Dear Inconvenienced Citizen...

I understand that having your street blocked off for a short time this afternoon was an inconvenience.  My own plans for the day had to be changed as well.  But that officer in the bomb suit? The one you were complaining about taking so long?  He was dripping sweat in there, called in on a day off, the day after a nasty cold had him in bed all day, his joints were probably hurting and he's also getting over the shingles.  But he went through all of that discomfort and, yes, inconvenience, in order to safely dispose of a live explosive device.  A device that could have gone off and damaged your property.  Hurt you.  Injured your child.

And that same officer?  He has a family of his own.  A family who never, for a second, forgets that he wants to come home to them.  So I'm sorry you had to wait for them to clear the street before you could continue on to your own home.  Every single police officer on your street this afternoon had a family waiting for them as well.  One of them has a wee blonde hair toddler and another on the way.  Another has two little ones who were probably in bed before he made it home tonight.  One of them is retiring next month--after 30 years of putting his own plans and life on hold just so you and your family can sleep in peace.

Is a little inconvenience too much to pay for your well being?  Because that officer sweating pounds away in the bomb suit?  He was willing to break his promise to his own two small children and to his wife--the promise that he will always come home--to put his life on the line for you, dear citizen.  So that you could make it safely home to your own children.  So next time? Take a moment, look beyond your own self and try to see the situation from his point of view before you bitch on a public forum about how inconvenienced you were on your way home from the grocery store.

Sincerely,

The Wife.

I train for days like this...

Wee girlie has been dealing with a head cold all week.  The child also flat out refuses to use the toilet for its intended purposes and the growing pile of soiled clothing is enough to send me to the Depths of Despair (don't ever try to leave!)  Oh, she knows what to do.  She just refuses to Do It.

The Boy is feeling neglected.  Since my daughter began eschewing naps, mine and his time together diminished.  I've been doing some volunteer pr work for the pre-school and the new k-8 extension school and had promised I'd have a brochure work up in by today.  So even though the girl did nap today (after I tossed her royal hinnyness in bed with her dad--the one who called in Dead this morning--and they snoozed together), I used that time to finish up the brochure.  But he and I still had time to play a couple of games, so don't feel too sorry for him!

So, yeah, about the sick ones.  Both of them house a disease that attacks their bodies through their immune systems.  A disease without a cure.  Solution? Kyleigh gets by with Naproxen for now.  For my husband, an auto-immune suppressant.  Shiny side? He can function and live a normal life.  Or at least as close to normal as we get.  Not-so-shiny side?  The man pretty much lays out a welcome mat for any and every bug out there.   In the line-up today, he's battling a nasty head cold and shingles.  Yes, I said shingles.  Hence, the calling in Dead.

But tonight, laundry is in the dryer so we can start tomorrow with a fresh pile of undies for the girlie.  The boy's favorite lunch is made and ready for the Star Wars lunch box in the morning.  Toys that were flung to the far corners of the house in multiple meltdown moments have all been retrieved and stowed.  Tomorrow will come soon enough and we get to do it all over again!

I've often thought that mommyhood is not for the faint of heart.  Now I know it's for the hard core, nut job endurance athlete.

Summertime...it's just around the corner...

Some of us celebrate early...

Dreams and memories of days like these are what keep me sane (ish) through the cold.  And why you will never see my return address from anywhere north of where we currently reside.

An illustration on why I don't request help in the garden...really...

(Thanks, Monty)

And that's all I'm going to say about that...

Family adventure...

About an hour and a half west of us is a small town with a tiny train station.  And out of that station, for a few weeks in the spring, fall and winter a family run operation runs tours through beautiful countryside, along the river and in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  

While we all had cameras with us and all came away with a plethora of pictures and memories, my 15-year-old niece worked her amazing magic and captured the day with these gorgeous pictures.  I could have shared my own (and the last one is mine), I really just wanted to show off the incredible artist that she is!

The James River Rambler tour...

And the newest (and by far the most adorable) junior conductors.

Blue Ridge Mountains in the distance...I will never get tired of this view! 

A special surprise on the tour!  Cowboys, train robbers and the US Marshal and his posse all showed up!  Setting aside the reality of the fact that wild west cowboys were never a part of this state's history, it was a lot of fun to interact with them and watch their performance.

Rustlin' up the train robbers!

Facing his accusers...

A distressed damsel...

The real conductor...and a man who truly loves his job!

The artist herself!  Thanks for letting me share your pictures, Maia!  

Apparently mud baths are good for you...and about that "crazy" gene...

Rugged Maniac 2011

We came.  We saw.  We kicked its butt!

"Before"...shiny!

5K run through the woods and around a motor cross track...with a metric butt tonne of obstacles along the way (I lost count of how many walls I went up and over and how many mud pits I "swam" through, as well as the swinging tires, branches tied down at chest level, and the barb wire we army crawled under)...at least an extra ten pounds of caked on mud...a huge water slide at the end and a leap over fire to finish...

"After"...yeah, not so shiny!

I may not have run the entire course (bad back, you know) but I made it over, under and through every single obstacle!  I know we made it through in about 45 minutes.  I'll be interested to see the final times once they're posted.  And see the pro pictures from the day!

                                             

It's all her fault.  My crazy "big" sister is the one who double dog dared me to join their team.  A team made up mostly of middle school teachers (I just can't imagine any one of my former teachers doing this on the weekends!) Okay, so it was more of an invite than a dare.  She smoked me on the course, but waited for me at the water slide and we finished together.  In some ways, we really haven't come too far from playing in the mud together when we were kids!

Mud caked shoes and socks replaced by beloved flip flops.  Relaxing and enjoying good music, great company, swapping war stories and showing off scrapes and bruises!  And already talking about next year's race.  

*Both group shots are from my sister...the other is the one I sent from my phone to prove to my adoring and supportive husband that we had not only survived but that we Conquered!

**Edited**
Official time: 55:35...my goal was to complete it in under an hour.  I'll take it!  And, no, I will not be taking my husband's well meaning yet snarky advice on race attire next year.  But he is more than welcome to join us and he can wear the boots and cammies!

When the crazy ones retire...

They get an exceptional retirement cake and send off!

I had a little help with "arming" the cake.  This man that I share my life with can be a little scary sometimes...brilliant, but scary.  Of course, it just also went to prove that we are so far from Normal.  Good thing we're okay with that!

Handed down from my mother...a Mother's Day encore...

Spunky, Fiesty and Smart trump Submissive, Docile and Ignorant any day

Size does not matter if one is mighty in one's soul

Sometimes a road block really does simply mean

that's not the road you're supposed to take

When God closes a door, he always opens a window

Never pogo stick on gravel

Play...a lot

Sewing doesn't make one domestic--it makes one useful

...it also helps keep family members from getting lost.

Making meatballs for your daughter--even though you really do not

enjoy the task--makes your daughter feel pretty darn special when she walks

in the door for lunch and sees meatballs.

Being your child's biggest supporter and fiercest defender

is a pretty Big Thing in parenting

Never waste an opportunity to celebrate

Birthdays are Very Important Days

Allow your child to make mistakes--even if they're super dooper big ones

Love unconditionally

Reveal your own mistakes and weaknesses

Show fear

Show courage in the face of that fear

Go about the impossible with fierce tenacity

Enjoy the moment when the impossible has been made possible

Goals and dreams are attainable--without sacrificing family

Take care of yourself--inside and out

Follow your heart

Follow your own rhythm

"Bloom where you're planted"

Be impulsive

Have Faith

Be faithful.

Thanks, Mama...I am, indeed, a blessed daughter.

Happy Mother's Day!

On being a princess...

Always be dressed in your finest...

even if your mission for the day is to find puddles to jump in.

Avoid the pesky paparazzi with quiet aloofness.

Accessorize.

Footwear is optional.

Mysterious ways...

Friendly bickering between his dad and I at the supper table had our son rolling his eyes.  Of course, his dad claimed I started it.  Which I clearly did not.  Jacob decided to intervene.

I'll decided who started it...

enny meeny minny mo...

Wagging his finger between us on the "mo", God will tell me which one of you started it!

catch a tiger by its toe

enny meeny minny....

His finger stops on his dad, MO! 

Clearly, God is on my side.

Though if Divine Providence were truly on my side something would have stopped me from taking a huge bite seconds prior to his little judgement session.  A large napkin was all that saved the rest of the family from full chicken pot pie spewage.  Clearly, He's on their side as well.