A day with shoes on my feet....

I thought about creating a post last night, but let me tell you I just couldn't.  I had to relax and unburden myself from the trauma of wearing shoes all day long.  I mean actual tie up with socks underneath shoes!  I put them on at 7am and took them off at 11pm.  Those who know me well understand what an emotional ordeal this was for me to endure.  In addition to having my feet imprisoned for an entire day I was out and about for most of that time too.

The day started with taking Allye to PATH (her homeschool co-op) at 7:30, then I had to come back home get the boys and take them to the orthodontist.  Always a treat, the orthodontist.  I mean he smiles all nice and patiently answers the boys questions even offering to let them come in and spend a day hanging out watching people get braces, work in the lab and cast molds.  What he is really doing is making me think he is all wonderful in the hopes that my heart won't stop when I calculate how much it's going to cost to repair the genetically flawed open bites my boys are sporting.  So after I realize he is not going to choose even one of my four kids to say "oh I don't he will require much therapy if you leave these large gaps in his teeth".  I tell him we need to prioritize the work.  You know start with the problems most likely to lead to a serial killer mentality if it goes unfixed, that sort of thing.  He says, "I would really enjoy the chance to work on Tucker and Landry's open bites."  Now I am thinking if he would "really enjoy" it he could do a BOGO free sort of deal, yes? 

Next up we go to Sam's to kill time between the ortho and drama class.  We didn't actually need anything from Sam's but the library was closed.  We cruised for samples, looked at the toys, tried out the furniture and then had lunch at the snack bar.  This I recommend its cheap and tasty, the four of us ate for $11.00.  Off to drama next and that was fun, Allye is Lucy in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.  The boys are being extras, Landry is one of the frozen statues in the witch's castle. I now know he can remain motionless for at least 5 minutes while retaining consciousness.  

Drama ends at 2 and Allye has a run with the XC team.  So while she runs we get to the library.  On the way in the boys are arguing, this is a new hobby because after 11 years they cannot stand one another.  I was sharing with them my dream of harmonious relationships and a man approached me to say that could only happen if I took drugs. Nice! 

After we got Allye we were able to go home, well at least close to home we went to Momma's.  I needed to sew and since she donated her basement as my craft room we went there.  I was trying to sew some things that I can sell at our homeschool meeting tonight.  My stock is minimal but hey I can take orders.  I hope that my meager items are not totally lame.  More on that later.....

Anyway I left Momma's around 10:45, came home and released the prisoners.  I swear my toes sang.  Did I mention I hate shoes well wearing them that is........

I enjoy people, especially small children type people.  I love the differences in personality, the unique mannerisms and general specialness that makes the world exciting.  I have met some funny folks, some serious hard to know people and frankly just some odd ducks, but sometimes I think my kids are the weirdest kids around.  They say and do some truly bizarre things, but I look at their parentage and realize they can't really help it.

Apparently Landry went out without a sweatshirt today because he didn't want fabric touching his arms.  What?  Ash drew a mustache on his face with a dry erase marker, turns out those do not erase easily from skin.  Tucker sleeps with seven, yes it says seven, pillows and they all have names and assigned positions on his bed. His favorite is named Pilly.  Really.  It's true.

They are very sweet and try and give me compliments regularly.  Like just the other day one of them told me that he wasn't going to tell me what he didn't like about dinner because that would be the same as insulting the disgusting parts.  Yep neat guy. 

Do you ever laugh so hard at your family and feel so full from the wonder of just being with them that you feel sorry for everyone who isn't you?  I do.  Especially when my teenage daughter says, "I love our family.  I wonder why some of my friends don't like theirs."  When one of my sons tells me that sometimes he gets so full of happiness that he has to hug someone.  When my son wants to know why everyone's mom and dad won't teach their children to know God so they can always be together.

Yeah I love that my kiddos are strange.............................

Game night isn't all about winning, but that's fun too.

On Thursday Momma and I thought it'd be a great idea to have a girl game night so we set it for Friday.  Turns out it was.  So many good things came of this evening!  Let me begin be saying that anytime you are with people you love good things have happened.

The evening began with dinner, first good thing, yummy yummy slow roasted beef!  Momma asked Jenny to pick up so rolls, which she interpreted as "go home and make them from scratch", second good thing.  I only had to make brownies and this was optional, third good thing.  Third and fourth if you count to bowl licking portion if the day.  We played Pennies( or Hand and Foot if you like, it canasta)  and Jenny and I won ( I won't say who we beat) fourth good thing!  It was fun.


Quite possibly the most productive of our activities was the list.  What list you ask?  Let me tell you......

I was VERY casually and kindly informing my mother of yet another something from my childhood that maybe my parents should not have allowed.  So she flipped to a clean piece of paper and said "Why don't we just make a list?"  Now while I would have NEVER considered the idea of enumerating, on paper no less, the flaws of my parents I do like to indulge their requests, so make a list we did.

~  When we were children, we shot fireworks on Christmas Eve(I don't know either).  This was not the problem, we were in charge of ourselves.  We would shoot the roman candles first so that we could use the spent tubes as rocket holders for our bottle rocket wars.  Yes we aimed at each other.  The real issue was the item we were given to ignite our fireworks, as you may have already guessed, it was in fact a shovel of coal from the fire place.  I know for sure they like their grandkids better than us because this would not be permitted for them.

~ Loveboat (Captain Stubing even annouced he likes "mountains" the Dolly Parton kind!)
~Happy Days.  I know what those kids were up to now.
~Grease.  Although I am not sure this should be on the list she says it should.
~She let me go to the mall alone with my friends, now if my daughter finds out she will want to...
~I tried to get her to put Preston as a bad influential brother on there but she refused.

~Most recently I discovered that it is quite possible that an item on this list is what mutated my ovaries and may even have been the cause of my having multiples.  When we were young we lived in a neighborhood where the ice cream truck would rattle through and we would be so EXCITED!  Especially if we were in a position to get a treat.   We also had this other cool truck that would rattle through the neighborhood regularly.  It was a very exciting fog truck!  Yeah, I know right?   I mean we would run to the edge of the street and dance and jump around in the fog squealing with excitement.  It was pure joy as we followed as far as we were allowed filling our hearts, lungs and nasal passages with the fog.  It was such fun that  we were able to ignore the smell and taste of the pesticide fumes that were being sprayed in order to create this awesome fog for us to play in.  Curious, huh?

Now we never got to the list of good things......

~My dad used to play records on the stereo and dance around the house with me.
~My parents used to play Uno, Aggravation, and Yahtzee with us all the time.
~My parents taught us that Christmas is magic.
~My parents showed us that if you can do it for someone there is no reason not to.
~My parents gave me a childhood so happy I can't visit a flea market or antique store without a teary trip down memory lane.
~My parents let my brother write on the wall that girls were silly so that when he had a crush they could remind him of his previous ideas on females.
~My parents used to let us paint our faces like clowns whenever we took a notion.
~My parents would always take the time to watch whatever dance I made up to my current Olivia Newton-John favorite.
~My parents showed us how fun it is to open your home to friends.
~My parents taught us honesty is crucial.
~My parents taught me to love God and to trust Him.

Yep they did a good job.  Thanks Momma and Daddy.

and the costumes are.......

Ash decided on Luigi as a costume, Landry went with Tony Hawk, Allye was Minnie Mouse and yep Tucker was a HOUSE.  No special house just a house.  It turned out well but really a house?  We meaning me decided the fam wanted to go cheap for costumes this year so we borrowed and procured for free what we could and ended up spending a dollar.  Now to be fair Momma took Ash out to find just the right shirt and apparently that was quite a hunt and the paint was kinda pricey ($12).  Thanks Momma!

These are the results........((((((((((drum roll))))))))))........

Allye as Minnie Mouse

Ash as Luigi

Landry as Tony Hawk

Tucker the HOUSE

The whole gang of bandits!