Greg Brady...Part 2

I've had several people question how children wanting to go to bed at 7:30 p.m. and declaring their independence by wanting their own room is a bad thing. Well...let me clarify a few things.

For those of you that know any Oscarson, you know we all suffer from our own little versions of OCD. Some need to organize, others don't like miscellaneous hairs, and some need their houses to be free of super hero underwear in the living room. I manifest my OCD with an extreme need to have things filed away in plastic drawers and containers all over the house marked on the front in bold Sharpie marker with its contents. This move inspired by Greg Brady has thrown my world in to chaos. Matthew is sleeping on a foam pad in the living room where he has now moved his entire rolling cart of clothes AND added a laundry basket for his dirty clothes. While I applaud his resourcefulness and talent for putting dirty clothes in the right place, it is a little odd to have to usher guests, visiting teachers, home teachers, etc. pass the soiled underwear sitting in the living room.

Jake has moved his rolling plastic cart downstairs, added a laundry basket and continues to add an assortment of items to his "groovy new room". All their "hanging" clothes are upstairs in the "old" closet. Apparently there exists a fine line between rolling plastic cart clothes and hanging closet clothes and I didn't get the memo. Books are spread over 2 floors of the house (including library books from 2 different libraries) and I'm having trouble adjusting to not having things properly categorized. So...Greg Brady is disrupting my balance and stirring up my OCD. I'd love him if he were merely motivating my children to go to bed early...but he has wedged his irritating grooviness in to so much more.

And heaven help me when Matthew and Jacob see the whole Brady family riding donkeys down into the Grand Canyon and going to Hawaii and playing with poisonous insects! My life may never be the same.

Here's A Story...How Greg Brady is Ruining My Life

So...every day at 5:30 p.m., my two little boys put their lives on hold to watch "The Brady Bunch" on PBS. They each get a pillow for the couch, lay down in their special spots on the floor, and are comatose until the final "laugh" when they slowly return to consciousness and I can get them to talk to me again. Isn't it strange? I watched the Brady Bunch with a certain cult-like worship when I was young and now my children have found their way to the Brady house all on their own. What exactly is the appeal?

Anyway...today's episode was the one where Greg decides that because he is now a high school freshman, he deserves his own bedroom. He buys the vest with the fringe, the hip hugging striped bell bottoms, and big, dark sunglasses and turns his dad's "den" into his groovy bedroom. Are you with me? Do you remember this episode? Well, ole' Greg Brady lit a real bonfire under my boys because midway through the show they both jumped up and announced that they wanted their own rooms. They didn't even finish watching the episode before they had moved themselves out of the bedroom they share and in to their own "groovy" bedrooms (Jake has used that word more than a dozen times tonight and I'm starting to worry). Matthew moved himself in to the living room. He unrolled a huge foam camping pad, moved all his blankets, pillows, and stuffed animals, and brought 5 pairs of super hero underwear that he draped all over the big, blue armchair. He brought a pair of pajamas, some play clothes, and an extra pair of warm socks.

Jacob moved in to the guest room downstairs. He set up 5 library books against the night stand for some "night time reading", brought down all his bed stuff, his school uniform, his play clothes, some extra underwear, and decorated the night stand with plastic trees and dinosaurs. Both boys are sound asleep in their new digs. They couldn't WAIT to go to bed tonight. They were in jammies at 7:00 p.m. and begging for bed at 7:30 p.m. I hate Greg Brady. If my sons show up tomorrow morning with fringe and tight pants, I'm suing PBS.

Tonight at dinner Matthew asked us if he could get a car. Earlier today he told me he wanted a "motor scooter" so he could "get around easier". Just where on earth is my 4-year old having a hard time getting around to? And why are my kids growing up so fast?

They are now banned from PBS and the Brady Bunch.

"Hoppy" Easter Moments

Easter delights! Cute children in spiffy Easter outfits!















































We had a splendid Easter day! The kids woke up this morning eager to look for the easter baskets that the bunny had taken off the couch and hidden. C. had prepared a fun "treasure hunt" for them to follow which eventually led to the upstairs coat closet where the easter baskets were not only found, but loaded with goodies. I have to add a side-note...the $1.00 section at Target. We had bubbles to blow out of easter egg shaped bottles, pads of easter stickers, easter egg handle jump ropes, easter egg sidewalk chalk...it was an incredible stash for not much cash! (Hey, that rhymes!) Anyway, after devouring candy, blowing some bubbles, and letting breakfast get soggy, we put on our snazzy new Easter outfits and went to church. I don't mean to be shallow but the boys were wearing darling seersucker blue "suits" and they kept saying the funniest things. J. said he felt like he was a "21 year old man" and M. kept saying he felt like the "president of the United States". On our way to Carrie & Todd's house a little later in the day, J. strapped himself in his car seat and said, "Won't Carrie be surprised to see 3 Carr MEN instead of just boys today?" The suits had a powerful effect on their young psyches!

After a fabulous block of church meetings and an attempt at a nap, we headed for Carrie and Todd's house for more festivities. We had a delicious dinner with ham & lamb, scalloped potatoes & Mo's potato salad (Chris made the potato dishes and they were so, so yummy!), a delicious cole slaw salad, sugar peas, and other very tasty dishes. Papa, Chip & ML with kids, and our family all attended the feast and despite the fact that the kids were giving all the adults heartburn by jumping off furniture, stabbing each other with forks, and running around the room with food, it was wonderful.

After dinner, the men went outside to hide all the easter eggs (because it is obvious from the description above that what our kids needed was a little more sugar!). It was sweet to see Papa hiding eggs out in the yard. I stood and watched him from the window as I remembered watching my own Grandpa Oscarson hiding dozens and dozens of Easter eggs in his yard on 1 Devondale Lane in St. Louis. That tradition of hunting for eggs at Grandpa & Grandma Oscarson's home every spring was now being played out for MY children by their grandfather. I saw the same joy and delight on my father's face as he hid the eggs and then ran around the yard with his grandchildren helping the little ones find the specially hidden eggs. I felt so grateful for the amazing gospel plan and for the grand circle of our lives. Truly what we put out in the world comes back to us in strange, wonderful ways! I love seeing the traditions and memories that have nourished and sustained me being passed on in sweet ways to MY children. I missed my Grandpa & Grandma and the image of them sitting on their porch watching the grandkids and seeing my Grandpa trying to keep a tally of how many eggs had been found and how many were still out there. It was always a treat to find the missing easter eggs later in the year, still hiding in unexpected places all over the yard.









































The kids were not daunted by the black clouds hovering over the mountains or the cold breeze whipping in from over the lake...I'm not sure they even noticed.

After all the loot had been found and accounted for, the kids headed back in to examine the goodies and devour whatever they could before the adults noticed.



















While the children devoured their candy, the adults ate some decadent, multi-layered chocolate cake decorated with jelly beans and purple bunny Peeps with some of Todd's amazing homemade ice-cream...available in a regular or a custard. Both were divine. It was a splendid day.

During sharing time today, our music person talked about different members of her family that had passed away and after telling us a little bit about the person and why she loved them, we sang a primary song that the person had loved or that reminded our choirister of them. Then she talked about the resurrection and how she looked forward with a joyful heart to the reunion she would have with each and every person who was beyond her mortal vision now but deeply buried in her eternal vision and perspective. Today really was a day to celebrate. It was a day to celebrate my family...grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins. It was a day to celebrate Alice Rose and her new place in our family. It was a day to celebrate Grandma and Grandpa Oscarson, Aunt Boo, Aunt Ruthy and all the other amazing members of our family who are not with us but are never lost to us. It was a day to celebrate the Savior and the amazing gifts he has given us. I am so grateful for eternal nature of our lives and for the ways we are all connected to each other. It was truly a day to celebrate!

Click on the picture of Matthew and see a complete slideshow of the Easter festivities.
"Hoppy" Easter

Fast Forward

One night M. decided to see what it was like to come home from work like Dad. He put on Dad's coat, the glasses, the shoes and headed out to the car on the driveway. I watched from the window as he played out the whole scenario from car to front door where he then entered with a "Hi honey, I'm home" which I'm not sure in 8 years of marriage Chris has ever come in and said. And then he stood there and waited. I said, "Matt, what are you waiting for?" and he said, "Some cookies" and I laughed and wondered what little fantasy land he has been living in. But there is no one who seizes a moment better then my 4-year old. Every day is truly filled with a plethera of adventures just waiting to happen.

Today he and Jake and Hannah were Ninja Turtles with plastic forks as their weapons and some pretty strange ninja moves.

Tonight they were "Puss in Boots" fighting with plastic swords in snow boots and singing "I'm holding out for a hero til' the end of the night" at the top of their lungs. Some days they are whatever they find at the bottom of the costume barrel.

Sunday I was Cinderella in a retelling of the classic fairy tale with Chris as the "godfather", Jake as the king, and Matthew as the prince...I don't write the stories, I just get told what to do. I wore a pink flamingo hat to the ball and apparently I was a hit because the prince jumped back on his hobby horse and said he was riding away to the castle to get some stuff for the wedding. After about 5 minutes of waiting, I asked if he was done and he said, "Mom, just be patient. Cinderella's house is really far away from the castle." I laid on the couch and had a little shut-eye.

Last night Matt was in charge of the activity for Family Home Evening and he had us all go down to the basement to be Ninja Turtles and fight out a great battle. I got a green light saber, the pink flamingo hat, and tried some pretty crazy martial arts moves. I didn't win the battle but I sure got an adrenaline rush.

Wanna come over and play some time?

Happiness Is...

Happiness is the mail man ringing your doorbell one boring day and discovering a great, big, unexpected package sitting on your front porch. You rip the box open with so much gusto that the entire box falls apart and there sitting on your kitchen counter on 3 furry, fuzzy new friends that are each lovingly claimed and have provided HOURS of entertainment. Jake claimed the Philadelphia Chicken that he calls "Philadelphia", Matthew adopted the dog that he calls "Train-ee" (did you click the link so you understand where all this is coming from?), and Hannah has adopted the pink pig that she calls "Pink Pig" (so obviously we are big Boynton fans and own all the CD's). They eat at the table with us, they sleep in my children's beds at night, they dance, sing, do gymnastics, and even have to go to time-out sometimes when they get in to the cookies sitting on the counter. Who knew that 3 stuffed animals could bring so much happiness to this house?!

Thanks Em for the greatest mail delivery to hit our house in months!

I am a Snapdragon What Flower Are You?

I don't know if I really want to be a snapdragon. I wanted to be a tulip. I wonder what questions I would have to manipulate in order to be a red tulip?! Oh well. Happy first day of spring.

Illuminating Moment

So my whole life I thought I wanted to be an author until I attended a 3-day writing symposium last summer and realized I didn't want to BE an author, I wanted to be an editor. But then some time passed and I realized that wasn't ENTIRELY true.

I really love to write and this month I am being published for the FIRST time! Published AND paid...how 'bout that? I have been asked to write a permanent column/article for a local magazine here in Utah called "Wasatch Woman". My bi-monthly article is called "Good Reads" and will focus on books in a variety of genres. This month the article focuses on 5 of my favorite picture books.

I'm a little giddy.

The magazine has only been around for a little over a year so it is very new but has good prospects so I must insist you get a copy (or at least pick one up and read it while waiting in the check-out line at the grocery store!).

I realized driving in the car today that what I love writing about are all the many incidents in life where "truth is stranger than fiction". I love memoirs and anecdotes and getting inside people's heads and trying to understand what really is happening there. This is what I feel passionate about writing. I don't want to make up stuff because nothing fictional coming out of my head could possibly be more interesting than all the stuff that happens around me every day. And I'm here to tell you...there are some weird people out there with interesting stories to tell. Like the lady today at the pool who had this to say:

Lady: Excuse me, is that your ball?

Me: Oh no, my daughter just found it in the pool. Is it yours?

Lady: Yes, it belongs to my son. He is 2 years old and has all kinds of sensory motor problems and autism and maybe even a little bit of ADHD.

Me: Oh.

Lady: Yeah, his brothers are swimming around the lazy river with him and boys are just so crazy and I hope they don't drown him.

Me: Yeah. Well, thanks for letting us play with the ball.

I looked at my sister-in-law and she looked at me and we both watched this lady swim off to go find her son being drowned by his brothers in the lazy river. Really...I could not make this stuff up.

Anyway, this has been a random post. I must be tired and I have lots of pool water still splashing around behind my eyes and in my ears. Good night!

Vampires

My dear, sweet readers...you are going to have to trust me on this one. It is going to take a great deal of faith to go do what I am about to ask you to do but I need you to press forward and be courageous. You will not be disappointed...or if you are, then I cannot not help you and I urge you to seek professional help.

I have just finished reading 2 books that have provided some SERIOUS entertainment and engrossing reading. I just spent an entire day at a BYU symposium listening to the fabulous author speak about her books and the experience of writing them. They are Young Adult books so I'm not advocating because they are deep and life-changing. I am urging you to read them because they are utterly fascinating, very well-written, and totally "neglect your life so you can devour the books" good. They are TWILIGHT and NEW MOON
by Stephenie Meyer .

Now I must utter another warning...do not read the back of the book. You will wrinkle your nose in disgust and give a little "ugh" and be tempted to walk away. But you must not.

Because I was going to this author symposium, a friend loaned me these two books so at least I could do a little reading and figure out who this author was (I was familiar with the other 2 authors at the conference but not her). My friend went on and on and on about these books and because I was in the middle of reading another book for a book club, I set them aside. Now my husband, who is not a "voracious" reader of novels, must have picked them and read the back where the word "vampire" and "blood sucking" appear and he started reading the first book. He DEVOURED it! Found it on his night stand, in the bathroom, and frequently saw it traveling around the house tucked under his arm. Then to my utter amazement, he picked up the sequel and read that one as well. It didn't take long once I opened TWILIGHT to get sucked in as well.

The author is a BYU graduate, mother of 3, living in Phoenix Arizona where she had never really done much writing or had anything published and then one night had a vivid dream that she woke up and had to write down. It became one of the scenes in the book that started the whole thing. Check out her website then go check out the books.

Be warned...they are young adult fiction and it is a fascinating love story but you do have to wade through a few scenes of teenagers looking into each others eyes and saying things like, "What are you thinking?", "No, what are YOU thinking?" but stay with it. There is NO sex, NO language, NO gratuitous anything...go get them and read them.

Then blog and let me know what you think...

Happy Birthday Sweet Friend!

This post is dedicated to my sweet, darling, sassy, gutsy, beautiful friend who is not only celebrating her 36th birthday today but is also celebrating being done with another round of chemo.

I just talked to her on the phone tonight and hung up feeling so grateful for the gift she is in my life. I love her passion for life and her determination to press forward in the face of darkness. I love her willingness to celebrate all the small and big moments of life that need more celebrating in most of our lives. I love that she is my friend.

Happy birthday amazing girl! Thank you for letting me share a small part of this wonderful day with you!

Ages 3-6

I was sitting in my daughter's room the other day playing with her and a box of big plastic cookies, ice-cream cones, and cupcakes. We had been playing for about 40 minutes when I started yawning and had to lay down on the floor for a little "rest". I have to admit...I was really, really bored. As the thought hit my conscious mind, I begin to feel the first intimations of "guilty mommy complex" when my eye caught hold of the box the toy had come in. It said, "Appropriate for children 3-6 years of age" and suddenly everything changed. Why was I feeling guilty that I was bored playing with a toy that was clearly intended for children ages 3-6? If I was thoroughly enjoying this whole thing, there would be something really wrong. I'm 36 years old for crying out loud! Ha. I didn't have to feel guilty. I could pat myself on the back for intently and enthusiastically playing with plastic bakery food with my 2 year old for 40 whole minutes. And my mother's mantra right now to help alleviate my feelings of play inadequacy is, "I never played with you kids and you all turned out alright!" And so we did.

I really am trying to play with my kids more and to really be right there in the moment rather than being there physically but drifting somewhere else mentally. There are precious few years that they will be clamboring for our time and attention and then far more years where we will be running after them begging for a little time and attention. I have to remember that. Sometimes it's hard in the middle of Rescue Heroes or "Hey mom, pretend you are the baby and I'm the dad and you have to go to time out because you are in trouble" games. But I am learning to only buy my kids toys that have a high "parent" interest factor and to remember that I can involve them more in things that are interesting to me too.

Matter of fact...J. sat down on the computer next to me tonight and started typing a story. It is called "Rat" and the first sentence says, "Rat is fat". I can't wait to see where this adventure leads...

Sandra Boynton Jewelry

Is this unbelievable? Go check this out:

It is Boynton JEWELRY! (Am I spelling that word that means "shiny things" wrong?) And by the way...I'd like the "Administer chocolate immediately" bracelet. Thank you for your kindness.

Stay-At-Home Mom

Is it just me or are these 3 of the cutest kids you have ever laid eyes on? I am so charmed by them that sometimes it is hard not to just sit and stare at them. I love playing games with J. or tickling M. with his big growly laugh, or having a "hot chocolate" party with H. with her little cups and teapot. I love when they are all silly and happy and playing with each other. Having 3 little, little people is hard, hard work. And having 3 little people who are very stubborn and independent and opinionated almost makes me crazy some days but then something will happen and I'll forget the frustration and be completely in love with them again. I've never, ever worked so hard in my entire life! Not when I was working 40+ hours a week or going to graduate school or going to school or doing internships or whatever! I feel like I get out of bed every morning and I'm running until I lay down at night...and even then I find myself sometimes getting up (depending on who let M. watch Scooby Doo or if J. got his hands on a glass of water before bed!) Sometimes I feel like all I do is feed, wipe bums, clean, do dishes, do laundry, clean some more, get more snacks, and I HAVE to be sure to wear a different outfit each day or it starts to all feel like the same day. And then you get up the next day and do it all over again. And yet in all the mundane and nitty-gritty, there is something magical. There must be...because I keep doing it. There is something deep down inside of me that tells me I'm part of something really amazing, something really fantastic. There is something that tells me to keep having faith and trusting in the promises I see in my 3 little people and the blessings of the Lord. Something propels me to do one more load of laundry, clean one more bathroom, and read "Knufflebunny" to M. one more time. And sometimes at night when it is very quiet and everyone is asleep, I lay awake and panic because time moves so quickly and my little children are growing up and every day that passes is one less day with their chubby cheeks and adoring kisses and funny comments. Every night represents one less day with my 3 children around me where I know they are safe and I know what they are doing and I don't have to worry about things out there that don't have their best interest at heart. Being a mother is a tough job...whether it is hating the housework or loving your children so much it hurts. I am grateful for this job that is teaching me so much about myself and others. I still have quite a ways to go before "retirement"...what a journey it is!

Hello New Year! Am I Late?

I haven't posted for so long. Here is why:

1) I was running a preschool for 10 very small children. We made lots of stuff with glitter and put on a play called "The Gingerbread Baby" where they each got to choose what character they wanted to be when chasing the cookie. We had Spiderman, 2 Cinderellas, a spider, a cowboy, a horse, a wizard, and a couple of other things I can't remember. It was chaotic and hilarious.

2) I was trying to figure out how to organize 134 kids and 50 adults into a functioning primary. We had a "Teacher Breakfast", 2 musical numbers in the ward Christmas program, and a "Meet Your Teacher Breakfast" and in between we had to change things a million times and hold a million meetings and stay awake lots of nights stressing.

3) Christmas. Presents, cards, wrapping, cookies to the neighbors, decorating, out of town visitors, etc.

4) My husband's parents came home from their mission to New Zealand and 8 of the 9 siblings in my husband's family came in to town for the event. (They did NOT all stay here!)

5) Out of town visitors staying here (but not all of them).

6) A Christmas "Journey Around the World" class party for my son's kindergarten class (actually, both sessions of the kindergarten. Still not sure how I got roped into that...) And why did I volunteer to be in charge?

7) Lots of playing and frolicking with family and loved ones.

8) Strep throat (my son) and lots of congestion and colds.

9) An anxiety attack

10) A baby shower for a lady in the ward who just adopted 2 darling children after waiting years and years for kids. Invited the whole ward...nothing like putting your house under scrutiny at Christmas time. Worried the whole evening that there was a pair of poopy underwear somewhere or a soggy diaper under the couch!

My new year's goal to learn how to balance my life. There are SO many good, wonderful, magnificent opportunities out there waiting to be grasped but not all at the same time. If I hear of something wonderful, I grab it without stopping to assess where it will fit in to the grand scheme of my life and how it will affect those I love. There is the tricky part...you don't want to squeeze out the BEST part of your life with a bunch of little things that in the end don't add up. I dropped preschool. This is HUGE for me. I agonized over it for weeks but in the end it had to be about my family and me. And I have to admit that it has given me back a HUGE part of my life that I didn't realize had gone MIA. I'm sleeping more than 5 hours a night, I don't feel constant irritation and frustration, and I have more time to devote to the little people that really need me. I'm learning how to say "no". That isn't really true but I'm thinking about how to say "no".

I realize there is a time and season to all parts of life and part of being a grown up is recognizing that some great opportunities need to wait. That is hard for me but trying to do it all at once really messes things up. I feel like if I'm not running around like crazy being involved in every thing means I'm not making the contribution I could be making. And I like being involved. There are so many things I love and so many things that fascinate me and make me curious. But I don't want to wake up one day and realize the most interesting and precious things to me have grown up and moved away.

So 2007 will be the year to slow down and "delete". It will be the year to savor the minutes of every day...good and bad. It will be the year to blog more and stress less. I want to sit back on December 31, 2007 and instead of wondering if Valium could be administered in an IV every night while I sleep, think back on all the things I didn't miss because I chose to really be there...body and spirit.

Here is to hopes and wishes and good intentions! Cheers!

Carr Family Christmas Letter 2006

Many of you are going to receive a "hard copy" of this whole post in the mail. So if you want to reserve any of the suspense, stop reading now. For those of you that don't get the letter, please don't take it personally. I ran out of Wal-Mart xmas cards and stamps.

Enjoy.

December 2006
Dear Family & Friends,
Merry Christmas! It really feels like I was just writing a Christmas letter…the days can seem like an eternity but the weeks and months fly by! It has been a year of adventures, amazing memories, trials, challenges and untold joy! We truly wouldn’t have it any other way!
The year started with Chris and I dropping our 3 darlings off in California to spend a week with their aunt, uncle and cousins while Chris and I went to Hawaii to attend my brother Spencer’s wedding. My ENTIRE family (all 7 siblings with spouses and some extended family) were able to attend and it was unbelievable! Snow cones, sea turtles, magnificent scenery and uninterrupted nights of sleep…perfect.
In October we got crazy and took the whole family to Disneyland. After losing M. for 30 minutes, scaring J. to death on Splash Mountain, and watching H. melt down from sheer fatigue, I called my mom on my cell phone and told her “If this is the happiest place on earth, then shoot me now!” Needless to say, the hard moments passed and the remainder of our time in Anaheim was spectacular! I loved being away from the chaos of our daily lives and just being together as a family.
In between the big adventures we are enjoying life’s daily adventures. J. (5) started kindergarten this year at a charter school here in American Fork. He LOVES school and I love uniforms that match and don’t have superheroes on the front! He still loves to do any kind of “project” and has become quite an athlete playing Tball and soccer this year. He is a great big brother & oldest child!
M.(4) started preschool this year in our basement with his mom as his teacher. I really thought I could handle 10 children in my basement having a wonderful social, emotional, and academic experience…if constant wrestling and fighting over fairy wings and Rescue Heroes, crying over bags of snacks, getting play dough and paint ground into the carpet and spending endless amount of time learning to cut a line with a pair of scissors fits the above description, then maybe it is going better than I think. I am learning so much…I don’t know if M. would say the same but we are definitely having a grand adventure together! M. has an amazing imagination and sense of humor. He keeps us laughing!
H.(2) loves to wear “ballerina” skirts, carry a purse, and talk on the phone to Sleeping Beauty. She is all girlie -girl and we love it! The boys are utterly fascinated by the world of girls and I find them watching “Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses” more than Hannah does! She is totally independent, stubborn, sassy and sweet!
Chris continues to work at Imagine Learning, leads the Webelos in weekly adventures, and keeps our family all sane and together. He mops floors, changes diapers, tells great stories to the kids, and is truly adored by his wife and children.
I am still Primary President, teaching preschool and working at J.’s school and still haven’t learned how to balance my life and say “no”. Some things don’t change year to year.
We are so grateful for the love, support and friendship we share with each of you. Our relationships are our greatest JOY and grandest ADVENTURES. We are especially grateful at this time of year for the joy we celebrate in our Savior’s birth and life. We hope each of you feel that Spirit and our love this season!

How I Got Herpes at Disneyland

I've had a few requests for closure to a previous entry that mentioned contracting herpes on my family vacation. It went like this...

On our 10 hour drive to California, I started to notice an insatiable need for chapstick. Not just a "Hey, could you pass the chapstick when you have a minute" but a "clawing through the car like a heroin addict looking for the tube of mosturizer to get their next high" kind of feeling. My lips were SO dry and tingly and weird feeling. It was a little strange but we were driving through the desert so I dismissed it as being a severely dehydrated condition.

A couple of days later the blisters came on. And then I woke up one morning and my lips were huge and swollen WITH the oozing blisters that would pop and drip down my chin. Chris thought it was funny that we were in California and I looked like I had received a really botched up Botox job. J. told me I looked like the sea crustacean from Pirates of the Caribbean. I was walking around Disneyland with a wad of napkins to wipe the ooze, hand sanitizer and wipies to prevent spreading the infection and tubes of lip stuff to try and ease the pain and discomfort. I finally broke down one morning and called my mom. I told her to goggle my systems and see what came up. Moments later she had an article that perfectly described all my symptoms. "Mom, that's it! That's it! What does it say?" to which my mom replied, "Oh, you have herpes simplex. Don't kiss anyone. It is highly contagious!" I felt so unclean.

I don't know how I got herpes. I only kiss one person on the lips and 3 people on the cheek. I don't touch drinking fountains or kiss anything in public places but now I watch the ads on TV for pills that control your herpes outbreaks with serious interest and concentration. My outbreak lasted a FULL 10 days and was so awful there are no words to describe it.

So...does anyone want a big slobbery kiss?

Everyone Needs An Aunt

On Friday night I drove the kids to Macy's Department Store to see their Aunt Carrie and meet their Aunt ML for the annual "fragrance" event. There really is nothing else my children love more than their aunts and uncles and cousins and grandmas and grandpas! We are so fortunate to be surrounded by so many of these people and I am here to tell you...don't underestimate your power and influence in any one of these roles. My children see their aunt Carrie and ML pretty regularly but every time is a thrill for my kids. They get all giddy and excited and want to hold their hands and walk with them and talk their ears off and tell them everything and ride in their cars and give them hugs and kisses. I watched my children clambor for their aunts attention and I am so, so grateful for sweet, kind, gentle women who love and adore my children. You see, these aunts make my children feel like the most important people in the world. These aunts act just as excited to see their niece and nephews as they are to see them. Even though they have been caring for their own children and working hard all day they still kneel down and listen and love them. They hold their hands and show them cool Christmas decorations and ride the escalator. They let all 3 ride in their mini van even though it means giving up precious "alone" time. I just can't tell you how beautiful the few minutes we all spent together that evening were. I walked across the parking lot to my car with my heart overflowing with gratitude not only for my children, but for the amazing people who are helping me raise my children. The influence of these people in my family (both sides!) is priceless. They will be able to touch and influence my children in ways that I can't. I will continue to need their help and support and I recognize that I could never do this job alone.

So 3 cheers for all the uncles, aunts, cousins, and grandparents who are riding escalators, letting kids push the buttons in elevators, and changing the lives of every little person around them! I love you!

Quote of the Day...

This morning J. went and tackled his Dad in bed to wake him up. As they were wrestling, J. suddenly sat up, sniffed the air and said, "Dad, your breath smells like the snake house at the zoo!"

Aren't children subtle?

More Unsolicited Recommendations

I am a total book junkie. Serious addict. Mostly children's picture books, some young adult fiction. And a kind commentor made the tragic mistake of asking me for a few suggestions regarding books for babies. I will try to limit myself to my top choices. But if the list is not long enough, I'd be happy to suggest my life away. I love books.

My Top Reading List for Babies, Toddlers, and Other Helpless Dependents:

1) What Shall We Do With the Boo Hoo Baby? (Cressida Cowell)

2) Five LIttle Ladybugs (Melanie Girth and Tony Griego)
[Many variations on this theme are also available and they are all darling but the ladybugs are my personal favorite!]

3) Kiss Good Night! (Amy Hest & Anita Jeram) [There is a whole series of "Sam" books and they are all wonderful. I am very much attached to darling Sam bear from this book. Collect all the books. They are warm and beautiful and perfect for snuggling. My daughter's bedroom is decorated around 4 prints from this book.]

4) Olivia (Ian Falconer) [My most favorite pig. She is hilarious and endearing and my whole laundry room is done with Olivia the pig. I even own the tea set...]

5) 3 board books by Leslie Patricelli...Quiet/Loud, Big/Little, Yummy/Yucky [These 3 books are a MUST HAVE! From the time H. was little, she would gleefully join in on these books. They are so funny!]

6) Don't Let The Pigeon Drive the Bus (Mo Willems) [My children laugh themselves silly every time we read this book!]

7) Knufflebunny (Mo Willems) [This is my darling M.'s favorite book!]

8) Sandra Boynton: every board book she has ever written. Children simply will not grow up normal if they have not properly been indoctrinated by her board books from birth.

9) Where the Wild Things Are (Maurice Sendak)

10) The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Eric Carle)

11) Counting Kisses (Karen Katz)

12) Good NIght, Gorilla (Peggy Rathmann): Be prepared. If you choose to introduce this book, you will be reading it 15 times a day for at least a year.

13) Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See? (Eric Carle)

14) Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? (Eric Carle)


Oh my goodness. Have I said too much? If you owned these 13 million books, you would never leave your comfy chair and you would be in reading heaven all your days.

Read to your children every day for at least 20 minutes. That single act alone will change your child's world.

Paradise Found!

Last Thursday, I boarded a plane bound for Manchester, NH where a rental car was waiting to whisk me off through the fabulous fall foliage to Portland, Maine.

I was invited to accompany a friend on her much needed "mom getaway". Due to her husband's immense traveling and thereby immense accumulation of frequent traveller points, we were able to take this trip without paying for airfare, hotels, or rental car. Truly amazing. Even more amazing that I was invited to share the generosity and go along.

We left Thursday afternoon. At the airport, we stocked up on trashy celebrity magazines and boarded the plane where we quickly settled in for a long, childless plane ride. The ginger ale tasted sweeter, the snacks were extra good, and we talked, analyzed, therapized (is that a word?), laughed, giggled, and played the whole way. After finding our rental car, we drove about 90 minutes to our hotel in Portland where we were greeted by warm cookies, cool bottles of water, 2 double beds with feather pillow top mattresses, real feather comforters, and crisp, soft white sheets. The bed even had a throw pillow with "Sweet Dreams" embroidered across the front. The next morning we had "complimentary tickets" for the breakfast buffet downstairs and I'm not talking a bagel and some crusty cream cheese. I'm talking scrambled eggs, hash browns, bacon, sausage, fruit buffet, pastries buffet, etc. etc. I actually swiped 2 jars of jam because they were seriously so little and cute. And this was just the first 12 hours...

This trip was so therapeutic to my soul. There is something about the wild ruggedness and sheer breathtaking beauty of the east coast that really touches my spirit in a powerful way. We saw white lighthouses that reached into the deep blue sky. Lakes and rivers and ocean with pounding surf and wild waves. We ate haddock with newburg sauce in a charming local restaurant called The Lobster Shed. We drove through magnificent trees with colors you can't even imagine. We touched the cold Atlantic Ocean and marvelled on our knees at the beautiful things growing in tide pools. We shopped at little antique shops, took a million pictures on a million beautiful stone bridges in front of white steepled churches in quaint, quiet, beautiful towns and villages. We got lost a million times and didn't worry about being found. We talked about husbands, children, marriages, dreams, disappointments, frustrations, joys, and hopes. We told stories about high school, old boyfriends, rainy wedding days, rebellious teenage days and found memories we both thought we had lost. We drank lots of caramel hot apple cider from Starbucks and never took for granted a single old stone New England home. I found myself standing still in lots of different places with my eyes closed and breathing deeply, feeling like something inside me was being filled that had been empty for some time. I don't know what that empty place was...maybe it was missed moments of quiet and solitude. Maybe it was finding the things that are so beautiful and magnificent to me that they take my breath away. Maybe it is how the air smells or the sound the leaves make or how seagulls sound flying above the water. It was precious time.

Every woman needs time like this. Taking a trip like this was truly a precious gift from a dear, wonderful friend. It is a tradition that I hope to replicate every year. With all that I love and hold dear, I needed 4 days to reconnect with myself and with my life. I didn't spend one moment thinking about teaching preschool or planning a primary program or worrying about sharing time or stressing about house cleaning or child raising, or any of the other things that fill my life on a day to day basis. For 4 days I thought about different things, new things, and played with new ideas. When I came home, I ready to face my challenges and joys with new perspective. I have had moments that have been difficult and where I have longed to sit on the rock in Cape Elizabeth, Maine and just be still but I also have a profound joy that I have a life filled with magnificent people and opportunities. It is a balancing game and I'm still a novice.

To Tonya...thank you from the bottom of my heart.

To Chris...thank you for being a husband who sincerely tries in every way to understand and support me. Thank you for watching our children and making this possible.

To Mo and ML and CeliAnne...thank you for loving my children and being willing to take them on. You helped in very meaningful ways to make this opportunity possible.

And to all the women who carry heavy burdens every day...remember to stop and rest and close your eyes and breathe deeply. Rest. Be still.