The results are in....

It's a girl! I am honestly just in complete shock. I was really expecting it to be a boy. Don't get me wrong I am very excited, but I have just spent the last 4 years picking out blue clothes and for some reason I just wasn't expecting to see any pink in my immediate future.
Matthew went with us this morning to the ultrasound and he did very well. As soon as the ultrasound tech came out to the waiting room to fetch us Matthew decided he liked her and quickly told her so. He asked her a few questions, always with a polite "Excuse me Dr." to begin his question. He wasn't a big fan of having the lights off or hearing the heart beat which was a bit loud. After the appointment he told everyone who even looked in his general direction about seeing his baby sister jump around in his Mama's tummy. He told Erik later "I am going to tell everyone in the whole wide world about my baby sister".
So I have a video of him doing just that. Erik just got me a new camera for our anniversary and my birthday that takes video so it is all kinda new to me. I am going to try to figure out how to post it. If it doesn't work, all you smart people who know how to do that feel free to comment and instruct me on how to do so, thanks!

What's it gonna be?

Thursday morning we will find out if I will become even more outnumbered and continue to be the lone female in our home or if things will get evened out around here. I am kinda feeling like it's a boy (but what do I know) and Erik and I think it would be fun for Matthew to have a brother. Of course a girl would be fun and different too (and we all know girl clothes are way cuter than boy's). Either way we are VERY excited to find out!
Matthew in the past weeks has been very adamant one way or the other. He was completely convinced at first that it was going to be a girl and refused to believe a baby brother could even be an option. The last few weeks he has alternated between the two, one week he is completely sure it is a brother the next week he is 100% sure it is a sister. This week when asked he says "I think it is going to just be a baby." He certainly can't go wrong with that prediction.

New Dog Walking Venture

Are you tired of walking your dog? Does it just seem like there is not enough time in the day to properly walk your dog? Does your dog wear you out?

Look no further. We can help you with your walking woes. Let Matthew take care of all of your dog walking needs. You will never have to walk your dog again. Matthew has the energy and experience you are looking for.

Here is some photo evidence of his superior dog walking abilities. Matthew has the know how to walk any dog at any speed depending on the dog's individual needs.

Matthew will let your dog run while keeping complete control of the animal.
He will let your dog take a leisurely stroll if that is what your dog wants to do, with time to enjoy the great outdoors.
Matthew can even walk your dog while it naps. Yes, you read that sentence correctly. Your dog no longer needs to lift a paw or even be awake to be walked by Matthew.

**(A note to concerned dog-lovers, don't worry, no dogs were hurt during this photo session)

So call now to schedule your first walk session. First session is free! Your satisfaction is guaranteed. If you are not happy with Matthew's Dog Walking we will probably not refund your money and you can once again walk your dog yourself.

Matthew's Thoughts on Pregnancy

To his grandma: "My Mama has a baby growing in her tummy. I have a puppy growing in my tummy. I can't wait till the puppy comes out so I can play with him."
(I am personally crossing my fingers and hoping that puppy is a Newfoundland because I have always wanted one of those. If my wish comes true though, Matthew is gonna get HUGE.)



About a week after we told Matthew about the baby I wasn't feeling so well. I had already explained to him the day before that sometimes because of the baby I wouldn't feel well. He asked me to play and I told him I needed to rest for just a minute. The sweet child ran to get me my crackers. As he hands me the crackers he says grumpily "What is taking this baby so long?".



I wanted to look up something in my pregnancy book and when I was finished I just put the book down on the end table. Matthew decided he was going to look through it. He came upon a sketch of a pregnant woman. After seeing the picture of a baby actually in the sketched woman's stomach, he looks at me very seriously and says "Um, Mama did you eat a baby?".

Lake Winnepesaukah

Last Saturday Erik's company provided the employees tickets and lunch at Lake Winnepesaukah (yeah that is a crazy name isn't it?). Matthew has been wanting to go there really bad because of course he has seen numerous commercials over the last year for the amusement park. The commercial goes something like this "Happy come on get happy, Lake Winnepesaukah will make you smile". So who wouldn't want to go there, right? Well, the park certainly did make Matthew smile. Unfortunately, the smile guarantee must only be for visitors because the majority of the employees were missing theirs.
So since probably none of you have ever been to this park I will tell you about it. Imagine a park that is a combination of Busch Gardens and Sea World with just a tiny bit of Disney World thrown in as well. Lake Winnie (as the locals refer to it) is nothing like that park that you are imagining, but it does have plenty of rides, funnel cakes, a lake with fish in it, and occasionally they get Spongebob or Dora to visit. More realistically it is like a permanent fair or carnival with 2 roller coasters.
Matthew rode lots of little kid rides, a roller coaster and a scary ride. We all got to ride a train and the paddle boats. They don't let pregnant ladies ride too many things, but I had plenty of fun watching Erik and Matthew.

Here Erik and Matthew are getting on the scary ride. I tried to talk him out of it. I mean he gets scared by some Veggies Tales videos, so I thought this ride would be a disaster. Matthew insisted he wanted to go. So he went plugging his ears the whole way. For some reason he always plugs his ears when he is scared, although clearly closing his eyes would be the better choice. I waited for him to come screaming out of the ride, but he did very well. He came running to me when he got off and said "I was just a yittle bit cared" (or a little bit scared).

This is the big roller coaster. Matthew's first one. You can see him putting him hands up in this picture like he is an old pro.

Matthew's first cotton candy. He later shared with my mom his feelings about this experience, "I had cotton candy. I love cotton candy. I love cotton candy like a brother."

We had a great FREE time and the park lived up to it's commercial claims!

Baby Info

The baby is due February 6th. I think I am about 15 weeks right now. That picture was from my ultrasound at 11 weeks. We don't know yet if it is a boy or girl but we will find out as soon as we can and I will, of course, do a post about that. Since we lived in VA when I had Matthew this is a completely new Dr. and they do things a bit different so I have no idea when the 2nd ultrasound will be although I assume it should be soon.
Erik and I may not know the sex of the baby yet, however Matthew is quite convinced he is having a baby sister and refuses to accept the fact that it could possibly be a boy. I was actually pregnant when I wrote the baby sister post but I didn't know it until a couple of days later, so I didn't lie, I promise.
Thanks for all of the comments on the previous post!

Lots of New Stuff

I have obviously been very neglectful when it comes to the blog. I really don't have a good excuse or I would surely share it with you.

So as the title suggests there has been alot of new stuff going on around here. Not just new stuff, but really good new stuff. Hmmm...maybe lots of new stuff is a good excuse for not blogging-I don't know, think about it and get back to me.

The first new really really great thing is, Erik's job. His job isn't new but basically everything about it is, which is wonderful. Another new thing attached to that is a company car. Getting a new car is great, but getting a new car to drive around that you don't have to pay for is awesome. This means we sold the Lancer, which was the first car Erik and I purchased together. So you might think it was a little bit sad to get rid of it, which it was for a moment, then we got the check which quickly dried my tears.

Erik's new ride

The second bit of news is that my boy is a big boy now! I thought for sure Matthew was going to be sporting Pull-Ups to his senior prom, but it turns out that will not be the case. That news probably deserves it's own post, so maybe I will do one later.

And last, but most definitely not least (in fact it is the most important piece of news).

This is a baby. Our baby! Matthew is going to be a big brother! We are all very excited and feel extremely blessed!

As Seen on TV

Matthew LOVES commercials. Not just the toy and kid kind of commercials, he loves all commercials. He also enjoys memorizing those commercials. In the mornings, he typically watches a show or two on NickJr and that is where he gets his sales material.
Here are a few favorites:

Aqua Globes: "Mama, you need Aqua Globes. You will never need to water your plants again."
The fact that I do not have any indoor plants seems to be irrelevant.

Swivel Sweeper: He says, "I want to play in the backyard."
I say: "The backyard is kinda yucky right now, Daddy and I will have to clean it up first." To explain our backyard is pretty much a ditch and everything from our street (water, leaves, garbage) ends up in our backyard, so we generally play in the front.
He says: "If you had a Swivel Sweeper I would clean it up for you. The Swivel Sweeper can pick up anything."
My Mom happened to purchase this sweeper. When Matthew saw it he hugged it and says "Oh I am so happy to see you Swivel Sweeper."

Green Bags: My little salesman says, "Daddy, stop throwing away your money. Air is not the enemy. With Green Bags you will never again throw away rotten fruits and vegetables."
My Mom happened to purchase these too. (I think Matthew may be selling her on these things) She happened to have bananas in the green bag and a few out. He spots the bananas and says "See the difference in these bananas, Mama. Air is not the enemy."

Band-Aid Brand Bandages: Last weekend Matthew fell in a parking lot and got a cut that was really bleeding so we had to stop at Walgreen's to buy some band aids since we weren't headed home. My Mom ran into the store and bought the first bandages see saw, which happened to be the Walgreen's brand. So, we put the bandage on and later that night Matthew went to bed with it on. The next morning I hear him crying as soon as he wakes up which is pretty odd. I hurry up to his room to see what the problem is. He is sitting on his bed looking at his bandage that got a little roughed up in the night and was no longer covering his cut, but still sticking to his arm and says in a weepy voice "This band aid doesn't stick as well as the leading brand."

His future in sales is looking pretty bright.

Michigan Trip

We went to MI for a week and we, of course, had a great time. We got to spend lots of time with family. We also got to visit Ann Arbor, Erik got to do some golfing, Matthew got to play in the water park Grandma set up in her backyard with his cousins, we ate lots and lots, and I got to visit my best girl Rachel from Spring Arbor (I somehow didn't get a pic of her though, how sad). Matthew also got to go bowling for the first time which he has been begging to do.
Last year I think between Erik's mom and sisters and myself we took about 400+ pictures. This year we kept feeling like we were slacking on the picture taking but still ended up with at least 300. This is hands-down the most photographed week of our year, but we really only get to see each other once a year so we have to make up for that by taking a ton of pictures. (Don't worry I won't share them all)

My New Favorite and Zoo Pics

We went to the zoo about a month ago and for some reason I am posting this now. We have this great little zoo near us. It is pretty small, but cheap and Matthew thinks it is great, so I do too.

This is my new favorite! They are both looking and smiling at the same time! Amazing!

Matthew was a bit cautious about actually touching the animals. Erik took him a few weeks prior on his own and Matthew wouldn't even step into the petting portion, he told Erik it was closed and so they couldn't go in. I think it is possible he maybe remembering a segment from America's Home Videos where there were several clips of crazy things happening to kids at petting zoos.

Matthew wild creature extraordinaire telling us all about animal paw prints.

Baby Sister

According to Matthew he has a baby sister. **Before anyone starts thinking this is my way of saying I am pregnant, it's not, even though we would be absolutely delighted, there is no #2 yet.**

Just a few short months ago, Matthew was completely against siblings. I would say something like "Wouldn't you like to have a baby brother or sister someday to play with?" and he would always say something like "No thank you Mama, I am the only one."or "Please don't talk to me about babies.".

One day Matthew and a friend were playing outside and the friend was talking about his new baby brother. Matthew didn't really appear to be listening but he went immediately to the garage and got his old baby stroller out. He pushed it around the front yard for a half an hour talking about how his baby sister was in the stroller and how he was taking her to the aquarium and how she loved the fish. When it was time to go inside, Matthew asked if he could bring his baby sister inside I said no the stroller needed to stay in the garage. I thought this would probably be the last time he would speak of baby sister.

The next day we are getting in the car headed off to Walmart when Matthew spots the stroller and says "Oh there is my baby sister. Can she come to Walmart?" I say, "No, baby sister needs to stay here. She probably needs a nap anyway." Once we get to Walmart (45 seconds later...such a LONG trip) Matthew is talking to everyone in sight as he always does. For some reason he decides the subject for the day should be his baby sister. So he tells everyone..
"I have a baby sister at home."
The strangers smile and say "Well that is nice."
"Mama says she has to stay out in the garage though, she isn't allowed to come inside. I wish she could come inside. She is taking a nap in the garage right now."
The strangers' smiles fade and they look at me. I quickly explain before anyone can whip out their cell phones and dial up child protective services that his sister is not real.

Weeks later, baby sister is still a major part of our lives. He still pushes her around outside and we have taken her for several walks around the neighborhood. His old room still has the crib in it so that is baby sister's room. He found a teething fish toy and said "I need to put this in the fridge for my baby sister. She will like to chew on it." So for the past week he has put it in and taken it out of the fridge several times a day. Matthew has picked out new bedding for her in the Pottery Barn catalog (he claims she is a big fan of the fish set, sorry baby sister we don't actually ever buy anything from PB, we just like to look) and he has shopped for toys and clothes for her at Target. Baby sister is so lucky to have such a dedicated big brother.

Yikes!

I HATE snakes. Let me explain, I REALLY HATE snakes. I am not scared of snakes because I think they will kill me or anything I just hate them. I think I hate the way they slither the most. I have hated snakes for as long as I can remember, even snakes on tv. I have to put my feet up when I see a snake on tv, and it isn't like sometimes I put my feet up or most of the time I put my feet up, it is EVERY time. Now I am not the kind of girl that is scared of all bugs, spiders and all things creepy and crawly. I feel that my hatred of snakes is completely Biblical. I mean it wasn't a spider that tempted Adam and Eve.
Recently, things have been a little too snakey for me. While walking with Matthew the other day I saw I snake slithering in a neighbor's yard. I was pretty proud of myself because I was very calm and thanked the Lord above that there were no snakes in my yard. I mean snakes can't come in my yard, right? This yard was clear on the other side of the subdivision from mine, my side of the sub is most definitely snake free. In fact, I thought maybe it was the neighbor's snake and they just let it out for a morning slither in their yard.
Then 2 days ago there was a story on the news about a mom who walked in to her baby's room and found a snake wrapped around her baby's leg while the child was sleeping in the crib! They think the snake was in the mattress! Yikes! I actually saw the snake on the news, so for the last few days I have been picturing that horrid thing in my bed slithering to my leg.
I wish that this were the end of the snake stories, but it only gets worse. This morning as Erik is walking out the door he points to the sidewalk and says "Megan, do you see what that is?" just as a gigantic, horrible reptile slithered into our bushes. Yes, it was a snake and it was in my yard!!!!! Ok, ok it wasn't gigantic, but it was definitely horrible and it looked exactly like the snake from the news that has been haunting my thoughts at night. I get freaked out just typing it. A snake in the yard I spend hours in. Erik said it went into the neighbor's yard, which gives me such peace because I am sure there is some invisible snake gate to keep it in the neighbor's yard and allow it never to return to ours. Then Erik reminds me that we really need to weed that section in the front where the snake was. I don't see myself doing that anytime soon. Is there such thing as snake repellent?

Runaway

The Boy was zooming his car around the dining room table.
Mom says to Boy: "Please don't zoom your car on the dining room table. Any other table will be fine, just no cars on this table."
Boy continues zooming as though Mom had never spoken.
Mom says: "Please take your car somewhere else."
Boy walks away with an angry look on his face.
30 seconds later, the Boy returns with arms crossed and says: "I gotta get outta this house."
Mom says: "You've gotta get out of this house? Why?"
Boy says: "Because you told me about my car."
The Boy takes a few steps toward the door.
Mom says: "Where will you go?"
Boy: "I don't know, someplace."
Mom: "Who will take care of you."
Boy: "I don't know."
Mom moves toward the door and unlocks it.
Mom:"Well I don't want you to go, but I guess your mind is made up."
While opening the door for the Boy, Mom says: "Be safe. I love you."
The Boy looking confused, slowly closes the door. His whole face starts to change. With wide eyes, a gigantic smile and nervous laughter in his voice he says: "I was just betending (pretending). I am not willy (really) leaving. I am not angry, you just asked me a question nicely. I was just betending (pretending). "


Whew, that was a close one!

Matthew's Fashion Do's and Don'ts for Summer 2008

DON'T wear anything with a tag.

DO buy tagless or make someone (like your mom) cut out the tags in ALL of your clothes.

If your mom forgets and leaves even one tag on you can remind her with tears and frantic words like "Oh no, it has a tag"or simply "Emergency".

DON'T ever let your feet be naked, wear socks at ALL times.

I really can't stress this one enough. Even if you are not wearing pants or underwear; socks are essential.

DON'T ever wear shorts to bed.

I know it is very tempting to wear shorts to bed, especially when nearly every pj set comes with pants and shorts to match so that you could wear either. I know it is tempting to wear shorts also when it is 105 degrees in your house and you sweat profusely all night, believe me I know. Be strong, fashion is of the up most importance, even while you sleep. Remember the socks too, no one should ever sleep without socks.

DON'T wear sandals (unless your mom threatens you with a time out).

With sandals you can't wear socks which conflicts with rule #3. Also, if you have followed this blog for awhile you will remember mom has a hard time putting those things on the right feet anyway.

The final rule for summer fashion is....

DO realize any attire is appropriate for weight lifting.

Lifting in a t-shirt, underwear, and socks only is ok. Really you can even lift while you are on the potty half naked. So this last rule is really that there are no fashion rules when it comes to exercise.

Sickness, Sunburns and Storms

Last Wednesday afternoon when Matthew woke up from his nap he was burning up and his voice was a bit raspy. He was a little cranky but when I asked him what hurt him he said "nothin". Later though he came to me completely distressed, tears streaming down his face saying "Every time I talk my mouth turns into a grandma mouth and not a Matthew mouth". The next day he had his "grandma mouth" again but no fever. Just to clarify neither one of his grandmas have a raspy voice so I am convinced this idea that grandmas have raspy voices must have come from tv or something. He kept telling me he wanted to go see his Dr. at Target and get some tasty medicine. Of course, our Dr. doesn't work at Target, he was referring to the pharmacist I think in an attempt to cut out the middle man (the Dr.) and just get straight to the medicine that makes him all better. I didn't take him to the Dr. and on Friday he seemed fine. He told me upon waking he was "just a yittle bit sick". I found that to mean he was sick enough to have his sick suckers (these really cool throat soothing suckers made for little kids, I wish I would have invented that) but well enough to resume all other normal activities.

Friday night he woke up a few times and did some crazy screaming and he would not tell me what was wrong.

Saturday we had tickets to JFest, which is this great outdoor all day Christian music event. It was lots of fun. It was however the hottest day we have had yet, which means Erik and Matthew were drenched with sweat by the time the first band reached the chorus of their first song. My dad brought his binoculars which Matthew claimed immediately and barely let go of them for the remainder of the day. Matthew liked the music but did complain to me a couple of times that "the music notes were getting inside of him", but apparently that isn't a completely horrible thing because he did some dancing, played a little air guitar, and especially liked the stuff that was "rocking out" a bit as he would say. Later that evening once we were home Matthew's eye started looking a little different and oozing some yellow goo. Erik and I also noticed we had acquired a bit more sun than we had thought. We realized that one of us may have completely forgotten to put any sunscreen whatsoever on his/her legs and due to the way this person, whose identity will be kept secret, was sitting half of his/her legs were blazing, bright red and the other half white as white can be (in case you were wondering this particular look makes people, even complete strangers, laugh). We were all ready for sleep, but sleep would be hard to come by this particular night. Matthew was up screaming a few times, his eyes were all gunked up and swollen nearly closed, he threw up in his bed and had a bloody nose. Then, of course once he finally was sleeping for a few hours there was a very loud thunderstorm that woke him. By 4:45 AM I was quite ready to just give up on that night and start our Sunday extra early.

By morning, Matthew was looking pretty piratey with his one eye nearly closed and I had read that if the eye is swollen you should seek some medical attention so since our Dr. doesn't happen to be open on Sundays we tried out one of those Minute Clinics in CVS. So Matthew has a sore throat, ear infection and pink eye and we got prescription drugs to put into every hole on his face. The eye drops are miraculous, his eye looked nearly normal by the time he went to bed that night and there was no screaming in the night so I am guessing his ear is feeling better too. I fear his throat may never feel better if better means he can no longer have his sick suckers.

I have taken so long to write this post that I now have some new news as well. Erik is sick. He went to the Dr. I made a second trip to the Target pharmacy this week. He has strep throat. I think I need a sick sucker.

Workout

A few months ago I purchased a gigantic workout ball. I must admit that I was very excited about this purchase. The workout method looked way too fun to be painful. I felt like I had found the perfect way to get in shape. And, of course I saw Dwight on "The Office" using one ("forget everything you know about ab workouts"), so needless to say I was sold. This gigantic ball workout had everything I was looking for; something fun that I would actually look forward to and of course abs of steel.

I have yet to receive my abs of steel. It is for sure my fault though because I have not been so great at actually doing the workout. It was becoming like all my other workout videos, you know the ones where I think about doing it but then I decide I will just go for a walk instead. That I think is the gigantic ball exercise creator people's fault because it was not nearly as fun and painless as I anticipated. I mean my abs hurt the day after! So my new idea was to do the workout with Matthew because he would think it was great fun (also then I wouldn't have to do it during the precious nap, yeah that was my main goal-don't use up the precious nap hour).

So I got Matthew excited about it. He got out this big ball he has, it is not of course meant for working out, but since he is light it works. So we did it. Matthew is actually suprisingly good at following the workout lady's instructions (in fact, I think he did way better than me). I had to take a few pictures of him, which of course turned into him taking 578 pictures of me. I had to delete most of them because they were not flattering as he took most of them from behind me while I was on the ball. It was a blast. So it turns out the gigantic ball workout is fun after all, I guess I just needed the right workout partner.

The only picture of me suitable for public view. Also please notice above that Matthew's socks do not match and know that is all my doing. He complained for about 15 minutes about the socks but I finally convinced him it was ok.

Hallmark's Got Nothin' on This Kid

I never know what Matthew is going to say. He is always coming up with new phrases that always lead me to ask "Where did you get that?". Don't worry it really is never anything bad, just mostly surprising and humorous especially coming out of the mouth of a 3 year old. This week he has been on a roll with the sweet words. I guess someone tipped him off that Mother's Day is coming up.





All of these comments occurred after I helped Matthew in some way:

"Thank you Mama, you are a superhero."

"I can fish now because of you, Mama. I couldn't have done it without you."

"You still got it, Mom."


Last weekend I went to woman's conference at church when I got home on Saturday afternoon he came running to me and said "You're home. I missed you. I was so worried." (yeah I don't leave that much)



Yesterday while I was helping him with his shoes he moved a piece of my hair to the side and said "There you go, now you look just like a princess." (On a side note, I would hate to not share that after he said this princess bit he touched his own hair and said "There now I look like a tackling football player")

Watch out for this face....

Unfortunately we are still fine tuning the potty skills here in the Smith house. Well let me correct that some of us are still perfecting those skills, but 2/3 of us have it down pat. I must admit when people told me that potty training boys can take "awhile", I never imagined "awhile" would be this long!

He really is doing well for the most part, however we do have a poo problem. The poo never makes it to it's desired destination (or should I say my desired destination for it). At first Matthew was oblivious to the fact he had a poo problem, he was not bothered at all by toting around a pound of poo in his pants. He appeared to be completely shocked when I would mention the contents I found in those pants. I could have said, "Oh Matthew I just found a mama dog and 7 newborn puppies in your pants." and I would get the same reaction-complete surprise and shock.

We have now reached a new era in which he is very aware of what he is carrying around and is even bothered by any and all contents. From what I read this is good news (cause knowing is half the battle, right?), we are making some kind of poo progress. So he now hides while doing his duty. He will say something like "Oh I need to go upstairs to find something".

Of course, the silence warns me that something is amiss after he has been upstairs for a few minutes because he talks CONSTANTLY, except when engaging in naughty, time-out worthy activities. Then as I walk up the stairs I hear a door close. I walk into his room to find it empty with his closet door closed and the light on...hmmm I wonder where he could be. As I apporaoch the door I hear him say to himself "She's coming, I will be safe in here". I open the door to find Matthew as pictured above with his hands on his ears, apparently talking to his hands saying "keep plugging, keep plugging....". The first few times I would say "Why are you plugging your ears?" and he would say "I don't want to hear you tell me about my stinky pants." As you have probably guessed this has now happened so many times I no longer ask any questions, I know all too well.

I'm it! I have been tagged.

I have been tagged by my best girl and old (she herself is not old, although it is kinda funny to think about a young person moving into their college dorm to find their roommate is this really old person with false teeth and gray hair, wow that is funny, but it didn't happen to me) roommate, Rachel (http://www.huntforrachel.blogspot.com/) from my college days at SAU. Thanks Rach! She even said some nice things about me on her blog like that I was cool and funny, actually, not just funny, VERY funny (yeah she really did put very in all caps check it out if you don't believe me). What a nice gal she is!




Here are the rules of the game...

1) Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog

2) Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

3) Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.

4) Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.



My incredibly interesting facts:

1. I CANNOT dance. I know there are a alot of people out there that make this claim, but I am really serious. I do not own dancing feet. Walking feet...yes, Tapping feet...yes, Running feet...at times, Happy feet...absolutely, Dancing feet....NOOOOO.

2. I went to 4 different colleges. I switched my major a few times and I have loads of credits, but just 1 degree. My Dad still refers to me as the college gypsy.

3. I am a weeny tiny, if I may steal Matthew's adjectives, bit cheap. I see pennies leaving my pockets when the heat or air kicks on, the refrigerator door is open, or the water is unnecessarily left running. When Erik asks me where I would like to go for a nice meal out I suggest Taco Bell (free Mountain Dew refills, baby).


4. I may have been the only teenager ever to not want to get my driver's license. I was perfectly fine with the idea of my mother driving me around everywhere, FOREVER. My parents MADE me get my license. During driver's training I would be so nervous my skin would get all red and blotchy and I would ask my instructor if my driving time slot could be at a quarter to never. What a weirdo!


5. Every night before I go to sleep I must check (at least once, sometimes twice) to make sure the oven and stove top are turned off regardless of whether they had even been used that day.

6. I absolutely love consignment shops and yard sales.

7. I have been informed that I am a moment killer, especially during movies. If there is a tense, sad, or sentimental moment I must kill the mood by cracking some sort of joke. I guess I should just stick to watching comedies.

I'm tagging...
My BFF Kate, the queen http://www.heartsonthehomefront.blogspot.com/

Multiple Personalities

These days Matthew is rarely Matthew. He spends most of his day pretending to be other people (or animals): Diego, Charlie, a lost puppy, Daddy, or a wild creature guy to name a few. That is great, right? I mean it shows he has a wonderful imagination. It is really great except lately I have been given the supporting actress role in every scenario. Which really in and of itself is not a huge deal if the scripts didn't come every five minutes and the director was not such a perfectionist.
His favorite at the moment is being Charlie and I play his little sister Lola. This is from the books and show appropriately named Charlie and Lola. I really do love Charlie and Lola, the show is hillarious and I have been known to watch it without Matthew. The problem is that this requires a British accent. If my accent slips a bit Matthew gives me a gentle reminder, "Um Mama, I am Charlie and you are Lola, but you are sounding like Mama. We will not be able to be Charlie and Lola if you don't talk like Lola."
When Matthew is Diego I am his older sister Alicia. When he is his Daddy I am Bob, Erik's boss. The lost puppy or kitty scenario is really best for me because it is completely unscripited. And sometimes I get to be an animal myself which requires no words at all. I am very well rounded. I must admit though, the acting can be quite draining and I have at times turned down a role or two (an hour).
It is really a win-win situation though. Matthew is entertained now and later when the time comes for me to return to the work force and if for some reason teaching doesn't work out for me, I always have my acting to fall back on.

Dot Com

Matthew has been very interested in the internet for the last few months. His Papine (my dad) shows him speed boats, airplanes, bugs, cars, and big trucks on the internet. Recenlty, he learned that you can find information there. While we were reading "Finding Nemo" he became interested in anglerfish and was asking me questions about them (which I of course know nothing about it, except they are pretty ugly according to the Nemo movie and book). So I said "Sorry honey I don't know anything about anglerfish, but we can look on the internet tomorrow and find out more about them."
As soon as he woke up the next morning he says "Let's check on the innanet for anglerfish. Go to anglerfish.com."
That is how it all started, now he wants to seek the information highway for all of his many questions.
Outside he says, "Mama, what is this bug's name."
I say "Hmmm, I am not sure."
He says, "Oh we better check on the innanet on bugs.com"

At my parent's house while washing his hands he smells the soap and asks "What kind of soap is this, Mama."
I say, " I don't know."
He say, "I think we should check on the innanet. Can you go to soap.com?"

Our neighbors have a pool which he can see from his room. They currently have an inflatable alligator by the pool. Matthew is very intrigued by the alligator.
He says "What is that alligator doing over there?"
He didn't even give me a chance to respond. Maybe he has realized I don't always have the answers.
"Come on, let's go check on the innanet. Just click on alligator.com"



Thank you, wise "innanet" for having all the answers....so I don't have to.

My Very Own Boy Band

Everybody has to Answer to Somebody

Matthew was hugging Erik yesterday morning before he left for work..
Erik: "Bye, buddy. Be good for Mama today, ok?"
Matthew: "Ok, bye Daddy. Be good for Bob your boss."

New Camera Man: A Picture Essay of His Favorite Things

Matthew has a new passion for photography. I thought it would be selfish of me not to share some of his recent photos. His favorite time to pursue this endeavor is during my shower when he is supposed to be staying out of trouble and watching tv. One day last week I came out to find him with the camera and 40 new pictures taken! Here are just a few....

Here is a picture of rocket.
This is me walking into the room, no doubt saying something like "What are you doing?". I later found another one of me and let's just say I deleted very quickly and will from this moment on check my pics very carefully before showing them to anyone!

What we have here is the cat's back and tail. I have several of this cat from this angle and others that are not as flattering.

The rocking chair on the front porch

This is Diego, of course, and what looks to me like the top half of a tapir.

Yet, another picture of Diego on tv. I have about 20 of these. If you have not seen this particular Diego just let me know, I pretty much have a frame by frame of it on my camera.