Ellis Explains

Yesterday, Ellis decided to explain the seasons to me. She told me that it was winter. The cold rain/snow mix and over cast skies clued her in to the new season. She told me that tomorrow the sun would come out, dry up all the water and it would be Spring. All of us Ohioans can wish that she knew what she was talking about. Instead, we woke up to this:

Her disappointment was tempered by getting to wear pink sparkly boots and a hat that has a cat face. Maybe spring will come tomorrow. [It is supposed to be in the 60's on Friday. Got to love fall in Ohio.]

Haircuts

This past Saturday, Ellis got her first haircut. I was under the mistaken impression that a shoulder length bob would even out the crazy baby layers and give us some more control. Oops. We have one length now, but it is still super baby fine, thin, curly and fly-away. I guess it was worth a try. She was a real trooper.

Chase had recently been able to tuck her hair into her pants. That was my signal that we might need a trim. I asked them to take 1-2 inches and do long layers. Sitting in the chair it didn't look as short as it ended up. Still long, but the shortest layer is shoulder length and makes pony tails a little difficult. It will grow. And it did perk up the waves.

I had been planning on doing a big chop on my own hair. But after these slightly disappointing trims, frankly I am afraid to take the plunge. I guess I just need a little bit of time to further think this through.

Pumpkins

This year we carved 3 pumpkins.

This one is a tribute to our love for kitties.

This was the world's toughest pumpkin. Notice the perfectly round circles. This one needed the drill with attachments. Then a hand saw for the rest of the mouth. Good luck to any critter that wants to eat this pumpkin.





And the third pumpkin is our Cheeky Pumpkin. This is the pumpkin that Mark carved with Chase. Can you tell that it is winking at you?

She's Got 'em Pegged

We stopped into Mark's company Halloween party this afternoon. Adcom throws a big bash every year. With all the artistic types trying to 'out-costume' one another, out Chili one another, and out drink each other.

As we walked up the city street, Chase kept asking: "How much longer 'til were there?"

We entered the building and waited for the elevator. The doors opened and as we stepped in, we were hit by a strong smell. Chase looked at me, with a very serious face, and said " Smells like beer. We must be here."

Our Privileged Cat

See previous blog entries. I do not get much privacy. I rarely get to enter the bathroom alone. Whether to shower, or do otherwise.

Enter Zack. He was pawing at the door. Asking to go out. Chase let him out and told me: "Zack needs to go potty. Don't look outside. He really needs his PRIVACY."

It's true. He has it better than me...

Mul·ti·task·ing

According to Merriam Webster -
Main Entry: mul·ti·task·ing
Function: noun
Usage: often attributive
Date: 1966

1 : the concurrent performance of several jobs by a computer
2 : the performance of multiple tasks at one time

According to Jennifer: [A few examples just from Today.]

• Snuggling Ellis while emailing [One of the more pleasant combos.]
• Cleaning the bathroom while on conference calls [Might explain the crick in my neck.]
• Helping Chase get dressed while peeing [If she gets stuck, she will NOT wait. No privacy at our house]
• Reading a book while standing at the stove cooking [And not a cookbook. A mystery. No other 'me' time]

Motherhood has given me so many new and usual examples of multitasking. But somehow I just don't see m-w having a sample sentence that reads something like:

• Jennifer's ability to multitask was demonstrated by being able dress a Barbie Doll while driving. [Try it sometime. Not as easy as it sounds. ]

I Survived...

Giving the cat a bath. Unscathed. Zack declined having his picture taken after the bath, even though it would have proved to everyone that he is, under NO circumstance, a FAT cat. I am amazed at how long it has taken for the fur to start fluffing back up to normal.

Survival tips:

1. Catch the cat off guard, by pouring the bath well in advance, and making it a bubble bath* so he thinks children will be using it. [Chase, we do not chant, "Zack, You're taking a bath!" repeatedly.]
3. Wear jeans and a long sleeve shirt. [Substitute with body armor, if available.]
4. Climb in with the cat and bathe cat [Not for the faint of heart.]
5. Be thankful that in the bath remodel you went for the super deep tub. [Slippery, wet cats find tall Whirlpool tub walls difficult to climb, but does make jeans and long sleeves even more important!]

*Kitty Shampoo, of course.

A Two Year Old's Vote

Disclaimer: I am not inviting political debate. I am sure we have all agreed to disagree at this point... that said, this was too amusing not to share.



On arriving at my in-laws on Tuesday, Ellis went into total complete meltdown. [We're talking crying to the point of hiccups.] The source of her dismay? An Obama sign in the front yard. She was yelling at me. "Get it out of the yard. I DO NOT like the sign."


Of course, I know that she can't read. And has no idea what the sign says. But it does make me stop and wonder....

Blog Tag

Okay Katy. You got me. And I am willing to play. Probably only because the 4th picture in the 4th folder was CUTE!

My apologies, in advance, to those that I might tag.

Here are Rules: Go to your pictures, find the 4th file, then the 4th picture and post it. Tell the story behind the picture in your post. Then pick 4 people to tag.

My Picture:

The Info: This is Ellis in December of 2006 [just before she turned 1.] She had a love for crawling with shoes on her hands. She preferred heels. Ellis, now 2, still loves shoes. Many morning, she gets emotional if she doesn't get to pick the perfect shoes to MATCH [her definition is sometimes different than mine.]

Hmm. Who to tag?

Christa
Lorie
Carrie
Laura

Bee-hind, Take Two

Like Mother, Like Daughter. Chase is following in my footsteps. Mis-steps. Or perhaps I should say mis-sits.

Factoid 1 [that you may or may not know] : The summer I met Mark, we worked together at Sunny Lake Park. One day, I sat on a bee. The guys at work then dubbed me 'Bee-hind.'

Factoid 2 [that may fall in to the category of 'too much info]: Yesterday, Chase sat on yellow jacket... on the toilet seat.

While Chase was weeping and wailing [and there was A LOT of WAILING], Mark piped in: "Guess what Chase? Mommy used to have a nickname. Bee-hind. Now you can too!"

Ah? Is that supposed to be some sort of consolation? You just never know when the past is going to sneak up on you and... sting you on the behind.

Chase's Secret Life

I just finished the second [and hopefully last] coat of paint on the garage doors. The girls were enamoured with the step ladder. My rickety ladder does look like loads of fun. I'll have to take a picture and post it later.

Anyway, Chase told Ellis: "Step aside. Let me show you how a PROFESSIONAL does it."
She then climbed the ladder.

I asked: "Chase, a professional ladder climber?"
Chase answered: "Of course not, that would be SILLY. I am a professional TIGHT ROPE WALKER."

Hmmm....

Dirty Deer Ride Again

A year ago Ellis became obsessed with "Dirty Deer." This stemmed from an incident in our back yard with a VERY large buck. For many a moon, it was all she would talk about. It doesn't help that on any given morning we might have a whole troop in the yard. [We had 6 in the yard Monday morning.] Just re-enforces her strong feelings [negative ones, if that wasn't clear.] But I have not heard complaints about the "Dirty Deer" lately.


That brings us to this afternoon. My little girl is not feeling very good. She has a high fever. I was trying to soothe her and I called her "My dear baby girl." WHAT WAS I THINKING??? Ellis looked at me and said: "I am NOT A DEER. I am a PEOPLE. NOT a dirty deer!!!" Yep. The dirty deer ride again.

I get down. He lifts me up.*

I get down. If fact the last few days I have been REALLY down. Just all life's little issues building up to a "I just can't cope" crescendo. I can blame it on all kinds of things (and believe me I have...) but it comes down to one thing: I have been so busy lately that I have been in "Do it all. Do it myself" mode. AKA: Destined for FAILURE.

This is not the first time I have been here. And although I wish, and pray that I will not be here again, I am pretty sure that I will see this place again. Maybe I'll just be on the path and see it down the road and turn around. Maybe I'll just see it as a destination on my Life Map and pick another trip to go on instead. You see, my sinful self struggles with giving my burdens to God.

Thank you God for lifting me up. And then doing it again. You are faithful, even when I am not. You see the big picture, when I can't see beyond my nose. Your love is my steady rock and Your forgiveness my salvation.

*Audio Adrenaline

Make the Bed. Repeat.

This morning, things were running smoothly. I had made my bed and was getting dressed when Ellis wandered into the room. She was making her early morning cat noises. She pulled back the covers and climbed into bed. She asked me to join her. And I did. I took a few moments just to enjoy some cuddles from my little kitty. We could only take a few. Had to go get Chase dressed and to school. Had to make the bed. AGAIN.

Ellis, that is a chore I will gladly do twice for you. ANY day.

First Field Trip

This week marked a first for Chase. Her first Field Trip. Her class visited Lake Farm Park. Chase's review of the event:

1. It was stinky.

2. She touched a cow. BUT did not milk it.

3. There was a neat balloon room [see picture.]

4. I ruined her lunch by putting cheese on the sandwich.

5. She had to pretend to use the bathroom because it had automatic flush toilets [Chase refuses to use these as the are TOO SCARY.]

6. The bus ride was WAY TOO LONG.

7. The piglets were the cutest thing at the park.

Toe-tal Contact

Mark made it home safe and sound. He came home to an ecstatic 5 year old. Ready to burst. One who screamed animal noises all the way home from the airport... to express her excitement and joy. Amazingly, Ellis slept through the whole display.

Mark was exhausted. So on arriving home, we all piled into bed, just to hang and hopefully sleep. [Now, many of you know that Chase is not a snuggler. Her first full sentence was "Go Away." She still does not like snuggling. She likes to be NEAR you. But wants HER OWN SPACE. ] Last night, Chase couldn't bare to be separated from her Daddy. BUT the only contact she wanted were her TOES on his TUMMY.

She fell asleep that way. Happy to have her Daddy home at last.