Where to start???

The last few weeks have been quite full...much to my surprise. As Kendall is out of school until next week - I was terrified of having nothing to do with the kids until she starts again...and boy was I wrong!!! We have been very busy it seems...

First of all - Kendall had her first dentist appointment. Now I know what some of you are thinking...isn't she too young?? Well...apparently so... I had read that pediatricians (I never did ask my own...just the "they" that you read about) say that a good time for a first dentist appointment is between 2 and 3 years old (according to Kendall's new dentist - they normally don't see anyone before the age of 3 unless there is a problem...ah well...). So...she is two and a half...so we figured why not? Lets see...she sat in the chair to have x-rays...but wouldn't let them do it...she laid down on the table to let them clean her teeth...but wouldn't let them do it...so overall...pretty non-eventful time at the dentist. The only thing she let the dentist do is brush her teeth with her brand new Cinderella toothbrush. Good news though - no cavities!!! And...I did get some pictures!! :)

Then...one day I decided to get some sidewalk chalk out for the kids to play with. We had a ball making a pink and blue mess out of not only the back porch...but also our arms and legs and hands and clothes...oh yeah...and a yellow dog!!! haha

Note the blue on his front leg/shoulder...and the pink on his nose...haha

On Father's Day, Jeff played in the pillows from our bed with the kids.

Daddy just loves tickling his little girl! :)

There should be an event in pillow jumping in the Olympics don't you think??? Note Jeff talking to Carson...see...I'm not the only one that has to tell him "no" all the time...haha

And then we decided to give them a bath...I am still rolling with laughter!!! :)

And because I realized that there isn't hardly any pictures of Carson on this post...here is a picture of him from us at the park. And yes...that is sand in his mouth...did I ever mention how much I HATE sand now that I'm a mother??? It gets literally EVERYWHERE!!! Plus - it is impossible to wash out of a child's hair. As you are scrubbing their head...you can feel the little granules moving around under your fingers and they just won't come out!!! Why can't all playgrounds use that rubber mulch stuff??? Okay...enough venting...here's the little guy:

This weekend we are going to see "Go Diego Go" live on Saturday, and to the Magic Kingdom on Sunday - so I'm sure I'll have lots of pictures to share next week!

The wonderful word "No"

No. Nnnnoooo. Nooooo. NO. NO! No, Carson. No, Kendall. No, Rally. Carson, no, don't play in the dog water bowl. Carson, no, don't get the phone. Carson, no, don't play with Rally's toy. Kendall, no, you can't have a drink of Mommy's coffee. Kendall, no, don't play on the computer. Kendall, no, please don't push Carson over. Rally, no, don't pee on the floor. Rally, no, don't bite. Rally, no, don't tackle poor Carson.

No wonder I've been feeling somewhat depressed lately...all I ever do, it seems, is tell 3 of my four children "no" on a regular basis (Chance usually is able to escape the "no"s somehow). I am constantly pulling Carson away from things that were "Kendall-proofed" when she was an infant...but are apparently not Carson proofed. It is amazing how independent he is trying to be...and how quickly he is picking up on the walking bit. Not to mention the reach of the kid. I mean...we can move things to a point that we figure only an adult can reach...and next thing you know - he has it in his pudgy little hands. He is obsessed with getting either one of the cordless phones or the remote control...and when he finally achieves his goal...he promptly comes to show me and then giggles as he tries to run/waddle/crawl away from me knowing I'm going to take it from him...then launches into a crying fit when I do take it from him.


I am constantly trying not to pull my hair out over a 2 1/2 year old that has suddenly learned independence and wants to do everything "myseff" - "I do it!" From not wanting to hold my hand as we cross a street (not an option in my mind...but it is in hers...) to not wanting my help in taking off shoes and socks...to brushing her own teeth...to pouring water on her head in the bath. ANYTHING that she thinks she might be able to do...she must do it by herself. She is definitely in the tantrum stage as well...because we have at least a minor one at least once a day now...with a total meltdown, complete with ear piercing screams, at least once a week...and those always seem to happen in public - whether at a pool as we are trying to take her away or in a restaurant when it is time to go and we take away the food that has sat untouched in front of her for over 30 minutes.


Then there is Rally. Dear, sweet, misunderstood, Rally. The poor dog never catches a break. Either I'm telling him "no" that he can't eat the kids toys...or one of the kids is trying to take one of his toys away from him...or Chance is asserting his dominance over him...or he thinks he is just playing with one of his litter mates (Kendall and Carson) and does the play-biting...not realizing that their skin isn't as tough as his...and they launch into screams and tears (no real injuries, of course, but his little baby teeth are VERY sharp) which of course prompts me to tell him "No, Rally!"

I really do feel like I'm in a cloud of negativity all day long...so that by the time Jeff gets home from work...I'm exhausted...tired of disciplining four children...tired of trying to keep up with the endless battle of keeping the house somewhat picked up so that it isn't a disaster when Jeff walks in the door...and wondering when the "fun" part of having two kids and two dogs actually begins. Sure there are snippets of time during the day that the kids and I roll around and giggle and play and read and play with blocks and with "little people" and sing and dance...and there are snippets of time during the day when Rally and I play fetch and he rests as I pet his soft head. But overall...I feel like all I do all day long is say "No."

On a brighter note, however, my dear friend Kelly and two of her four children, Lily (she will be 4 in August) and Ty (turned two in March) came over for a play date on Wednesday morning. (Her other two - James and Isabella, 2 1/2 month old twins - were home with a babysitter). Here are a few pictures of the kid's fun.






Bet you didn't know that you could fit four children and a Labrador in a sandbox huh???