June 22: Beer and a bagel

June 22, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Looking at the date I just realized that my grandmother would have turned 92 on this day if she were still alive. Sorry mom for not calling. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.

Friday and my day off –

Highlights of the Morning:

  • I woke up to Red and Twin Crazy and then also Twin Husky jumping in my bed. They wanted to play with the guinea pig so I got her and we were all in my bed. Then Big Bro came in too and I had all kids plus a guinea pig in my bed. That’s the most action its gotten in quite some time.
  • We watered house-plants since it was too cold to go outside and water plants. Big Bro likes having that “job”.
  • The kids then continued with guinea pig time and I actually had to use the timer function on my phone to have equal rotations. That worked well to avoid conflict.
  • We all got dressed and headed out to drop off Big Bro and Red. Once we got there Big Bro realized he had a splinter in his foot so we were all in the lobby as I was working on his foot. It was a hard one to pull out because it broke and there was just a tiny, tiny piece to grab onto. Eventually I got it. Whew.
  • The ride home was uneventful. Not much traffic. We talked about trucks. I also had a conference call for work that I took with my earbuds in.
  • I did some laundry and Twin Crazy and Twin Husky were enthralled with the new machine that you can see through.
  • They wanted to visit the chickens
  • Afterwards I made some lunch and they took naps – I did some work and then also weeded. I attacked the green dandelions that are beginning to flower….

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    The Rest of the Day:

  • After they woke up we all gathered our things and headed to the car. On the way out I stopped to get my mail and the VENUS FLYTRAP that I ordered from Amazon arrived. COOL! I was excited to show Big Bro and Red.
  • Not much traffic, whew.
  • They thought the plant was cool. Big Bro knew exactly what it was as I was opening it. He guessed it. I said it was something that we were just talking about the other day and he guessed it in one shot – VENUS FLYTRAPPER. How cute.
  • I dropped them off at co-parent’s and he started a fight with me in front of them.
  • The ride home was fine; maybe I’m just getting used to it.
  • I attacked some weeds in the backyard. I have a part of the yard that is downward sloping and I thought it would be fun to make it a garden… with traverse walking stones – the space is really un-usable since there is such as slope so I figured a garden would be the best thing. I first pulled out all of the green weeds for the chickens, and then hatcheted the all of the nasty brown tall flowing weeds. In the end it looked like I butchered a part of the yard. It looks terrible. I have to do something about that.
  • I came in, showered, and had a bagel and a beer. I watered the lawn and I’m now going to put together my composting bin. Again, I am a person of extremes. Prior to this I could barely keep a houseplant alive and now I’m sowing the earth and wanting to compost for fertilizer.

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    I’m going to sleep well tonight.

    The kids will be back with me tomorrow at 4 PM. I’m looking forward to getting some things done in the AM and then seeing them later that day.

    Have a great weekend all –
    – Mama K (farmer)

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    June 21: On the road, again

    June 21, 2012 by 2 Comments

    Thursday not working! Unfortunately I spent most of the day driving.

    Highlights of the morning:

  • The girls woke up first and we sat together in the living room reading books, and then sitting with the guinea pig, still nameless. Red was holding her as Twin Crazy tried to feed her.
  • The girls wanted an activity and wanted to color. I let them know the file cabinet drawer where all of their paper and crayons are. Red found a bag of small colored squares that looked interesting and pulled them out…. she started sorting them by color and Twin Crazy started to help her.
  • They then went on with their coloring activity.
  • Out came Twin Husky with his hair sticking up. He immediately went over to the guinea pig’s cage to say good morning.
  • The three ate cereal like champs. Out came Big Bro half dressed. He wanted to spend time with the guinea pig too.
  • We headed out the door – I’ve been instructed to take Big Bro and Red to daycare even on my days off (don’t get me started….). So off we go…. slowly…. in traffic. By the time we got there it was 10:10 AM and I didn’t know that Big Bro had a field trip (Karate) starting at 10:00 AM. I wish I knew that so that I would have been there earlier. Red’s drop off was fine.
  • Me and Twin Crazy and Twin Husky headed back to my place. We got stuck in traffic again on the way back. Twin Crazy was crying and wanted out of her car seat. We started to sing Old McDonald’s Farm which seemed to work for a bit.

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    Highlights of the Afternoon:

  • The kids found beads and sunglasses and we had fun dressing up. We read books. We cuddled on the couch. I couldn’t believe it was time for lunch. I made burrito ingredients and had fun watching the kids build their own burritos. They ate really well.
  • We all napped.
  • As soon as we got up I shoved some cookies in their faces and we headed to the car. I saw that a flower was blooming off of one of my shrubs that I thought was dead.
  • Our first half of the trip was smoothe sailing but I shuddered looking at the other side, backed up with traffic ALL THE WAY towards the city. On our second highway we got stuck in traffic. This did NOT make Twin Crazy happy. We talked about the diggers, the graffiti, the trucks…. and sang some more.
  • It was great to see Red and Big Bro. Apparently Big Bro hit a homerun this afternoon. I love hearing that about my big little man.

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    Dinner and Bedtime:

  • I decided to pull over and get some food for the way back, knowing that we would be stuck in traffic. I grabbed grapes and mango juice, and some more tortillas. The snack of grapes and juice disappeared in less than 10 minutes. These kids can EAT. The ride back was much better since all four of them were there and there was much more conversation. We talked about the trains, how I take that train to work, the motorcycles, the clouds, … … …
  • We played with the guinea pig as soon as we got back.
  • I then started to make dinner. As I was cooking I overheard Big Bro teaching Red addition and subtraction. He asked her to do it with her fingers. She was answering his questions correctly. I applauded them for learning together and working together. I love hearing the kids teach each other things. We all have things to learn from each other.
  • We ate dinner and afterwards I went outside to weed. I asked the kids to come outside to play. Big Bro did his “job” of watering the strawberry plants and the trees. Twin Husky wanted to “help” me weed so he had his weeding tool and pushed around the weeds that I gathered. We then collected the green weeds and brought them over to the chickens. That was a BIG hit. The kids loved bringing over the weeds and feeding the chickens. I had kids going back and forth and giving them green icky weeds and they loved it. Big Bro then got into weeding himself, and said that he wanted to do more of this on Sunday. He is way too funny.
  • Twin Crazy pooped her pants so that was a good segue for coming inside.
  • I got the kids ready and read to the girls first on the couch. They were VERY serious about not letting the boys in their room. So of course the boys joined forces and acted silly with each other running in and out of their room. It is really sweet to see them interact with each other now – They are 4 years apart but really starting to interact.
  • I read to the boys next; and then the girls again in their own room. Twin Crazy repeats EVERYTHING that Red says. If Red is too hot, Twin Crazy is too hot. If Red wants water, Twin Crazy wants water. If Red has an itch, Twin Crazy has an itch. Again, so sweet. My little parrot.

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    All kids are asleep now and I hear guinea pig rustling around every now and then. I’m not sure what to do about tomorrow. I have to drop them off at co-parent’s at 6 PM but will have little time with them. I’d like to spend time with them in the AM, drop off Red and Big Bro, and then maybe stay in that area and go to a library or beach or something. Someplace where we can grab a snooze. Then pick up Big Bro and Red and do something. Maybe a museum or the zoo. I just don’t want to spend the whole day driving on the highway and also missing out on my kids. Anything to avoid having to take these toddlers on four trips on two separate highways, in traffic each way. I’ll figure something out tomorrow and will likely pack up the car with extra clothes, food, etc. It will be an adventure.

    Til tomorrow –
    – Mama K

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    June 18 (late): A botched routine

    June 19, 2012 by Leave a Comment

    I am writing this actually on Tuesday – last night I sat down after the day was over and wound up passing out on my couch – woke up at midnight and went to bed – so here I am, on public transportation, recapping from yesterday –

    Highlights of the Morning and Commute:

  • Woke up early; I had the kids with me today; this would be my first commute into the city from my new house and ALSO having to drop off the kids. So I wanted to start the day early.
  • I put on the shower but there was no hot water… no hot water… still no hot water. Hmmm. I investigated the hot water heater outside and the machine was foreign to me. I started to read the directions but most were covered up from the restraining bars to keep it in place. I figured out how to see if the pilotlight was lit. The problem was that the window was at a strange angle. So I used an eyeshadow compact and placed the compact strategically to see the window. Yes, the pilot light was out. OK. I can do this. I followed directions to light the pilot light. Again, and again, and again. Hmmm. This is a problem. I’m not sure if my new washingmachine from yesterday blew out my hot water heater. OK. Let’s move on. I just won’t shower today and will worry about this later.
  • I got ready for work sans shower. Red greeted me in my room with a HUGE smile on her face. Then in walked Twin Crazy, with her hair all over the place and a HUGE hidden smile on her face. I suggested we sit on the couch together, under the fuzzy blanket. We sat there cuddled up. And then Twin Husky walked slowly into the living room, long hair sticking up, smiling as he put his thumb in his mouth with this Tiger. He came up on the couch with us. I had 3 of the kids cuddled up on the couch with me just sitting there holding and cuddling each other. And me with no shower. So much for starting early and getting out early.
  • We said “good morning” to the Chicken who greeted us at our back sliding door.
  • I fed the 3 kids and got them dressed. Big Bro appeared fully dressed by himself and I got him some breakfast. I instructed all to get their shoes on and they were so good getting to the door and getting ready. Also getting all of their stuff together (backpacks, important toys). Red was wearing Twin Husky’s sneakers since co-parent forgot her shoes during drop-off. She was OK with that.
  • We got into the van, I had my coffee, and I also brought some breakfast bars and dry cereal for the kids for the long ride just in case. They were great. We talked about the cars. We saw an Egret and talked about that.
  • I dropped off Twin Crazy and Twin Husky with no problems. I said I would see them on Wednesday. They left AOK and I was AOK too.
  • I then dropped off Big Bro and Red at daycare. It is Big Bro’s first day at “camp” at Red’s daycare. He saw a friend so I am thankful that he at least knows someone. He wanted to drop off Red first. We dropped her off, hung up her bag. Her daycare teachers are so great and know the situation. I said that Daddy would pick her up today and Tuesday, and that I would see her on Wednesday. She had pursed lips like she was holding in a smile or other emotion. Her teacher was great. We also talked about if she ever needs to talk to me there are phones and the teacher said there are phones at school so if she wants to talk to me they can just give me a call. I left and her face was still squinched up but there were no tears.
  • I dropped of Big Bro with his friend, and they were playing dinosaur legos. I gave him a fist-pump (no hugs) and asked him to have fun and that I would see him on Wednesday. He seemed fine.
  • I got into the van, drove to the public transportation. Took the train into work. I was a bit late but that was OK.

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    Highlights of my working day:

  • I changed the date for one of the forums
  • I organized sales tracking info for one of the forums
  • I reviewed output from a recent client project as a takeaway for the primary interviews and potential business development
  • I talked for a long time with a colleague that is leaving the firm. She is such a good friend to me and I will miss her.
  • I left at 4:45 PM to get to a doctor’s appointment. It was a hard session for me. There are things happening with this divorce that seem so out of line. And there is nothing that I can do but just sit back and accept it, and go through the process, which is difficult for me to do.

    • Dinner and Bedtime:

  • I got home and tried to tinker with the pilot light of my water heater. I eventually gave up and went across the street to a neighbor who is a general contractor. He was not there but his wife was. I thanked her again for the birthday party they had for their daughter. We were there all day yesterday and it was great to feel so welcomed and at ease with them and their friends. He was at work but stopped by my house later.
  • We looked at the hot water heater and believe it or not, that little window was burning bright orange! My attempts to light the pilot light actually worked!!! I laughed and he was fine with the inconvenience. I think he is great.
  • I ate some cookies for dinner and drank water. I folded some clothes. I sat on the couch and PASSED OUT. I woke up at midnight and that was the end of my day.

    • So now I’m commuting on Tuesday AM and am actually enjoying myself. This is a nice ride. Very different from a subway in New York City. I had no problem with parking this morning ($1) and I have my frequent-transit card so am feeling like a real commuter. I will be at work earlier than normal today so am feeling good so far.

    Have a great day everyone –
    – Mama K

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    June 14 & 15: Settling in

    June 15, 2012 by Leave a Comment

    June 14:

    Thursday.  Big day.  Child custody evaluation, which was strange.  Outside of that, the day consisted of me with the kids but an evening alone, after dropping them off at co-parent’s house.

    Highlights:

    • We woke up to a chicken at our back door.  I think it was looking for breakfast.  There is no way we are going to start giving away food to this chicken.  I have enough mouths to feed.
    • Custody evaluation… strange.   I was myself.  What more can I do?
    • Afterwards, Twin Crazy and Twin Husky napped.  Big Bro and Red were exploring and creating art with sidewalk chalk and water.   They REALLY got into this activity.
    • Twin Crazy and Twin Husky woke up from their naps and explored the water and “sidewalk chalk soup”.
    • The kids from next door came over and it was fun watching them play; then the chicken came over which added more life to the party.
    • I drove the kids back to their dad’s.  It was a long ride.   Twin Crazy hates her car seat.  Big Bro and Red both fell asleep on the ride.
    • I felt exhausted on the ride home.  I made myself dinner.  A grilled ham and cheese sandwich and a beer.  I sat on my front “porch” on my rocking chair.  I tried to relax.   I felt better after filling my belly.   I decided to start my evening watering routine and then started to pull out some weeds.  It felt good to pull them out.   I discovered I have crab-grass.  Lots of it.  It is tough and takes a long time to really get at it by the root.  I decided to get my gardening tools out and gloves and proceeded to attack my ground of the crab-grass.   It took so long just to cover one little plot.  So I decided to boost my esteem by weeding some of the easier weeds.  That made me feel a bit better.   I wound up weeding until the sun went down.   My neighbors (with the chickens) also garden at night so I kindof felt good with the company, hearing them talk on the other side of the fence.   I weeded until my hands were raw.  I filled an entire wheelbarrel of weeds.  Digging into the earth.   Pulling each one out with the root.   I can’t believe how many weeds I have and how this feels like a never-ending project.   But I don’t mind it….. yet.
    • I showered and had the best sleep ever.

    June 15:

    Friday.   My day off.  But I didn’t have the kids today.  Today was co-parent’s Child Custody evaluation.  I decided to work a bit to keep my mind off of the divorce and also to get some real work done since this entire week was consumed by personal things.   It was difficult for me to work.   I did, but accomplished just a tiny bit.   The ADT security guy came and now my house is secure.  That feels good and it also felt good to have some company in the house while he was working.   After he left I tried to work more, talked to my mom and dad; I felt a bit down so took a nap.

    Afterwards I grabbed a snack and decided I needed to get out of the house and also accomplish something that needed to get done for the house.  I headed to Best Buy to set up Geek Squad installation of my TV and sound-system.  They will come on Sunday.   I don’t watch a lot of TV but am excited about getting it set up.  If everything is hooked up properly (which is why I outsourced it to Geeks), I will be able to hook up my iPod, iPhone, etc. and get my music through the system/surround sound too.  The TV is also Internet-enabled so I will be able to explore Pandora.  This is all new to me.  I’m excited about getting into music again.  It makes a big difference.

    So, I headed home feeling good.  I drove through the neighborhood and felt happy.   I ate dinner – another ham and cheese sandwich and a beer.   I told myself that I wouldn’t weed because my hand still hurts but I did anyway.  I talked to my chicken neighbors and asked about my wild raspberry plants.   I learned that the chickens love to eat weeds and I feed them.   I’m looking forward to introducing the kids to this new routine.   They will love the idea of picking weeds and then feeding the chickens.  I think Twin Crazy will actually explode with excitement.

    Afterwards I showered and decided to work on my Internet, and also my printer/fax/copier/scanner.   I realized I need a power surge strip.  I have too many cords.  That will be on my list for tomorrow, after the washer and dryer gets delivered and installed.

    My home is coming together.  I’m getting to know the neighbors more.  I enjoy the evenings outside and the warm air.  I don’t mind the weeding (for now).   I’m looking forward to tomorrow to get more of the house together, run some errands, and be reunited with the kids.   For some reason co-parent has a “work” event on Sunday so I will have the kids then.  On Father’s Day.   I hope Big Bro and Red are not upset about this.  I think they are too young but sometimes they surprise me.  

    Have a great weekend –

    – Mama K

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    June 11: Running towards the end or the beginning?

    June 11, 2012 by Leave a Comment

    A sunny Monday, after a great weekend and extra days with my mother at my new house.   The day so far has been good.

    Highlights of the Morning and Commute:

    • I woke up on the couch.  All of my bedroom has been moved over to my new house.  So the couch was my bed.  I showered the night before so woke up at 7 AM and got ready in record time.
    • Twin Husky and Twin Crazy were still sleeping when I got to their room.  Butts in the air – I love that position of toddlers/young kids.
    • Red and Big Bro were likewise still slumbering.  Big Bro was completely hidden under his covers except for his one leg and foot.  Red was bundled up and her face reminded me of when she was a baby… all scrunched up and lips pouting.
    • Twins woke up in great moods; I wish I could say the same about Red.   Co-parent started to take her things downstairs but she was thrown into a fit over something.  I tried to calm her but it took awhile.  I saw her baby on her bed and I think the issue was that her “stuff” was not taken downstairs as a collective package.  Once I grabbed her baby and her blanket, she calmed down, and took my hand to go downstairs.  She has become quite a handful.  She has always had trouble using her words when she is angry – and now at four years old her tantrums are becoming fierce.
    • She sulked downstairs over her chair, her clothes, her EVERYTHING.
    • The rest of the kids ate well; Twin Husky and Twin Crazy wanted to be held.
    • I packed up Twin clothes for daycare and got the rest of the kids things by the door.
    • Big Bro was getting ready for his last day as “leader” of the Motley Crew bike ride – this is his last week of school.
    • After everyone left, I was with Red, alone.  She happily got changed, happily went over to her seat, and happily ate her cereal.   She needs to be handled very carefully these days.  Her drop off was fine – she was clingy, but went to her teacher.

    The ferry ride to the city was fine; it was sunny and I was talking with a neighbor.  My work is not that busy right now so I am not feeling stress on that front.  There are things for me to do but none are time-critical right now.  But that can be a problem sometimes.  I need to set my own deadlines when work gets like this – otherwise I get lazy and nothing gets done.

    This is my last week living in this house.  The last week of Big Bro’s school.  The last week of our dysfunctional family lives as we currently know it.

    Highlights of My Working Day:

    • It felt good to be in the office.  I missed some important meetings last week on my days off so I got caught up with a colleague.
    • I ramped up planning for one of the forums:   sent out “Save the Date” emails to the members, and also started the outreach for speakers for that meeting in Fall.   I also asked my admin to schedule a planning meeting with a subset of members for planning purposes – I already have the agenda set so am hoping to get this meeting complete soon so I can get things accomplished.
    • I started to think through sales efforts for the above forum.
    • We need to change the date for another forum I am working on.  It is a big conference week in the location we are looking at so the original dates will not work.  I need to make sure that our proposed revised date does not have any conflicts before reaching out to our members…
    • I had a fantastic lunch and enjoyed walking outside in the warm weather
    • I spent time going through admin items – clearing out emails and also going through some personal items.

    I am on the ferry now and it is bittersweet.  One of my last times in the afternoon picking up all the kids.   My time here is ending and I hoped to be moving on with my husband.   I wish things could have worked differently but they did not.  I was hoping to experience this transition with him – honestly I was.   So now I face this week by myself.  And my children are in the middle.  And I wish it could have been different.

    I feel happier, but lonelier, and also wondering if things will be OK for the kids.  I feel the need for positive reinforcement.   I know they will be better for me – anything will be better compared to 2011.   I recently read a quote “sometimes things have to fall apart for better things to come together.”  I am hoping that is the case for me and my family.

    Dinner and Bedtime:

    • Pickups were great.  Red ran into me and grabbed my leg like there was no tomorrow.  Twin Crazy and Twin Husky were jumping up and down as my van pulled up.  They were jumping with such gusto that I laughed out loud.  Twin Husky needed to run off extra energy before getting into the van.  Big Bro was happy to get his bike but wanted it loaded into the van.
    • Red was crying because of a hurt finger.  Once she got a band-aid on it she was fine.
    • Red and Big Bro were lobbying for boxed mac-n-cheese.  I said “no way”.   Twin Crazy found two boxes hidden behind our rocking chair later that night.
    • I started dinner and threw in some laundry.   The kids were playing.  I then read Twin Crazy a book.  She asked me to read it again and again.  I think I went four times until the dinner was ready.
    • We ate.  I did more laundry.  I started to pack up some of the kids’ toys for my house.
    • I was with Twin Crazy and Twin Husky tonight.  Big Bro was upset.  He said he wished that he could switch back and forth between being himself and Twin Husky that way I could read to him every night.  I told him that I love him no matter what though.  He said he knew that.  I said “seriously” while looking into his eyes.  I need for him to know that he is loved no matter where I am and no matter where he is.  He knows this.

     

    So I’m now sitting in an empty bedroom, listening to my laundry spin.  I’m packing up some last items.   I’m getting ready for a drive to my house first thing in the AM to accept a furniture delivery and also get my TV installed.  I bet I won’t be able to get any work done so I think I should just take the day off.   I will try to get Internet installed tomorrow AM (by myself – they sent me a kit) so that hopefully I can try to be a bit productive.  If I can’t get anything done I will just take off.

    I’m feeling good, I think.  The transition is finally happening this week.  I spent 5 ½ months living in the same house as co-parent while going through a divorce process.  While listening to my children cry at night.  While standing by and forcing myself to stay out of his parenting.   While trying to work with 3rd parties but not being heard; while fighting financial aspects (much less important to me) and also child custody aspects – the latter ripping my heart out in the process.   I’ve come to accept a lot through this time; things that I took for granted I’ve had to fight for and be rejected.  I’ve even fought with my own lawyers.    But again – things sometimes have to fall apart for better things to come together.   I can only keep thinking that as I finally move from this house.   As things get better for me it will get tougher for my kids – I know this.   But the most important thing, I believe, is that they FEEL loved and that I know I can give to them.

    Til tomorrow –

    –          Mama K

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    Staying Sane: Acts of Kindness

    June 10, 2012 by 1 Comment

    My mom was here over the weekend to help me with the move and getting the house ready.   A HUGE act of kindness with so many things that she did to help.  My family is always there for each other even when we are far away.   It had been some time since her last visit and of course the kids all seemed different to her.   One of the biggest differences was the growth in personalities of Twin Crazy and Twin Husky.  At almost 2 and a half, they are really little people.   They are talking so much and having conversations – to each other and to others.  It is wonderful to see this in them.  As a mother of twins it is hard to describe and explain the feeling of this stage happening with two of your kids at the same time and with each other.

    Twin Crazy is yes, crazy.   Very boisterous.  Very silly.  But also very compassionate.  She is extremely empathetic and watches others around her.  She comes to the rescue.  She comes to me to tell me if a sibling needs my help.   She wants to see that everyone is OK and happy.  This is important to her.

    To me, seeing aspects of such kindness and empathy from my children are too good.  I can’t get enough of it.  You teach them these things – “that it is important to treat others as you would like to be treated” – and “it is important that we help each other out as a family” — but when I see it in action, it always melts my heart.  Yes, I can be furious one minute with one of them but then a tiny voice or a tiny act of kindness from one of them, particularly between each other, is enough to put me back on track.

    Just over the weekend Big Bro cared for a chicken from next door, Red helped Twin Crazy wash her hands of mud at our hose, Twin Crazy and Twin Husky held hands on a drive, Twin Crazy continuously expressed that she missed “Batman” (our sick pet guinea pig), Big Bro ran after Twin Husky as he was running after a ball towards the street, Twin Crazy let Twin Husky take a nap in her room since he missed her….    it goes on and on.

     

     

    Acts of kindness are important not only for the receiver, but for the giver as well.  And now I also know that they are good for the observers.

    How do you teach your children the importance of acts of kindness?  What things does your family do routinely to instill this value in your children?

    Have a great week everyone –

    – Mama K

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    June 6 & 7: Thank goodness Nana is here

    June 7, 2012 by Leave a Comment

    I missed yesterday’s daily journal posting.  Sorry.  Really.  I’ve just been a bit crazed lately.  Moving.  The arrival of my mom (YEAH!!).  So I fell asleep just before typing it out.  Sorry again.  So I’ll recap the last two days.

    Wednesday was a 1/2 work day for me.  I remember being busy.  Sending out lots of emails and sales outreach for a forum we are trying to launch.  Getting conference calls set up.  I was very productive.   I was also excited about the day ahead.   My mom was flying in for a couple of days.  I was excited to see her and show her the new house.  I need some reinforcement in my life (and help with the move) so was glad for her visit.

    After work I picked up Big Bro.  We went to Toyota to get some floor mats installed.  Now the car REALLY looks good.   Big Bro was excited about the free bottles of water and the granola bar snacks.  I was excited about the Starbucks coffee.   After that, we went to pick up Twin Crazy and Twin Husky.   We then went to Red’s daycare.  I had a short conference with her “teacher” which went well.  She is right on track.  While I was doing the conference the 3 other kids played.   Afterwards we picked up Red and then headed to the airport.  My mom arrived just as we did – great timing!   We headed out to the new house and the kids were all talking and telling Nana about it.  About the chickens, their new rooms, the planting, and their new friends.  They were all excited.

    As soon as we got there the kids wanted to show Nana their rooms.  So cute.   Then of course we took the trek up to see the chickens.  Red was following one around that was cruising in our back yard.   We did some lawn watering, talked with the neighbors, and got my mom settled.  Before you knew it I had to get the kids back — I had co-parent order a pizza; poor Big Bro fell asleep in the car and didn’t wake up for dinner. 

     

    ====

    I woke up and started to dismantle my bed.  The kids were enthralled.   The rest of the morning was uneventful, I think.  I played with the kids and felt good.

    Big Bro went to school on his bike.  I took the rest of the kids to my house.  I couldn’t believe my eyes.  The place looked incredible.  My mom was up until 1:30 AM the prior night (4:30 AM east coast time after flying all day!!!) cleaning and organizing my kitchen.   The place was really straightened up everywhere else.  Boxes were stacked and there were clear paths to walk.  Whew.  Thank goodness my mom is here.

    We spent the day eating, organizing clothes, finishing the kitchen, clearing a path to the chickens, picking up Big Bro, accepting package deliveries from Amazon/UPS and FedEx, receiving my shed, almost receiving my washer/dryer (I need to reorder — GAS dryer…. damn it), getting AT&T to install a phone jack, getting ADT to install a security system….. more playing, more eating, …. we went out to dinner and all kids ate like champs.  Then they started acting crazy so we fled.

    I left my mom at the house to enjoy peace and quiet.   She looked exhausted.   She was thinking about more work with kids clothes but I really hope she hit the sack instead.

    Once we got home the kids went to bed and I went to Home Depot.   It is amazing the $$$ you can spend there.  I have to cut myself off soon.  I think I should be good to stay clear away from there for awhile (I hope).

    I got home and showered.  It was badly needed.  I smelled like ass.  I mean, I actually smelled myself so you know it was bad.  I hadn’t showered in 2 days and essentially was wearing the same clothes so it was really, really, bad.  I’m now typing this freshly showered, body very sore, with wet hair.  I love the smell of my skin right now.   I’m really happy.   Things are coming together and I love my house.  I love the space.  I love the yards.  I love the neighborhood.  I love how it looks, how it smells, and how it is mine.   And how my mom approves of it (at least she says).   Yes it is small but it is all that we need.   And it is beautiful.  And we are making it a home.   And I can’t wait to get there tomorrow to start another day there.

    Til tomorrow –

    – Mama K

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    June 5: Getting ready for country living!

    June 5, 2012 by Leave a Comment

    It was an early night for me last night and a late start for me this morning.   Things are catching up with me.   I’m not able to keep up the pace and my body is telling me so.   The sleep felt good.  

    Highlights of the Morning:

    • Chocolate Tuesday!   Kids were demanding MORE, and MORE, and MORE
    • Twin Husky was hiding from me when I tried to find him to wipe his face of Nutella.  We were cracking up when I found him in a corner of the toy room hiding behind the toy kitchen doors.   I love his laugh.  It comes from deep down, in his belly.   His laugh will always make me laugh.  A child’s laugh is special, but what Twin Husky has is different.  It honestly brews up from his toes to his belly to his throat and comes out as a chuckle/giggle/belly laugh.  I love it.   It is something very special about him.
    • Twin Crazy got mad at me when I asked her not to wear daddy’s shoes upstairs.  She was walking towards the top of the stairs and a little pint size girl in man-shoes on top of the stairs is a disaster waiting to happen.  Because of this reprimand she threw her body on the floor in a tantrum, kicking her feet and looking at me like I took away her favorite toy.  I explained my reasoning to her, that it was dangerous near the stairs and I didn’t want her to get hurt, and moved on downstairs to deliver clothes options to Red and Big Bro.
    • Big Bro did well picking his clothes from the options I provided.  So did Red.  They are both so picky but I think it’s because they have too many clothes to choose from.  If they had less, I think they would be easier to deal with in terms of clothes.   When faced with just 2 or 3 choices they do much better.
    • Big Bro was ready for his bike ride.  He always asks me first if it is OK for him to go.  I run out to him and kiss him and say “Yes, have fun, I love you.”
    • Twin Husky was in the street for some reason near trash cans sweeping up some of the remnant trash.  Maybe some weeds didn’t make the trash pick up.   Did he really get a broom from the garage and decide to sweep on his own???
    • I was taking Red to school this morning so that alleviated a tantrum.  I gathered her things and she seemed happy to go to school.

     

    I am really sluggish now.  I had no coffee or breakfast this AM.  Coffee is a must but the coffee maker is at my place and I ran out of the instant stuff.  I need to get more instant coffee for me to get through this week and next.  

    I have work to do this morning and would like to actually have some focused time to work on something and feel like I’m getting something complete.   I need to feel like I’m accomplishing something today at work or else it weighs me down – I think nailing down a date for one of the forums in Fall and reaching out to speakers for those dates will be a good project for me to accomplish today.  I’ll focus on that and then work through other things that need to get done afterwards.

    I’m going to head to my house tonight to take the garbage bins to the road.  I know that this is something one of my neighbors would easily do for me but I want to go there myself.   Maybe if I go without the kids I can also get some work done there like unpacking my room.  We’ll see.

     

    Highlights of My Working Day:

    • Don’t tell anyone – but I spent a lot of time today shopping.  Amazon.com.  They are having a 20% sale in the gardening section and I went a little crazy.  I bought more hand weeders, new gloves (I already have holes in my other pair), gloves for all of the kids, 2 sets of kid hand tools, a bird feeder, 2 windchimes, deer netting, bamboo poles for the deer netting (I’m thinking of my poor twig trees that got attacked by those 2 cute deer in my neighborhood)…. And then I kept going and got a tumbler/rotator compost container.  Am I going overboard?  Yes.  But that is how I am.  Extremes.  I’m REALLY into this gardening thing and I can’t stop.   I’m looking forward to setting up an area in the yard to plant these trees.  I want to see the leaves come back.  It would be wonderful to actually see these trees grow and maybe throw off some fruit next year?
    • I did some sales activities for one of the forums – trying to set up sales calls
    • I started to get materials ready for a survey we are going to launch for another forum
    • I had a conference call with our partners for a different forum we are trying to launch – they are such slackers.  I have some to-dos as a result and I want to focus on that tomorrow.

    I am on the ferry now and it is sunny.  I am happy with my purchases today.  I am happy to get to the house tonight to take out the trash.  I am happy that my mother is coming tomorrow to stay with me for a few days.  I am happy to be working from home tomorrow.   I’m feeling really good right now.  

     

    Dinner and Bedtime:

    • I picked up Red and she ran to me from the playground.  We gathered her “stuff” and head to the car.  When we got to the twins, they were going for a walk towards the house.  Twin Crazy saw me and ran for a tricycle.  She began pedaling it with her feet… before she could only scoot around with her legs.   She was so proud of herself and was squealing with delight.  I had to get a movie of it.  Twin Husky was also riding around on the pedals – he is a pro at that now.
    • We picked up Big Bro and headed home.   I mentioned having a FAST dinner and for Big Bro to promise NOT to get the neighbors tonight… I wanted to finish early so that we could get to my house afterwards.  Everyone agreed.
    • We ate super-fast; I took down my bedroom curtains and we hit the road
    • I was taking care of trash bins and sweeping up a bit.  Big Bro watered the outside plants.  Red watered the inside plants.  Then they found cubby shelves that I bought for each of their rooms, still in boxes.  They proceeded to rip open the boxes and start to organize the pieces while I was doing the outside work.   I asked them if they wanted me to put them together while they were at school or if they wanted me to wait for them – they both wanted me to wait for them so they could help but they REALLY wanted to start the project tonight.  I denied them their wish.
    • The place is completely disheveled and I hope my mom isn’t too frightened but she will feel good about helping me out.  I’m so glad she’s coming.
    • On the ride home, Red kept talking about the new girl in her class.  I was having trouble understanding why.  When we were at home she asked me to bring up to her the book that she left in the garage, the same one she took to school today.  It is called “The New Girl” and we got it from a cereal box.  I think it is amazing how she has a new girl at school today and she brought in that book to school to show her teachers.  Her one teacher read it to the whole class.  Is it a coincidence or did she really make that connection between the book and the new girl in her class?   She was proud that her teacher read her book to the class.  And I was proud of her for empathizing with her new friend at school.

     

     

    I’m tired but content.  I looked through email and Amazon was having a 25% patio furniture sale so I bought a glider bench for my front yard “porch”.  This is out of control.  I have to stop myself.   I can’t wait to open up all of these packages and start my country living!!!

    Til tomorrow –

    Mama K

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    June 4: Rain, rain go away

    June 4, 2012 by Leave a Comment

    A rainy Monday.   After an amazing weekend with the kids, in duos.   Last night when I came back with Twin Husky and Twin Crazy, the reunion with Red and Big Bro was fun – lots of chatter and banter.   The children miss each other when they are away, but I can also tell that they like the more attention that separation from their siblings brings.

    Highlights of the Morning:

    • All of the kids were still snoozing past 7:10 AM.  Quite unusual.  I guess that’s what good baths and full weekends do; plus rainy Monday mornings.
    • Twin Husky looked confused when he got up; Twin Crazy was immediately playful.  Playing hide-and-seek, talking, laughing, … what a difference in personalities
    • I dressed Twin Crazy and got rid of her “dirty stinky diaper” – she’s regressed with potty training which is understandable with the changes in her life right now.
    • Red was waking up slowly; her hair all over the place but clean.  When her eyes were finally focused, she woke up and out of bed just fine.  Fixing her sheets, and asking (demanding) me to gather her things (backpack, baby, seal animal, jacket…..).  This is our routine together.  Me and her joking about all of her stuff.
    • Big Bro got up without a problem.  He wanted to bring his “bad guy” Legos to school today and bring his “good guy” Legos tomorrow.  
    • The kids were all laughing about a small rubber chicken keychain toy that Big Bro pulled apart.  You can now see a hole in it and they were laughing about the “chicken’s butt”.
    • The kids were walking around on tippy toes which I thought was cute.
    • Big Bro wanted to tell me about rainy days at school and what they do at recess if its raining.  How they watch movies instead and how today he hopes that it rains all day so he can watch two movies.
    • Red wanted me to help her find her favorite clothes in the dryer.   She was happy.
    • Big Bro needed help finding clean socks.  We went “fishing” together for clean socks out of the dryer. 
    • I started a load of wash and then we were off.  Big Bro rode today with the Motley Crew.   I packed up Twin Crazy and Twin Husky.   Red wanted to go too and was upset.  I said I would pick her up from school today.   It’s hard to hear their cries when they can’t come with me.  If it were up to me I would take all of them.

    I’m on the ferry and it is gray.   I have certain things that I want to focus on for work to prepare for the Fall forums and also turn to sales for new memberships.    I also need to attend an internal meeting related to these forums with a Director from another office that I’m not excited about.  He will likely play a larger role in my forums since the Director that is involved with them now is retiring at the end of the year.   This other Director is moving in and managing him will be a challenge.

    I also need to organize some things for home:   order a garbage bin, call to check on Batman (the sick guinea pig), order service to hook up my TV and run wires for surround-sound.   Follow up with the fence and hand-rail project.  Confirm schedules for Custody Evaluation.   I think that’s it on a personal front. 

    Highlights of My Working Day:

    • I decided to buy a HUGE breakfast sandwich as I was dodging the cold rain to the office. 
    • I got through a ton of emails and sent out an invoice for our project which just ended. 
    • I received word that our client that requested a high-level proposal checked internally and they do not need our help at this time.  🙂
    • I went through some financials of the forums we are running to see how profitable they are; and also thought through approach for sales
    • We had an internal meeting where we talked about the accounting and how to standardize some of the work that we do with the forums; also an approach to reach more prospects to generate new members.

    The day went by quickly but I feel like I did not accomplish much of anything.    Hopefully tomorrow I’ll feel more productive.

    Dinner and Bedtime:

    • I was so exhausted on the ferry home that I did not write but instead slept.  I am drained.
    • I picked everyone up and was surprised to see Twin Husky in a brand new outfit – cute little jeans (with pockets) and a collar polo shirt.   Their daycare provider purchased it for him; he looked so handsome and even repeated that over and over.  He loves the pockets.
    • I got home and started to boil water for pasta.  As this was going, I started to break down cardboard boxes to recycle, related to my move.  The kids were all outside playing and the neighbors were out there too so it was nice.  I enjoyed myself but found I was running into the street WAY to much to fetch their balls.  
    • Dinner was fast and the kids ate well.
    • All were fighting and cranky so we started bedtime earlier; I had the younger ones but the older ones wanted to be with me; co-parent was completely frustrated.  I dressed the younger ones, read to the older ones, sang to the younger ones, and am in bed now. 

     

    My plan for tonight was to start dismantling my bed.  I just don’t know if I’ll be able to start this project.   I can also do the curtains so I might just do that instead.   Red is now crying and I just can’t take this.  I cannot wait until June 15th when I can be free from this sterile house and remnants of lost hopes and dreams.   I’ve completely let go and need to move on and staying here through the end of the school year is really hard.   I can’t wait until the 15th when I can start to breathe again.   I’m missing my house and I want to be there.  And be there with the kids in their laughter and fits of cranky rage.   And of course, the weeds.

    Til tomorrow –

    Mama K

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    May 31: One red raspberry and three big sticks

    May 31, 2012 by Leave a Comment

    Thursday, a day at “home” with Twin Crazy and Twin Husky.  We had a VERY busy day…

    Highlights of the Morning:

    • Twin Crazy and Twin Husky were excited about their pockets in their shorts
    • Big Bro reminded us that he lost his bike privilege for the morning (not listening the night before).  How mature of him!
    • I dropped off Red with the Twins – no problems.
    • We made it back and I started to load up the van.  The big milestone today was the dresser, which I loaded all on my own.  I’m feeling unstoppable.  I’m doing this whole move myself – will likely not need any movers!
    • We stopped and had a yogurt snack, and then hit the road…

     

    Highlights of the Afternoon:

    • We got there and went to water our trees and plants, as usual – what a surprise…. the apple tree, peach tree, and newly bought cherry tree were all devoured since last night!!!!   Almost every leaf gone!!!   I was on the phone with my mom when I discovered the violation of our trees – I was laughing.   Me and the Twins were talking about it.   We watered the “sticks” anyway and then later I moved them indoors just in case any new leaves would sprout and be left at risk.
    • The GREAT news is that I saw our FIRST raspberry.  IT WAS DAMN DELICIOUS
    • Twin Husky was busy at work with the mulch in a net.  Twin Crazy was busy with bubbles.
    • They napped and I started to organize my room – getting stuff out of the closet to make room for REAL closet items like clothes.  Moving boxes to the office, to the storage closet.   Then I moved the dresser to the house and into the room…. the clothes were reunited with the dresser and decorations put on top.   My room is starting to come together, or at least look less like a storage unit.
    • I rested on the rocking chair for a bit.
    • I started to weed and then they woke up.  Snack time.
    • I weeded some more and packed up the van with weeds for the trash bin at the other house.
    • I was totally tired on the way home.

     

     

     

    Dinner and Bedtime:

    • I picked up BBQ on the way home.  Twin Crazy and Twin Husky were both hugging figurines of pigs.  Twinkle lights were on in the windows and Twin Husky was saying “Santa, Santa”.
    • We picked up Red, Big Bro.
    • We ate quickly and ran outside to play.   I didn’t realize it but Big Bro went around the corner to knock on our neighbor’s house.. .he didn’t tell me since he knew I would say it was an inappropriate time – he initiated the party that started at our driveway.  Me, the four kids, my neighbor, her four kids, and a random dog from down the street.  Me and my neighbor were drinking Guinness together and it was wonderful for me to have a moment of “real” time with a “real” person for this short moment.  It was the best fun I’ve had in awhile.
    • Afterwards I played puzzles with Red and Big Bro.   Bedtime routine was with both of them and I think we are all exhausted.

     

     

    I had an amazing day.  I am so excited about the house.  Is it wrong for me to be so happy when the kids will be made to suffer?   Call me crazy, but I enjoy pulling out big weeds.  And I enjoy looking out over the yard and thinking of the possibilities.  I enjoyed the feeling of getting the boxes under control.   And I loved when Big Bro immediately asked me if we would be driving there tonight to pick up the mail or do some work.  I love that the kids are excited about the place too.  That is important to me.

    I’m looking forward to the weekend, finally looking forward to them again!  I plan on being at my house the whole time and splitting the kids in duos.  I need to talk to co-parent about that.

    Til tomorrow –

    – Mama K

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