Kiddo-isms

Quotes from Kiddo while building race tracks:

"Look, Mommy, the car has to go through a loopty-doop!"

"Boy, Mommy, that track was treacherous!"

"Oh boy, this track is going to be brutal."

I went to pick up Kiddo from school this afternoon...(drum roll, please)...without a coat!  And with coneflower seed stuck to my sleeve from poking in the flowerbeds looking for daffodil shoots.  I didn't find any daffodils, but I did find these:

Hello, little ones!

It has been balmy and wonderful - it almost hit 70 degrees this afternoon.  The snow is FINALLY melting away and we can see the grass that we haven't seen since Christmas.  What a glorious day!

After several months of respite, the sidewalks were reclaimed by chalk. 

And I remembered why Kiddo has so many pairs of pants.  I had forgotten all about chalk laundry.

Kiddo and I went for a walk around the block...partly because it was just too beautiful not to, and partly to check on all of the ditches and storm drains that were running high with snow melt.

 

 

"The ditch is really running, Mommy.  That's impressive!" 

And now it's bedtime and the wind is howling and whistling around the corners of the house - blowing the blissfully warm air away and bringing back the cold stuff.  Sigh...but at least now it feels like Spring is on its way.  Happy dance!

P.S.  Before the wind started howling, I thought I would copy Jess and take some pictures of the moon.

It did not go well.

Hope you have a great weekend!!

happy {belated} birthday to me!

My birthday was on Friday.  I turned 35.  35 used to seem a whole lot older than it does now.  Actually, sometimes it still seems old (like when I stop to notice the wrinkles and cracking joints, or when I talk about college and realize it was 15 years ago already).

Hubby treated me to a THICK new book - and then played with Kiddo all weekend so I could spend my time curled up on the couch, reading.  Kiddo wrote me a story about a duck and his mommy on a paper wheel that he fastened down with a brad - I had to turn the wheel to see the story.  It was very cute and creative and special.  And on the back, there was a pocket with a blank wheel stuck inside, "so that you can write a story for me, Mommy."

I treated myself to a Starbucks raspberry scone for breakfast, my mom took me out for lunch, and Hubby and Kiddo took me out for dinner.  What a great day!

Now that I am a year older, I am a year smarter, right?  That would be a good thing.  Maybe then I can avoid embarrassing encounters with local policemen, like I had on Thursday (when I was 34).

We have a U-shaped driveway, which is wonderful - until we get over a foot of snow and we have to get out the shovel (we keep telling ourselves there IS a snowblower in our future).  When the snow is that deep, we only shovel half of the "U".  The snow has slowly been melting over the past few weeks, so now there are only a few inches left on the unshoveled portion of the driveway.  So Thursday, on the way to drop Kiddo off at school, I decided I was going to drive through it (you can see where this is going, can't you?).  As soon as I had driven a few feet, I knew I was in trouble.  I made it to within about 10-15 feet of the road before I got stuck (FB friends, you have heard this already - feel free to skip to the end).

I resigned myself to getting Kiddo to school late, called my dad to come help me out, and then started digging.  While I waited for my dad, a policeman drove by and stopped to see what was going on. Our conversation went something like this (him with a tone of incredulity, me with high-pitched squeaks of embarrassment):

Him: "do you need help?"
Me: "um, no, I'm okay, thanks, someone is on there way to help me out."
Him: "are you stuck?"
Me: "yes"
Him: "do you live here?"
Me: "yes"
Him (looking at dry half of driveway): "seriously?!"
Me: "yes"
Him: "what were you trying to do, take a shortcut or something?"
Me: "uh huh"
Him: [stunned silence]
Me: [furious blushing] "stupid, I know."
Him: "but you don't need any help."
Me: "no, but thanks for stopping."
Him: [drives slowly away shaking his head]

I can just imagine myself as the topic of amused discussions around the coffee pot later that day.  Ah well.  I did manage to dig myself out - just as my dad drove up.  The school secretary got a good laugh about it too when we showed up half an hour late.

Kiddo was tickled by the whole incident.  When I told him I had learned my lesson, he said "Yeah!  NEVER drive on the snow...at least when you are trying to get me to school." 

good morning, sunshine! {happy valentine's day}

There are days when you wake up, look out the window...

...and just know it's going to be a good day.  

• Good morning kiss from Hubby before he headed out the door to work.
• Awesome sunrise.  The whole world was pink or purple or orange.  Everything glowed.
• Got Kiddo to school and then sat down to finish a 1,001-page behemoth of a good book (maybe now that my nose isn't stuck in said book, I can get something done around here).
• Cleaned up the house a bit before running to Kiddo's Valentine's party at school (controlled chaos, as always).
• Stepped outside without a coat.  Temps above 50 this week!  Hallelujah, it feels like spring!! 
• Got overwhelmed while thinking about preparations for summer Bible school at church (June!  It's right around the corner!  Aaack!).
• Wrote letters (and blog posts) in the parking lot while Kiddo was at an after-school playgroup.
• Went out to dinner with Hubby, Kiddo and my parents (not romantic, but still fun).  Left Mom and Dad with the bill (after we invited them to dinner) because the bill hadn't showed up yet and we needed to make a quick getaway with a tired boy before he imploded.  Not very classy on our part.
• Came home to a "gi-huge-ic" (Kiddo's word) Valentine from Hubby.  It is seriously huge.  Like over two feet tall huge.  Beyond "extra postage required" huge.  How fun!
• Snuggled up on the bed with Kiddo and read bedtime stories together.  A perfect way to end the day.

I am loved.
On beautiful days and ugly days.
I'm so glad.

shoulds and should nots

This is why I should never be allowed near kitchen utensils - particularly sharp ones.

(why yes, that is Lightning McQueen driving across my thumb)

And if you've ever wondered why you should clean the leaves out of your gutters, this would be why.

This is our brand new gutter that we just had installed this past fall.  The leaves plugged it up so that the water couldn't drain out.  The water froze and has sat there since Christmas, getting heavier and heavier with all the snow and freezing rain.  And yesterday the gutters decided they had had enough.

And if that weren't exciting enough, a large chunk of ice slid out of the gutter and landed here:

No wonder our basement was so cold this morning.

P.S.  Gutter helmets have just been added to our "to do" list.  And a new window.

the wall

The chalkboard wall was worth it.

It is a hit...Kiddo loves it!

His uncle and cousins like it, too.  :)
 

hooray

The sun was out today.  Hooray!
Everything was sparkly.

My book came today.  Hooray!
My husband stole it and started reading it before I had even cracked it open.  He opened it up to somewhere in the middle.  It happened to be a scene where they were preg-testing cattle.  He laughed and laughed and laughed. 

We finished our chalkboard wall tonight.  Hooray!
Kiddo is already planning what to draw on it tomorrow after it cures.  I am starting to get used to it now.  I have no pictures.  Yet.  Maybe tomorrow?

I have a day to myself tomorrow.  Hooray!
I am spending it cleaning house.  Not hooray, but I will be so pleased with the results of my labor.  A clean house makes me happy.  Not that it happens very often...

We are having our birthday party tomorrow night.  Hooray!
Our driveway is half-covered in ice and snow, leaving no room for our guests to park.  Uh oh.
At least it's pretty!