a real tear jerker

Today I spent entirely too much time at the mall. I was on the hunt for wedding clothes for my sister's big day. It is all very exciting and I'm so happy for her. She is such a great girl, totally Hilarious, charming, and completely brilliant. Her hubby to be is very cool , great with my kids, and most importantly able to tolerate my sister, which says a lot. The Feely ladies are tough women to put up with but well worth it! We have horrendous tempers and the tendency to be just plain mean. Aaron could tell you stories; lots of them.


Brian, my future brother in law, is a Mormon. Well He isn't mormon anymore but his 6siblings and parents are. I am sure they are praying their little mormon hearts out over the upcoming neptuilas of There heathen son and wife to be. I like to Ask Michelle all sorts of intrusive questions, like if she will be forced to wear garmies (those oh so Flattering Mormon underwear things that go down to the ankle and are to be worn at all times. I think they have like locks). Also, I like to aske whether or not she will be going door to door with the book or Mormon sporting her garmies and unflattering shoes.

No matter how funny I think I am being Michelle is usually not very amused. She reminds me that Brian is no longer Mormon, and how would I like to be clumped together with the Catholics due to family association. Point made, but that doesn't mean I am taking out the part about her weatring garmies in my maid of honor toast.


The boys were not excited about being at the mall today especially when it turned out to be such a beautiful day! There was lots of grumbling and belly aching about why we had to go shopping and blah, blah, grumble, grumble. However, I managed to get almost everything that was requested by my big sis.

First up were the boys outfits: green linen pants (far cuter then they sound) and white polo shirts, which had to be Ralph Lauren. Michelle has a Ralph Lauren obsession. I also picked up the cute pink and white seersucker flower girl dress (also, ralph lauren of course!).

I wasn't able to get my bridesmaid dress. There was no way I was going to able to squeeze myself into the size 2 dress and the only other size was a zero. I need to do sit ups or stop eating Girl Scout cookies, one or the other, or both.

I bribed the boys into cooperating during the tiresome shopping excursion with Burger king. Andrew refused to get a kids meal

"Mom I'm 8!" he scowled.

I was shocked, seriously shocked. It was one of those mom moments where you realize that your kid is officially a big kid. If it had been a movie there would be a really cheesey song playing in the background. I started to get a little teary right there in the middle of grease infested Burger king. It wasn't exactly the mother-son moment I imagined being a real tear jerker. All the same it was a moment. I will always remember when Andrew gave up kids meals. Only in America would the kid's meal moment be right up there with losing the first tooth. It's slightly disgusting. This is where I am going to add the part about how we rarely eat fast food, which is true. Believe it despite my tears in burger king.



The dress Amelia will be sporting as flower girl:

My dress:

My sister has good taste!

My big kid

Yesterday Andrew turned 8. I write a letter to my kids every year on there birthdays that I keep tucked away in their memory boxes to present them with after the birth of their first child. This is what I wrote to Andrew this year




Dear Andrew,

Your Dad and I have been talking a lot about how we can't believe you are 8 years old. It feels like it has blown by so quickly yet I cannot imagine my life with out you. Just last week I was telling my friend Stasia how old you were going to be and she asked if I remembered that first pregnancy test I took when I found out you were going to be a part of my life




I forced Stasia to buy the test. We walked up to the Walgreens on Lagrange road. I picked out the one with the pink box because I thought it looked pretty. Those were the kind of thoughts I based my decisions on back then. I couldn't bring myself to take the box up to the counter. I kept twisting it around and around in my hands. I didn't want the cashier to look at me with judging eyes. She was an older lady with curly hair. I imagined that she was one of those ladies that slept in hair curlers and didn't leave the house without lipstick. Brave little Stasia with her skinny arms and baby face looking barely over the age of 14 brought the test up to the counter and paid for it. You could tell by the way the cashier shoved the pink box in the plastic bag and handed Stasia back the change that she was judging her. My elementary school librarian was in line behind us and asked me to say hello to my mother for her. It seemed so absurd. When we got outside both of us were laughing hard about the cashier and the librarian. Neither of us knew what kind of emotion to have so laughter seemed appropriate. At that moment I hadn't realized how intensely and beautifully my whole life was about to change.




I wish I could give the me at age nineteen sitting on Stasia bed with that positive pregnancy test a glimpse and the eight year old you. I wish she could see your little brown curls and those dirty blue converse shoes you insist on wearing nearly everyday. I wish I would've known at that moment, 8 years and 7 ½ months ago, that everything was going to be okay. Back then I wasn't sure how I would manage or even if I was capable of raising the you that you have become. You have become this wonderfully giving and sensitive person. I am constantly amazed by you and your insights. The quality I cherish most of all in you is that you will come to me candidly and tell me when you have done something wrong. This is something that at 28 I am still struggling with so to see you at age 8 able to recognize when you have made a major mistake and ask for forgiveness is huge. It makes me feel like maybe I have a few things to learn from you. You have been such a remarkable blessing in my life. I am very proud to call you my son.


Love,

Mom
">

There is nothing exciting about being 28

Today is my birthday. I feel old. This year is my ten year high school reunion. I think that makes me elderly. Aaron and I celebrated the awful age of 28 on Friday with a date night. We went to the Gregory page show at Lestats. Before the show we got the privilege of sitting near some pierced up teenagers who talked very loudly about blow jobs and acid. I don't think I have ever heard the term Gonorrhea used casually in a conversation. They said it like 20 times. They were talking about a friend who had gonorrhea of the eye, Is that even possible? I kept rolling my eyes every time they said fuck and whispered to Aaron that they needed to broaden their vocabularies. I have become that person; the old person who is nervous around teenagers and wishes they would just get their act together and stop sulking. I am my mother.



The Gregory page show was amazing and perfect, definitely the best way to celebrate my birthday. During the last two songs my right eye would not stop watering and turned red and itchy. Aaron leaned over and whispered "I think those teenagers gave you gonorrhea of the eye!"



Because I am a fan of lists this is what I hope to accomplish at the ripe age of 28

Forgive more easily
Learn how to sincerely apologize
Hold myself more accountable
Go back to school
lose some stomach weight
Become a better wife, mother, daughter, and friend
finish all the miscellaneous books that I am half way finished with
Follow through on everything I start
Make more of an effort to stay in contact with my brother
Return calls and e-mails

Jacob!

Jacob!
So today is Jake's sixth birthday. I can't believe how quickly he has grown! Last night when I was tucking him into bed I told him "this is last time you will go to bed as a five year old!" To him this was an exciting concept. I am finally starting to understand all those old ladies that have stopped me in the grocery store over the years to tell me "enjoy them while they are young, because they grow up so fast!" They really do!

Things I love about Jake:
He likes to cuddle
He always has a plan, he is always saying "mom I have an idea!"
He makes me laugh all the time
He likes to help me cook (he's big on measuring, cracking eggs, and stirring)
He sings loudly and out of tune in the car and even does the air guitar
He loves books


Some of my favorite Jake pictures:
src="http://img19.imageshack.us/img19/1023/jakehasblueeyesok6.jpg"/>

Acorn wars

Last Saturday we drove up to Palomar mountain. The plan had been to go up to Julian for a day of apple picking. Luckily when I looked online for directions the website declared in large writing "Apple picking is over for the season!".

It was nice to learn that before we drove all the way out there. It's normally my style to get the kids all fired up about going somewhere, get them in the car, drive to the destination only to discover that it's out of business or closed for the holidays. My children are well aware of the that oh so fabulous feeling of pure and utter disappointment. I figure it's a good life lesson that will come in handy during those pesky teen years, a time ripe with disappointment! Instead of the apples we opted for a refreshing mountain hike.

The highlight of my day was the road side fruit stand that sold 2lbs of persimmons for a measly $1. I love persimmons. The highlight of the boys day was the spirited acorn war the whole family got into before piling back into the car for our long drive back home. Acorns are fairly painful when in the hands of determined 5 and 7 year old boys. We spent a good 30 minutes chucking acorns at each others heads much to the shock and dismay of a perfectly normal looking woman out for a hike with her dog. I bet she does weird stuff when no one is looking.


Here are some photos:

Jake being serious

Amelia is kind of dressed like David Bowie

This is the face Amelia makes when she laughs! I love it!

This is about the moment Andrew realized that Acorns should be thrown, as you can see Jake is mulling the idea over.

they are plotting....

jake made this face a ton during the acorn war. That's his signature war face. Andrew's war face is a lot more cool and collected

They crashed on the way home!

Mullet Free

After viewing some photos I took at the park yesterday I decided that Amelia's mullet had to go!

This is her yesterday:

This is Amelia during the hair cutting process:

The look on the hairdressers face is priceless. That's the look of someone who spends why too much time with cranky toddlers.

This is Amelia afterward:

She wasn't too excited when they put those bows in her hair. I think she looks like the fair haired version of Anais and Maelle. Of course Aaron had to make a comment about her looking like the guy in dumb and dumber so now I am partially regretting chopping the mullet.

And the award for worst human being ever goes to

I forgot my mother in-laws birthday. This is the 2nd year in a row. I am officially the worst daughter in-law ever!

I realized that I had forgotten yesterday while in the produce section of the grocery store. At the moment I realized that I was two days past due on a phone call/card/gift I said "shit!" rather loudly to the disdain of a woman and her toddler near by. I didn't take her glare too seriously because about two seconds earlier her son was running around screaming "I hate you, I hate you!", talk about awkward!

Amelia, who has become a parrot, said shit too. Not only am I a birthday forgetter but I also teach small children how to curse. It was a proud moment for me. As I tend to do, I am blaming this on my own mother who had no idea about Amelia's birthday until a few weeks afterward when I sent her the birthday photos. I am lucky if I get a card within the same month of my birthday from my parents. That's how things roll in my family. Our birthdays are always acknowledged just not quickly. I plan to make this up to my mother in law with a really cool present, one that has yet to be bought.

I called my mother in-law as soon as I got home from the grocery store. I bribed the kids with Halloween candy to belt out "happy Birthday to you." Of course after Jake was done singing he said "can I have my candy now Mom?" My mother in-law was still on the phone. Let this be a lesson that bribery always erupts in your face!

I am hoping that Aaron's brothers marry someone a bit more organized then me. Donna has always wanted a daughter and I am clearly not cut out for the gig. I am messy, absent minded, and am constantly sticking my foot in my mouth. She is soft spoken, put together, and carries a first aid kit among other things in her purse. She is the kind of woman who is prepared for anything. I am lucky if I remember to pack diapers in my purse. I am definitely not the ideal daughter in law. All I can do is try better next year.



Further proof of how miserable I am at being an ideal daughter in law, I let my children get filthy and take incriminating photo's of them. Also, Amelia has a mullet.

.