Pig Sty

Let me start off by saying that boys are total slobs. At least mine are. I really hope other boys are too or I'm going to feel like a failure. During the school year our house gets messy like anyone else's, but during the summer it seems like it gets even worse. I went in the kitchen today and started noticing things left out so I decided to make a list. On the table I found:
-Half eaten slice of pizza
-Arts and crafts bucket with various materials scattered all over the table
-Dirty chimichanga plate with sour cream container next to it
-Empty cereal bowl
-2 empty soda cans
-2 empty glasses the soda was poured into
-Tupperware full of Goldfish crackers
On the kitchen counter:
-Chimichanga wrapper
-Ramen wrapper
-Clean dishes from a halfway done dishes job
As well as an open dishwasher with a few dirty items placed in it from said half done dishes job.
On the floor:
-2 pairs of shoes at bottom of the stairs
-2 pairs of shoes by the backdoor
-3 pairs of shoes behind the couch
-1 dirty sock behind the couch
-1 dirty sock on couch from being thrown at younger brother

I might just lose my mind. And of course I'm walking around picking most of this crap up because heaven forbid anyone else should do it or should listen to me when I remind them for the 300th time to pick it up. It's like a conspiracy. "If we leave it long enough, Mom will get sick of it and clean it herself." So please, if you see me running away from home screaming, don't tell my family.

Best Mom Ever

This guy had his wisdom teeth out yesterday. I was not sedated when I had mine removed so I had no idea how wonderful it is to talk to someone when they come out of it. He told me I was a race car driver on the way home, walked into the house as a dinosaur, called his best friend and told her his favorite person is Jesus. Overall, it was amazing.

Now to get to the post title... So obviously he couldn't eat anything yesterday (though he did finally have some mashed potatoes last night over the course of an hour) so I made him shakes all day. Like literally all day. He does cross fit and is on a higher protein diet so I made a high protein yogurt smoothie, then a couple hours later made a protein powder shake, then another yogurt smoothie, then before bed an ice cream shake. Today he took 20 min. to eat eggs for breakfast and I made him another smoothie. I made him a protein shake before we took Coco to his football jamboree. He did manage to eat a few fries for lunch and I just made yet another smoothie. So I love this kid more than life, but I'm spent. I've kept track of all his meds for him and made him shake after shake and mashed potatoes and I'm tired. He has at least thanked me several times. But he's in the playroom a lot playing video games so I've been up and down the stairs every stinking time. (At least I've been getting my steps in).

I got up at 6:30 am yesterday, took him to the oral surgeon, came home, then drove back again because he started bleeding again, back home, over to cross fit so he could say hi to everyone, 20 min up the road for a burger that I was craving (because by this time I was hangry), Target to return something, home again, to the doctor to see if my toe was broken still from like 3 months ago, to the grocery store for mac and cheese for Bubba, home to pick up Coco for football practice, home until I had to go back and get Coco (sat there for 30 min. because they went over time), home until I had to get JP from his friend's house at 11 pm. I was so done. But my awesome husband was camping with scouts this weekend so I was the lone chauffeur. Today my schedule consisted of driving more than 30 min. to get downtown to the stadium for Coco's jamboree game, wait around for an hour and a half until they finally played for their 12 minute turn, Sonic (in the opposite direction of the quickest way home), home on the freeway and on the highest traffic road in the state, didn't even turn the car off because JP wanted me to pick up two friends and drive them to the fair, and finally home again.

Then I asked Bubba if he needed anything (meaning a pain pill) and he responds, "Oh yeah, a shake would be great." So I go downstairs, make the shake and as I go to take it to him, Butch (who is finally home from camping) says, "Hey if you're going upstairs and coming back down, can you get me some eye drops? My eyes are killing me." So I'm pretty much at least one of the top five moms on the planet right now.

Rough Day

So Coco has some dairy sensitivity issues. He's been drinking almond milk since he was a little guy, but used to be able to handle other dairy. Not so much now. After a long conversation with a lactose intolerant friend, I decided to try giving him a Lactaid anytime he wanted any dairy. It has helped immensely. Unfortunately, I didn't have any in my purse the other night and he had a cheese quesadilla while we were out at dinner. I completely forgot by the time we got home to give him one. He was fine that night and I didn't even think about it. The following night for dinner, he had a casserole that was full of sour cream and cheddar. Again, I didn't even think anything of it. Until he woke up in the middle of the night throwing up. Fortunately he's at the age now where he makes it to the toilet 99% of the time. He went back to bed, but threw up again in the morning. And again. And again. Poor guy threw up all day long. I thought maybe it was a flu bug, but he had no other symptoms. Then I remembered that he had all that dairy. Mom fail. By late at night, he hadn't eaten or had anything to drink. He tried some saltines and Sprite, but proceeded to throw that up fifteen minutes later. By Wed. morning, I was worried he was dehydrated so I got him some Powerade and he was able to keep that down. By the time we went to a party last night, he wanted watermelon, cookies, chicken, rice. I decided to make him take it slow, but he's completely fine now. Rough life when you're tummy is sensitive to dairy.

JP was out all day yesterday riding bikes with his friends downtown, doing cool teenager stuff and probably hunting Pokemon guys. So he met us at the party. Unfortunately, his back brakes were loose on his bike and he took a nasty spill over his handle bars right before we got there. So I dropped everyone else off and took him home to clean him up. He landed on his elbows and one side was missing skin almost to the bone. He hit his chest and was struggling with breathing and was worried he'd broken a rib. He also hit his hip hard. I was panicked when I started looking at everything and he was going into shock because he was in so much pain. Dad got home to talk me down from the ledge because I really wanted to take him to the ER. But really, what could they do? He didn't hit his head, if a rib was bruised, they can't do anything about it. He's doing better today. His elbows have stopped burning and throbbing. His chest still hurts really bad, but that's probably going to hurt for months if something got bruised. But he's really become a tough kid so I know he'll be fine.

Here's to a better day today!

Boys' Life

I watched a show about UFOs last night with Coco. I was in the kitchen working on dinner when he says matter-of-factly, "Aliens are real." That kid cracks me up. He is a boy after my own heart. He believes in Big Foot, aliens, Loch Ness monster, the lost city of Atlantis and he's on the fence about ghosts. I don't want to freak him out so whenever he asks if ghosts are real, I always tell him that some people believe they are. But he's seen enough creepy stuff on Ghost Hunters with me that I think he believes.

He also loves watching any show that delves into unknown mysteries and legends. He loves Expedition Unknown (and was rather annoyed that I deleted the vampire episode before he could watch it). He totally gets into shows where they are hunting for pirate treasures, Robin Hood, King Arthur, etc. And because he spent more time with me at home before going to school than the other boys, he knows a lot of random facts. We had lots of conversations in the car about anything and everything. He told his brothers one day how you would technically pronounce a local street name here since it actually used to be called Chinese Garden. None of them believed him until they asked me. He likes to randomly tell people things like that. I love that he enjoys learning new things.

And the kid seriously has the most accurate English accent of any non-British kid I've heard. It's hilarious. He's good at pronunciation and other accents as well. 

Peanut, on the other hand, loves any TV show where they build something or remodel something. He has such an engineering sort of mind. He loves puzzles and Legos and you can almost see the wheels turning when he is concentrating on something. He's my quietest boy for sure. If he's alone in the car with you, you'd never know he was there. He doesn't ask a thousand questions like Coco or tell random stories like his other brothers. I saw a movie with just him the other night and he didn't laugh or make a sound, but after the movie told me he thought it was a really funny movie. I never have any idea if that kid is enjoying something. It's a little weird since it's totally opposite from the rest of the family. He can be loud for sure when his brothers are teasing or attacking him, but other than that, he's a quiet one.

And then there's JP. I'm not sure what he's really into other than video games lately. But he's started eating a lot before bed just like Bubba. Last night we realized it was starting when he finished the spaghetti noodles with nothing but cheddar cheese on them and then had a bowl of ice cream right after. The scary thing is that he was always my best eater as a baby. He ate three jars of baby food at every sitting and still nursed and had baby cereal. He seems to be pretty in to Star Wars stuff lately since he saw number seven twice. He spent all of his Christmas money on one Lego set from the movie. 

Bubba eats non-stop, has grown another inch in the last month, and is driving. He and Coco are the loudest children for sure. I shushed him today after school when he was right next to me telling me something rather loudly. His reply, "I'm using my inside voice." Not really, son. Not really. He's in to snowboarding lately and almost his entire Christmas list consisted of equipment he wanted/needed. He joined ski club and will have his first competition this Saturday. He's getting gigantic-huge feet and hands, getting taller. He's definitely a man-child now. He enjoys pointing out how short I am now since he has a whole two inches on me. He's very lovey with me, which is also great. I always worried my boys would stop liking me when they became teenagers, but it seems like they like me more now. Dad used to be the cool one, now it's Mom. 

I love my boys. I love being a mom of all boys. I love watching them play baseball and football. I love that they love 80's music, techno and Flogging Molly. I love that I can impress them with my loud soda belches. I love that they think I'm cool and tough and strong. I love that they missed me profusely when I went to Ireland for a week and California for several days without them. And that they were worried the house might explode without me here or that Dad might not do things right. But I also love my Labor Day weekend every year when my boys all go camping and the house is completely silent and I can watch twelve different chick flicks and eat ice cream for breakfast and sleep until noon. 

I'm definitely one lucky girl to have five amazing guys in my life. And they treat me like the Queen. Bubba even said, "Your Highness" the other night (and not in a mocking way).

Mid-Life Crisis

I think I'm going through a mid-life crisis. Or maybe not, but something I go through every so often. I don't think it's related to my mood disorder either. I kind of wish it were though so I would have a better excuse. It's just that, sometimes I don't feel like me anymore. I was a different person back in college. I know what you're thinking, "weren't we all"? It's not like I was some crazy, out-of-control party girl or anything. I went dancing every weekend at actual dance clubs. Do they even have those anymore? Or just bars with music? I didn't go out drinking or anything like that, just dancing. But it was a huge part of my life. I've always loved music and dancing. I took dance as a little girl and all through high school. Senior year, I discovered there were places you could go listen to amazing music and do just that. I don't know why, but techno music has always spoken to me. In college, I would go dance for like three or four hours straight. Can you really see an almost 39 year old woman at a dance club? You would think, "Oh, how pathetic. She's trying to pretend she's still 21."
The problem-I still feel like I am inside. I've always been independent and had to grow up early due to my parents' divorce. So I don't feel like I had to mature or anything when I got married and started popping out kids. My body has just gotten older. Sure I probably couldn't go three hours without stopping, but I could definitely do it with a few water breaks. I'm not in shape anymore, but I still feel like I could do it.

This used to be me. The punk rock girl who had purple hair for a salon photo shoot once. The girl who practically lived in Dickies and a wife beater. The girl who had a "Mean People Rule" sticker on her car. The girl who danced all night, who didn't care what other people thought of her, who wasn't afraid to be her true self all the time, who wore funky clothes that didn't always match, who was a social butterfly. The girl with the tattoos. I miss that girl. Obviously the tattoos are still there, but the rest of her disappeared. I don't want to totally blame it on being a mom and feeling like I have to be a good example, but that is a part of it. Can you imagine if I showed up for church with an entire head of pink hair? And I definitely can't get any more tattoos. The problem is, tattoos are addictive. I told B yesterday that if I could, I would at least have one on my inner forearm and on my calf. Perhaps even another on my back. Why is it appealing to me you wonder? Everyone gets them because they think it makes them stand out or be different when really they're following the crowd? No, to me, I just plain like them. They're an outward expression of who I am. I could care less if other people thought they were "cool". In all honesty, if my kid wanted a blue mohawk or ended up with a tattoo someday, I wouldn't care. What you look like on the outside doesn't necessarily have anything to do with your spiritual well-being. My appearance wouldn't change that. But I feel like I have to live up to certain standards. I feel like I'm supposed to fit into a mold, be a good example to my kids. The person I am now is afraid of being judged. I prefer to be alone, sometimes have panic attacks. Every so often, I feel like I've disappeared and it makes me sad. And I don't know how to deal with it. So, if the characters in my books have tattoos, just know I'm living vicariously through them. 

It's Been One of Those Days

Do you ever have those days where you just want to disappear? You know, you make up an excuse to go run errands, work on the computer, take a bath with the music cranked loud? Well, it's been one of those. Things were fine this morning. I went to the chiropractor, got a yummy raspberry italian soda, went to the grocery store. JP was on the PS3, the littles were watching their library movies so I could return them today, Bubba was still asleep (at 11:30). He was awake when I got back and, surprise, on the PS3. JP was attempting to diagnose what was wrong with his new RC car he got for Christmas. The littles were in the backyard (in the snow without snow clothes on). I made them finish their other movie and clean out the new hamster cage while I sat down on the computer to do some work for the business. When the movies were done, I was headed to the library, bank and the other grocery store to get what I couldn't find at the first one.

At this point, I was really needing to get out of the house anyway because even though I was in the office, they were bugging me. It was one of those days where I just wanted to have me time. I wanted Christmas break to be over and have them back at school. Bubba insisted on going to the store with me so he could get out of the house. Why is it that they get more clingy when mom is grouchy? 

When we got back, he and the littles decided it would be a good idea to throw each other around the living room and onto the Lovesac. I'm not sure why I thought it would be a good idea to bring that back downstairs from the playroom. All they've done is launch each other off it, flip onto it and use it as an end zone to play living room football. It's supposed to be for extra seating. But do boys ever use anything for its intended purpose? Nope. So why did I expect anything else? Wishful thinking I guess. So of course people are going to get hurt today like every other time. Bubba decided to bury Coco underneath it and suffocate him. "He asked me to!" Seriously dude? You're almost 15, think about it. Not a good idea. Of course Coco comes out screaming his bloody head off because the child does not have an inside voice or normal volume for anything. And when he gets hurt? He rages on everyone and everything. He has some serious anger management issues. But I probably would too if my three older brothers constantly picked on me. He can do serious damage if you let him rage on them. Sometimes I want to just sit and watch the show and laugh. They deserve it after all. But the yelling is getting to me. It's always nice when you have a headache and three kids are all screaming at you that "he did it" or "he asked me to" or "he started it". *Heavy sigh*

I finished eating lunch, did a few more emails and then, to use our family's new term, "rage quit" and went and took a hot bath and blared my music while reading a book. Of course I'm not in there for three minutes when Coco comes screaming at the door that Peanut ate a bite of his food while he was bringing me my phone upstairs because Bubba told him he did. Do I believe Bubba? No. He's trying to get a rise out of Coco and stir s*** up with him and Peanut. Peanut is yelling up the stairs that he did not. "But, mom, a square of it was gone," Coco insists. "That's because YOU ate it!!" Peanut yells back. 

My reply? "Don't believe Bubba. He's trying to get you mad. I trust Peanut. Now let me have a bath!" Why is it that when I try to take a shower or even pee for Pete's sake, all hell breaks loose around here? Fortunately, by the time I got out, Dad was home from work. I came down to work a little more and they started in with the whining again. "I'm off duty and so done with you guys! Complain to Dad," I say as I shut the office door. I ate my feelings with the rest of the coconut creme pie from Christmas and now Dad is hiding out in the office with me while they play football in the living room. He gave up trying to watch his football. "I like to watch football. You know what I don't like to watch? Football in front of my football," he complains. Peanut has now barricaded himself in his room and is reading books because everyone is "being jerks" to him. *Heavy sigh again*Please let this day end soon.

Why Boys?

Why did God make me a mom of all boys? Well I'll tell you.

1. I love MMA. The bloodier the fight, the better. There's something about watching people punch each other that makes me feel better. Watching the chicks fight makes me think I missed my true calling in life.
2. I love shooting stuff. Another thing that makes me feel better.
3. I can belch with the best of them-actually much louder than my children sometimes.
4. I love baseball. And not just because my kids play. I grew up going to Angels games and always loved it. I don't find it boring at all. Watching it on TV-yes, but not being at a game. And I love to keep score. I know what's going on that way and I've got it down pretty good after doing it for like 5 or so years now.
5. I don't like camping. How does this make sense? Well, if He had given me girls, I would never have that one weekend a year when they all go camping for three days. It's a time when I can rejuvenate myself. I eat ice cream two or three times a day and have chick flick marathons and read a lot.
6. I was a tomboy growing up. Almost all of my friends were boys. I only ever had one really close girlfriend at a time, but I was always hanging out with the boys.
7. I love action movies.
8. I love beautiful cars. Someday, when I'm a rich and famous author, I will collect them.
9. Driving a race car is on my bucket list.
10. I'm not a sissy. I'm not trying to brag or anything, but I once helped my husband carry an incredibly heavy washing machine up a flight of stairs-just the two of us. I'm pretty strong for a girl and so far can still pin my 14 year old and beat him in arm wrestling. I'm sure that won't last another year, but still, for the moment, it makes me feel like a boss.
11. I like the feel of mud and I don't mind getting dirty. Mud boggin' is a serious blast.
12. Sometimes I'm a bad mom and encourage my children to hit each other. Well, not exactly, but there are times when one whines about someone hitting them and I say, "Well what do you want me to do about it? Hit him back."


I do still think boys can be disgusting at times. Case in point: tonight, Coco announced during a boxing match with Peanut that he had to go to the bathroom. Peanut asks, "One or two?" Coco announced that it was just one. But Peanut proceeded to talk about poo versus pee and how long it takes. I also do not enjoy when they tell me what it looks like. No thank you. I don't like the eating of boogers either. That's just wrong.

I do love girly things like princesses and the colors pink and purple. I collect purses (that I never end up using), scarves (that's a new one this year), and shoes. But I love having all boys. They are dramatic enough, so if I had girls, I might have to be committed. Boys tend to lose their minds from about 10-12 years old, but Bubba has come out of that and is a fairly easy teenager. And the best part of it all, I get to be the queen of the house and every single one of them treats me like I am. One of them asked once, "Why do you get to eat ice cream?" And one of the other ones said, "Because she's the queen and she can do what she wants." Enough said.