Sunshine & Rainbows

This posts come to you fresh off a little kid-free time spent at the walking track. Gramma offered to scoop up my little guys for some play time and to give Mama a break (Thanks Gramma!) and what better way to use it than to enjoy the beautiful sunshine and fresh air, right? So that's what I did! On my walk I couldn't help but reflect on life and where I'm at, where I've been, and more importantly to be grateful for all that I have. Life hasn't always been all sunshine and rainbows... I'm just as flawed as the next gal, but I keep on keepin' on and look at me now! Not perfect, but who is?

While walking I also had moments of uncertainty. Why are some things the way they are? Why are some people SO difficult? Why CAN'T the world be all sunshine and rainbows? But we all know the answer and simply put, it just isn't. Being the peace-maker, do-gooder, fixer-upper kinda girl that I am, I am wired to make things better. Not so much to physically FIX things. But more in an emotional sense. I see a broken heart and I feel a little brokenhearted too, ya know? And those times when that broken heart is my own, I tend to want pick up all the pieces and do whatever I have to do to put them back together. But what about when people won't let you fix it? What about when you can't just use a little tape or glue and make life happy again? ...Then what??

On my walk is where I started to contemplate all this and realized that here's when you need to stop trying to change other people or put things back the way they're 'supposed' to go, and change yourself. My husband always says, "Control what you can control!" And he's right. I can't control everything and everyone to keep peace and love around me, but I can control myself and how I choose to respond to these situations. Like I said, it's never going to be all sunshine and rainbows and that's just the way it is. But that isn't the be-all, end-all for happiness in the world. We take the good with the bad and we keep on going. We do our best to bring good to the world and to those around us. We love people when we can and wish them well when we can't. We take time to reflect on where we've been, where we're at and where we hope to be. We live life moving forward because that's how winning is done! Just ask Rocky...

Science

Every day after lunch I try to get some down time while my two little guys go in for a nap. Mama's need this time for lunch, a shower, or housework I've neglected all morning! But if I can manage to get all that done or decide that being clean isn't a priority, I try to squeeze in special time with my big boy, Owen! Today we did some fun science experiments and he really got into it. These are projects that were super easy, really quick, and even mess free! Owen loved that we had a fun time experimenting and I feel good about spending some one on one time! Also, these experiments are made up of simple things I already had in the house and require no prep at all. Do you have kids? Do you know kids? Grab yourself a little one and get to work! 

BUOYANCY

All you need is a carrot, a glass of water and some salt. Fill your glass with water and drop in a chunk of carrot. Watch it sink. Now slowly add salt, a spoonful or a generous pour at a time and watch what happens. Your carrot will soon float! Ta-Dahhh! 

CHEMISTRY

Gather a glass of water, an ice cube, a string, and salt. Dunk your ice cube in the glass of water and allow it to float to the top. Place one end of a string along the top of the ice. (I literally ripped one of my husbands old sweatshirt I had on) Sprinkle salt over the string and count to five. Pick up the loose end of the string and lift your ice right out of the glass. Ta-Dahhh!

VOLCANOLOGY

Grab a water bottle, red food coloring, vinegar and baking soda. Place your bottle in the sink and fill about 3/4 way full with warm water. Add a few drops of food coloring and about a 1/4 cup of vinegar. With a funnel (or a piece of paper turned funnel) drop in about a tablespoon of baking soda and watch your 'volcano' erupt. Ta-Dahhh!

Be Yourself.

If you're like me, you always open the fortune cookie. Do I eat the cookie? Not usually. But we all know it's not really about the cookie itself, it's about what's inside. Just a couple weeks ago we surprised the boys and met Eric for dinner one night. Upon receiving our bill at the end, of course came the cookies. The boys were excited to eat them but once they realized Mama was reading an important message, they were interested to see what their fortunes were too. While the messages written were a little complex, I decided to break it down in terms that they would be able to understand. I don't remember the exact phrase, but Mason's chopped up to, 'You are very brave!' and Owen's was along the lines of, 'Always be yourself!' They were pleased and mentioned their fortunes over the course of the night. Fast forward a couple weeks and there I am tucking the boys into bed last night when I said, "Owen, it's a little chilly tonight. Let me get you a shirt for bed." Mason quickly steps in, "But Mom, Daddy doesn't wear a shirt to bed!" And here's where Owen spoke up, "NO, Mason!! I can wear a shirt if I want to. Remember my fortune said BE YOURSELF!" Well, he told him now didn't he?

For starters, I was impressed that he still remembered his fortune and really took it to heart. But more importantly I was glad that he was using his voice! Not his actual 'voice', but his voice as in speaking up for himself and doing just what the fortune said, BEING himself. Owen loves loves loves his Daddy and as most little boys do, he has always wanted to be just like him. As of late we've been trying to boost his confidence a bit and remind him that being Owen is pretty awesome too! Instead of allowing him to say, "I wanna eat what Daddy eats!",  we'll ask Owen to choose first so that he has the opportunity to decide for himself. Other times when Owen speaks up Eric will encourage his choices or emphasize how it's neat that they like different things. I guess all our efforts are paying off because my big boy is finding his voice and is clearly not afraid to use it! 

Good job, Owie!

Energy, anyone?

Well, hello there stranger! It's been about a week now since the last post and I guess I could sum it up and say, 'I've been busy.' Isn't that so cliche? Yes! I know. But although that's the go-to excuse for people when they don't have a really good reason for neglecting things, sometimes it's also true. Last week the weather was beautiful in New England so we spent tons of times playing outdoors, not to mention my husband left me high and dry went out of town for work. (ha! don't tell him I said that!!) The combination of the two kept me on my toes at all times! And when I did have some down time from the munchkins I was honestly just so exhausted that all I wanted to do was either take a shower or close my eyes until the next shift set in. Can you blame me??

The night before Eric left last week we stayed up talking and I jokingly asked if he had any last bit of advice to get me through the week. He shared with me an article he read with tips about how to wake yourself up when that's the last thing you want to do. I guess with an early flight and being on the go he was worried about those sleepy eyes! One of the tips was to quickly drink a cup of coffee and then lay back and close your eyes for fifteen minutes. I didn't quite get into details but from what I gathered that's supposed to give you a little energy burst! Another one is to drink organic unfiltered apple cider vinegar. Apparently that stuff cures everything! I didn't use these tips last week but maybe the next time Eric goes out of town I'll put them to the test.

How do you stay awake when you just wanna take a nap? Do you know any good energy boosts? Share your best tips with me so I don't look like this pic below!!

Banana Banana Bread

It's no secret that I like to get down in the kitchen. I'm a big fan of baking, cooking, and when I don't know how to make things, I can even pretend to bake and cook! Last week I could feel the urge coming on and decided I'd give in and bang out some oatmeal cookies. As I started to gather my ingredients, I came to find out that I was all out of vanilla! GASP! Ugh, every bakers worst nightmare!!! And because running to the store for one item with three children is WAY more work than I wanted to put into these cookies, I decided not to bake after all. But the itch wouldn't go away...I just had to bake!! (Are you loving this dramatic recollection of my baking predicament? Because I'm digging it! Ha!) After throwing back my cabinet doors and scouring the kitchen for some kind of sign that baking was still possible, I happened to notice the bananas laying on the counter. YES!!! Bananas! And I knew it would be perfect because I remembered from my old Banana Bread Recipe that I didn't need vanilla! Yayyy for banana bread! So, instead of jumping  on the blog and pulling up the last recipe, I decided to google away and find another one to try. There are certain recipes, mostly ones that were passed down from family, that I stick to and try not to change because  they're just that good. But others that I came up with while scrolling around the web sometimes leave me feeling a little less than satisfied. Or even if they are up to par, I can't help but think they need a little something more. This time I ended up finding an easy recipe over on All Recipes and decided that this was right up my alley. Just a handful of ingredients, and no call for vanilla? Sounded perfect! After dinner we all sat around eating banana bread and my children were in banana heaven. Does that exist? I couldn't blame them because it ended up being the best banana bread I've ever made! And because it was that good, I even made the effort to hunt down the most brown and squishy bananas at the store over the weekend so that I could give it another try yesterday morning. Good news is, it was just as great the second time around! Wanna try? 

Banana Banana Bread

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter, softened (1 stick)

3/4 cup brown sugar 

2 eggs, beaten

2 1/3 cup overripe bananas, mashed (I used 3, minus the piece Gavin ate)

Preheat oven to 350f. Grease 9x5 loaf pan. In large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar. Mix in eggs and mashed bananas. In separate bowl, (ahem, here's where I rebel and put them together, but don't because I'm sure the reasons are logical) combine dry ingredients...flour, salt and baking soda. Mix into wet inredients and pour into loaf pan. Bake for about one hour, or until inserted knife comes out dry. (Tip: If the top starts to get too brown before the inside is done, cover with foil.) Remove from oven and let stand to cool. Flip over and slice, and if you're like my family - spread with butter! Ta-dahhh!!!

Boston.

What. A. Day.

While I seemed to keep pretty busy with little boys and chores around the house, I expected to wind down this evening with today's blog post. Little did I know that my night would be spent sitting in front of the tv following horrendous news footage and texting with friends to confirm the safety of those we know and love. Needless to say, my priorities changed... 

If you have yet to hear, there were tragic events that took place at the historic Boston Marthon today. Living outside the city, we're far enough away to be safe, but close enough to feel the effects of what's happening there. People we know are there, were there at the time, and living in this state makes us Boston proud any day, not just today. But in all the chaos throughout this day and all the coverage and photos and videos that have come out of it all, there was one thing that gave me comfort in all of this. The way the people come together. Just as with other tragedies that have happened along the way, you will always see those people helping one another. Thanks to my friends, Cathia and Eimear, for sharing about this today and reminding us to find that little bit of hope for Boston in this sad time. While we send our thoughts and prayers to all those affected today, we also send thanks and support to the 'helpers'. 

Thoughts and Prayers to Boston

POOF!

"Where do babies come from, Mommy?" ... "Uhh, ummm..." Have you been there? If not, avoid this conversation at all costs. Which is what I do. Obviously the appropriate and mature way to handle your children's inquisitive little minds, right? What about all those other random questions they throw in your faces without a moments notice? We can't always just distract them with cookies or toys. Sometimes we actually have to engage in these conversations... Yay for being parents! Over years of dodging the awkwardness with my oldest, I've managed to perfect a sweet story about how Mama and Daddy prayed to God and hoped to have a baby someday. When the time came, The Lord placed Owen in my belly for us to grow and love. When he was finally big enough to come out, we went to the doctors and POOF...a baby! Yes, that's actually how the story goes. Luckily I have been fortunate enough to slide by with that one for a while now and am hoping its another thirty years before I have to fess up that there is no POOF. Or that there is, and that the POOF is more like...nevermind...

But fortunately not all of their questions are as exciting as that little gem. Some are just plain confusing and take a little bit of thinking to come up with a logical answer, or at least one that sounds legit to a five year old. Our latest stemmed from a conversation with my sister who joined us for dinner earlier in the week. While she and I were discussing something from back in the day, the boys wanted to know where they were when all this was going down. "Well, you weren't here yet guys."..." So where were we?" Here's where Auntie Ren stepped up to bat and shot off a whole "Just a twinkle in Mommy's eye" shpeel. I guess it sounded good enough because they let us go on talking without any further explanation. Fast forward to last night when I must have mentioned something from a long time ago. "You mean when I was just a twinkle in your eye, Mom?" Owen asked. "Yes, baby. That's exactly right!" ... "And then after that I squeezed down from your eye and into your belly?" Wait, whaaaat?!?! HA!!! Here I was imagining this little sparkle flickering in my eye, symbolizing a precious dream of meeting my baby some day... And then there's my five year old son seeing that same twinkle in the eye and thinking it was an actual baby that's planning to squeeze his way through my insides until he finds his way into my gut! Ohhh children... Once I could finally stop laughing I did my best to explain the metaphor and wrapped up our little question and answer segment for the night. Let's go ahead and file this under, Kids Say The Darndest Things!

Happy Friday!! Check out this HILARIOUS photo of 'How baby is formed' that I found over at Sex + Grand! (See, I told you...POOF!)

Best Wedding Speech.

Marine pilot Captain Matthew Krivohlavy wasn't able to attend his brother's wedding over the weekend but he didn't let that stop him from showing his support of the nuptials. Since he couldn't be there to wish them well, he sent a video message to the bride and groom to be played during their ceremony in Texas. He created a beautiful speech while flying his plane over the skies of Afghanistan! Thank you to Captain Krivohlavy for his service! It's probably safe to say that this is one of the best wedding speeches ever!

**It appears the original video was deleted from the Internet so instead, check out these photos I was able to find of the video he made! Although you don't get to hear the sound of the plane as he reads his flashcards or witness his grand finale of barrel rolls in the sky, there's no doubt you can feel the love!

Letters.

Have you ever heard of people writing letters to their unborn child? Sounds precious, doesn't it? Can you imagine as an adult, reading a letter that your parent wrote to you before you were even born? How incredibly sweet. As a mother myself, and a bit of a sappy one at that, I can shed tears at the mere thought of how much love consumes me for these little boys. It's overwhelming and can get me a bit caught up in the moment when I really get down and dirty processing all that. And then to sit there and try to interpret that blubbering pile of love into words? I think I'd be a hot mess to say the least. But maybe someday...

Today I was reading through a blog that was started at 24 weeks pregnant and continues on with updates, which are now approaching the eight month mark for this mother and son. It's written by an old friend of mine, Bethany, who I've known since we were little kids running around at family cookouts with barbies. She currently lives in Florida with her husband and adorrrrable baby boy, Felix, and with every facebook picture or status update they just scream, "Our baby is the most loved little man on the planet!!!" It's ridiculously cute and I can't help but smile at how lucky that little guy is. Bethany's blog is one of the sweetest things I've read and seeing her letters to Felix since before he was born and over the months is a heart warming, smile inducing, eye watering record of life around them. When you have time, stop in and visit The Browns here and see what an adorable little family they are! And remember, bring the tissues!

Reading Bethany's letters to Felix make me wish I had written letter to my boys while pregnant, but I guess it's a little late for that! Luckily, it's not too late to start writing letters now, right? Wouldn't it be sweet to write a letter to your children on each of their birthday's over the years too? Maybe that'll be my thing! Would you ever write a letter to your children? What would you say?

PS. Thanks to Bethany for the inspiration and for sharing your beautiful letters with us! 

Legos.

Okay, so I'm sure you've gathered by now that I adore my little men and being their Mom is my all time favorite thing in the entire world. BUT, let's be honest. Sometimes I just want to call in sick. Yesterday we were go-go-go all day long playing in the yard, running errands, visiting the playground, blah blah blah. Well, the last part wasn't so much what we were doing, but more so how I felt doing it. I even got a headache to top it all off which was just the thing I needed to round off my busy day. Not that I didn't enjoy our time, but I kinda just wanted to take a nap instead. Been there? After the park with a friend, I remembered I needed diapers and gas so before heading home to whip up a healthy and nutritious dinner for my family as the perfect mom always does, we had to make a run to the store. Greaaaat. I ended up sending a text over to the hubs requesting that he pick up pizza on his way home from work because this Mama just was not feeling the whole 'healthy family dinner' gig tonight. If you know the perfect mom, tell her I tried. Luckily he was happy to pick up the slack and had dinner waiting on the table when we finally got home, followed by helping out with baths and showers too. Thanks Bub! After dinner and winding down for a bit it was time to put these bebes to bed and guess who didn't want to get off the couch? Me. I sent the kids off to the bathroom to brush their teeth when Eric claimed that since he stepped up with washing them all that I could take over with potty/teeth/bedtime prep. Blah blah blah. Yup, again...that's all it really sounded like to me. So instead I laid there on the couch in my own little world. While it may seem like a recipe for disaster, I could see my husband smiling and hoped that signaled my lack of interest in bed time routines would be accepted without a fight. Up he jumped from the couch, laughing and using some phrase I can't recall about being lazy. All of a sudden...CRASH. And just as I thought I was off the hook he came and dumped a bucket of legos on top of me! I have to admit, I totally didn't see that coming and started to laugh as the boys ran out of the bathroom to see what all the noise was about. They were pretty impressed with Daddy's antics and I didn't even mind picking them up because 1, I didn't have to get off the couch to do it and 2, upon dumping them he headed off to help the munchkins with bedtime after all!

As I laid there smiling over lego dumping and passing off parenting duties I couldn't help but be a little jealous of those 'working people' out there who can call in sick once and a while. Just one day I'd like to pull a little, "Cough...cough....Sorrrrry, not feeling good today boss...cough, cough." As I said, I love my babes and our little life together all day every day, everyyyy singggleeee dayyyyyy....but sometimes a sick day would be nice too. "Grammmmaaaa!!!!"

Eric's Chicken.

Over the weekend I made a beautiful roasted lemon herb chicken and it was amazing!!! Okay, truth be told that photo above is not MY chicken...but as I've said before, I'm not really a very good how-to blogger. I'm more of a ta-dah blogger in most cases, and in this particular case, I'm more of a 'whoops, I'm about to take a bite and realized I forgot to take pictures' blogger. But no worries, right? Because thanks to the internet, I can find images that look EXACTLY like mine. Well, maybe not exactly. Mine was definitely sitting in a foil throw away pan and we didn't really set the table nicely like that.... But, nobody has to know all that so just keep it between me and you, k?

Have you ever roasted a whole chicken? This was only my second time and I really don't remember my first time all that well either. I just know that my friend Kaitlin ventured into whole chickens a while back and I felt inspired to test the waters too. I remember being frightened about the whole 'inners' of the bird and that the chicken was good but that's about it. This time Eric was the one insisting we make a chicken after he begrudgingly watched The Pioneer Woman on Food Network with me. He went out and bought us a big six pound whole chicken and I agreed to make it as long as he took out the guts. He agreed and as he prepared to reach up there and pull out some, well you know, low and behold a bag. That's it! I could have handled that but after having grabbed the bag and then offering to rub my lemon-rosemary butter I made on the skin he really feels like he took the lead on this one. I'll let him think it was his chicken...oh and his potatoes too, because I made these wonderful little roasted potatoes with a garlic butter glaze on them and because he also offered to chop the potatoes (he was really into cooking after watching it on tv all morning) he also insisted on taking credit for those too. "Yes, dear. You made the entire meal!" That's all you need to say with a smirk and a shake of the head and we both know what's up. All kidding aside, we did have some pretty good team work going on in the kitchen that day and our end result was ahhh-maaa-zinggg! We paired the lemon rosemary chicken alongside the garlic potatoes and a garden salad. Oh, and bread. Because everything's better with bread.

If you have yet to venture out into the realm of roasting whole chickens, please do. It is super duper easy and sooo good. Plus, it looks pretty fancy and seems like a ton of work when it's not so all your guests will think you're really something special. Because you are, of course. But roasting a whole chicken would obviously make you even better...so have at it! (And don't worry, no 'inners'...remember, they're in a bag!)

Instead of sharing my recipe, I'm just going to link you to this one over at Pioneer Woman's site because honestly, her pictures and captions really make the process and as I said, I'm not a very good how-to blogger. So thanks Pioneer Woman and Eric for a lovely Saturday lupper, or linner, or whatever it's called when you eat at three o'clock. Whatever it is, it's good. Enjoy!

Three Little Birds

If you take a look back to where I shared with you about some of our special 'Moments', you'll see that my husband is known for his sweet lullabies with our babies. He sings to them and melts my entire being. His love and affection towards our children makes me want to marry him all over again, every single day. That being said, enough about Eric and more about me!

Yesterday I was changing Gavin's diaper on the changing table in his bedroom. The changer is set up against a window and Gavin has always loved to stand up after getting, "All Clean!" and take a peek out into the yard. I stand there behind him as he points out all the things that he see...tree's, snow, birdies. Because it is now Spring, (even though it's still snowy and cold in New England) we've had a lot of birds around for him to look at. As he stood there excited and pointing he kept getting my attention to make sure I was watching too, "Mama, birdies! Birdies!" He was too cute to pull away so I stayed there for a while letting him take it all in. As we watched I started to sing, "Rise up this mornin', Smiled at the risin' sun. Three little birds, pitch by my doorstep. Singin' sweet songs, melodies pure and true..." And I carried on as we both enjoyed our little moment together.

Last night I had the pleasure of tucking in my little one and I started to sing a little goodnight song we sometimes choose. Instead, Gavin said, "Birdies!" and I couldn't help but feel a little choked up thinking that he enjoyed that time we spent yesterday as much as I had. As I started to sing he rested his head on my shoulder while I swayed back and forth soaking up the love. While we normally sing a few rounds and then tuck him in his crib before saying goodnight, this was too good to pass up so I stayed there singing until my baby boy was fast asleep in my arms. Although I love listening to Daddy's 'Hush Little Baby' from down the hall, I'm pleased to say I think I've found my own little lullaby too. Looking forward to many more moments singing, 'Birdies' with my sweet boys. Hear our lullaby below and watch this adorable video I found to go along with it! Call me a sap but it almost gets me a little teary eyed! Ha! Have a wonderful weekend!!


Bob Marley - Three Little Birds from pioelad on Vimeo.

Wicked Awesome Cookies.

Tonight I made chocolate chip cookies. Again. So I decided to share my recipe with you! This recipe was originally the Tollhouse Chocolate Chip recipe, but because I'm a wicked awesome baker, I adapted it to my own preferences. Hope you like!!

Wicked Awesome Chocolate Chip Cookies

3 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

3/4 cups sugar

3/4 cups brown sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1 cup mini chocolate chips (or 2c  if that's your fav part)

1 cup chopped nuts (if you can afford the arm and leg it costs to buy them)

Preheat oven to 350f. Mix softened butter, both sugars, and vanilla. Mix eggs, one at a time. In separate bowl mix flour, salt and baking soda. (Shh, I do this all in the same bowl) Add the dry ingredients in thirds until mixed through. Pour in mini chocolate chips and fold in with spoon. Drop onto cookie sheet, leaving space for spreading. I use a tbsp measuring scoop to make them all the same size. Bake for about 10 minutes, until lightly golden and not so 'wet' looking on top. Let stand for a minute before removing from pan and ta-dahhh!! Enjoy! 

Superheroes.

How adorable is this photo above? If you didn't catch on, it's supposed to be my children as superheroes! If you know my boys personally, you'll know it's a bit of an obsession. They could play 'guys' all day, everyday which is really just another word for their superhero collection. They have a bazillion action figures in just about every size and every character out there. It all started because their Pepere, my father, is a little bit of a superhero junkie himself and he got Owen hooked a while back. As Mason got older he started catching on to the madness and now little Gavin at just one year old runs around yelling, "Ironman! Hulk!" and a handful of other favorites. The collection has grown over the years and I doubt it will stop any time soon. Especially if Pep has anything to do with it!

Along with superheroes being an overall favorite, they're also big fans of wrestling. With Daddy, of course. However these boys like to take it to the next level and combine their two loves by pretending to be superheroes while they're wrestling. They use their 'super powers' and yell out powers when they turn them on and off just as Pepere taught them, "Slippery Power ON!!" and all wrestlers have to follow along, unless you're my husband who plays on his own terms and challenges the boys by shouting things like, "Tell Pepere his slippery power won't work this time!" as he pins them to the ground. (Ahem...Cheater!)

This evening we have a very special event taking place at our house and it happens to include both of these favorites. Eric decided that when he comes home from work, he and the boys are going to have a serious wrestling match. Before leaving today he instructed the boys to create some sort of mask and come up with a special superhero name for themselves and he would do the same. When Daddy comes home from work they'll reveal their secret identities and wrestle until their doom...or until I yell for dinner time. They're going to have a blast and have been counting down until Daddy walks through the door! Lucky for us we remembered about these awesome 'Make Your Own Superhero' kits that Eric's sister gifted the boys for Christmas! Thanks Auntie!! We kept waiting for a good time to do them and today just seemed to be the perfect day we'd been waiting for. I kept the plan a secret until Eric left this morning so he doesn't know what he's in for. Doc O, Iron Mase and G-Man are very well prepared and will show no mercy for  anyone, even their Dad!

The photo of the 'superhero' boys above was from this picture that Eric's sister gave along with their superhero kits! "Sometimes being a big brother is even better than being a superhero." 

Here's Mason and Owen aka Iron Mase and Doc O preparing their capes!

Life Lately.

Maybe...? Nooope! My April Fools day text to hubs! HA!

Does it get any better? Doubt it.

The best Daddy I know...BOP BOP!!!

The Three Stooges

...AND then I almost burnt down the house :P

BuhBye Mama

Well this certainly fits them...stubborn and sweet. 

Birdies

My kitchen says Spring, the weather does not.

Hi Owen!

Smile Mase! Grump.

Fine Mama, I'll smile...

Lending a hand

My loves, minus Gavin who hid in the corner.

Mama and Baby

New soccer gear. (no his shorts aren't that short, it's boxers, Shh!)

Belly Laughs

Snuggling with his bestie. Gav and cousin LiLi

HEY! 

Normal.

After he convinced me to buy a giant horse, he shared his sunnies with him.

My husband the comedian. At least I got a present!!

Kids.

Kids say the darndest things... The saying goes way back to who knows when, but it still rings as true as it ever did. For me I feel like this is daily life. Between three little guys and some funny personalities we have a whole lot of these moments where I just have to stop and laugh because, well, kids say the darndest things! Last night I was talking to a friend of mine, Lindsey and she got me thinking about all this without even knowing it. Thanks Linds! You may recall where I've mentioned our friends/family, Jay and Lindsey who lived near us during our stint in Virginia. Jason is Eric's cousin who is actually from MA as well. He met his wife Lindsey while in the military and she couldn't help but fall head over heels upon seeing this marine glance her way. Right, Lindsey? Something like that. Once we moved South we had to rely on the help of our welcoming family to get us up on our feet. Jay and Lindsey became our real estate agents, shelter, friends and confidants during this time. Come to find out, we actually really liked them too! Jay and Eric get along like brothers and Lindsey and I are two peas in a pod. We adore them, and their two little boys Kyle and Caden! During our time in VA, we would get together for dinner dates when possible and there was one time I'll never forget visiting with them. Kyle, their son was about three at the time and shared with us that Mommy likes to use the dust buster and Daddy plays Xbox. Whattt?!? We died laughing. Apparently little Kyle's claims even held some truth to them! Sorry Jay...

Last night while chatting with Lindsey over facebook, I started missing our friends. After we moved back to Mass, we made a trip down to visit and had a blast! Since then they've also headed 'home' to Lindsey's family back in Minnesota. Happy for them, sad for us. Minnesota's a bit more of a drive than their previous home so we won't be visiting as often as we'd like! Bummer. But, we'll always have Virginia! After taking a little jog down memory lane I sat there with my children talking over a plate of spaghetti and meatballs and found myself laughing out loud at little Kyle's remarks. Kids... Next thing I know I'm asking my own children what they think of Eric and I. It's so funny to see things through the eyes of a child, right? And I couldn't help but wonder what these little ones are watching in our home. "Boys!" I exclaimed, "What does Mommy do at home?" Confused they took a moment to give each other funny looks and ponder what the right answer would be. "There's no wrong answer guys, it's not a game...Mama's just wondering what do you think I like to do when we're home." And then I watched as I could see the wheels were turning. After a moment Owen got excited and cheered, "Dishes! You love to wash dishes, Mama!" and Mason agreed. Again we went over the question with Daddy in mind. "I know!!!" Turns out they were both certain that Daddy likes to sleep on the couch! Yes, little ones. I agree, Daddy sure does like to sleep!

In my opinion these boys hit the nail on the head with this one. Eric might try to tell you otherwise, but you heard it right from the mouths of babes! Mommy does the dishes and Daddy sleeps!! Nevermind the kids, let's talk about MEN! Ha! What do you think kids would say about you? Do you have kids? Ask them and enjoy a good laugh like we did! In the meantime, check out these other cute kids who say the darndest things...

PS. Check out this other adorable post about cute things kids say!