The one in which I get hit by a car and we all eat cupcakes

Today was a really weird day. We celebrated my daughter's fifth birthday and the universe conspired to make me go huh. I'll post more about the birthday later. First, the weird stuff.

On the way home from taking Aurora to school, I saw a man laying on the grass on the side of the road. He was laying next to a lawn mower and his legs were at an angle that didn't look natural. In short, I was freaked. I flipped the car around pulled up next to him. I called out, "Sir, are you ok?" No answer. "Sir, are you ok?" Then he sits up, looks around and points to himself, "me?"

I'm thinking yes you, no one else is laying half-dead looking on the lawn, but I say "I just wanted to make sure you were alright." He's giving me the craziest look, like I've completely put him out, "I was just resting."
Lesson learned, do not stop to help people. Either that, or I should have just called 911 for him. If he thinks I put him out just by stopping, can you imagine the look of surprise on his face when the ambulance rolled up all lights and sirens?

Fast forward to next weirdness of the day. I went to Sam's Club to pick up the cupcakes for Rory's class. I run in, with Eleanor in the carrier. After difficulty in actually getting the bakery ladies to give me my order, I head to the front. An old man has a whole cart full, but he hasn't started checking out yet. He looks like he might let me in front. Who wouldn't let a woman with a baby strapped to her chest carrying a giant box of 30 cupcakes go in front? Apparently that guy. But in an effort o be chivalrous, he did tel me that I could rest the box of cupcakes on the end of the conveyor belt until he was done. What a gentleman eh?

So, I'm a little late, I'm hurrying towards my car. I've got the cupcakes in my right hand, keys in my left, baby on my chest. I'm in my head a little, walking past the handicap spots and suddenly a woman backs out of her spot and hits me. She was moving slowly so I was able to catch my balance. I took a couple quick side steps and then threw my cupcakes onto her trunk. She was still rolling back. I smacked the back of her car and she looked up at me through the rearview. I started cursing a little, she raised both her hands up and just looked at me. She never even put the car in park.

Part of me wanted to punch through her window and pull her out of her car, but the rational part of me realized that was not a good idea. I still had the baby on my chest and if I didn't hurry, I'd miss snack time. No cupcakes for snack time would make Aurora pretty disappointed. So, I picked my cupcakes up off her car and went back to my car. The first row of cupcakes were a little smooshed, but other than that, we were fine. Good thing for me that Pre-Kers aren't very picky when cupcakes are concerned.

Family Notes

Dear Eric,
I'm sorry that you have such a long commute every day, especially on mornings like today when you had to leave before 6 am. It's small consolation, but I'm so grateful for the sacrifices you make to support our family. I love you!

My Beautiful Aurora,
Thank you for sleeping in today. Do you think next time you could sleep in on a day when I don't wake up at 4:30 and can't manage to go back to sleep? I love you!

Sweet Wakey-baby Eleanor,
You are adorable, but not at 4:30. I love you!

And to myself,
There is a lot on your plate for the next few weeks. Not everything on the to-do list will get done. You need to prioritize, you need to be kind to yourself and not consider it a weakness. Enjoy the journey as much as the destination.

10 projects in 10 days

I realize it has been *ahem* a while since I've posted last. Sorry about that. But without further ado, here is today's post -

A friend recently embarked on a blog challenge, completing 10 household projects in 10 days. Seems easy enough right? Well, when you tack on a job and a delightfully energetic four year old and another one on the way, the hours in the day left for projects are not many.
Nonetheless, I'm going to give it a try. Here are my 10 projects -

1) Put together the trampoline (this is kind of cheating since it's halfway done)
2) Hang the flower baskets for the fence that I planted months ago
3) Paint the outdoor chalkboard for the fence.
4) Clean off deck
5) Finish the pelmet box I started for Rory's room (about a year ago).
6) Sort through book shelves for books to donate
7) Waterproof the hand painted caterpillar
8) Sand and seal the wood on the canoe
9) Get trailer hitch installed on my truck (again, kind of cheating since I don't have to do the work)
10) Clean out closet of all items I won't be able to wear for a long time.

So, we'll see how it goes. But at least I have a list and a deadline.

Conversation overheard in our house

I was reading the latest Newsweek about the protests in Iran and Rory sat down next to me and started asking questions about the pictures.

Rory - Him has hair on his face
Me - Who?
Rory - (pointing) him. And him.
Me - Yes, that's a mustache.
Rory - Who is it?
Me - That is Ayatolllah Khamenei
Rory - Ku-Lainie?
Me - No, Kha - Menei
Rory - Lainie?
Me - No, the Supreme Leader of Iran
Rory - He has ears
Me - Yes, but I mean he is the religious leader of Iran
(At this point Rory just looks at me like I'm crazy)
Rory - I'm a princess
Me - Yes you are


I guess some things you just can't explain to a three year old

Eric on the blogger!

Now I, Eric, am an authorized poster on our blog! In an effort to shame Twighla into writing more, I will post a short blog entry about Rory and my trip to the pool at the Family Y.

Rory had a blast, she is a total water baby. We got there just before they opened and waited at the gate until we could get in. Rory immediately wanted to go on the water slide, but since she can't swim, she couldn't go. She was even more upset when one man took his kid down the slide with him, only to get yelled at by the lifeguard. Next time we go, I'm just going to get yelled at.

Rory liked the big pool quite a bit. She would jump into the water after telling me to get back as far as I could. She has little fear of the water and I'm a little worried about that since she can't swim. In the little kid pool, she would tell me to go underwater, then stick her head under the water and wave at me.

After about an hour and half of hard playing, we went in the building to go potty, when we came back out it was during the mandatory rest period. This upset Rory because she wanted to go back into the water. Finally after ten minutes, we were allowed back in the water. We played for about twenty minutes longer then decided to go home and get some lunch.

Not a bad pre-Father's day celebration.

Wanting to Run

Here's the deal. I don't exactly hate running. I just don't get the point. My legs start to hurt, I breath hard and I think "why am I doing this?" What is the point?
If someone was chasing me, then I could understand it. If I was afraid I was going to get eaten by a bear, I would run. But just so I can complete x number of laps around the track? Pointless.
That said, I belong to an institution that thinks I should run. They want me to run 3 times a week. They want me to love running. And so I try. I run and I try to act like I enjoy it. Mostly I try not to embarrass myself or those who are working hard to help me improve.
Today when I ran my physical readiness test, I finished my run a whole minute and 20 seconds faster than 6 months ago. It still isn't the time I'd like to get, but it was a great improvement.
Any maybe someday, I'll stop going through the motions and I'll really love to run.

Blogging on a more regular basis

Starting today, I'm going to blog more often. Even if it's just a few short lines, I figure it's worth it to write down a few of the things that made my day.

Today was a pretty lazy Sunday. We were trying to recuperate from the birthday party yesterday. Eric, Rory & I slept in and when we woke up Baba was up. Rory and I made pancakes and sausage for breakfast. Ever since she got Ratatouille, she has been obsessed with cooking. She even wears her little apron.
We played around a lot. Rory and Baba built a super elaborate train set up in her room and we watched the train go around for a long time. Baba took Rory for a ride on her trike. But then we had to say good bye. Rory loves having him come visit. It's nice that he's able to do it as often as he does.
Eric and Rory crashed this afternoon so I decided to take a nap with Rory. It isn't often that she'll snuggle with me and just lie still. I have to take whatever chances I get. Some days I still can't believe it's been three years. Not long ago she was just a tiny helpless baby. Today, she drew the letter H in chalk on the driveway.
As much as I would love to pause time and delay the inevitable, I know it wouldn't work and that really, the best thing I can do is take the time to enjoy it right now while it's here. So, if it means sneaking strawberries in the car on the way home from the grocery store or reading just one more story, I'm going to do whatever I can to enjoy every last moment.