It's Through! Let's Celebrate!!

June 11, 2013

Ashlyn has been teething for about four months but nothing has come through. Every time she got snotty and cranky we saw big changes in the size of swelling in her gums but nothing ever came out. My worst night was last week when I had finally quit nursing her but my body hasn't fully received the signal. Four days after her last feeding with me she was up and angry from 3:00-5:00 am. She just kept kicking me in the face and chest no matter what I did and it was so painful I was really frustrated. It's been a long haul but today we finally saw her third tooth emerge just after she passed her 15 month mark. That's some slow teething! Now we have the two bottom from months ago and her top left with the top right estimated to be not far behind.

She's not keen on photos of it though.

She much prefers to snuggle with mom and keep the paparazzi away from her mouth. 

My Mixer is Better than Yours

Cracking up over this email from my little brother today. He so totally thinks outside the box.

Bad Morning

We ended the day yesterday discussing at dinner Bens major attitude problem. I came at it kind and open. We discussed that there were a million tiny rude incidence throughout the day that are putting me to my boiling point and that I am not being very kind to him these last few days because he's being such a twit. I told him that I was trying to do better and be kind in specific situations and asked if he was. No surprise he was not. 

I let him pick a daily situation where we have trouble. Bedtime. He states that the trouble at bedtime is that I tell him to get his pajamas on and brush his teeth too many times every night. Instead of screaming in his face like I wanted to for being so blind to the problem, we discussed it. I asked him how many times I tell him to do said chores. We agree it is typically between three and five times a night, three being an unusual occurrence and more than five not so rare. I posed the crazy question of "if you obeyed the first time how many more times would I ask the same question?" He grumbled the obvious answer with disgust. Exactly how I feel. Disgusted.

With the conversation fresh in his mind, and his own time estimate of seven minutes on a timer in the kitchen he was ready in six minutes and fifteen seconds. And he nearly went to bed on the first request though he still lingered and tried to negotiate or find something to get me talking with him to distract me and let him stay up longer. 

This morning before my feet even hit the ground floor I got a report from Madison while I was showering that Ben said he hates her and Jacob says Ben pushed him on the ground. He is currently back in his bed reading for 30 minutes any violin that is NOT Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

I have no idea what to so with him once he finishes his thirty minutes away from me. This summer is a disaster for him. Last summer was too. If I recall correctly he was horrid for a month, we went to USA for 3 weeks where he was rotten but entertained enough not to cause too many problems dispite his atrocious attitude problem over every single thing he didn't want to do. Then we came back home and he was pleasant for a week before the last three weeks he was a beast again. This kid does so much better when he has school to fill his days with positive experiences that keep him happily busy and productively learning. 

I think for homeschool craft time today we may make a first day of school count down chain. I feel like I need it this morning. I'm just feeling depressed. I want to have fun and love on him but he doesn't allow any positive time between all the bad. 

Summer Bonus

Went to the orthodontist today and without homework pressures we had alunch  date afterward at Ben's favorite spot in all of Singapore. 

Bad Day For Pants

I believe in the old pioneer adage (most of the time). Today we took the kids to the school for a Girl Scout service project. It was called Second Chance School Supplies. The teachers clean out their rooms this week and dump all the things they aren't going to use anymore into huge boxes and we sort and give it all away to multiple organizations like Food from the Heart, Caring for Cambodia and the YMCA. It was a good day of hard work and breaks on the playground with a pizza lunch. 

Of course with all things like this though, some of the stuff gets thrown in the trash. Some things I was okay with, but mostly I want to repurpose way too much. I seriously thought about not going at all because it might make me nuts to toss things. I did okay though as I only snagged a couple things out of the trash. There was so much more screaming at me to take it home.

I hate throwing anything out and my house screams of this little problem I've got. My clothes closet in particular. Today we loaded the kids into the car and as I slid into my seat I heard it...RRRRRRIIIIIIPPPP! I think I got those pants either in high school or first year of college. I wear them a lot. When the knees wore through I could no longer wear them to work at the law firm so I patched the hole and just wore them to school. Finally the hole wore through again and they became cut off jeans. Then I figured they were nice enough looking to hem the edge and so I made them "nice" again.

So I continued to wear them...until today. I went back upstairs and changed into a pair of Capris that I've had since, well, more than 10 years. At scripture time tonight I climbed onto the bed in the pile of freshly bathed bodies of little people and looked down to see that the side seam of these pants too have a hole. Sigh. These capris have been through all 4 pregnancies through the weight coming up and going down. They were the goal weight pants. When I could squeeze into them I knew I was close even if buttoning the waist hurt my tender, c-section sensitive muffin top belly. It was my personal victory to wear these capris again. I'm not giving up on them yet but they have only one or two more wears left in them.

Early Bird Ben

Ben has been a beast all school year to wake up. "I'm too tired." Cranky boy. Now the first day of summer he's wide awake at 5:45 peeping over the rail of the top bunk with no plans for sleeping in. "Hi Dad!" he whispers loudly when Brian walks by.

Summer Sleep In?

Ben has been a beast all school year to wake up. "I'm too tired." Cranky boy. Now the first day of summer he's wide awake at 5:45 peeping over the rail of the top bunk with no plans for sleeping in. "Hi Dad!" he whispers loudly when Brian walks by.