my friend sarah...

is having lots of fun at her new space.

she and i went to the same college in east tennessee and we've now re-connected on facebook! imagine THAT. anyway, her thoughts are well worth reading and she does cool things like housewarming parties! SO, go check her out.

i want to write more...HOWEVER, i have to take the taxi to pick up Aidan from basketball and deliver him to soccer. i really thought by now he would hone in on ONE sport.

peace and love

camping and the aftermath

i love to camp. we go about once a month. friends usually join us. i took TWO naps! that never happens at home. the only problem with camping is coming home. i spend at least one day recovering. doing laundry. showering. my kids watch ungodly amounts of television because i'm doing laundry, showering AND cleaning house. i come home from camping feeling so simple. we don't take much. a few clothes. some food. my older kids pack their own stuff now and cora my 9 year old just had a backpack packed with stuffed animals, drawing things and a few clothing items. i asked her if she felt that she was prepared. you know "enough undies?" she said if she ran out she'd just wear her bathing suit! which of course happened on the second day.....so she lived in her bathing suit for two more! she could've cared less. i wish i had that simplistic nature. i did wear the same shirt, but wear my bathing suit for underwear? no can do. my 5 year old isabel feels the need to change every time she gets wet or muddy. which is quite a bit on a camping trip. therefore, she takes 6 or 7 pairs of undies for a 4 day trip. even then i have to fake her out by picking up the worn ones and sticking them back in the drawer. with every clothing change she must put on new everything! anyway, when i come home, i want to power clean my entire house. get rid of most of the clothes, toys and whatnots. when you camp or go on vacation, you realize what really matters and how much you can really get by on! and if i were forced to wear my bathing suit on an entire camping trip, i'm sure i'd survive.

here's my boy......

the baby

i never thought i'd call the last one "the baby". but it is SO hard not to!! this is the last picture of me and the kids before "the baby"was born. literally. he was born that night. we were on our way to consume indian food and david had to take some pictures! after returning home, david went out with some friends and i stayed up. i realized at about midnight that i probably should call david, my friends and the midwife! everyone arrived, candles were lit and my best memory is sitting on the birthing ball surrounded by my husband, my midwife, two doulas and my two good friends. the place i went was surreal and so spiritual there are no words. i wish every woman who experiences birth could allow themselves to experience it this way. the pain is practically unbearable but the love and strength that can surround you is amazing. all i remember of transition is the chanting of the women there and my feet being rubbed! our kids all joined us when the time was nearing. their faces at the end of the bed as i pushed out their sibling is unforgettable. the best part is that they all covered their ears! (i'm really LOUD) anyway, my "baby" is 3 now and i'm not pregnant again! we just packed up the crib and put him in a big bed. he had his first haircut. i no longer have to rock him to sleep. he doesn't WANT to be rocked!!! somebody needs to rock me. I'M the one in need of comfort. do i want another one? no, not really. if i were to have one, i'd be okay with it. but i'm not planning. i think you get to the point of being done. ready to move on. but it doesn't stop the achy feeling in your heart. and now i know why almost everyone i know calls the last one "the baby".



disclaimer: i'm terrible at putting pictures on here!! someone help me!

asshole hippies

this is what was written in crayon on our brand new fence that we had to erect to keep our crazy dog from running the neighborhood (someone called the cops ya know). SO, we put up the fence and it gets vandalized? asshole hippies? yeah, let me call my friend jon....he's got the pot. i kinda want to laugh about it, but then i think.....a kid probably did it and they probably heard that from a parent. it really makes me feel kind of sick. it also makes me want to throw a HUGE block party. feed everyone, shut the street down, rent a bit jumpy thing and force everyone to like us! i think it also makes me feel sad for my kids. then when i think of that i want to find the little twerp who wrote on my fence and yell really mean things. i just want to ask them....how big is your world? do you ever get out of your box? look around you. does everyone look just like you? act like you? wake up. the world is HUGE. you know nothing about me. you've looked at me and decided who you think i am.

so this incident led me to think about people throughout history who have suffered bigger injustices than this small event. how years and years of being treated like a lesser being because of race, gender, religion or class could force a people down. how my hope is that this can change. can it? are we destined to repeat the past? a couple of years ago when we were studying history (we start from the ancients and proceed from there to american history), my son avery (then 9) asked, "when are the protestants and catholics going to STOP FIGHTING?". hmmm...well, let me get back to you on that one. in going through history again with my kids i've realized how much fighting there was/is! one battle after another. one people trying to free themselves from another. one county trying to gain another. it truly never ends. and i don't think it ever will end. as much as i want peace, i really don't think it's possible. the only thing i can do is to try REALLY HARD to live in peace with my neighbor. it is NOT an easy task. i know it's the right thing to do, but i really don't want to do it. i want everyone i know and love to live on my cul-de-sac. i don't want to have to get along with people who i really share nothing in common. (except for dee...my 70 year old friend across the street...she ROCKS!) i want it to be easy. life is never easy. there will always be the underdog. the person underfoot. i just don't want it to be me....

lars and the real girl

just watched it. cried my eyes out. go rent it. now.