Headlines Don't Sell Papes. Newsies Sell Papes.

Reading: Theft by Finding by David Sedaris. Good Lord, I love David Sedaris. He seems like he would be friends with my sister and thus be forced to run into me at baptisms and bar mitzvahs. He would probably try to linger in the dining room doorway waiting for me to choose a dinner chair and then take the seat furthest from mine. He would avoid my eye and try to look very engaged in conversation with the person next to him. I would move though. You know I would. I would get up for more wine and then pull up a spare chair right next to David, squeezing out the bewildered guest who was innocently describing to him her latest oral surgery in detail. Later as they were driving home Hugh would laugh about David's inability to escape Kelly's weird younger sister.

Drinking: COFFEE. My caffeine intake is delightfully out of control. My migraines are in control (aaaaahhhhlelluia!) and thus the coffee floweth like... well... like coffee bean flavored hot water. We bought a new coffee pot that is programmed to automatically brew every morning. It is heavenly, like having a little robot in our kitchen that makes me coffee. In fact... it is LITERALLY a little robot in our kitchen that makes me coffee. I love it. I've gotten into that strange place in which I stay up too late and then sleep poorly and wake up and drink too much coffee. So then by the afternoon I drink more caffeine and thus the cycle continues. Not complaining though. Just how it is at the moment.

Eating: welllllll. This past spring was rather stressful to say the least and I may or may not have gained like 20 lbs. I finally pulled it together these past few weeks and am back on healthy foods. Unfortunately, I'm discovering that losing weight this time around isn't as simple as back when I was breast-feeding. Bummer. But, nonetheless, I'll just keep plugging along.

Carolena and Nils are really into audio books as of late. I mean really into them. Like, hour upon hour upon hour of listening to stories. We didn't leave the house for all of Monday and all of Tuesday because they were so engrossed. There aren't pictures or animation - just someone reading the books. I spent Monday crafting and cleaning and yesterday doing pretty much the same. By today I was about to lose my mind and forced them out to run errands with me. All they wanted to do was come home and eat lunch and listen to more of the book they were on. It's awesome. And weird. And awesome... but also weird.

I'll Always be a Treasure House Kid (to the tune of the old Toys R Us commercial. you're welcome)

Hey, look at me! I got up early again today. Sure, I'm skipping Boot Camp (now imagine me making a guilty expression) but I missed every single one this summer (due to legitimate reasons like being out of town) and now the thought of Boot Camp makes me want to die. Or, rather, makes me think about how hard it will be to get back into and how hot and humid it is outside and how I will be lying in a pool of sweat feeling like death.

So I'm opting for coffee and quiet time this morning. I hear the peaceful sounds of coffee brewing and people sleeping and cats slinking. Yes, this is the right choice for today.

As of yesterday I have a newfound love: dumpster diving. Well, technically not diving because I'm pretty sure that getting in a dumpster is illegal... but... that's neither here nor there. On Sunday I noticed a big broken shelf in a trash pile and grabbed it out. After some repair (free, simple, and highly entertaining to Nils) and some paint (leftover in our garage) and some sandpaper distressing... I SOLD IT.

Um, can I tell you how fun that was?! I saved real wood from certain doom of the dump. I had a lot of fun making something very cool. I made money! Yes, this will be addicting. I already have a few other projects going now. The shelf was actually the second thing I've rehabbed for free and sold lately. Hooked. I'm hooked.

Early Mornings, Coffee, School Buses, Vintage Hats, Did I Mention Coffee?

I'm trying to get back into an early-to-rise routine around here, so I guess that means revisiting my blog as well.

Starting to blog again after such a long hiatus feels awkward and forced. Umm... hi?

Currently...
Reading: Avenue of Mysteries by John Irving. His writing is so fabulous. Why are his characters always so loveable?
Drinking: Coffee. Coffee. More coffee. I told you I'm trying to get back into my routine of early mornings. Plus, I don't really drink alcohol so coffee seems like a just fine vice to me.
Eating: Oh Lordy, the eating around here. Yesterday afternoon I wondered why my stomach hurt until I remembered I had Target popcorn, two Diet Cokes, and a pack of Rolos for lunch. At the end of the day I congratulated myself on such a good day of eating... and then I remembered lunch. *oops*

C started real school this week and is thriving. She has left and come home in a great mood everyday. She is clearly tired but so wired from all of the excitement that thus far all has been well. There is nothing cuter in this world than seeing her bound onto the school bus and wave from the front seat. Nils snuggles in my arms and we wave back and blow kisses. Oh my goodness. C can barely see out the window and we just see her eyes and arm waving. You can't imagine how adorable the whole scene is. And, oh my gosh, don't get me started on how amazing the school bus is. A bus comes and picks my kid up and brings her to school and then takes her home? For free? And I don't have to be ready to leave and stuff Nils into a carseat twice a day?! AAAMAZING. Also, we lucked out and live across the street from the bus stop. We can see/hear the bus coming from our house. Oh yeah!

Nils and I are having fun having some rarely-before-seen time alone together. Yesterday after our fancy Target lunch I asked him if he was ready to go home and he replied, "No! Goodwill!" Atta boy. We're going to get along juuussst fine. I found a fabulous vintage hat at Goodwill and Nils bought it for me. THIS hat - but in RED! It was a total of 86 cents. A fabulous red vintage hat? Sounds perfect for Pentecost! Vintage hats are my weakness.

While Nils and I are thrilled to be together and are having some adventures of our own, we definitely both miss Carolena. Nils will frequently call me "Lena" or "best friend" when he's talking (they call each other "best friend") and then get a surprised embarrassed look on his face and correct himself to "Mommy." Poor guy.

I really miss C too. I love having some special time to be with Nils but it has been harder than I expected to see so little of Carolena lately. I really and truly like being with her and miss her. She gets home from school at 4 and goes to bed at 7 so time with her is at a premium. I'm trying to have time with her, let Nils have some time alone with her to play, and we have dinner and bedtime routines. So far C has wanted to pile in my bed with books everyday when she gets home from school. Sounds great to me!

I really slacked off on waking up early this summer. I am planning to get back into my early morning groove now that school is in session, but I'm honestly having a hard time remembering how much I loved it. Here's hoping.

Home Again Home Again Jiggity Jig

Well, I guess we're home. For now.

After a whirlwind ten day trip to Disney we had only a few days home until Chris smiled mid-bite at the dinner table and announced, "Let's go to the beach! Right now!" And then we did.

So the laundry pile, coffee drinking, and tiredness are great. And by great, I mean large not "Great!"

In other news we discovered that the creature making various holes around our backyard to access the mysterious land that lies under the deck is not in fact a rat. It's a cute bunny! A little magical looking rabbit who steals fruit rinds from the compost and eats them under the play house. I might name it Kelly... as in... "guys, Kelly pooped under the playhouse again!" Bwah ha ha ha! Middle children of the world: unite!

One child awoke sickly Saturday night and thus we missed the great church Pentecost celebration. It was a bummer as we missed Easter this year too (weird!) and the Pentecost celebration sounded awesome. *sigh* Too bad Chris couldn't stay home with the sick nugget.

I've been playing my uke everyday. Yeah. I love it. So long blog, I have a ukulele now. See ya in St. Louey suckers.

Back to the neurologist on Wednesday. The migraine sagas continue.

And... what else... uh... kids' last day of school is Wednesday. Watch out summer vacation, here we come!

Rainy Days and Sleep Deprivation

Oh you know, just drinking coffee and watching youtube videos on how to braid. Normal stuff going on around here.

Yes, I know how to braid. No, I don't know how to do fancy crazy Elsa fish tail wombat divine braids for my daughter whose hair hasn't been cut in a year (at her insistence. somethings aren't worth fighting). If it were up to her she would have her hair scraggly and unbrushed and "just down!" all of the time. Up to me? Fancy and well kept. I don't have long hair - I have to have fun with hers.

The kids just ran through the room screaming "Go Injas!" (aka ninjas). C is wearing a coonskin cap and Nils is carrying a stuffed animal beaver we named Tobias.

Last night I went to check on kids and dole out some kisses before heading off to bed. Carolena was snug in her bed sound asleep. When I went into Nils' room he was... nowhere to be found. This has happened before. I creep in quietly and walk up to his pillow expecting to kiss a sleeping little angel... only to find the bed completely empty. It is terrifying. Luckily, last night I stayed relatively calm as I searched the room for Nils. Not finding him, I went back to look around his bed again. That's when my foot stumbled upon a soft little head snoozing UNDER the bed. I carefully got him back into his bed and then had to crawl under it to find all of his lovies that he'd brought with him.

Later both kids got into our bed at separate times during the night. Chris ended up sleeping on the floor of Nils' room just to score some sleep for the rest of the house. My elders who tell me to "keep them young forever!" when they see us in the grocery store don't remember how little sleep parents actually get.

Even Tough Girls Have Tough Days

I'm still trying to clean out the nightmare basket in the kitchen, and this morning I found this scratched in Sharpie across a torn piece of notebook paper (from December 2015):

C: "*sigh* Sometimes even tough girls can have tough days."

Me: "That is so true. Who says that?"

C: "Me."

Yes, even tough girls can sometimes have tough days. Yesterday was a tough afternoon for mainly reasons of my own bad mood funk. I got home from church and fed kids lunch and settled them into beds for naps/rests and then I looked around our house as if seeing for the first time all of the things staring back at me... laundry piled for washing, floor crying out for a mop, crap everywhere piling up ready to be sorted for Goodwill... and I promptly put on pajamas and sank onto the couch with some popcorn. It was just that kind of day.

Luckily, we had already accepted an invitation to a parishioner's farm for dinner. The fun of being out in the country and watching C&N pet the horses and startle the chickens and generally run amok got me right out of my funk. Turns out that was all I needed.

I awoke to a better day! Somehow I got a ton of stuff done today including but not limited to purchasing a new (to me) shirt from Goodwill for 5 bucks and coming home to google it and finding out it is on sale right now for $60. Score! And also... who spends $60 on a sleeveless shirt?!

I worked out, ran some errands, did a ton of laundry, got everything in order to register C for Kindergarten, and even managed all of it on one less cup of coffee than yesterday. I call that an all-round win. I've realized giving myself really small increments of time in which to do something is a sure way to get something done. So, for instance, today I put a bag of edamame in the micro, hit 5 minutes, and told myself I couldn't have any until I was showered and the phone call on the to-do list was made. Somehow I did it. Short hair for the win!

Sometimes even tough girls have tough days. Today the tough girl won out. Here's hoping tomorrow is just as great.

Go Away Bird!

Did you ever stop to think that maybe I'm not drinking too much coffee... maybe you're not drinking enough?!

Well, unless you're Kelly. If you're Kelly, well done on the coffee intake. Well done.

Speaking of my sis, we met her and two of her kiddos at the zoo yesterday. Now you are probably imagining all of us smiling as we stare at the majesty of the giraffes, laughing as we watch the flamingos, cheering "Go-Away Bird!" as we look upon Nils' favorite zoo animal. You would be wrong. Except for that last thing - Nils always has to cheer for his bird.

Instead, we ignored the elephants behind us (how?!) and scarfed down our lunches at 1030am. We then moved to an area outside of the bathrooms and sat on the ground eating pretzels. After that we sat in a stroller parking area and chatted some more. It was a weird and wonderful morning. We did manage to visit the current Washed Ashore exhibit. Mom, Dad, you guys should make some huge jellyfish out of beach trash for under your beach house. You would be so inspired by the exhibit. Do it! Do it!

My bro is currently planning a trip to Norway. Yes, really. Lucky. So I am living vicariously through him and researching places I would go. First stop: FRAM!

Procrastination Station

I don't understand procrastination. I mean... I'm going to have to do it eventually, so why not get the monkey off of my back?

And yet...

Someday I will have to actually wean back this caffeine as my sleeping, or lack thereof, has reached a terrible place.

Someday I will have to actually call our doctors and dentists and get check-ups on the calendar. I've been procrastinating on that since January. Why haven't I done it yet?

Someday I will have to go back to ww and weigh in... and by someday I mean by the end of the month... and I really really don't want to pay. So why haven't I buckled down and gotten back to goal yet? Or even within the not-paying range?!

Someday I will have to clean the blinds in our kitchen. They are gross as that is where Nils sits. But in my defense - they are huge. And cleaning them sounds miserable.

I have a lot of things Future Casey will have to deal with. Today I'll concentrate on eating well and drinking slightly less caffeine. And maybe getting some of those making appointment phone call monkeys off of my back. Ah! And the kids need raincoats.

But first: coffee. And a shower. Because at least I worked out this morning.

Thursday Check-In

It's 1:30 in the afternoon and I'm still in pajamas.

How did that happen?!

I spent last night on the floor in c's room. She had a highish fever again (why?!). So we spent today at home. Again.

We all have some cabin fever around here. We've been home a lot of days. A lot. Including Easter Sunday.

Today we've made the most of it though with plenty of Disney centered conversation, some audio books, and the creation of a giant countdown to vacation banner which I need to finish assembling.

I've had countless cups of coffee and a Diet Coke. You know... because I'm still in my pjs, so why not?

Kids are both napping. I've consumed an entire bag of edamame. I want another Diet Coke. Disney countdown assembly is awaiting. I've changed like 80 diapers today.

I feel crazy.

Thank God the clergy spouse retreat starts tomorrow. I plan to leave our house early and get a much-need haircut. And maybe have dinner with Scarlett and Rhett before heading out there (no, I haven't completely lost it - that's the book I'm reading).

Friday, where are you?

Monday Monday

Yesterday Chris had the day off of work (Monday after holy week the office is closed) and as the kids were at school we had a date day. It was the best day ever. The weather was perfect and we had lunch on the patio at Dish Society, a local farm to table restaurant. It's a very hipster restaurant in La Centerra (I love La Centerra. It makes me feel like I live in Aspen) and thus, much to my dismay, didn't have Diet Coke. I am one of those people who falls in between Gen X and the Millennials. I am much more like Ms than the Xers (almost M to a T) but have some definite X traits like being annoyed that a hipster restaurant didn't carry my poison drink of choice. Stupid hipsters carrying Maine Root drinks instead of Coca Cola.

I actually love that restaurant. Farm to table? Awesome. Outdoor seating? Yes please. Normal sized salads instead of entire bag of lettuce in a bowl? Yes. I might leave and come home and eat a bag of chips (oops) but I love restaurants that don't overdo portions (unless its Mexican food and then bring on the chip baskets!).

We also volunteered at school for C's class' library time. It was so fast with two people and way more fun with Chris (as most things are). And we managed to get our announcement together for telling the kids where we are going on vacation this year and had time to veg on the couch. It was pretty much heaven. If we'd gone to Goodwill and bought a ton of books I would have exploded with happiness.

When the kids came home from school we had a big chest in the doorway with a note on it about how we'll be going on vacation soon. When they opened the trunk Mickey and Minnie balloons floated out and I dumped a bunch of small Disney balloons over their heads while we yelled, "We're going to Disney World!"

They were mostly excited about the balloons.

Yeah.

Now we can finally start obsessing about our upcoming trip and make a big countdown chart for the kids. I'd tell you when we're going but I don't want you to come rob my house, Kelly. Perhaps I should count the pineapple iced tea spoons before we leave.

The day ended with homemade pizza and mint juleps and dinner on our deck. Kids went to bed easily and we watched more It's Always Sunny. So, hmm, yesterday was pretty much an ideal day. What now Tuesday?!

In other news: I'm off the wagon on pretty much everything. I'm out of control on caffeine. I'm eating whatever the hell I want and thus over my ww goal (oh crap). I'm drinking mint juleps (duh, it's spring and we have a deck. Plus I'm rereading GWTW and that doesn't help). The only thing that I haven't gone off the rails on is working out. I've even been sleeping in til 6am. *SIGH* I wish I could get motivated to get a grip but I can't seem to find a "why" for any of those things. I know my neurologist would have something to say about my caffeine but I'm doing well with migraines soooo... bring on the coffee...? I know the mint juleps are adding to the ww weight problem but... it's spring. And they're good. I know I'm going to have to weigh in for April and I'll have to pay (I've been at goal for like 18 months. I really don't want to pay) but I just can't seem to get a grip. The problem is this: I've gained five pounds and I don't see why it matters. I don't want five to turn into ten and that's why I need to get a grip... but the five didn't really make a difference in my life other than having more fun. I know that five pounds less is about as small as I get. Five pounds heavier and my clothes still fit (not as well). Chris thinks I'm beautiful no matter what (God bless him). I'm still exercising. Losing the five gained will require the loss of my mint juleps and not eating enormous amounts of pizza. I need to find my motivation. Perhaps for now I will concentrate on losing weight so I don't have to pay for April. I'll let Future Casey deal with the caffeine. For now, another cup of coffee.

maundy thursday in our house

rainy day
one kid sick
three cups of coffee consumed
more under consideration
countless projects to work on
hubby working late
not complaining
peace and potential

Don't Call it a Comeback, I've Been Here for Years

I read two books last week. TWO. Like... as in... finished two books. In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Voyage of the USS Jeannette was fascinating and insanely good. Then over Saturday and Sunday I picked up The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and read it cover to cover. Sucked in. I definitely recommend both books. So, now what to read?? So many books to read and reread. And so many more books on the shelves of Goodwill!

Spring Break was great - the kids and I spent the week with my parents, my sis, and her kids all at the beach. The kids ran amok. I consumed far too many calories. Nils summed up the week-long trip by screaming, "Nooo!!! Go back Moom's house! Beach!! Nooo!!" when we turned off of the highway and into Katy. Yep.

Luckily for Nils (and the rest of us) Moom showed up at our house yesterday. Chris gifted me with two tickets for me to go see Cabaret with mi madre so we're heading into the bayou city for that tomorrow night. Party! Party!

I'm tired. I've gained weight. My caffeine consumption is through the roof. You know when would be a good time to get control? Yesterday. Instead I ate donuts and McDonalds (I don't even like donuts!). Today: restart. Again.

The Run Down

Reading: Coffee Tea or Me (rereading actually. I read it in college) and In the Kingdom of Ice: The Grand and Terrible Voyage of the USS Jeannette. I usually just read one book at a time and really prefer to just read one at a time. I'm not sure how it happened that I'm in the middle of two insanely different books right now, but I am so now I need to finish them. My stack of books to read is growing and growing. My routine on Mon/Wed includes stopping at Goodwill after I drop the kids at school. So yeah, the stack of "to read" has grown considerably.

Consuming: beer... chips... coffee... oh Lord the coffee intake is out of control. Diet Coke. What's happening?!??! At least I can also include edamame and Yoplait Whips yogurt to the list. Those are my healthy over-indulgences. Most days I eat an entire bag of edamame for lunch. On one hand... really? On the other hand... that's a pretty great lunch.

Last night: perfect weather. Beer and chips and guac on our deck. A hot bath. Asleep before 8pm. Heaven.

Excited for: the beach!!! The kids and I are heading to the beach for SIX days. I am giddy. The girls and the kids are all heading to the beach for some fun and chaos and hopefully limited meltdowns (for both kids and moms). So, don't worry about checking my blog for a week. I'll be living it up on Bolivar.

The Snake Came Back the Very Next Day... He Just Wouldn't Stay Away...

A friend sent me this (hilarity credit to Joann Doyle) and it just about sums up yesterday:

Yep. Pretty much.

I creeped out of my bed and watched the floor carefully as I got ready for bootcamp. Thankful to have not encountered Monsieur Snakey, I came home with two huge frappuccinos (one for me, one as a surprise for Chris). Thanks, DOK for the giftcard! As Nils says, "Party! Party!"

After caffinating up we got busy around here. Chris ran errands and worked on our sprinklers while Carolena, Nils, and I set to work cleaning and reorganizing Carolena's room. C sat down for the task of collecting all of the shoes from the floor of her closet and putting them in a basket. You know... her closet... the space that backs up to the wall that the snake crawled into.

I should have seen it coming.

Suddenly she was screaming and crying and flew out of her closet. "SNAAKKKKEE!!!"
I started yelling, "Go get Daddy! Go get Daddy!" over and over and C ran out of the room to get Chris.

Nils sat beside me looking at me quizzically. I kept my eyes on that snake.

Chris came back with a bucket and captured el snakeytan. Then the real crying began when he showed the kids.

I spent the next portion of the day scraping children off of my legs as they clung to me crying and pleading to keep the snake. Really?!

C and N followed me around crying, sobbing, begging, pleading. N kept saying, "Snaakkee!! Love him! Cute!" 

Seriously? 

Two kids who love snakes. This is what I get for being a Slytherin. 

I'm okay with snakes in the zoo. Fascinated by them in fact. I'm okay with petting a snake. I was once okay with holding them. I like the idea of them "out there" in the world doing their thing. I don't want to come across one in my house. Ever. Ever ever. Ever. 

{Shuddddder}

No, of course we didn't kill him.

Chris was instructed to get in the car and drive that little critter away from our house. He wanted to put him in the backyard but it knows the entry route to our house and thus had to be relocated.

The kids and I went back to working in Carolena's room where she told the story of finding the snake. She said she was picking up shoes and touched the snake and it shocked her to find it in her closet. Uhhh. Yeah. That could come out in therapy as an adult. For sure. Except she loves snakes (always has) so it will probably be a story about how awesome it was and how her mother wouldn't let her keep it.

Carolena's 2nd birthday looking at snakes at the pet store.

After cleaning her room... wait for it... we took out one of her beds! What?!
C has had two twin beds in her room because we have a three bedroom house and wanted room for people to spend the night. We decided though that day to day life trumps that and took out the extra bed (wish we would have thought about that a few months ago when we bought a mattress and boxspring for Nils. Argh).

She now has a better space all to herself. We moved in my childhood desk and her doll house. It is fabulous. She is insanely excited and got her desk adorably organized with arts and crafts and spent the rest of the day in there working.

At some point in the afternoon both kids packed their bags for the beach and put them by the front door. Nils was devastated to learn that we weren't leaving at that very second and spent time angry about that. He spent a sad amount of time holding his suitcase and trying to open the front door, all the while crying and whimpering "Moom's house." You're welcome for that mental image, Mom.

After all of the snake brew ha ha and bedroom transforming and kids crying I was in party mode last night. It was cool enough outside to don my Mexican poncho hoodie. Chris tells me I look like a 90s stoner in it which I take as a compliment so I spent the rest of the night with Pearl Jam songs in my head. My waistline was thankful to receive the calories of three beers and fifty million toasted marshmallows. It's only March 12... what's happening to my resolve?! Chris cooked burgers while Nils and I snuggled on the deck and listened to Jimmy Buffet and enjoyed the perfect springtime weather.

My children cried because we didn't keep the snake we found in our house. This is why I drink so much damn coffee people. I'm not sure exactly what the correlation there is. But, there it is.

Bandits

Sunday was glorious. We got to spend time with an old friend (Carolena's Godmother "Denny") who came to church with us and spent the afternoon eating lunch with us at home. I accidentally ate three plates of food. But I mean... in my defense... it was good.

Denny brought Nils a little safari vest from her recent trip to Africa and that kid loves it. He put it right on yelling, "zip! zip!" (the whole front of it has a zipper). Once he had it on C said to him, "Nils! You can wear that to the zoo!" I'll try to get a pic of him in it later. I'm excited to see what treasures we'll find in those pockets as he wears it around.

I led a Quiet Day for our church last weekend. When I teach for my own church I don't charge but they surprised me with a Starbucks giftcard yesterday! What?! Unexpected surprises are so fabulous. I figured it would have enough for me to get a latte and was giddy... and then I registered it on the website and saw that it has enough money on it for me to get reeeeallllyyyy caffeinated! Party! Party! Evidently those women know me well. The way to my heart is definitely through coffee.

And now, I leave you with the story I told C this morning:
When we lived in Austin, shortly after C was born a friend send us a Greenling box (a big box that arrives full of awesome local food). It was such a great gift. A few months later we went out of town and arrived home to another Greenling gift on our doorstep... which the racoons had discovered before we did. The box was ripped open and food was strewn all over the doorstep. Everything had little tastes gone or was ripped apart. Everything was there. Everything except the caramel corn. We later found the empty bag.

So, the moral of the story is: no matter what you eat today, unless you taste and reject a bunch of healthy food and then only eat caramel corn, at least you are one step ahead of the racoons.

Back!

On Monday I really needed to go grocery shopping and decided to put it off until Tuesday.

On Tuesday I really really needed to go to the grocery store and thought, "Nah. Let's just take it easy today." The kids and I stayed home and played and cleaned up the house and read. I made a big batch of black beans and rice. We had plans to go to the rodeo on Wednesday night so there was really no point in going to the grocery store until Wednesday or Thursday... right?

On Wednesday the stomach flu came to visit our home.

On Thursday we were still homebound. On Thursday night the stomach bug took up residence in my digestive system. Carolena threw up once and was over it. That kid must have an immune system of steel. Everyone else will be puking their brains out and she's like, "I think I'll take a nap."

On Friday I slept the entire day and through the night. I think I slept nearly twenty-four hours. Chris was impressed. On Friday I had one coke. One. Coke. I was excited that my caffeine cycle was broken in the wheel of fortune of stomach bugs.

On Saturday we finally all arose alive and well. I drank two cups of coffee (why? why did I do that?!). C and I went to Kroger and our fridge is now full! Hooray! We hit up the arts festival nearby and went to the park. We discovered Nils' hidden talent of dancing and squawking like a chicken.

It's Sunday and we are back into our routine. Three or four or ten cups of coffee? Who's counting? Oh... my neurologist... crap.

Yes! We're back.

Day Three of My Captivity

I'm looking at DAY THREE stuck in our house.

So yeah, I don't have much of interest to blog about right now.

I've been barfed on six times in the last twenty-four hours. Surprisingly, that doesn't bother me. It exhausts me... but doesn't gross me out like I would have thought. Maybe because comforting my sweet Nils is more important than worrying about the vomit. Or maybe because I've spent my entire life as a barfer (oh man, I throw up easily) so vomit is commonplace rather than totally gross. Who knows.

Chris came home with a huge container of bath salts and a new candle and sent me straight into a hot bathtub. And while I was soaking away the smell of vomit, he dealt with the insurance mumbo jumbo that's been annoying me.

Last night included one vomiting child incident so I slept a portion of the night on his floor. At some point I awoke and wanted to move to my bed only to discover both of my legs were asleep. It was quite painful and comical. I ended up literally crawling to the couch where I once again attempted to stand twice, and collapsed twice, before turning into She-Ra and just using my upperbody to toss myself onto the couch. I slept there until I heard Nils throwing up again. I awoke Chris and upon going to Nils' bed, found that I must have dreamed the throwing up as Nils was fast asleep.

This morning began with coffee, more vomit, and more coffee. I miraculously got Nils to fall back asleep and wound up taking a nap as well. More coffee. More laundry. More of a day inside. I'm getting cabin fever and it might be getting weird around here. I desperately needed to get to the grocery store days ago. And needed a haircut last week that I put off until this week. So... that's a bummer.

If you would like to talk to me conversational choices are limited to Sir Ernest Shackleton, Eric Weihenmayer, Mt. Everest's Death Zone, our upcoming vacation, and Lorna's backstory on Orange is the New Black. Anything else and I can assure you I am only pretending to listen.

Incoherent Ramblings

Want to listen to me obsess some more? I just can't get into my next book. You know the feeling when you loved the book you just finished so much that it seems impossible to move to the next book? Yeah, I've got that problem. Maybe I should just reread Touch the Top of the World. I've started like three books and just can't move on yet. Or maybe I'll just go to an old standby palette cleanser like Don't Stop the Carnival.

If you don't know the feeling I'm talking about then you need to find better books to read. It's the feeling of the book you just finished being so good that you forget that you have finished it. It's the feeling of not being able to move on to the next book because your brain is still stuck firmly in the last one. It's a wonderful and horrible place. Gone With the Wind... yeah... that one will do it to you.

OR maybe I shouldn't start another book and should instead spend my time wisely prepping for the Quiet Day I'm leading a week from today. Hm. That wooouuld be wise. Nah. I'll let Future Casey deal with that.

I was listening to an interview with Yann Martel on NPR recently and he was asked about sending books to the Canadian Prime Minister. Martel (author of Life of Pi) said that he heard the Prime Minister say that he doesn't read fiction and was horrified. Here's what stuck with me: Martel argued that reading fiction is one of the things that brings people to compassion. It is when we read that we enter into the shoes of another person and walk around in them. That is so true. Reading is an escape that watching tv or playing online just isn't. Reading Touch the Top of the World I became a blind man mountain climbing. Reading Gone With the Wind I'm Scarlett watching Atlanta burn around me and just trying to get home to Tara of the past. I've been a middle aged Jewish man in the Caribbean. I like to return to the terror of a world in which people burn books and only listen to ipods. Reading transforms the user experience in a way that watching could never do. Martel is so right. Reading brings the ability to walk in another shoes and truly learn what it is like to be someone else. Reading breeds compassion. The end of the story was that Martel started mailing books to the Prime Minister that he recommended he read. That's awesome.

I think this might be my favorite time of year: Texas Spring. It's technically still winter (ha, winter) but outside the weather is glorious. The birds are singing and the sun is out. The humidity is low and the suffocating heat of the summer is still far enough in the future to seem like it might not come this year (double ha).

Okay, I'm lying. This isn't my favorite time of year. Fall in another state is my favorite. But, hey, this is what were living so this will be my favorite. Minus all of the allergies.

You know what would be a good security system? Putting those little kid door handle things on the outside knobs of your house.

My coffee intake is out of control. Too much coffee. Too much junk food. Ugh. Today is reset day. Well, not reset caffeine day, don't be ridiculous. Future Casey has way too much on her plate to start that crap. *sigh* When will I ever learn? When will I eeeevvvver learn?

What Comes Before Part B?

Part A!!
Ohhh yeah.

Happy birthday to me. I finally have embraced the (perhaps obnoxious) reality that I love my own birthday. Party! Party!

The festivities kicked off yesterday when one of my favorite friends met us at the park. C's bff's mother surprised me with a birthday picnic. I was so shocked! A nice tablecloth, a fancy delicious cake, snacks, drinks - it was seriously one of the best surprises.

OHMYGOODLORD - It's 5freakingAM and Olive keeps meowing and chirping and scratching at the kids' doors. She's been at it for the last half hour and I now am beginning to suspect SHE is the reason they've been waking up so damn early. GRRRRR. Olive, hell hath no fury like a mother of children awakened too early in the morning. You have been warned, cat.

Oh hey, I like my cats again. Remember how I was so annoyed with them all of the time? Yeah, that's over. At the moment I'm in my favorite seat in the house ("my" armchair) with a cup of coffee on one arm and Max on the other. But, alas, I have to go chase Olive away from Nils' door.

Okay, back to my birthday. Sorry for that not-so-brief interruption. After my surprise birthday picnic yesterday we spent all morning at the park. The weather was perfect and that mom is perfectly content to talk about Everest, and Erik Weihenmayer, It's Sunny, and all things that are fascinating. We have very similar tastes. Then C and I spent the afternoon eating popcorn and reading library books. Eating popcorn and reading library books is a ritual for us. Sometimes I like to ask her if she's going to do that with me forever. Can't you just see the two of us with a bowl of popcorn and some good books through out all phases of life? Yeah, me too.

Chris came home early with proclamations of birthday celebrations and we went to my favorite restaurant (Alicia's). I'm sure they hate us there as we order queso and fajitas for one... but we tip really well to make up for it, go at like 5, and really - fajitas for one is a ton of food. If you are going to serve enough food for four people then don't be surprised when four people order it.

Oh! AND - Chris cut our cubbies to fit into our entryway!!! Remember how I brought home kindergarten cubbies from my parents' house? They're in! Woo! They are so so so awesome. All I need to do is get hooks and put each of our names on a spot. I'm giddy with how cool and functional it is.

All of this fun and it wasn't even my birthday yet! Today: coffee, zoo, birthday homemade pizza dinner, cake! Tomorrow: gardening and dinner with c's best friend's fam. Things are looking up (remember that commercial that I always quote from when we lived in VA but it didn't play here?) "Things are looking up!"

Also, awesome side note - I was thinking about my friend Katie and realized that they are our friend family in which EVERYONE is friends. Chris and her hubby are friends. Katie and I are friends. The kids are all friends. How often does THAT happen? Awesome.

Oh, damn it, Olive... again? Really. I take back what I said about liking my cats...
Sigh, we'll at least while I'm up chasing her I can get some more coffee.

Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me! I look like a walrus, and I swim in the sea!

ABCs of today

Addicted. It's Sunny in Philadelphia. Netflix. Need I say more? Okay, I'll say more. I love Charlie Day. I think he is so adorable and told Chris that if there were a movie version of our lives Charlie Day would play Chris. I then reenacted a scene from It's Sunny in which Charlie's teeth fall out because he never brushes them... Chris was not amused but rather bemused (Chris brushes his teeth). "It's the actor! Not the character that reminds me of you!" I'm not sure he bought it.

Back and Bootcamp and Birthday- I strained a muscle in my upper back yesterday (no, Mom, no tooo badly. Just like a big knot) and it's too sore to go to bootcamp tomorrow. I'm totally bummed about this as tomorrow is my birthday. Does that sound crazy to you? For people's birthdays in bootcamp we do everything in sets of their age. So tomorrow we were going to do 33s. I'm bummed.

Coffee, what else? Despite my neurologist's recommendation to keep caffeine to two cups of coffee a day, I've been letting it creep up again. It's always a caffeine roller-coaster around here. Not really a caffeine roller-coaster... coffee. Just coffee.

Dirty. Well, maybe not dirty but messy... our house that is. I've been trying to clean all week and it's messier than when I began. How does that happen?! I think because I'm trying to clean out and reorganize and not just hide away all of the crap. Our house is weird because we have several areas that are basically empty (like the cabinets underneath all of our bathroom sinks) but then we have crapola everywhere that doesn't seem to have a place to go. Reorganizing makes everything so messy. Messy, not dirty.

Erik Weihenmayer aka My New Hero. Remember how I only want to talk about Everest or Antarctica? Well, guess what... Erik Weihenmayer has been to both. He's done the Seven Summits and is so lovable and, oh by the way, he does all of this blind. I need everyone to read his book so we can talk about him all of the time. I emailed his facebook contact page and got a reply from his manager (or some such person). She asked me where I live so that they can consider inviting me to an upcoming talk. Oh my gosh I reeaaalllly want to go hear him speak. Now I just need to figure out what I'm going to do to sign up for his No Barriers commitment. Let's all do it. It doesn't have to be a physical challenge. Anyone else want to sign up?

Freaking stalker... yikes. If all I want to do is talk about Sir Ernest Shackleton that's fine. But somehow having my new hero be someone living makes me sound like a stalker... I'm not, just to be clear. Although if Erik Weihenmayer lived nearby I would invite his family over for dinner... sooo... hmm. Just read the damn book and you'll feel the same way. Trust me, I never throw out a broad "you have to read this" to everyone I know, but this one. Yep. Read it.

Girl Scout Cookies. I think the solution to the "I want to buy a bunch but not eat a bunch" problem is to purchase the "Thanks A Lots" and give them to people for whom you are thankful. We bought four boxes of cookies, ate two, and have two to give away. Perfect solution. I can't wait for kids to join scouts (years from now I'm going to be up to my eyeballs in cookies and popcorn and look back on that sentence and roll my eyes).

Hoopla. We just realized our library has Hoopla and we can borrow digital media - ummm awesome! So at the moment we're listening to Disney audio books. C is snuggled up on the floor and Nils is wandering around with Pup-pup and King Julian (his two lovies).

Ingredients. The ingredients we always have on hand? Ingredients for red beans and rice, homemade pizza, pasta, and stir-fry. These are my go-to meals when I don't feel like going to the grocery store. Except that I always forget about stir-fry so we pretty much never have that.

Jimmers. When I went to Beaumont this week the plan was to come back with Jimmers' boyhood dresser aka my childhood dresser aka Nils' new dresser. With Jimmers' help I filled the entire bed of the truck. I came back with the dresser, an awesome ancient trunk, a small table for the backyard, two huge cubbies from my old preschool, and two blue velvet wing-back chairs. Needless to say, Chris was surprised.

Katie. Oh thank God for Katie. Katie is the first friend I made after we moved here and she is fabulouso. We have kids around the same age and they all love each other so that works out nicely. Nils talks about her boys pretty much all of the time. Last Friday while our husbands were at Dio Council Katie had us over for pizza and ice cream and when bedtime came I tossed my kiddos into pjs and one out of two fell asleep on the drive home. Since Friday every single time we've gone anywhere at all Nils has cheered "Cooper and Charlie's house!" and is disappointed ("ooohhh") when we pull into anywhere that isn't their house.

Lent. The day before Ash Wednesday this year I was still like, "Oh yeah... Lent... I don't feel like it this year" but then I recalled that Lent is about remembering that I am not the Creator. I am the creation. So, perhaps the years when I'm "not into it" are the most important years of all. Perhaps those are the years when I most need to remember that I am not God. So, I'm doing it. Lent, that is.

My mom. I'm in the mood for my mom to come visit. We can go thrift-storing and hang up pictures in my house and rearrange furniture and watch chick flicks. Come over, Mom! It will be fun fun fun!

Nils. That little guy is hilarious. Like, purposely hilarious. Yesterday evening the kids went to the neighbors' house to play. I made dinner with our back door open and listened to the squeals of happiness coming from the yard next door. Being old enough to go play with the kids next door? What fun for all of those kiddos!

Oatmeal. My current breakfast. Old fashioned oats, a sprinkling of chocolate chips, and a spoonful of peanut butter all stirred together. Yum.

Piney Wood Fever. We came back from Beaumont with sore throats and itchy eyes. Why is that always the case when it's the same eco-system? Carolena walked through the kitchen yesterday and said in a croaky voice, "Well, it feels like I've got the Piney Woods Fever." Ha! Piney Woods Fever! That kid. From henceforth all southeast Texas allergies shall be known as "Piney Woods Fever."

Quest. I'm on a quest to find a bicycle built for two. Not a quest like I'm looking online and going to buy one for a couple hundred dollars quest. A quest like I'm checking Goodwill often and hopefully this quest will end with me paying like $50 and laughing manically every time I ride it that someone marked it $50. That kind of quest. I'm also on a quest for vintage hats. 

Rush. I'm really excited about our birthday present for my nephew Rush this year. I had to clear it with my sister, but if you don't want me to ruin the surprise then stop reading. Ready? A jar of worms. Hahaha. Really. Yeah. I think I'm going to make one for us too. I'm going to put layers of dirt into a big jar (with holes in the lid, of course) and then fill it with worms. It's going to be awesome. Don't you wish I were your aunt too?

See America First. Oh my gosh - while at my parent's house my mom gave me a big trunk with a See America First sticker on it. I'm giddy. See America First?! That trunk must be like 100 years old. I wonder who put that sticker on it. I wonder where they went. My RPTS side is geeking out.

Too damn early. Why are my kids waking up too damn early everyday?! Stay in bed! Sleep! Geeze Louise.

Under our bed. We have more things stored under our bed than under my bathroom sink. That seems strange to me.

Vacuum. Yep, we got a new one. Again.

Walrus. "Carolena, if I didn't know any better I would think you were a baby koala" I said to which she innocently replied, "Mommy, if I didn't know any better I would think you were a big fat walrus swimming in the sea." Evidently if you are 4.5 then baby koala and big fat walrus are comparable in the list of okay things to call another human.

X - x was Carolena's letter of the week this week and she brought in a T-Rex. We thought and thought and thought about what to bring. The morning her letter bag was due we still had nothing for it... until I tripped over the T-Rex, picked that sucker up, and tossed him in the bag. Thanks Carolena's school homework guardian angel!

Yesac. That's my backwards name. Amileen and I used to love figuring out how to pronounce everyone's names backwards in elementary school. Huh, Amileen is now probably what you think her name was... it was Neelima. Or was it...? Now you're confused... bwa ha ha!

Zoo! Tomorrow is my birthday and we're going to spend the day at the zoo. I can't wait. I love my birthday (yeah, I'll admit it) and I'm going to live it up. I was going to start the day with bootcamp, but alas, I guess I'll start the day some other way. I'm definitely getting Starbucks though. Probably. Maybe. Eh... I'll just make coffee at home. And then we're going to the zoo! Hooray! The zoo is one of our family's favorite outings. Everyone has a blast. We get to be outside. Kids are consistently well-behaved there. Zoo! Zoo! Zoo!