"Girl" picture

We were getting ready to go take someone a birthday present when Talan asked if he could give give her a picture that he had colored. Of course, how cute will that be? He announced very excitedly that he had the perfect "girl" picture for her that he had colored. Imagine my utter shock when my sweet little 4 yr old produced the following picture with pride:

Oh my gosh!!!!!! Does anyone else find it totally disturbing that whoever made this children's coloring book thought it appropriate to include this?

Needless to say, we settled on a coloring of spiderman instead. Now I get to "screen" all coloring books. That is great because I have actually been trying to find stuff to do in all of my "spare time."

Imperfectly Perfect

I know I spend most of my time on this site focusing on the not-so-fun aspects of being a mom of these boys, but this is my designated space to do that! That said, there is so much fun and good that we experience everyday that will soon be highlighted on my other blog (that is currently under construction).

I was starting to feel frustrated with all the things that I was facing on a daily basis. (It is hard being a mom to 2 very active boys). I want whoever reads this to know that this is part of my life, this is reality, and that's ok. I look at so many "this-is-my-perfect-life" blogs and that is fine, but I want to share my challenges here. I am probably too transparent and honest, but maybe if you've ever experienced some of the things I do it will help to know that someone else has been through it too. No, my life isn't "perfect" because everything goes right for me all the time. My life is "perfect" for me because what I experience on a daily basis adds to the person that I am. My life feels perfect when my husband hugs me, or when my children get me up in the morning by climbing on me and giving me kisses on my cheeks until I am awake. I am an imperfect person....as clearly evidenced on this blog! I am clumsy, uncoordinated, grumpy in the morning, airheaded, always 5-10 minutes late, a procrastinator.....just to name a few of my many flaws! I love that my husband, family, and friends know all of these things about me and accept me anyway. What could be more perfect than that?

Potty Time Update

Except for one episode of peeing down the heat vent this week (yeah, not the easiest place to clean), Tyce has resorted to going in his diaper again. (Thank you!). I'm not ready to potty-train another kid yet!

Talan went all week with no accidents and as a reward got to pick out the same power ranger toy that he gave his friend Tanner for his birthday. We are very, very proud of him.

I've decided that if I can survive potty-training, I can survive anything. It has honestly been one of my biggest challenges, but it has taught me patience on a whole new level, being prepared (the time you forget the extra diaper at the store is the time you are going to need it), and it has made me realize that as a mother I don't really have a clue sometimes and that it is ok to ask for help (from my family, friend's going through the same thing, and my Heavenly Father). Thanks for all the support!

Talan's Broken Heart

It was about an hour before Talan was going to go to his friend Tanner's birthday party when I asked him if he would like to help me wrap the present I had for him to take. He was really excited to help until he saw the gift.....a totally awesome red power ranger. Excitement quickly turned to tears as he declared that he didn't even have a power ranger and that he just wanted to keep this one and give his friend something different. Although it would have been much easier to just give in I thought I would let this be a teaching moment about how to be a good friend and that we don't always get what we want. Let me tell ya, that was a looooong hour as we waited for the party to start. My constant reply of "No" was repeatedly met with despaired sobs of how that was the only toy that he has every wanted. I finally gave him the option to go to the party with the present or stay home and I would take the present to Tanner by myself. Luckily he chose the first option and I think actually had a great time.

The next day Talan was happily ancipating the arrival of his friend Luke who was coming over to play. At the time he was supposed to get there Talan took his post at the front window to watch for him. About every 30 seconds he would ask "Mom, where is he? Why isn't he here yet? Why is he taking forever?, etc....After 1/2 an hour of this we found out that Luke wasn't going to be able to come and play that day after all. The tears and sobs began and I watched him go from being so excited to totally devastated. (It amazing how HUGE such little things are to kids). :.(
As the crying continued to excalate I asked Talan if he wanted to come sit on my lap and give me a hug. He climbed on and melted into my arms. As I began rocking him, I suggested that he stay here until he didn't feel sad anymore. He looked up at me with his big blue tear-filled eyes and whispered, "Mom, can I stay here forever?" Yeah, that was pretty much the sweetest moment ever. Unfortunately for me, "forever" to him meant until 3 minutes later when we had arranged for him to play with another friend.