—1—
A few years ago, our family went hiking and came across two wild apple trees. We gathered the most delicious apples and made a pie out of them, and we've been trying to recreate the experience ever since.
We're never very successful.
Hoping this would be our lucky year, we trekked back to the same trail and it felt like an unusual amount of work to even get to the trees.
Phillip was jetlagged from a business trip, the 3-year-old decided he was scared of moss and wanted to be carried if he saw it anywhere within a 5-foot-radius, and one of the kids somehow got a wasp in their shirt and was stung three times.
However, we came home with a bag of free organic apples so it was worth it.
Actually, I'm not sure it was. The apples were tiny and fairly tasteless and didn't even make that great of a pie.
But if past behavior is the best predictor of future behavior, we will absolutely not learn our lesson and go back again next fall.
—2—
We have an iPad but I don't personally use it much. It's mostly the kids' device to play games, watch annoying YouTube videos, and read up on current events with this app called News-o-Matic.
But when I picked it up to make my second-ever video Snappy Answers for Why You Have So Many Kids (which is currently doing great on Facebook, thanks for sharing, guys!) I found that the kids had been busy with the camera and editing features, too.
Honestly, I can't decide which one I like best: the Snidely Whiplash mustache on my daughter, my son with fairy wings, or my toddler as a decorated war general (I love the juxtaposition of the sippy cup with the katana blades crossed over his back.)
Oh, and there was also a picture of this memo from my 5-year-old who has clearly been listening to my ideas about gender equality when I go on a rant about, say, boys getting flak for wearing pink soccer cleats:
Yes, people are special, whether they're a boy or girl.
—3—
Taking my toddler pants shopping with me last week was not a recipe for a wildly fruitful trip.
Most of it was just desperately trying to stave off a Category 5 meltdown because oh my gosh I want to get out of here and I'm going to throw myself screaming on the floor if we have to look at one more pair of pants!
And that was only me.
Seriously, though, I hate pants shopping, especially now that super skinny jeans are a thing so you're basically just buying pairs of skin in different colors.
Phillip took the kids and sent me off on my own to find some pants, and on the advice of my wonderful Facebook crew, I headed to Old Navy and Kohl's.
And I kid you not, I TEARED UP when I saw this beautiful row nestled inbetween the rock star skinny and the micro skinny jeans:
Bootcut as far as the eye can see. Bootcut for days. |
Between the two stores, I came home with seven new pairs of pants. I couldn't even believe it myself.
When I got home, I noticed the tag on this pair and Phillip and I had a good laugh over it.
"Luscious" and "curvy" are just about the last two words in the English language to describe me, since I have the body type of a 10-year old boy. (Phillip wants me to say here that he prefers to think of me as 'sporty.')
—4—
This is possibly the most I've ever been on top of Halloween before, because we've already got 50% of the kids' costumes finished and it's not even mid-October yet.
It helps that some of the kids are older and making their costumes can (theoretically) be a fun thing we do together instead of something I have a mid-life crisis over after they're in bed.
My daughter wants to be a dementor from Harry Potter, so on Saturday I used this tutorial for a DIY Jedi robe but modified it to add tattered strips on the arms and hem.
I also bought a banana costume off of Ebay that afternoon, so it's safe to say the Evans family will have a full range of costumes going on here this Halloween.
—5—
Overall, I think our family is a loving, happy one but we definitely have our moments. Specifically, I have my moments.
Which was made clear when my 5-year-old earnestly presented me with this handmade chart "to help me." The two sides are labeled "happy" and "mad and stressed out," spelled phonetically.
This simultaneously hurts my heart and is stinking cute. |
Patience is something I'm working on, and obviously I'm not finished yet.
I'm pleased to report, though, that I currently have two checkmarks in the "hapee" column and none in other. So I must be improving.
—6—
I took my oldest three kids clothes shopping (between that and pants shopping for myself all in the same week, I needed to lie down for a while afterward) and on the way out I saw the strangest thing.
There was a lime green sports car leaving the parking lot in front of us and I was like, "Hey, cool car."
The personalized license plate said 'MONST3R' and I was like, "Wow, you appear to be rebellious and hip."
Then I looked at the driver and his passenger, and it was this couple in their 70s. Which is still making me rethink everything I thought I knew about retirement.
—7—
This week's horrifying scene is brought to you by the 1-year-old, who figured out he can drag the bathroom stool anywhere in the house and access any drawer that interests him.
I heard him pushing this stool across the kitchen floor and caught him rummaging through the junk drawer (which is located directly below the junk counter for random crap that won't fit in the drawer.)
It's like he thinks he owns the place.
12 comments:
Pants shopping is the worst. I'm over six feet tall and it is really difficult to find pants long enough. I love that your daughter made you a chart. Your hair looks great in both her happy and mad illustrations.
Ahh love the name of those jeans! ha! I have THE hardest time finding the right pants.. which is why when I do, I often buy two pairs... in case they terminate the style or something!
That apple picking story sounds like something that would happen to us, except in my bubbly enthusiasm, I would probably be like "This was the best day ever! Let's do it again!" Pants shopping is the worst! I'm so glad that I don't wear pants anymore, because I don't have to go through that agony. However, I still remember that over a year ago when we found out that we were having a boy, one of my first thoughts was: "Oh no, we have a future of horrible pants shopping ahead of us!" It's bad enough trying to shop for my super-skinny but semi-tall husband, I can't imagine throwing another person's needs into the mix!
Hahaha the sports car! That's a great story.
Pants shopping is a terrible thing for my mental and emotional health. It took me getting holes in the seat of my jeans for me to admit I might need to buy more.
That actually did happen. I was down to just a few pairs, one of which had holes at the corners of the butt pockets. I realized I just couldn't put it off any longer.
Phillip is tall and skinny too, it's awful. Big & Tall stores don't cut it when you're tall but not big!
If I didn't find anything this most recent shopping trip, skirts were going to be my backup plan, they really were.
There's always a bright side.
#2- The best pix, and note ever!!
#5- Aww!! So precious!
#7- Noooo!!! I live in fear of the day when ChunkChunk figures this out!!
Now I almost want my kids to make a behavior chart for me! Almost...
Haha! 😂 Junk counter!! My family had one of those. Yesterday, I had a church music meeting at my house and was shoving something in a drawer when the people were arriving. They asked me if that was my junk drawer. And I found myself saying, “I think all our drawers are junk drawers right now.”
I REALLY needed a laugh this morning. Thank you! That check-off chart is awesome and I totally laughed out loud about the junk counter.
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