Cheese anyone?

It started gradually. A little bit here, a little bit there. More today than yesterday. It kind of snuck up on me. And this morning it hit me full in the face. Quinn has become a full time whiner. At this very moment he is lying on the kitchen floor screaming, crying and just generally making an awful racket. I think he is upset because I am doing some prep stuff for dinner tonight. Apparently, he wants candy, and I'm the meanest mom in the world. No candy before lunch time.

So, I just let him lie on the floor and have his fit. If I don't pay any attention to him, he'll stop. That's what everyone says. Well, I did tune him out for a while, then tuned back in and he's still screaming. So far, he's been crying for 22 minutes. Grrrr.

In other news, Eva is the most clever little girl in the world :) Yesterday, she was lying on the floor and Dex was sitting near her waist in a little seat. She said "Mama, will you come lay on the floor?" I thought she was wanting to cuddle, so I laid down next to her. Nope, she told me to lay on the other side of Dex and lay just like her. Then she informed me that we were making a letter H. How smart is that? Or does that mean she'll grow up to be a cheerleader? Hmm.. either way, I was impressed.

Here's a tricky thing. Quinn quit crying and went into the living room. Now it's WAY too quiet. Do I check on him, or just let him be?

Ok, because I usually err on the side of caution, I went to check it out. No problems. He was lying on the couch chewing on Clem's tail. Clem is sleeping and doesn't seem to mind. Things change so much. I never would have let Eva put something like a dog's tail in her mouth. I wonder what I'll let Dex do. Probably anything he wants so long as he's not screaming at me or trying to climb me like a tree.

I just cannot wait for the weather to clear up so we can get outside to play. I never thought I would so sick of my own house. It's gotta be soon, right?

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter! I hope everyone had a great day. We went to my parent's house and had a great meal. The kids were surprisingly good when you take into account the mass quantities of sugar they had consumed. I made all the kids' outfits and they turned out pretty cute. Three little suits complete with bowties for the boys and three little dresses for the princesses. I'm still having some trouble inserting pictures, but check them out if you're interested. Here's one of me and the kiddos. The girls. And one of all six kids.

Now that Easter is officially over and it's getting a little bit warmer, it's time for the most dreaded of all springtime rituals. Yes, ladies, you know what I mean. It's time to buy a new swimsuit. The last swimsuit I bought was for my honeymoon. While it was a one piece, it's not exactly designed to have children hanging off of me at the pool. So, I need to find something a bit more family friendly. Ick. Ick. Ick. I hate shopping for swimsuits. I think it is the only type of shopping I don't enjoy.

I found a couple I like online, but I can't imagine buying something like that without trying it on first. On the other hand, maybe that's a good idea. I won't try it on until 5 minutes before I leave for the pool and I'll have no choice but to wear it. Regardless of how it looks. And I can guarantee it won't look pretty. Maybe I'll start a new trend of wearing a complete wetsuit to the pool. Who'll join me??

In much better shopping news, my sister and I went shopping in Madison yesterday. We weren't super impressed with the malls there, but we did find a few good stores. I only bought a few things, but it was great to have a day with my sister without all the kiddos running around. We had lunch at PF Chang's and tried gelatto from a stand in the mall. What a treat!

Interestingly enough, my sister and I both noted that the new styles this spring seem to have a very familiar feel. They are all made like maternity clothes! Everything is loose, flowy, and completely without fit. Ugh! I just got rid of all my maternity clothes. I think I've been pregnant for too much of the past four years to enjoy this new trend. But, congratulations must to extended to friends Allison and Tim who are expecting their first baby this fall. She'll look extra trendy with this new style of clothes.

The Realities of Keeping House

John's mom is coming to visit. She will be here one week from today. That means that I need to do a bit more cleaning than just my typical damage control. It is my understanding that some people have clean homes all the time. Maybe you are one of those people. I am not. And here is why...

This morning I set out to do a bit of cleaning and organizing in the kids' rooms. I put Dex on the floor for some tummy time and had Eva and Quinn playing on the floor with blocks. I open one dresser drawer to take out some clothes Dex has grown out of. Oh, shoot, where should I put these? Oh, ok, there is an empty tub downstairs. "Guys, Mom will be right back." I run downstairs, grab my tub and come back upstairs. I mean, I immediately come back upstairs. Shoot. Dex has fallen asleep and Quinn is trying to burp him (repeatedly slapping him on the back).

No problem. Put Dex in bed and close the door. "OK guys, Dex is napping, let's go play in your room instead." Open their pajama drawer and sort through some old pjs of Quinn's. I put these in a pile for my nephew and look around. Where is Quinn? I hear giggling in the bathroom, this is not a good sign. I go to look and Quinn has emptied half a bottle of baby shampoo into the bathtub. "Come on buddy, let's go find Eva." I take Quinn back down the hall and hear Clem downstairs whining at the door. Right. Dog. Has she been fed today? I go downstairs and let Clem out.

Back upstairs about two minutes later I hear more giggling from the bathroom. Shoot. Eva and Quinn are both in the bath (without water) and are gliding around in the soap (apparently soap with no water equals ice skating in tub). Grrr. Allrighty. Get everyone undressed and fill tub with water (no sense wasting good soap, we're on a budget here!) All right, kids in bath, I will casually do a bit of straightening in their room and check on them every other minute. Miraculously I do get through 3 drawers and have piles of stuff to be given away. Yay.

Time to pull kiddos out of the bath. I get Quinn's diaper on. "Moooooooooooommmmmy" It's Eva... stuck under her bed. As I pull her out she brings an old shopping bag with her. "look mom, my snow pants." Yay, she has found her snowpants from two years ago and decides they are the perfect thing to wear today. Fine. Snowpants it is, we're not going anywhere today. Here comes Quinn, streaking. "Quinn, where is your diaper, buddy?" To which he replies "ucky poopy" Oh SH*#. I go in my room and sure enough, there is a diaper on the floor right next to a pile of poop. Yep, why clean out dresser drawers when I could be cleaning poop off my carpet?

To sum up. In three hours I have taken a dozen articles of clothing out of a dresser and put them in a tub.

Right now Eva and Quinn are playing "dress-up". This is their favorite game. They have at least a dozen outfits approved for this game. Fairy dresses and old Halloween outfits, oversized hats and plastic jewelry. It is all in their toy box where they can get at it easily. Are they playing with these clothes? Of course not. Eva has the tub I was using, she scooted it across the floor and is standing on it. She is busy pulling everything out of her closet.

I guess I've got to go. Anyone know a good cleaning service?