A Mother's Day Tale

4:30am...electricity goes off. Get up to see a car off the road

4:31...Try to find flashlights. REMINDER TO SELF: Don't let kids play with flashlights/ buy batteries.
Find ONE flashlight that works...

4:35...try to call the State Police but call someone else accidentally. Sorry for waking you up other guy!

4:36...call the State Police
ME: My electricity just went off, and I see someone off the road. I don't know if they hit a pole or something. I don't see any emergency vehicles out there yet.
STATE POLICE: A call was placed that two trucks hit each other there, but no car is on the scene yet. No report of poles being hit.
ME: Well, my electricity is out, so they hit something.

4:36...Looks like a car went through our pasture so husband goes up to make sure cows aren't out on the road.
FREEZING morning (coldest in a while). Nope, cows are safe and sound. (Don't want to chase cows in the dark or even the light for that matter.)

4:36-5:30...wait for and watch emergency vehicles arrive (through my husband's super-powered binoculars). See them give one guy what looks like a "walk the line" test. No ambulances, so no one injured.

5:30...one kid wakes up, husband wakes up second kid so he can watch the flashing lights.

5:45...probably was a drunk driver (sure his mother's really proud of him), so lecture two awake kids "Don't EVER drink alcohol and drive a car!"

5:50...Tell hubby my Mother's Day present can be for me to go back to sleep for one hour.

7:30...find out that the dude driving sheered a pine tree and took out three electric poles, not even a scratch on the guy. Thankful for that!

Kudos to our electric company which had our power back on by 6:34. For a rural electric company, REA (get the name?) sure is a FANTASTIC company!

At least once a winter, we have someone go off the road into our pasture. No one went off this winter...they waited until Spring.
NOTE TO ERIE COUNTY DRIVERS: When you come flying down rt. 98 and you start to make the curve before the south end of Falls Road...please be careful! That's a death trap, and we do not want to have to fix fence there AGAIN. If you've driven, you know exactly where I mean.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ME!!

Brotherly Love

This morning Ben (6)and I were talking about how nice it is that he has a brother, Josh (3). I asked Ben what he loves about his brother. I expected a response about how fun it is to play with him or how funny Josh can be. What does Benjamin love about his brother? His hair. ;)

A picture of Josh and his gorgeous hair!

Guilty Pleasures

I have a guilty pleasure, I will admit it. I love to follow the "gossip column", you know, the one that keeps tabs on celebrities and such. I used to watch the entertainment TV shows, but now I just have a website online that I follow. About once a day I log on and see what the "stars" are up to.
John and I have had a lot of discussion about why I do that. I know that the lifestyle of these people is not what I want to emulate in any way. It's not even like I have a great respect for them and for what they do. (I mean, really, they get paid millions because they are good looking? SHALLOW!) And there is no way that I want to be like them, with their self-centeredness and crazy lifestyle.
So why do I do it?
It came to me one day last week...because it is something completely outside of myself and my life. I do not have to worry about anyone, I do not have to be responsible for anyone. It is literally something that takes me out of my situation for small period of time. And that is something I have desperately needed for the past year.
If you want to see a woman under continuous, unmeasurable amount of stress, look at a mom of a special needs kid. There's always something to worry about, something lurking around the next corner. See, our kids don't "get better", they just learn to cope with their needs. And the more moms like this I talk to, the more I think it's harder on the moms than the kids.
Anyway, I am now off to my second "guilty pleasure", The Housewives of New York City. (Those women are so crazy and shallow and self-centered, it's hilarious!)

A Friday Funny

I just love this girl!

In Shock

I just found out that my very best friend from Africa is going through a terrible tragedy...her baby boy lived four days and then died, complications of T13.

My friend is from Canada, she married late in life, and they suddenly found out they were having a "surprize" baby. I don't even know if she was comfortable yet with being a mom, and now, her son's been taken away from her.

Again? Really? Another godly friend going through unspeakable heartache? Another friend saying goodbye to their child?

Picky Picky

Do you have a picky eater? I sure do! My firstborn is the pickiest (or is it pickyest?) kid I have ever met. His meal repetoir consists of only a few things. It makes for packing his lunch very difficult. I mean, it's better that he eats SOMETHING rather than nothing, right?
I know, I've read Dobson and Kevin Lehman...put the food in front of him and let him decide when he wants to eat. Eventually he will get hungry enough that he'll eat what's offered. Well, I don't think they've ever met my son. He would rather starve than have a grape touch his mouth. (I know, what kid doesn't like grapes? MINE!)

Here is a list of what is currently considered acceptable food:
**applesauce (but only the pre-packaged kind. If it comes from a jar that you have to put into its own bowl...no!)
**Cheerios (we only eat the Multi-Grain kind, so at least that's something?)
**yogurt (but only the Yoplait Thick and Creamy, Orange)
**pretzels
**hot dogs (with a bun, ketchup)
**french fries( but only the fast food kind, not the kind I make at home, either from scratch or frozen)
**waffles (I buy the low fat/ whole grain)
**pancakes (the kind daddy makes)
**bread (no butter or any other kind of spread, oh, unless it's ketchup)
**bananas (only if there's no brown spots, or strings)
**any kind of junk food (cake, cookies, ice cream, chips, fast food chicken nuggets)
The kid does drink a TON of millk, so that's something.
Ok, that's really about it.
Would you like to know what my crazy kid will not eat (besides grapes)?
mac and cheese
pizza
cheese sticks
peanut butter and jelly
honey

Crazy, I know!

The Trouble With Little Boys...

Josh is in the midst of potty-training. (I HATE potty-training!) He's learned to recognize the urge when he has to go #2. A couple of times I've seen him get a book and go behind the couch (with a pull-up on) to relieve himself. He also likes to spend a good part of the day without pants on, often without underwear too. His favorite thing to do is trun on a movie, sit on his potty and order me to get his milk and a cheese stick.

I have often found Benjamin sitting on the couch watching tv in his underwear with his hands down his pants.

The trouble with little boys is that they grow up to be men!