I Love You When I’m Hanging Out The Washing

It seems like washing day rolls around all too quickly but hanging out your clean clothes reminds me of how much I love you. They are also a reminder of how much you’ve grown and what you’ve been up to (and in to). Even though you’ll make them dirty again soon, I love you.

 

Footnote: This was my second post on my blog. I think the whole thing fitted in the reader without having to click on it. I created this photo when my intention was to have ‘I Love You’ in every post. These early posts were written as if I was speaking to my kids. Somewhere along the line my voice started speaking to my fellow bloggers about my boys instead. I think I also got a little bored of the ‘dear diary’ style of writing I was doing. The photo for this took longer than the post, from memory.

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Rebellious Love

‘What’s gotten into you today?’

‘Why are you behaving that way?’

‘That’s just plain silly, that is.’

These phrases have passed my lips many times. Normally I’m talking to a kid-my own or one of the many intelligent students that I have met when teaching.

Today, though, these words were aimed at myself.

Have you had a day where there’s just a touch of silly about you? Conformity just not cutting the mustard?

Today was my day.

I taught a class of Year 3’s today at a school that has over 1000 students. After finishing my paid duties for the day I walked with one of the students out of the classroom. Her mum and I have been friends for many years. She’s also a teacher and we hadn’t seen each other for a couple of months.

Her daughter told me that her mum picked her up from the kiss and drop. For those who are unfamiliar with this term- stop car, kiss child, they get out and you drive off. In the afternoons-join cue of cars, drive like a nonagenarian, reach front of cue, child jumps in and then you drive off. No stopping for more than a few seconds. You can’t get out unless you want to be berated by seething parents desperate to un/load their cargo. This procession is overseen by a teacher who directs the flow. Some are very serious about their role and are tyrants. Others are a little more lax and more likened to a traffic cop whose stuck on duty past shift change.

Being as I am a responsible adult I herded my friend’s daughter across the cul-de-sac between cars when they had stopped for the next child to begin their journey homeward bound. Her mum’s car was about 12th in the cue to leave so I had the chance to fit in a 2 minute conversation with her as she rolled around to the pick-up point.

We disposed of pleasantries quickly and did a quick catch up while I was on foot next to her car. Promising to see each other soon, she departed the mayhem.

As I walked past the teacher on duty I was given a stern look and I believe she said something about safety.

‘My apologies,’ I replied without missing a beat.

As I walked with a bit of a swagger to my car, I could not help but smirk. My brain was registering the ‘rebel’ label and it felt good.

I drove past that teacher as I left the teacher’s car park and turned my head so she couldn’t see and poked my tongue out.

Apparently the dutiful, responsible and role-model aspects of my personality had clocked off when the bell went at the end of the day today.

Rebel without a cause, you betcha! I fit that bill today.

The rule maker was the rule breaker today.

I’d love it if you don’t tell my kids though.

Image from: here.

Eyes of Love

Eyes without desire

Hungry for fuel to fill the soul

Embers of a fire

Once burned with passion

Just alive inside.

Looking without seeing

Wishing for a clear view

Blinds drawn across

Unveil the sight

For all to witness.

Visions of a future

Daring all who cross

Bear the burden

See what I feel

Come and love with me.

In writing this poem I wasn’t thinking in a specific direction. I had no deep message to convey. Allowing the words to create the journey for my thoughts was the purpose. I would sincerely appreciate if you don’t click the like button and go today. What would give me great satisfaction is knowing what you liked about it, if the words resonated with you or how you interpreted my expression.

Kelly ♥

© 2013 Kelly Hibbert, all rights reserved.

Images from: here and here.

I Love You Like Crazy

Crazy little thing called love.

Is it possible to love your child too much? How much love is too much? How would you measure it?

 

By the amount of kisses given on cheeks of a slumbering child?

By repeating ‘I love you’ when they drive you wild?

By the lengths you’d go to ensure they’re happy?

By the amount of times you’ve changed a nappy?

By the time it takes to takes to tie a shoelace?

By the distance they run to win a race?

By counting the times you hold hands and skip along?

By the ways you console when something is wrong?

By the energy needed to push kids on a swing?

By the truckload of rhymes that you’ll probably sing?

By the width of your arms just before giving a hug?

By the strings of your heart they’ll be sure to tug?

By measuring the amount of love one heart can give?

By the fullness of a life with kids that you live?

 

Crazy in love.

Image from: here.

From Russia with Love

Love the Russian way.

Since the beginning of this year I have learned with my children how to say ‘I love you’ in several different languages. This was the first time we had tried a language where the written version included symbols/letters I had no idea how to pronounce. We watched a you tube video so we could hear the sounds in each word.  I enjoyed trying to perfect the Russian way of expressing love.

The Russian language fills each syllable with richness and heartfelt meaning. It’s almost as if I can hear Sean Connery speaking them himself to Tatiana Romanova. Er, come to think of it I don’t think any Bond ever whispered those words to his love interest.

Я тебя люблю.

pronounced yah tee-BYAH lyoo-BLYOO

I love you.

From Australia with love.

Image from: here.

Love from the Scruffy Red Monster

Love my monsters.

Since a tender age both of my boys have loved Elmo: the short, red character who talks in 3rd person and remains constantly at age 3 ½.

Elmo has been on Sesame Street since 1972 which makes him older than me (just).

Sesame Street has recently celebrated 43 years on television. I grew up watching it as did my husband and then my eldest did too. I hope my grandchildren get to enjoy the wonder that is Sesame Street.

My eldest celebrated his 3rd birthday a few years back with an Elmo cake painstakingly decorated with the icing tip that would normally be used for grass. This created that perfectly scruffy look that Elmo wears so well.

Now the baton has been passed to my youngest. Sesame Street for him has far greater meaning than just a show on TV. It marks an important time in his schedule at home. It’s on at 12pm here and this marks lunch time for him. If I happen to be out of the room when, ‘can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?’ rings out it’s soon followed by an announcement from yonder that Sesame Street is on. If the TV is off midday passes with no fanfare or parade.

Elmo exists in many forms in our home. We have TMX Elmo who rolls, giggles and then stands himself up again. He can literally ROFL. There’s also plush versions, eating implements, posters, wall stickers, bedding, colouring books, etc.

I have a bit of a soft spot for Elmo and have never questioned his inability to speak in first person. Does this bother you? Are there people not feeling the love for the monster with the infectious giggle? If not an Elmo fan, who is your favourite Sesame Street puppet? Does anyone not allow their children to watch Sesame Street at all?

Monster love lives here.

A Fool for Love

“There is no difference between a wise man and a fool when they fall in
love.” – Unknown

Image from: here.

A Little Chicken Love

I love my little chicken.

I’ve been saving this pearl for Easter time.

The age old question came to the fore of almost 3’s thoughts.

Recently we were returning from dropping his brother at school.

‘Mum, where do chicken come from?’

‘Chickens hatch from eggs, sweetie.’

‘Oh.’

I got him buckled into his carseat and he said, ‘love you, Mum.’

‘I love you too, gorgeous.’

We drove towards home and talked about things we saw along the way. About 5 minutes later he asked in a puzzled voice, ‘Mum, where do egg come from?’

‘From chickens, buddy.’

This produced a quizzical look as it should. Now I don’t know about you but I found it difficult to go anywhere from there. I wasn’t prepared to have a discussion based on the findings of Aristotle nor am I a Science major. Noah’s Ark came to mind but I dismissed that instantly as well. Causality or circular cause and consequence are a little beyond his grasp at present.

Then we moved onto other questions of a similar nature. We had the seed/tree discussion as well as numerous animal examples. I must admit I was a teeny bit impressed with his ability to work out that my answers didn’t make sense. My eldest never went through this phase. I’m not sure if he is just the accepting type, has never pondered such a question or is a wise old soul who has it all sussed.

My two chickens are quite different and share a relationship not dissimilar to Foghorn Leghorn and Chicken Hawk. It’s a love/hate deal. I’ve watched my big school fella use a whole henhouse of patience and caring with his younger brother many times over. I’ve also seen him throw his hands in the air in disbelief.  Most of the time they are pals but, like any siblings, there’s those times when big and little don’t see eye to eye. Little wants to get his point across while big just thinks he’s a pesky pain in the rear.

While I ponder the ‘which came first, the chicken or the egg’ dilemma, I’m going to head back to the roost and peck at some eggs of the chocolate variety.

Happy Easter to all!

Love my evolving chickadee.

Images from: here and here.

♥ I Love You, Cupcake ♥

Love thy cake.

This might be a brilliant principle to live by when you’re 3. For those who have got to the stage where you’ve added a zero to the end of that number or another higher number, cake intake may need scrutinisation.

My little guy celebrated his 3rd birthday today. I didn’t want to do a post-birth recount here. I’m dedicating this post to him and his love of cake.

Of the 6 kids here there was only one that didn’t bust-a-move to the table where the cake ceremony was about to take place. All the others yelled, ‘CAKE’, and ran like their pants were on fire.

So the candles were blown out without any foofing on the cake (extra tasty bits a.k.a as spit) and a big cheer rang out. I was too busy worrying about the 3 year old with the knife in one hand to concern myself with what the other hand was about to do. The birthday boy decides to grab a handful of icing and stuff it into his cake hole. While this made most erupt in laughter, a few stared agog at the spectacle. This inturn made him think he was funny so he launched in for another handful while I did my best to hold my heffalump back. We did get some great shots of the chubby cheeks with nothing but icing between them.

There were a few refusals from the adults when cake was proffered. Not quite sure if this was due to people watching their waistline or not wanting 3 y.o cooties. Regardless my little guy was definitely not of the school of thought, ‘a minute on the lips, a lifetime on the hips.’

Have your cake and eat it too while you can, kids!

P.S Here’s your really big slice, as promised, Grandma Cranky.

Images from: here and here.

A Versatile Kinda Love

I just love the word versatile.

I would like to thank Kimberly at Words for JP for my 6th award this month. If you haven’t popped over to Kim’s please wander in and be prepared to stay a while. This lady renders me incapable of speaking with her poetry. I don’t comment often because I wouldn’t know what to say other than ‘wow’ and that would get redundant after a short while. If there was a ‘like’ button that was in caps I would click it every time.

The requirements for this award are as follows:

• Thank the person who gave you this award. That’s common courtesy.
• Include a link to their blog. That’s also common courtesy — if you can figure out how to do it.
• Next, select 15 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly.
• Nominate those 15 bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award — you might include a link to this site.
• Finally, tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.

7 things about me you may not already know:

1. Faced with an entire block of chocolate to myself I’d still only eat a few squares.
2. I am surrounded by three very strong males: Bull (Taurus), Lion (Leo) and a Ram (Aries). My star sign is Sagittarius-The Archer.
3. I am the least funny of all my friends but they are true friends as they still laugh at my jokes.
4. My family and I live in the southern suburbs of South Australia.
5. I plan never to post photos of my children on my blog (which I’ll go into in a later post).
6. I love creating of any sort: art, craft, music, dance and writing but am no good at some.
7. The spotlight and I are not comrades.

This may be a little controversial but I do not intend on following the guidelines to the letter. This is the part where you’d normally see the list of 15 blogs I would highly recommend you go and take a gander at. ‘Er, where’s the list, you say? Please read on.

I’d like to extend a warm invitation to all bloggers who visit this page to add a blog of their choice in the comments box. Whether it’s your first time round these parts or you’re part of the furniture, please feel free to suggest away. It could be your own or one that you would highly recommend to me. Add multiple blogs if you wish. This is open-ended time wise and not limited to the normal 15. All I ask is that you put in the link instead of just the blog name so I can link straight to it.

I assure this is not a case of lazy blogger syndrome. I would love nothing more than to further my reading in as many corners of WP as possible. Once I have visited a blog I can create my list and do a pingback to each site. So I will be doing what the award asks-just in reverse order this time.

Gee, I really am versatile!

Lots of love

Kelly

A Life of Love

Loving the life I live.

I lose my temper at times but I love you.

I get frustrated when you are stubborn but I love you.

At the end of each day I am grateful that I have the chance to love you.

Your life is a gift of love to me.

The Gift of Life

Everybody Knows:
You can’t be all things to all people.
You can’t do all things at once.
You can’t do all things equally well.
You can’t do all things better than everyone else.
Your humanity is showing just like everyone else’s.

So:
You have to find out who you are, and be that.
You have to decide what comes first, and do that.
You have to discover your strengths, and use them.
You have to learn not to compete with others,
Because no one else is in the contest of *being you*.

Then:
You will have learned to accept your own uniqueness.
You will have learned to set priorities and make decisions.
You will have learned to live with your limitations.
You will have learned to give yourself the respect that is due.
And you’ll be a most vital human being.

Dare To Believe:
That you are a wonderful, unique person.
That you are a once-in-all-history event.
That it’s more than a right, it’s your duty, to be who you are.
That life is not a problem to solve, but a gift to cherish.
And you’ll be able to truly enjoy your life and find true happiness…

Author
Unknown

I was inspired to share this poem after reading Amber’s post over at “Normal is the New Boring”. I cannot claim it as my own.  Poetry is not one of my strong points. I’ll leave that up to brilliant bloggers like Kimberly at Words for JP.

I first read this poem many years ago and have since lost the paper copy I had. So I went looking for it online knowing some of the key lines that have stuck like glue in a crevice somewhere inside my grey matter. When I did locate it I found more than I’d been searching for. I love finding true treasures and this website is one of them. It has many more poems that may inspire you or someone you love to be the best ‘you’ you can be. You might find me over there again later beckoning you in. Click here to visit Teens Self Help.

Love your life.

Kelly.

Image from: here.

Just a Minute for Love

Love in a minute.

Is that all you’ve got? Is that all it takes?

It’s all that I have so that’ll have to do for now.

How many times a day do you say, ‘just a minute,’ or, ‘in a minute,’ to someone you love? I don’t think I’d want to know the answer to that question myself. My kids would probably be able to tell you though. And for them being asked to wait a minute is probably comparable to an adult being asked to wait an hour. When I asked my nearly three (year old) to wait for just a minute today he cut his own hair again and it’s his birthday tomorrow. Sigh. What else can I do? We’re off to the barbers in the morning to see if Tony can make it any less noticeable. I don’t think it’s going to make much difference though so all photos will be profile shots of his left side.

For a fair portion of today I have thought to myself I’ll do my blog in a minute. It hasn’t happened until now-6 hours later. Now I only have a minute (or two) before I am blogging tomorrow.

On a completely different tangent did anyone else out there make the correlation between there being sixty seconds in a minute and that one’s resting heartbeat is supposed to equal 60 also?

Anyhoo. I’m going to finish tonight with a challenge I’ve set for myself. Many people talk about what they might do if they knew their time was coming to end (their time was up). Normally this would mean making plans, fulfilling dreams and telling the people closest to them how much they love them. I’m going to do that right now but in only 60 seconds, starting now…………

My boys,

I love you with all of my heart

With every beat of your heart

please remember that.

I love the smell of your hair

the touch of your skin

and your smiling eyes.

You amaze me,

fill me with delight and wonder

and you are proof that I achieved greatness.

If you only had a minute what words would you choose for those in your heart?

I love you every second, with every beat.

Image from: here.

Lovebug Hug to Dog, Frog and Hog

Hugs from the Lovebug are going out today to Dog, Frog and Hog.

I received a warm and carefilled hug from Words for JP a.k.a Kim and her bunch including Pee.

I’m inturn hugging Dog, Frog, Hog, Rat, Cat and Co. via Tania Ingram. If you think I must be drunk on love, head over to Tania’s blog. She might even greet you with a wag. Enjoy your first award, Tania. There will be many more to come (CBCA Award would be the best)!

The HUG Award© was initiated by Connie Wayne at A Hope for Today at http://ahopefortoday.com, which promotes hope, love, peace, equality, and unity for all people.

The HUG Award© is for people with an expectant desire for the world, for which they:  Hope for Love; Hope for Freedom; Hope for Peace; Hope for Equality; Hope for Unity; Hope for Joy and Happiness; Hope for Compassion and Mercy; Hope for Faith; Hope for Wholeness and Wellness; Hope for Prosperity; Hope for Ecological Preservation; Hope for Oneness

The HUG Award© recognizes and honors those who help keep hope alive in our current world, which is plagued by war, natural disasters, and economic recession.  They nurture hope, in any of the above areas,  by the work they do, or in their personal lives with things such as blogging, public speaking, charity work, etc.

The HUG Award© is for people who, without giving up or compromising their own religious, spiritual, or political beliefs, are able to nurture hope and respect the dignity of all people.

The HUG Award© is for those who, without bias or prejudice, use their resources and gifts to make the world a better place for everyone.

The HUG Award©is for people who have a hope or an expectant desire that the work or talents they use in things such as blogging, public speaking, charity work, etc., will make a positive impact on the world.

These people do not have to actively use the word “hope” in their work or creative talents.  They only need be conscious of their desire to make the world a better place for everyone.

These people use their available resources–a smile, a hug, a helping hand, a listening ear, a voice, time, money, possessions, education, personality, talent, websites and blogs—to make a positive impact on the world and make the world a better place to live.

Best Moment Award-Love the ‘Like’

Awarding the people who live in the moment,

The noble who write and capture the best in life,

The bold who reminded us what really mattered –

Savoring the experience of quality time.

RULES:

Winners re-post this completely with their acceptance speech. This could be written or video recorded.

Winners have the privilege of awarding the next awardees! The re-post should include a NEW set of people/blogs worthy of the award; and winners notify them the great news.

RESOURCES:

• What makes a good acceptance speech?
  • Gratitude. Thank the people who helped you along the way
  • Humor. Keep us entertained and smiling
  • Inspiration. Make your story touch our lives
• Get an idea from the great acceptance speeches, compiled in MomentMatters.com/Speech
• Display the award’s badge on your blog/website, downloadable in MomentMatters.com/Award

ACCEPTANCE SPEECH

I would like to thank Stacie at MingoMomma for including Free Little Words in the list of blogs she deems worthy of this award . I’m not sure if any of my ‘moments’ would be classified as ‘the best’. I think this award should be claimed by my kids who give me material to work with every day. I’ts taken nearly a month for me to get to this award (6 awards and counting this month) so fear not if you’re a winner and you don’t do it immediately.

I’ve decided to do things a little differently this time around. I’ve compiled a list of 15 blogs I have NEVER visited. They have taken a moment to come and see what mine is all about and left their mark (like). So if anyone would like to join me, I’m off to broaden my horizons and see what else takes my fancy and maybe has me veture out of my ‘normal’ reading circles.

THE WINNERS OF THE BEST MOMENT AWARD ARE:

Other Shoes

Kandy Sparks

A Blog about Life, Technology, News…

Breathtaking Memories

Daily (W)rite

Love Protection

Rantings of an Amateur Chef

Live simply, travel lightly, love passionately & don’t forget to breathe

Happy Faces Blog

Bunny and Pork Belly

The Right Hue

Five Little Monkeys

Angworld

Pocketful of Sugar

Tutor Doctor

Don’t forget to celebrate with your followers! Tweet your success with hashtag #MomentMatters. Congratulations, winners!

Kelly.

I Love You When You’re Sleeping

Guest Post by Belinda Tidswell.

I love you when you’re sleeping.

“The only thing worth stealing is a kiss from a sleeping child.”- Joe Houldsworth

I used to sit there for hours when my kids were babies and watch them peacefully sleep. They looked so cute and innocent. Then they would wake up and that vision quickly fades from your memory, wrapped up in all that the day throws at you, feeding, nappies, vomit!

Now that my babies are a bit older, I still check on them each night before I go to bed. I sleepily take each of them to the toilet and give them a final cuddle, sometimes more for me than for them. It’s still nice to have contact with them but hear no sound. Pure bliss! There’s no, “Mum, he hit me on the head with a car,” or, “Mum, she’s got my teddy”. I am not a fan of listening to the sibling battles in our house. My ears are very sensitive to the screeching and screaming that accompanies it! I like calm and quiet.

I especially loved you both when Grandma and Grandpa had you to sleep over at their house recently when my other half and I celebrated our anniversary. It felt very strange to go to dinner and not have to worry about discipline and the slight embarrassment of unexpected events that accompany public outings with children. It’s funny how my husband and I spent half the evening talking about our children. I did miss that I didn’t get to tuck them in and kiss them goodnight.

I know I had better enjoy their sleepy moments while I can. As they get older they will start to think I am a bit weird, checking on them in the middle of the night! Unless I have reason, that is, to believe they’ve escaped out of their bedroom window to go to a party!

Sleep well and sleep in my loves. xxx

(Bonus point for those of you who find the ‘hearts’ in today’s image).

For those who dare to care this is Belinda’s debut as a blogger. She is my go-to-girl for everything-all things kiddish, groaning and, most importantly, wine. I would like to publicly offer my sincere heartfelt thanks to Belinda for taking the time to write this. I know you pondered every word Bel and I think that shows in the fine blog entry you have created.

Image from: here.

Hair, There and Everywhere, I Love You

I love maintenance-free (almost) boys hair!

Thank your lucky stars, if you have boys, you don’t have to perform hair miracles like the one shown here on this gorgeous girl’s head. I’d be in a world of panic if I had to recreate this at any given time-let alone on a school morning! Don’t get me wrong, as a kid my Barbies had some of the best hair do’s on the block. Now, I’m armed with a comb and that’s it. If you need any product or zhuzhing, go see your father.

Bed head or bed hair makes me giggle. I wonder what they might have been doing overnight to get such a small amount of hair into such a state.  And try as I might those cockies won’t stay down. You can dampen, comb and pat down as long as you like but they’re there for the long haul. Anybody who sees my sons in this state must think I don’t give a hoot what they look like.

I also love the fact that we only have to use a small amount of shampoo and hey presto! You’re done. No conditioning necessary, just a towel-off and you’re good to go. In Winter it’s also a bonus as it takes only minutes to dry.

When the times comes for the next round of haircuts, which is does all too quickly with boys, were off to the barber’s. I take little boys in with me and I bring out little men. Their heads are lighter and so is my purse. There’s something about having a close call with the scissors that makes them look more grown up than they really are. One thing the boys love is sitting in the big swivel chair and getting raised up high into the air like a king on a throne. The best part for me is that both of my children go mute as if under a trance as the clippers do their work. Maybe it’s fear they’ll lose an ear or the sensation of the vibration rattling through their skull.  Possibly they just like checking themselves out and are admiring the view. Who knows?  The transformation they see take place before their very eyes may be the reason or they might be in awe of the dexterity which is displayed by Tony, our barber who rocks.

Perhaps this is why both boys, at around the ages of 3- give or take, have taken a pair of scissors to their own hair. No. 1 took a chunk right out the front of the fringey part in his hairdressing endeavour. No. 2 only recently went for a near-to-the-scalp chop on the top right hand side of his head. I am assured that most kids do this at some point. This is where being a boy and wearing their hair short comes as a bonus. It doesn’t take long for the hair to grow enough so that it’s less noticeable. Then it’s back to Tony to get him to fix up their foray.

I wonder if my kids’ generation will go through a long hair phase like the boys did when I was a teenager? Hopefully they’ll have a job by then and be able to buy their own hairdryer. I’m not planning on competing with my sons for mirror time.

I love your 1-minute hair styles.

Image from: here.

For the Love of Rocks

Rock a bye baby. Rock around the clock. Crocodile rock. I love rock ‘n’ roll. Rock the Casbah. Rock your body. What rocks your world?

The rock ‘n’ roll kind of rock is not really what you’ll find here. It’s also not a geological discussion about the rock of Gibraltar. There’s no game of rock, paper, scissors going on and it isn’t a pet rock fetish image post.

It’s simply about the good ol’ stone type of rock. You know the ones found in the garden.

My youngest is the collector of all thinks rock. They are gathered from the ground, carried around in sweaty clenched fists and then stuffed deep into short pockets. Some are discarded as a matter of course. Others are left, long forgotten, to dwell in a resting place until reunited with their fellow rock garden friends. Some of the favoured rocks get taped to a piece of paper to make nature scenes. I wonder how these rocks feel.

My favourite, however, are the ones left in the dark crevices of pockets where they mingle with dirt, lint and tissues. They’re about to go for a spin and if they’re lucky they’ll be flung free from the depths and be shiny and clean when they come out of the washing machine. Yes, these are my most cherished rocks. They have already been through so much and yet they threaten to deem it necessary for me to buy a new washer. If I’m really in luck I’ll hear them clunking around in the machine mid-cycle. Deep sea diving past my elbows through the murky water and dodging seaweed-like clothing, blindly trying to reach the illusive culprits is not one of my favoured activities.

Stern warnings ensue with sweet child o’ mine and a detailed description of what rocks can do to washing machines. It seems to make little difference as he runs off to find new rocks to freshly pluck from the dirt, squeeze tightly in his palm and then firmly plant in the safety of a pocket. Pet rocks are not far off. I can feel it in my bones. At least they shouldn’t go through the wash.

I love you. You rock!

Images from: here and here.

You are the Apples of My Eye and I Love You

I love my sweet apples.

Apples with skin on or naked? The results of this poll will determine how I eat apples for the rest of my days. That is, if I can get more than 10 apple lovers to respond to this post.

The reason I’m asking is because recently my son who is 5 has asked to have his apple a la natural. I know the facts about apple skins and how many nutrients are crammed into its natural packaging. My concern is what I can’t see and what I can feel. Apples are naturally coated in a wax to make them shiny and appealing to the eye. Goodness only knows what attaches itself to the wax or what was already on the apple before it was coated.

It would be safe to assume that everyone has heard the saying, ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away,’ since it has been around for nearly 150 years. As a side note I was interested to learn from phrases.org that the original version was, ‘eat an apple on going to bed, and you’ll keep the doctor from earning his bread,’ which was a Pembrokeshire proverb. I think I can safely assume that eating an apple, skin or not, is better than not eating the apple at all.

The apple skin debate raged for about 5 minutes in our home. Personally I’m of the opinion that Master 5 has alterior motives (when did he learn manipulation skills?). Wobbly teeth season hit our place at about the same time as the request for skin left on. I think he’s looking at having the ledger in his favour with the tooth fairy. Not exactly a get-rich-quick-scheme but one way or another he’ll get to eat his apple. Lucky he’s not William Tell’s son otherwise that apple would have an arrow smack-bang through the middle of it.

So whether you and your kids prefer their Granny to their Pink Lady, be a sweetie and weigh in on the debate below.

I love you every day! How do ya like dem apples?

Image from: here.

I Love You Kids

No kidding! I do love you.

Ok, I’ll put all goat/kid jokes aside for the express purpose of your reading pleasure plus your inward groans will accompany me into the wee hours otherwise.

Have you ever noticed the similarities between a kid and a child? Seriously! There’s many that can’t be overlooked. When I started thinking about it the more I questioned whether baby goats were named kids first or whether we call children kids frequently because they resemble a baby goat in behaviour.

I recently saw a ‘Parenting test’ on FB that suggested yet-to-be-parents take a goat into the store when buying groceries. ‘Be sure to pay for everything the goat eats,’ was the key to that little test. I can imagine taking a goat and being banned from the store for life. I wonder if children ever get banned?

My kids seem to think they are goats of the mountain variety and will try and scale a vertical surface to perch on a ledge at the top. ‘You think that’s a good idea? Don’t you watch the goats? They fall off you know!’ It’s a fact that mountain goats don’t live as long as their flat dwelling cousins.

Baby goats are all legs. The way that they jump in the middle of running is nothing short of funny. Young children don’t walk anywhere. They run, hop, skip, jump, turn circles, side step and prance like a horse from point A to point B.

A goat’s call is ‘maa.’ Some kids call their mum the same. Female goats can be called nannies. Hmmm?

Goats can be very stubborn creatures. Ditto for my boys.

And what’s with the headbutting? We may lock horns once in a while but I love my kids.

Drop me a line or two about how kids are goat-like. It’d be great to hear your stories especially if they feature kids called Billy.

I kid you not-I love you.

Image from: here.

Put a Little Love in Your Heart

Only space for a little love today.

Today I had only a little space reserved for love.

The parking lot in my heart was full.

My head was at work today while my heart was full of love for my boys. That only left a little for all the mini peeps. My heart kept leaping back to the fact that my preschooler will officially be in Preschool next year.

You see today I stepped out of my Loading Zone where I happily go about delivering packages of learning. When I relief teach (sub) I normally teach primary school aged kids (5-13  here is Australia). Today, for the first time in 19 years I taught Kindergarten kids.

Wow! What a jaw-dropping, eye-opening experience. It was not dissimilar to having 30 clones of my little guy. The only differences were some were wearing frilly stuff and I didn’t have to wipe one single bum.

Today I got paid what most would consider a tidy sum to push swings, paint, sing songs, amuse, read, do puzzles and play. Hey, isn’t that what I do at home every other day for a big fat zero? So why did today go so slow and all the days at home whiz by like a police car chase scene? Today was a No Standing Zone exactly the same as any other.

I have no clue. I’m still trying to work out if it’s the best or worst part that I get to do it all again tomorrow and Thursday.

So this post resembles a beat-up old Vee-Dub or the Mini that may not be able to fit everything in that I’d like to.

I hope the brakes are fixed by tomorrow night though because it’d be nice to be able to stop.

Please note the RESERVED signs where only my boys are allowed to park.

Image from: here.