All Grown Up

My babies are growing up....each one of them is hitting milestones and there's no going back. Alex applied for his driver's license, Ryan graduated high school and enrolled in community college, Andrew can't stop talking about getting his driving permit and Myles thinks he's ready to go diaper-less. Then we have Michael-who just started preschool last week.

Michael has come such a long way. He tends to be one of my more sensitive kids so sometimes things can be quite dramatic for him. It seems just like yesterday, when I'd drop him off at my mom's house he would get so upset to the point of becoming physically ill. Yes, projectile vomiting everywhere! Thank goodness we've moved beyond that....I know my mom appreciates it!

So, for his first day of school I wasn't really sure what to expect. Depending on his mood it could have went a variety of ways. I tried to prepare him beforehand; we picked out his clothes, got his backpack ready and went to bed a little earlier than usual. Yet I knew all of this was out the window if he woke up on the wrong side of the bed, especially when he has to get up early. He's definitely a sleep-til-noon-if-you-let-me kind of kid. To my amazement, though, he eagerly jumped out of bed, got dressed and grabbed his backpack. So far, so good.

When we arrived at the school, I had to do some more preparing. Remember to......1)greet your teachers, 2)hang up your backpack, 3)say goodbye to mommy and 4)sit down for circletime. So many new things to remember in a short period of time!

Well, 1 out of 4 'aint bad.

He knew how to say bye to mom and his little brother (all without tears I might add). It's the other three items on his list that presented the challenge. For starters, he couldn't differentiate between the other moms and his teachers. Who am I supposed to say "hi" to? Then there are 10 double hooks for 20 children to hang up their backpacks. All those kids and only 1 other boy remembered to bring his backpack. He conveniently hung it on the hook that had Michael's name under it, obscuring his freshly printed name label. Where do I hang my backpack? Finally, it's time to join the group of children on the carpet. Ummmm, what is circletime?

According to his teachers, once Michael made it through the opening activities the rest of the day was a breeze for him. I certainly didn't set my expectations too high for him. I figured it would take a few weeks for him to adjust to new people, new surroundings and new activities.

I was wrong.

On his third day, Michael walked into his classroom and proceeded to say hello to all 3 teachers. He rehung the backpack hanging on the hook next to his, making ample room for his to hang correctly (what a gentleman!). He walked over to the carpeted area and chose a circle spot that matched the color of his shirt. As I opened my mouth to say goodbye, he quickly jumped up and shouted, "Oops, I forgot!" He then ran over and gave me a tight squeeze, all the while saying, "Mom, I loooovvvvvve you!"

I had to swallow really hard to make that lump go back down my throat. I knew just one word out of my mouth and the floodgates would have opened. So, instead, I flashed him a quick smile and a wink as he sat back down for circletime. In that moment, I realized yet another one of my babies was growing up. I proudly walked back to my truck and thought to myself, "Hmmm, I wonder if he'll be like this for his first day of high school?" A mother can dream, can't she?

Definite Peace of Mind

Since the mercury has been on the rise lately, often reaching triple digits, I've been letting the boys do a lot of water play. Yeah, we have a pool and it's great; don't get me wrong, but sometimes it's just not practical. Getting out the swim trunks, arm floaties and collection of swim vests, life jackets and whatever other flotation devices my boys depend upon just isn't always appealing. Like I said...it's triple digits out!

Anyway, good ole water play with cups, buckets and a water table seems to do the trick. The boys are entertained and cooled off at the same time. I feel so bad when their little cheeks are rosy red from the heat.

Now, I'm not a fan of water guns. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with them, per se, but I simply don't care for them. So I thought the boys needed an alternative; same concept just different packaging. I decided to let them use some extra water bottles we had around. In theory this was a great idea, but hindsight will bite ya in the butt every time. You know what I mean?

One of the bottles was a plain bottle just like the one I keep on hand to wet their hair before I brush it. However, the second bottle was an extra window cleaner bottle. It had never been used (I mix together my own cleaner from a concentrated formula) so I figured there was no harm in letting them have it. Do you see where I'm going with this?

Long story short, they have been enjoying spraying each other and even dumping the water out over and over again. One day, my youngest one discovered that the safety latch on the cabinet under the kitchen sink was broken. I knew it was broken, but I wasn't too concerned about it. After all, every cleaner I keep under there is non-toxic and safe for the boys to be around (I just keep it locked so they won't get into anything and waste it!). Needless to say, he immediately found the cleaning bottle that resembled the one I let him play with.

When I came around the corner, he had completely drenched his whole head and chest. Window cleaner was in his hair, eyes and mouth, but he had no idea what he had done. As I mentioned earlier, I only use non-toxic cleaners in my home-no bleach, no phosphates, no harsh chemicals. So for him, except for the pleasing smell, it was as if he had just poured water all over himself. Desired result achieved! He stood there with his "Look-what-I-did, Mommy" grin and ran off giggling. All I could do was turn away so he wouldn't see me smile. Wasting mommy's cleaning products is not an acceptable thing to do, right? I say it beats a trip to the emergency room.....definite peace of mind!

Where Did The Time Go???

So, I hate to sound like a broken record, but I have no idea where all my time has gone. Almost another year has passed since I've been on my blog and I don't even know why.

Ummm, fine- I take that back; I know exactly where it's gone. My children, husband, business....did I say children? If you let the everyday grind overtake you, trust me it will do so, and happily! Sometimes I feel like my life is on continuous replay and somebody forgot to shut it off. Pleeeaaasee skip Track 1 already!

Anyway, I'm committing to sticking with it this time. NO more excuses. The laundry can wait, so can the dog and my husband certainly can (whether he likes it or not!). Even if it's just a quiet moment to get a few thoughts out, so be it.

Look out blog world......here I come (officially)!