As the picture would indicate - here are the kids at Old Man's Cave. We took a little 'acation (that would be Vacation but thanks to Chelsea M., it will always be without the "V"). It was a nice weekend trip. We stayed with the family in a big cabin. The kids loved it! Alex and Audrey still talk about it. In fact, since we are looking for a house, they want our new house to look exactly the same.

They loved Old Man's Cave. Lorelai's daddy was a little on edge. Then again, I held onto Alex and Audrey as much as I could when we were walking along some of the paths that seemed to have a death drop ledge. Why is it that kids see rock ledges made of sandstone or limestone and want to RUN to the edge just to see if they can stop?! After our walk through nature we went to an awesome BBQ place called Millstone BBQ. I think the kids would love to go back. We also went to a place called AHA! A Hands-on Adventure Children's Museum. I was worried that the kids would not like it once we got there but it was great. And true to its name it was very hands on.

So now we are closer to being caught up. On a side note, yesterday Alex told me that he wanted to learn how to fight. Imagine my dismay and fear. Of course, since I never over react, I calmly asked him why in the world he would want to do such a thing?!! I thought he had met the school yard bully or something. Thankfully, no. He told me that he wanted to learn to fight so if we had a fire at our house he could punch out his bedroom window and crawl out. Thank you, fire safety, my kid wants to fight now.

And as for Audrey - her declaration for the day: "Mommy! My pee sounds like R2D2!"

Alex at the house on the first day of Kindergarten!!!

Alex trudging into school on the first day of many!

Alex at his desk on the first day of school!

Has it really been that long since I have updated "In A Wink"? I will update slowly and in separate entries to make it easier on you (and me). Many things have changed since the last update. The first change has been Alex beginning Kindergarten. He loves it. At least he used to love it. He does not love getting up in the morning. He is doing very well. And, if I may brag a little, he is one of the top students in his class, second only to his best friend who began reading at the age of two. Each day when I pick him up I ask how his day was. He can never remember. We have to extract information slowly, questioning each part of the day.

Alex loves his teacher, Mrs. Dizer. He told me that she is going to teach him how to blow his nose. I find it odd that he knew how to blow his nose before kindergarten but now all knowledge has been lost. Alex has been doing great with other things though. He is beginning to read and most of it is self taught. He does better if I leave him alone to read a book than if I try to get him to read with me. Then he just whines.

Audrey misses Alex during the day. When he first began school, they would run up to each other and hug as if they had been apart for a long, long time. Of course, when they are together they have perfected the art of arguing. I miss Alex in the day, but I don't miss the arguing.

Audrey has taken to her mommy and me time quite well. As long as I do what she wants. We play with her Littlest Pet Shop toys, color, read books, or watch a movie. Her favorite movie is Sleeping "Booty". And I love to hear her say "Maleficent". She is a character herself.

Well, that should hold you over till the next update, which will be sooner than later. I must go tend to the churrin.

Audrey at the fair. They love their cotton candy. I hid the rest of the bag. Sorry Aunt Janet, it had to be done.

Right now Audrey is brushing my hair. Here is the one-way conversation: "Lean over your head This is gonna hurt. You have knots. When you get close and I finish brushing your hair you can be the mommy. You look pretty, like a reindeer. You look really, really pretty mom. There, now you're all cute mom."

Alex chimed in from out of nowhere, "Audrey looks cute as a dog. Mommy looks cute as a dog."

I had to ask for clarification on dog and sure enough, he said dog.

Audrey skipped the terrible two's and jumped to the angst filled sixteen's. She cries for nothing or for anything. She spends a lot of time in her room. This is by her choice. I tell her when she stops crying she is free to come out and join us. She stays in there until I remind her she can come out. You may think she is playing with her toys but she isn't. She is laying on her bed whining/crying/throwing a fit. Bless her heart. I wish I could be serious and blame her father for this behavior but unfortunately I can see too much of me. I was hoping that would give me better insight into how to handle it but alas - tis not so.

Alex begins Kindergarten on Tuesday. I am a mess. Why?! He is going to love it. I am excited for him. Really, I am. I am sad that I am losing my little boy. I get a little man out of it, but I sure love this little boy. I will apologize to him now for making him a momma's boy. But I can't help it.

Well, Alex is chasing and "shooting" at Audrey with a paint brush while running with only a shirt and underwear on. Audrey is sans shorts as well. They are playing Batman and Audrey is Poison Ivy. Weird. I should go stop the killings.

Alex and Audrey at the Boonshoft Museum, or the Boonshop Museum as the kids call it. They love it and spend most of their time acting like monkeys climbing up the rope ladder and sliding down the very curvy slide. We are excited 'cause now Lorelai can go with us on a regular basis.

July 2nd marked the one year anniversary of Anaiya's birth. We celebrated it the same way we did her burial. We went to Byron Cemetery and said a prayer and sent balloons, with our kisses, to Anaiya. Then off to Marion's Piazza. Our family and friends are wonderful. We had over 50 people show up. Even though I miss Anaiya everyday we are so blessed .

Since we celebrated Anaiya's birthday she has been the topic of many impromptu conversations with the kids. The most recent was with Audrey in the McDonald's bathroom yesterday. She was sitting on the pot (I know, TMI) and looked up at me and asked, "Will Jesus ever let Anaiya come down?" There isn't much I can say. I just told her that we would go and see Anaiya, it wouldn't be the other way around. She accepted my answer with a nod and a smile. "What would you say to her if she did come down?" I asked. She looked at me with her big, beautiful army green eyes and whispered, "I love you, little baby, I love you." Who would have thought such toilet room conversations could be so touching.

Anaiya must have been on Audrey's mind all day because when dinner came she included a prayer for her. "Dear Jesus, you better pray for me 'cause Anaiya's not ever gonna come down. Jesus, can you be with me? Amem." And then she ate her Pokemon mac-n-cheese.

I love these children. They drive me crazy some days but I am sure that I return the favor other days.

Audrey Grace dressed in her finest. She is definitely a girl-y girl. At least she still likes worms, but not crickets. Definitely does not like crickets. "I will step on them and kill them." Nice, real nice.

This is an exchange we had in the car the other day as we drove by the cemetery.
Mommy: That is where Anaiya is.
Alex: I know that. I see her. She is there under the flowers. I mean, her bones are under the flowers.
Mommy: Yes, but where is her heart?
Alex: In Heaven!
Audrey: My heart is in my belly.
Mommy: Oh yea?
Audrey: Yes, I am having babies.
Mommy: How many?
Audrey: One, two, three, four. Four babies.
Mommy: That's a lot of babies.
Audrey: I like coyotes.
Mommy: Coyotes?
Alex: Are your babies coyotes?
Audrey: Yes.

Coyotes?! Where in the world did that come from? She said, "Oh my peas!" the other day...I at least know where that came from (Super Why). She comes up with the silliest things. Yesterday I showed her pictures of a pig a friend of ours found. She instantly fell in love. She immediately proceeded to tell me, "Megan said they had a bunny rabbit but it was just a silly pig."

She and Alex come up with the silliest things to say. I love it (most times) because they get to giggling and laughing. It is the most beautiful sound ever.

Alex has become another boy. I tell people that I miss my four year old. I am not sure what happens with the switch between four and five, but something does happen. This boy that I now am raising does not listen. Ever. It is as if the moment we lose the eye lock the brain discards all previous information. He is still very loving and that is probably what is keeping me sane. He picks on his sister constantly. I realize this is a rite of passage but Lord help me if I don't ... if I don't ... I don't know but it will be something big because he drives me crazy with it.

Alex just started t-ball. I am not sure that I should stay to watch anymore. He plays in the dirt and picks clover. Plus he enjoys rough housing with some of the boys. He told me, "Maybe I was a little mean to him." after I asked why he was pushing another little boy. What?! Who are you!!! Just wait till he starts school. I am sure I won't know who he is then.

We are coming up on Anaiya's one year birthday. It is very interesting to look back and compare where I was a year ago today or yesterday or any other day. Today, a year ago, I would have been thinking and praying for a miracle, knowing it could happen. And that if a miracle could happen for anyone, it definitely could and would happen for me. We had several miracles, just not the one I had scripted out it my mind. July 2nd is the day. I am not looking forward to it but then again, I am looking forward to it. We plan on "celebrating" similar to the day at the cemetery...letting our love float to her on balloons we release at the cemetery and then going to Marion's Pizza. I miss her every day. Every day! But I have a loving family, a great husband, and two wonderful kids, and one absolutely beautiful angel who lives in my heart.

And some say I DON'T look like my dad!!! My daddy always wears the penguin hat.

My little boy is no longer little. I cannot believe how big he is getting. Alex will be starting school in the fall. He flip-flops on whether or not he wants to go to school. Audrey consistently wants to go to school. She will not like it that she will be staying home with the momma. That is at first. I think she will enjoy the attention.

The picture is from a day at the Creation Museum. We had a great time and the kids loved looking at the dinosaurs. And then playing in the water we were not supposed to touch!!


This Saturday Anaiya would have been 10 months old. Time sure flies. Alex drew me a picture yesterday on the porch. It was a square with the words: "Mom", "love", "Alex". He drew it for me so "that when you think of Anaiya you will be happy and not sad." Audrey talks about her friend, Alecia, who was sick and is now in heaven,too, with Anaiya. Never mind the fact that she knows no one named Alecia. The kids always talk about Anaiya. I am glad. It makes me happy that they remember her.

Alex is beginning to read and Audrey is pretending to read. Alex will look at the pictures instead of the words and then try to guess ahead as to what the words are without sounding them out. It is quite frustrating for a non-teacher like myself. Just read the words. But he does really well in spite of me!

This summer should be fun. We have several trips planned to the Boonshoft Museum. We will going to all the parks, running amuck in the city and playing outside. We plan on hitting the aquarium at some point and then who knows...we will have fun today by going to a paint your own pottery store. It will be our first visit and it may be our last visit depending on how it goes. Alex loves his crafts so I know he will love it. I will just have to keep Audrey entertained after the novelty wears off.

Have I mentioned that I love these kids?!

This is Audrey after she tried to put "lipstick" on the dog. Bless her heart...the child needs help.

This is Alex testing his new helmet out on his birthday! Is this bad parenting or is it just creative product testing? Pants are always optional at our house if you are under the age of 6. Alex and I did have a conversation about having to wear pants at all times at school. He said, "I know that, mom." Okay then. Fine.

Pirate/Hacker

The above picture is of Alex and Audrey at the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery. They discovered that they like to crawl in tunnels, look at bugs (but not touch), splash in water, and sort recyclables. There is much more for them to see and do but I was too pooped to continue. They had a good time and are excited to go back. Thank you, Uncle Daryl and Aunt Willi!

What the pictures show are two beautiful, smart, smiling children. What they do not show is that the girl is crazy and the boy is too smart for his own good. To underscore the too smart part - at this very moment he is in the living room playing with his daddy. The game - Sequence. The winner - Alex (or so I just heard). For those of you who do not know, Sequence was the daddy's favorite game and it almost led to our demise as I found the game boring. Now for the crazy girl...how about this...the other day we are trying to get ready to go to the grandparents' house and I asked Audrey to get her underwear and pants on. She did! Hooray for her - except she put her underwear on her head and began running around the house telling me she was ready to go. I am afraid I am in over my head.

Audrey has also taken to calling me "Momma". I am not sure why but I find it endearing. She just turned three on Saturday, February 28th. She would not allow her Granma M to sing Happy Birthday to her because it wasn't her party yet. In fact, she would not even open any presents early because it was not party time. Whatever. Alex will be five this Sunday the 8th of March. He will begin Kindergarten this year. I am excited for him (I think).

I think it is funny to watch Alex and Audrey with gadget-y things. It seems intuitive. Audrey just pirated the iPod Touch from me and hacked her way thru the password protection and is now watching Horton Hears a Who. Alex was the first hacker of the password and he passed the information on to his partner in crime. I think with them what's theirs is theirs and what's mine is theirs or so they think. I have to fight for my own toys.

It's time to go stop Sequence so teeth brushing can commence. So sweet. If only the Butterfly were still here...

This is Audrey with a lemonade flavored piece of ice that she took off of the swing set. Trying to convince her that it was not lemonade and should not be consumed was like trying to convince a fish not to swim. The kids loved the snow. Their daddy had the day off and took them sledding down the hill in front of our house. Their smiles did not leave their faces until well after they were inside. I was using the snow blower. It beat running up and down the snow and ice covered hill. I did my time early on by toting Audrey around the backyard in the sled. Deep snow is hard to run in especially when you are dressed like the Michelin man.
The kids had the most fun eating tons of snow. Once again convincing them that yellow snow does NOT mean lemonade is a little difficult.

Inside the kids love playing games. Their favorite is matching game. Anything can make up a matching game. They also love craft time. Unfortunately craft time isn't as often as the kids would like but Audrey and a pair of scissors is a danger not to be taken lightly. Safety scissors are a lie. For that matter plastic knives are also dangerous in Audrey's hands. Not only is it dangerous but the mess that is created extends from one end of my already cluttered house to the next. I wake up the next morning and find little pieces of paper and foam in my bed, in the shower, in the cereal. Scissors also cause great division when Lorelai is over. It isn't that Lorelai can't use scissors but I am afraid that Audrey will attempt to cut her hair or clothing or fingernails or anything that the scissors can cut through. Perhaps I am too afraid of the mess.

Kids and glue - that's another reason craft time is not as often as they would like. There needs to be a glue governor to limit the amount of glue a kid can have at any one time. If there isn't one yet - I just put dibs on it. They have no concept of less is more. Since they really do love their crafts I guess I should just let them have at it. That's what vaccums are for, and steam cleaners, and water, and rubber gloves...

With the kids getting older there have been fewer and fewer "kid-isms" that I can relate because they just have it all figured out - until lately. Here is an example: Alex's loves to run and chase his sister around the house. I suppose that is true for any kid their age. But the twist is that he runs while yelling, "I'm going to get you, you little rascone!" Yes, rascone. Now say it with a French accent. Ras-Scone. I asked him what it was and his reply was, "You know a Rascone." Oh, I get it. Rascal - Rascone - same difference.

Audrey still says stuff like "bana" and "flupe loops" but she catches on real quick. It also helps that her brother is the Word Czar. Just the other day we were working on adding and subtracting; after a few tries I held up five fingers and asked her how many fingers did she see. She waited a few moments as if she was thinking and then replied, "Too many" and walked away.

Too many...it is starting to turn into too few for me. Alex will be starting school this fall. How is it that time just flies by - in a wink?! February 2nd Anaiya would have been 7 months old. February 28th Audrey will be 3 and March 8th Alex will be 5. It is all passing by too fast. I keep thinking about the scripture where it talks about Mary treasuring those memories of Jesus being little and the people who came to meet him and then thinking on them later. I am storing up many, many treasures.