Jerome's Women: July 2010

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Ironic

My dad emailed me this photo. I don't know who originally took this photo, but I would love to give him or her credit. Please let me know if you know.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

The Dictator Turns Four

Can it really be today?

Are you really four?

Wasn't it just yesterday that Adam and Kristin got married, and we were pregnant?

It seems like it was just yesterday. I still vividly remember feeling like a giant bowl of peach sherbet in my dress, waddling all over and trying to keep up with an energy-filled three-year-old flower girl.

It seems like yesterday Katrina insisted on snuggling with you every night before bed. She would kiss my stomach, talk to you, whisper jokes and stories. She was so excited to be a big sister she could hardly wait.

I still vividly remember when labor started. We had a csection scheduled for Aug 2, but you had a mind of your own. My labor started in the early morning on July 26. I waited as long as I could, thinking that it was going to stop, but by that evening we knew we needed to go in. Grandma came and stayed with Katrina and we went to the hospital at about 7 pm.

Yes, I know I was in labor for over 12 hours at that point. Yes, I know most women complete labor and birth a child within that time frame. I'm gifted, what can I say? My children hold on for dear life, apparently.

The doctor used the lame excuse that 2 weeks early was just too early to deliver in order to justify not getting his rear out of bed to come deliver a baby in the evening. Lazy bum. So, instead, he sent me home on meds that were supposed to stop contractions.

Those worked for about 4 hours.

You were bound and determined to come when you decided, and no doctor was going to tell you otherwise. The contractions cranked back up to full strength by 4 AM. We were sitting in the doctor's office waiting room right when they opened. I think at one point I threatened to perform my own csection in the cafeteria with a spoon if they didn't deliver you TODAY! I was just a bit tired.

And, in case you are keeping track, that is over 24 hours of steady, non-progressing labor. I love my children. And modern medicine. I am convinced I would have been one of those "died in childbirth" headstones in the pioneer cemeteries had I been born a century earlier.

Katrina was so excited for your arrival. When we kissed her goodbye on our way to the surgical suite, she cried and cried because she wanted to be there too.

She got to meet her baby sister, soon enough. In fact, she and Daddy were the first ones to hold you. And she proudly told everyone that you were her "baby sister Madison Lollypop Sucker". I have no clue where that name came from, but the nickname stuck!

You were precious, so sweet. I was in love from the first moment with your little button nose and tiny red lips.

You certainly tried my patience those first few weeks, but soon you grew into a happy, silly baby.

You have always been my little comedian.

And when it was your turn to be the big sister, you rose to the occasion beautifully.

You are my passionate, determined daughter.

You have lived a more full life in your short four years than most people live in their entire life. You go for life full throttle, and could honestly care less what other people think.

Your smiling face brightens my every morning.

You are learning to conquer your fears.

And enjoy the precious life God has given you.

You have become my little girlfriend.

My prayer is that, as you begin to walk the path God has laid out for you,

... that you will never forget what you have learned at this age. You are stong, little one. You are tougher than you think. You feel what others feel. We have always said that your friendships do not run wide, but deep. And it remains true. You are loyal without question to those who have earned your trust.

You are sweet, funny, and kind. You test my patience daily, but it is for good. You need to know where the boundaries are in your life, and you seek them. Thank you for challenging me to be strong enough to lead you.

I love you, my sweet princess. I pray your day is filled with joy and laughter. I pray your life is filled with the same.

Monday, July 26, 2010

This Weekend I...

This Weekend I...

had an amazing Friday night with our home group. I seriously love these people! What a blessing they are to our family!
slept in until 9 AM for the 3rd Saturday in a row! Please don't hate me. Please don't hate me.
had the chance to just chill out with our family for a morning.
spent a wonderful afternoon catching up with my super friend Jill during our annual pedicure date.
hugged and kissed all my precious family of choice babies.
spent an hour hiding from the lightning under the alcove at the softball fields.
spent that same hour holding Kat & Madi as they shook in terror from the lightning. We have issues with lightning in our house.
waded through our stacks of bills & mail from the last few weeks.
spent Sunday evening reminiscing with Jerome through all of Madi's photos. She will be 4 tomorrow. Where did the time go?

Now go visit Becky for more weekend fun!

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Daddy's Princesses

will hopefully never be too old

to dance with Daddy

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Girl's date

Every year my friend Jill and I treat ourselves. Rather than get each other birthday presents, we spend an afternoon getting our toes done, sipping coffee, and just enjoying girlfriend time. What a blessing Jill is in my life. And just look at our fabulous toes!
Tiffany

Thursday, July 22, 2010

I'm a Winner!

I never win giveaways. Jerome ALWAYS wins stuff. Realtors give away prizes during open house tours, and he is always winning something - bottles of wine, cash, and most recently a free 4-hour cleaning service. Yes, he got kisses for winning that one.

But, seriously, I don't ever win.

Until this last month.

I have entered, and won, three separate bloggy contests.

I have no idea how.

Ok, well, maybe I understand the first one.

You see, I have a slightly unhealthy love of The Princess Bride. Slightly in the fact that I probably have the entire movie memorized. When we watch it with the girls, they are constantly reminding me to stop saying the lines with the movie. So when my sweet friend Rachel, who is also a TPB lover, asked everyone to list as many quotes as they could think of, I had fun. Ok, ok, I went psycho! But, I love that movie! And I know a lot of lines! Normally, Jerome is the one who knows all the lines, but this time I remembered more than he did! We stayed up far too late that night giggling and typing lines, having a blast but never expecting to win.

So, imagine my surprise when I found that I had won! Just look at this beautiful tastiness she sent me:

A super sweet card with Itty Bit's face, my very-own-not-your mug, a COOKIE, and a gift card! Because TPB is a family affair, I decided to graciously share my gift card with the family. Katrina guzzled hers before I could even get the camera out of the purse. Violet looked like a a lion devouring her prey.

Don't even think about touching her tastiness.

And Madi?

Well, Madi was just a little excited about having a special treat.

I found out, about the same time, that I had won a really cool new book. It's called the Alternative ABCs, and KMama from The Daily Dribbles gave it away on her blog. Madi has decided this book is hers, because the rest of us just aren't cool enough for it yet.

The artwork is incredible.

Although we cracked up at the "I is for ink" page. Ink, as in tatoos.

The last contest I won (well, actually, the first contest, if you are thinking chronologically) was for a Munchie mug. What is a Munchie Mug, you ask? Why, it's only the greatest invention in childhood snack time history, that's what!

I am so not kidding here. Our Munchie Mug is my new favorite accessory. Shana from Unexpected Bliss gave this gem away on her blog. You can check out all the Munchie Mug official specs on the rotor here (quick, name that movie!), but just know that it is awesome. And no, sadly, no one has been willing to pay me for my glowing testimony. Oh well.

Violet immediately claimed the MM as her own. In fact, the only time this thing is not in her hands is when she is sleeping, I think. We have had a few sibling battles when (gasp! God forbid) one of the other sisters would like a snack, but otherwise it has been smooth sailing. I can wash it in the dishwasher (a requirement in my house) and my car seats and floors are cleaner.

And there is the tiny princess, practicing her very messy Vanna White skills. Yes, my children get messy. Yes, we often go out in public with something on their faces. My children will never win the prim and proper contest. They will probably be too busy entering the wresting and piling-dirt-on-siblings-heads contests. You're only a child once, after all.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Haircuts All Around!

Haircut Day is always an important day in this family. The girls love visiting Miss Ronda. Katrina and Violet got trims since I like their hair at the moment. Madi and I have, on the other hand, been having hair issues lately. So, we went with something new.

No, this was not the final cut. But she thought the clips were so funny she asked me to take a picture of them.

Here is the final cut. Cute, right? And eerily similar to big sisters, I know. But, she loves it, and it is much easier to brush. Always a plus in my world.

As I mentioned earlier, Jerome randomly decided to shave his head on Saturday. Little did I know the men in my life were creating a hairless wonder competition!

The best part was when, as we were getting ready, and he saw the camera, he asked me if photos would be appearing on the blog. Well, of course darling!!!

And now, for your viewing pleasure, we present:

The Progression of a Bald Man

Pre-Cut

As close as the clippers will get it

minus the beard

And freshly bic-ed!

And now we (the girls and I) get the extreme pleasure of watching him get his head stuck in his shirts!

I like the bald look! And Jerome agrees that is is much smarter to shave his head in July rather than November, like last time.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

TST: Brand New Dad

Ok, so I totally had another post all ready to go, and then I got the shock of my life. This is my dad.

Katrina took this photo last weekend while we were gone on our adventure. My dad has ALWAYS had a moustache. It is a part of who he is. I vividly remember his prickly raspberries on my stomach, or the way he would tickle my neck when he kissed me goodnight. My girls LOVE getting Papa kisses because they tickle.

So, you can imagine my shock when I got to the office yesterday morning to discover this:

My dad, the hairless wonder. We think it has been about 40 years since he was last hairless. None of my older siblings have seen him this way. My mom has only seen him one other time without a moustache.

Apparently, he got a wild hair (pun completely intended) this weekend and decided to shave. Every time I look at him I giggle.

What made it even funnier is that Jerome got a wild hair (again, completely intended) and asked me to shave his head. So now both of my men are hairless wonders!

Friday, July 16, 2010

Letters of Intent: What a Week!

Dearest Adventurer,

I am well aware of the fact that you are two going on 18 in your eyes. And that you think you can do anything your sisters can do.

But, really, I don't think your sisters would have tried that stunt. You see, biggest sissy has an almost unhealthy fear of attempting new physical feats. Middle sissy has no fear, but already possesses great knowledge of her body's limits, so she knew that she should not do it.

You, on the other hand, fearless one, possess neither. Please do not attempt to launch yourself out of the back of a truck again. Yes, I know it was parked. Yes, I know you were fine. But, seriously, Daddy and I do not appreciate chasing you around with a flashlight for days, checking for concussions.

Love,

A Mama Who Can See The ER Bills Already

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Grandma & Grandpa,

Thanks so much for the new sunglasses and tshirts you bought us on our adventure. We love looking as cool as our Aunt Celine!

Love,

The Glamour Girls

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Dear Bloggy Friends,

I am a horrible person. I promised to take photos of our Bastille Day party. I even had the camera around my wrist most of the evening. But, sadly, between making sure my children ate something besides cream puffs, trying to maintain multiple conversations in French (in which I am sadly rusty), English, and Frenglish, and guzzling many bottles of water in a futile attempt to stay cool, the only photo I snapped was this one.

Yes, we let the children play in the delivery van. Yes, they were COMPLETELY filthy by the end of the evening. But they were happy. And I could try to concentrate on maintaining an adult conversation.

Apologetically,

The Bad Mommy Blogger

P.S. An upside to the evening - we discovered Violet LOVES escargot. Yes, those are snails. And she ate at least a dozen. Needless to say, the grandpas & Daddy were very proud.

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To The Tooth:

I win! I win! I told you that your demise was imminent! But you didn't believe me. Somehow, you even managed to stick around through the weekend at Grandpa's. But you underestimated your opponent. And I have emerged triumphant!

Although now I am left wondering if I gave birth to a child or a pumpkin 6 1/2 years ago.

Sincerely,

Mom Always Wins!!!!

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Thursday, July 15, 2010

Summertime

Sent from my BlackBerry Smartphone provided by Alltel

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Off With Their Heads!

No, I'm not smoking something. No, I haven't gone off my rocker. Although I am close.

Image Courtesy Google Images

Today is France's Independence Day! Being married to a Frenchie, today is second only to July 4th as to our family's favorite summer days. Each year, Jerome's parents throw a huge party and all the French ex-pats and Francophiles (French-loving people) show up. You can read all about last year's shindig here.

Strange as it is, I have started looking forward to this. We used to dread it, because we would spend the entire week before preparing, the entire day of it running around like psycho people, and end up too exhausted and frustrated with each other to really enjoy it. Thankfully, we have been kicked out of the manual labor the last few years in lieu of the bakery employees, so now I just get to come and have fun!

I will post pictures later, but I thought I would share some random Bastille Day trivia with you. Do you know the French national anthem? It is called La Marseillaise. It was written by Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle in 1792 and was declared the French national anthem in 1795. It sounds absolutely beautiful when sung. I should qualify that. It sounds absolutely beautiful when sung by a trained choir. It sounds like a bawdy bar song when sung by my FIL and his champagne-enhanced buddies.

One year, frustrated in my attempts to understand their ~~drunk~~ joyous ramblings, I googled the lyrics to see what they actually meant. And now I will share them with you all. Don't thank me yet. I give you:

La Marseillaise

Let's go children of the fatherland,
The day of glory has arrived!

Against us tyranny's

Bloody flag is raised! (repeat)

In the countryside, do you hear

The roaring of these fierce soldiers?

They come right to our arms

To slit the throats of our sons, our friends!

Refrain

Grab your weapons, citizens!

Form your batallions!
Let us march! Let us march!

May impure blood

Water our fields!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

This horde of slaves, traitors, plotting kings,

What do they want?

For whom these vile shackles,

These long-prepared irons? (repeat)

Frenchmen, for us, oh! what an insult!

What emotions that must excite!

It is us that they dare to consider

Returning to ancient slavery!

What! These foreign troops

Would make laws in our home!

What! These mercenary phalanxes

Would bring down our proud warriors! (repeat)

Good Lord! By chained hands

Our brows would bend beneath the yoke!

Vile despots would become

The masters of our fate!

Tremble, tyrants! and you, traitors,

The disgrace of all groups,

Tremble! Your parricidal plans

Will finally pay the price! (repeat)

Everyone is a soldier to fight you,

If they fall, our young heros,

France will make more,

Ready to battle you!

Frenchmen, as magnanimous warriors,

Bear or hold back your blows!

Spare these sad victims,

Regretfully arming against us. (repeat)

But not these bloodthirsty despots,

But not these accomplices of Bouillé,

All of these animals who, without pity,

Tear their mother's breast to pieces!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sacred love of France,

Lead, support our avenging arms!

Liberty, beloved Liberty,

Fight with your defenders! (repeat)

Under our flags, let victory

Hasten to your manly tones!

May your dying enemies

See your triumph and our glory!

Refrain

We will enter the pit

When our elders are no longer there;

There, we will find their dust

And the traces of their virtues. (repeat)

Much less eager to outlive them

Than to share their casket,

We will have the sublime pride

Of avenging them or following them!

Refrain

Translated by Laura K. Lawless and found on About.com

In my defense, the stanzas in between the ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ are no longer sung today. I told you not to thank me. Please don't email me to tell me about all the nightmares this song gave you.

And now, I am off to enjoy escargot, stinky cheese, champagne, and lots of cheek kisses. Joyeux Quatorze everyone!

Sunday, July 11, 2010

This Weekend I...

got off work and drove over three mountain passes

Image courtesy Google Images because I am not ~~stupid~~ brave enough to stop while driving this pass.

to stay in this room.

ate tacos at the best Mexican food place in Ouray (also the only Mexican food place), and spent the entire dinner trying to figure out why there were dollar bills all over the ceiling