No, I have not been lazy.....

I have been distracted:) For Thanksgiving we went to the CFO's Cousin's house for a superfantastic meal! Then the unthinkable happened.... the CFO and I got hooked on Guitar Hero. I know, I know, we are WAY behind the times. Did I mention we have Triplets:)

As I may have mentioned I have been thinking about buying a PS3 for sometime now. Well, Black Friday seemed like the day to make it happen. So Christmas came a little early! We got two guitars and a drum set for Guitar Hero along with the bundle that came with the PS3; Batman, Infamous, and a Blue Ray movie.

The CFO and I were up till 2am Friday night playing head to head on the guitars. Yep, she beat me like a rented mule. While I am WAY better at video games I have NO musical rhythm. Saturday night I busted out Batman and I am hooked. The Triplets love "playing" the drums.

Hopefully this will not affect my blogging or sleeping too much but I do love video games. BBT (back before triplets) I use to play for up to six hours at a time. Heck, in College we (I) would sometimes (frequently) stay up all night playing. I guess that explains my GPA. I don't want the CFO to start using the parental controls of the PS3 on me so I will try and keep it under control:)

Just cause you got the monkey off your back doesn't mean the circus has left town.
George Carlin

Why is it drug addicts and computer aficionados are both called users?
Clifford Stoll

Al

No good deed goes unpunished

I have mentioned before that this is the #1 rule to keep in mind in our house. Well, it turns out that it may be more ubiquitous than I first thought. While at MCDs last night one of our friends' kids spilled some water. It wasn't a lot, about the size of two sheets of paper, but it was in the play area so it was having an immediate impact as all kids are in socks.

So I went to ask for a towel to clean it up. The very nice lady behind the counter said she would take care of it. She brought a mop and set about multiplying the wet area by about 20. So now EVERY kid would have wet socks. Lesson learned, next time I will empty the napkin dispenser to clean up the mess:)

You are a product of your environment. So choose the environment that will best develop you toward your objective. Analyze your life in terms of its environment. Are the things around you helping you toward success - or are they holding you back?
W. Clement Stone

What looks like a loss may be the very event which is subsequently responsible for helping to produce the major achievement of your life.
Srully Blotnick

Al

Getting back into the swing of things

Did I mention that Jackson had pink eye when I left on Thursday? Now William has it:) The Nuke Doc was nice enough to lend (give) us some eye drops to treat it. I just hope we aren't starting a round robin in the house where it goes round and round.

After several false starts we finally got out of the house around 11am today. Boy, was I off my game. I usually get out by 9 or 9:30. We headed to the Science Center and did we pick a bad day or what. One of the local school districts were out today and it seemed the others all had field trips. Luckily we ran into some friends. They guarded the door to the kindergarten and below area while I watched the back of the area where most of the kids were.

After a late lunch, where Jackson ate 1.5 personal pan pizzas, we headed home. Yep, I waited till Jackson went to the potty before even thinking of putting him in his car seat to leave:)

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
Mahatma Gandhi

One of the keys to happiness is a bad memory.
Rita Mae Brown

Al

The weekend

The CFO and the Triplets had a great time without dear old Dad this weekend. Our sister in law came down with her twin three year old girls and three month old boy while her husband (my brother in law) and I went fishing. We went fishing with one of his clients from work and three of his client's friends.

Everyone hit it off right away. We got down to the coast Thursday night and headed out first thing Friday morning. Unfortunately it is not snapper season as we caught some BIG red snappers. But alas, it was not to be. The dolphin got the snappers we caught and had to throw back. Little did I know that do that dolphin frequently shadow boats to eat what we don't keep.

Thursday was largely uneventful. Friday made up for that. We woke up much latter and we were going to just fish near shore as a storm was forecasted to come in. When we got out there it looked like pretty good weather so we took the bait and headed out further. Unfortunately for us the storm made it ashore while we were out and we had to fight it on the way back in. I won't go into details but it definitely made for a good story, once we were back on the dock:)

I hope to go fishing again next year but I will definitely let the CFO know where we are leaving from, the name of the boat we are on, where we are headed and what time to expect us back. It was a learning experience for all of us:)

The fishing was good; it was the catching that was bad.
A.K. Best

Al

Gone fishin....

The CFO has let me take a few days off. One of my Brother in laws has invited me on a fishing trip to the coast. Don't worry, the CFO will have the shotgun, her 357 and the dog to protect them while I am gone. I just hope she doesn't decide that she wants to stay at home and have me go to work:)

There is a coherent plan in the universe, though I don't know what it's a plan for.
Fred Hoyle

Al

No really, I love the kitty

Probably not to be

So I kept Jack the dog locked up while we "played" with the cat today. Based on how the Triplets "played" with the cat they are not ready for a pet that... well... one that they won't kill by accident:) Other than the usual hugging (choking), petting (hitting), and sitting by (on) him, William decided to "help" him down the last 4-5 steps when they came down for breakfast.

Oh well, I figure feeding and cleaning up after 4 (Triplets plus the dog) mouths (and the other end) is enough:)

But they sure look cute together!

The will to be stupid is a very powerful force, but there are always alternatives.
Lois McMaster Bujold

Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.
Maria Robinson

Al

To be or not to be, that is the question.

We visited the in-laws this weekend to celebrate our Nephew's sixth Birthday. After a great time and learning that I don't want the Triplets to get into Transformers (what genius psychotic engineer designed those things?) we headed back home with a gift we did not expect, a kitten. Seems the in-laws took in a stray that just had kittens. VERY cute ones. The kids took to one, well, one endured their "affection" so we brought it home for a trial run.

Saturday night and again last night the CFO and I tried "introducing" the kitten and Jack, our dog. Let's just say it is no bueno. Luckily I had the harness on the dog so the kitten is still alive. Unless Jack decides the kitten is not a snack in the next few days, he is headed back to mama:(

Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don't quit.
Conrad Hilton

Al

Grace

It is getting harder and harder to know when to keep a no a no. Addison is the Queen of playing the game. She will yell at me "I want my blanket!" over and over. Then when I say "I am not getting it for you because you were not nice to me" she will say "pleeeeeese" in a VERY sweet voice. I am trying to hold the line that if she does not ask nicely the first time she does not get what she is asking for.

So the CFO started introducing Grace to the kids, like a second chance. It if funny how frequently I forget about giving Grace but I sure am glad to have it. When they don't ask nicely they now get to ask for Grace. I just need to be sure they don't use that as a tool against me:)

Grace is the very opposite of merit...Grace is not only undeserved favor, but it is favor shown to the one who has deserved the very opposite.
Harry Ironside

The first and possibly most fundamental characteristic of divine grace is that it presupposes sin and guilt. Grace has meaning only when men are seen as fallen, unworthy of salvation, and liable to eternal wrath… Grace does not contemplate sinners merely as undeserving but as ill-deserving… It is not simply that we do not deserve grace; we do deserve hell.
C. Samuel Storms

Al

Potty training update

I worry that I am jinxing myself by writing this but I think Jackson is well on his way. As of yesterday we have had three days in big boy underwear with no accidents. This even includes naps! I know they will happen but I was getting a little tired of throwing away new underwear:) Most people salvage underwear that has been violated. I have no problem with pee but I do have a line.

You might be thinking that it would be easy to empty it and wash them but.. well... let's just say that I keep the kids VERY well hydrated:)

Promise me you'll always remember: You're braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.
Christopher Robin

My spelling is Wobbly. It's good spelling but it Wobbles, and the letters get in the wrong places.
Winnie the Pooh

Al

Is this funny to you?

My humor

My humor seems to get me some funny and not so funny looks. I am getting a bit worried as I know the Triplets will pick it up and hurl it back at me any day now. My humor is VERY dry and often times quite sarcastic. I have heard some people say that sarcasm is the lowest form of humor. Well... their Mama's dress them funny:)

As a good example of how my humor has put people off during the years consider a quote from an Intern that I worked with some time ago. We were working a job fair when she turned to me and said:

"You know, when we first met I thought you were a jerk. Then I talked to people and they said "oh, he is funny but just really dry." You know, they were right, you are funny."

I cannot think of time that I would not want humor. I know there are many times that others don't want humor, as for me.... bring it on.

One of the biggest gifts I think I can give my kids is the ability to laugh at themselves AND let others laugh at them without it hurting their self image or ego. Laughter cures almost all ailments and what it doesn't cure you forget about while you are laughing.

If you ever start feeling like you have the goofiest, craziest, most dysfunctional family in the world, all you have to do is go to a state fair. Because five minutes at the fair, you'll be going, 'you know, we're alright. We are dang near royalty.'
Jeff Foxworthy

Al

Gain an hour? My sweet fanny

Once again I am getting hosed by daylight savings time. Gain an hour? How about loose an hour over, and over, and over, and over, etc.... So the Triplets seem to wake up at the same "time" every morning no matter what time the clock says. So I am back to the 5:45 or 6:00 in the AM wake up. I know that is not bad for having three three year olds but I was really getting use to waking up later:)

The only reason some people get lost in thought is because it's unfamiliar territory.
Paul Fix

Al

Get outside!

I love Fall! Long sleeves and shorts are probably my favorite things to wear and I will wear them until next Summer. My rule of thumb is that unless the high for the day is below 30 degrees I am wearing shorts. I do change this rule if I will be outside all day. Maybe the high would needs to stay above 50 then:)

No, I do not use this rule for the kids but I do put them in long sleeves and shorts a lot. I get a lot of looks from other parents while we are outside as most kids look like they are headed on an arctic excursion:) I also do not like coats and I let the kids decide if they want to wear one, on most occasions. Yes, they will actually tell me when they want to wear one. My thought process is that if I am going somewhere for, let's say an hour. I dress for the hour, not the 30 seconds it takes me to walk from the car:)

We have been doing a lot more outside lately for a few reasons.

1. The weather has ROCKED!
2. The kids are happier and easier to control outside. This of course does not include yesterday when William ignored me and rode his tricycle away from us when Addison needed to go to the potty. He had to walk back to the van for that little insurrection.
3. A good friend chides me a good bit for being inside too much:)
4. We have some GREAT parks around here.
5. I have finally given in to the CFO's request to give the kids baths daily. So I now almost want them to get dirty to justify the work:)
6. I do not want my kids to be inside kids.

We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.
Joseph Campbell (1904 - 1987)

Al

That's how I roll....

I LOVE it when an opportunity presents itself for me to use some of the mule-load I lug around in my SAHD backpack. If you have not read about my FAVORITE backpack yet, check out my previous entry. This thing ROCKS! Anyway, I am usually carrying enough for us to survive a small natural (or unnatural) disaster. Food, water, clothes, first aid supplies, you name it, I probably have one or two of them:)

So I jumped at the chance when I saw a child with a napkin wrapped around her finger the other weekend at a pumpkin patch. I asked the mother if she wanted a band-aid. She asked "you have one?" I said "yes mam." When she said yes I quickly asked if she also wanted any Bactine or Neosporine. I think I scared her:)

Did I mention I also carry a flashlight and a knife?

Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.
English Proverb

Al

Ride'em Cowgirl

Peer pressure

Once again peer pressure may be my saving grace with potty training. William has been about as interested in potty training as I was in my classes during pledging. Let's just say I skipped ALL my classes for two weeks and my GPA was... well.... quite sub par:)

William was with his BFF, Caleb, quite a bit this weekend. That made for a busy weekend of wrestling, running and a few "infractions." A lovely unintended consequence is that William asked to wear big boy underwear yesterday! He has increased his interest because Caleb is potty trained. It will still be a long row to hoe but at least I am in the field:)

One of the keys to happiness is a bad memory.
Rita Mae Brown

Al

Happy Halloween

Halloween is my favorite holiday! No, it has nothing to do with the commercialization of Xmas or the fact that Thanksgiving is totally skipped by retailers, it has to do with the idea of fair play. Every other holiday I know of is dependent on some part, if not a large part, on wealth. Better gifts, better food, better parties, etc... but not Halloween. It is the great equalizer. Sort of like the Department of Motor Vehicles. It does not matter if you are poor or rich, what race you are, if you are good looking, skinny or in shape, EVERYONE gets the same candy when they go to the door. I am sure some people give better stuff or more candy to kids they know but I would say 95% of the time everyone is equal. It does not matter if you have an expensive costume or if you are dressed like a homicidal maniac (you look like everyone else), you get candy. Kids from lower income areas can go to higher income areas to trick or treat, Democrats can go to Republican neighborhoods, anyone can go to anyone's house (except for those LAME people that don't turn their lights on) and get candy.

Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas and Thanksgiving but Halloween is the one time of year you can be anyone. Heck, it is encouraged. For our small group Halloween party we dressed up as our best friends and everyone thought it was hilarious, especially them.

We had two Firemen and a Dalmatian from our house.

I'll bet living in a nudist colony takes all the fun out of Halloween.
Unknown

Al