Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire...

Somebody, anybody, please tell me that my 4-year-old's behavior is normal.

It's not that he LIES, exactly. Well, yes he does. But he doesn't tell blatant, malicious lies. When asked if he ate all of the Cheetos, he'll fess up. When I ask if he's made his bed, he'll think for a moment, but eventually settle for the truth.

It's more of a story-telling kind of lie.

Like the story of two 8-year-old boys that are in his primary class and the 12-year-old boys that baptized them. And he "doesn't know why they're in his class, but they really, really, really are, Mom!"

Or the giant Coyote he saw that was going to eat his friend, but luckily Kyle got there and happened to have his sword. So he fought him off and his friend said, "Thank you, thank you, thank you."

And I'm leaving all of the details out. Trust me, these are big, elaborate stories.

And for now, I guess I'll treat them as such. He's just using his imagination, right? It's got to be some developmental stage they go through.

So for now, I'll just relax. When I can't distinguish the lies from the stories - that's when I'll start to worry.

Green thumb?

We live in a city with 360 days of sunshine a year. So, in an effort to enjoy more of that sunshine, we've decided to make-over our backyard. Somehow, that patch of rock hard dirt just isn't very inviting. We have high hopes of backyard BBQs on lush green grass (as lush as the desert gets). And Kyle's put in his request of a soccer goal and hammock.

However, it's a lot more work than anybody ever told us. Trim the trees and bushes? Check. Till up the entire yard? Check. Get rid of the hills and gullies by leveling it? Uh, working on it...

As it stands now, it's not much to look at. But the seed is ready to go, and I just had three loads of mulch delivered today. I guess we'll know in 4-6 weeks whether we'll be enjoying a nice, cozy backyard or just starting at our dirt through the sliding glass door.

But even if the backyard doesn't work, at least I have these little beauties in front to look at:


Yes, tulips grow even in the desert. I've been receiving "Better Homes and Gardens" for years now. It's nice to finally be able to put that garden section to use.

Pipe vs. Pride

What's the worst thing that could happen as you're trying to tidy your yard before company comes to visit? Why, that would be a broken pipe, of course.

Kevin got a little too eager about ripping all of those stubborn weeds out and decided to take a shovel to them. He must have really let loose, because water came shooting out, flooding the yard.

After an hour of digging, and bailing out water, he came to the source of the problem. And although my man could've fixed that problem himself, he took my advice and called Maintenance (why not take advantage of base housing and save time and money?).

Kyle was really ticked because dad's problem ruined his afternoon of fun playing in the sprinklers. He kept asking, "Why did you do that, Dad? Why did you do that?" Not good on Kevin's self-esteem.

So finally, I told him that daddy just wanted to turn the yard into a big splash pool for him. Way more fun than the sprinklers. Kyle didn't buy it, and Kevin's self-esteem took another hit.

Two or three short hours later, the mess was cleaned up (mostly), and Kevin's pride had suffered only minor damage.

But I'll tell you what - my man made up for it when he finally got our lawn mower working! Yes, that's right folks. No more white trashiness for us. We've gotten rid of the other broken mowers in our backyard and have a nicely trimmed lawn! I thought I'd never see the day...

Proof

A friend recently inquired about prego photos and it gave me cause to think. You see, I have approximately 4 photos of myself while pregnant with Kyle. And although each and every one of them are disgusting, I kind of wish I had more. Proof of my pregnancy. Something to compare myself to.

I also realize that many of you haven't had the chance to see me at my chunkiest. And while I could definitely live with that fact, I realize that inquiring minds need to know.

And so, I've decided that I'm taking pictures this time around. This is actually the first one I've taken, so I don't know how diligent I'll be. And I definitely cannot promise that any future ones will appear in public (the extent of my bloated nastiness will be the deciding factor). But at least I'll have them for me and my future posterity.

So, here's my belly, in all of its 23-week glory.

Concentration

Kyle decided to take it upon himself to sit down and practice writing his letters.
I don't know what brought it on, but I walked into the room to this:

LOVE it!

I love the fact that he's actually interested in writing. I love how hard he's concentrating.
But most of all, I LOVE the pencil behind his ear. How cute is that???

A few of my favorite things...

A few days ago, Kyle and I were driving in the car, when out of the blue he said:

"Hey, Mom. You want to know what my favorite foods are? I'll tell you."

He then proceeded to rattle off this list:

"Waffles, pancakes, swedish pancakes, Macaroni & Cheese, and Ramen noodles."

And this was the kicker:

"And for snacks, I like cookies, candy, and cake with frosting."

I wasn't quite sure what to make of that list. An innocent passerby might be concerned for my child's nutrition and my job as a parent. Personally, I think that list is probably normal for the average 4-year-old. After all, nobody in preschool is going to be impressed when you say that your favorite snacks are fresh broccoli and crisp, green apples.

And the winner is...

Everybody who voted for a GIRL!!!

That's right, we're evening out our numbers and having a girl! To say we're excited would be the understatement of the century.

When Kyle woke up this morning, I told him we were heading down to the doctor's office to check on the baby. And when I told him that we'd get to find out whether it was a boy or a girl, he turned to me with a big, excited grin on his face and said, "Oh, I hope it's a girl, mom!"

And he's not the only one who was convinced. Everybody seemed convinced that this little one was a girl. Except me. Deep down, I think I knew, but I wasn't sure if it was intuition, or simply believing everybody else. Or maybe I just couldn't imagine another little boy who wasn't Kyle. Who knows.

So we're excited. Kevin's full of sarcastic remarks about how poor we're going to be now, but he's bursting with excitement, too. He and Kyle have already started arguing (and I'm serious about that) over the name, but I'm staying out of it. At least for another 3 or 4 months.

So here's to a boy AND a girl! Because now I'll have one of each! And I can't wait...

Old-Time Fun

I have an obsession with photo booths.

Yes, I know they're cheesy, and it's rare that you actually get a decent photo, but I love them. I love the bad quality. I love the expressions caused by the mis-timed flashing light. Afterall, when else is it acceptable to take such an utterly nasty picture?

I was made more aware of my obsession as I sorted through old photos yesterday afternoon. I have photos of every summer beach trip with my friend, Sarah. Actually, I only have half of the photos because we split them evenly. Friends do that, you know.

And since we've been married, I've periodically dragged Kevin off to capture our goofiness in a tiny photo booth.

However, these vintage booths are hard to come by. I'm not talking about the ones in all of the arcades. I'm talking vintage, original photo booth. Strangely enough, Kmart seems to be the place to go. The best part? They still charge the vintage price: $1

So in 10 years, if you happen to be strolling through Kmart and see some crazy lady shoving her entire family into a photo booth, it'll probably be me. So stop and say hi. I promise I won't make you get in.

On this day...

23 years ago, my brother Scott was born.

I can still remember that day, waiting eagerly for my new baby brother. I can even remember the time of day he was born, because we waited and waited all morning long, and finally, after lunch, at about 1 p.m., my dad called to tell us he'd arrived! And what a lucky girl I am to have him.

Kyle loves his Uncle Scottie, as we all do. He's a jokester, and loves to
push your buttons, but we all know he does it out of love. Right??!

I particularly love this picture of Kevin giving Scott an airplane ride because it
demonstrates the fact that he's really just a kid at heart. Actually, they both are...

But this one's my absolute favorite, taken right after Kyle was born. Because even though he's big, and he's tough, I know it's just an act. Inside he's actually just mush.

He's tough and sarcastic, but he's also kind and gentle. He's smart and hardworking. And I love him to death. Happy Birthday, Scottie!