Perfect "Pen"manship

I don't ever want to stifle my kids creativity. I want them to see the world as their canvas, a world full of various mediums and forms of self-expression. That being said, I have learned that even boundless creativity has its limits.

Today after school Anastasia was mired elbow-deep in a project that involved drawing a picture for each child in her class. She painstakingly copied each child's name from the class list and drew them each a picture. She was using crayons, markers, and a ballpoint pen from the kitchen counter. She was spread out all over the living room floor in front of the Christmas tree. Allie was cooing away on her playmat and Ainsley was chasing the cat up and down the hall. Pure domestic bliss I thought to myself. I was making dinner when Anastasia entered the kitchen. "Mom, you're gonna be mad at me." No good can ever come after your offspring utters these words. I could see the fear in her eyes, but I put on my sweetest expression and used my honey voice. The one that says "I could never ever be made at you sweetheart." I've learned that my honey voice gets a lot more confessions than my vinegar one. She looked at me with those beautiful blue eyes set above her nose covered in those adorable freckles and said "I drew on the baby." WHAT??!?!?! (My honey voice sort of went out the window at that point.) "It was an accident." I stood there fumbling for words and managed to come up with "How could coloring on your sister with a ballpoint pen possibly be an ACCIDENT?" She looked me dead in the eyes and said, "I just got confused. I thought she was my paper." Well at this point I had to hide my face because I was laughing so hard. To her credit she did lick her finger and manage to wipe all the offending ink off her sister's forehead.

In the future when I encourage her creativity perhaps I should steer her away from the skin as a canvas. Unless of course she wants to be a tattoo artist and then I guess it's all fair game.

Child of Blessing, Child of Promise

Today was a very special day for our family. In addition to being the first Sunday in Advent, it was Allie's baptism. We were incredibly blessed to be surrounded by friends and family for the occasion. All four of Allie's grandparents were there as well as her two great-grandmothers. Her Great-Aunt Allison and many others were also in attendance.

It was, as is everything with our family, a great adventure full of chaos. Last night Ainsley was running a fever of almost 102 so I almost pulled the plug on the whole affair. Fortunately a good night's sleep and some Motrin seemed to cure what ailed her and she popped out of bed this morning with no fever in sight. We got to the church early so we could commandeer THREE pews. I'm sure we ticked off some little old lady by taking her spot, but at least it was for a good cause. The service went well and Allie sailed through the whole thing. She didn't even flinch when her grandfather and Pastor Andy put the water on her heard. I went to the chapel to feed her and then she conked out until 3. We had lunch with everyone after the service and I know everyone was disappointed that they didn't get to hold her. She was just so worn out. It was a truly a wonderful and special day. Our church typically sings "Child of Blessing, Child of Promise" when our service includes a baptism, but today we sang Away in a Manger. Below is the last verse of Child of Blessing which has really been on my mind this evening.

Child of God your loving parent

Learn to know whose child you are.

Grow to laugh and sing and worship

Trust and love God more than all.

Thanksgiving 2009

Since we are traveling many of the weekends in December, and because we have an infant, we opted not to travel for Thanksgiving this year. And while we missed our extended family, we certainly enjoyed our first Thanksgiving as a family of five. We started off the day with some serious decorating. Between the strands of lights and ornaments I was able to squeeze in a quick run. It was a beautiful day and I had the greenway all to myself (minus the hawk circling above).

After lunch we took naps and put up all our outdoor decorations. We also got the big tree up in the living room. For dinner I made a cloved ham just how my grandmother makes them. We had mashed potatoes, rolls, and cranberry sauce. We ate off the good china and toasted our wonderful blessings. It was a really special day and I'm so glad it was just the five us.

So now our house is decorated and we're ready for the holidays. I did some Black Friday shopping this morning but not until 8:30 a.m. I was up at 4 this morning, but it was just to feed Allie. Her baptism is on Sunday and I'm really looking forward to it. Then December begins and brings with it all the wonderful things the month always holds.

Park It

Anastasia only had a half day of school today. I'm a little worried about the quality of her education though since the school defines a "half day" as dismissing at 11 a.m. I had promised them a trip to the park so we set out after lunch. It was a beautiful day. The sun has been in hiding but it finally showed its face today. We walked over to the fountain first where the girls tested the limits of my patience by putting various limbs in the water. They ran all the way back to the playground which was empty. We had complete run of the place for almost an hour. It was a perfect afternoon. I got a little banged up on the twisty slide, but all in all it was a great way to spend time with my girls.

Turkey trot update

I was able to run the Turkey Trot on Sunday. My cold had eased off considerably so I felt healthy enough to get out there. It rained cats and dogs all morning so I was ready to chicken out (or is that turkey out?). The rain stopped so I laced up my shoes and took off. It was neat to be able to walk to the start. It was a good way to warm up my muscles and save gas. I got my race number and my timing chip before making the obligatory stop at the porta potties. There's nothing like bonding with your fellow runners while waiting to use an outdoor toilet.

The race stated right on time. It was a fund-raiser for our county schools so there were a lot of kids. A boy of seven passed me in a blur right out of the gate. Another pack of them went by about a half mile in. The course hadn't been published ahead of time, but I knew it well. It was quite hilly and challenging. A dad pushing a jogging stroller passed me at mile one, right near the roadkill. The site of a dead possum will quicken the pace considerably. We ran right through my neighborhood and got on the greenway. It was my home turf and blessedly flat as the trail parallels a creek in that spot. The finish was straight uphill, a hill I climbed many times during my marathon training. This hill and I are well-acquainted so I knew exactly what to expect. My watch read 27:57 at the finish. They haven't posted the official results so I don't know my chip time.

After I got water and a snack I walked back home. My route took me back out on the race course which I realized was a little cruel. There I was with my ice cold water, banana, and Chex mix as the remaining participants toiled away around mile 2. I probably could've gotten $10 bucks for my snack if I had been so inclined.

All in all it was a good race. A good way to get back into racing. I haven't signed up for my next one. I'm out of town for all the December ones so it will probably have to be in January.

The "A" Team

Tonight one of my good friends and former Channel 10 co-workers came by with her husband and her adorable baby boy. The live in Wisconsin and are here on a Thanksgiving adventure. Allie got to meet A.J. for the first time. They were SO cute together. I wouldn't say it was love at first site, but they had a nice time.

Turkey trot or not?

Last month I registered for a Turkey Trot. You know, one of those races that is always run the week of Thanksgiving. One of those races people run to feel less guilty about consuming mass quantities of pumpkin pie and stuffing. The Turkey Trot is close to home and had a no t-shirt option which appealed to my "greener" sense. Plus it benefits our local school system so it seems that everyone wins. The race is a little less than 48 hours away but I'm not sure if I'll be making it to the starting line. I've come down with a nasty cold. I haven't run since Monday and that run kicked my butt. It was a treadmill run though and I always think it's harder to run on a treadmill than it is to run outdoors. We'll see how I feel tomorrow, but I won't make my decision until Sunday at lunch.

I really (read: REALLY) want to run this race. I haven't laced up my shoes for a race since March. I ran a 27:48 and finished 16th in my age division. It was far from my best 5K time, but considering I was 15 weeks pregnant at the time, it wasn't too shabby. Hopefully another day of rest will do me some good. I know my time will be incredibly slow on Sunday, but I just hope I get to run.

Blair Witch Project: Lamar Style

So we got a new video camera. I let Anastasia play with it tonight. When I saw her masterpieces, I laughed so hard I cried. She's awesome. We're going to let her film all the time. It's kind of a funny commentary on our lives.

New Heights

Earlier in the week I got Allie's high chair out of the garage. It was covered in a nice layer of mold, dirt, and dried food (I swear I cleaned it before we put it in storage!) so I took the cover off and tossed it in the wash. The girls were tickled about the re-appearance of the high chair. They are so easy to please. She's been sitting in it at dinner time and really seems to enjoy being up on the same level as the rest of us. She looks so tiny up in that chair. I know that all too soon she'll be gnawing on a biter biscuit and spitting peas back at me.

In search of the perfect Christmas card

Last weekend I decided to get the girls dressed up and shoot our family Christmas card photo. Now that we've added a third child to the mix it raises the degree of difficulty by about 99%. We did the shoot right after a feeding so Allie was happy and pretty alert. I'm not going to post the picture we chose to use, but here are some funny "out takes." These pictures really capture my kids. I think I shot close to 100 pictures to get the ONE I wanted to use.

UPDATE: As of 4:30 this afternoon the cards have been ordered. I only added about 15 to my cart before I decided on the perfect one. Then I used my mad internet skillz to hunt down a coupon code for 15% off. Holiday awesomeness!

Milk of a different color

When I was a kid my parents thought it would be fun to play a trick on Anna and I. We sat down at the dinner table and there inside our little brightly colored Tupperware cups was spoiled milk. Well, that's what we thought. Turns out our parents put green food coloring in our milk. I don't know why I remember that all these years later, but it clearly made an impact. We've let our kids turn their milk into various colors. Tonight Ainsley begged for it at dinnertime. At first I said no, but then (being the single mom for the evening that I was) I relented. Anastasia chose purple milk to be slurpped with a purple twisty straw. Ainsley chose pink milk with a pink twisty straw. I'm such a cool mom. Sometimes my kids, one of whom called me an "old lady" today, need to be reminded of that!

Birthday Bonanza

Why celebrate a birthday with just one day of revelry? We here at the Lamar house like to make it a full weekend affair. Anastasia started her celebrating on Friday with cupcakes at school. She said everyone loved them. Except for one kid, he was in the principal's office and thus missed out on cupcakes. Friday night she was allowed to select the movie for family movie night. She chose "Duck Tales." We watched several episodes and actually got them into bed at a decent hour.

For breakfast on Saturday she requested cinnamon rolls. Thankfully my children think cinnamon rolls only come from the Pillsbury Dough Boy so breakfast was a breeze. We let her open her gifts from us and then got her cake picked up. She opened Gran and Pop's gifts before the party was well. I didn't want them to be lost in the shuffle. The gymnastics party was a huge success. I loved having everything don for us. From the decorating to the clean up, it was all done by the gym. Best money I've ever spent. The girls started the party in the gym. They played, flipped, tumbled and jumped for an hour. Anastasia even got to do a special trick on the trampoline. She LOVED it! After the special birthday girl trick we moved to the party room for cake and presents. Anastasia was her normal bossy self. But she was a good hostess. She ate about one bite of cake before turning to her large stack of gifts. Fairies, Barbies, dolls, books....it was all there. She graciously thanked her friends and then we headed home. She said it was the best party ever. We spent the rest of the evening with Gran, Pop and Granddad. We had to mediate several arguments between Ainsley and Anastasia. "No Ainsley, you can't play with Anastasia's brand new music box." It's a hard concept for a three-year-old to understand. The sharing has improved since Saturday though.

Yesterday Nana arrived, fresh from a trip to the Carolina coast. She didn't arrive empty-handed and Anastasia got to open even more gifts. Today Anastasia received another birthday card so we just continue to celebrate. Her old daycare teacher stopped by the school and dropped off one of her signature "birthday crowns." I could tell it made Anastasia's day. So the celebrating is over and on we roll towards seven years. Here's to hoping this next one is just as wonderful as the first six.

Happy Birthday Anastasia!

It's been a long day so I'm too tired to give all the details but it's been a great day. My little girl, who isn't so little now, is six years old. Hard to believe. Her party was wonderful and she told me she had "a blast!" It was the easiest party ever and I really got to enjoy it. More to come tomorrow....maybe. I might need another 24 hours or so to recover. All this celebrating is hard wok!

Peanut-free perfection

Anastasia is going to celebrate her birthday with her classmates tomorrow. She has some pals who have a peanut allergy so we had to find the perfect treat that everyone could enjoy. She wanted those frosted sugar cookies, but those weren't allergy friendly. We ended up making cupcakes ourselves. We had so much fun baking them this afternoon. We did sample them tonight (all in the name of quality control) and they were quite good. I hope the kids enjoy them tomorrow. She's so excited about taking them in. It's the kick-off to birthday weekend '09!

Sweet Dreams

One of my favorite songs by the Dixie Chicks is called "Godspeed (Sweet Dreams)." It's a beautiful lullaby that's been floating around in my head a lot lately as I sit up and feed Allie at night. She got up around 3:45 a.m. this morning and we settled into the couch in her room. After I got her tank filled up, I tucked her back into her crib and went to check on her sisters. Anastasia has been coughing a lot this week so I've been checking her for a fever each night. She was cool as a cucumber although I had to place her askew limbs back under her blankets. I had noticed the cat was curled up in Ainsley's bed when I entered the room. I didn't notice much else about Ainsley's bed though in the dark. She sleeps with about 40 stuffed animals, books, her Bible opened to a specific page (Job...who knew?) and it is often difficult to tell if she's actually in her bed. Last night, she was not. My brain knew where to go look for her, but in the split-second that it took my sleepy brain to process the empty bed my heart jumped up into my throat. I knew I would find her downstairs in the guest room with her granddaddy who was spending the night, but it was still a shock to not find her there. Before I went downstairs I thought I'd check our bed, just in case. She wasn't there so I grabbed my cell phone and used its light to feel my way downstairs. I managed to avoid the pair of Cinderella slippers and talking Elmo chair at the bottom of the stairs. I eased open the door and flipped my phone open. The pale light was enough for me to see Ainsley snuggled in next to her sleeping (and snoring) grandfather. With my missing child located I was fially able to get back to sleep. Godspeed......sweet dreams.

Allie's Check-up

When I made Allie's appointment last month I didn't look at my calendar. I didn't notice that her appointment was on the 11th. You know, the day there is no school for my oldest?. So this morning we all four traipsed over to the pediatrician's office. The man who maintains the fish tank was there in the waiting room feeding the fish and cleaning the tank. That kept the girls occupied while we waited. In retrospect I should've just left them in the waiting room. They were less than helpful back in the exam room. We had Allie weighed- 10 pounds 8 ounces! And she's now 21 inches long. The doctor says she looks great, but I'm concerned that her growth has leveled off. He said we'll see what she looks like at her 4 month check-up before we jump to any conclusions. (I love this doctor!) I answered the doctor's questions about Allie's sleeping and eating habits while refereeing a fight over the iPod and putting Ainsley's shoes back on. She kept saying "I'm hungry. I'm hungry. I'm hungry." The doctor in his infinite wisdom put the girls to work. They had to fetch his light, throw away tongue depressors, and put the ear looky thingy back in its spot.

She had three vaccinations today. The girls were very clear when the nurse came in: "That's our sister. SHE'S the one getting the shots. Not us." There was no throwing themselves in front of the vaccine bus for their beloved little sister. Nope, they shoved her right out there in the open. She screamed, I cried, and the girls stood by helplessly. It was all over in an instant and we were on our way. Allie's taking a good snooze. The girls are taking in a movie with their dad this afternoon so I'm looking forward to some one-on-one time with Allie. After all those shots she needs some extra cuddling!

So check out these pamphlets that were in the exam room....um, what about the parents of girls. More specifically THREE girls. I guess there's no amount of pamphleting that can help a parent through puberty with three girls. There should just be a coupon for valium or maybe a gift certificate to a winery. ; )

Two months old!

Allie is two months old today. She's doing very well if I do say so myself. She smiles at faces and loves to coo and "talk" to you. She will talk to her stuffed frog all day long. I placed it on her changing table so she can see it every time we change her. Her favorite toy is her Precious Planet playmat. She has already started grabbing at things. She is sleeping very well at night and is only getting up once at night. She loves to eat and wants to do so pretty much every two hours during the day.

This morning she had her pictures made and did very well. She is such an easy baby. Her checkup is tomorrow I can't wait to see how much she has grown. Here's a picture of the two of us from this evening.

Sorry this post is s choppy. I'm typing one-handed while I feed her!

A half-bubble short of level

So yeah, my Christmas shopping is done and I had tonight's dinner made by 9:30 this morning. The goody bags are all ready for the party on Saturday. I've already started Allie's baby book and earlier today someone called me inspirational. While I appreciated the compliment it couldn't be further from the truth. In all reality I'm a half-bubble short of level. I'm a wife and a mom of three who is treading water and trying to keep my head above the surface. My kids have been sitting in front of PBS for the last hour and 24 minutes. I cheated and used canned chicken in tonight's recipe. A recipe from my mother that most assuredly does not call for chicken out of a can. Sure my photo albums are all labeled neatly on the spines and I actually *enjoy* running, but my sink is full of dirty dishes.

See I really mean it. That's what my sink looks like right now.

And see that? Those are dust bunnies currently residing under my china cabinet. Dust bunnies that have many cousins under my fridge, my couch, and my bed. I'm not SuperMom or a role model. I'm just another busy woman with many plates to twirl. Plates that are currently covered with yesterday's dried mac and cheese.

Runner's guilt

I have a sign on the bulletin board in front of my treadmill. It reads: "If you had gone running when you first started thinking about it, you'd be back by now." It's a great sign, but it only works when I heed its advice. Today was a beautiful day. Warm and sunny, not a cloud in the sky. Jamie was home so I had the opportunity to go for a run on the greenway. I was just too tired. And now I feel guilty. Now I have a headache and can't even muster the energy to hit the treadmill for two measly miles. Runner's guilt gets me every time. It will eat away at me until I finally drag myself out for a run which hopefully will be tomorrow.

Motivation is usually plentiful for me, especially when I put big races on the horizon. In March I'm going to get back into distance running with the Knoxville 1/2 Marathon. Then I'll do the Chickamauga 1/2 Marathon next November. My biggest running goal lies 14 months away in the Sunshine State. I'm going to shell out $300 so I can run a 1/2 marathon and a marathon on back-to-back days. Most people think this kind of torture means I should be admitted to a mental institution. I on the other hand know it will keep me motivated and driven to run even on those days when I don't think I can.

As for now, I have a 5K in two weeks and I need to get some more miles under my belt to get ready. In the meantime I'll just sit here on the couch with my girls and watch some football.

City Mouse, Country Mouse

Despite the fact that we live in a "rural county" I have come to the conclusion lately that my children are most decidedly urban. I come to this realization through several avenues. I've been reading a lot of the Pioneer Woman blog lately. It's about a family with four kids who live on a ranch in the midwest. The children participate in the daily chores that go along with life on a working farm/ranch. The kids ride horses, they feed chickens, they know that eggs don't typically come in a styrofoam carton from the store. My kids....not so much.

Today we had a playdate with Tate and Merritt. They have come to our house several times but today we had the pleasure of visiting their home "Sherrer Haven." It should've been named Sherrer Heaven! The view from their home is absolutely beautiful.

See what I mean? Spectacular views!! I would never leave my porch if I had a view like that. The kids had a blast playing together. Dress up clothes were donned and princess shoes could be heard prancing up and down the stairs. My girls fed chickens and held baby chicks. Sometimes when they do cool stuff like that I look at them and wonder how they could possibly be my children. I so didn't do stuff like that as a kid. I was freaked out by bugs and didn't like walking up stairs when I could see through the boards to the ground below. I'm glad my kids are more adventurous than I was. Heck, they're more adventurous than I am now as an adult.

All in all it was a great day for a playdate. The weather was perfect and the kids were (relatively) well-behaved. We ate sandwiches on fresh sourdough bread that Merritt and Tate's mom had made and swapped stories over the lunch table. They sent us home with a loaf of bread and a carton full of fresh farm eggs. Eggs that didn't come from a store.

Santa's Workshop

Christmas is still over a month away, but you wouldn't know it to look in my secret Christmas closet. Gifts have been arriving by mail for weeks now. I'm going to owe our mail carrier a really good tip come the holidays. Various family members like to use our house as a temporary depot for their gifts so as to throw off other members of the family from the origin of their presents. It's kind of fun to see what everyone gets and to be the hub of so much Christmas activity.

I was going to hold off on the Christmas music, but the natives were restless in the car yesterday so I broke out Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. It calmed them like the pied piper leading all those mice out of town. I myself had been itching to get my shopping completed. Ainsley, Allie and I went to the mall yesterday in search of those last elusive gifts but came up empty-handed. Although we did walk away with an ice cream cone and a stylish new haircut. Last night after dinner I escaped the house for an hour and went to Target. They sent me their toy catalog yesterday and I spotted the perfect gift for Ainsley. There was even a coupon! They only had two left on the shelf so I was glad I had made the trip. I only have two and a half people to shop for now. Yeah! Then comes all the fun part. The wrapping! I won't do that until our tree is up though. I've gotten some really great things for the people on my list this year. Of course now I just have to keep the kids from seeing what I purchased everyone. Ainsley has already spilled the beans on her Granddaddy's gift. Maybe he'll be so busy between now and then he'll forget.

Wyoming Blue

Today was one of those amazing fall days where the sky was what we in our family have termed "Wyoming Blue." We came to this phrase on our several trips to the state of cowboys, mountains, and buffalo. It describes a blue sky so deep it almost hurts your eyes to look at it. That's what I observed from my backyard this afternoon as the girls and I played in the backyard. I think the fall colors on the trees in our neighborhood only exaggerated the azure hue of today's atmosphere. We're a long way from Wyoming, but I got to enjoy a piece of it today right in my own backyard.

Falling into November

So it has been brought to my attention that its been a while since I blogged (STACY!!) and I must admit I've missed it. October went by in a blur of colorful leaves, soccer games, and gymnastics classes. We've had a really special autumn. Field trips, trick-or-treating all over town, and wonderful afternoons outside. Now begins our true busy season. We have so many things going on in the weeks ahead. My calendar is so full! I have to write it all down so we don't miss anything. This month brings a birthday and a baptism, to say nothing of Turkey Day and everything in between.

Here's a brief update on the kids:

Anastasia-She was Ariel for Halloween. We finished up her soccer season in the POURING rain on Saturday. She was a rock star and scored three goals despite the weather. I was so proud of her improvement this season. She continues to love school. They had another field trip today. She's anxiously awaiting her gymnastics birthday party in a few weeks. Should be a blast!

Ainsley-She started gymnastics last month and loves every flip and tumble. The bar seems to be her favorite apparatus followed closely by the trampoline. She was Angelina Ballerina for Halloween. Her favorite daily activities include Candy Land, Cootie Bugs and trying to avoid naps at all costs.

Allie-She's growing like crazy! She eats all day long but is only getting up once at night. She is getting very social and smiles all the time. She was a pumpkin for Halloween. Right now her favorite thing is her Precious Planet playmat. She adores it. Her checkup is next week and I can't wait to see how much she's grown!