Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday Tip

Here's your (non)helpful Tip o' the Day from Ethan at age 4 or 5:

Friday Funnies

Here's a little something to bring a smile to your face and a giggle to your heart.

Isn't this the cutest?

I grew up with bulldogs -- and we have two mixed-breed dogs that have bulldog ancestry (of some sort) -- so I love love love this breed!! So much fun-ness -- and funniness -- about them!

I hope you enjoy a fun Friday! And don't forget to SMILE!

(photo courtesy of Cup of Jo's blog)

Friday Funny

"See, Mommy? I have a 2-pack [of abs]!"

Love this kid!

Friday Funnies

This is brilliant advertising at work! I love how technical they make their "bookbook" sound. Enjoy a funny Friday!

And now...

...a few more "Ethanisms" (from this week)...

"You know, Mommy, I really don't like to write [for school]. I only do it because I love you." Then he smiled his sweetest, most lovey smile at me, which, of course, softened the "blow"...not that I didn't already suspect his dislike by all the moaning he emits while wielding a pencil above paper. I told him I appreciated his honesty, but he still needs to do it. And I smiled my sweetest, most lovey smile. Not sure it softened anything for him.

*   *   *

In the car yesterday, he said (continuously), "I love how our brains slow down the world outside the car when we're drive. That way we can enjoy all the pretty nature. And it is so pretty! Edward is so weird. He said when he dies he's going to say, 'This is the best day of my life.' (pause) But I guess it would be the best day since he would get to see God. That would be awesome! And I think the nature there would be so pretty, too. Esp. the trees. Because they would never die or turn brown."

*   *   *

He came down to lunch yesterday and said excitedly, "Edward was playing the 'Battlefield 4 Warsaw Theme Extended,' (a song) and it was EPIC!" No plain, everyday Battlefield 4 theme for them.

*   *   *

What funny things do your kids say? I'd love to hear them! 

Friday Funnies (from the 5-year-old)

Two Ethanisms:

The other night, Ethan was praying before our devotions and said, "Help us to apply what we learn to our lives." Afterwards, I asked him if he knew what "apply" meant, wondering if he was just repeating what he'd already heard. He nodded and said it meant "to put something to use." We were all visibly impressed by this, so he fist-pumped the air and said, "Vocabulary for the win!" 

Talking about a musical toy that has a dog sound that you can use instead of the normal musical instruments, Ethan told me that they must have had to use a lot of dogs to make all the songs since "there are 20 pre-recorded songs!" I asked him how he thought they trained all those dogs to sing like that, and he said, "I have no idea!"

Love the innocence and magic of childhood. He never ceases to make us smile and laugh!

Friday Funny

An Ethanism from yesterday, heard while driving home from Thanksgiving dinner: "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. Another baby was born! Yay! In 16 seconds something bad (a person dies) will happen, but two babies will be born!" 

Totally random. 

Totally Ethan.

Saturday Sweetheart

Here is Jane, our not-so-modest sweet kitty. I love that she lays around like this. So relaxed.

Saturday Sweetheart

Loved this is a photo from Thursday when we went to watch a Reading Phillies' game. What a funny face, huh? He keeps us laughing...probably a good thing.

Two months from today, he turns 4!!!

Friday Funnies

A funny little funny for you to enjoy on this edition of Friday Funnies. How many times can I use the word funny? Funnily enough...only a few. 

Hope you enjoyed your Friday, and that it was...funny!

Wordless (Mostly) Wednesday

Okey-dokey!

Of Three-Year-Olds and Literalness

Just as his siblings before him, Ethan is a constant comedian...without meaning to be.

A collection of his recent sayings and happenings:

"I can't clean up. I lost my 'fast power' in the jungle."

"I will still love you when I am a giant. I'll be a giant when I'm 83...because 83 is a big number."

While watching Edward play at his last soccer game, I noticed that he kept falling over. "Wow! I think Edward lost his legs." Ethan stared out into the field and then burst into tears. I didn't realize why he was crying until Emily told me that Ethan really thought Edward lost his legs. It wasn't until I showed him that Edward was still running around on fully-connected legs that he understood it was just an expression.

Ethan recently told us that his name is now "T-Han" because "the 'e' is silent and helps the 't' say its name." Interesting that he gets the concept...even if it isn't in the proper context.

Edward told us that he "saw" his name on one of the pieces of pizza on the big plate of extra pieces in front of him. Ethan stared at the plate for another five minutes before saying, "I don't see it."

Friday Funnies

SO true! (Do I hear "Amen!" from all the parents out there?)

Enjoy, and have a very fun Friday!

H is for...

Hormones.

Our seems to be full of them these days.

Estrogen. Progesterone. Testosterone. More estrogen.

With a pubescent girl and a pre-pubescent boy and a toddler-turned-preschooler boy...and a cycling mom...

Ugh.

It's enough to send any sane husband person -- sans hormones -- running for the hills.

Sometimes I wish I had a tent like the women had in the days of Moses from the Bible.  A tent to stay separate from everything and everyone who annoys me.............. But I digress.

Stuart recently came up with the best-est ever idea for me. (Did I mention how much I love this man?)

He said when we move one day, he's going to make sure that we have a "period" room for me.

A period room just for me! Like my very own indoor tent.

And are you ready to hear the design of said-room?

(Hold onto your hats, everyone. It's awesome!)

It will be an oversized room with a big claw-footed tub in one corner and a cupboard full of bath bubbles of all kinds nearby, as well as a cupboard filled with chocolate and a coffee maker and a television with a DVD player and Roku and a cupboard filled with Kiefer movies and chick-flicks.

No kidding. He said ALL of that.

(Did I mention how much I love this man?)

Of course, all that could really only happen after the kids leave home....in another 20+ years...and by then I'll be past "times-of-months."

Still, what's to stop me from taking a bubble bath whilst enjoying some chocolate and a Kiefer-y movie even with hormones?

I'll hold onto my dream, though. It's what makes these "special" times-of-month bearable....for me and him.

A Few Ethanisms

"Out of the mouths of babes," says the old cliched saying.

When my older two kids were a bit younger, I used to jot down what I called "Emilyisms" and "Edwardisms," funny little quotes that I picked up along the way of their early kidhood. That's the thing about little ones. As they learn about language and life, they say the darndest things.

Ethan, of course, is no exception.

*   *   *

Today, he was singing a favorite kids' song in a low growl-ly voice. "I'm gonna catch you...you better run...I'm gonna catch you. Here I come."

I overheard it as I was sitting close by and said, "Wow! That sounds ominous."

"I'm not ominious," he said, in protest. "I'm not an ominous boy."

*    *    *

Stuart was heading out the door for work.

Ethan hugged him, kissed him, and said, "Drive carefully."

"Okay," Stuart answered.

Ethan looked up at him and laughed. "You're s'posed to say, 'Always,'" he informed him.

"Okay," Stuart said. "Wanna try again?"

Ethan nodded and stood on tippy-toes to hug and kiss him again. In his mind, "try again" mean the entire scene.

*   *   *

On Easter, we decided to do our egg hunts one at a time this year.

We handed Ethan a plastic basket to gather his eggs, and he said excitedly, "Oh, goody! I just love going trick-or-treating."

*   *   *

Giggle-giggle-snort!

Comma, Comma, Comma Here

Here's a handy tip to remember:

What a difference a comma makes, right?

Saturday Sweetheart

In honor of Ethan's half-birthday this past Monday, I give you my latest "bribery" photo.  He wasn't much interested in having his photo taken -- yet again -- so I offered him a piece of fudge in return for a pic.

Behold the power of sugar and chocolate! (And I know...I must never ever abuse this power...)

"CHEESE!!"

A "Wait-ed" Topic

Woo-hooo!

We finally got our refund from TECH for LESS for something we bought on 11/3/09 that we never received...

After calling a gazillion million multiple times -- and since it wasn't that expensive -- we gave up.  It just didn't seem worth it.

But we just received a refund check worth...wait for it...$7.51! 

Good things come to those who wait, huh?

*wink-grin*

Back in the Saddle...Again?

There's an old Gene Autry song that's been running through my head as I type this post tonight...

"I'm back in the saddle again

Out where a friend is a friend
Where the longhorn cattle feed
On the lowly gypsum weed
Back in the saddle again

Ridin' the range once more
Totin' my old .44
Where you sleep out every night
And the only law is right
Back in the saddle again

Whoopi-ty-aye-oh
Rockin' to and fro
Back in the saddle again
Whoopi-ty-aye-yay
I go my way
Back in the saddle again..."

It's been such a long time since I made an effort to blog daily...or at least mostly daily...or even bi-weekly...or every few months?

I'm going to make another attempt because...because...

...well, because I miss it.

I know I did my one reader(s) a disservice by leaving abruptly and only blogging sporadically last year.  But I can honestly say that I didn't have the brainpower for it. I wanted to. Desperately. But there were too many other distractions -- some of which I will share later -- to keep me from my writing passion. A true "Writer's Block," mayhaps?

*wink-grin*

Sounds so dramatic, huh?

Still, I want to get "back in the saddle" and back to simply blogging.

Seems so easy in theory.......

Let's see how it pans out in reality.

Friday Funnies

While I still have several fairly important past dates to chronicle, record, and, in general, chat about (including several pretty important birthdays), I couldn't resist posting this little slide show I made of some funny photos I took of Ethan. And, yes, he is a partial-personification for the word: active; hence, the various parts of his I managed to photograph.

Enjoy a glimpse of toddlerdom at our house (Note: Count the number of smiles versus frowns. We're very blessed!) as witnessed in the space of 10 minutes.