It Totally Works... In Theory

I think I've solved my laundry dilemma. The everlasting mountain of laundry will be gone!

So here's my idea:

Each person in the family will get a color. Like red for Nathan, because he looks great in red. He will get five of the exact same red shirt, a pair of jeans and a pair of khakis. AND THAT'S IT (well, he can have red underwear and socks too, because I'm generous like that)!

I already do laundry everyday, the problem is that the quantity overwhelms me. So this way, I can easily sort a small amount of clothing, get it hung up, and voila! Laundry's done. No need for socks in every color for Brenna, because she only wears pink! Five pairs of pink socks, and they are all hers! If she gets food all over, no problem, because we'll just change her shirt to another just like it!

This is awesome. I'm a genius. I'll even let them pick a new color every year or as they grow out of the old stuff, whichever comes first.

I guess they'll also need one set of dress up clothes... and a couple sets of jammies... and swim suits... crap. Wait, their old shirts can become the jammies! Yes! Another problem solved!

Seriously, this is what I think about while I face my own personal Mt. Everest.

Why a Boy Needs a Daddy

Yesterday Nathan had judo class. This was his third time, and he did not want to go. The first time, he had fun. He has a friend in the class and he just joined right in, running laps with the other kids.

The second class didn't go so well. We were running late, so we were stressed and got there amidst a crush of bigger kids. Then the teacher was new. Apparently the teacher from the first week is actually the tae kwon do teacher. Nathan refused to join in, so I had him sit on the side and watch and told him he could join at any time. He chose not to.

So this week the tears started as soon as I told him to put his gi (his uniform) on. We talked about it, about being scared, about getting used to something new. We talked about how cool it will be to wrestle Uncle Walt, because he's taking judo too! And the tears continued. He didn't want to go.

I explained my dilemna: the first week we asked him if he was sure he wanted to take this class and he enthusiastically said yes, so we bought the uniform. I think he'll have so much fun learning how to wrestle. It's important to follow through. But he really, really didn't want to go.

We prayed about it. I asked God for wisdom. He's only four. He's scared. I don't know what the right thing to do is.

Then Daddy came home. He was going to take Nathan to class. I pulled him aside and explained the situation, my doubts, Nathan's tears.

And in a way that always amazes me, Brian gently laid down the law. He told Nathan that he has to go four times, then he can decide. He didn't give him a choice. Then he promised ice cream for a good attitude. Then he made him laugh.

Nathan was still scared. He still cried a bit. But his friend in class came and took his hand, and they took off running together. After dinner, we made him a big sundae with a brownie. He dropped the ice cream on the floor then stuck his toe in it. Good Times. And when I asked, Nathan said he had a great time, he definitely wants to go back.

We'll see if Daddy needs to be there for next week too.

Really, It's the Piano that's Faulty.

On the way home from our camping trip we listened to some instrumental piano music that I've enjoyed for a long time. I think my mom and I got the CD when I was about 12 years old.

Nathan was asking me about the songs and what they meant. He sat back and listened for awhile, then asked,

"Mom? How come our piano and Nana and Papa's piano don't sound like this?"

"Well, because this man knows how to play the piano."

Brenna's Love

"I wub you up to Heben."

Translation: I love you up to Heaven.

Melts my heart!

A few weeks ago Brenna told me she loved me up to the sky and I responded that I loved her up to the moon. She told me with a very disappointed face that, "the moon is down". I had no idea what she meant or why my response was so upsetting to her until I relayed our conversation to Brian later. He told me that the night before they had talked about how the moon comes up at night and goes down during the day. It was the wrong time to be loved up to the moon.

Well, now I know.

They Say You Never Forget How to Ride a Bike

They lied.
Brian went to the emergency room today to have his elbow stitched up. Fun stuff.

It's Good to Be Home

Going to the grocery store with three kids is really not as hard as people seem to think. It’s certainly not as fast as going by myself, but it’s absolutely doable. I wear Isaac in a sling, Brenna goes in the cart and Nathan walks. It’s easy, really.

Today, I forgot Isaac’s sling.

Dumb, Dumb, Dumb.

We got to Trader Joe’s and I realized we were in trouble. I thought maybe I could lay him across the seat on a blanket, the other two would walk, and all would be good. It was good. For about 4½ seconds. Brenna is a toddler. She toddles. Toddling is s l o w. So 4½ seconds in, when I stopped the cart for the first time, Isaac started screaming. And didn’t stop for the rest of our trip. So out of the cart comes Isaac. And promptly barfs over my shoulder, down my back and all over the floor. Clean it up. It would be great to put Brenna in the cart, but I can’t because I’m holding Isaac. And while I have, on occasion, let Nathan hold Isaac while standing, I wasn’t going to do it in TJ’s on the concrete floor while he’s screaming.

So off we go, I’m holding a screaming Isaac and the shopping list in one hand and pushing the cart with the other, Nathan (my rule follower) has a hand on the cart and is continually pushing it to the side, and Brenna is somewhere behind us. Thank goodness the store was pretty empty!

So we make a beeline for the snack/sample area. Usually I grab a little bitty cup of coffee and it does this frazzled mama a world of good. I decided against it today. Get the kids their snacks. It was cereal. The kind that is really small and actually needs a spoon. Alrighty then. So now my kids are moving at about a snail’s pace. I’m ashamed to say that at one point Brenna dropped a little bit on the floor and I told her to leave it; there was no way I was able to deal with it, and besides, I already cleaned the floor once this trip.

Here is the transcript of about two minutes of our morning at Trader Joe’s:

“It’s okay, Isaac”

“Nathan, stop pushing the cart”

“Come on, Brenna”

“You’re okay, Isaac”

“Nathan, let go of the cart, you keep pushing it”

“Brenna, where are you? Come here, Brenna”

“Nathan, please don’t stand in front of the cart while we’re moving”

“Brenna, come on, baby”

“Nathan, we’re turning. Nathan, we’re turning! NATHAN! MOVE!” (sometimes you gotta keep it simple!)

“Isaac, I’ve got you. It’s okay.”

“See that cashier with no people? GO!”

High Fashion

You know what I love about four year old girls? Their fashion sense! I have a dear friend whose daughter makes me laugh every Sunday when I see what she’s chosen to wear to church. I’ve often commented to my friend that she ought to keep a camera outside her daughter’s bedroom door and take a picture every day of what she comes out in.

So you can understand my excitement when my daughter left the house looking like this: