue as to what you are going to feed them other than a few packets of leftover ketchup and some dry cereal.

3. As mentioned in number 2, I make a detailed grocery list. This list is divided by sections of the store. I write the list in black ink, but take a pink pen to cross off items as I toss them in the cart. This change of color in ink prevents me from "losing" items on my list and never purchasing them. Again my sanity is saved by not having to experience the extreme frustration of arriving home with 72 grocery items and realizing that bread, milk, and apple juice are not among the stash.

4. I take my "tools" with me at all times. They are:

A clipboard to hold my grocery list.

This keeps my list nice and smooth during shopping and can be referred to easily.

The trusty pink pen to cross off items in my basket

Coupons!

Although I am not a crazed coupon clipper, I do manage to save about $15-20 every trip with coupons. Also, I rarely stock up on items simply because I have a coupon. I only clip and use coupons for things I normally purchase.

Target reusable grocery bags.

If you are still relying on plastic bags every trip you make to the store, you need to get to Target today and scoop some of these reusable bags up. They hold much more than any plastic bag ever dreamed of holding and they are reducing the amount of waste our country produces (If you travel abroad, you will quickly realize other countries do not use plastic bags as extensively as we do here in the United States). I *heart* these bags and currently own four of them.

Coffee

Did I mention that I shop early in the morning? Well, I need me some coffee to navigate the aisles of the grocery store at such an hour. Also, I bring my own coffee from home and resist the temptation to pay $4.25 for a cup of coffee at the over-priced coffee house.

5. I unload the groceries (with the help of my family...even Evelyn can help take diapers to her room) immediately upon arriving home and put things in their correct location. This prevents the fridge or pantry from becoming out-of-control. Snacks (such as fruit snacks and raisins) that come in individual packages are immediately taken out of their main box and placed in our snack basket that resides in the pantry. Items such as flour, sugar, coffee, etc. are also removed from their original packages and placed in air-tight containers. My tools are put away until my next trip and we have the rest of the Saturday to spend together as a family.

Overall this takes me about 2.5 to 3 hours from start to finish. However, it is done and I do not have to think about groceries, the store, or my sanity for another 14 days (or more).

Works for Me!

For other Works for Me! tips, head over to Shannon's at Rocks in My Dryer.

The Quest for Halloween Costumes

Have I mentioned that my children are 21 months apart?



Well, they are.



Being so close in age has its perks and its disadvantages, as I am sure it is with most sibling spacing. One of the perks of my children being close in age, and being such a young age, is that I can control both of their Halloween costume choices and require their outfits fit a theme. Such coordination brings me joy and makes me hope the days of them wanting to be popular superheros or princesses are still far away.



Being the chooser of the Halloween costumes holds great importance as well as a fair amount of stress (*). I have discussed in great detail with anyone willing to listen (usually poor Tobe) about the ins and outs of potential choices. I have spent way too many hours searching the Internet for possible costume choices, deciding if purchases need to be made or if I can simply create a costume from what we have (not likely due to the fact my only sewing skills involve the extensive use of a glue gun). Aisles of local stores have been scoured in search of ideas or outfits that would tie together to make a coordinating theme.



Here are a few lessons I have learned during my search:



1. The retail superstores have really bought into the idea of putting grown-up clothes on children. This is no shock considering low rise jeans are now sold in size 12 months and training bras have been replaced by polka-dot push-up undergarments. However, I am wondering what purchasing manager decided that toddler girl costumes need to resemble a bar maid. For instance, one can purchase a Raggedy Ann costume for their two year old complete with corset top and thigh-high stockings. The same goes for devil costume, angel costume, princess costume, and lady bug costume. Sam Walton would likely roll over in his grave if he knew such merchandise was being sold on his shelves.



2. Pottery Barn Kids think that charging a minimum of $80 for a costume (although incredibly darling...and tempting) is okay. It's not, PBK.



3. Apparently I needed to order the costume I wanted from a particular retailer in August because it sold out in a matter of two weeks. Who knew? Perhaps such information as this needs to be in the New Mother Handbook issued at the hospital upon the birth of one's child.



4. Deciding upon costumes raises moral issues. For example, the costume choice that we have decided upon for Isaac could possibly have a gun. I am not quite ready for my three year old to have access to toy guns. It makes me a little uneasy and a bit nostalgic for the days when he was a cute little giraffe all bundled in a blanket and not toting weapons (by the way, he is not going to be wearing any type of gun this Halloween).



5. Because costumes cost money and because they likely will only be worn in public two or three times, I want to purchase something that can be re purposed as dress-up clothes. This means finding costumes that the kids can almost get on and off by themselves and that will hold up more than three weeks at casa de phillips.



6. EBay is the parent's answer to finding hard-to-find costumes. I have placed bids on outfits for both kids and should know by the end of the day if I have "won" them or not. Oh, the stress of wondering if my bid will be the highest (yet still be considered to be a great deal). Such bidding allows me to set a reasonable price and hope some mother with more cash to burn isn't out there bidding against me.



7. My husband should do costume consulting on the side for college students needing ideas for parties/socials/Grubs (ACU reference there). He comes up with some great ideas. One of his ideas was to make Isaac Michael Phelps and Evelyn Nastia Lukin for Halloween. Being the stick in the mud that I tend to be, this idea was vetoed. However, I think it would make a great costume for some spirited college kids.



After much searching, I have decided on costumes and a theme. However, I am not quite ready to tell exactly what they are yet (what if you bid against me on Ebay???).



Anyone willing to share what your kids are going to be this Halloween?



For fun, here are some past Halloween pictures:

Isaac as a Giraffe on his First Halloween

Second Halloween: Bloggers vote on costume choice

Last Year: A Firefighter and his cute dalmation

Welcome, Fall!

Tomorrow is the first day of Fall, a day of golden leaves, crisp temperatures, and new long sleeve fashions....or if you happen to live where I live: another day of 90 degree temperatures. Ugh. I was speaking about Fall to Isaac the other day and he inquired as to when the leaves will become red. In December, my son. December.

I do miss the seasons.

Silly Global Warming.

In honor of Fall's glorious return (It just so happens to be my favorite season), I have a comfy recipe of Chocolate Waffles and Carmel Syrup to share. We love to have Breakfast for Dinner here at casa de phillips and this recipe is a winner everytime.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Waffles:

1 1/2 cups Bisquick

1 cup Sugar

1/3 cup baking cocoa

3/4 cup water

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

2 eggs

Stir ingredients until blended. Pour into waffle iron of your choice (I think this is a cool one). Cook until done.

Caramel Syrup

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/4 light corn syrup

2 Tbsp butter

1 tsp vanilla

Stir all ingredients together in saucepan. Heat until boiling, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, pour generously over waffles, and Enjoy!

The Zen of Cleaning

This afternoon I felt an inner itch to clean my house from top to bottom. I know I have mentioned my cleaning schedule before, and normally I stick to it, but there are times that I feel the need to clean everything at one time. For some reason, this need struck me today.

After a fun playdate (that involved an unfortunate accident between Isaac, the McDonald's playscape, and the Batman helicopter found in Happy Meals...he is okay and we are thankful the blade of the helicopter only cut his cheek and did not pierce it), I brought the children home, tossed them in their beds (gently), and grabbed my cleaning bucket. I spent the next two hours cleaning, scrubbing, putting away odds and ends, and making the house shine.

Within twenty minutes of the children waking, the following had happened:

*A full glass of chocolate milk was spilled on the kitchen floor

*A box of crackers was spilled on the kitchen floor (see a pattern here?)

*A certain three year old decided to "clean" the bathroom mirror with wet wipes, due to the fact he had splattered water on it with his toothbrush earlier that morning (which I had already managed to clean)

* Approximately seven different groups of toys had been excitedly pulled out and then left abandoned around the house by someone in search of something better

*A raisin was smashed into the carpet, leaving behind a mangled piece of beige and brown

Maybe the maid will show up tomorrow to repair the damage...

Sights and Sounds Around the Casa

I am not quite sure how it has been four days since my last post. I have been here, the children have been saying adorable things, I have Internet access....but for whatever reason, there has been no blogging. Likely the reason Martha Stewart did not invite me to be a part of her blogging show yesterday (also she likely didn't invite me due to the fact I questioned the extreme length of her home management book).

Because of my lack of blogging this week, here is a brief synopsis of things that have been happening at casa de phillips:

*On Tuesday Isaac shared quite the long story of how he learned in Bible Class that one has to be careful with their Pull-Up (as in disposable underwear for those in the trenches of potty training). Isaac is potty-trained and only wears a pull-up at night, so I am not quite sure where this came from. He spun quite the tale of how one needs to be careful with pull-ups and how one needs to ask for help from every possible family member with this article of clothing. I know from papers sent home he studied Adam and Eve last Sunday....not sure where the pull-up discussion fit into that. At least he took some sort of lesson home with him from Church, even if it has to do with disposable pants.

*The mommy/daughter clothing battles might have possibly begun here at casa de phillips (like the uncertain language there?). Evelyn has a Little Einsteins shirt that was purchased for her to wear to Isaac's birthday. It has become a favorite, referred to as "LaLa" (for Little Einsteins...and this is also what she calls a friend of mine, whose name sounds nothing like "Little Einsteins"). She carried it around the house Sunday afternoon after it came out of the wash and then wore it on Monday. She has asked for it everyday since then. Dressing her is a battle anyway and now she is attempting to pull off the clothes I have dressed her in because they are not "LaLa." I will win this battle.

*To ease her spirit over once again being denied the fact that she could not wear "LaLa" again, Evelyn wore her yellow sunglasses on all our errands yesterday. She attracted a lot of attention in her "shun-shasses" as she calls them.

*Earlier this week, Evelyn discovered a small rag doll that has been sleeping in her crib with her since Christmas. This has been added to her collection of things she must cart around at all times (included in that collection is her blanket "Bea" and her zebra "RaRa"). She refers to this doll as "ChaCha". I have no clue where this name has come from and am starting to wonder if we are going to need to hire a Sherpa to lug all of E's belongings with us wherever we go.

*Last night I walked in Isaac's room to check on him before I went to bed to discover that his pull-up was dirty. He is not fully night-time potty trained, but rarely has anything but a wet pull-up in the morning. I knew he could not sleep with soiled items on his little body, so I attempted to wake him up to change it. He barely stirred. I then took off his PJ pants, changed his pull-up, put on a fresh pull-up, and put his pants back on....and he never woke up. Two days of preschool right in a row is wearing this little boy out!

*Children's artwork is starting to overtake my house. Isaac is quite big into coloring, drawing portraits of the family, and writing his alphabet. This generates A LOT of artwork. Some of it I save in a special folder and some of it is secretly relocated to the trashcan in the garage. Does anyone have a great strategy for saving pieces of artwork? I really cannot let go of some things because they are just too precious (or too good for a kid Isaac's age) but I also cannot afford to rent a storage building to house such projects.

*I have heard rumor that Starbucks has started selling their fall drinks again. I am itching for a Pumpkin Spice Latte. Please let the weather stay under 85 degrees so I don't need to have a portable fan keeping me cool while I sip my hot fall beverage....

All in a Morning's Work

I believe that if given the proper chance (and free babysitting), the mommies of the world could unite and get quite a few global issues tackled in a single morning. This is because Mommies are excellent at accomplishing many things in a very small amount of time.

Here is a sample of what I accomplished today before 1pm:

*Visit gym. Exercise in order to make any reminders of the fact that my tummy has carried two babies disappear.

*Work on reading site words with three year old at 6:20am per his request

*Drink miraculous thing called coffee, clip coupons

*Wake up sleeping child, load children and husband into car to drive to car dealership in order for husband to pick up rental car because family station wagon is still being worked on (7am)

*Feed children nutritious breakfast of frozen waffles (Whole Wheat!) and blueberries

*Clean kitchen and get presentable for the day while children watch Sesame Street and play grocery store (new favorite game at our house)

*Dress children, including putting shoes on the 16 month old twice because she removed them while I wasn't looking

*Change diaper and remind 3 year old to visit the restroom

*Take children outside to "ride bikes" (AKA ride tricycle and Little Tikes cozy coupe)

*Carry 16 month old, cozy coupe, and sippy cups to safe area on sidewalk due to the fact that our driveway slopes dramatically into the street, thus making it incredibly dangerous to small children and ride-on toys

*Teach 3 year old how to ride his new tricycle while holding 16 month old who is clingy due to the fact men are loudly trimming trees across the street

*Retrieve more toys from the garage at the sweet request of three year old

*Attempt to take pictures of 3 year old riding tricycle and miss the fact that the 16 month old has crashed the Cozy Coupe and is now crying with a bloody lip and chin.

*Make sure no teeth were knocked loose in cozy coupe crash and send three year old inside for a towel.

*Retrieve sidewalk chalk and attempt to draw best recreation of Blue from Blue's Clues. 3 year old is only slightly impressed.

*Haul all ride-on toys, children, chalk, drinks, and camera back into garage.

*Load children into car, secretly throw lovey "RaRa" into wash in hopes of removing blood stain (from earlier busted lip), and head out to the grocery store for allergy medicine (with coupon that makes it almost free!)

*3 year old tells tales of new shopping carts at grocery store (he had spied them over the weekend while there with Dad) and asks if we can use one....I agree before realizing that said grocery carts have TELEVISIONS in them for children (ugh.)

*School myself on how to operate grocery cart/television combo. Select "WonderPets" for children to watch in the 1.2 minutes it is going to take to find and purchase (almost free!) allergy medicine.

*Manage to not run over anyone or any store display while making a very sad attempt at steering grocery cart/television combo.

*Make our purchases, return television on wheels, and leave grocery store; explaining to children that we are not always going to watch television while shopping

*Return home, put away purchases, and set up play mat and cars for children.

*Create a car parade with matchbox cars

*Stop argument over who gets what car

*Cook lunch.

*Set children down at table for lunch....one is excited to eat the mac and cheese, the other claims he cannot eat a thing. (11:30am)

*Clean pieces of macaroni from 16 month old's hair, attempting to get out the sticky mess without pulling too hard. Wash two sets of hands and faces.

*Change diaper. Send three year old to restroom.

*Retrieve "RaRa" from dryer, notice the blood stain is gone, do small victory dance

*Attempt to create the right mixture of noise machine and ceiling fan to block out the sound of a tree being cut down across the street. Am slightly successful.

*Put 16 month old down for nap.

*Inform 3 year old that attempting to measure his bookshelf is not an option and that he should be getting ready for his nap.

*Read book to 3 year old, put him to bed.

*Issue grave warning to 3 year old that he is to rest and not be looking out his window at the tree being cut down or cars passing by our house

*Eat my lunch while watching television (Shh..don't tell the children) and wonder if Martha Stewart is human or actually a robot.

See? Mommies can get many things done in a morning. Although my morning seemed pretty busy, I am fairly confident millions of other women are doing as much or more with their mornings.

What did you do this morning?





*

Weekend Wrap-Up

After every local meteorologist predicted rain and tornadoes in abundance for our weekend, we were spared the wrath of Ike and merely experienced a rainy day yesterday. We were thankful for the rain but heart-broken for those whose lives have been uprooted by Ike.

Due to the grave predictions about the weekend weather, we opted take Evelyn for her first haircut on Friday evening rather than Saturday morning as planned. Isaac had great plans about how he was going to tell E. to be brave and help her be happy during her salon visit. However, upon discovering that this salon had no toys, Isaac was over the whole first haircut experience and offered little big brother support to his sister.

Much to our surprise (and utter joy), E. did really well with getting her hair cut. There were some tears and some frantic "Bye!Bye!" (E.'s way of saying, "Lets get out of here") at the beginning, but once she was handed a large "Quack Quack" things were good.

Pre-hair cut...yes, my cape says "Diva" on it

After the hair cut

(I don't think this picture gives the cut justice because her hair was still wet. The mullet and stringy pieces are gone and she has more of a pixie cut that should grow all together. I am quite happy with the decision to cut it.)

After getting E.'s hair done, we set off to enjoy a nice family dinner at one of our favorite local Mexican restaurants. Seems that it happens to be Terry Bradshaw's as well because he was dining there with his wife. I hoped he would comment on our children as he passed our table on the way to the restroom, but no such luck.

Saturday morning we decided to hit a local mall's play area to let the kids work off some energy (and for me to shop while the husband hung out with the kids...isn't he awesome?) since the rain was preventing any outside time. Upon entering the mall through JC Penny's we discovered that this particular store was decorated for Christmas. Christmas, people. It isn't even Halloween and they had the store COMPLETELY decorated for Christmas. It about made Tobe and me sick. Because of this total lack for the practical progression of how one should decorate for holidays (Halloween, then Fall/Thanksgiving, and then Christmas), I have decided that I am not shopping at Penny's until the New Year.

***

After taking her first steps over two months ago, Evelyn is finally walking on a consistent basis. Often times we have to remind her to walk rather than crawl, but she is walking. This excites Isaac to no end and inspires him to hold E.'s hand while she walks....which often ends up with both kids crying in a jumbled heap on the floor.

Here is a random photo of the two of them marching around the living room....note that Evelyn is only wearing a pajama shirt and Isaac has on shorts but is still wearing his PJ shirt. Some mornings we just go with what works.

On Thursday, Evelyn turned 16 months old. I believe she is 16 months going on about 2 1/2. Her language has exploded and the girl has an opinion on most things, which she expresses quite loudly. She is obviously growing up in a house with a big brother, switching from pushing her babies around the house in their stroller to playing cars.

MOPS started back up for the school year on Friday and the three of us were quite excited to be back with our group. Evelyn went to her class with no screaming and minimal tears and Isaac happily joined his new three year old group. I am a table leader this year with is exciting and a bit intimidating. If you are not connected with a MOPS group and you happen to be a mother of a preschooler (working or staying at home...it doesn't matter) I encourage you to get involved with a local MOPS group. It is good times.

Here are the kids before MOPS on Friday...note that I had to include two pictures because they never look up and smile at the same time.

After rain kept us away from our local festival yesterday, we finally ventured out to it this afternoon after church and naps. Isaac has been talking about attending the festival all week, going so far as to create his own out of Little People, so he was thrilled to finally attend. In my hurry to pack drinks and snacks, I forgot the camera. Ugh. So you will simply have to imagine Isaac riding his favorite horse, Shaggy (he rides the same pony at every festival...the owner even remembers us), and Evelyn becoming ecstatic over seeing her beloved "ChooChoo" up close. We ended the afternoon by sharing a funnel cake, the true symbol of family unity.

Good times, my friend. Good times.

Car Care 101

The husband and I are about to take the phillips family station wagon(*) into the mechanic for a tune-up. Because we are going to be without our main family vehicle for 24 hours, we have moved car seats over to Tobe's car (by "we" I mean "Tobe"). Can I just tell you that our family might be able to end world hunger with the number of goldfish crumbs and lone fruit snacks that were discovered under those car seats?

I attempt to be organized but most days my car is a bit of a disaster. Hair bows usually line the front cup holders, toys are scattered about, and empty boxes of raisins are left discarded by grubby little hands. I ask you, dear readers, how do you organize your main family car? Do you keep toys in your car to entertain the children? Do you allow eating in the car or is that a big "no-no"? Does your car require a Hazmat team to come in order for it to be cleaned?

Any car organization tips would be greatly appreciated!

I do have many pictures to share of E. turning 16 months old yesterday and of the kids all dressed up for our first MOPS meeting of this school year....but the mechanic waits. Also, we are getting E.'s hair cut for the first time this weekend (pray for the poor hair stylist selected to do that job) and are hopefully attending our local festival if Ike allows (pray for the potential victims of Ike. One reader of this blog lives in Ike's path and is 39 weeks pregnant...say big prayers for her!). I assure you there will be a picture post in upcoming days.

Happy Friday!

*We don't really own a station wagon...I just like to say that because it amuses me. Wouldn't it be great if I was scooting around town in one of those big station wagons from the 80's with the back seat that faces backwards? We drive a normal car.

Works for Me! Wednesday: Muffin Tins

One of my daily tasks as a Mommy...possibly one I will be doing for the next 18 years...is making sure my children eat something nutritious and filling at each meal. This is no easy job, considering I have one child who is such a chatterbox that he struggles to find time to eat amidst all the talking and another child who really only prefers chicken nuggets, french fries, raisins, and frozen waffles (Seriously, she will go on a hunger strike--which we let her do--rather than pick up "foreign" food). The food war is an eternal one here at casa de phillips.

Recently I have started serving Isaac's food in a six cup muffin tin. He likes how each group of food has their own location and is always excited to see what surprises are tucked away in his special plate. Often times to encourage eating rather than talking, I will put a special "bessert" (a gingersnap, a few chocolate chips, or some marshmallows) in one of the cups and tape a piece of paper over that opening. In order to take the paper off and reveal his surprise, Isaac has to eat the majority of his other food.

Here is his lunch from today (Not too outstanding due to the fact it was a school day and we rush through lunch to get two tired kiddos to bed): Another great thing about using a muffin tin as a plate is that they do not break. Isaac is responsible for taking his dishes to the sink when he is finished eating. A while back he accidentally dropped one of our plates and it broke. Fortunately I was right there to help him but now we stick to unbreakable dishes.

Now if we can work on the other one's devotion to all things chicken nuggets, the meal time battles might possibly end before these two are in high school...

Check out other Works for Me! tips over at Rocks in My Dryer.

Screaming: Day 3 of Preschool

Yes, Evelyn is still quite distraught over her brother exiting the car two days a week for preschool. I imagine dogs in the school's neighborhood are quite distraught as well on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings since E. can scream at such loud decibels that is likely only audible to canines (and mommies).

However, being an only child for seven hours a week might have some perks: Today, in a moment of weakness, I allowed the yellow Little Tikes cozy coupe back inside my home for a few hours.
"Thrilled" does little to describe E.'s reaction to such a treat

E. doesn't realize that the cozy coupe used to live in our living room, occupying the space by the piano, for whenever her big brother might need to take a spin around the house. However, it became a full-time outside toy the day the basketball goal came to live in our living room.

The basketball goal has now found a comfy location in Isaac's room, merely to make room for the *vintage* baby doll cradle and high chair that are currently living in the back part of our family room. It is a constant rotating door of toys that occupy this coveted space, all who eventually get relocated to a spot a tad less high-profile....usually when I reach the point where I feel as if I can no longer stand viewing such a toy 246 times a day.

Here is E. taking her baby....oh so carefully...to her car for a little spin. Unfortunately baby fell through the hole designed for children's feet and was left in E.'s dust. I am almost 90% sure such an occurrence will never take place in real life when E. has children of her own....as long as said children are paying attention.

E. also discovered that Mommy will take an "only child" on an extensive hunt for choo-choo trains and anything resembling a choo-choo train at the slight utterance of the phrase, "More choo-choo peas."

Maybe this school thing won't be so bad for little sister after all....

Product Alert!

Okay, for those of you desiring to have a Household Notebook but prefer someone else to make it rather than yourself....I have found a solution.

MomAgenda has a variety of organizing tools/daily planners for Moms that most likely will fit anyone's needs.

The MomEssentials looks like a good place to store family info and contact information.

The MomAgenda Kitchen Folio is the perfect way to begin a Household Notebook without having to construct one on your own.

Say "Good-bye!" to the boring standard clipboard with this beauty. I use a clipboard when grocery shopping to hold my list...imagine the joy such a design would bring as it stares up from the grocery cart at me!

Long gone are the days of misplaced cell phones, lost baggies of snacks, and stray hair clips when one utilizes these bags.

I just stumbled across MomAgenda today and as you tell, I am in organizing heaven. Hope this helps those of you starting Household Notebooks!

Perhaps now I should surf the web in search of a 12 step program for those obsessed with organizing....

Keeping Casa de Phillips Clean (and other mysteries solved...)

Is it really Sunday afternoon, I ask you? Because my weekend FLEW by in such a blur I think it might possibly still be Friday morning and my feet are just now touching the floor after a night's rest. This weekend has been a whirl of working a huge consignment sale, shopping a consignment sale, doing my grocery shopping (a big task since I now do it once every two weeks), dinner out with the husband (WONDERFUL!), church, and a long Sunday nap. Such flurry of excitement and fun, but quite the whirlwind. Last night I returned home from shopping the consignment sale (upcoming post) and was changing to head to eat with Tobe. Isaac came into my room and inquired as to why I possibly needed to put on a dress as opposed to wearing the shirt and shorts I had been sporting. He then went into the kitchen and asked Tobe, "Is Mommy going somewhere again?" Oh the guilt trips of a three year old.

Now that the whirlwind is slowing down, let me share the basic cleaning principles of casa de phillips. These are not renowned nor will they likely meet up to Martha Stewart's idea of a clean house, but they work for us. Enjoy!

***

Don't you love how television commercials portray the "average" American woman, happily vacuuming her carpets with her pressed khaki's on and a smile plastered across her freshly powdered face? Such a portrayal, with its cheer and perfectly coiffed hair, is far from the actual reality of today's mom standing in pair of faded yoga pants surrounded by dust, chaos, and dirty dishes wondering how she alone is supposed to conquer the pit that is her home.

Rather than allowing the eternal, daunting task of cleaning one's home bring me down I devised a plan on how to stay on top of clutter and how to clean in small portions of time which allows me the freedom of living in a clean home without being a slave to chores.

In order to achieve such freedom from cleaning, one must ask two questions of himself:

1. What kind of clean exactly am I looking for? (Meaning, how clean do you personally need your house to be in order to have a happy, peaceful existence inside its walls? Different people need different levels of clean. I am not suggesting one to be happy living in complete refuse, however not everyone needs to strive for a home straight from the pages of Better Homes and Gardens.)

2. Which household members are responsible for which household chores? (Everyone in the house...regardless of gender or age...need to be contributing to the up-keep of the house. When everyone contributes something, keeping a house clean does not seem like such a lonely and huge task. In our home, Tobe is responsible for laundry, yard work, ironing his clothes, and finances. I am responsible for cleaning, vacuuming, ironing my clothes, loading/unloading dishwasher, making beds, washing linens, and cooking. Isaac is responsible for picking up his toys, taking his dishes to the sink, and putting dirty clothes in his laundry basket. Evelyn is responsible for assisting in putting toys away. We all are responsible for putting away our things and tiding up at the end of the day.)

After these questions have been asked, chores have been delegated, and everyone agrees on the degree of clean they desire for their house, a cleaning schedule needs to be devised. A cleaning schedule is a plan for what things are going to be cleaned each day/week/month in order to keep a home nice and tidy.

Our cleaning schedule looks like this:

Daily Tasks:

*Wipe down all hard surfaces (kitchen and bathroom counter tops and table)

*Make beds

*Straighten and clean up toys (more about that later)

*Load and Unload dishwasher as needed (I HATE dirty dishes in the sink)

*Sweep (Our children generate enough crumbs to feed a small nation)

*Tidy up kitchen after each meal

Weekly:

Sunday: Laundry. Tobe washes, dries, and folds. I put away. All clothes are washed on Sunday and typically put away by Sunday evening. This way, we don't have to think about any laundry until the next week.

Monday: Sweep and Mop kitchen. Clean kitchen (clean counter tops with disinfecting spray, bleach sink, wipe out microwave, etc). Clean bathrooms (everything but showers)

Wednesday: Vacuum house. Clean showers/bathtubs.

Thursday: Dust house. Wash all bedsheets and put fresh ones on beds. Lightly clean bathrooms again (I like a sparkly bathroom).

Friday: Vacuum house (again, small children = dirty floors). Lightly clean kitchen. Clean front screen door. (A futile task because the bottom three feet of the glass will quickly be covered in hand prints once again...but I try.). Mop kitchen and baths.

Monthly:

*Dust baseboards (The kids can do this one with a Swiffer duster. Hello, Child Labor!)

*Dust Ceiling fans

*Clean windows (ugh)

*Dust blinds (double ugh)

A cleaning plan provides you an outline of exactly what you are going to clean each day. This prevents that feeling of helplessness when faced with the task of cleaning a home. Usually I do the day's cleaning during naptime and can complete each set of chores in 30 minutes time. Notice that there are no household chores set up for Tuesdays or Saturdays. Tuesday naptimes are usually spent writing and Saturdays are left open for quality family time.

Although a cleaning plan devises an outline for how one can clean their house each week, it does not have to be a super-strict regime that can never be strayed from. There are some weeks where I devote a good portion of a morning to cleaning and get everything done at once. There are some weeks where certain tasks get left undone (for example, this week I just never got around to dusting...oops!). All of that is okay. Allowing some slack in a cleaning plan and plenty of room for forgiveness when something just does not get done one week, keeps everyone sane and prevents feelings of failure.

Here are a few tips that I have found help me keep on my cleaning schedule and allow casa de phillips to maintain a reasonable level of organization:

1. We do two "toy pick-ups" a day. We clean up toys before lunch/naptime and before bath/bedtime. Every toy is cleaned up and put in its place. On particularly busy days, I sometimes clean up the toys myself after the kids are in bed...but they always get cleaned up.

2. Have a designated place for everything. We can do toy pick-ups quickly because each toy already has a designated home. Jackets, purses, bags, etc have designated homes as well to prevent pile-ups by the back door. I have a large basket for mail or coupons that need to be sorted rather than leaving such things on my kitchen counter. Tobe and I each have a place where we keep our current reading materials (we are both book worms) to prevent magazines and books from laying around the living room or our bedroom. Everything has a home which prevents clutter. By preventing clutter from the start, we cut down on time spent cleaning.

3.I always run the dishwasher on either Thursday night or Friday morning. This provides a empty dishwasher for the weekend. Because I tend to do less cooking on the weekend, relying more on leftovers or eating out, I rarely have to run the dishwasher again before Sunday evening.

4. Take baby steps. Sure, one could devote an entire week to cleaning and organizing their home but who has that kind of time or energy? Take baby steps. Choose one thing to organize/deep clean a week. Before long, a change will be noticed in one's home.

Casa de phillips isn't sparkling and one can never find me dusting the piano in my cardigan set and pressed pants, but we do have a cleaning schedule that works for us and keeps things running smoothly.

Grab the Pledge and Dust Cloth, My Friends

I am in the process of working on a post about cleaning one's house...mainly because the maid never seems to show up here at casa de phillips (possibly because we never pay her), which leaves our little family left to fend for itself. Look for such a post this weekend if you are wondering how our little casa is cleaned.

In the meantime, anyone have a great cleaning tip to share?

***

Keep the comments coming on this post as well....I have enjoyed reading them so far!

The Mommy Wars: Presidential Election Edition

As the leaves change and the air takes on a bit of a crisp feeling in the upcoming weeks (or months if you live where I live), we get the joy of welcoming Fall. Fall makes me giddy inside, with the cozy clothes, Starbucks specialty drinks, and feeling of anticipation as we countdown to the upcoming holidays just waiting around the corner to be celebrated.


Fall also means election time in our great country.


Yes, we are (thankfully) charged with the task of electing a new president this November, something that is taken quite seriously here at casa de phillips.


Generally I steer-clear of politics here at savethephillipsfamily, mainly because people struggle with discussing such things without walking away with hurt feelings and mainly because stories about my children are much more amusing than a discussion of recent debates. Sadly, I tend to prefer humorous over intellectual.


In the past, I have discussed the ever touchy subject of the Mommy Wars (you can read such discussions here), wondering aloud on this blog about the struggle between being Mommy/Wife/Employee. Is it possible? Can we do it all as women? Do we want to attempt to do it all even if it happens to be an attainable goal?


You are likely aware that one of the candidates in this presidential election has a female as his vice presidential running mate.


Political standing aside, I think having women in the presidential election is fabulous. I grew up in a time when Geraldine Ferraro was an anomaly, discussed in Civics class as if she was a rare species found deep in the Amazon. Girls in the White House: what a novel idea.

Yet, having a female VP candidate with young children still at home (she has four under the age of 18...which I consider to be "young") brings the Mommy Wars into this election. I am left asking, Can a Mommy of young children hold such a position as Vice President of the United States?

Other questions swirling around in my head include (Questions I don't have the answer to...thus the reason I am asking you):

Can a mother of young children hold high political office (VP is quite high, dear friends....especially when the possible President is clocking in at 72 years of age.)?

Is it responsible for a mother with a young (four months old) special needs child to take on such a demanding position?

Does this candidate hold any responsibility towards helping her teenage daughter, who is about to get married to a fellow 17 year old and is expecting her first child? Can she do so while being Vice President of the most powerful country in the world?

Is this candidate choosing her country over her family? Is that okay?

If in the office of Vice President of the United States, is okay for this particular person to choose her family over her country?

Is it fair for her pregnant daughter to have to endure the public scrutiny over her unplanned pregnancy simply because her mother wants to become Vice President?

Is there a double-standard at play here? No questions have ever been raised currently or in the past about male candidates with children who are still under the age of 18. If there is a double standard, are we okay with that?

These are my questions and I anticipate your thoughts. These questions are not political in nature, they are not Democratic or Republican, War or Anti-War. Simply because I am discussing this particular VP candidate does not indicate how I am voting (although I will proudly tell you who I AM voting for if you ask). My questions are searching to understand if a Mommy of young children can take on such a prominent, demanding job and if doing so is contributing to the good or to the demise of her family.

Please feel free to share thoughts about this. I do ask that you avoid using specific names (in order to prevent random Google hits) and to avoid speaking about policy or political issues and as always...play nice. I want to here what you think about this VP Candidate in relation to the Mommy Wars.

I promise to return to humorous tales of childhood tomorrow...

School Days

In order to avoid any type of laboring yesterday, we took the kids on a field trip to see exactly how donuts are made. We are all about the educational experiences here at casa de phillips.

Phillips' children, meet Krispy Kreme Donuts.It was heaven on earth to Isaac, a true connoisseur of the donut

***

This morning I loaded the children into the car and off we went towards.....PRESCHOOL!

Yes, Isaac is embarking on his second year of preschool (in a line of many years of preschool ahead since most likely he won't start Kindergarten until he is six due to his August birthday). He was all smiles this morning when I reminded him that today was indeed a school day, exclaiming "That is wonderful!" in regards to my decree.

After feeding kids, dressing kids, packing a lunch for brother and snacks for sister, and rounding up a loved stuffed animal to attend this first day of class (Everyone brings a "friend" from home...Ike was the chose animal from our house), off we went to preschool. Because it was Isaac's day, he chose the music for the morning ride...which was no music at all (We alternate who gets to choose the music each day as another measure to save my sanity. Evelyn always wants "Day" which means the Sesame Street soundtrack. I didn't realize until recently that such parenting tactics would have to be utilized so early on.) Rather we chatted about our surroundings and about what to expect at school.

Because it was the first morning, parents were invited to come inside the building to drop off kids as opposed to the normal car lane drop-off (which I love!). Isaac was a bit apprehensive at first due to the large number of parents milling about, but found his spot and immediately got to work on writing his name.

Here is our boy on his first day of his second year of preschool:

And here are some more....just because I *heart* my kid:

In case one was wondering, the backpack, lunchbox, and sippy cup are ALL Little Einsteins. You're Welcome, Disney Corp.

Lil Sister wanted her picture taken as well this morning.

In the classroom...not too eager for the photo-op with Mommy

In action...with someone's Barney looking on

THIS is what I had the joy of experiencing ALL THE WAY HOME. Yes, E. was not excited about being separated from her brother and voiced such an opinion loudly. Tobe asked if I videoed this (she was screaming "I-sik" repeatedly) to which I asked, "Who would want to ever watch such a spectacle?"

I most likely will get the joy of witnessing this drama two days a week from now until the end of May....

Although Isaac attended school last year, this year is really the first time for E. and me to be able to spend some quality time together two mornings a week (Last year was just one morning a week....and E. napped through the majority of that time).

In order to celebrate our "Girls Only" time, I took Evelyn for a nice lunch at a girly place. It was no Hickory Street Cafe in Abilene, Texas, but there was chicken salad, mini-muffins, and iced tea....all the requirements for a real Girl's Lunch. Evelyn was quite impressed with the fresh flowers on the table and I was happy there was carpeting rather than tile floor covered in soda and ketchup.

Isaac was all smiles when I picked him up, exclaiming that "Miss Ofelia was really nice" and "Ike was a good dog today." He then asked, "Can we pick something up for lunch on the way home?"

Uh, no, son because you just ate lunch at school.

It was a successful day, followed by a long nap, and a tasty snack.

A pretty good day for a three year old and his stuffed dog.