TTA - What makes you laugh

~ Brady's skinny naked body
~ Watching Jackson play on an official soccer team
~ Thinking about Jackson playing another soccer game (Y'all shoulda seen it!)
~ Buddy the Elf (Will Ferrell)
~ Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell)
~ Alex Trebek (Will Ferrell)
~ Watching Mike run around like Will (not Ferrell, Dart!)
~ Watching Carter wave "bye bye" and shake his head "no."
~ Rembering how to do that 2-person trick of the legs that don't belong to you from girls camp... circa 1992
~ Remembering how obsessed Tiffany & I were over "Pink Amigo Boy" ... circa 1997
~ The memory of how sick I was honeymooning
~ Being touched, with intent to tickle - but laughter is not so much the response - it is actually more closely related to ANGER!
~ NOT Practical Jokes (I've never liked April Fool's Day)
~ Realizing how forgetful I am
~ Gosh, Why am I not able to remember more?! (I wonder!)
~ This picture: (About 24 hours before Carter would arrive!) ]
~ And this one: (Jackson and I both have done some changing!)
~ Ok, and a Brady one too: *OUCH*

How has motherhood been treating you lately, you ask...

I really wish I could remember all the details, but I'll tell you what I can...

On Saturday morning, Jackson woke up early (even for him) at 6:00 - screaming in his bed... Of course I rushed up to see what was the matter - and he had thrown up all over himself and every item in his bed... Fast forward to the soccer game at 9:00
that we should not have taken him to, and he throws up again. On the way home, as I'm inside Heritage Cleaners picking up a few items of Rodney's, Jackson is rushed to me with the not-so-pleasant news that he had messed up his underwear while waiting for me in the parking lot...We took care of it inside, of course (even though the sign clearly read, "NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS, THANKS, MGMT.") Whatever. The dude behind the counter was very understanding, so luckily this paragraph doesn't have to end with "Then I told him where he could shove his "NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS" sign and said "Have a Rotten day, yourself!!"

Mercy...

All was well on Sunday. The comings and goings of church and our callings even went on without a hitch. I had actually convinced myself that Saturday's proceedings were not, in fact, due to a mean bug, but rather to the greasy bratwurst that Jackson inhaled the night before...

Monday brought more upset tummies - Rodney & I felt pretty gross at bedtime, Rodney was unfortunately (or fortunately) relieved a few times as he bowed to the porcelain god, and I just... felt gross. Emily, Mama and Grant were in town to crash before their Tuesday morning clinic appointment, and lucky for me, Emily had a super-duper-kick-the-nausea pill. I'm not sure what it was, but it kept me from having to... you know... ;)

Tuesday night (last night), Brady started the throwing up at 1:30. I think by 4:00 when I went back to sleep, Rodney & I had stripped his bed, stripped my bed, washed 2 loads of clothes, set 2 foam mattress toppers on the back porch to air out, (not to mention walking out there at 2:00 am gave me the willies), and showered my screaming almost-3 year old 2 times. Oh, almost forgot the trashcan that needed the rinsing out. Ga-ROSS! Today, Brady has had phase two; the rosy-smelling diarrhea. His poor little bum is so burnt up that he's cried every diaper change since eleven o'clock, which oddly enough just might be eleven times. Poor guy.

I'm blogging at 7:00 pm for one reason, and one reason alone. Rodney is H-O-M-E and I-N C-H-A-R-G-E! And I'm beat! He asked if I wanted to leave, and I frankly have less interest in getting showered and out of the house than in getting my teeth cleaned. Just for giggles, let me share some pictures of around our lovely abode on Shady Willow Lane that are all from today...Mind you, many of these are just an insight into the things that have been neglected these past several days. Or weeks. You decide...

Jackson standing proudly beside some sort of "gather things from around the house and make a CREATION" creation. :) I love him!!!!



Brady with chocolate covered fudge-pop face. Taken around 10:30. I dare you to make fun of me for giving that to him at that hour. DOUBLE DARE! Oh, and yes, that's a chocolately mark on the light sagey green bedspread thingy... I think his face had some sort of MAGNET which drew him to my bedding. Who's surprised?? Me neither...


The bed in the playroom where Rodney finished his less-than-stellar night's sleep... No, not because of the quality of the air mattress... Rather, the quality of sleep with a 4 year old by your side...


The bed that Jackson should have slept in throughout the night. He said he didn't like being in there alone... (Brady's usually about 5 feet away in his own bed...)


The couch where we proposed Jackson sleep, as he started the whining that he "didn't want to be all by himself." Mind you, this is on the other side of the room from the air matress that Rodney would later be sleeping on...


Brady's bed.


The pile of 2T Brady-sized underwear that I'm keeping in the middle of their floor for no other reason than I found them about a week ago, and don't know where to put them!



The pillow-case-less pillow and the many stuffed thingys that are all too often scattered around the big boys' room.


The pile of shirts that are too little for Brady and too big for Carter that need a home, desperately.


Laundry de-la boys. It's been in those baskets for some time now... You'd think I'd prefer to FIND clean clothes in those two hampers at the top of my stairs, rather than in their dresser drawers.


Enough ramblings...
Thanks for reading if you got this far. As I may have mentioned before, this blog is for me to remember the little things... Be it good, bad, ugly, or somewhere in between...

Lastly, if you have a few minutes to read some words from Elder M. Russell Ballard, I enjoyed hearing what he had to share about the role of mothers. Here's the link... Daughters of God.

I found this link here.

Much better than "Poor Jud is Dead!"

I must admit, I hummed (or at least thought about) the "Oklahoma" melody more than once these last few days. You all know the one of which I speak...


Oh what a beautiful morning!
Oh what a beautiful day!
I've got a beautiful feelin'
Everything's goin' my way...

Here's my proof (taken around 10 am on Wednesday):




And a couple of funnies to go along with the cuties. :)

Jackson and I disagreed on something a few mornings ago. I think it was something about "when" we should do "what." The conversation came to a screeching (but pleasant) halt when he answered me with these beautiful words, "Whatever you say, boss!" Oh If I could just bottle him up and sell him by the ounce - I'd be a rich momma!

Tonight, on a little car ride, we were quizzing the boys on letter sounds. Jackson is a master at answering "What's a word that starts with ___?" Brady is starting to get there. He's recently gotten into "the B says BBB," and other tricks to learn the sounds the letters make, but coming up with a WORD is only beginning for him... SO, I was asking Brady, "Can you tell me a word that starts with C? Jackson quickly jumped in with "CAT!" Then I told Jackson, "Please be quiet and let Brady answer." So, I asked Brady again, "Can you think of a word besides CAT that starts with C? It makes this sound - CCCCC" There was silence. I knew he could do it if he thought about it for a moment. Then from the very back, where the eldest of the two resides, I hear this sound, "BRRRR!" Ok, at face value, this is not that funny. BUT, immediately, I knew exactly what was going on... Jackson was giving li'l man a hint. I laughed and commended Jackson on being the best big brother EVER. :)

Brady and I took a 3-hour nap together today. There IS a story to go along with this - it starts with a 6:00 wakeup call from Jackson as he's throwing up in his bed -intermingled with a beautiful day during which we spent a good 4 hours outside - and ends with prayers tonight that we've seen the last of that ucky stuff... UGH....

Carter has some new tricks - He'll shake his head "no" back atcha! He can clap on command (has been for a couple months I guess), and can pat his hand to his mouth to sound like an Indian. Twice in the last week or so, I've asked him questions that his answer has been "uh-huh." The first one was "Do you love Brady?" and the one from today was "Do you love bananas?" Y'all should see how happy he is when Brady enters the room. It's good stuff.

Lastly, we've come to the realization that Jackson is a master tongue-trickster. He can make the best machine gun dt-dt-dt-dt sound you ever did hear (mixed with a little spit and silly looking poked out lips, but who cares?). Earlier tonight, Jackson was showing off his mad skills while he played with Brady in the living room. Carter sat in my lap as we observed. (I think Rodney was trying to do it too, but still - it's not as good as Jackson's impersonation.) Anyway, the funny thing was, Carter joined in on the action! Jackson may have a fierce competitor in a few years... Heck - as fast as Carter's growing, he may start beating Jackson at his own tricks sometime tomorrow!

We can't just let the game end there!!! Shoot....

I forgot to tag someone after my last post!
I choose: Ruth, JoAnna, and all the Emilys!

And while I'm at it - blogging, that is, I'll share couple new pics, courtesy de la Tiffany from this past weekend. I love that little sugar booger I do! :) Both of 'em!

Only about 2 weeks after the fact

I'm going to answer my tag from Wendi-Wendi-Bo-Bendi. (I dare you to tell me you don't like that little nick name...)

I have had a busy week or so. Maybe two weeks. Maybe more. I can't keep things straight when it has ANYTHING to do with time lines and such. Anniversaries... Birthdays...Playdates... I try, but usually to no avail. Don't even get me started on History class. Somebody tell me where I'm going with this, cause I do not know.


Oh yeah, I'm answering a tag. Yeah, that's it!

*10 years ago...
I was a Senior in High School. Rodney & I had been dating for about 6 months. I had just barely decided that I was going to be a Pirate! AARGH! I was up to my eyeballs in the Spring Drama Production, "My Fair Lady," working on memorizing my lines and practicing my soprano parts. I loved this part of my High School career more than just about anything, but dreaded singing the last two notes of "I could have danced all night." Daddy was my Seminary Teacher... The course of study that year was The Book of Mormon. I am pleased to report that I still remember a handful of the mastery scriptures, and with a little bit of work, could probably regain confidence in reciting each and every one. Talk about a goal!

*5 things on my to-do list today
Well, it's hard to say because I'm down at the island right now, and things are not so "to-do-ish" right now. LOL! How about I tell you my to-do list for tonight between the hours of 11:00pm and 7:00am. It goes a little something like this...
~Try not to WANT to kill Jackson when he comes in our room crying for it to be morning
~Sleep a little
~Try not to WANT to kill Jackson when he comes in again, crying for it to be morning again
~Sleep a little
~SERENITY NOW!

*Things I would do if I was suddenly a billionaire
~Travel with a nanny, oh Margaret Marie?
~Build a dream vacation house in Italy, Brazil and Thailand
~Share a wee little bit my my loved ones (j/k y'all know I'd 1/2 it with ya!)
~Erect a birthing center on the eastern end of Carteret County, equipped with the finest and most up-to-date technologies centered around making a pregnant woman comfortable. Is that really too much to ask? That's for you, Aly.

*3 Bad Habits
~Over analyzing
~Lazy about cooking like a SAHM should
~Too much TV

*Places I have lived
~Harkers Island, NC
~Greenville, NC
~Raleigh, NC
~Rolesville, NC

*Things most people don't know about me
~I had a bad trampoline accident when I was about 7ish. Lotsa stitches. On my face. Enough Said.
~I treasure the day I got to ride Kenny Wayne and Wanda's horses with my family - I think I was about 10.
~I am pretty afraid of the ocean, even only 20 yards out from the shore, I get pretty nervous.
~I'll never forgive myself for acting like a spoiled rotten little t-u-r-d one birthday when daddy bought me white rollerskates, instead of pink.
~I love Celine Dion, and would DIE to see her in concert one day.
~I take pride in fastening diaper stickers in a perfectly mirrored image.
~I wear my watch on my right wrist.
~I have a 1/2 broken big toenail right now b/c of a little accident earlier today. The equation involved Maggie (boxer), rain, flip flops, and stoney outdoor steps, covered in the aforementioned rain.

*Jobs I have had
Babysitting at least 50 x before I was 14,
then Lucky Duck's,
then Sanitary,
then Sea Side,
then babysitting at the Suttons' in college,
then NCFB District Claims Office
then the cherry on top, (but low paying), SAHM

I told you I'd blog today, Wendi!!!! :)