So Big

On Saturday night my sweetie and I took a little time to ourselves and went out for the evening. We started at Kohl's since some of the kids had a few needs we had to satisfy. Crafty and Prima Donna needed black sports bras for their performing team costumes and they have a competition this week. Princess had torn her white cami and really need a new one to keep herself modest, and Sport blew through the bottom of both gym shoes this week.

If it's not one thing, it's definitely another.

We wandered the store after we had gathered the needed items to see if we could reasonably satisfy some of the wants. Scout was still short a couple of pairs of jeans, and Baby Doll has transitioned from a 2T to a 4 in the last couple of months so we always have an eye open to add to her wardrobe from the clearance section. I can't believe how big she is getting!

She had her half birthday last week and at 2 1/2, she is definitely in charge of her world. In fact, I'm starting to worry about that. I was repacking my Tupperware bags for a party a couple of days ago and she took out the little Princess lunch set and her first words were, "Mine!" as she clutched it tightly to her chest. After several moments of trying to reason with her, I finally gave in and let her have the set. (I know, that is the point of my confession, I'm spoiling her rotten!)

Sometimes she has this little selfish streak that is hard to break. Like today, she went to my room and found my hidden stash of Cracker Jack that I was saving for a movie party. She brought me a box and demanded that I open it for her. I did (I know, I know...), but then I only offered her half a dozen popcorn kernels. She came unglued!! Talk about a two-year-old tantrum. She wanted the whole box! But you will be happy to know that I didn't give in. I shared the box around with the other kids until it was gone and the only pieces left were hers and they were sitting on my desk. She finally came around and ate them, but it took a while.

Prima Donna - Helping??

Then there are the other days when she is so stinking cute I can't hardly stand it. Like tonight, my sourdough starter was finally ready to mix into some bread dough. She pushed the chair over to where I was pulling out the bowls saying over and over, "I help! I help!" And she did (maybe a little too much). She mixed and stirred and then when Prima Donna and I finally had the dough almost ready, Baby Doll pinched herself off a little piece and questioned, "I eat?"

I smiled at her sweet innocence and nodded my head. I thought she might spit the dough right back out, but she didn't. She loved it! Half a cup later, I took the bowl away and set it to rise. I'm thinking a child is like a bowl of sourdough, growing and growing until it is time to bake it into a beautiful loaf. Will it be too sour? Too sweet? Crusty or soft? Each loaf turns out a little differently, but they are almost always delicious.

It must be time for bed, that was way too philosophical for my tastes. Must have something to do with the fact that the Dog Walker is busy reading to me from his Marriage and Family textbook while I'm writing this post...or maybe a little too much dough...

Lots of Blogs

Some days it seems like I am always bragging about my kids and how awesome they are...

But I'm going to do it again. I'm sure you have noticed the blog buttons on this page before. The Dog Walker has his own blog called the Art of Autism and he updates it pretty regularly. Teach also has a blog called I am Teach, Teach Me. I'd like to be able to say that she takes her blog seriously (or at least did before she left on her mission, but her posts were few and far between).

Then there is Bossy's blog, Letters to My Stepdaughter. I have to confess, some of those first posts even made me cry and I already knew the story!

Did I ever tell you how our blog came about? So one day when the Drama Queen was in college, she had to create a blog for her class. She was so proud of her work and she sent me the link. When I showed some interest, she decided to make a family blog for us. It was called TAC and it was a private blog for only family and close friends.

I updated it once a week for over a year, using it mostly as an online calendar to keep my kids aware of what was going on in the family. I forwarded it to my grandma who only had a fax machine but was so excited to keep up on our family doings.

Then one day in January I decided to do something different. Bossy had been out of school for about 6 months and she had not been able to find a job. It was a hard time for her and I wanted to help her focus on something other than the never-ending job search. That's when together she and I created Twelve Makes A Dozen.

We started by posting pretty much every day and as the followers grew we started getting excited about making tons of money. (Funny, huh?!) Sport drew our fabulous picture and Bossy was in charge of all media, including blog buttons and pictures. My sweetie was adamantly against using our regular names or faces on this totally public blog, but eventually he relented and let us do as we pleased.

 After a while, Bossy got her regular job with the state and Teach took over the blog helper duties. I didn't realize how much the kids liked our blog until they started writing their own. And now we have another new one. Princess has set up her own blog called Just an Ordinary Princess. Bossy hasn't had time to create her a button yet, but she is so excited to see where her readers are coming from as she watches her readership grow!

If you have a minute today, will you please stop by and say hello? She had 11 pageviews yesterday and she just couldn't stop talking about it. Thanks for supporting her! Y'all are awesome! (Just practicing for Teach...we don't want her to feel like she is speaking a foreign language when she gets home.)

Update From Teach

I know you are just dying to hear an update from Teach!

OK, I was dying to hear from her. On Monday when I was supposed to get my first nice newsy email from her I got an extremely short paragraph of just a few sentences telling me she was out of computer time and she was sending me a handwritten letter that should be here Wednesday. It wasn't. Nor did it arrive on Thursday. How far away is Texas anyway?!

So I was sitting at my computer this morning when I heard the mail truck coming up the street. Curly is my resident mail retriever, so he immediately ran to the box and returned with a disappointed look. "Is there a letter from Teach?" I questioned. "Yeah," he sulked, "but there are only two letters today." I grabbed it and tore it open. So what if I got 10 pieces of mail yesterday? My little guy just doesn't understand the meaning of the term "junk mail."

You will be happy to know that I pulled out two full sheets of purple notebook paper filled front and back! I'll share a little with you since I know you are worried about her too.

I haven't seen any cockroaches yet (knock on wood) but I know they'll be here soon! The first day we got caught in a good ol' Texas rainstorm while we were out street contacting. Just as predicted - the people are awesome! A man gave us his umbrella! I've met a couple of members. The first ones were as Texan as all get out. They were in Rodeo garb and said y'all, fixin' & g'day. We have met so many interesting people!

Can you hear that accent starting already? We thought it would be at least a couple of months before she picked up on that. Want a little more?

We have been so crazy busy that I haven't had a chance to set up my bike up yet, but I'm hoping to do it today since it's p-day. I also have a new found appreciation for sidewalks. Sidewalks only exist in the ritzy neighborhoods of Texas! I've been gone for almost 3 weeks. It hasn't gone fast, but it probably has for y'all. Yes, people are Texans here. Yes, I'll likely have a twang when I get home. 

Remember when I told you how scared Teach was to fly? Well I guess I shouldn't have worried about it so much. Here's what she had to say about that:

I know y'all are nervous to know, but I absolutely LOVED flying! It was SOOO magical! I was a little nervous at first, but I was in a window seat and we flew over Utah and the mountains were SO breathtaking. I'm so super excited to go again soon...ish. I honestly considered being a flight attendant just so I could fly everyday, but I don't think they get to look out the window so...eh. But really, best thing ever.

Just one last thing:

I weigh my success and happiness on two forces: my faith in Christ and the power I access from his infinite Atonement and the strength of the prayers of my family. I know that this is why I am strong. Thank you a million times over. Thank you. If y'all wanna send me some blackberry jam...not gonna lie that would be fantastic. I'm craving it something awful!

Guess I'd better head down to the basement and see if I can find any more blackberry jam. I'm thinking she could probably buy a bottle in Texas a little cheaper and
easier.  What do y'all think?

My Cell Phone

Not my actual phone, but close!

I hate to admit this, but I think I'm pretty much addicted to my cell phone. Not in some creepy internet sort of way, in fact, I have data blocked on my phone, I just need that comforting little rectangle in my pocket. And when I don't have a pocket, well, you can guess where I keep it.

I remember back in the day when we didn't have cell phones. (When we were first married, we didn't even have a land line, but that's another story.) We happened to get one of the first bunch of commercially produced cell phones back in the early 90s when I was selling Tupperware. It was a huge, coveted prize, and my unit (now they call them teams) earned one for me!

The thing was huge! It really looked like a regular phone with a brick-sized battery attached to the bottom of it. The whole contraption fit into a sort of handbag and I'm pretty sure it had to be plugged into a car charger to work. It was an awesome new tool for my growing business! I could call hostesses and my consultants from my car on the way home from parties. It saved me a huge amount of time...until I got the bill. That first month cost me over $400! It wasn't long before I gave the phone to someone who could afford to use it.

My current cell phone is the second or third one I have owned and it is not a smart phone but it's not a brick either. I had it for a couple of years when one of the kids dropped it down the stairs and cracked the crystal in the front. I was devastated! My sweetie, not wanting to see me go through major withdrawal, immediately got on Amazon, found the same model, and ordered me a replacement.

And now that replacement in starting to go. How could that happen? Maybe it has something to do with the hundreds of texts I send and receive every day. Or maybe it's because my phone holds hundreds of pictures of kids and special occasions and food pics for the blog.

Either way I'm afraid it might be time for a replacement.

I wonder if my sweetie can find me another one on Amazon...not that I'm picky or anything...

Just a little addicted.