i heart my daughter

ky, my little poser, my mini-me. the one who talks so cheerfully non-stop on the way to daycare and work every morning. the one who gives her mommy random hugs and kisses or shouts "i love you mommy!" out of the blue. the one who has made literally hundreds of pictures to decorate my "office". i always think i am ready to have the weekend off... but i miss you when you are gone.

you want what?

last night when we came back from a party, the kids both wanted a glass of water before they got ready for bed. i poured them each a glass and left them sipping in the kitchen while i headed for the bathroom. a couple of minutes later i shouted to ask if they were getting their pajamas on. ky responded from her room that she was getting ready, but that her brother was still in the kitchen "drinking his glass of eff." 

let this be a lesson...

all you need is love

happy valentine's day, my blogosphere friends! i have to admit, i've never been a huge fan of valentine's day. such a cheesy, commercial, overdone, fake holiday. everyone has expectations (even if they don't admit it) and most are let down. i've had enough "let downs" in my younger years and have since always greeted valentine's day with great disdain. not so, today.

this morning when i came back up from the shower there was a gift for me on the table. it was a retro-style toaster with a pretty red envelope in one of the toast slots. cool toaster, very nice card. i gave bf his gift, a massage at aveda, a designer candy bar, gum and some other little trinkets. then we were off to work.

bf and i walked up the stairs together. i exited at the 2nd floor and he proceeded to the 3rd. as i headed towards my desk and rounded the corner, i was greeted by the smiling face of a co-worker. "happy valentine's day!" she said with a big smirk on her face. i looked towards the general vacinity of my cube. there, floating prettily above my desk were a BUNCH of pink and red balloons. there was a small crowd of women ooo-ing and ahh-ing outside my cube. closer inspection revealed that many of the balloons had little gifts tied to them. four stuffed animals...sandra boynton characters from those cute little children's books. a beautiful lia sophia necklace. a novel. lia sophia earrings. a cd. a sandra boynton book. tons of candy strewn all around. two adorable cards. wow. i think he kinda likes me.

the dog ate what?

ky lost her tooth at daycare today. the ex picked the kids up after school today, so i didn't get to see ky and her tooth until he dropped them off at home around 7:30 tonight. as soon as she walked in the door, ky proudly flashed a ziplock baggie containing her miniscule baby tooth and a shiny dime. "look mom, the tooth fairy already gave me a dime!" i didn't even bother asking how the tooth fairy had found her during a two hour visit to her dad's. later on, in true older sister fashion, ky was arrogantly flashing her lucky dime at her younger brother. in swoops the dog. my phone call with the bf was interrupted by ky's desperate whine..."mom, the dog ate my dime!"

are there alligators down there?

this morning as i was putting on my face, my three year old son was in the bathroom next to me, perched on his stool. he was busy washing his hands and chattering about who-knows-what. he shut off the water and peered into the sink, then looked up at me. he looked back at the sink and said in a dead-pan, serious voice: "mom, are there alligators down there?" alligators, indeed.

smiling through the pain

this short but sweet little tidbit involves nathan's children, mason & nolan and my five year old daughter, kyleigh. the kids were all in ky's room, and i could hear their antics from my perch the living room.

sounds: "ping, ping, whap! ping, ping, whap!"

ky: "nooo!!! stop it, mason! you're huring her!" 

mason: "look ky, she's not hurt, she's still smiling!"

i peek into the room to see the boys shooting at ky's large, stuffed, smiling dora doll with a nerf gun.

money talks

the scene:

the frozen food aisle at a local grocery store. me shopping with my three and five year old, both of whom are in the cart. i have a freezer door open with my head stuck inside scanning the plethora of lean cuisine options available to me. because of the hum of the freezer, i am unable to clearly hear all of the words of my darling children, but it went something like this:

ky: "mom....dad...money."

i was barely tuned in as i weighed the choice of spagetti and meatballs vs. cheese ravioli. then i hear the other child:

ko: "yeah....mommy....money."

i realize with horror what my children are saying very loudly, in public, in the freezer aisle while other shoppers snicker and stare:

ky: "mom, dad still says you stole all his money!"

ko: "yeah mom, daddy says mommy stole his money!"

my voice squeaks out a plea for them to stop talking as i try not to make a scene and strangle them.

i quickly exit the frozen food aisle, face burning in shame.

and p.s.:

not that he had any money to steal, but i most definitely did NOT steal their dad's money.  so glad he can stay mature and keep it civil for the kids.  sigh.