Dear Blog

I know I have neglected you. I'm sorry. I hope you will take me back...in 2010. Please accept these pictures as a gift. They are too beautiful not to share.

Christmas List

Sitting at dinner last night, I asked the kids what was on their Christmas list. Noah says, jewelry for you, mom, and a cupcake maker for Emme. Emme says, I’m going to get you a sparkly dress, mom, and I’m going to get Dad a new golf club.

(My heart grew two sizes)

I tell them..you know, when people ask you what is on your Christmas list, usually they mean what do you want?

Oh, that list. Well, we want matchbox cars, race track, make-up kit, Barbie dolls, new bike, skate board, roller skates….

Pumpkin Patch

Halloween

Question

How much red meat does the Ross family eat?

We are about to find out.

Chuckles

It is even harder for the average ape to believe that he has descended from man.

H. L. Mencken

He makes me laugh!

Me: Noah, look I bought you a new pair of pants.
Noah: I don't like them.
Me: Why not? They are so cool!
Noah: How would you know?


Putting my sweet boy to bed...
Me: Hey Buddie, tell me about your day.
Noah: You can rub my back but you have to shush



Noah: Dad, I can't find my toy.
Dad: Well, Noah when I am missing something, sometimes if I clean up, I find it.
Noah: When I am missing a toy, I find it when you step on it.

Meet Stephanie

Hello, my daughter says
Hi Emme, I say

I'm not Emme. I'm Stephanie. Stephanie from City Hall. Your daughter is gone. She is in the forest and she can't find her way out. I knew where she lived, so I came here. It seems warm so I am going to stay. Your daughter will be back when she finds her way out of the forest. Can I have a snack?

Ah, she seems a lot like my daughter.

Let's go outside and see if we can see Emme. Put your binoculars on. Look in the sky. No, not that way, over here. No, over here. Your not doing it right.

Again, a lot like my daughter.

I don't see her. Maybe her jet pack isn't working. We will look again tomorrow. Good Night. You don't have to put me to bed because I am not your daughter.


How was your evening?

What goes bump in the night?

I think this all started when I took my sweet little infant to the Dr and said, you know, he spits up about half of what he eats, every time he eats. That wonderful Dr. looked me straight in the eye, and said, why don’t you try feeding him half as much, twice as often? In the haze of my new mother bliss, I blindly obeyed that dr without a thought of what the future would hold. I dutifully got up every hour and half though the night to feed my precious angel. Noah slept in his car seat, so that he was sitting upright to help him keep that measly 2 ounces in his belly, belted in, of course, lest he use his great mite and heave himself out of his seat and fall three inches onto the pillows piled around on the floor. This was very confusing to a very tired husband who came to relieve me and sleepily tried to get Noah out of the car seat without unbuckling it.

Noah grew and, of course, stopped returning the unused portion of his meal, but he never did quite get the hang of sleeping for long stretches of time. Good thing Supper Nanny came along allowing me to uncover my child’s super powers of hearing as I tried unsuccessfully to creep out his room where I had been sitting with my back to him for hours while he fell asleep.

The whole cry it out idea started to sound pretty good to me, but I wasn’t ready yet. First I had to deliver my second child. When the nurse came in and scolded me for not waking up Emme who had been asleep for FOUR hours and surly was going to die of starvation—I mean how can an 8 and ½ pound baby who eats about 4 ounces a feeding right from birth possibly be expected to survive FOUR hours without eating—I calmly reached over to the lovely vase of flowers on my bedside and threw it at her.

So, about 24 months after my beautiful boy was born, I decided it was time to cry it out. Turns out, Noah, has asthma. Thank goodness for emergency rooms.

I blame it on Mike. No surprise, right? None of the Ross men sleep well, but that’s another post.

Here is part where you all comment on what terrible parents we are, it’s OK. I’m too tired to read the comments; I haven’t slept through the night in over six years.

Now, we lock our door at night. Noah has tried every trick in the book, pounding on the door, yelling for help, (that one gets Mike every time-but I’m on to him), and even lecturing—Mommy, I’m not very happy with you. Open this door, right now! We lock Emme’s door, too. But sometimes, that little stinker waits until we are all asleep, goes into the laundry room, (that door doesn’t lock) gets a wire hanger, unbends it, unlocks our door, and sneaks like a ninja into our room.

It’s not that I don’t enjoy cuddling up with my night roamer. It’s just that he kicks, a LOT, and flails his arms around. It’s very disorienting to get an elbow to the cheek in the middle of the night.

Once dawn breaks, we open our door. Today, Mike opened our door about 6:00 am. There sat Noah in front of the tv with music videos playing, a bag of chips, and a juice box. Dad, I’ve been up since 1:00, he says.

It’s going to be a long day for his teacher. Good thing he’s so lovable.

1st Day of School

Emme, how was the first day of kindergarten?

Awesome, I was good all day, do I get an m&m like you promised?

Yes!

Thanks, Mom.

Noah, how was fist grade?

I was good, too. Do I get an m&m?

Yes.

Just one?

Yes.

It's not worth it, Mom.

Rock Climbing

There is my boy on his last day of rock climbing. He has absolutely no fear, none, zip, nada; neither do I...of course. Yes, that's my fat butt in the picture. I wasn't at all worried that if I fell, I would launch that little man holding my life line right over the top of the rock. Nope, I wasn't worried about that a bit. Unfortunately, the camera ran out of batteries or something right as I got to the top. I really would have liked to be able to post that picture.

Kid Mecca

I'm 5

I'm not sure how this happened, but my baby is 5. Off to kindergarten this year. I'm reminded of a saying, the days are long, the years are short. How true!

Face Painting by Heidi

Puppet Show

Let's get physical

Noah

They grow up so fast, you see them with your baby lenses on until your son comes downstairs and hands you an envelope, you open it and inside it says this…

Deer Mommy

I love you so so much pleez come to my room at 9:17 love ur son NOAH ROSS

He’s such a sweetheart. Off I went to his room where he had a card game of crazy 8’s all ready to go.

This morning, while the rest of the family slept he got up and made breakfast for everyone. He knew which cereal to give each family member. Everyone had a glass of OJ. He put everything away. There was nothing spilled on the floor or the table. Amazing.

Sometimes being late for work is the very best way to start the day.

You might be a redneck if...

you use your patio furniture(sort of) to cover the brown spots on your grass,






you bathe your children like this,






while your beer is chilling in a coffee mug filled with ice,



your husband cuts the grass shirtless with bare feet (I photoshoped in a shirt to protect the innocent)




and this passes as a bidet





I love summer!

How about some old photos..