Boys

Here is what happens when the boys get a hold of my camera.  They think these are hilarious!

 

 

Good times.

Birthday Boy

Happy Birthday Simon!

Also known as Simonater and Mr. Minater, Simon turns 1 year old today!

Things Simon loves:

A BIG bowl of oatmeal in the mornings

His brothers and sisters

Dancing

“Popcorn Popping” and “Mark it with a B”

Splashing in the tub

Machines… like airplanes, lawnmowers, cars, etc. If it looks like he can ride it or drive it, he loves it!

Some things we love about Simon:

His one and only tooth

His juicy kisses

His size. He’s chubby, but tiny and lightweight. It makes him still feel like a baby. (18 lbs., 13 oz. - 28 1/2 in. tall)

The fact that he’s FINALLY outgrowing the spit-up phase!

Some of his skills:

Cheering people up

Army crawling at about 90 mph

Pointing and clapping

Pulling things out of cupboards

Playing catch… he can throw pretty well!

He can say Hi and Uh-Oh. I’ve heard it a couple of times, but once he figures out that he can say it, he’s not interested in ever saying it again.

We love you Simon!

One Word

I have a resolution this year that can be summed up in one word.  Are you ready for it?

Enjoy

That’s it.  I was thinking of all the possible resolutions that I could set, and the list was long and exhausting.  I decided that I don’t want to make an official list of things I must do… or at least feel guilty for not doing.  That doesn’t inspire me at all.

Instead, I will choose to do the things that I enjoy.  And, since that is not always possible,  I will choose to enjoy the things that I must do.

I want to enjoy how it feels to exercise and eat healthy foods.  I want to plant a garden and trees and flowers because I enjoy those things.  And most of all, I want to enjoy being surrounded by my family. 

And so I say, with  a deep, cleansing breath… Welcome, 2010!  I’m going to enjoy you!

 

My Tummy

Jonah says to me every few days, including today:

“Mom!  You’re growing a new baby in your tummy!”

No, Jonah.  There’s no baby in there right now.

“Then how come you have such a fat tummy?”

How many ways can I answer that question?

Let’s go to the movies

 

Today, in an attempt to be a fun mom, I took all six kids to the dollar movies.  Actually, my motivation may have come more from terror at the idea of having all those children at home all day with nothing to do.  At any rate…we went to see G-FORCE.

I can tell you nothing about the plot or the characters of the movie, but this is what I can tell you:

I heard the word B-U-T-T used way too many times.

It takes about 10 minutes to go through the first gigantic tub of popcorn.  Then a refill becomes urgent.

They have booster seats in back for the kids who can’t see over their brothers’ heads.

Not all of my children are generous enough to share water with the brother who forgot to pack a water bottle, but some are.

Simon did not choke on any of the  popcorn he ate.  And it smells cheesy when it gets spit up on you.

About one third of Jonah’s water went to waste… in my lap.

Simon can army crawl down the entire aisle/runway in about 20 seconds.  It may have been faster, had he not been temporarily distracted by the wad of chewed up gum in the carpet.

Sometimes

 

Sometimes I feel like this at the end of the day.

Today was one of those days.

My specialist day

Friday was the Alston family Christmas party. Chinese food, talent show, pass the present game, and cousin gift exchange.

When I say gift exchange, what I mean is… everybody toss the gifts that you brought in the general direction of the intended recipient, then tear into the pile that has landed near you.

I was feeling just a tad frusterated with the amount of chaos. I was sure nobody knew who had given them what, let alone got a chance to say "Thank you," or "you're welcome." And I was correct in my prediction that all the candy would get mixed up and things would mysteriously disappear under the piles of discarded wrapping and packaging. My sister told me, "There is no point in disliking the chaos," which is, of course, true.

Despite the lack of formality, (or quite possibly because of it,) the kids thought the evening was a smashing success. The next morning Jonah was reviewing all of the wonderful gifts he received, and apparently feeling very blessed. He sighed and said, “Everybody is so good to me. This is my specialist day.”