Little Blessings.

Clayton enjoys saying the blessing he learned at preschool at the dinner table every night.

"For food and friends and love all around us, we thank you Lord."

He almost always throws in a "and make Mommy feel better" or my personal favorite "I hope I feel better"  and you may or not be aware that he needs healing at that particular time.

Last week he was at a loss for who needed healing.  His blessing stopped and he said "Mom, who needs to feel better?"  I responded, "Riley Scott."

"Ok.  and I hope Riley & Katie's Riley feels better."

I Am A Winner!

I've never won anything.  Ever. This morning I was notified that I won a Flip Ultra HD video camera from Mayhem and Moxie.  It was a random drawing, but it was still fun to win.

Do you  know what the best part was?  Reading the post written about what my husband and I (affectionately and appropriately) call the Screaming-Punctuation-Mark-at-the-End-of-Our-Family. It is nice to know that other people get how interesting [read: crazy] he is. Truly.

Like the time he brought down treadmill with a single piece of sidewalk chalk.  Or the time he knocked out his two front teeth the Saturday before Easter.  Or his penchant for nudity or dressing in his sisters' dress up clothes. How he likes to swipe snacks from other children.

Or how, on June 28, 2006, that crazy, 9 lb 1 oz little boy stole my whole heart (along with my bladder control).

Now with my new Flip Ultra, maybe I'll be able to catch a few more of his antics on film.  Thanks girls! And if you don't know Mayhem & Moxie and the girls of Mighty Media, maybe you should.

Keeping Busy.

Sometimes being the third child has its disadvantages.  With both girls playing soccer, brother has been dragged to many soccer practices and games this season.  It's always tricky keeping him occupied, but sometimes he finds things to do all on his own.

Fancy Like That.

We're fancy around here. We're polite. We use manners. We say "sir" and "ma'am." We even eat Pirate's Booty with a fork.

Well, maybe we're not fancy ALL the time.

Passing the Torch.

We've lived in our small town for three years.  For all of that time, one of my children has attended Noah's Ark Preschool.  It is my heart and soul.  It is where I've met all of my closest friends.  I am so fortunate that each of my children's first school experiences were at this wonderful school.

Today the youngest [and most boisterous] member of our family started Noah's Ark Preschool.  He was so excited, which made leaving him there very easy.

The only negative report from his teacher was that he attempted to free the guinea pig.  When I asked him about it, he said he was "trying to put Angel in her ball." My only negative report? That our beloved Teacher Dianna won't be teaching his class.

By all accounts, he had a fantastic day.  His favorite part "juice."   My favorite part?  Hosting a coffee at my house [sans les enfants] for my closest girlfriends.  I think I could really get used to this SAHM business.

First Date.

Ladies, lock up your daughters.

The Hungry Lurker.

A few weeks ago, the Three Bay B Chicks had an insightful, yet hysterical post about the different personality types one encounters at the playground.  I saw a bit of myself in that post, or rather my child.

Meet.....the Hungry Lurker.

It looks innocent enough.  A child at the pool, eating a snack.  What great organization this mom has, writing her child's name "Riley" on the outside of the bag, presumably to help her child keep track of his snack. Unfortunately, the child eating this snack is named "Clayton."

Hello, my name is Peaches and my son is the Hungry Lurker.

Dental Care.

Dental hygiene is a priority in our family, especially if you're missing your two front teeth!

Games.

We played all kinds of games on vacation.  My least favorite?  "Find the Gum."

I'm not a gum-chewer, and therefore neither are my children (yet).  My children are fascinated by gum, "the forbidden fruit" if you will. Clayton, especially, is fascinated by all the places he has found gum on this vacation.

1 - Under the restaurant table.

2 - On the sidewalk bench.

3 - Inside the airplane throw up bag.

I think the funniest part is that when he finds gum he exclaims, "I found it.  I found the GUM!"

The holy grail. The secret closet door to Narnia. The golden ticket.  And he found it.  Someone else's gum.

Nice.

Three.

Exactly three years ago today, another boy stole my heart away.  And I am changed forever.

Hand-Me-Down Heaven.

When I first moved to our adorable little town, I began to notice a trend with all my friends.  ALL of my friends had boys in my oldest daughter's 4 year old to 5 year old age range.  A lot of those friends also had boys in my younger daughter's 2 year old to 3 year old range. I felt sorry for my daughters because every time we had play dates or get togethers with my friends and their families, they were always surrounded by boys, boys and more boys.

Initially, it didn't occur to me how I might benefit from the onslaught of all these older boys.  I have benefitted in several ways from all these "boy" moms, not the least of which is by being taught the ins and outs of actually having a boy vs. a girl.  However, one of the most obvious ways I have benefitted is in the form of hand-me-downs from all of these friends and their boys.  I have three girlfriends, with a total of five little boys, who are passing some much loved items down to my little boy.

He is absolutely in heaven.

As soon as my girlfriend dropped off the clothes, Clayton was digging through the bags and trying on items.  Everything he's wearing in this picture, except his underwear, was a "hand me down."  He was wearing the critter rain boots everyday, but I had to hide them because they're still a little big and I don't want to take the chance of him knocking out any more teeth.

Hand-me-downs.  The ultimate "recycling."  Happy Earth Day.

The Brothernator

Who can destroy an expensive treadmill with a single piece of sidewalk chalk?  Who can completely destroy his new wooden closet doors while barely moving a muscle?  [Wood putty, anyone?]

You guessed it.

Preschool cannot start soon enough.  I may not survive. He may not survive.  And our possessions are definitely not surviving.

Don't Call Me Daughter.

We've been having an awful lot of dressing up in our house lately, however the girls are the only ones getting in on the act.  Many nights my husband comes home to what he might consider a disturbing sight.  I have a different philosophy. Whatever it takes to get dinner on the table.

No Jacket Required.

We're having a bit of a clothing issue in our household.  Clayton does not want to wear pants or underwear.

Later, Dude.

Seeing Visions, but Definitely NOT Sugar Plums

Our family has been a bit under the weather this past week.  Hubby went down with a stomach bug on Tuesday and was out of commission until Thursday.  Ansley came down with the bug on Thursday and we thought she was better until she got sick again Saturday night.  I woke up Saturday morning feeling a little green around the gills.  I was able to forge through with our Nutcracker performance and girls' afternoon on Saturday, but by the time I got home I was feeling terrible.  I crashed on the sofa and passed out cold at 5 pm.

There was a low rumble around me as hubby attempted to keep the troops at bay.  I was often awoken by a child's request, with my husband quickly attending to their need.  The responsiblity for Saturday night baths (which include hair washing and blow drying) fell entirely on hubby.

For a brief moment I awoke to Clayton's laughter, "Hee, hee, hee, hee.  Mama it's COOOOLD. "  I attempted to focus my eyes.  He's nude, I thought to myself.  Just out of the bath and cold, I'm sure.  "BRRRRR, Mama.  I'm cold."  I opened my eyes again and...he's completely nude and holding an icepack from the freezer on his little frank and beans!!!  WHAT??? Well, I was just too sick to get up.  NOTE TO SELF:  Disinfect icepack at the earliest possible moment.