My Birthday is Postponed

Just want to inform you that my birthday will be postponed until further notice. Not because I'm putting off turning (cough) 31 but because  how I'm going to spend my day today is not how anyone should have to spend their birthday.

Tomorrow we are having the appraisal done on our house and after a weekend with a houseful of extra kids I'm going to be spending today cleaning it and in the words of Annie, making it "shine like the top of the Chrysler Building".

Bubs woke up around 4:15 AM came into my room and said "happy Birthday Mom" I said thank you and thought...how sweet. Well around 4:30 AM I heard him sobbing in his room. When The Doctor asked him what was wrong he said "I have the worst sore throat ever". Well, the only time people use that phrase is when they are suffering from strep. The Doctor to a look and he most definitely has strep. So, I will get to take my son to the doctors office today. The boy probably came into my room today to tell me he wasn't feeling well and then decided to suck it up and tell me happy birthday and let me sleep instead. After a dose of IB profen he is sleeping the morning away.

I cancelled my Birthday lunch with some girlfriends and my Birthday dinner date with The Doctor. So, if you want to wish me a happy Birthday today that is fine but just know, today is not my birthday, at least not this year. I will be celebrating later at a date that is TBA.  Now I'm off to go scrub some toilets while I still have 2 kids sleeping.

I Survived Paint Ball

We went paint balling on Saturday and I survived. It was fun. All the girls in the group were pretty apprehensive at first. It of course helped that the first person we talk to said it hurt way worse then she thought it would. Once we got the safety training and geared up it was game on.

Our group of 6 got mixed in with a bunch of other small groups making one large group between 30-40 people. We divided into teams and went to battle. At the location we went to you have 10 minutes of play where you try and shoot other people while they are taking aim at you. One hit and you are out. What really stunk was the fact that my gun got hit to knock me out twice. I suppose I should be grateful it was my gun that got hit and not me because one of the times I was walking to the dead box and I wasn't paying attention and I got hit by "friendly fire" on my mask and my hand. Getting hit on my fingers hurt worse then child birth. It stung and bled. My little pinkie is still bruised and tender today.

I wish we had more time to play and I wish we had purchased more paint balls.  It would have been more fun had I known everyone playing. It also would have been great if there was more of a point, like play capture the flag at the same time. I wouldn't think twice about going again. I highly recommend wearing baggy clothes as a beginner. They tend to cushion the blow.

The 5 Senses

 

Taste, touch, see, hear, and smell make up the 5 senses. It isn't until one or more is impaired that I truly appreciate the fact that most days I have all 5 senses. I had the flu this last week and the only sense that remained fully intact was my sense of touch. I have severe congestion so I haven't been able to smell and oddly enough, the congestion has affected my ability to taste as well. Food just doesn't have the same flavor. I'm blind as a bat with out my contacts and I managed to get pink eye so I wasn't able to wear my contacts. I have a pair of glasses but they are the wrong prescription. They help some but I would not trust myself to drive with them. I also lost a bit of my hearing to the congestion as well. I feel like I've had earmuffs on all week.

These senses work hand in hand to allow me to enjoy life. They can also keep me safe.  I learned a lesson this week too. If I don't have my sense of smell or sight, sometimes taste is not my best option.

It was a very cold (for South TX) morning. Around 20 degrees out. My neighbor's cat, Pumkin, looked so cold so I let him come in to warm up. He promptly ran upstairs and made himself comfortable on my bed snuggled up to my sleeping toddler. Because I was sick, once my older kids got on the bus I went back to bed. I didn't want the cat in my bed so I carried him into Bubs room and placed him on his bed. 5 minutes later Pumkin made his way back to my room and snuggled in by my feet. Whatever, I was too cold and sick to care.

An hour later I jumped in the shower and got dressed. My eyes were feeling better so I put my contacts in. I went downstairs to turn on the TV. We got a nice big TV for Christmas and an entertainment center to put it on. The rule is, nobody touches it or placed anything on the entertainment center. Well, I was horrified to see something wet and dripping down the right side of the screen. My thoughts immediately turned to my kids and the bubbles they were blowing in the house the night before. I suppose I could have easily missed it if I had my glasses on. I went up closer and couldn't visually tell what it was so I decided to touch it. It was not the consistency of the bubbles. It was a little thicker and maybe a little sticky. I then thought maybe it was cough medicine. Why would cough medicine be on my TV you might ask? Well, with KMae anything is possible. I tried to smell it but with no luck since I was all stopped up. So, I couldn't tell what it was by touching, seeing, or smelling. Obviously I couldn't hear it so I decided to taste it. I stuck my finger in a little bit and licked my finger. I can't really describe what it tasted like because gratefully my taste buds were clouded but I can tell you this, it was a little bitter and I knew instantly that it was not anything my kids had put on the TV. I had an image pop in my head from something I witnessed a couple days prior.

We had a garage sale and were cleaning up. In my lawn were some boxes. Pumkin walked up to the boxes lifted his tail and sprayed the box. He was marking his territory on the box. Never in my life had I seen a cat do this before.

With this image in my mind and a bitter taste on my tongue I knew instantly that what I had just tasted was not bubbles or cough medicine, how I wish it were, but in fact cat urine. What solidified my discovery was when I let my cat in the house she went over to the spot (post clean up) and was sniffing it like crazy. Apparently Pumkin was not too happy with me removing him from my bed so he decided to let me know by marking my brand new TV. Well my dear Pumkin, you are no longer allowed in my house no matter how cold it is outside.

Paint Ball

Watch this little clip....


It was my memories of this scene from the movie 10 Things I hate about You that was in my mind when I purchased a Groupon a couple of months ago to go Paint balling. What was I thinking? I'm sure I was thinking something along the lines of "won't my husband think I'm cool if I take him paint balling? It will be so fun and romantic. After all, we can make out while we are covered in paint." It was such a great idea I talked two of my besties into buying tickets as well.

So, this weekend we are finally going to redeem these coupons. The place we are going to does not provide balloons filled with paint but actual paintball guns with paint balls loaded in them. Since it is an outdoor field and it has been cold I'm pretty sure I'm going to be calling them "pain"balls. So, I will be stepping out of my comfort zone this weekend and stepping into the unknown. At least I won't be alone. My girlfriends will be just as uncomfortable. My only advantage is my experience shooting shotguns.

I'm sure we will look just like this as we are playing.

Clean Your Room

Do you find yourself, like me, constantly telling your kids "clean your room"? My children's rooms tend to always be in disarray. We spend a good portion of a Saturday morning cleaning their rooms and by Tuesday they are a complete disaster again. I have some kiddos who think that as soon as they get tucked in to bed and the door is closed it is play time. I walk in their room in the morning and it looks like the toy box threw up. KMae is in the wonderful phase of changing her clothes 5 times a day so there are piles of clothes. Or, maybe the dresser took a look at what the toy box was doing and had a gag reflex.

Why oh why can't my kids clean up their room? Oh, do you think it could be because their mamma's room reassembles the after math of a Texas Twister? I try to keep my room clean, I really do but in the process of cleaning up the rest of the house my bedroom becomes the dumping ground. There are boxes filled with things that need to be "put away" lining the perimeter of my bedroom. In the mad dash to get the downstairs looking de-cluttered and clean I pile things in boxes and haul them up to my room. The reason my room is so lucky is because it is generally "off limits" when people come over. I'll even lock the door so people don't "accidentally" wander into it.

Alas, my husband is attempting to clean up on his own and I'm down here writing about it. I suppose I should go and help out. After all, my parents are coming to visit next week and I don't want to her my mom say "go clean your room!"

The Truth.....

about why my house isn't as clean as it could be. My Dad forwarded this poem in an email to me today and then promptly called me on the webcam so he could watch me laugh as I read it. Yes, I laughed, and yes, the truth hurts.

Cleaning Poem

I asked the Lord to tell meWhy my house is such a messHe asked if I'd been 'computering',And I had to answer 'yes.'

He told me to get off my butt,And tidy up the house.And so I started cleaning up...The smudges off my mouse.

I wiped and shined the topside.That really did the trick...I was just admiring my good work.

I didn't mean to 'click.'

But click, I did, and oops - I foundA real absorbing siteThat I got SO way into it - I was into it all night.So nothing's changed except my mouse.It's as shiny as the sun..I guess my house will stay a mess.....While I sit here on my bum.

When Silence equals Trouble

This adorable girl you see below is my #4. She celebrated her 2nd birthday this week. I bought the outfit she is wearing the day before. She looked so cute in it and it was perfect for the beautiful sunny day we had.

I was working on a blog post which I still haven't finished and noticed it was awfully quiet. You know when the kids are quiet there is trouble. I went to find her and this is what I found.

(the snot just adds to the yumminess of the picture right?)

She discovered someone had left Magic Shell on the table and she needed to have some. Yes, that is an entire bottle of it poured out onto her plate and all over her new outfit. I immediately placed it in cold water to try and rinse it out. Then I added liquid dish soap to try and remove the stain. I read somewhere that it would work. Well, the Kirkland brand got most of it out but not all of it. I haven't washed it in anything but cold water yet. Do any of you have any suggestions on removing chocolate stains from clothing?

Friday Funny

I think we should all start the weekend out with a good laugh. There is a blog that I follow called Mama's Losin' It. Mama Kat is a mom to 3 and runs a day care out of her home. Her blog almost always makes me laugh. Once a week she also gives prompts of things to blog about. I usually do the prompts on my other blog but I think I'm going to start doing them here as well. Anyway, her post today had tears streaming down my face and I knew I had to share it. You can read it here. Now I know another reason why I only have a cat and a fish.

33 Minutes to a Cleaner House

A friend of mine sent the following in an email to me. Who ever thought it up was brilliant. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

33 Minutes to a Cleaner House…

You're getting company in 30 minutes. Your house is a mess. WHAT WILL YOU DO?Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the first session of Housekeeping Tips for Regular People. If you're a Martha Stewart type of housekeeper, this column is NOT for you. However, for the rest of you, this is your chance to learn 15 Secret Shortcuts to Good Housekeeping that your mother never told you.

SECRET TIPS

1: DOOR LOCKS If a room clearly can't be whipped into shape in 30 days--much less 30 minutes--employ the Locked Door Method of cleaning. Tell anyone who tries to go in the room that the door is intentionally locked.CAUTION: It is not advisable to use this tip for the bathroom. Time: 2 seconds

2: DUCT TAPE No home should be without an ample supply. Not only is it handy for plumbing repairs, but it's a great way to hem drapes, tablecloths, clothes, just about anything. No muss, no fuss.Time: 2-3 minutes

3: OVENS If you think ovens are just for baking, think again. Ovens represent at least 9 cubic feet of hidden storage space, which means they're a great place to shove dirty dishes, dirty clothes, or just about anything you want to get out of sight when company's coming. Time: 2 minutes

4: CLOTHES DRYERS Like Secret Tip 3, except bigger. CAUTION: Avoid hiding flammable objects here.Time: 2.5 minutes

5: WASHING MACHINES & FREEZERS Like Secret Tip 4, except even bigger.Time: 3 minutes

6: DUST RUFFLES No bed should be without one. Devotees of Martha Stewart believe dust ruffles exist to keep dust out from under a bed or to help coordinate the colorful look of a bedroom. The rest of us know a dust ruffle's highest and best use is to hide whatever you've managed to shove under the bed. (Refer to Secret Tips 3, 4, 5.) Time: 4 minutes

7: DUSTING The 30-Minutes-To-A-Clean-House method says: Never dust under what you can dust around.Time: 3 minutes

8: DISHES Don't use them. Use plastic or paper and you won't have to.Time: 1 minute

9: CLOTHES WASHING (EEWWW) This secret tip is brought to you by an inventive teenager. When this teen's mother went on a housekeeping strike for a month, the teen discovered you can extend the life of your underwear by two ...if you turn it wrong side out and, yes, rerun it.CAUTION: This tip is recommended only for teens and those who don't care if they get in a car wreck.Time: 3 seconds

10: IRONING If an article of clothing doesn't require a full press and your hair does, a curling iron is the answer. In between curling your hair, use the hot wand to iron minor wrinkles out of your clothes. Yes, it really does work, or so I'm told, by other disciples of the 30-Minutes-To-A-Clean-House philosophy.Time: 5 minutes (including curling your hair)

11: VACUUMING Stick to the middle of the room, which is the only place people look. Don't bother vacuuming under furniture. It takes way too long and no one looks there anyway.Time: 5 minutes, entire house; 2 minutes, living room only

12: LIGHTING The key here is low, low, and lower. It's not only romantic, but bad lighting can hide a multitude of dirt.Time: 10 seconds

13: BED MAKING Get an old-fashioned waterbed. No one can tell if those things are made up or not, saving you, oh, hundreds of seconds over the course of a lifetime.Time: 0

14: SHOWERS, TOILETS, AND SINKS Forget one and two. Concentrate on three.Time: 1 minute

15: If you already knew at least 10 of these tips, don't even think about inviting a Martha Stewart type to your home.

Yea! It's Friday

Everybody needs to dance. The weekend is here. And, feel free to laugh.

This could have been my baby. She loves to dance. Now that you are smiling and feeling good get off the computer and do something fun with a loved one.