Yes, Valeria, There is a Santa Clause

L's friend at school told her that Santa isn't real- and for over a week or so, she's been asking me whether it's true. I've been telling her that she has to "believe to receive" and all other ways to get her to believe in Santa.

We went to see Santa last night and I've gotta say that I think we might have just convinced L (for at least 1 more year) that Santa IS real after all. I was able to sneak a note to Santa through the lady taking picture orders- the note said:
1. NO Nintendo DS
2. You ARE real
3. L's friend's name is Brianna
4. T's friend's name is Andrew.

So... the short version of the story is that L told Santa that her friend said he wasn't real. And without missing a beat he said, "Oh, so is that what Brianna's saying these days?" You should have seen L's face!!! AMAZING. She couldn't believe it. She said, "HOW DID YOU KNOW THAT!?" Then T felt his beard and looked at me and loudly whispered, "Yep, he's the real deal mom!"

Hahahha- phew! I loved it. The kids were so hyper after they were done... and of course, L then said that she never doubted for even a second whether Santa was real or not- she knew the truth the whole time (the truth of course, being that Santa IS real.) OMG!

Things always go awry...

Recently Ken had to go to Texas for a quick one-night trip for work. Things seem to go awry whenever he travels. For example, this was my morning.
Woke up at 5:00am, walked the dogs, fed the dogs, got ready for work, did the typical morning routine with getting the kids ready for school. What do you know, we were ready a few minutes early so I stopped at Starbucks- WHOHOO!!! While I'm waiting for my drink, I realized I forgot to give T his medicine. On the way back to the house, T and I got into a discussion on how to swallow his pill. (He puts it down his throat with his fingers.) I told him that if he does it that way, he would gag himself. He insisted I was wrong...

SO- back to the house we go. I run in the house, find my dog in the middle of tearing apart the trash while the puppy is sleeping on the couch. After cleaning up the mess, I take T's pill and a juice box to him. I no sooner walk around to the front of the car to get in, then look back to see T, eyes wide open, gagging. He manages to somehow say "Throw-up!" I tell him to open the door, and then I run back around the car... T gets the door open and proceeds to throw up.... Twice. Luckily he opened the door fast enough and well, you get the picture. (And reason #1483 that I'm not up for "Mom of the Year"? I couldn't pass on an opportunity to squeeze out an empathetic 'told you so'. But at least I waited until after a few hugs and cleaning things up.)

Now here's the craziest thing of all: Given everything I mentioned, I still managed to get the kids where they needed to be- on time- and get myself to work- on time! WOOOOOO!!!!!

And that's just 1 example of the craziness we experienced while Ken was away! :)

Transitions

I started working full-time again- I've been part-time since adopting the kids 2 years ago. I had some anxieties about it, to say the least. I was so worried that festering adoption-related issues would bear their head and the guilt would make me re-evaluate my decision about work. The first week of school was a bit rough- at home, at least. The kids have a totally different morning routine since I am no longer the one waking them up and getting them going and off to school. Ken is now doing that. The afternoons are also completely different since they are picked up by a woman who does home-day care. (Who is WONDERFUL with L & T, thank God!) Three nights a week are pretty hectic because of T's football practice (and therefore, lack of family dinners). So, with all that, the 1st week of back to school was filled with new, difficult transitions for the kids. (And ok, difficult for Ken and me, too.) However, we got through the 2nd week much more smoothly!! I want to say that there was only 1 meltdown in the morning, and one in the evening. (That doesn't include my own meltdowns, which we won't discuss right now! :)

My new job is going really well and the guilt of working full-time is ever-so-slowly subsiding. The kids are not at the school that I teach at- at least, not this year. L loves her teacher (apparently she's very sweet- quite the opposite of last year's teacher!) T hasn't complained about his teacher- I'm remaining optimistic. After all, I'm still thankful that he wasn't put with the teacher that L had for 2nd grade!

For those of you who have been asking for football updates, T is doing well- playing defense. He's gaining confidence on the field, even with his short stature, and it's also giving him a great outlet for being rough and tough while learning a thing or two. He hasn't quite mastered the rules of the game, but we're not concerned. Like the commissioner of the organization said, "No one is going to get drafted from the "ankle-biter" division, so let's just have fun while learning good sportsmanship." Sounds good to me! If you are interested in the latest pics, email me... he's got a game tomorrow night.

It's Not the Size of the Dog in the Fight...

 This summer has been full of... well, let's just say "full"!  The kids did camp, L fell in love with her counselor... T has a taste for sushi, as he 'cramps it' all the time.  (He means "craves it".)  They've both done gymnastics and if you've been around the kids at all, you'd be able to tell because L is constantly doing cartwheels!  

T is now in football.  They practice 2 hours a day until school is in session- and then they'll practice 2 or 3 times per week plus games on weekends "despite what the Redskins schedule is".  I take T to practice each day and on that first day I laughed SOOO hard that I cried.  At least twice.  (OK, to be completely honest, I almost peed myself but I didn't really admit to that, did I?)  And as some spectators said about T without realizing I was his mom, "Look at that little dude!  All the other kids are going to underestimate him b/c he's the shortest out there, but they don't realize it's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog." 

I've got some great mpeg clips of the practice so if you'd care to see one, send me an email and I'll send you a link (provided I know you!) 

Summer Funnies

If only I knew how to draw cartoons to give you good visuals to go with these summer funnies!

This first 'funny' should be titled, "Baywatch". 

While at the beach this past weekend, L took notice of the lifeguard.  After noticing him, she told me, "Do you see that lifeguard, mom?  He's CUTE!  I want to marry him!"  (And between you and me, L has good taste! LOL)  Apparently, she's 8 going on 18. 

Later, she saw him run into the waves while she was in the water with Ken.  What she said to Ken went something like this:

L: Oh My Gosh!  (while staring at the lifeguard)

K: What!?

L: Daddy, I'm going to go under the water and pretend I'm drowning. 

K: (puzzled) Why?

L: So that cute lifeguard can come over and rescue me.  I'm going to marry him, ya know.  

Next funny is titled, "Falling Down"

We were in the hotel watching some sort of blooper/ candid camera- type show.  The one clip was about demolition workers who were trying to blow-up a building.  They pushed the button, you see smoke, the building falls a few levels and tilts, then stops.  No demolition.  Suddenly T, with all his infinite wisdom says, "Woh!  Good thing that building didn't fall down!" 

Mothers Day and Beyond

Mother's Day

Last week's Mother's Day was fairly uneventful, which is a good thing.  I even got to take a nap!  Ken bought me a GPS system- a surprise to say the least.  And I desperately needed one!  I get lost the 1st and 2nd time I go ANYWHERE.  Just ask my friend Mel- between the two of us in Italy and Greece, it would take us 20 minutes to walk to a place that we'd later realize was just around the corner.

L & T's newest joke:  

Q: What color is a burp?  

A: Burple

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week, as a gift for you, we put our child on Ritalin.  ;)

Yes, as much as I joke about it, we're serious.  T was diagnosed with ADHD.  Not a surprise to me... Ken had a much harder time accepting it (and still does.)  We disagreed on treatment and went the non-medicine route for a short-while.  Ironically, during Teacher Appreciation Week, we started the medicine and I emailed the teacher saying, "In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, we started T on Ritalin."  

(... and if you are wondering, it's the lowest possible dose and helping T tremendously.)  

Plans for the Summer

My parents invited L & T to stay with them for a couple of days- without Ken and me.  Most parents would probably jump for joy... I am a bit nervous for a couple of reasons (nothing to do with trusting my parents with the kids.  They're amazing.)  I start to think, what the hell am I going to do with myself without the kids around???  L & T love the idea of going to Nana and Poppy's.  When L tells people about it, she says, "Well Mommy left ME for 6 days, so now I'm going to show HER how it feels."  (Referencing my Italy trip.)

Where did you learn THAT!?

Just today the kids were practicing using their Heelies and we stopped and chatted with our neighbors, "Mr. Nick and Ms. Mel".  T was doing fairly well but goofing off nonetheless and L fell because she put her toes down and tripped herself.  She skinned her knee and after getting some sympathy she sat down on the step, whimpering and trying to conjure up some tears.  T apparently heard enough whining from L and wanted her to move so he could keep practicing.  So he says, "Alright, let's cut the crap.  Time to Heely!"  

I wanted to laugh, yell, hide, play deaf, and congratulate him for proper grammar usage all within .5 seconds.  Nick had to turn around and walk away so T didn't see him laughing so hard.  (Reason #342 why Ritalin SHOULD NOT be skipped on weekends: once the thought enters the head, there's no filter to prevent it from coming out the lips.)

Martian Child

Have you heard of the movie, Martian Child with John Cusack? It's about a single man who adopts a child (about 8 yrs. old) from the Foster Care system and the boy thinks and acts like he's from Mars. I just finished watching the movie and I CRIED!!! What a great movie! One of the parts that really "hit home" with me was that John Cusack's character (Dan) teaches Dennis (the adopted son) about baseball. He explains that the great thing about it is that you could go up to bat and strike out 7 out of 10 times but still be great. And then if you did even a little bit better, you'd be a superstar! Several parts of the movie really hit home with me. I don't think it's necessarily meant to be a real tear-jerker but several parts struck me in a way that might actually help me have a better perspective on what's 'acceptable' or the big deal about being different.

As for my book reviews... I gave up on Love and Logic- doesn't work for us so I don't recommend it. Not for active kids who constantly test the limits. The 1-2-3 Magic! is great. Ken has to read the book now and we need to 'get on the same page' with using the strategies in the book. It's a great book if your kids have ADHD, which as we officially found out this week, is what T has been diagnosed with. I'm sure L is soon to follow; I just need to find (more) time to take off from work to make the follow-up appointment.