Dear Jo Frost

Dear Jo,

Can I call you Jo? I don't have to call you Supernanny do I?

Jo, have you forsaken me?

I remember those days, watching you on TV as I judged those other families.

What is so difficult about putting your kids in their own beds? Just don't give them anything else to drink. Close the door and walk out of the room.

Oh, Jo. I wish I had known that it wasn't that easy. I wish that I had known that the colorful chore charts only work for so long, that the tough love can take its toll when you've only seen your kids for two hours and all they want is you.

What is the harm of a 2-year-old eating Kix in your bed at 9:30 while watching a DVR'd Top Chef episode?

I need you back Jo, we need a little order in this household. Momma needs some quality time with the kids that doesn't include barking orders and trying to do laundry in the background.

We need more dance parties, more yoga moves in the living room, more reading for pleasure and less for reading log, we need more veggies and less Fruit by the Foot.

We need a little structure, a little support and a little more room in the house!

I know we can do it Jo, but it would be nice if you could just stop by, gaze at me with your piercing blue eyes, invite me into a warm hug against your ample bosom and whisper in your British accent that I am super too.

Cheerio,

Bean

#TBT Sister Edition

Here is a little Throw Back Thursday for you. . .

Just wanted to say how much I love my sister and how grateful I am for all the things she does for me and for my family (not to mention all the amazing things she does for her own family).

So glad that the Ladies have each other.

Enjoy. 

I have nothing to say about those overalls I am wearing, except that they are stunning and do wonders for my figure.

I mean how much does the Lady look like my sister here?

Sisters gotta hold hands.

Sisters gotta hug.

A Literary Household

So this is what just happened at our house during dinner.

Many apologies to Sandra Boynton, an author we love and read often in this house.

The Lady: 

A cow says moo

A sheep says baa

Three singing pigs say la la la

what does the fox say?

Ring-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!

Gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!

Gering-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding!

What the fox say?

You're welcome everyone. Try to stop singing it now. 

FYI. . . This is post 29. I have now written the same amount of posts in January 2014 that I did in the whole of 2013. Some were good, some not so much but I totally appreciate all the comments, likes and support.

15 Things. . .

Clearly, I am scraping the bottom of the barrel here.

I found this on Pinterest. Yes, it has come to that.

I think I come across, on average, about 12 of these situations on a daily basis. While no one (to my knowledge) has licked the toilet seat, there is plenty of unauthorized eating in there, which shouldn't surprise anyone who read Holy Guacamole.

Since we don't have a cat (and hopefully never will) I can't comment on the kitty litter, but there was a point in time that the Lady once took a bath in a cat's water dish. 

The Little Lady is notorious for whining and barging into the bathroom.

The Lady loves some sugar and sitting on her brother.

QT is way into Dora (and can I say after a time of being away from her, I am sometimes happy to see her enormous football-shaped head, teaching him some Spanish and showing him how to use a map).

So, I am posting this here as a fairly accurate representation of the things that go on in our house.

Which ones happen in your house?

Day 27

Is this Post 27?

Indeed it is.

Sorry that it is so short, but at least I got something on the page.

Four more posts to go.

Crazy for the Cereal

I almost had to cut a bitch tonight.

I finally got my ass to the grocery store and loaded up on General Mills cereals because it was the last day to take advantage of my coupon for extra Box Tops.

I got some Cinnamon Toast Crunch for the Little Lady because every morning she asks me to make her actual cinnamon toast and the cereal just seems easier, although it is a toss up on which one actually has any nutritional value.

Oh, you want to know about cutting the bitch?

I went to check out and pay and the cashier handed me my receipt, took the time to circle and tell me how many gas points I had earned, told me I earned two coupons, when clearly there were three things that got spit out from her machine and had the nerve to try and throw away.? Pocket? I can't be sure, my 25 bonus Box Tops (I know I had the opportunity to earn 40, but I can't imagine eating that much Honey Night Cheerios and I definitely didn't have a place to store them).

I mean WTF cashier lady? I had to say something, and by something I mean I mumbled something about Box Tops and said I needed them for school.

She gave me a slightly embarrassed smile and handed it over but I really think she was trying to put that sweet little something in her pocket.

Good thing I asserted myself. 

Saturday Night

I am assuming that those of you reading this month have come not to expect too much from these weekend posts. 

We usually have a lot going on, which is great and would seem to provide good post material, but by the time I get around to writing these things I am pretty much done for the day.

Right now I am blogging from my phone, on our way home from my in-laws after getting our taxes done. 

I will say the kids had a great time with their cousins and were pretty well behaved.

I will also say that I am super excited that our taxes are done because that is one less worry I have.

What I am not so psyched about is the next 35 minutes in the car listening to Team Umizoomi on the DVD player and the inevitable hustle and bustle of unloading three kids and all our stuff into the house at 10 p.m. in 20 degree weather. 

I am never sure if I want them all asleep so I can turn off the move in the car or all awake so they can walk in on their own.

Hot Yoga/Hot Mess

Last night I went to my Bikram yoga class.

There is always this sort of dread before walking in the door, coupled with an excitement and energy.

I want to go, its just that it is an hour and a half class and it is hot.

The Thursday night class starts at 6, which is easier to get to without added anxiety of running late. And you want to get there on time because the class fills up and you need to find a good spot.

Last night my girlfriend/coworker (the only reason I can tolerate work) and I got there a good twenty minutes before class started.

It was nice to just lay there quietly and get acclimated to the heat before the class.


About ten minutes before the class started the instructor came in to say that there was a red SUV parked in front of the building with the hatch open. It took me a moment to realize that it was my friend's car. It also took her a moment too, considering that she rocks a mini-van, but I love that she was given the benefit of the doubt.

I am not sure if you can gather this from anything you have read on this blog, but I can sometimes be too much in my own head.

It is hard to focus and be present when are thinking about how odd it is that sweat is beading on the top of your feet, that you have a muffin top that even the all-black ensemble isn't hiding and that your face that is so red it looks like you came straight from a chemical peel and that your hair is so crazy that it needs to be pinned back with two of the Lady's barrettes.

It is hard not to notice that my upper arms really seem disproportional to the rest of my upper body and that maybe instead of focusing on everything I want to change, I should just concentrate and breathe.

The instructor told us last night that the intent of the class is to leave feeling different than when you walked in the door. I did feel that. I felt like I was able to hold a few more poses, that I figured out one of the positions and that if you focus on a point just past your body in the mirror you aren't confronted with your own hot mess. I left feeling stronger and more energized.

She also said that she raised the temperature by one degree in the room. I know you don't think one degree would make a difference but by the sweat dripping down my body, I am here to tell you it does.

So, I left there soaked in my own sweat, desperate to shed my winter coat when I got in the car, only to have all the sweat dry about halfway home and realize that I was freezing and the heating in my car is crap.

I also ended the class much more centered than I started. Soon, those thoughts got pushed aside and I was able to "enjoy" the experience. Clearly, I have to put enjoy in quotes because as much as I want to be there, I am always pretty excited for the end when the lights go out and it is just me flat on my back.

I am trying to get to classes on the weekends. I think the more I go the better. I have put out my clothes for the last two weekends with the intent of getting up and going to yoga.

It hasn't happened.

Hoping that tomorrow morning will be my day.

"Is it Awake Time?"

So it's after ten.

I thought all the kids were sleeping but I heard a voice calling out.

QT was standing at the top of the stairs telling me he was "told."

His room is pretty hot, but I picked him up and held him on my lap where he proceeded to tell me about his favorite part of Dispicable Me 2, how he and the Ladies played with their stuffed animals, and "I want you momma."

I know it's late and he should be sleeping, but that was the best five minutes of my day.

Also, I am pretty sure that me standing up and holding him wasn't going to make him any less "told" but he seemed to think that might be the case. 

So I stood and rocked my baby boy.

I'd like to say he is sleeping, but he isn't.

He is wrapped in his blankets in my bed with two stuffed pandas watching inappropriate television for a two year old.

Holy Guacamole

We had a couple ripe avocados that needed to be used so on Monday I made my husband some guacamole.

He ate it with some chips while watching TV in our bed. This is pretty standard practice.

Monday night rolls around, the kids are in bed and I am reading in our room.

Hubby: What is that? [points to a dark spot on the wall]
Me: I don't know, but you are getting it.
Hubby: It's guacamole.

Apparently, the Little Lady had also partaken in some guac and while dipping she also flicked the chip and the guac hit the wall.

Last night after I spent an hour and forty minutes trying to get home in a snowstorm and was trying to get organized in the kitchen, I get this:

Hubby: Do we only have two king sheets?
Me: Yes, I want to get new ones.
Hubby: Did you know that you slept with guacamole by your head?

WTF Little Lady? What was the situation unfolding in that bed and how is it that your father was clearly blind to the amount of guac left behind?

At least the sheets got changed.

School was cancelled this morning and I decided to head in a little late. After the ride home I had last night, I was in no rush to head out onto icy roads.

The Ladies set themselves up in the living room with a laundry list of demands that included cinnamon toast and strawberries and to each have a couch all to themselves.

QT, as per his norm (and perhaps taking a page from his father's book) set himself up in our bed for a little Zoomie time.

Hubby: Look at that pillow behind him.

I was thinking that maybe it was wet or had frozen or something because it was close to a window and it is freezing out.

Me: Is that guacamole?
Hubby: Yes.
Me: I thought you changed the sheets?
Hubby: I did.
Me: But you didn't change the pillow cases?

I am pretty sure I should outlaw eating in my room. I am actually unsure if that guac is still there right now. I didn't change the pillow case before I left and I am not 100% sure that my hubby did either.

On a related note, we are having tacos tonight. I know it isn't Tuesday but I have ripe avocados...

On Discovering the Three Bean

Last night as I pecked out a few words for my Monday post, the Lady happened to be sitting beside me and asked "What is the three bean?"

I have been blogging about her for 5 years and she didn't even know it.

I like to think I am not taking advantage of her childhood, her moods, her actions. I like to think I am not exploiting my kids just because I happen to like to write and this is an outlet as well as a way to capture all those moments that you can easily forget.

I don't know though. In ten years when she reads some of these things will she be embarrassed or angry?

In twenty five years will she be grateful she can look back and see what a new mom goes through? A mom of two? Of three? Will she relate? Will she be happy to hear my voice on these pages?


I write about my children because they are such a huge part of my life, and life isn't just photos on facebook and parenting doesn't always equate to joy. They will remember the big things, Disney trips and vacations, but it is those small moments of crazy, it is random afternoons at the beach, getting stuck in rainstorms, changing diapers in the trunk of a car, its puking kids and dance parties that I want them to know about as well.

The Lady and I took a few minutes to look back at some old posts. Her first birthday, Halloween, Christmas when she was 3. I am amazed always at how much she has grown. How much of a big girl she seems these days.

I am forever grateful to her as well. She changed my life. Changed the way I write and why I write and who I write for.

I hope that when my kids eventually do read these pages that even though they may not remember all the details, that even though they might be a little embarrassed or put out that they can hear through all these words how much they are loved.

A Day Off

The Little Lady fell asleep on the couch at 5:45. 

I think she and her cousin had a bit too much fun at their sleepover.

Unfortunately, she woke up at 8:00.

She is just now settling back into her bed. Her brother and sister right there with her.

We had a fairly calm day here. 

A lot of reading, cars and a few movies thrown in. 

So nice to have nothing to do and nowhere to go once in a while.

We are pretty set for the morning (I did eventually shower and decide that perhaps it was best if I got up and about) however we know what can happen with the best laid plans...

A Serene Sunday

Nothing like settling into a Sunday night knowing there is no work in the morning.

Such a nice feeling.

I have the Little Lady, the Wild Woman and QT in bed, not sleeping, but at least the lights are out and the shrieking has died down.

The Lady is sleeping over the Wild Man's and I think I might be able to get an hour or so of reading in before I pass out.

Hoping that the kids fall asleep before I do.

Heading Home

Heading home from a great day with friends. 

Grateful that the kids were well behaved. 

So glad to have time to catch up. 

Even more excited that this is a long weekend and we will have an extra day to just hang out. 

Everyone is in pjs, so let's hope they fall asleep before we hit the highway. 

On Resolutions, Blogging and Bald Eagles

Apparently today is the day where a lot of people ditch their New Year's resolutions. It is actually called "Quit your New Years Resolutions Day." Oh Internet, you have some crazy made-up days. Did you know January is also California Dried Plum Digestive Month? Yummers.

I for one am still blogging and I just got back from the gym.

Feeling pretty proud of myself.

I would love to regale you with some amusing story to start your weekend off on a good note, but in all honesty between the relentless time suck of work and the frenzied evenings there isn't much going on.

I will say that I am so looking forward to getting home tonight. Friday for me means that a little bit of the pressure is off. I pick up pizza, throw it on a plate for the kids and put on pjs.

There isn't that mad rush to be super prepped for the next day and even though we should fit the Reading Log into our schedule, we usually just end up popping in a movie.

QT loves movie night. In fact, if you are anywhere and happen to turn the lights down low he will get all excited and scream out "movie night! yeah!" I like that we have a little bit of low-key family time as well.

We do have some plans for this weekend. I will keep you updated (because I have to, because I signed up to blog everyday this month).

Don't forget to celebrate Bald Eagle Appreciation Days on the 18-19. I for one won't be celebrating this year because I hate birds and Bald Eagles are kind of assholes. 

On the Podium

Yesterday was the last day of the Ladies' gymnastics session. The parents were invited out on the floor to watch the class, and even though I totally forgot about that and arrived at my usual time, (about 10 minutes before the class ended, after totally cutting off an entire line of cars waiting at the light to turn) I did get a chance to get out and see the Ladies receive their report cards.

The Little Lady's class even got a medal.

The Little Lady at gymnastics

The Lady wasn't so happy that her class didn't. The Lady, as we all know, responds well to medals.

In fact, she spotted a box full of them on the side of the gym and gave me a look like "maybe, I should just take one" a thought that had also crossed my mind because I knew of the discord a one medal household might make, but I thought better of it for three reasons.

1. It was stealing
2. Sometimes you don't get a medal in life.
3. I would have to try to figure out where to put two medals instead of just one and have to doubly contemplate throwing them both in the garbage in about two months when I found them on the floor.

The Little Lady has decided to continue her gymnastics class, while the Lady has opted for swim. I am glad they are finding things that they enjoy and are doing so independently. Still waiting for QT to age out of the mommy and me classes so he can get some gym time as well. That kid loves to vault.

As Overheard

Mary Poppins: Close your mouth, please, Michael. We are not a codfish.
The Little Lady: A codfish? [laughs]
The Lady: No a cock, a cockfish.
Me: Umm. . . I am pretty sure it's codfish.

I Have to Post Something!

Well we have come to this. . . 

"Here's the thing we started out friends, it was good. . . "

Ok, ok it isn't quite so desperate as resorting to posting Kelly Clarkson lyrics, but I will tell you with all honesty not much happened today.

I did start my morning off naked and covered in a paper gown (and had no problem making it to that appointment on time). That was just a routine check at the dermatologist that was done so quickly and efficiently that I made it to work way earlier than I told them I would get there. 

That was followed by a lot of me thinking about writing something and then realizing that once you cross into that desperate phase of unimaginable boredom where you have exhausted the Internet and are just hoping for some sort of polar vortex/panda watch-sized news story to break that there is no creativity to be had.

Even the cops going to Bieber's house didn't help.

I ended my afternoon by sweating on strangers at hot yoga.

Namaste.

I forgot how hot it was and how badly it smells in there.

However, I was able to do a few poses more easily now that my boobs are smaller and I am so glad that I made it back.

Little victories. Until tomorrow. . . 

"It was good, but it was all pretend, yeah, yeah, since u been gone"

The Best Laid Plans

I don't thrive in the mornings.

Each night I think how nice it would be to get up and be totally ready, dressed, lunch made, coffee in hand, before the kids get up.

I have visions of a set table filled with fruit and orange juice and conversation. Visions of the three of them coming down fully dressed (well maybe not QT, but at least the Ladies) and not draped in blankets, only having to eat, brush teeth and hair before I kiss them all lightly on the head and make my way out the door.

Obviously that is some sort of pipe dream. I have set my alarm to get up early for the last week. Snooze. Snooze. Snooze.

So last night I decided that if I could prep as much as I could the night before I would be way ahead of the game.

I know this seems very simple and probably second nature for most people out there, but in all honesty there are nights where as soon as the kids are in the vicinity of their room. I turn out all the lights and get in my bed. I like being comfy cozy, what can I say?

Yesterday, I could have curled up to six hours of pre-Golden Globe coverage if I wanted to. I could have just made it harder on myself. Instead, I decided to take action, stop the frenzied mornings where I am doing a thousand things at once and probably causing more chaos than there needs to be.

Bags with goggles, extra undies, towels and pjs for swim. Packed.

Clothes laid out for the kids. Done.

Clothes laid out for me. Done.

The Lady's lunch 90% packed and in the lunchbox. You know it.

Cantaloupe, strawberries, pineapple, kiwi. Peeled, cut, and prepped to go.

Coffee in the coffee maker. Set and ready.

Feeling of accomplishment. Oh yeah.

I think it should come as no shock that when the alarm went off two things happened.

1. Snooze.
2. Snooze.

The worst part is that I am not even sleeping, I am just laying there thinking about how much I don't want to get up.

But I did and in all honesty things were moving along nicely until I realized it was 15 minutes later than when I should have left.

Then it hit me. I could get up at 5 a.m. and still be late getting out the door because I don't want to get out the door. Is that a little passive aggressive? Sure, but it is also the truth. Do the mornings go much smoother when I am at least a little prepped? Of course, and in all honesty so does the rest of my day, but until I am moving from one place I want to be to another I think I'll take the extra sleep.

Golden Globes

I am just about to sit down and watch the Golden Globes, a full hour and ten minutes after they started.

I will be spending the next three hours watching a room of people win awards for films I have never seen. Here's to hoping I get to the movies at least once before the Oscars!

Clearly, I can't comment on any of the performances but I am hoping to fall into a celeb coma where I root for people based on the amount of booze it looks like they have imbibed and try to ignore the fact that my kids are still awake!

Ready for our Close Up

I am volunteering with Komen Connecticut to help with their second walk in Fairfield County. Last year an amazing group came out and supported me and I feel like I have the opportunity to give something back.

I also consented to being one of the "faces" of the walk, meaning I would take part in a photo shoot for some promotional pieces. We were supposed to bring our family to be a part of it. We were to arrive at 12:30 so I could get made up and the photo shoot was to start at 1.

Here is a little rundown of the day.

9:30: I remind the kids about the photo shoot. The Lady doth protest.

10:15: I finally get in the shower.

10:30: I, (for the first time, even though I have known about this for weeks) look in the kids closet for clothes. I mean the Ladies have a ton of pink. QT, not so much, but he can wear black. The only problem is he has no black. Not a super popular color in the toddler set.

11:00: The Little Lady is fully dressed, the Lady is refusing to go. I put on my one pink tank top and throw over a basic black cardigan. My husband has a closet of perfectly pink shirts and looks totally put together as usual.

11:30: The Lady gets dressed. Some hair gets brushed. I cry a little because nobody is listening.

11:50: We leave the house for the photo shoot that is about 20 minutes away.

12:05: We stop for a pink and black shirt for QT. I also pick up two pink shirts for the Ladies. 

12:30: We are right on time.

1:00: I get in the makeup chair. The kids keep themselves occupied with bagels and iPads.

1:15: The Ladies come over to check out the face paint.

1:30: The Little Lady gets in the makeup chair. The makeup artist (who was wonderful and did a great job) put some lipstick on her.

1:32: The Little Lady pouts because all she got was lipstick.

1:35: The very nice makeup artist brushes the Little Lady's hair (with a brush with actual bristles and not from the maternity ward at the hospital), and then gives her a little hairspray and brushes a makeup brush across her face. The Little Lady is ecstatic.

1:52: I check my phone and let my husband know what time it is. It is a fine line people before things start to quickly crumble. He and I are acutely aware of it.

2:05: I get my lipstick on. We dust the dirt of QT's new black shirt (you can't expect a 2-year-old NOT to roll around a little in an empty storefront/temporary photo studio).

2:15: We are smiling, well four out of five of us are. 

2:25: The kids are done. I hope there is at least one good shot of all of us. I am ready for my close up.

2:30: The photographer calls me out on my fake smile. I know. I know.

2:45: That's a wrap people. 

The kids are looking for fruit snacks in the diaper bag and as usual we have to pack up a ton of stuff that seemed to multiply once we walked into the door, but the kids had yet to meltdown.

I could see them from where I stood in front of the backdrop, sweating under the lighting, the three of them tracing raindrops with their fingers down the large, storefront glass and at that moment, I wished my kids weren't in that room.

Not because they behaved badly, not because they filled me with a ton of anxiety about how they might behave, but because three kids under seven shouldn't have a mom with cancer. 

But here we were and I am proud of them, proud of their pouts and frowns, their dirty shirts and messy hair. Proud that I get to be a part of their lives and proud that they stood with me today.

I also know that I will wait another year before I hire a professional photographer to take any family photos of my kids. I am not paying a ton of money for one kid pouting, one kid over posing and one kid looking away. Looks like candids on next years Christmas cards! 

Time for Bed!

The Ladies created a new bed for QT, right between the two of them. We will see how long he lasts in there.

Here's to hoping everyone sleeps in tomorrow and stop coming into my room looking for crackers. 

Getting Moving and Motivated and the Box Top Quandry

I just completed my first work out of the new year.

I realize that it is January 9, but we all saw what happened when I went out too hard and too fast with the Box Tops, I just want to ease my way back into things.

I will say I took the new boob out for a run and it held up well. I have big running goals this year but I don't want to claim them as a New Year resolution because that is too much pressure and I have had the same list of resolutions for like two years and none of them have happened.

Well, I did make some photo books of the kids along the way and I have tried to make this blog a bit better. The new graphics helped right?

I think I am just approaching this year with a different attitude, just trying to incorporate the things I can control and actual take a step or two towards some goals.

*******************

And speaking of Box Tops. . .

Thank you to all of you who sent some in Christmas cards or gave them to my mom to give to me.

I got this little beauty of a coupon the other day at the store. I think I can buy 6 or more boxes of cereal to earn 40 Box Tops.

But here is the question. Should I just save them all up until the last collection of the year and then bombard them with hundreds of tiny little cardboard pieces or should I try to submit them this go around and see how it turns out? I don't want to get burned again!

Let me know what you think.

Blog Worthy

Today was a good day. 

Granted, I had to go to treatment, but that meant I didn't have to go to work. It also meant I had some uninterrupted time to finish my book. 

It meant 15 minutes in the car alone with the Lady, no radio, no DVD, on the way to school. Just chatting. 

It meant an extra hour with QT discussing all things Team Umi Zoomi. 

It meant picking up at the bus stop, getting to gymnastics on time and watching the Little Lady land a cartwheel then look up at me and wave. 

Sure, we got McDonalds for dinner (it was easy and on the way home) sure getting the kids in the bath is always a struggle (and yes, I will admit that 90% of the time my husband gives the tubs) and of course there were some stragglers to bed. 

But today was a good day. No rushing, time to be present. Totally blog worthy. 

Slim Pickings

I am thinking of just filling this blog post with the lyrics to Kelly Clarkson's "Since U Been Gone" just because I have nothing else to write about and it has been playing in my head on repeat. (And now it will be playing in yours.) So good Kelly Clarkson. So good.

Of course, when that song comes on one can't but help think about "Pitch Perfect" in all its aca-awesomeness.

This is it today people. Slim pickings.

I could talk about the weather. It is cold.

I could talk about my morning battles with the kids--again.

I could talk about how the Little Lady once again found herself in my bed watching Harry Potter last night. I will say she wanted to know why "Malboy" was so mean.

I am convinced she doesn't hear things correctly. On Saturday, while watching Madagascar 3, she insisted that Marty is singing "Acro Circus" and not "Afro Circus." Not familiar with that particular ditty? Here it is for your listening pleasure. She then proceeded to sing the entire thing as "Acro Circus" because there is nothing she likes less than being wrong.

I think I am succumbing to the pressure of having to write these posts every day. Of course, I could drop out and just post occasionally, but there is something to be said for making the effort (as half-assed as today's is) and I am going to try to reach my blogging goal.

So here you are my lovely readers, a sub-par blog on a cold winter's day.

Here is to hoping QT swallows another penny. . .

Back to School

The Little Lady has been out of school since December 12. The Lady got out on the 20th and even though both of them went back for a full four hours on Thursday before getting the next day off due to snow, we really haven't had to do the full morning routine in quite a while.

That is why it was so nice this morning to be kicked in the face with the reality that we are back to school after the break.

It was a grey and rainy morning and even though my kids were up by 7 or 7:15 most mornings of their vacation, they chose this morning to sleep in. That might have had to do with the fact that the Ladies got very little sleep the night before because they had a sleepover with their cousins and QT didn't nap at all over the weekend.

I will say it was very hard to pull myself out of my bed as well, because as QT says when he asks to be wrapped up in his blue blankie, it is "comfy cozy" and who doesn't like being comfy cozy?

I for one love it.

So does the Lady, who refused to get out of bed. So does the Little Lady and QT who made their way into my bed for some TV time and waffles.

It was so nice to be late for work over the school break knowing that it was my own dawdling and poor time management, rather than the fact that I was trying to dress the Lady in her bed, shout out that the share letter was J today and that the Little Lady should be bringing the jewelery that was on the table under the TV while at the same time trying to brew my own coffee as a money- and time-saving resolution to start off the new year.

While I am looking to give the kids a bit of structure and re-establish some routine, I am not looking forward to the morning battles, especially tomorrow when the polar vortex moves in and I am pretty sure none of us will want to get out of bed, let alone put on a thousand layers and hope we don't bite it in the driveway again.

Write. Write. Write.

This is why I don't blog everyday.

Sometimes it just gets to be 9 p.m.and the most memorable thing about today was that the Little Lady had a marshmallow stuck in her hair. The best part about it was that I didn't have to take it out. Many thanks to my husband who once again stepped it up. 

I will say the pressure of trying to come up with something to write isn't new to me. I have stared down the blank page many, many, many times, but I will try harder. I will appreciate the practice this exercise allows me and hopefully kick-start my writing. 

Bare with me folks. . . 

Day 4, Not Much Happening Here!

Blog, blog, blog, blog, blog.

Looks like the weekends might be slim pickings for blog posts. 

Not because I am unable to come up with content, I could write pages about the visit to the nail salon today with my sister, the Little Lady and the Wild Woman, but because it is too hard to find an uninterrupted moment to sit down and do it. 

So, I am going to post this little paragraph from my phone and try to carve out a few more minutes tomorrow to complete a thought. 

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas...

The Christmas tree is mocking me.

I have kept it alive for almost a full 30 days. A record in this house, where we are short on space and full of small hands just looking to touch things that hang from trees.

I will say it was our best tree ever. It fit perfectly and even though I had to improvise on the hanging of the lights, it turned out looking great.

But it is January, and today is a snow day and there is no excuse as to why it is still standing there fully decorated.

I think it knows what a pain in the ass it is this time of year.

I think it knows that just like the decorating, I will get strapped with the undecorating and the wrapping of fragile ornaments and the remembering of where I put said ornaments and elves and such.

I am not prepared for the mound of pine needles that will accumulate. I have put up with the random one stuck to the bottom of my bare foot or tucked between my sheets but I just brushed against the tree and the crunch of needles falling to the ground makes me believe this won't be that easy of a cleanup.

I have informed my husband that this tree should be dragged to the end of our driveway where the city will pick it up eventually. It is NOT to just be dragged to the garbage cans, where the city will not pick it up and it will lay there like a big ol' tumbleweed until I finally get so annoyed by it that I throw it, once again, over the fence.

I can kind of see how some people have their tree up until March.

Really though, it is about the Christmas season ending. The anticipation and the excitement of the kids, the preparing, the craziness of it all has come to and end and all I have left is 1,000 new Legos and this hulking tree. Even though the new year is open to endless possibilities, there is always something a little sad about hauling those red and green bins into the attic, pulling the lights off the tree and settling into the winter cold.

Is it January Yet?

Pheww. . . . .

What day is it?

I have been living in a crazy world where there were days at a time where our calendar was full of things to get done, people to see and places to go.

Those days were off set by random Tuesdays in the office and the inability to determine what day of the week it actually was.

I am pretty sure it is 2014, although I never saw the ball drop because in all honesty I would much rather start the year off not sleep deprived than listen to Ryan Seacrest prattle on and watch Miley Cyrus lick things (it is sooo 2013).

But here we are. And like the start of each new year, there are things that I want to do differently and goals that I hope to achieve, there is that feeling of having to reassess and decide what and who you want to let into your life.

I know I want more time with my kids, my husband, my family, my friends. I know that I want more time. I also know that I want to make sure I am as active and as present as I can be in all the upcoming moments (good or bad) this year has to offer.

Happy New Year from the Three Beans!

Here are a couple of cute pics of the kids 

The Little Lady posing and yes, she is wearing a summer dress

The Lady in her stocking cap. She totally slept in it.

QT made out with the amount of Jake and the Neverland Pirate crap, stuff he got!

Under Pressure!

Every year one of my New Year's resolutions is to do more with this blog.

When I looked and saw how few posts I actually wrote last year, it was a little disheartening.

So this year I decided to join BlogHer's NaBloPoMo, which is short for um. . . . well it is short for I am going to post everyday in January.

Not sure how much I will be able to keep to the theme of "Pressure" but considering I am joining this already a day behind and now have to write two posts today, I think I will be able to handle it.

Some of you may remember my earlier attempt at posting a blog a day. That lasted a full 15 days or so and ended only with the birth of QT, here is to hoping I can make it through.

As always, thanks for reading.