Listing isn't cutting it.

For those of you that know me, you know I'm particular. I like things a certain way. I love order, cleanliness and above all I love crossing things off my many lists. My dear lists keep me in control but somehow they aren't cutting it anymore.

I lost control 3 years ago when my first child was born. Juggling a full time job, kids, house remodeling, etc has pushed me to my limit attimes but I'm still here and still strong! My amazing husband, and my dear sweet babies are all I need. Oh, and my lists of course.

I was laying in bed last night pondering the fact that just inches away from my bed rest the baby books I spent entirely too much time picking out at a VERY over-priced baby boutique. I put them here so that I could write in them daily, weekly, or worst case scenario monthly to document their lives, their growth and the many funny things they say. At this point, I'm afraid to open them for fear of a mass sneezing fit due to the inches of dust that have built up on these carefully chosen books, which dare I say-Have not been opened since last August. Shame. On. Me.

Which leads me to this. I've decided to begin a blog. My friends do it, I love reading them and what better way to document the life of our family, my kids, and maybe I'll add a tasty morsel of my experience raising them for my own personal humor in 20-30 years. People are always telling me, 'you'll laugh about this one day'. So, we'll see about that. Maybe someday,
Alex & Ian will read this and say 'I don't need no stinkin baby book'. Or, it could prove to be good reading material at one of their weddings. Ha. So here it is. My kids-Alexandra 3, Ian 1...this is for you. Three years late but I forgot to write it on my list.

A quick update on the kiddos.

Ian just turned 1 July 3rd. I can hardly believe it. How quickly a year flies when your not pregnant. He's walking now! A little teeter tottory style with his back all arched to offset the load he carries on his front. What a belly this kid has. He smiles and laughs and has an amazingly mature sense of humor which I like to think he got from me as he finds people falling, hilarious.

Alex is 3! She wows me with her concepts and speaks like a 15 year old at times. She's sweet and darling and my love but a Taurus just like daddy. She keeps Sean and I laughing and keeps us on our toes too. Who said the 2's were hard? Ha, it's the three's baby. I attribute it to her sharp wit, her negotiation skills and she knows...she's got the look.

Last night I asked her to brush her teeth. Our nighttime routines, as if they weren't hectic enough have become almost nightmarish recently as Alex is fighting each and every step it takes to get her curly little Afro to bed. She responds with, 'I don't want to brush my teeth'. Inside, I wanted to scream 'we all do things we don't want to do in life'. A million things I did that day are rushing through my head. Getting up at 5am, going to work, making dinner, doing dishes, cleaning the highchair (my all time worst task). I take a breath remembering I'm dealing with a 3 year old. I respond, 'We have to brush our teeth and get those icky plaques out'. Alex in her very cool and collected 'mom, your such an idiot tone' says, 'Nah, I'm just going to drink them out'. Nice.

I was at a 1 year old birthday party a few weeks ago. One of the moms said, 'yeah, the only thing the hospital tells you when you have a baby girl is WIPE FRONT TO BACK'. Then they just send you on your way. It's true, and that really mad me laugh. The first year or so of your child's life, you struggle just to keep them alive. You feed them, clean them, put them to sleep. They turn 2 and all of a sudden you realize, I have no training for this. So, where is the book for 'What to do when your 3 year old won't brush her teeth'. Huh? Where is it, I got a 10 spot burning a whole in my pocket right now. Anything ANYTHING to give me an extra 20 minutes of peace at night.

Well that's all for now. I'm at work, so I better get back to it. I just crossed something off my list and now I can be productive.

Tootles.