fertilization

Yesterday as Natalie and I were baking in the kitchen she was about to crack an egg, but gave it a little hug first and whispered, "I'm so sorry, baby chick!" (I'm going to guess that I don't need to add how freaking adorable that is...)

I told her that she didn't need to feel bad because that egg wasn't ever meant to be a baby chick.

She looked a little puzzled and asked why some eggs were meant to be baby chicks and some weren't - and how anyone knew the difference.

So, I (being the mature and all-prepared adult that I am so not!) decided that this might be a good time to start the conversation.

You know the one I'm talking about.

I explained that chickens (hens) need roosters in order to fertilize their eggs to make babies and if there is no rooster then the egg doesn't get fertilized and it's the kind of egg that we eat.

I went on to explain that all girls (animals and people) are born with eggs in their tummies. Then I continued on to explain (in super simple terms) about girls getting their monthly cycles and how it's just like the chickens getting rid of the eggs that aren't ready to be babies (because they aren't married yet, obviously) and that the eggs won't be a baby until there is a husband to fertilize it.

After asking a few questions she seemed pretty content with the conversation and we just went on baking and soon we were discussing things like volleyball, why you can see dust in the air when the sun is shining in the room, and how she taught Carter how to do multiplication.

The day went on and I had pretty much forgotten that we even had that conversation. Until...

Jeff came home from work and Natalie plopped down on his lap in front of the fireplace. He was teasing her and she was giggling when all of a sudden out of nowhere she says, "I know a secret, Daddy."

He says, "Oh yeah? What's that?"

"You fertilized Mommy's egg and that's why there's a baby in her tummy now."

I sooooooooo wish I would have had a hidden camera to document the look on his face!

PRICELESS.

One might think that after being flooded in for 4 days (hoping to get out either this evening or tomorrow) our house would look spotless... Notsomuch.

I saw a thing on Pinterest that said something like, "The only thing that motivates me to clean my house is watching 'Hoarders: Buried Alive'" and that about sums it up. It's ridiculous.

Jeff is still not home.

He couldn't make it through the water last night so he went the back roads over the mountain (the highway was closed due to landslides) to his parents house to help them clean up the monstrosity of a mess that their property has become. It's sad. And a LOT of work. So, even though I miss him TERRIBLY (and that's an understatement) it is what it is and I'm glad he can help them out.

The kids are Crazy today. And yes, I mean capital-C-Crazy. They are getting on each other's nerves and I think I broke up 3-4 arguments/fights before I was even fully conscious and at least 10 before my first cup of coffee was in my system. I might just end up putting life jackets on them, drifting them down the road at the end of our driveway, and have Jeff try to catch them on the other side (and wish them all the best of luck while I continue my home-stay in silence).

Really, I have nothing to complain about and I know it. We have food. Our home and property are not damaged (just really, REALLY soaked) and everyone is safe.

But honestly, I'm over this housebound stuff.

I miss Target.

And peppermint mochas.

And having a reason to put on "real clothes."

Enough of that, though (it's just depressing), I'm off to take some deep breaths and clean this mess before we actually do end up on some sort of TLC reality show.

He thinks he's SO funny.

So, Jeff and I have a weight loss challenge going on between the two of us. If I reach my goal before he reaches his then I'm going to get my nose pierced again (it's been a while, but I have had it done before - twice, actually). If he wins then he gets to buy a new pair of Danner boots that he's been eyeing.

I can't believe that he agreed to this (he's never been fond of the whole nose ring idea), but he did. We shook on it (agreeing not to purposefully sabotage each other), and off to the races we went! Like I mentioned in my last post, I've been trying to make lifestyle changes (yada, yada, yada) and add regular exercise into my routine to help boost my weight loss (and obviously, "boost" means "begin").

The other night I decided after eating 3 pieces of Papa Murphy's pizza that I should finish my day with a run, so I went in my bedroom to change and then headed out to the garage to hop on the treadmill.

This is what I found: 

While I was changing into my workout clothes, my husband (oh-so-lovingly, I'm sure) went out and placed a freaking CUPCAKE on my treadmill.

So much for the no-sabotaging, eh'? Anyway, I'll keep you updated (via Fit Friday posts) as to how it's all going. It could be a long road (it will be), but I'm in it to win it (and be healthier and stuff, too, I guess obviously).

{Despite what the photo might suggest, I feel the need to report (for the record) that there was no cupcake eating in the making of this workout session.}

There. I said it.

I don't like Mother's Day. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm unbelievably thankful for all of my mothers... {{The one who gave birth to me and then being amazingly selfless, chose adoption and gave me to another... The one who prayed endlessly for me to come into her life, then gave me a childhood most people only dream of having... And the one who through patience, love, and  undoubtedly lots of prayer raised my husband to be a respectful, loving, sensitive, strong, and Godly man... I am crazy-thankful for these women.}} but seriously, I don't like Mother's Day.

There's so much pressure. So many expectations (is it just me, or does everyone expect to not have to give kids baths or vacuum out the car on Mother's Day?) and often times (in my life anyway) it just doesn't work like that. Our morning wasn't ideal, by any means. It wasn't the typical breakfast-in-bed-and-handmade-cards that you think of when "Mother's Day" is near. 

But really, not liking Mother's Day has nothing to do with the fact that mine was different than "normal" or less than what I had expected. (We did go to Portland and had a wonderful afternoon with my parents and brother.) I don't like Mother's Day because I find so much more joy in every day than could ever possibly be packed into one day with a "Mother's" label on it (throw up in your mouth if you have to, but it's true for the most part).

Every time I hear my kids laughing with each other, it's more beautiful to me than a bouquet of flowers. When my husband randomly tells me he knows it's not an easy job, but he really appreciates how hard I work for our family, it's better than runny eggs and burned toast served on a platter in bed.

I realize that when I really think about it, getting woken up at 4:00am to change wet sheets, give a hug, and whisper, "it's no big deal" to one of my children doesn't make Mother's Day "less-than." It makes every single day Mother's Day because every day I am nothing but blessed to just get to be my kids' Mommy.

I guess I'm *that* kind.

I know I've talked about this before, but seriously, sometimes I hate that I'm that kind of girl. You know, the kind that needs a guy to do the stereotypical "guy" jobs...

Today I bought spackle. And a spackle applying tool. (Can you tell I have no idea what I'm talking about here?) But, I did. And I used them.

A few days months ago we took out a set of cabinets in our kitchen to open up the space into the dining room. It was great but the walls (where the cabinets were) were white, and all the walls in our house are a cream color (I know, how boring are we?) and there were big holes where the cabinets were nailed to the walls... and something had to be done about it. Today (my opinion). But Jeff has been busy (hence the 7 month waiting period to get a project done) and I just didn't want him to have to think about it anymore. I wanted to help ("help" - obviously it's gotta be in quotes, right?).

So I went to the store and bought the stuff I thought I'd seen used on HGTV I needed and I went to town on it. I spackled (is that even what filling in the holes is called?) and let it dry. Then in the garage I found all the spackling materials I needed that I had just bought at the store old paint from the previous owner of the house and painted the whole thing the same color as the rest of the room. I felt accomplished. I had been adventurous and took the initiative and did it. And best of all, because I did it, Jeff didn't have to. WIN!

Only, it looks weird. I don't think I did it right. The colors aren't matching (can paint in a gallon "bucket" fade a little over time?) and I don't want Jeff to come home and act all proud of me for doing "such a great job" while secretly wanting to re-do the whole thing the right way. I did it so he wouldn't have to. But I think I did it wrong and I'm not really sure how to fix it.

Anyway, like I said, I hate being "that kind of girl" - especially when I really (really) wanted it to work out.

But at the same time, the fact that it didn't work out means that my husband can (clearly) see that I need him. For spackling... and other stuff. Plus, I'm not just that kind of girl I'm other kinds, too. Other kinds that are WAY more important.

Like the kind that tries. The kind that wants to help her husband out, not so that he feels guilty that he didn't get it done earlier, but so that he can just take a deep breath and know that it's one less thing on his plate. I'm the kind of girl who loves her husband so much I went WAY out of my comfort zone and into a hardware store...

I'm that kind of girl. And if nothing else, that is something I can be proud of.

Weekend WIN!

After barely making it through Friday We had a remarkable weekend!
Saturday morning we got up WAY before the sun (which I'm pretty sure is illegal in most states - no?). Jeff and I woke up at 4:30am to get dressed quickly and pack the Suburban because we were taking the kids CLAMMING (a first for us all)! Jeff's brother John met us at our house at 5:20am and after getting the kids up and all bundled and ready for a (possibly rainy) day at the beach we grabbed some coffee and headed out.

Can I just say it was perfect? Because it really was. It was so much fun! It wasn't windy, it didn't rain, there wasn't anyone else around, and we all had a blast.

{Our gear's all ready to go!}

{Uncle John, Carter and Jack}

{Natalie}

{Uncle John and Carter}

{Jeff and Jackson}

{See? I was there!}

Immediately after clamming and hitting Dutch Bro's for some hot cocoa we headed to Jeff's parent's house for some cards, March Madness, a long walk, and a warm fire. It was a great day!

Sunday we slept in (oops) and my brother Zach came over with a friend of his while they were down in Eugene visiting from Portland. It was so nea to see the kids get so excited to see him (and by "see him" I mean "clobber him"). After their visit, we took the kids to town to see their (our) first 3D movie at he $1.50 theater - again, major hit! On the way home, my husband (who must love me more than anything) drove us to a thrift store where we browsed for about 45 minutes (I.love.thrifting!) and each found at least one thing we considered a treasure (a pair of name brand jeans that fit perfectly for $4? Holla!).

After thrifting our little hearts out, we stopped and grabbed a RedBox movie to watch after the kids were in bed.

Jeff took today (Monday) and tomorrow off of work for an extended weekend and the kids will be spending the night tonight with my parents (again - HOLLA!) so we'll get a date night (yay!).

Seriously - SUCH a good (much needed) weekend. Apparently the kids enjoyed it too, because on the way home last night Natalie could hardly contain her excitement as she said, "Wow! I have so much to write about for my 'Spring Break' entry in my journal at school next week! This is awesome!"

Win!

I "Might Have" Monday

We might have all but completely run out of groceries over our busy weekend. Seriously.

I might have made the kids peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with English muffins for their lunches today because we were out of regular bread.

I also might have been staring down the last banana trying to figure out a way to have the kids split it in the lunch room at school.

I might have been willing to just toss a quarter in each lunch bag for them to buy milk to go with their pitiful looking lunches.

My husband might have looked at those pathetic lunches and then back at me and said sarcastically, "Lets just go wild and spring for school-lunches today..."

So, here's to Monday. Go wild.