Halloween costume pics

Getting in the Halloween Spirit!

This morning when Max and I got on the campus bus to ride to school, the bus that we got on was covered in spiders, skeletons, lights, and spider web material. LOVED IT!!!! You should have seen the look on Max's face (and the other kids on the bus) when the skeleton in the front of the bus was oooooooing and lighting up. It totally made my day. My Halloween decorations might be in storage right now, but that doesn't mean that I can't get into the Halloween spirit by sharing one of my favorite songs with you. Blame it on watching too many episodes lately of 30 Rock, but everytime I hear this song, it makes me laugh. Here's to caramel apples, hot chocolate, watching scary movies, and eating too much candy.

Kiz's new headwear

My good friend from Sierra Vista sent this hat for Kizzie and I shrieked with delight! Max of course had to model it too, but he's making his wolverine face.

An Ode to Mommy!

Today was my mother's 60th birthday and she spent it just like she wanted: reading in bed and eating chocolate. Did I ever tell you that we are very much alike? After speaking with her this morning she gave me the run down of her breakfast. (Birthday breakfasts were always a big deal in our house because we got to pick out our favorite cereal and get breakfast in bed) Don't know if Mom ate hers in bed, but she had some sort of chocolate ganache cake, hot chocolate, diet coke, and a bowl of Banana Nut Crunch--her fav cereal. Wow, I think that I just went into sugar shock just typing that . . .

Given that this is such a milestone and I love my mother to pieces, here are some of the things that I absolutely love about her--

--She loves to read as much as I do. Many happy memories snuggling on my parents bed with my mom and both of us reading a good novel.

--She birthed me. Did I mention that she did it without drugs? God bless epidurals is my cop out.

--She is an amazing singer and pianist. All of those good music genes were passed on to me. Or should I say forced on me? (Don't worry mom, you know that I'm kidding)

--She makes mean pasta. To quote my husband, "It will make your tongue jump out of your mouth and slap you bald headed!" I will never forget our Christmas in Hattiesburg of homemade raviolis and baked chicken.

--She taught me the way of the sewing machine. Think over twenty years of homemade Easter and Christmas outfits for me and my sis. And it's still going for the next generation.

--Most of all, she just LOVES me. Being a mommy is tough, and she has always been my biggest cheerleader and example. I LOVE YOU MOM!!!!!!!

Ps--The pictures above of mom and me are proof that Kizzie actually looks like me.

I Caught the Elusive Smile!

Ha ha ha!!!! Go me!!!!!! After about three months of trying to catch Kizzie smiling on camera . . . I got it! She just grins and grins all of the time, and if you catch her in the right one, she has a wee dimple on her right cheek. She also has Jack's eyebrows. Not the fact that they are dark and fuzzy, but the fact that she can move them independently and make some very amusing faces. I just had to take a picture of her in her cute halloween outfit (I totally wish that they made it in my size) sent from Aunt Ellie and Uncle Homer, and adorable hat knitted by Shelly in Strawberry. I hope that you think she's as cute as I do.

Mommy Daughter Day!

Yesterday I was kicked out of my apartment all day because they were taking out our old furnace and getting rid of the asbestos. From 9:00 to 5:00 I took Kiz out on the town (I'm still getting over the fact that I don't live in the boondocks anymore and a trip to town doesn't take half of the day) and it was lovely. What to do by yourself with your daughter? (albeit infant daughter)--wannabe shopping at Target! She just cooed and smiled as I looked through the racks of clothes and dollar bins that I can't afford. Never fear! The only purchases that I made were essentials like baby food and toothpaste.

Highlights of the day:

-Biting into a decadent piece of cheesecake that I ate with lunch in the car. Kizzie, as always, was trying to swat at it and drooling. What can I say? She's related to me!

-Hanging out at the library and browsing books.

-Cuddling with her in the truck while I read the latest Janet Evanovitch for two hours! (And she slept!)

-Just reveling in the fact that I had nothing to do and no particular place to go. Ahhhhhh.


While I was with Kizzie at Target, an old memory slammed me and I almost laughed. Lily was with me during this event, and she probably remembers. Many years ago when I was in the midst of my depression and hating my horrible job, Max had an early morning doctor's appointment and I took the morning off to take care of it. Afterwards, we hung out at the Sierra Vista Target for an hour until I had to get back. We were sitting in the food court area and were surrounded by gads of moms and their children. They were laughing, talking, some of them complaining about being stuck in the house all day, and I had this overwhelming irrational desire to slap them in the face and scream. WHY did they get to spend this leisurely morning in Target with their kids when I had to go to the devil job and pay someone to watch my baby? WHY did I have to miss out on precious hours of my son's life for no good reason? (except to feed my family, of course) Now don't get me wrong, I see the other side of the coin now, but at the time all of those silly moms represented what I really really wanted and couldn't have. Let me tell you it ACHED to return to my classroom that afternoon. In retrospect, I probably would have been sobbing at home with Max in my lap if given the opportunity to be a stay at home mom then. Whew...
And now I'm livin the "good" life. Chillin at Target with my girl. I've finally been given the answer to my prayers and I'm not in crazyland anymore so I can actually enjoy it. Cheers (diet Pepsi of course) to that!

Fall is in the Air, and it smells good!

Last week was our neurology appointment with Max. He hasn't seen his doctor for two years, so we were really curious to see what she would say. Can I say that we completely love his doctor? She is casually dressed and very sincere. When she was checking his reflexes she commented on the huge number of bruises on his shins. We discussed his overwhelming klutziness, and then she nonchalantly had him run down the hall and back. "Yep", she said, "It's definitely that he's not paying attention very well. He was running full speed down the hallway staring to the side". Nice to know that she has such scientific methods of determining things. So it's not directly neurological, but because of his difficulty focusing, which is a result of his condition, it is. Make sense? For the first time in this whole journey with Max, it hit me that we are in no way past the woods, so to speak. His doctor doesn't need to see him again until puberty, when certain neurological problems could manifest. Puberty? Um, I'd rather not ponder that right now. Max throws a fit when his netflix cartoons have streaming difficulties, and is upset when a picture on the wall is crooked. I'd rather not think about the frustration of pubescence. Yes, it was difficult when we discovered his condition and we had NO idea what it meant for his future. Yes, it was really really difficult when he had night terrors and horrible bashing head fits on the floor around three because of language delays. Yes, it is hard right now to see how he doesn't really fit in with the kids around him, even the ones at his developmental level. (He doesn't care yet, but I'm sure one day he will). Yes, it is difficult to realize that his little sister will one day surpass him in many ways but that he will still love her. Contrary to my cautious nature, Heavenly Father has put me in line for the roller coaster that goes upside down and into tunnels. We have in no way conquered this mountain, and I think for the first time I am realizing that Max will never just be delayed, something that keeping him back a little in school will fix. He is just very very special. Different, unique, and always mine.

On a different note. I can't afford to get my hair professionally trimmed, so I coerced my husband into doing it yesterday. He was really really scared of ruining my hair, but it turned out pretty good! When I first woke up this morning it looked a little bit Joan Jettish and I drew in a quick breath, but no--it was just bed head. It's okay people, my hair has survived! Kizzie was a pumpkin today (pictures to follow soon) and Max looked really nice in his new white shirt bought by granny. Take a picture folks, his shirt will never be this clean again! Oh Well! Love you all, have a great day!