Single Mom..

My husband went camping this weekend with a couple of friends.. and I am a single mother of 4 til he gets home on Monday.. I don't mind though, I'm glad that he's getting a weekend to fish, and canoe and just get the hell out of here!
I'll be having my own weekend in July, so the guilt about leaving him alone with our four kids is so not an issue.. He went with a childhood friend, and someone he only just met. They are going to be on the Saco River, a place which brings back really old, and really good memories for me. 20 years ago, after I graduated high school, I went there, with my best high school friends, who are in fact the same best friends I have now.
I'm jealous, and wish I could have been included.. but alas, someone has to watch the kids, and so here I am.. tomorrow, my sister is coming over for a sleepover with all her kids. We are all very excited. It's not often that I get to hang out with my twin for more than 10 minutes while she's dropping off her kids during the week..
And the weather has been beautiful, my sister doesn't know it yet, but she's going to be helping me mulch tomorrow.. that is after we get the mulch.. hope everyone has a great weekend!!

The Deets..

What's better than getting to see your favorite band in a small venue? How about getting to meet them before the show? That's right.. I made a total ass out of myself, but got to meet my current obsession, and they were so sweet, and so nice to me. They have yet to make it big, so they can sit in a restaurant, and not worry about crazy fans bothering them..well, at least they could until they met me last night!
My husband and I were waiting in line to get in the club, when he nudged me and pointed in the other direction. Twenty feet away was the lead singer. About 2 seconds later, I was apologizing for bothering him, and telling him how much I loved their music..how great it was..yada yada.. He was flattered, and thanked me, then I went on my way, back to line..completely out of my mind with excitement. About 2 minutes later, my husband nudged me again, and there in the restaurant above the club (where we had just finished eating) was the rest of the band. Son of a bitch. You couldn't have stopped me if you tried.. I'm sure they were horrified by this girl gushing about how much she loved them.. but they were so sweet, and someday I hope to recall the 5 minute conversation in it's entirety (it's currently floating around in my head with the rest of the events of last night..) Seriously, it was amazing.. I never thought I would have met them..
The show was great, but would have been better if there weren't so many people there.. it actually would have been WAY better if they had done a private show for me.. and of course my husband!

Ten..

My oldest son turned 10 last week. 10. How did that happen?
My youngest will be 7 this week.. I'm pretty sure I can account for his 7 years with all the whining and complaining.. but even still, 7! wow..
We had a birthday party for the boys this past weekend, and as usual, it rained. That was ok though, we still had a great time, and the boys were shown a lot of love from our wonderful friends and family. My oldest son got an ipod touch (and yes, he's probably too young for it, but he's responsible enough that I trust him to take good care of it) My youngest son got a guitar, amazingly that was what he wanted, even after his brother got his ipod. The little one was lucky enough though to get enough cash and gift cards to purchase his own ipod, even though my husband and I were not totally into it, and know that he's hardly responsible enough for the cheap walmart guitar we got him, but you know, it was his money, and we weren't up for the fight (good parenting huh? whatever..)
In other news, the addition is done. Except for a few things that my husband is in charge of finishing (our shower for one, he'll be tiling that at some point) But we love it. It came out so good, and our new bedroom is just beautiful.
This Friday night is our big night out! I can't wait.. we got a room in Boston, and we'll be seeing Mumford and Son's at the Middle East.. I can't wait!! My friends are so sick of my obession with this band, they are going to be even more sick of it when I am back from seeing them live... My husband told me that I am ruining this band for him with my non stop listening of their one and only cd. So, I've burned it onto my son's ipod and now listen to it in the privacy of my own ears.. there. suck. it. up. baby.

Here's a few pics..

Tired..

I wrote this back in January, and came across it in my draft folder. I guess why I'm posting it is because I so don't feel like this anymore.. the sun has been shining, and we're moving into the part of the year that I love the most..spring and summer..so bare this in mind as you read..

Someone recently asked me what my plans were for the week. My answer?  "to get through it"
This is how overwhelmingly tired I am with my life right now. Not tired of it, but tired because of it. Having 5 kids in my care, for 3 days a week, in the middle of a cold winter, is making me a tad cranky. Not to mention what it's doing to the kids. My girls are at the center of the storm (so to speak) by their incredibly demanding behaviors, which for whatever reason, I haven't been able to get a handle on. It makes me feel like a horrible mother, and a terrible caregiver. I realize I'm having a pity party for myself, but the beauty of the blog is for me to say whatever I want.. so there..
I know my sister is going to read this, and feel bad. I don't want her to. I love her kids! With all my heart. I love my kids as well.. but man, there are days when I long for the boring single life I once had over a decade ago. And don't say it, I wouldn't change a thing! I really wouldn't.. It is what it is.. and even though it's sucking right now, I know eventually the skies will turn blue, and the sun will shine.. and god dammit, these kids are going to get the hell outside and stop trying to kill me slowly with all the whining!

I Just Farted in My Mouth...

This is a new declaration that my girls are constantly making. For some reason, they couldn't seem to remember the word burp. They now know it, but it doesn't get quite the laugh like this statement does.
Today, they were at the computer watching Miranda Cosgrove video's on youtube (totally appropriate for a couple of 3 year olds right?) when I walked by and got a wiff of somebody's business. I asked them who pooped. They both denied anything foul in their diaper, and then the oldest twin chimed in "That was just my burp"

oh, and on a side note, if anyone out there is wondering why they are both in diapers (because one of them had almost mastered the potty) It's because a couple of weeks ago, they both got sick, with vomit and the dreaded diarrhea, and the poor little girl who was almost trained, got freaked out by all of the shit coming out of her, and refused to put on underwear after that.. it's a work in progress..

My poor pathetic blog.. really, I should just give it up.. I used to be able to blog at work, but for over a year now blogger.com has been blocked. It leaves me no time at all to sit and fill in the blanks.
Lots going on.. mainly construction wise. We are almost done! Today my husband and I brought our bed upstairs, and tonight I will spend my first night in it. Unfortunately, my girls room is not ready for them to start sleeping in, so they will spend at least tonight with me. I say at least tonight, and know it will probably be a week or two.. I'm hopeful though..
In other more interesting news, my youngest son was in a play this week. The 3 Piggy Opera. My oldest son was in it as well when he was in first grade 3 years ago.. It was great. I was so proud of him. It's hard to believe that the same little boy who in pre school wouldn't look at anyone in the eye because he was so shy, stood on stage, pretending to strum a guitar, in front of 100 people. The same little boy whose teacher told me this past week at the parent teacher conference, that he is excelling beyond her expectations. She also told me that he's a model student, he's kind and considerate, and very well behaved. After confirming that we were in fact speaking about the same kid, I felt so proud of him, and very relieved. This boys greatest pleasure is making the rest of his family want to punch him straight in the face. Thankfully, he has more self control in school than he does at home.

Anyway, I'm writing as the kids watch America's Funniest Home Video's.. it's almost over, and since my husband has band practice tonight, it's all me for the dreaded bedtime routine.. Here's a pic of my cutie pie after the play..

Puke..

We got more rain here the other night. Lots of it. Thankfully, we had already ripped up the carpet in our basement, so we only had to wet vac the concrete.. My husband I were up all night, taking turns napping to try and keep up with the water. We did it, but man, yesterday was a nightmare. After hauling about 300 gallons of water outside, my back was killing me, and the times where I layed down to sleep I couldn't because it was so loud with the wet vacs going..
Last night, I came home from work shortly after 7, so excited about going to bed. Of course nothing ever happens the way you want it to, or expect it to. I wasn't even in the driveway, and I can see my older son in the window waving me in.. It was only after I walked in the door that I could smell the puke, and see my husband in a state of total disbelief. My youngest daughter started puking shortly after I left, and my youngest son started right before I got home. He was on the toilet covered in his own poo and vomit with the shower running for him.
 My oldest daughter was in bed with me and her twin sister and abruptly sat up and vomitted all over me, and the bed. Three out of four, puking. Another sleepless night. My oldest is the only one who hasn't come down with it. Before he left for school today, he made me take his tempature, just to be sure that he wasn't running a fever (even though he felt totally fine). My husband stayed up with my younger son, who got it the worst, but seems to be totally fine today, in fact he's gone to Home Depot with our contractor. Hopefully it will be a puke and crap free trip! At least for my contractor's sake.. but it's not like he didn't know what the kid had been through..you can't step into my house and not be almost knocked over by the smell of puke. I'm currently on my 3rd load of laundry.. I woke up this morning, and had no towels. Not one. We also have the guys who are going to be staining our house here taping up the windows. It's going to be a puke sauna once the sun hits it! Nice..
Anyway, I'm off to get some more laundry done, and try to ignore the stomach pains I've been feeling for the past couple of hours..I'm sure it's just having to smell all this stink, and not the actual stomach bug. I never get sick. I don't.. and if I do..I'm  pretty much totally screwed.. hopefully my husband won't get it either..nothing worse than a man with the flu (or at least my man!)

Half Trained.. Staple Guns.. and a Stranger..

It's official! I have a potty trained girl! Well, except for the pooping (we all know that comes a bit later) One of my girls is going like a champ..she's totally aware when she has to go, and lets me know the instant she needs to. Last night was the first night that I let her wear her underwear to bed, and she woke up dry! yay!! I'm guessing the pooping is on it's way..the last time she went in a diaper, and the time before that, she had an accident in her underwear, when we had company over. She was walking around with a little tail, and was not pleased one bit.
It's only half a victory though, considering her sister has yet to even tinkle the slighest bit on the potty. I guess that when my sister and I were potty training, I was 6 months behind..That's ok though..she promises me that she'll do it on Tuesday..(even when it is Tuesday, she promises to go NEXT Tuesday) and if I only have to change half the diapers that I've been changing for the past 3 years, then I'm good with that!
I have been struggling with keeping my 2 year old twin nephews in their cribs at naptime this week. I'm out of duct tape, and forgot to get some at the store (it was working pretty well on the crib tents that they have practically destroyed). Today was a shining moment, one where the light bulb in my dim little head shone so brightly.. I borrowed my contractor's staple gun and have successfully (and safely) contained them in the cribs, and they are snoozing away!
My youngest son is home sick today.. he's got a bit of a cough, and couldn't imagine having to go to school with it. He hasn't missed much since his elbow surgery in September, so I let him stay. This was very upsetting to my older son. How unfair that he had to go to school, and his little brother got to enjoy the chaos of a house filled with children. I reminded him of what he refers to our house when I'm babysitting.. He calls it simply "madness" Yes, it is. And he quickly got over it and got his butt on the bus.
I also got a lovely email today from a father of 4 who found my blog after doing a search on having 4 kids. I guess we have many similarities (as far as the insanity of it all goes). It truly made my day. He said he laughed outloud, more than he could count, and that my stories were well written and refreshing.. oh, and that I'm a total smoking hot babe! (well, maybe I just threw that last part in..but for future emailers, it wouldn't hurt to include that as well.. oh, I keed..I keed)  I just love a good pat on the back! Even from a total stranger! So, dude, thank you..

Corn Blasting.. it's as ugly as it sounds!

Last week we had these guys come out and corn blast our house. I couldn't imagine what exactly they were going to be doing, until they came by and gave us a demo. It's like sand blasting, except they use ground up fine grains of corn, and spray it on the house.
It's amazing how quickly the stain comes off. What's not so amazing, is the amount of a corn like substance that ended up in our house. I was told I could put plastic up over the walls, and that would help, but honestly, I didn't think much of it. Duh. Big duh.
By the time they were blasting the front of my house, I smartened up and ask the guy for some plastic. My kids rooms were covered in corn dust. I spent most of Friday vaccuming the walls, and everything else in there. It was gross. I still have to finish the girls room because I spent the weekend doing other things.. like seeing my husbands band on Saturday night (something I haven't done in a very long time) and spent Sunday recovering.. I'm too old to be out til 2 am.. and apparently not smart enough to know this.. whatever, I made my annual appearance at his gig, and next time he has one, I'll stay at home..

So, I'm spending my Monday cleaning up more corn. Which is literally still seeping in through the walls.. The guy doing the blasting is really nice.. but the gear he dressed up in had us all laughing, and we dubbed him the corn trooper.. Here he is..

Can you see the corn dust on the deck? yea, this is what ended up in my house as well.. creeping through the logs.. ugh.. They're coming back Friday to stain it.. I wish we could keep the natural color, but giving the fact that we live in New England, it would be more expensive to maintain..whatev's..it's going to look wonderful! as soon as I get all this frickin corn out of my house!

Leprechauns..

So my youngest son is in first grade, and part of being in first grade is getting to build a leprechaun trap and trying to catch one of these 2 inch beings. We knew about this project for 3 years (since my oldest son had to build one too when he was 6). Of course it didn't get built til the day before (what I like to call college drop out style) but it did come out fabulous! Course my youngest had very little to do with it (yes, I totally helped with this project because getting this one to do anything is like pulling teeth, and I'm so over that..)
The only problem with his trap was that it was too inviting to leprechauns, and they are sneaky little shits, and would most likely only visit it if there was sign on it specifically telling them not to. Whatever.. apparently they liked his trap so much, that while the kids were at recess, his trap almost caught one, but only ended up fetching one of their green little sparkly hats. He was elated.

And unlike last time with my oldest son, I pretended to believe that leprechauns were real and perpetuate another lie (you know, like Santa, the tooth fairy....nothing wrong with adding one more tall tale to the mix, right?)

Here's his trap.. see the pot of gold?? What dumb little leprechaun wouldn't want to check that out??

Mumford and Sons..

Mumford and Sons.. Little Lion Man

My husband and I are going to see this band in May at the Middle East in Boston. I can not wait! It has been so long since I've seen a show. And even longer that I've found a band that I would sacrifice a nights sleep to see..

You know it's going to be a great day when...

-you are awoken by the sound of the smoke detector (again) at 6 am, which only throws all of your kids into a panic. We have yet to figure out what the problem is with the smoke alarm..but basically, we're teaching our kids to cover their ears when it goes off..never mind running out of the house, stop, drop and roll..nope,  just cover those ears!

-you're in the middle of a power crap, and your wonderful carpenter who has shown up at 7 am, starts using one of his really loud saws and wakes up your already skittish 3 year old twins, who come flying up the stairs crying "I scared Mommy, I scared" So much for the power crap.

-when your first grader comes to you 10 minutes before the bus is due, and shows you 2 more sheets of homework that he didn't complete. Even though the night before he said he had nothing (totally more my fault than his.. I know he's only 6)

-reassuring the boys that yes, EVERYTHING is in their backpack, and then realizing moments after the bus has gotten them, that I forgot 2 very important things for my older son, and had to drag the girls to the school to drop it off..

-when you wake up and find that the 30 pound raccoon that lives under our shed (with the skunk) has torn into another garbage bag on the deck, because someone forgot to put it in the bin.. and yes, that someone would be me because I pretty much do everything around here.. and sometimes I just suck.

So, when a day starts like this..I have little hope for the rest of it. I am however hopeful that the work on our house is going to be done in a few weeks, and we can get our lives back to normal a bit..

The girls have been finding Christmas gifts that we had packed away in their closet..for a rainy day.. or for a new distraction.
Yesterday it was a beautiful day, but after being outside for hours, they needed a distraction inside..so that they might not pull each others hair out (which by the way is so hard to take care of, their hair that is..it's a rats nest as you can see.. I've completely given up on getting it to look cute or managed..)

Anyway, here they are with some glitter glue, purple hearts and alphabet stickers... A much easier craft to play with than the paper doll book we found over the weekend.. that was a toy required a lot of mom's help.. the distraction only works if it distracts them from me! right?

40..

My husband turned 40 yesterday. Unlike his 30th birthday, there was no big party. I had initially decided after he refused to let me have a New Years Eve party, that I would plan a big surprise party for his 40th (just to spite him really) But then life got busy... with the construction... and just having 4 kids.. so I did nothing. The kids and I planned a little surprise for him. Well, it was more the boys and I, and the girls just acted really excited.
We all got up yesterday  morning, showered and had baths, all the while he had no idea what we were doing, or where we were going. Of course it didn't take him long to figure it out once we got in the car..but he acted surprised for the kids when we got there, and even more surprised when my youngest son informed him that they had an ALL YOU COULD EAT buffet! We took him to one of his favorite restaurants where they have a wonderful brunch..and all the bacon you can eat! The biggest reason my youngest son was so happy!
We are usually the last thing anyone wants to see in a restaurant. A family with 4 small kids.. even more so when you enter the lobby with your party of 6 and your young daugther that you are holding hurls all over you.. She ended up being fine, and we both cleaned up in the bathroom and met the family at the table just as my husband was telling our waitress that he wasn't sure if we'd be staying. We did stay, and the upchucking little girl ate her heart out.. Kids are weird.
So, I spent the rest of my day feeling bad that I hadn't planned some really big party for my husband.. I did make him his favorite strawberry birthday cake (yum) and then listened to the daughter that had puked earlier in the day cry because she didn't want just a piece of cake, but she wanted ALL of the cake. She actually cried herself to sleep about it. Can you imagine?
I do plan on taking him away somewhere in a month or two.. just us for the night.. Life will fit it in eventually.. anyway, Happy 40th to my sassy, handsome man! I love you!!

Babies..

A good friend of mine from work came over to visit me today. She's a new mom. She had her first baby 9 weeks ago. It was so nice to see her, and her cutie pie. This baby, by the way, is probably the best baby EVER (not including a couple of my kids, and all the rest of my friends and relatives children who are shining stars and compare to no one - just so no one gets jealous! ;)
Anyhoo, I so enjoyed holding this teeny tiny baby.. First, she's adorable (duh) second, she has these eyelashes, that really, are to die for! Usually the boys get the eyelashes, all thick and long (maybe that's Gods apology for the prostate exam, I dunno). But this little girls eyelashes were perfect. They looked primped and curled, and curved up slighty to her eyelid. I think it's safe to say I could have eaten her right up. I told her I might.
For a second, well, a millisecond, I wanted another one. Then one of my kids bitchslapped the other, which in turn bitchslapped me back to reality. It's nice how life works that way.
Let me explain the picture below, because it's cute, and I'm feeling cute tonight (maybe it's the 12 pounds I've lost not eating everything in sight, including adorable teeny little babies.. I dunno)
When out shopping for my friends baby shower, I picked up two cute outfits to go with the stunning quilt I had already made (that's right) It was only when I got home, that I realized I had bought two of the SAME outfits. You know I was born a blond.. Anyway, I kept the extra outfit and packed it away for someone else who would eventually get knocked up.
I had this outfit, for 6 months! On the hanger, tucked away.. waiting. Surprisingly, no one got knocked up, and  my daughter found it in the closet, and just HAD to try it on. Just a simple two piece outfit, that on a 3 month old would look very sweet, with a polka dot top, and cute little stretchy pants. But on a 3/12 year old, she got a cute belly shirt and some Daisy Dukes. It just so happened, that when the before mentioned adorable wad of baby showed up, her mom had packed the same outfit I had given her in the diaper bag (and yes, I think she probably had the outfit with her because she knew I had given it to her, she's just a very thoughtful person like that! I love this girl!!)

We couldn't resist the photo op (or I couldn't..) and I snapped away.. Here's one of my babies, with her's..munch munch!!

Construction..

Our house is under construction, with the new in law apartment. It's coming along great. One of the perks of having a friend do the work for you is having some adult conversation during the day. My contractor can talk.. and he would.. all day! But I love it.. he's really fun to hang out with and have around. Occasionally his wife comes by to help him out, and she too is a friend, and someone fun to hang out with.. I'll miss them both when they're done!

Potty Training..

I thought girls were easier to train.. Maybe they would be if there was only one of them, but with 2, it just seems to be an impossible task that I don't have the time for. They want to wear underwear, and sometimes I will let them. But they NEVER make it to the potty. They always just start screaming that they've peed. It's frustrating to say the least. They are 3 1/2, are definitely almost there, but not quite. I'm not going to sweat it, it'll happen someday.. I just wish it was sooner than later..

Looking Smart..

I made an appoinment to get my eyes tested. I've never had an eye exam before, but earlier this week, I tried on a coworkers glasses, and couldn't believe how much better I could see. My twin sister wears glasses, but she is nearsighted. I think I'm farsighted. I have no problem seeing things far away, but up close is difficult. It's fitting too that I would be the opposite of her (we are mirror twins after all!)
I'm actually excited about getting some glasses.. I've secretly always wanted them..I guess I'm looking forward to looking smart! I'll be sure to post a pic if in fact I do need some specs! Happy Friday!

Another Exciting Saturday Night..

It's Saturday night. My husband has gone out with some friends, and I am home. With our kids, and my niece (my sister and her husband are off for the night to NY, and my  mom is at their home with her boys)
Currently, 5 kids are in my boys room, watching a movie, and playing their ninendo's. I'm watching HGTV.. Candace Olson's Divine Design.  I never would have thought that this would be what I considered a perfect night, but it is.. well almost perfect, I would love to have my husband's company, but it's early, and I don't suspect he'll be too late.
When on Earth, did I get so grown up?? So content with a quiet evening at home watching home improvement shows? I did get more than one thing accomplished tonight, including coloring my hair the fabulous shade "ginger ale" and having a long hot shower.. it's the small things..
Today I dragged my husband, and the five kids to Target. And when I say I dragged my husband, it's quite literal. He was content staying home (duh) but I insisted that he join me. The boys have had some money they wanted to spend, and have been begging me for weeks to bring them to Target to spend it. It actually came to the point, that when my husband reluctantly joined us in the car after everyone was in, I told him to go back inside.. I didn't want a grumpy gus ruining our fun. Of course he refused, and insisted that if he did in fact go back inside, he would pay for it the rest of the weekend. He really doesn't get it. I don't roll like that. But I guess he thinks I do.. whatever.
Anyway, this is the excitement that is my life. I can hear giggling from the other room (and I love it!) My niece is having the time of her life with her cousins. I love that they are growing up together.. I love that they are having so much fun doing something so small like just hanging out with each other.. For about an hour earlier, they were all crawling around on their hands and knees, pretending to be dogs. Sure, it was annoying (imagine a pack of dogs in your house, barking as loud as they could) but I did nothing to stop it. I quietly colored my hair, had a long hot shower (with the door open of course) and just reveled in their bliss..

Twins in the News.. yea right.

So, my twin story has been published.. well, sort of. Here I am thinking that the fact my identical twin sister and I, who have both given birth to identical twins ourselves, are in fact very special.
Well, I guess we are only special enough to get a letter from me to the editor asking about other id twins having their own id twins. Not even a mention of all the other cool facts that are involved here: Like how my sister and I are mirror twins (identical twins who are mirror images of each other, she's a lefty, had braces, wears glasses) Had boys.. That both our twins were born on the 22nd day of a month.. that her twins were due on Thanksgiving, while mine were conceived on the same holiday.. And that genetically, having identical twins is a fluke. It hasn't been linked to genetics.
But whatever. It's pretty cool anyway to see our twin pic in an actual magazine.. too bad I didn't know it has been in there since December, even though the editor of the magazine asked me if she could run the story, I should have wondered when she didn't respond to me if she would let me know when it was coming out.. whatev's.. Here's the link... http://www.epaperflip.com/aglaia/viewer.aspx?docid=94f462df6e014e8788df30bf3e23a3b2&page=8&#