No more empty threats

Tonight I have finally drawn the line and stuck to it.  You can keep what is cleaned up before you go to bed. 

But what will happen to the stuff that not cleaned up?  That's a very hard question to answer and one I asked if I could refuse to answer because I didn't want to be the bad guy alone.  There is so much stuff that is still out that it hurts me to have to clean it up.  I have to keep reminding myself that it will make it easier to clean up in the future.  Items will be put away in storage for future use, sent to Goodwill or Freecycle/MOMS Club, or placed in the trash.

The good news is that our house has not been this organized in quite some time.  The better news is that after Norma comes tomorrow, our house will be the cleanest its been since we moved in.  I may not be the best example of cleanliness and organization, but stop by our house tomorrow after work to see our house at its finest.  Don't stop by after 6 because we'll have already destroyed Norma's and my hard work cleaning and organizing.

It seems that once again I will have to ask Norma to skip my room. With having to clean up and remove so much stuff the kids left out, I didn't have enough time to sort and organize my room. The mess is overwhelming and has taken over my room.

Growing up too quickly

This morning I saw a very small glimpse into our future with Kati Maya. We had to discuss why girls need to wear undershirts, keep their upper-half covered, and can no longer use the Men's room. The progression into puberty will take many many years to occur, but I know she is no longer a little girl:-(

A beautifully warm January day

Today was my turn to coop at Little Brother's preschool. After many days of cold snow or frozen ice, what a gorgeous it was. I was SOOOO lucky not to be freezing my tush outside. It was so warm after school that we both needed to take off our coats; I wasn't even running around.

We had our snack planned out weeks in advance: Cheerios, crasins, and milk with a side of apples. We were all packed last night after a family assembly line. Big sister reminded us "Don't forget the milk" before she went to the bus stop. We got to school and started to explain our slightly different snack, but stopped short because we realized we forgot to bring the milk. Argh! Good thing the snack could still go on without the milk.

Sleeping through snow delay

I guess we had too much fun at Crave; the kids were still asleep when I left. Was torn whether to wake them so they could play in the snow or let them sleep. I guess I'll just have to deal with their disappointment with my decision when I get home. Hopefully, at least they will in a good mood from all that sleeping.

Stress or accident

When you have too much on your mind, holding all the pieces together, something is bound to be forgotten. This morning in the midst of freezing rain, dropping my mom off at the train station, think about how to find out if County Park and Recreation classes are cancelled (since school is), I made one too many assumptions. Slippery roads don't always allow the little Golf in front of you to pull out as you'd expect thus the accident. This occurred just minutes after my mom had said, "I know you're a good driver. The only accident you've ever been in (that was your fault) was ...".

Storytime at Crave

After dinner last night, we treated ourselves to ice Cream at Crave. So that we didn't miss our bedtime story, Kati Maya read "Bats". A good time was had by all:-)

Kids eat free

Last night we went to Pizzeria Orso. We all enjoyed a meal; Alba even joined us. The kids got to play with balls of dough and each made a design with their ball. After it was cooked, look at the surprises they made.

Home Improvement

Yesterday we had a fun science experience covering the master bedrooms window with the plastic window sealing stuff. We learned a lot about how to keep the plastic attached to the tape. More importantly, we learned you need to clean the windows before you seal up the windows.

It looks pretty good. You can't tell it's there from across the room. Not sure if its helping yet, but am excited to find out after we complete all the windows upstairs.

Let's get crazy

Life's little pleasures are so small when you think about it.  Sometimes simple pleasures go unnoticed until you don't have that luxury anymore.  Last night I had the pleasure of eating dinner with a friend, sans bambinos.  I rarely enjoy an alcoholic drink.  We enjoyed some draft hard cider.    

Lost Dog Cafe

Sometimes it's hard to be the "rational" and "safe" parent.  I'm not the kind of person who can easily step outside her self assigned role.  It was fun to choose my own food without considering anyone else's food preferences or portion size requirements.

 

Thanks Lyzbeth:-)

Guest post for Daddy-O

Thanks for your photo.  Looks like you're not doing to bad, based on this photo.

It's raining in Bawain

Little Brother announced this morning, "It's raining in Bawain." Since we aren't there, can you provide a picture with you in it outside?

"Say Bueno."

In reality, they say it might snow 5inches. This is not what I need on top of days and days and days of rain.

Big News

Little Brother randomly placed the DAD in the correct order, but Big Sister spruced it up for you with the DY.

Forgot to ask your opinion, yes or no, on the chair pictured.
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Make sure your stomach is in good place before continuing.

We forgot to share last night's big news...We got the wax plug out of Little Brother's other ear. Not nearly as much or as nasty looking as the one Dr. Roeser pulled out. And, much less traumatic! We are all just so excited!!!

Letter to Daddy-O

Big Sister typed the following message for you.  Please ak if you have any difficulty understanding her prose.

Daddy,

I want to be your pen pal.  I wad like anblops with your ajras and your name.  And I will jro a pikchr of wat I a'm duing in the pikchr. Daddy+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bike Ride in Bahrain

Headed out this morning for a couple hour ride.  So windy today, but thought I would throw some pictures up of my time on the bike.  While I had planned to Amwaj Island, I didn't quite make it there.  Below is my bike, the water and city in the background.

My Surly LHT

Prince Khalifa Bin Salman Park

Here is a park that I passed on the both ways.  Everything was pretty tame here, since the weather was crazy.  I have yet to go up in that tower in the picture.  I would like to go up there one day, since there is coffee shop up there.  This is one of the few green spaces that I have seen on this island.  I do wonder how much water this place takes in the summer time.

 

Another park picture, and you can see the wind really blowing.  The final picture is along the water where there were some rough looking fishing shacks.  I decided to only take a picture of the fishing cages, since I didn't want to offend anyone.  I also passed lots of water being filled in, but will have to take pictures next time.

Fishing Cages?