Thursday, March 29, 2012

Thursday Randoms & Smelly Balls

-          I may have cracked open a green bottle (hello, Heineken!) yesterday at 1:30pm.  Don’t judge; it’s 5 o’clock somewhere.   I physically busted my bum while tending to the Radicals and I was due for a refreshing drink.  Mama’s got skillz!
-          Why is it funner to clean and organize someone else’s stuff instead of my own stuff?  Yes, I just said “funner”.
-          When it smells like #2, it probably is #2.  Every time I walked past the bathroom I would smell it.  Radical #2 is kind of in the potty training process but insists on using the big toilet.  But I keep his potty seat in the bathroom because he uses it as a step stool.  I searched high and low but didn’t find anything until I came across his potty seat.  There it was all gross and nasty!  I wonder how long it’s been in there?  Gross.
-          I wish Kona was an hour away as opposed to 2.5 hours.
-          I still want to learn to play the violin.
-          Is it really that surprising that I drink 8 cups of coffee in a 2 hour time period?
-          I can’t wait to complete my “work area” this weekend.  A post will be coming for it.
-          I still need to post my project from 2 weekends ago.  You can thank my camera for jacking up my rotation.

There are more randoms swirling around my brain but I’ll be kind and stop now.

Here’s another “Say What?!” with Radical #1:


A little rundown first so you’ll know what he’s talking about.  Longs Drugstore sells these tiny balls that come in different scents and colors.  I bought a bag of the ‘Summertime’ scent (yellow balls) and I use it as a car freshener.  Anyway, as we’re driving one day…

R#1: “Mom, you have smelly balls?”

Me: “What?”

R#1: “Yeah, smelly balls.  The yellow ones.”

Me: “Oh yes Tyson, mommy has smelly balls.”

R#1: “Mmmm, they smell good!”

I couldn’t help but bust-a-gut laugh!  I was thinking how I would get nasty looks if he was talking about that in public.  What are teaching your kid, woman?

Happy Thursday!
Jenn.

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

10 Days

Ah, Wednesday already?  I think I just felt the panic set in. 

Do you know what today is? Today the countdown begins to Doom’s Day (haha!). 

In 10 days my house will be full of people for a week and a few days.  Yep, it’s that time of year again: Merrie Monarch week.  Dun, dun, duuuuun! 

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It’s a week and a few days when I get bombarded by people.  People coming and going at all hours.  A week and a few days of chaos and zero order or schedule.  My routine gets flown out the window, my patience gets tested, I have neck popping moments, and the Radicals are fed crap food.  I have 10 days to mentally prepare myself because I ain’t gonna lie…I’m a control freak.  It’s time to get my “woo-saa” on and let it go!  I have 10 days to finish wrecking shop.  I have 10 days to see check marks next to everything on my gigantic to-do list.  10 days of not having to do boot camp because I’m too busy moving furniture I shouldn’t be moving by myself.  But it needs to be done and done it’ll be. 

The list could go on and on…but above all of this, it’ll be a week and a few days spent with family and friends; family and friends that we haven’t seen in a year.  It’ll be a week and a few days to catch up on life happenings, have a bottle (or two or maybe three) of wine every night (I’m kidding, or maybe not), eat too much food, and laugh until I have to pee.  Okay, moving on…

In 10 days, we will be celebrating Radical #1’s birthday.  His 4th birthday may I add.  Ugh, when did this happen?  Can he stop growing?  I hope I don’t have a meltdown.  Oh gosh, if I can’t handle him turning 4, how will I handle the future?  How will I handle his first day of school or his graduation or his first girlfriend or when he goes off to college or the day he gets married?  A little exaggerated, I know.  I’m sure I’m not the only mom in the whole wide world to be a little exaggerated when it comes to their kids, no?

There’s one too many things happening in 10 days.

On another note: I wish I could keep my bag clean and organized for more than one day.  The funny thing is that I only use my bag when we’re out of the house which is rarely.  So why does my bag always look like a tornado went through it?  How do y’all keep your bag clean and organized?

Jenn.

Monday, March 26, 2012

Weekending Photo Dump

Happy Monday, sweets!  We had a grrreat weekend!  The parentals came to visit; a visit from (or to) them is always nice.  We also went over to my grandma’s house to clean her yard.  I love going there.  I always feel calm and at peace.  I love being surrounded by the “forest”; away from civilization.  All I hear are birds, coqui frogs, and the wind or rain.  It always puts me at ease and we get a couple of hours to get in touch with nature and it makes me appreciate the beautiful place we call home.  We haven’t been there in months so it was kind of like a jungle but the Radicals had a blast!





I need a pair of rain boots too.  I was the only one running around in slippers…




-          Looking for friends (bugs)

-          The grass was as tall as Radical #2

-          Trying to help with yard work

-          This little guy almost gave me a heart attack as he was running hopping for his life

-          Had a little engine trouble

-          This shirt always cracks me up.  Yep, we’re From the Big Island


On another note: I bought the Radicals a book a couple of weeks ago titled “A Prayer a Day”.  After story time we also read a prayer (or maybe two) before bed.  Well this morning I could hear Radical #2 rambling to himself and when I went to check on him I saw him flipping through the prayer book saying “thanks God!”  It was the cutest thing ever!

How was your weekend?
Jenn.

 


Friday, March 23, 2012

8 Years Ago…

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...You asked me to be yours.  You asked me to promise to stay by your side through our ups and downs.  And that, I did.  Throughout the years we’ve been to the doors of hell and back and here we are, still standing strong.  Although you are stubborn, we are different in many ways, and you drive me crazy, the love we share continues to grow every day. 

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I’m gonna love you forever and ever…
“Hand in hand you and I, that’s where we’re meant to be
And I’ll hold your hand always for all the world to see
You’re my special someone that many just dream about
But I am experiencing it hand in hand
And that is without a doubt
You’re like the wind that is blowing on a cool, breezy summer’s day
And you make my heart skip a beat with every word you say
So when you read these words, I really want you to know
We’re hand in hand forever and I’ll never let you go”

I know, I know…it’s cheesy but I’ve had this for years.  I can’t remember where I got it though. 

Anyhoo, even though we’re not married, making and growing our relationship is hard work!  So happy 8 years of putting up with me togetherness and many more to come!

Love, love
Jenn.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Confess Sesh: My brain is a Big Roller-Coaster.

I just want the thinking to stop.  Is there an on/off switch somewhere in my brain?

This has been the only thing on my mind lately but I’ve been having a difficult time putting it into words.  I don’t want it to sound like a venting session.  I don’t want it to sound like I’m complaining.  And I certainly don’t want it to sound like I’m an ungrateful person (the B word). 

Where to start, where to start…

I guess I’ll start with this so-called ‘me’ time that everyone talks about.  ‘Me’ time?  What is that?  Haha!  I understand that I’m a mother and this ‘me’ time is put on the back burner.  The Mister’s work schedule is all over the place.  If he’s not working on land then he’s working out on the ocean.  I’ve come to terms with this and decided to create my own ‘me’ time.  If I can’t get out for a couple of hours by myself then I’ll just have to make do with what I have.  I got into crafting and I even got my sewing machine out that’s been sitting in the box forever.  I even got the Radicals into crafting!  Awesome, so what’s the issue now?

More thinking…I can’t pinpoint when or how this came about but I was thinking how the Radicals don’t get out and socialize ever.  We have no friends or family here.  I posted my goals in January and making friends was one of them.  To be honest, I am discouraged because the people I come across are not welcoming at all.  It’s either they’re not welcoming or they look at me like I’m crazy.  Akward. 

And then I think that maybe the issue is me.  When did I become so anti-social?  Or when I do have the opportunity to socialize, I’m like a deer in headlights.  I don’t know but this is really killing me; for the Radicals sake.  It’s always just the 3 of us.  I feel like I’m the one holding them back from socializing.  I feel like I’m supposed to push aside my issues.  But what am I supposed to do?  I can’t force people to be friends with us.  I can’t force people to talk to me.  I suppose I can get past feeling discouraged and keep searching.  Would that be stalker-ish? 

Anyway, I was on FB a couple of weeks ago and one of my friends started a mom group in Kona and my heart sank.  I want to be a part of a mom group and I want the Radicals to have friends but Kona is 2.5 hours away.  But then I got to thinking that I should search for mom groups where I live.  Nada, nothing, zilch. 

On to more thinking.  If only….if only we moved home, I wouldn’t have these issues.  The Radicals would be surrounded by family and friends and I wouldn’t feel guilty of holding them back on socializing.  If only we were home, I would have some adult interaction.  I need adult interaction because in all honesty, most times I feel lonely.  Don’t get me wrong, I love to hang out with my Radicals but some adult interaction would save my sanity be nice. 

You know, I was doing fine with my thoughts until the Mister brought up a job he might have in Kona.  He thought I’d be excited because we would be there for the week but when I told him that if we were to go we wouldn’t be coming back, it was all downhill from there.  He’s thinking temporary and I’m thinking permanent. 

The root of all this thinking is this: I want to go home. 

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And the fact that the Mister walks away when I this conversation comes up, frustrates me.  Remember this post?  Maybe I had my chance and since I didn’t take it, it’s too late. 

The only person who has a life here is the Mister.  What could possibly be so important here that he’s not willing to take a chance? 

Up until now, I was able to keep these feelings bottled up and deal with it.  Now I’m back to square one.  I know I can change my way of thinking and how I look at things but after a lot of discouragement, it’s hard to pick myself back up.  And just to throw in another tidbit; it doesn’t help my mood when I get calls from family or friends saying they’re going to do this or that and if only we lived in Kona we would be a part of it.  Thanks guys…I was being sarcastic if you didn’t catch it. 

Is it horrible that I want my Radicals to grow up surrounded by family and friends?  Is it so horrible that I want to be happy too?  Has anybody else gone through this?  Is it just me and I think too much? 

And before y’all think that I’m a bitter old hag who does nothing but complain, I’m not.  For the most part, we’re okay.  It’s just that sometimes (like now) I get overwhelmed with my thinking. 

Then I turn to Him and pray for understanding.  I’m not as strong in my Faith as I’d like to be but I do believe that this is His way of telling me that it’s not time yet and to be patient.  His way of teaching me to open my heart to others instead of having my guard up all the time.  Like maybe these people are welcoming but I’m too busy anticipating the worst and judging them.  And then I’m okay. 

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Whew, sorry for the roller coaster ride.  Have a grand day!
Jenn.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

The Hunt is On!

I think my finger is going to rot and fall off. 

As I was turning on the TV for Radical #2 this morning, a HUGE cockroach came out of nowhere.  I was all “Holy crap, watch out for the beesh!”  and he was all “Oh man!” while chasing after it. 

Instead of hitting it with something that was around me, I tried to hit it away with my hand.  Gross, I know but the only things around me were toys and books and I didn’t want to contaminate the Radicals’ stuff with nasty roach germs. 

I have no idea where the thing went but now my finger hurts and it feels like something prickly {perhaps part of the roach’s leg?} is in there.  I think I see something but I’m not sure.  I’ve been trying to squeeze this ‘something’ out but it’s under my skin. 

How fast do roach germs travel to your blood stream?  What if I get some kind of disease having this roach leg stuck in my finger?  Would it be too much to call the Mister and tell him to come home because my health may be in jeopardy? 

Looks like we’re hunting roaches today… 
Jenn.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Something New

Good morning (or afternoon or maybe evening), friends! 

I’m starting a new series of “Say What?!”  because Radical #1 says the darndest things and I thought it would be fun to document and share with y’all.

R#1: grabs my coffee cup and proceeds to drink it…“I drink coffee, mom!”

Me: “Oh you do?  Well, only adults should drink coffee.  Mommy is an adult and you’re a kid.”

R#1: eyes WIDE open and kind of confused…”Huh, you are a GOAT?!?”

Great, now he thinks I’m a goat…

In other news, my camera grew legs and walked away.  I have no idea where it went.  I was working on a project this past weekend and I took some ‘before’ pictures but I don’t know what I did with it after that.  Anyhoo, as soon as I can find it I’ll be posting about my project and how I’m on a painting spree.  I just can’t help myself; this is SO MUCH FUN!!

We’re taking advantage of the oh-so-nice weather today so off to the park we go!

Peace out!
Jenn.

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Bye-Bye Binky…and the bottle!

Wishful thinking....and before y’all jump on my bum about how my 2 year old should not be sucking on a binky and bottle, I just want to take this time to whine it out.  Please and thank you. 

Why is it so hard to get rid of these items?  Why can’t I just man up and stay strong?


Oh, because his pitiful cry, whine, and sad face breaks me.  All the time.  I know, I’m supposed to take the crying and screaming.  According to most, it’ll only last a few days. 

My problem?  I don’t mentally prepare myself enough for the few days of torture.  I don’t know who’s being tortured more, me or him? 

And when I do grow some balls, the Mister ruins it by giving in.  It’s funny how the Mister is always on my case and making comments about how the binky and bottle needs to go but he’s the very one who gives in!  My mom does the same thing too. 

In all the “what to expect…” books, nowhere does it prepare you for this.  Nowhere does it talk about how to handle your emotions at times like this.  Or maybe it does and I just missed it. 

Radical #1 was sucking on a bottle until he was 3; until I traumatized him.  He was given antibiotics for busting out his tooth and he just wouldn’t take it.  Then I had the bright idea of putting it in his bottle.  And since then, he wouldn’t go near his bottle. 

Oh, I just had a light bulb moment!  Why don’t I do to Radical #2 what I did to Radical #1?  Not with antibiotics but I do have his allergy medicine.  Hhmmm…

Okay, I’m done whining.  My question to all you mamas out there: did you go through this?  What approach did you take?  Please give me the 411.  Or here’s another question: why do others care about what my son should and shouldn’t be doing?  Is it really that bad?  That is all.



Jenn.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Coconut Island

Hello, friends!  How are you on this fine Wednesday?  I hope all is well!

I got a message from the Mister’s cousin saying she’s was going to be in town on Tuesday and she wanted to see the Radicals.  Well, our visit took all of 30 seconds until she had to be back on the bus to finish their tour.  Her and her halau were on a cruise and they had a tight, strict schedule to stick to. 

Anyhoo, I decided to take the Radicals to Lili’uokalani Gardens to let them burn off their energy run around but when we got there I changed my mind and took them to Coconut Island. 

Do you know that I’ve lived on the east side for 7 years and I’ve never been to Coconut Island?  Lame, I know.  Wait, I went there when I was little but my memory bank doesn’t travel that far back so I consider this trip the first time. 

Even though the weather was cold and windy, I was in awe.  It was beautiful.  There’s a large grassy area for the Radicals to run loose.  Picnic tables.  Bathrooms.  The ocean.  Ugh, this place has been here forever and only now I’m bringing the Radicals here?  Well that’s about to change.  We will definitely be going back more often.  Enough with the talking writing, here’s some pictures of our mini adventure…sorry in advance for the picture overload!











It was a good day.
Jenn.

Friday, March 9, 2012

Thoughts, Happenings, & a Valuable Lesson

I’ve been a bad blogger again.  The last time I posted was last week.  Ew.  I know I said I have a lot of posts in my drafts but the truth is it takes me forever to publish it.  It takes some time to read and edit and find upload pictures.  And then I remember something pertaining to the post which takes more time to edit because I want my post to make sense.  Anyway, moving on…

-          I can’t wait until tax season is over.  I keep asking myself if I should change my major.

-          It’s 1pm and we’re I’m still in pjs.  I live the glamorous life.

-          I whipped up a batch of blueberrie pancakes for the Radicals only to be told “YUCK mom!”  I should have known better.  They are simple little eaters and like plain pancakes.

-         This tube thing fell down the lint chute and I panicked.  I remembered my dear friend Goggle and to my surprise, I’m not the only one this has happened to.  Whew!  Just like I’m not the only mom who’s kid got a potty seat stuck on his head.
THIS...
...LED TO THIS!  It needed to be cleaned back there anyway.

-          I’m not the only one who wants Moose & Zee back.  I’m not too fond of NickJr’s new layout.

-          Radical #1 found these.  The Mister said that we could tame them since they were babies.  I caught one and then I felt bad taking it from its mother so I put it back.
They are so cute!

-          I know I’m late to the party but we got Skype!  Now the Radicals can Skype with their Ama and Papa.  Radical #2 needs some time to get used to it.  He runs away and hides or he’ll hide under the table and pop his head up once in a while.

-          The Radicals love the mo’o (gecko) that roam in our house.
He was telling the mo'o to stop running away.


-          The last time we had taco night, the Mister fried tortillas and it tasted just like a chalupa.  I was in heaven.  Well, last night we did taco night and I would have asked him how he made it but we were on day #2 of the silent treatment and I was being my stubborn self.  So my attempt resulted in a jacked up chalupa crunchy thing.  Lesson learned: do not do taco night while the silent treatment is in session.

That is all.  Have a grrrreat weekend!
Jenn.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

What do you mean…

Today is Thursday?  AH!  What do you mean we’re already in March?  Holy moly spicy guacamole!  I could have sworn the week just started.  I will admit that once I became a SAHM, I lost track of what day it was.  Anyway, I’ve been a stress case as of late.  I despise this time of year.  People come out of the wood-works thinking I’m some kind of miracle worker.  And I’m starting to think that my boss (who happens to be my mother) gets her kicks watching me squirm and stress and yell “what the h*** is wrong with you people!” at my computer.  I’m going to lose it soon…but that is all on this subject.  I don’t want to bore you with my rants.

I do have another subject I’d like to address: bad habits.  I’ve had this sitting in my drafts for a while now hoping to capture this bad habit in picture form.  Why? 1) So y’all would believe me and 2) I could use it as black mail for when Radical #1 gets older and has a girlfriend and yada yada yada.  That would be mean of me huh? 

Anyhoo, get on with the story, Jenn…


This is Radical #1 and he has a bad awful habit.  A habit that makes me cringe.  I have no idea where or how he picked up this habit. 

He bites his toe nails. 

This needs to stop.  I catch him going to town all the time; when he’s watching TV, when he’s in time out, in the car, even when he’s playing he’ll stop and start with the toe nail biting.  It’s gross and un-sanitary and just plain weird. 

His doctor seems to think it’s funny and says I’m over-reacting.  He says it’ll stop and that it’s just something that he’s going through.  Um, okay?! 

Anyway, putting soap on his toes came up.  Eww!  When I was younger and thought having a potty mouth made me cool, I had to eat soap.  And it was disgusting so I don’t think I would want to put the radical through that.  Eating soap was a punishment and I don’t want him to think he’s being punished for biting his toe nails. 

Rubbing chili peppers on his toes came up.  O-M-G!  I would never.  Wouldn’t that be considered torture?  And what if he panics and then touches it and then rubs his eyes?  His mouth and his eyes would be burning!  Operation ‘stop the toes in your mouth’ just backfired on me.  Poor guy. 

Do any moms out there have the same issue?  Or is it just my kid who has this strange, gross habit?  Anyone? No?  Okay, just thought I’d share.  Now excuse me while I go and continue to yell at my computer.

Happy Monday Thursday!
Jenn.