He dresses better now

And so do I. When we met, I was wearing white shorts and we'll just say my undergarments were not suitable for white shorts, ok? Fast forward a couple weeks. When I first really laid eyes on him, he was sweaty, mismatched, and bouncing a basketball. I'm a sucker for nice eyes.

Our first date was with his dad and then-stepmother at Famous Amos & then we went to a downtown venue on the river. I'm not interested in re-creating that date, any more than I am interested in digging up what we wore that day either.

So today we're taking a much needed leisurely pace, dinner is in the crockpot (ham & potatoes with a packet of onion soup mix and some water if you're curious) and we're making a dent in the Clone's excessive laundry. Devildog left a short time ago to go play softball. I am thankful that his outlet is softball, as there are worse things he could be doing.
Unfortunately, I haven't been able to go to any of his games in a long while. It's rather difficult to enjoy watching the game when I have to constantly herd a cat (Blur). She's a busy bugger and containing her is virtually impossible. She, like her siblings, must run and play and explore when ever the opportunity arises. Plus it's been hotter than hades itself here, and when I went outside a bit ago, I could have simply cooked my dinner on my doorstep. If I'm going to miss seeing him play ball, I can be comfortable indoors with air conditioning, and not get bleacher butt. That's not pretty either.

Random Wet T-shirt contest

As I drove home from taking Clone to school, my travel path got gloomier and gloomier looking. The outer bands of Hurricane Irene were swiping the coast and bringing unpleasant weather. I got out of the mom-bus just in time for things to get really intense. I decided I needed to bring in the flag that Devildog posted on the fence since it was going to get ugly today. Well that got me, and my shirt doused with rain even more. The bottom edge of the flag pole gets hung up in the bracket because it's curling up a bit. Then the garage door didn't like the correct code and I had to re-enter it. Meanwhile I'm getting pummeled with rain and that garage door couldn't open fast enough. I got in the house and it looked like I got hosed down for a wet t-shirt contest that I didn't want to enter.
And it's supposed to rain like that again when I go back to get Clone from school. The rainy day dismissal should be realllllly interesting. We'll see if the new principal has changed that too.

Just nod and smile

You probably already know this. My husband and I have 4 kids. They range in age from 2 to 18. The first two are 15 months apart, and having had them at such a young age, I was fine with being the only girl in the house, and not having any more children. God laughed at my Grand Plan of Marvelous Theory. So, 7 years later my Clone arrived, and 7 years after that, the Blur landed on scene - quite literally. Blur exited so fast the doctor almost didn't get gloves on, and she certainly did no catching of the human torpedo.
I can't tell you how many times someone has been amazed that I have four, or that I look old enough to have an EIGHTEEN year old. I'm quick to tell them about the various friends who have more kids than we have. Seriously people, four kids isn't all that large a family, but it's not without advantages. Long term, I have a larger pool of elderly tush wipers, or people willing to share the cost of nursing home care for me if none of them kill me before then. I unintentionally spaced them apart and ended up with built-in babysitters. There's the side benefit of those babysitters realizing how much work kids are, and do everything possible to avoid making any of their own. I am soooo not ready to be a grandma before I'm fifty 65.

And your comments? UNoriginal. How about saying "LOVE IT!" or "awesome!" instead of the trite junk? If you have more than 1.5 kids, I'm sure you've heard it all too.

Don't you know what causes that? why yes, Devildog & I have had a good 20 years practice. Or my favorite response that makes the guys blush? ::serious face:: "no. did you want to show me?"

Getting fixed? well it's very CLEARLY OBVIOUS that nothing is broken and all systems work as intended. Why does no one ask if stupid people are going to get fixed? Oh wait, they're the ones asking us if we're getting fixed.

Done? yes, I was done with the last 3. (Instead of saying "crap happens", I should probably start saying "sex happens when you're married")

Hands full: yes, so is my brain, and right now it's about to explode for being overworked. I've lost 28% of my cognitive function just growing these humans. I don't know if it will ever return, and I hope coffee hasn't killed the remaining brain cells.

Busy: duh. Can you imagine if I was one of those moms that scheduled my kids for activities? oy!

Catholic? Yes, as a matter of fact, I am. But my husband is not. So really, that doesn't have as much to do with it as you might assume.

"I don't know how you do it" - I don't. I try, but a lot gets past me, and I pray it's not a big mess. I attempt to delegate. It has mixed results.

"I barely handle one, I don't know how you handle four"
I don't handle it, I just live it. And if you're constantly entertaining your only child, YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG! Stop living FOR your kids and live WITH them. And by that, I mean "in conjunction with" your kids. I can't tell you how many times I've said that every mother must establish an identity outside of being someone's spouse or mom. Give those kids the tools to function independently of you so you can have a life of your own. Don't coddle them, constantly entertain them, or do everything for them. It's your job as a mother to put yourself out of work. Don't freak out when it happens, just get your own life and enjoy it.

Now, pardon me, but Blur has gained possession of the remote and that is NOT a good thing. And my coffee got cold while I typed this.

Last Hurrah

We hit the beach one last time this summer before school starts tomorrow. My husband and his friend like to go to the beach on the north side of the city where you can still drive on the beach. It's an ordeal and a drive, nevermind that we live 5 or so miles from other beaches that you have to park and schlep. I don't need to camp out at the beach, but they like it. So does Blur. Today's visit brought us to the beach when the tide was coming in, so parking was limited. We ventured to a spot on the other side of the jetty as that was the only available place for our crowd. Four households converged, and we took up a chunk of real estate. As it turned out, being on that side of the jetty was great for Blur, especially since we forgot her life jacket. She could play within our eyesight and we didn't have to worry about her getting knocked around like she had previously. And like every place this little beauty goes, she made friends there.
Now, getting there is not a hurrah. It's more like an aw, hell. Devildog is good about loading up the Bronco with the stuff we need, but there is a lot of packing involved to have the luxury of grilling on the beach. Blur has moments that she fights with us to get IN the vehicle to go somewhere. Then there are times, she's tired of being in the car and she's had her fill. Tell her she's going to the beach, and she's willing to walk there if that's what it takes. The drive takes about 30 minutes, and about 15 minutes into it, she was asking to unbuckle. When we left, she was tired and cranky, and told her brother she wanted him to get out of the truck. She's a demanding little thing, isn't she?

It will be interesting when the kids are off at their first day of school, and how she handles it with all 3 of her siblings gone from the house all day.

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side note: I went wandering my blogroll after posting this, and wouldn't you know it.. a few days ago, someone else said they went to the beach for a last hurrah before school started. I swear to you, I heard Hitchcock music for a second. That, and I really did NOT plagiarize. I mean, I have clearly neglected my blog for real life and that other vortex that shall not be named. So honestly, I didn't steal that phrase, and the beach idea was totally the gang of husbands' idea. I would've gladly sat at home clipping coupons or playing with my yarn.