this, that, these, and those

What do the ragamuffins do when it's approximately 257 degrees outside??

A little of this...

A little of that...

A few of these...

And lots of those...

And what do I do when it's approximately 257 degrees outside??

Well, join 'em, of course!

...and this, that, these, and those are the dog days of summer...

Salad & Babies

What do these two things have in common, you ask?

Well, apparently, a great deal in the eyes of my daughter.

Because they are exactly the 2 reasons that she has for not wanting to become a mommy.


"I don't want to be a mommy, because mommies eat salad and have babies and that hurts."


Which part hurts, hon? Having the babies or not being able to stomach or stay the same weight on ramen noodles, soda, bagels, Taco Bell and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups? (At least, that's what I remember eating in college when I was skinny, but still thought I was fat.) Oh that's right...BOTH.

**This message was brought to you by an adorable little dark haired, brown eyed, 5 year old beauty via her salad eating (but still not skinny), baby bearing, eye sight failing, 20 something...oh fine, 22 something (ahem ;)), frazzled, dish pan handed mama.

Think I'll go eat some salad Reese's now...

(Oh and FYI, if that's what it means to be a mommy, then sign me up and call me Lettuce.)

Camping With Dirt Friends!

Whoever coined the phrase "lazy days of summer", must not have had 3 young children at the time. Or at least, they didn't have MY 3 young children, bless their little hearts, because I have yet to see the lazy part of this summer. Except for the days leading up to our camping trip with our friends, the Blairs. For one might assume, based on the amount of packing that still needed to be done at 12am of the day we would be leaving, that I indeed had been practicing laziness. Which then begs the question, does laziness, in fact, need to be practiced? But I digress.

Usually, the week leading up to a trip or vacation, my children are the textbook model of health, they are the most angelic of children, I always keep my cool and talk with the utmost tenderness and kindness, I am packed and ready several days in advance, forgetting nothing, we awake the morning of, bright eyed and bushy tailed ready for our next big adventure, and every one hops in the car after being asked the first time, without irritating their beloved brother or sister, and we all break out into "Kumbaya My Lord" as we merrily go on our way. And there was not the least bit of sarcasm in that last paragraph.

Even though all that was NOT the case, even though we started out on yet another vacation with sick kids (This time with fevers, headaches, and the like.), even though I had the craziest of weeks leading up to our trip, and even though we didn't leave bright and early, but instead woke up, finished packing, and hit the road by 1pm...

And even though now, from all the aloe gel that's being applied every 1/2 hour, my forehead and nose resemble Kermit the Frog with a sunburn... (It's a small blessing that it's not in a place where clothing actually has to touch.)

And even though I'm still finding stow-away bugs unpacking camping gear, running loads of sweat and dirt caked clothes in hot water doing laundry, and finding copious amounts of Central Oregon Mountain dirt hosing off shoes...


We had A GREAT TIME!! And one of the best parts was we got to spend it with our faithful friends of 10+ years who we love!

We cooked...

We (parents) stayed up late paying card games and eating popcorn and candy.(Shhh. Don't tell the kids!)

And occasionally the dirt bandit would show up...
We hiked around at our lake...

and up to another beautiful lake...

We posed for pictures...

...of the girls...

...of the boys...
And occasionally the dirt bandit would show up...


We swam...

We slept...

And occasionally the dirt mud bandit monster would show up... (I know. You're simply amazed by my cleverness. I can't even stand it myself.)

We ate s'mores...of course!

We sat around the campfire...
And occasionally the dirt bandit would show up...

And a camping trip wouldn't be complete without...

light sabers?

Boys will be boys...

And boys will tease the girls by taking the food that they were trying to feed the ants with. Yeah. (And WHY do we buy expensive toys when they find the most simple of things to entertain themselves with??)

And occasionally the dirt bandit...oh, who are we kidding, it LIVED at our campsite.

See?!

And maybe, just maybe, by next week our feet will actually be dirt free.

Just in time for the next adventure. :)

The End.

**Sorry to end this post on a sad note but while we were there, the lake we were camping at experienced the tragedy of a 18 year old boy drowning (This local news clip tells the story. The man interviewed is our friend who we were camping with.) and we spent that evening in shock, talking with our children, reminding them of water safety, praying with them, for the friends and family of the victim. If you think of it, would you pray for them too? ...and it's a good time to remind ourselves and our children the smart and safe way to enjoy the water this summer...

I love me some 80's.

But really, who doesn't? (And if you don't, I don't know if we can be friends. I kid.)

And who doesn't love listening to amazingly talented people sing or jump or....well, you'll see.

And who isn't inspired, encouraged, comforted, or just filled with happiness or some other lovely emotion when listening to certain music?

And seriously, who doesn't love Africa by Toto?! Just sayin'.




And now you'll be humming, singing, and...snapping that all.day.long.

You're welcome.

But don't just thank me. Thank my friend, Erin, for sending me this little gem.

Not Me! Monday

Since this is definitely not late, I won't just direct you, quickly, to MckMama's place to read what everyone else didn't do this last week. Whether it's true confessions or bragging in disguise (like mine definitely is not) you, too, can join in!

I am not using Not Me! Monday as my forum of choice to get a little caught up on my blogging. Nope. Not me.

After the weekend in which I was not spoiled by an afternoon nap, hubby taking kids to park, hubby cooking dinner, and hubby cleaning up after dinner, we did not also get to have a date "day" the next day while the kids played with Mimi and Papa.

I did not laugh my evil sinister laugh (muwahahahaha!) when my hubby, who for approximately 10 years has refused to step foot into an IKEA since the first (and I was worried, the last) time, suggested (on his own!) that part of our "date day" should include a stop at IKEA and when walking out of said store, then proceeded to admit, "I love IKEA" to me. I did not rejoice after realizing that it would not have to be another 10 years before I could revisit one of my favorite stores of all time.

While at IKEA we did not pick up some chairs to complete our "front" room,

some much needed containers to hold my bulk buys from Winco,

some fun rugs to brighten up the kitchen and cushion my feet while slaving away at the stove or sink,

and a couple other cheap finds.

By the time we left IKEA, a good 3 hours had definitely not come and gone and we were absolutely not desperate for something to fill our bellies.

Being the hater of most things fish, I did not agree to stop at a sushi place for an appetizer just because my hubby was craving it. I did not actually enjoy the 3 (no fish containing) items that I ate. Nope. Not me.

And while getting proof of my sushi eating ways, I absolutely did not sling my soy sauce/wasabi creation all over my shirt and not notice it until getting in the car. (I do not see about a hundred things that I don't like about this picture....all which have something to do with double chins, bug eyes, hair placement and nostrils.)

We then did not take a leisurely stroll along Portland's waterfront, take pictures of this beautiful city, and weird-people watch while furiously licking at our shared ice cream cone that was quickly melting before our very eyes.

But, if all this had taken place, we absolutely would not have found it heavenly to simply be together, strolling (Did you hear me say strolling?! Strolling, people! Not dragging a posse through a store, holding back grabby hands, feeding many hungry mouths, taking "potty breaks", eating McDonald's, putting a movie on in the car for the drive to the city, racing back home for rests/naps/the safety of home.) hand in hand, finishing an entire ice cream cone ourselves, talking....................................

You get the pic.