Can I get a witness?

It's been a busy few days. Brad has had a crazy call week. Jamo's asthma is acting up. Lots of school activities.

Yesterday, I was taking Sugar to a friend's house so I could help at Roo's class. On my way, there was a car accident in front of me. Yay. I get to be a witness. Though, it is pretty obvious it was that someone had turned into oncoming traffic. I still made it to Roo's class in time.

In other news, we got Philly Phan Phever and have been glued to the World Series. The boys are even loving it! Then today I kept Jamo home. He looked and sounded awful, but with the parade and party today, I felt so bad keeping him home. I asked him if he wanted to go or stay home, and he said stay home. Wow. He must not feel good if he is willing to skip all of that. He went back to sleep and slept until noon. Poor kid.

We got some Halloween money from Grandma Jessie, so we got the kids costumes and even costumes for me and Brad. And my mom left her camera, so I'll be able to take pictures of it. WOOT WOOT!

Guest post

Okay, so I don't really have a guest, but I asked Nickie (yes, the same Nickie I got the sticky buns recipe from) if I could use some of her blog on mine. I was really touched by what she said and I wanted to share it:

Last week we finished dinner when Nick arrived home from work. We all sat down, and discussed our day as we ate. After we were done eating there was another mess to clean up, Lexi and Chloe both needed baths, and the bedtime routine was about to begin again. Didn't we just do this? Oh yeah-yesterday we did! I just looked at Nick and said, "sometimes I feel like I'm living in the ground hog day movie. We get up, get ready, eat breakfast, clean breakfast, go on an outing, come home for lunch, clean up lunch, take naps, get up, have a snack, clean up snack, clean up house, get dinner ready, eat dinner, clean up dinner, give kids bath, get kids ready for bed, read stories to kids, say prayers with kids, sing songs with kids, finish cleaning the house, go on the computer, talk on the phone, or veg, while watching t.v. then go to bed ourselves and wake up and do it all over again. and again. and again." I was having one of those pity party for myself days. Just down in the dumps...

I really worked hard this week to not look at my day as "another ground hog day" and I realized that it's all about my attitude. I can look at it like, there's another mess to clean up, or here we go again, or I can jam up some music and party with my daughter while putting her toys away.

There is something magical about recording the day-to-day mundane things of life. I am reminded to be grateful I have the ability/privilege to do the dishes, to play and read stories with my girls, and enjoy their laughing (and sometimes whining) as I type this. I am also lucky to have my own Prince who loves me despite my rollercoaster personality. That even "groundhog" days are a blessing! I take it all for granted, and really needed this wake up call.

Then this morning I woke up and read Laura's blog and was refreshed yet again to remember to count my blessings:

How do you think of your children? On any given day, would you say your children are a blessing or a burden? Here is a challenge to you…How are you?”…“How is the baby?”…“How are your kids?”… We all hear these questions every day. Do you know a mom who always answers something like this: “Well, I haven’t killed my 2-year-old yet, so I guess that’s good.” Or, “I’m just exhausted,” or, “Things are absolutely crazy – I am so stressed out!”

Maybe that frazzled, haggard, bewildered mommy is someone you know. Maybe it’s you. I know I’ve been there. Here is my question to you today… are we bearing our blessings as burdens? Those babies that we dreamt of and prayed for, that we had so much fun choosing names for, that we counted the days to meet… are they burdens to us now? Those homes that we were ecstatic to move into… are they burdens now? That husband that we couldn’t live without, that we picked out the wedding dress for, that we cried and ached and waited by the phone for… is he a burden now? That job you needed, you wanted and prayed for, that provides food and clothing for your family… is it a burden now?Sometimes it seems to me like a mantle we as moms must carry. We must be tired, we must be stressed out; we must be harried and frazzled, we must be lucky just to make it through the day. Are we bearing our blessings as burdens? Are we tired? Absolutely.

As moms, we know about the 2 a.m. feedings, the nightmares, the wet beds, the midnight curfews. Do things get a little stressful between PTA meetings, dance class, the T-ball game, and dinner on the table at 6? Sure they do. Are husbands always a joy when they get home from work? No way. Is scrubbing the potty, doing the laundry, and cleaning the high chair tray the greatest thrill we’ve ever known? Of course not.

So how do we look past the burdens and see the blessings of our families and our homes? Do you know any women who would give anything to have a baby to nurse at 2 a.m.? Anyone who would love to have those clothes we are sick of washing, or that house we just can’t keep clean. Do you know any women whose husbands aren’t coming home?

I challenge you to joy, to smile, to persevere. I challenge you to bear your burdens as blessings and watch as they multiply. And the next time someone asks you how you are, throw off that identity of stressed out, frazzled mommy, find your smile and answer, “I am blessed!”

Good stuff, huh. I hope to start blogging again soon, but my job application is taking lots of my time right now. I'm hoping to be completely done by tomorrow. Wish me luck! :o)

Roo pictures!

My mom was here last week and it was FABULOUS! I can't even believe how much we got done! We rearranged the living room (this is our 4th arrangement) and it is my favorite so far. I didn't think I could be so happy with this living room! Yipee! I'm feeling very spoiled and very grateful right now. Moms are wonderful, huh.

Also, I have the pictures from Roo's 6th birthday. We moved into a new congregation at church and a gal in our new congregation was the photographer. I am soooo pleased with the results! They are over on her blog. If you want to see the whole session, the link and password are over on Cookie.

Quick laugh

Oops

How do I let myself get so far behind in blogging? Oops.

Roo's birthday definitely showcased my Jonesness. We aren't very talented cake decorators in my family. This was my attempt at making a cake with red frosting and a duck (Roo's favorite animal).
I know. You are crazy jealous of my mad skills. That or you are debating if you should turn me in to Cake Wrecks. Yes, I know it looks pink, but he didn't seem to notice. And if you knew how horrible my handwriting is, you'd understand why I used a computer. And I do feel silly for running out of orange frosting. But I can't take credit for the sprinkles. Roo was given free rein for that.

And in sad news, our camera died this week, though it was thankfully after Roo's birthday. Why can't it be Christmas already?! Here are the final pictures from our much beloved 6.5 yr old camera.

Suspicious final picture, huh. I don't know how long I can last without a camera. I take lots of pictures. I'm pretty sad about it. :o( But, I did get pictures for Roo's birthday and will be putting them on Cookie shortly.

Shared birthday

Today my Grandma Jones is 91. Roo turned 6. They share the same birthday! I think that is why he came late. :o)

I am breaking the rules and putting up pictures of Roo on here. And seriously, I can never get that kid to look at the camera AND have his eyes open. Here is the proof!
This is me with my Grandma Jones back in 2008.
I don't know when this was done of her.

Here are the ones with her and Roo from 2006:

How hard can it be to get 2 people to look at the camera at the same time! It must be genetic!

For Roo's birthday

Many moons ago I did this for Jamo and SugarPea. Roo's time has now come. Here it is:

1. What's his birth order?
My second.

2. How old were you?
I had him just before my 27th birthday

3. What were your reactions when you found out you were pregnant?
Complete and utter shock. I was getting ready for church one morning and couldn't remember the last time I had a period. We looked at a calendar and it had been 6 weeks. I'm never that late. Ever. I had to wait until the next day to buy a pregnancy test since it was Sunday. It was a LOOOOONG day. Sure enough, the test came back positive. We found out close to Valentine's Day, which was 2 weeks before Jamo's first birthday. They are 19 months apart.

4. How did you find out you were pregnant?
Objection, your honor. Asked and answered.

5. Who did you tell first?
When I went to church I went to Marla and said, "Help!" LOL! After taking the test and confirming it, I can't remember.

6. Did you want to find out the sex?
Yup. It was so hard for me to wait with Jamo, and I didn't think I could do it again.

7. What was your due date?
Well, because we weren't really trying, I wasn't exactly keeping track. I thought, from our best guess, that the due date would be 10/11. But then I had an ultrasound that said 10/4, so we went with that. But then I had to switch offices and somehow, the LMP of 1/4 looked like a 1/9 and they said my official due date was 10/16 and they refused to change it back. It was all really annoying.

8. Did you deliver early or late?
That was my big beef with them changing my due date. My mom bought a ticket to come out on the 11th, which was my original due date. But my doctor refused to induce me because he didn't think my due date was until the 16th. Twit.

9. Did you have morning sickness?
I puked for all 9 months with all 3 of my kids. (((Shudder)))

10. What did you crave?
I totally go nuts for pickles when I'm pregnant. I think I craved nachos with jalapenos a lot too...

11. Who irritated you the most?
My doctor who wouldn't listen to me when I said there was a problem with the due date.

12. What was your child's sex?
A boy

13. How many pounds did you gain throughout your pregnancy?
40

14. Did you have any complications during your pregnancy?
Yup. I had elevated AFP levels. We didn't know if it was because there was something wrong or because I had the wrong LMP date. That's why they did the ultrasound and switched me to a high risk pregnancy doctor. They had me all freaked out about hurrying up and getting tested, so I stayed a day longer while Brad and his dad and Jamo all went to Seattle. The next day they met me in Portland. How sweet of them.

15. Where did you give birth?
in Tulsa

16. How many hours were you in labor?
12

17. Who drove you to the hospital?
my mom

18. Who was in the delivery room?
Brad and my mom

19. natural or c-section?
Natural

20. Did you take medicine to ease the pain?
Yup. Short story long, my mom was there and could only stay a few more days, and my doctor was refusing to induce me until the 16th. But I was really past due and pretty annoyed. We went to church, came home and ate dinner, and then my water broke. Now they'd have to take me. :o) So my mom and I went to the hospital while Brad stayed at the house and hung out with his brother. I walked in the hospital door and said, "I want an epidural" because I had learned from previous experience that I wanted drugs. But, for whatever reason, it still took them forever to get it done. And then they didn't tell me that I had to push the button to dispense the medication, so I was still hurting. But I was not hurting as much as the lady in the room across from me who was screaming bloody murder. Oh, and then my doctor was a ridiculous resident. She was rude and scatterbrained and I really didn't like her. At all. Nothing against residents, I am married to one, but this resident was an idiot. We paged her when it was time for me to push. And then we waited. And waited. And she never came. I'm a fast pusher and had Roo out in about 10 minutes, so the senior resident delivered Roo. She showed up just in time to sew up my tear (he came out with his fist squishing his nose.). My mom stayed an extra day, but had to leave the day I got out of the hospital.

21. How much did your child weigh?
8 lb 5 oz

22. What did you name him/her?
Roo Mons. We looked forever in the baby name book and couldn't find anything we really liked. We kept coming back to his name, but decided to changed the spelling so it would fit a pattern of an A and an E in the same place.

23. How old is your child today?
6!

More Roo baby pictures on Cookie!

Forgetful Jones

Any of you remember him?
No? Refresh your memory with some good ol' Sesame Street singing Oklahoma for all my Okies out there!


Jones is still my middle name, perhaps I should add Forgetful to it as well. Here's the story:

Since our schools take off for Yom Kippur, we had school today. Someone, who shall remain nameless, texted me this morning to say that he left his hospital badge at home and he needed it by 4 pm. (How did you figure out who??) I planned in my head that if I got my errands done, I could get to the hospital and home before the boys got home from school.

I dashed over to the store to get cupcakes and cake mix for Roo's birthday. Then it was over to Staples because Jamo was in need of glue sticks. While there I met a lady with a 2 yr old girl, a 7 yr old boy and a 10 yr old girl. Our boys are in the same grade at the same school. Her husband is from France and owns a restaurant called Hummus. We chatted a long time. I think I'm in love. LOL! Then I dashed over to the library because they charge a lot if you return movies late. Finally, I was able to head out to the hospital.

Which leads me to Philly traffic. Ugh. Here is the problem: The right lane is bad because of all of the buses stopping frequently. The left lane is bad because of all the people trying to turn left without a turning lane or turn signal. In other words, there is no good way to drive in Philly. I eventually made it to the hospital and met up with Brad. Then it was time to head back to my side of town with a now sleeping SugarPea.

While on my way to pick up Brad's dry cleaning, I got a call from my Visiting Teaching companion. I had totally missed our 1 o'clock appointment. OH MAN! I can't believe I did that! I also forgot to eat lunch. Yeesh. So, by the time I got home to eat lunch it was 3.

Let's hope my memory starts to function again soon.

Not me!

There is a popular blog I used to follow that has a Not Me Monday, where you confess things you have 'not' done. I'm having one of those days.

I most certainly did not leave Sugar in her pajamas until noon.

I did not forget and accidentally wear my house slippers to the pharmacy.

I did not get impatient waiting for the women's restroom while Sugar called "potty!" over and over and finally just take her into the men's restroom.

I did not skip the gym so I could finish my book.

And I did not buy new nail polish even though it isn't in our budget.

Do you have any confessions to 'not' get off your chest? :o)

In His hands

You'd think in the 32 (mere weeks from 33) years I have been on this earth, that I would know by now that God has all things in His hands. He knows what I need and how I should be growing. Yes, of course, I know this, what amazes me is how often I need to keep RELEARNING this.

I'm referring to the fact that Roo is in afternoon kindergarten. Oh how I weeped and moaned about that. Silly Melisa. I have come to the realization that if Roo were in morning K, my life would be different. I go to the gym in the morning after dropping Jamo off at school. It works out quit nicely. But if I also dropped Roo off in the morning, then I'd have him home in the afternoon. I'd either have to miss out on a morning workout, which I dislike doing, or take Roo on errands with me, and truthfully, he is probably my toughest to take on errands. Additionally, the care SugarPea is in, is cheaper in the afternoon. Bonus!

What I'm saying is that I'm grateful Roo is in afternoon K and I'm embarrassed that I whined so much about it.

I'm hoping that at some point it will dawn on me what I need to experience by living in this house. :o)

Reason 192

Have I mentioned I don't like this house? It has it out for me, it really does. Remember my chili plant I'm trying to bring back to life from seedlings? This is what some wind and some useless windows did to my precious plant: The window blew open because there isn't a good way to keep it shut. It is obvious that people have tried before with various strings and latches. But I didn't think it would open with enough force to knock my plant off the table. You can see the poor, defenseless chili plants lying in their own dirt. So sad. Let's hope they recover from the trauma.
This pot has the older chili plants that weren't damaged. Let's hope they stay that way! They've already got a few flowers on them. Wohoo!!! I'm really hopeful to see some chilies soon! Am I asking too much?

And on another note, reason number 73 why I hate this house is that I have to flush with a plunger or deal with water leaking into my dining room as the toilet overflows. Twice a week is too often to deal with overflowing toilets. Urgh.

We come bearing gifts

Today my monsters brought something home from school I wasn't expecting.

Roo came in and told me I need to go outside to see it. From where I was, I could see part of a branch. What I could not see was how big the branch was.

They wanted to keep it in the backyard, but it would have taken up half of the backyard, so I made them take it back.

What is that craziest thing your kids have brought home?

First tooth!

Roo just lost his first tooth today! We are so excited! He will be 6 soon, so he has been very excited for this day to come! I put pictures up on Cookie. And a funny bonus one of Sugar sleeping in her chair. Don't let me forget to be a Tooth Fairy tonight! :o)

***Update*** I was saying the family prayer tonight. I was squinting and happened to notice Roo was facing me, leaning forward, eyes closed, with his smile such that his gap was obvious. I could totally tell he was trying to 'tell' me to thank Heavenly Father that Roo lost his tooth. So I did. And he bowed his head back down. I love that kid.