The Power of a Water Balloon

Sunday afternoon was beautiful, overcast skies, breezy and not too hot for mid-June. I was sitting in the driveway painting some chairrail for a frame we are building and the kids across the street were out in their driveway playing with water balloons. They had this launcher contraption that would fling the water balloons up the street. It was like a super-slingshot just for water balloons. They shot a few at me and they only made it half-way through the cul-de-sac. Then the Dad came out to help and shot one across the street. It zoomed through the cul-de-sac and right through the glass in our front door. BOOM! The glass exploded and there was glass and water everywhere. Chad was standing on our stairs and heard the explosion and got hit with glass and liquid. He thought something had happened to me since I was outside and came running. I still don't think he has laughed too much about the incident. We get a new one in 2 weeks.....the joys of homeownership!

No More Excuses

Most of my posts are about my kids but occassionally I do have a thought that is not kid-centered. That is my stomach in all its glory - you could easily play connect the dots with my moles but it is what it is. I recently had my 10th mole removed for biopsy at 28. 8 of the 10 have been pre-cancer and the other 2 were just for kicks I guess. As most of you know, my Mom has had 2 stage 4 melanomas and numerous other skin cancers. I am probably more diligent than most 28 year olds about going to the dermatologist but I should not be. Here are some fun facts about melanoma, the fastest growing cancer in the USA and one of the cancers that people have the least knowledge about. Consider this among the things that you learn today and go to the dermatologist. I have a great one, Cynthia Dolan or if you prefer a man (yes, guys, men can get skin cancer as well) then you can see Dr. Friedman - North Ga Dermatology: 770.962.5040. No more excuses - you don't even have to look up the number.

• Melanoma is now the fastest growing cancer in the U.S
• There have been no significant advances in the medical treatment or survival rate in the last 30 years.
• Melanoma cases are increasing at an epidemic rate of 3% a year.
• In the U.S. there are as many new cases of melanoma each year than there are of AIDS.
• There were 59,000 new case of melanoma in the U.S. in 2005.
• Melanoma is the sixth most common cancer in the U.S.
• Melanoma is the most common cancer in men and women ages 20-29.
• In women 25-29, melanoma is the primary cause of cancer death, and in women 30-34 it is the second most common cause of cancer death.
• In the U.S. your chance of getting melanoma in 1940 was 1 in 1500. By 2004, it was 1 in 67. By 2010, scientists predict it will be 1 in 50.
• If caught in the earliest stages, melanoma is entirely treatable with a survival rate of nearly 100%. If untreated and allowed to spread, there is no known treatment or cure.
• Wear suncreen, put sunscreen on your kids and DON'T go to the tanning bed. Remember that tan skin looks good but it is in no way healthy. I would rather be pale and cancer free than tan and covered with cancer.

Coming down from my soap box now, please just make the appointment to go. A few stitches and a little discomfort is really not that big of a deal.

Sarah Jane.....

There is just something about a little girl. She is so much fun (now), yes she screamed for about 6 months but at the ripe old age of 9 months she has decided to shape up! She is crawling, attempting to walk, talking and squealing. That is one huge difference between boys and girls. From an early age, girls have that ability to imitate a screeching parakeet that ear piercing squeal that makes the dogs cover their ears. It is usually when she is the happiest that it is the loudest. She loves to wave bye-bye and definitely knows her Da-Da. He walks in the room and she says 'Hey Da-Da' as for Mama, she calls me Neh-Neh. No clue where that one came from. One day I will be Mom but for now I will take Neh-Neh with that sweet, almost toothless grin!

Please tell me why we spend so much money on toys? To stimulate the economy? An empty egg carton works WONDERS in this house!

In Touch with Our Feminine Side

Tyler is my side-kick and we do pretty much everything together. Even though he is ALL boy, I try to introduce the softer side of life as well. I want him to be well-rounded and masculine with a sensitive side. He has a gazillion trucks, plays in the dirt, squishes bugs, the whole nine yards. He also loves to paint. The other morning he decided that he would join me in painting his toes. I ended up leaving the house with no polish on - do you know how hard it is to remove nail polish from in between a ticklish 2 year olds toes? FOREVER! He still has polish on his feet and for the life of me there is no amount of scrubbing that can get it off those sweet little toes.

Chaperone = Exhaustion

I feel old. My nephew turned 15 last week. Chad and I started dating when he was almost 2, just for perspective sake. He is a great kid and this weekend we caught a glimpse of what it would be like to have 7 15 year-old boys. Let's just say that I am glad this is not a full-time job and that I am not octo-mom! Corey decided that he wanted to have a camp out at my parent's house - easy enough they will be outside. And, they were all really well behaved. They played man hunt until 4 in the morning and then were up at 9 (if they actually went to sleep which I am not convinced that they did). T was up until 2am, yep 2am, new record for him. He woke up on Sunday morning at 9 so the level of crankiness was at an all time high as well all day Sunday. We heard boys all night - I think that Chad and I slept for maybe 3 hours on Saturday night. When you are 30 or right around the corner from 30, things just don't work as well the next day when you have 3 hours of sleep. Chad and I are known for not sleeping/requiring much sleep/getting much sleep. But, after Saturday night, I am still hurting and just want to crawl right back in the bed. After these puppies expel a little more energy, I just might do that!

Meet Molly and Mack - the Newest Addition

Meet Molly

and Mack

the Dynamic Duo!
We got the puppies! Last night we made the trek out to Loganville to get the dogs from the Fagan's and they are awesome. Some people have told us that we are crazy, some people have said that we will love them and some just look at me in awe of our crazy life. If you ever hear me say that we have a 'normal, calm' life then you better run! We love them. They are 7 weeks old and full of energy and fun. They are definitely warming up this morning and I was out in the rain at 5am with them cheering them on to pee. They slept from 11 to 5 so no complaints here and although it was raining there is just something about puppy breath that can get you excited at 5am. Tyler is in heaven and in love. Sarah just pulls on their faces. I am sure that I will have many, many more posts about the trials and tribulations of training the little ones but for now I just leave you with the pictures. I think we are complete - 2 kids, 2 dogs, 2 cats - we like symmetry and our house is full at least for a while!

A Day at the Goog

Tyler went to work with my the other day for the annual Bring Your Kids to Work Day. It is a very unrealistic vantage point of life in corporate America. Clowns, science experiments, chicken fingers, toys, the whole shabang. The morning started with Tyler informing me that this was not what he wanted to do today. Fridays have been dubbed as 'Nana Day' and it really threw him off to miss that - won't be happening again anytime soon. We did have a good time. He walked around the office like a little man, asking with each desk that we passed, "who lives there, mommy." Oftentimes, it feels like people do live there. In the world of a cube :)

Sometimes We Just Forget

I love to run. Period. It is my release for stress, frustration, emotions, everything. I have recently recruited Chad to join me in running and I have to say that I am super impressed with him. Historically, he has HATED running - all caps definitely - but he is a trooper and ran 5 miles with me on Sunday and 4 today. We are also running the Peachtree on the 4th so we are gearing up for that.

Today we took the kids on the run since we didn't really think that T would be able to feed Sarah and change her diaper. We always start out walking and then start running - T informed me that we needed to move faster for it to be a run - gotta love that. Then about a mile or so later he asked me how I was feeling. Dying is what I wanted to say - you weigh almost 40 pounds and the stroller is at least 20 - but I said "Oh, I feel great. How about you?" His response, "Not so good, Mama." Then he says, "Mama, you know, sometimes we just forget. It just happens sometimes." Which I replied, "Yes, honey, we do forget. What did you forget today?" "I have to poop," he yelled "and tee-tee!" Fabulous, we were in the middle of the road with houses and traffic galore. I held out my arm and he sat on my arm laid his head on my shoulder and sat. Sweat pouring, legs and arms shaking, I just knew that I would have a pile on my shoe any second. But, he did go and informed the world that he was feeling much better now. Wonderful - now we can continue on the road - Chad was happy for the break though!

We played, watched the skateboarders and were on the run back. I decided that he could run when we got to our subdivision. He had his iPod (which also doubles as a cell phone, gun and remote - we got the super model) and he ran around the subdivision for about 2 feet. That is how far it took him to find a worm that had a bad day. Those are the ones that fry in the sun before they can get from one grassy patch to another. And with each crispy little critter, he picks it up, crumbles it and says "Mama, another one, he had a bad day too." I am just thankful that I have had a good day! On to the shower now :)

Never Underestimate the Power of a Deere

We are so blessed to live in a county that is actually using tax dollars to preserve land and give us these great parks. We have one park at one end of our street and another one at the other. On any given sunny day you can probably find us at one of them. It is a great outlet for the kiddos and for Chad and I to have a moment of sanity out of the house! This past weekend we made it to both. Chad took the kids to the 'playground park' as T calls it, and we all went to the 'duck park'. He decided to take his tractor, John Deere with a full 12 volt motor, trailer and everything green. He usually does a great job and it is amusing to watch the people dodge the tractor as we make our way around the park. This week for some reason he was determined that we would go to the playground at the duck park and climb the "hill" - if you have been there then you know the 'hill'. Now, we have not been to this park and done the hill since before I had Sarah and for that matter before I was really pregnant so probably a year or more. It amazes me that this kid has such a memory and remembers random things on the turn of a dime. T got to the trail that goes up the hill to the playground and made an immediate turn and started for the swings. I was running with Sarah and Chad pleaded with the kid to keep going around the trail. T vacilated for a moment and came to the conclusion if he could not go to the playground that it was a much better idea if he ran at this point and abandoned the John Deere. So, with a smile on my face - because you know that Mom's just put that smile on, that I cannot believe that I am going to do this but I have to pee too bad to argue smile, I jumped on the tractor and rode it around the park. Yes, a grown woman on a power wheels in a crowded park. The looks amused me - seriously, is it that strange that an adult takes her power wheel to the park - I mean what could be more normal, right? About 1/2 mile into the ride my knees were cramping so bad that I had to persuade my kid to ride the tractor again or leave it for another child that would want to ride. He begrudgingly jumped on and completed the 2.2 miles of fun!