In a Galaxy Far Far Away.....

17 years ago. 17 YEARS AGO. I met a group of girls throught nothing else but divine intervention. And even now when I see them no it is like no time is past at all. Through kids, marriages and some really bad years when we are together it is like we are right back there when our biggest worry was how many more skips we could have in Faith in Learning before we failed or who our date would be for R.N.O. Its makes me so happy to see my kids grow to love my girls. The older I get I realize how blessed I am to have friends like that. Friends who will come for Halloween and not only dress up with the boys but bring costumes for everyone else too. Seventeen years ago I had no idea those girls I met in Into to Sociology would seventeen years later be hanging out playing dress up and be such a huge part of my life still. Thanks for the memories... and in the words of Logan .. See you next year.

Tag your it......

Yesterday Rob and I were walking and he was talking about recess. He said he has a problem and really doesn't understand. I said what is it. He said at recess we like to play boys chase girls,(they take after there Dad what can I say) anyway...he said they learned they cant actually tag each other. I said why he said because you cant touch at school and then he said. I don't know why do you. He said how do you play tag without touching? Hmmm. I had no answer. Its a great question. He went on and on but in my mind I was thinking have we really turned into a society where we cant tag? I know the science behind it but tag?
Later we were eating dinner and our doorbell rang. The doorbells rings alot the boys have lots of friends (this quality they get from me) Anyway Rob told his friend they couldn't play and his friend asked why? Rob said I am spending time with my family. His friends response was again Why? This led to a discussion about our family and how we may be different than others. Logan said its because normal families don't eat together or spend as much time together.Its funny how we are not the normal family because we eat together and spend time together. Maybe if a few families could go back to those ways we could go back to letting kids tag each other.

A place in time.

So I turned 35 Saturday and I got a call from a friend on Saturday telling me she was getting divorced. And after I talked to her and offered whatever advice I had I hung up and thought is this the age it happens? Is 35 the age where those of us who got married split up and go for round two? I know it was only a coincidence. I am not a fan of divorce watching my parents go through it and seeing how it ruined my family makes me hate it even more. But standing and watching friends go through it brings it to a whole new level. I also understand why and how it happens. It used to be such a big thing is it now? It certainly is more common. I have a friend who is also around 35 who is dating never been married but we have discussed opening the dating pool to women who are on there second marriages since we are older now. So I guess this is how life progresses. I am old 35. Thirty five.

If only we all had a friend like Little Ernie

Rob has a friend names Little Ernie. I gave Ernie to Rob on his third birthday. He now has little Ernie two we lost little Ernie one when we took him to the playground he wanted to go down the slide and never came home. Little Ernie has no eyes, and his hair has been rubbed off. He also has several holes in his nose that Phil ( God bless Phil) sews up. Its fun to see at seven my little guy who calls his friends on the phone, eats dinner at a friends house at least one night a week, and downloads music on his IPOD still has little Ernie. It is fun to see a glimpse of the little boy who once lived here. It amazing how fast the past four years have gone. The following are pictures of Ernies surprise party we had for him on his birthday...

Boys will be boys will be boys....

I remember maybe last year of the year before ok I dont remember that well but I do remember saying I am not sure when people let there kids play outside without someone being with them and now my boys play in the backyard alone. Well alone is a little bit of a stretch every day there are kids riding there bikes over, scootering to our house pulling up and running to the backyard. It is funny I dont remember ever having friends on the same street growing up but the boys have quite the gang.. I hear them lets play like your the dragon, or Im the powerranger or lets play like I am the dad or lets play school (yes they still find it fun to play school)or my favorite lets play like we are working at Dicks sporting goods. And the hours go by and they play. Every once in awhile the run in to get drinks and to see if they can get an ice cream from the ice cream mans truck that stalks our house; that will be a topic of another post. I dare open the door to see what is going on and I hear.. What are you doing back here? As if the backyard belongs to them and there gang. It makes me laugh. I tried to sign them up for summer camp this week I was telling Logan how great it was gona be with the water slides and the inflatables etc, and he said well you know I dont know if we can go we might miss the backyard. There you go.

How will your kids remember you?

Sitting at soccer with the boys today they said we need coaches all you have to do is 1. Love God 2. Love Kids do you know anyone like that? Rob and Logan both put there hands up and said "Our Mom loves God and Loves Kids". NO I am not coaching soccer. But I am glad my kids know that I do love God and love kids. The last few weeks I have been thinking a lot about how my kids will see me apart from them. Phil bought me a plane ticket to go see the girls in Kentucky. Logan did not want me to go but Phil told him we have to share our Mom. Those girls love her too. It is funny the minute you become a Mom they have no memory of who you were before. I love that I am able to be apart from them but I am even more glad that I get to be defined as there Mom who loves God and Kids.

The stuff love stories are made of.....

From the outside eye my marriage is anything but typical. In fact if you have spent anytime with Phil and I you know that we have very nontraditional roles. Phil and I can be kinda low maintenance. Phil hates Valentines Day he thinks the card company made it up to make guys buy presents. I wanted to go out for Valentines Day. I got a babysitter and I wanted to do something. So Phil being a great husband made a plan. But if you have spent anytime with us you know out plans do not always come through. Last night around 1:30 he woke me up and said Logan is sick. What he should of said was Logan has managed to leave a trail from his bed, down the hall to the bathroom....gross. So I got up again if you know me you know I hate mornings and being woken up. I started to clean up the floor. I realized we had no carpet cleaner. I looked in the bathroom and Phil had Logan in the bathtub and I decided I would go back to sleep. Honestly why should two people be awake???? Eight hours later I woke up Phil was on the couch sleeping with Logan, all the sickness was cleaned up like nothing had even happened.( which means at some point in the middle of the night he had went to Walgreen's to get floor cleaner) I realized that was the best present in fact If I wrote sappy love stories this would be a best seller. There are times in life when someone beside you to take care of the kids and gross floor so you can sleep is the definition of true love. I am not sure it gets any better than this. I can not imagine any one I would rather do this thing called life with...

Baby just look at us all this time and we're still in love
Something like this just don't exist
Between a backwoods boy and a fairy tale princess
People said it would never work out
Living our dreams has shattered all doubts
It feels good to prove 'em wrong
Living our love song

Out of the mouth of babes...

Today I overheard Logan say this. " I have a great life." and that my friends about sums it up.

A MI that looks like me.....

I love the NIKE plus running system sometimes it seems I work for NIKE or get some kind of paid endorsement I talk about it so much. It motivates me. I am in a running group of people I never have met who do 100 miles a month and it keeps me going every month to keep up with these people. I never want to come in last. While uploading a few days ago I found where you could make a MI that looks like you. So.. here is mine.

whatever works. This is what works for me.

Home

Its comforting yet unsettling to me that the most at home I have felt in years came this past week at a IMO's. My dad took my sister and brother and our families out to dinner and just for a minute I looked up and thought wow this is it. It felt familiar and comforting and like Home. One of the things I have missed the most about my parents divorcing is not being to get that feeling back. But there at Imo's eating pizza listening to all my familes voices around me I was home. Just like that and then it was gone.