Have You Ever Been So Tired ...

... that you forget to put the coffee pot in the coffee maker when you turn it on?  

I took the time to add the beans, pour the water in, close the various doors and compartments, press "Grind On" and turn the thing on.  I did not, however, take the time to actually set the pot on its little stand in the machine.  I then left the kitchen, sat down with K. and ate breakfast.  I heard a strange gurgling noise, but attributed that to the rain outside in the gutters.  I did not take time to even glance at the machine until we were finished eating, at which point I returned to the kitchen, saw that coffee and ground-up beans had spilled ALL OVER THE COUNTER AND KITCHEN FLOOR, and cursed pretty loudly.

That pretty much tops my list of Stupid Stuff I Do When I am Tired.  K. seemed to enjoy the spectacle, at least!

Hope all of your weekends are faring better...

Just Like a Flower

Motherhood is fraught with emotional ups and downs (not to mention hormonal swings, but that's another story...).  I often find myself blindsided by my reaction to something so unbelievably touching, or sad, or sweet, or funny. 

One of those "that's so sweet I could just cry" moments happened this morning, as I was getting K. dressed.  

Earlier in the morning, as has been our custom these last few days, we went into our home office which, because of its nice morning light, is the place where I chose to put an amaryllis my mother in law got us for the holidays.  To my surprise, K. has really enjoyed spying on the bud every morning to see how much it has grown from the past day.  I told him that we'll check in on it every day and keep waiting for the flower to bloom, as it is, at this moment, only in the stem stage.  We usually cap off our little visit by proclaiming that "The flower is growing!"

Well, later on this morning, after putting on his shirt and overalls, I pulled K. onto my lap and sat with him in the rocking chair as I reached for his socks.  I told him we'd need to get some new socks soon because his feet appear to be outgrowing them.  For that matter, I said, "YOU are growing! A little bit bigger every day."  

After listening intently, he said: "Kian growing... like flower."

It was just so sweet and simple, but it was exactly right.  Just like a flower in bloom.

Blast from the Past

Quite by accident, I stumbled upon what I have now deemed The Best Invention for Parents of Toddlers.  Are you ready...?  It's Play-Doh!

When I was in the drug store on Xmas Eve, picking up a few last minute stocking stuffers, I came upon a package of mini-Play-Doh canisters and thought, "I haven't seen these in years.  Why not?"

The result: my wildest dreams have come true.  Playing with Play-Doh keeps K. entertained for a good 30 minutes, if not more.  And those of you with little ones know that any activity that crosses the 15 minute threshold, let alone one half-hour, should be packaged and mass-marketed immediately.

While my brother was here over New Year's, the three of us had a big Play-Doh party.  It was a lot of fun.  At one point, K. had moved to the other side of the room to play with other toys, while my brother and I remained at the play table, rolling out our dough, braiding it, making various shapes, and squishing it to our hearts' content.  I remarked that it was like he and I had gone back in time about 30 years!

Here are some Play-Doh party pics for your enjoyment.  The shapes in the photos (if, shockingly, they are not easily identifiable) are a blue airplane (by Uncle C. for Kibi) and a slice of pizza (by moi).  Now go buy some for yourselves!

Ah, The Holidays...

Well, it's another new year and we're all back in the swing of things.  I, however, have been fighting it every step of the way, doing my best to cling to the days of lounging, not letting a messy house get to me, diving into the books I got or borrowed from family members at Christmastime, catching up on my Netflix queue.  These are the days when I am so happy that I am not working full time!

While I enjoy the fleeting holiday hangover, I will keep the blogging brief, leaving you with lots of pictures from our two week holiday celebration with family and friends.

Happy 2009!