Heals All Wounds

If you chance to meet a frown,
Do not let it stay.
Take this child to Krispie Kreme
And smile that frown away.

And then bring a box of Krispie Kremes to one of your sisters participating in The Biggest Loser Greenbaum Edition in order to sabotage her weight loss efforts. Because we play dirty, and my money's on Camille to win.

Ah. Feeling much better.

White Flag

I guess I just don’t know what to say at all, other than You Girls Win.  You’re totally right.  You’ve definitely taught me a lesson I won’t soon forget.  I sincerely apologize for any offense, be it real or imagined.  You have absolutely forced me to my knees to pray even more than I have been this last hellish year. 

I tried.  I give up.  You win. 

It’s Good to Have a Girl

Miranda Giselle is 5 1/2.  We just signed her up for Kindergarten. 

I love this complex little child.  Here are some interesting things about my Mimi.

 

Mimi is into relationships.  She wants to talk about who is married to whom, true love’s kiss, what sort of boyfriend she is going to have when she’s Camille’s age, who it’s ok to kiss and who is not ok to kiss.  It’s a difficult stage for any parent and Mimi doesn’t have the fever any more than another five year old girl indoctrinated by Disney, but it is the current phase and I am keeping a close watch on this.  With mine and Dx’s genes and her own sneaky personality one of my main goals is to maintain her naiveté and foster healthy views of relationships (with a dash of old fashioned Disney fantasy!)

Mimi is an animal lover and always has been.  This she definitely has more than other children I’ve observed.  Her most loving maternal self is exposed when Mimi is with animals.  I often say her spirit animal is a puppy, because she behaves exactly like one for good and bad.  Recently we discovered that you can hold chicks at the Alamo Hay and Grain.  Fun!

Mimi is a great swimmer, beyond her years I think.  She was born a fish, as are all my kids.  I’m proud of her obedience and feelings of accomplishment at swimming lessons.

 

Mimi is super girlie.  She loved going with Niya to see her model things and frequently likes to dress up to take pictures.  I happily oblige because the camera loves her.  Her chocolatey skin makes her look so delicious to me.  My kids are all 1/4 Thai, in case you didn’t notice. 

I am so thankful to have a girl, especially one who wears dresses and skirts exclusively.  I have bought this child countless jeans and shorts, none of them ever get worn.  I happily gave up.

 

I’m kind of super jealous of Mimi’s hair.  It’s lush and full.  She is currently growing it to be as long as Tangled.  It is tangled.  Most of the time she lets me do it, but she prefers to wear headbands.  Miranda has an extensive collection of headbands, including headbands that she only wears to sleep.  Oh, and she is planning to dye her hair pink when she turns 18.

Mimi is a sport.  She’ll happily dress up and loves to eagerly participate in all activities.

Mims was the first of my kids to go through the Kindergarten screening tests.  She felt very special, until it was time for the shots.

The boys coaching her through the eye exam.

Mimi enjoys accessorizing and then losing all of those accessories.  She is also very touchy with her little brothers and pesters the living hell out of them. 

 

My little Mi is very self possessed.  In the last few months we have attended no fewer than about 6 different wards and in each one Mimi blends in perfectly.  She waltzes in Primary like she owns the place and happily participates in all the songs and activities, knowing not one person in the room.  She has confidence beyond any I’ve ever seen.  She is gregarious and happy – a true people person.

 

Mimi is a leader and is very brave.  Despite being the oldest, she harbors no fear and never shies away from a new experience.  I feel like a success as a parent when I watch Mimi boldly go where any other child would be timid, and then I remember that Mimi was just born that way. 

And look at that little chin. I love it.  Silas, by the way, is the spitting image of Mimi at his same age (2 1/2).  She had those curls and they have the exact same chin, but he is lighter skinned.  Their personalities are also very similar.

My bathing beauty.  If there is a synchronized swimming team in this area we need to be a part of it.

Mother daughter rock climbing.

Though little Mi tests me to the very limits of my parenting capabilities, I love her dearly.  She is so interesting to me – so fiery and mercurial. 

Midnight Moron

Sometimes you wake up in the middle of the night and buy dumb stuff.

 

I “won” this on ebay.  Apparently I had an urgent midnight hankering for a Michelangelo Bust.

Then it comes in the mail and you try to hide but your mom and sister see you opening it and declare you are, as suspected, an idiot. 

Yes, this is a birth control pill necklace. 

At least I was pro-women’s rights in my delusional shopping.  I will happily mail it to anyone who urgently needs birth control necklace.  Maybe I was feeling overwhelmed by my kids?  I don’t know how this happened.

None of this was ambien fueled.  I’m just a moron.  Heaven help me if I ever have my phone and credit card handy when an infomercial comes on.

The end.

Follow the Streets Paved with Gold

At long last and after much strife we are finally settling in to our new home.  My mom says she always likes to see her kid’s houses and towns so that she can know how to picture them in her head.  I’ll do you one better.  Here’s a pictoral of our new (old!) town. 
We’ve moved to a little tiny modest town called Dville, pictured below.  The picture doesn’t actually do it justice because the street looks yellow when in fact it is gold.

Our house is right behind the domed one on the left.
If you follow the streets paved with gold you’ll find our town.  Come visit!  See why all the residents love it so much!
On your way over to visit, just turn left at the rainbow and wave to the butterflies and unicorns.  Careful of the bunnies and squirrels! 

What, everybody doesn’t have a neighborhood unicorn?
You may meet our neighbors, the Cleavers.  Say Hi to the Beave.

My mom actually looks like June.
Their house is a bit outdated, but they’re planning a remodel.

It may not look like much on the outside, but the inside is a modern palace.
Hopefully when you get here the kids are home from their diverse top-ten rated school and Daddy(Daddies?)  is home from work when you arrive.

Any of the above will do!
Most likely the kids went to school with their hair done and learned a lot.

Gretchen, fix your sock.  It’s slipping.  We have standards.

Ethnic diversity must be included to some degree at least. 
If so, then you’ll be right in time for dinner.  Chances are the Dad will still be at work slaving away to finance this dream town.
  
That’s me, on the right holding the bird.
After dinner let your kids ride bikes in the cul-de-sac  until the sun goes down, not worrying that they will be mown down.  Or, go for frozen yogurt down by the oak tree.  See if you can talk Pam into letting you borrow the Surrey. 

What, YOUR grandma doesn’t own a Surrey?
Oh, did you want to see what our new house looks like?

Exterior.
 
Interior
Ok, well maybe not on the house, but the town is total fact.  We actually found the least opulent place we could find – rent is even cheaper than Ptown and it’s not so big that I’m a slave to cleaning my house.  As soon as we got here two little 4 year old girls knocked on our door and Mimi had instant best friends.  We moved back here for them and getting this place was a breeze after so many tempests.  The kids play all day long and ride bikes or play ball in the court.  I registered her for school today and she got right in – to the top 10 school within walking distance.   My friends have dropped by with treats.  The menfolk showed up en masse to help us move in.  Sure, there are snags, but I know I am doing the right thing for the children over whom I am steward.  I only wish I could give all kids the same foundation.  We are so blessed.
It’s kind of dreamy.  Finally some good news.  Things are looking up. 

By the way, my littlest sister Camille is getting married!!  Click through to her blog (AFTER YOU COMMENT ON MINE, GEEZ!)

5, 3, 2

My babies are now 5, 3 (nearly 4) and 2 1/2.
Miranda Giselle is Miss Personality.
William Jude has the softest skin and most adorable voice.
Dx Silas is just plain kissable.

It's just one of those days when I count my blessings, and here are my three perfect little minions that belong to me me me. Right now they're all tucked snug in their little beds. In the morning they'll crawl in to cuddle me. I love little warm bodies and soft skin!

Summer List End of the Week

The end of the week was packed full of activities.  We play hard.

 

Made a cake for Grandma’s birthday.

Went to Fairyland for Bea’s 7th birthday party.

Had some brother bonding time.

Made a town with masking tape roads.  This is a big hit over here with the two big kids, but Silas loves to ruin whatever they set up.  Si’s having a hard week.  He’s sick, poor shrieky little thing.

 

Played games.  This picture could not more fully demonstrate Mimi’s behavior as late.  She is definitely a turkey.

Made some flower origami.  This was a big fat fail.  Do not do origami with children under 6.

Mini golfing was a huge hit.  $9 for the three of us, as much golf as we could stand.  I need to remember to go again, the kids loved it.  It was more like hockey than golf, but still super fun. 

And then as a reward I went on a 6 HOUR DATE with my GIRL FRIENDS!!

There is nothing like girl time.  I forget how much I need it and then I get to go shopping and dining and movie watching with amazing women whom I adore more each time I spend time with them.  How lucky I am to be where I can hang out with such smart funny women.   Thank you, Some Guy, for allowing me some time away while you watched and put to bed all five kids.  You are a super-star dad and step dad.

The movie choice was lacking, however.  Snow White and the Huntsman was like a low-rent Lord of the Rings, complete with Gollum.  Charlize Theron’s costumes were awesome, though.  But seriously, Bella?  Blehha.

You know it’s bad when you take a picture of the movie screen. 

But still, a wonderful week.

Oh, I have a surprise.  Coming soon.  Can you guess?  It’s not a baby.

Stylin’

Dinking around with new blogging formats.  Tell me if they’re too much or if they’re kind of fun to explore. 

My Mimi and I played photo shoot today and yesterday.  I think my camera is dying.  Anyone know if you can retrofit a weak iphone 4 camera when it starts to wash out?

She’s so lovely and she looks NOTHING like me.  But her personality is Mini Me.

Jude and I doing a rock n’ roll photo shoot for no reason, other than Mimi wanted to pose me.  She would act out the poses and then Jude and I would do them. 

 

But anyway, here’s the latest funky hair.  I love!  Thanks Jody and Tiffany!  Hair, tra la la!