Happy Holidays

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas ... or Hanukkah depending on your neighborhood. My neighbors' Hanukkah decorations have everyone on the block beat. Multiple inflatables, signs, etc. I haven't even hung my wreath on the front door. But I did get some specially carved snowmen for every member of the family, handmade by Melvin and delivered today. There's even one for Boo, our Miniature Schnauzer.

I love this time of year. I keep thinking that my shopping is done, but then I go out and buy more stuff. I really think I'm pretty much done now. I think. As usual, I've overdone it. I think. But I've had fun, and I enjoy giving. And receiving. Not sure which I like more. :)

I sent out my Christmas cards yesterday. So I'm pretty psyched that that task is done. Stickers, stamps, stuffing, labels. But I did hand-address the cards this year. Not that anyone will notice (or they will now), but I thought that was a nice touch.

If I don't blog before next year, I hope everyone has a happy holiday season. The boys will be out of school for two and a half weeks. Not sure if that's good or not. :) We'll have fun, though, especially if the weather cooperates.

On another note. Pray for Ben. He is having minor surgery on January 4th. General anesthesia, though. Message me or email me for more details if you're interested.

Merry Holidays and Happy Christmas!
Kim & family

Dear Santa ...

Ahead ... 99% of the presents are purchased and wrapped. Tree is trimmed. Secondary, smaller tree is up (notice I didn't say it was decorated.) Teacher's gifts - done. PTA gift - done. Christmas cards done. (Just need to send them out.) Popcorn?? Still deciding. I know that means absolutely nothing to most people reading this. It's more of a reminder to myself.

Behind ... Advent calendar that I was going to make isn't done. Haven't even started. The "household," including outdoor, decorations aren't up. The house isn't clean. Christmas baking is on hold while I figure out who and what go in this column of activities/duties.

So, maybe I'm batting .500. Maybe a little less.

It snowed the other day. It would be nice if it would snow on Christmas. Although considering we do some driving around Christmas, maybe that's not such a great wish. I'm fighting a cold as well. Had to cancel a dental appointment that takes months to make. Oh well. You do what you can, right?

I love this time of year, though. The advent calendar was going to help me be organized over the holidays too. Like, I want to drive around and see Christmas lights. We usually don't take the time for this. Going to make it a point to this year. We went to the Gaylord Texan's "ICE" exhibit last year. Trying to decide whether to go again this year. It's still the same basic concept (tons of ice) but different carvings and characters. Got some good pics last year. And I do love me my pics.

It has been sad this fall season with the absence of both Daddy & Harry, and their birthdays and death anniversaries. But I seem to get by. I have a wonderful, beautiful family with me here on Earth. And a new nephew to join the bunch. That makes 2 nephews named Mark. Odd coincidence, considering it's not THAT popular of a name.

Contemplating New Year's resolutions - already. Didn't say I was doing them or not doing them, just beginning to think about it.

Well, this was pretty all over the place, but way over due. I finally wanted to get something down, though. Merry Christmas! Happy Hannukah! Happy New Year! If I don't post before then.

Much love,
Kim

This and that

Rain, rain go away. We've had rain for forever now. Last week's kickoff of soccer season was postponed. Then practice this week has been cancelled - in most cases. I don't know the status of tomorrow's games. Hudson's first - ever. I'm ready for the season to begin. I can't believe I'm saying that. I'm actually looking forward to SOCCER season. What's wrong with this football girl?

On that note ... I am going to the home opener of the Cowboys vs. Giants. Oh yeah, it's my birthday. Oh yeah, it's my birthday. (not really) Ok, Ben is going with me. :) If he ever gets well. A bout of bronchitis. But at least it's not the flu or the dread Pirate Roberts, I mean H1N1.

Did you know that parking is like $50 a car? If we knew anyone else going, we could carpool. But alas, we don't. And parking is anywhere from 1 mile to 1/2 mile from the stadium (more moola for closer). Are we going to be parking in Arlington neighborhoods?

I'm excited for my sis & bro in-laws. Only a month til they become brand-new parents. And I get to go play with them, and the baby too. It's been a while since I've done that. I've really had to subdue the urge to buy baby stuff for them. They're the parents, not me ... but it's all sooooo cute!

I'm on the ball for Christmas already. I have a ton of my Xmas shopping done, mostly online. Now, where to stash it all so the kiddos don't find it?

And the ski trip we're going on in the spring ... already been buying stuff for it. This stuff is slightly bigger (ski pants & ski jackets for 3 boys) so these boxes have taken over the living room.

Slowly but surely. This and that.

-Kim

What I like about being a mommy ...

that new baby smell; the first time they saw mama; the first time they SAY mommy; when they run to you and no one else when they're hurt or scared; knowing i'll have grandchildren someday to swing with on the front porch; making homemade halloween costumes; swaddling; that first real night they sleep through the night, and i don't mean just from midnight til 6 am, i mean a good 12 hour sleep; getting a backrub on command (they don't know it's really a massage); having gained wisdom; being an "expert" on babies, especially fussy, asthmatic ones; having the wisdom to know when to follow your gut instinct rather than the doctor's "advice"; snuggling; kisses; tickle fights; choosing my child's moniker; taking pictures of the cutest kids on the planet; getting away for a weekend refresher now and then; spoiling them ... these are just a few of my favorite things. :)

Death and such

Sick of wacko Jacko. Sad about Billy Mays. May have been a heart attack. Farrah got lost in the MJ wave. She went to UT; did you know that? Ed McMahon was just a few days before. Here's Johnny! Kids feel the Billy Mays one the most because they love the show "Pitchmen," which starred Billy Mays. Heard the Sham-wow guy is a pervert. Caught and everything. Jackson, my almost 12 year old, actually told me that one. Nice.

I haven't blogged in a while. This was just on my mind. Something "substantial" later. It's hot. Bye.

Nicknames

Names I've been called over the years ...
Kimber
Berly
Tooty
Shitbird
Big Bird
Meaner than Spit
Babe
Baby
K.D.
Mom
Mama
Mommy

What I call my family ...
Ben Jammin'
Benny Poo (isn't that just embarrassing for him)
Dad
Pops
Jack Sprat
Jack
#1
Gray Gray (he hates this one so I try not to use it, even tho' I personally like it)
Gray
G
Cinqo
#2
Huddy Poo
Big Time
Hud
#3

What do you call your loved ones? What do they call you?

Birthday boys

My babies turn another year older in just a few days. G will be 10. And my baby, H, will be 7. It's hard to believe there so grown! I still think of myself as a 20-something mother of 3 young boys. I have to pinch my arm and wake up to remember that I'm now the 30-something mom of 3 young men. The cliche is true; time flies when you're having fun. But sometimes I forget to slow down and have that fun. I get bogged down in the details of everyday life and medicine and asthma and homework and forgotten homework.

I've limited myself to only one doctor's appointment per day. That may sound like not such a big commitment, but for us it's huge. Between asthma, allergies, sinus infections, ear infections, broken bones, medicine updates, orthodontist, dentist, and general appointments we are buried in appointment hell. I am literally starting to have panic attacks when I open the doctor's doors.

My snuggable, lovable G is having his boy-only, no-young uns, sports-inspired party on Sunday. I asked him if he wanted his presents from us on that day or his actual birthday. Which would you choose? He picked the day of his party when he gets all the other presents from his friends. I haven't asked Mr. Independent, read ... stubborn, H, what he wants to do. We still have a week before his party. He's handling not being able to attend G's party really well. Of course, he's been bribed with the promise of going to see a movie. But still. Just another example of how they're just getting older.

Speaking of which, G started baseball this year. And he had his first game today. He hit the ball twice at his one time at bat. The first was a foul; the second a line drive. He made it all the way to 3rd base via stealing before our team was out by innings. J, on the other hand, claimed that "he sucked" at his game today. He struck out twice. And didn't get much field play either. I think he fielded the ball once. The team won (came back from a 5-8 deficit (or was it 4-8?)). But J felt he was useless today. It's hard to reassure him after that kind of load he has put on his own shoulders. Luckily they all got to let off some steam at a birthday party this afternoon.

Now, I'm in one room playing around on the computer, and the boys are playing their electronic game of choice on the XBOX 360. A gentle way to spend a dreary, rainy, windy, thundery Saturday afternoon.

Twitter

Such a cute little word ... such an interesting concept. More than interesting, but I can't come up with the just-right adjective right now to describe it. I instant message my dear hubby at work a lot during the day, and Twitter reminds me of my side of the conversations we have. Can't figure out quite how often I'm "supposed" to Twitter. Is it a verb? Can it be used as a verb? I know I can link it to FB but not sure if I want to do that or not. And I only have 2 real followers. I could sign up for celebs and such. And since I don't work, I don't have that network of people to be my "friends."

I just realized that someone who reads this may not even know what Twitter is. To them I say, go check it out. My site is www.twitter.com/negeddywife.

The end.

It's been too long

My goal in blogging ... well, I actually had a couple of goals ... but one of them was to help me chronicle the year as it occurs. If I don't stay on top of this, then I'm failing at my initial task. Hence, it's been too long since my last post.

Nothing really new to report. Went to see my mom for spring break. That was a handful. Just me and the kids. Did get to go fishing. Caught 7 or so trout. Still wouldn't unhook the squirmy little fishies from my line. (I'm such a girl.) But 7 fish does help justify the $23, 3-day fishing license. Hudson wouldn't fish. Grayson caught 1, and that was enough for him. Jackson caught several. Some dispute on exactly how many.

Glad to return home. (Not sure why I'm missing my nouns/subjects now. Lazy, I suppose.)

Glad to be back in the routine of school. It's hard to believe summer is just around the corner. Already have one weekend trip planned this summer. Trying to decide as a family if we're going anywhere else this summer. My weekend trip is just me. Also, have a "just me" trip to NC planned for the fall. Awaiting dates on that one. :) Trying to decide on a ski trip for next spring break. The whole clan. Quite an undertaking. But sounds fun. Lots of possibilities ....

I've also spent the last few days planning birthday parties for #s 2 and 3. Boy, they're expensive. You can't hardly plan an event party without it costing less than $200-$300. But it beats Chuck E. Cheese's. (That's where H's birthday parties have been the past 2-3 years.) And G is Mr. Social Butterfly and has the whole world to invite. Yikes, kids are expensive. :) But I suppose, they're worth it. Ha Ha!

Lastly, I'll post about the pool. This will be our first summer with it. (It wasn't finished until September last year.) It's been green the past week or 2. Ben has spent every day measuring and pouring chemicals into it. Finally, shocked it earlier this week. AND IT'S FINALLY BLUE AGAIN! Of course, today it's 38 degrees outside. When just a few days ago it was 80. Ah, the Texas weather.

I miss football

It's barely March, and I miss watching my Dallas Cowboys play. I know, everyone is down on them, but they're still "Da Boys." I just miss laying around on Sunday afternoons with the boob tube tuned to football. Will Roy Williams (the safety) be there next year? Will Romo turn it around? Will anyone care besides me? Will T.O. be gone? Should Wade Phillips be fired? Will I get to attend a game this coming year? Should I take Jackson, or would he be bored? Let's just face it ... I miss football.

HELP - puberty has set in!

Not me, obviously. But in my 11 year old. OK, he's 11 1/2, but still. I'm not ready for this. Any advice?

Heart attack #457

My beloved middle son is cursed with bad genes. He developed asthma at age 2. We didn't know until we decided to take him to the emergency room because he was grunting and whining all night. Not at all like himself. When we got there, his oxygen saturation was only 88. They told us we should have called 911 and had an ambulance bring him in. Ever since then, it's been a fight to get him on the right dosage of meds. He's maxed out on several of his asthma meds. (He's 9 1/2 now.)

And we recently discovered he's allergic to the sun and moon and everything in between - grasses, molds, weeds, trees, dust, etc. He's begun allergy shots to "get over" this, but who knows. I'm pessimistic at the moment. He had an allergic reaction to one of his allergy shots yesterday. He sneezed once. Eyebrows raised, but no biggie. He sneezed again. OK, wait a little longer in the doc's office. Then he sneezed 3 times in a row. We were whisked back to a patient room where he was given back to back breathing treatments, they had the epinephrine ready to go, they gave him massize amounts of Zyrtec, his eyes turned red, his nose was itchy, his throat was itchy, he continued to sneeze, his ears turned red, they took his vital signs every 10 minutes. He was finally ok. No need for the epipen or epinephrine. We stayed at the doctor's for another hour. Just to make sure.

I know he's not the first person this has happened to, but it's a first for us. A scary first. I now know that Epipen I carry around in my purse isn't just for looks. I may really need it someday. That scares me. I was calm during the storm, but afterwards I'm falling apart. Hence, the title of this post - my gazillionth heart attack (when it comes to my kiddos).

Happy Birthday to Me

A little song for me ... happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday dear me, happy birthday to me. :)

I'm now 35. That puts me in a different age bracket for the census and most surveys as well. And I'm now only 1 year younger than my dear hubby. (He's 36, in case you have a problem with the math.)

I am truly blessed. 3 mostly healthy children. 1 wonderful husband. Great extended family as well. I got a bunch of my favorite flowers this week - tulips. And I got a new car (my lease was up, but still). It not only has seat warmers but has seat coolers for those hot Texas summers. A little excessive, yes, but still cool. No pun intended. Or maybe slightly intentional.

Now, to decide on where to go for dinner tonight. Hmm.

Ode to the 11th

It's the 11th. My favorite number, so I felt compelled to write a little ditty. OK, maybe not a ditty, but a few lines. It's my aunt's birthday today, as well as my ex-stepmother and a childhood best friend. Common day in my life. It was also the beginning of what my dad called hell week, when he was alive (and back when he was married). The 11th was his wife's bday, the 14th is valentine's day, the 18th is my birthday as well as my niece's, and the 19th was his anniversary. That's a lot of important dates to cram into one week. Not sure why it's relevant in my post. Maybe because I've been thinking of him lately. He used to send me a dozen red roses on valentine's day. Not even Ben does that! It's hard without a daddy to spoil you, even as an adult. 'Nuff said.

The need to brag

My youngest, Hudson, age 6, amazed me yet again. This time with his mathematical skills. We were working on my 9 year old's homework. He had a math problem such as this: You have a calculator; the 5 key is broken; you can't add or subtract. Name 4 different ways to get the number 55. Grayson and I sat dumbfounded for a couple of minutes when Hudson piped in with "how about 110 divided by 2?" Amazing. Only 6, and he already gets it. And faster than either his mom or brother could. Most of the kids in his class can barely add, and here he is doing somewhat complicated division. I'm impressed and felt the need to brag on him.

What - no president?

Did you hear that Obama flubbed the presidential oath? That means we were technically a nation without a president for a brief moment in time since Bush had already "moved on." I'm not saying it was Obama's fault - it was a combo of him and the chief justice, but what a major error for our country. Yikes! What if no one had noticed? I know, that's not possible in our media-saturated country. But still, the possible consequences. And to think I was clueless until my lovely hubby informed me. Guess I better tune in a little better.

Cardinals or Eagles?

Well, the Eagles are big rivals of the Cowboys, so I can't cheer for them. But the Arizona Cardinals??? They're not a real team. But if I have to pick one, I guess I'll choose the Cardinals. Right?

Is it passe to be a Republican?

OK, the inauguration is just a few days away, and I feel alienated because I didn't vote for Obama. That doesn't mean I think McCain was the best choice either. But I'm just sick of Obama this, Obama that. And he hasn't even taken office yet. Does that make me a bad person? A bad American? Can't we just look at it as another president? Do we have to focus on the fact that he's black? I just don't know what to feel.

Something something ... it's always something

I haven't posted in a few days, and I thought it was about time. The kids have been killing me this week. One whines, the other one fights, another's asthma is acting up, they're yelling at the 5 year old across the street and let's not forget the ER visit this week. And school just started back on Tuesday.

Not to mention science fair projects and English projects due - oh yeah, mom such and such is due tomorrow. Aaahhh! I'm losing my mind.

Then to top it off, Ben and I have been at each other's throats. What a way to ring in the new year. The good news is Ben and I have made up, but the kids were threatened with their lives this afternoon on a boys-only trip to Best Buy. Ah, the peace and quiet for Mom.

We began taking down the Christmas decorations (I know, finally) today. The tree is all wrapped up. But the little doo-dads are still milling about. And somehow the corner in the garage carved out especially for the Christmas boxes has disappeared. But the garage is Ben's domain and his responsibility to fit all this stuff back in there. Now I have a blank wall again - in the pond room. Just ask me about that if you don't know what I'm talking about.

Happy New Year to all. I hope ours gets better. I don't think it can get much worse. Did I mention my mother-in-law fell and needed stitches?? Yep, welcome 2009.

What's in a name?

Rebecca inspired me to come up with a new blog name. I don’t know what yet. Any suggestions?

I’m a dedicated, true blue Dallas Cowboys fan. #11 Danny White is my hero. I’m an only child. I like grammar and alliteration. I’m the mom of 3 boys. I am a shopaholic. Nothing comes to mind based on those facts, though. I have an idea for a baby blanket design and patent; I even have the name – Snug as a Bug. My maiden name is Good so I also use the phrase “used to be good.” I’ve even used this as an email address before. And I’m also known as “negative eddy wife” since Ben owns and uses the negative eddy name/logo everywhere. (I even got him a hat and ornament that have the negative eddy logo – see http://negativeeddy.smugmug.com/ for a picture of his logo (it's the swirly thing).)

One of these days inspiration will come. Till then, it’s Kim’s Little Corner of the World.

I too have partaken in some post-Christmas 2008 shopping for Christmas 2009. Mostly purchased wrapping supplies although I did get myself a Cowboys Santa hat. Can’t stay away from those sales! I also helped my in-laws move across the pasture yesterday. I'm not sure how much help I was. I think I entertained the kids and Grandmother more than actual moving. But somebody has to do that, right?

Next on my to do list is to download some MP3s from Amazon and to hit Decorator's Warehouse for after-Christmas sales tomorrow when the kids go back to school.

'Nuff 4 now.

Update on Grayson & Happy 2009

he's doing remarkably well. no pain, no pain meds, no more nausea. taking his saline nasal washes like a champ. (doesn't that sound pleasant?) he's even going to a friend's birthday party this afternoon (just for the cake and ice cream, though).

happy new year to all. can't believe it's 2009. i've already written a check with the new year on it. kids don't go back to school until tuesday. not sure what happened to monday. teacher in-service day or something. we stayed in on NYE, as you can imagine with Grayson having surgery and what not. haven't even watched a parade or bowl game either. maybe it's because i didn't eat any black-eyed peas. :)