Wordless Wednesday

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Ch- Ch- Ch- Changes...

So, I was sick of the look of my old layout so I decided to change it! I really just need to pay for a real one which I LOVE, but this will do for now! I wanted simple and I got simple... I have been having a few issues though... I cannot figure our where the post divider went... Its driving me CRAZY. It was nothing fancy, just a line, but it is MIA and everything runs together. I do not like it! If you know how to fix it, PLEASE enlighten me before I neglect my children even more as I stare at the code twitching...

Out of the mouths of babes....

Since I can't sleep, I decided to use this quiet time wisely and share a few recent blurbs and them I am so off to watch Brothers & Sisters....

• "It's not fair! I am not tall. I want to be tall!! I am gonna grow tall like my daddy. He's REAL taller!" ~ Anthony (This cracks me up because... Jason is 5' 5" Yup, he's REAL tall)

• "Da poop is coming tomorrow OK mommy? Only pee coming later" ~ Madison

Its all about moi.

Pop on over to Supah Mommy's blog and you are guaranteed some laughs and some AWESOME giveaways.... Check her out she is always fun!!! I wanted to partake n her meme today as I flaked a few weeks ago and I have felt bad ;) So without further ado...

5 Essential MEme Items I cannot survive without...

* on a daily basis

* on a deserted island

* with my kids in the car

What and why.

Hmmm..... Which to pick.... I think I'll choose on a daily basis as I can think of five things fairly quickly....


1. MAC Teddy Eye Kohl Without it I look like death! It is my favorite eyeliner because it goes on awesome, is the perfect color, and never smudges or fade. I LOVE it!!

2. My Black Berry!!! The calendar saves my butt DAILY! OMG I forget everything and this helps me stay somewhat organized!!! Also, I am an email JUNKIE... it really is an addiction. I love checking email, scrolling through FB, or BBM-ing Jason while waiting in line, for my gas to fill, etc! I never leave home without it!

3. I have a book with me at all times.... I LOVE reading and do not get to read as much as I would like....

4. I go through tubes of this like CRAZY!!!! (It doesn't help that the kids get into it often) I really do love it. There is a tube in my bathroom, my car, and my purse ALL. THE. TIME!
and last but not least....

5. The final and Most Essential item I cannot survive without is the smoochies and hugs from my sweet babies :) Oh how they ALWAYS make me smile no matter what! Each morning I wake up from a big ole smooch on my cheek from Anthony! It makes me melt EVERY day as does Mad's nose kisses.... I smile just thinking of them!

According to Anthony....

The other day, Anthony was asked to describe his daddy.... This is the answer he gave:

"He is a real daddy. He's my real daddy. He has real hair and a mustache too... His name is really Jason. He's my daddy!"

The "real" simplicity of it just made me giggle! Anthony LOVES his daddy and his "real" hair! :)

Whatta Week!

So you have all read about the key debacle.... So, let me fill you in on some of my other unfortunate disasters this week:

• Madison covered her legs in A & D ointment (the girl is OBSESSED with lotions and creams. If she spots them she lathers up in an instant!!)
• Anthony left a trail of syrup from the kitchen to my bedroom upstairs!!!
• Jason wasted over an hour at Walmart waiting for police to review security cameras because someone stole his Black Berry... Only after looking at the surveillance video did they see that HE left HIS phone on a SHELF!!!
• It was riding toy at preschool and 4 other children had the same bike as Anthony.... After school, I checked and rechecked that I had the right bike.... Anthony and Madison started to argue, so I turned to break it up... I grabbed the bike and threw it in the trunk. When I get home... you guessed it... I grabbed the WRONG bike, so back to school I went!

and by far the BEST party of the week:

• Madison was having a FIT in the bathroom because she would not go potty.... I walked away to ignore her fit.... After a few minutes I go see if she is ready to go potty and I find her covered with: shampoo, lotion, AND KY!?!?!?!?! O.M.G!

I swear I do NOT leave my kids unattended for extended periods of time.... Just while I go potty, cook, etc! And TRUST me I check in OFTEN! With these two I have to! :)

Fun Firsts Fridays

Last Saturday Madison had her very first haircut! I have been putting it off for two reasons:

1. I still want to see her as a baby (well sometimes)
2. I LOVE her long hair and didn't want too much to be taken off

Last week, I finally decided it was time. After assuring Jason for the millionth time that I would not let it get cut short, we all piled into the car and drove to Cartoon Cuts so we could witness this milestone... I was so proud of her! She sat oh so still and just hammed it up! She LOVED every second! She is such a girly girl! When she was all done she kept looking at herself and shaking her lovely locks :) She was too funny!

Snip Snip Snip!

A pattern? I hope NOT!

Let me forewarn you, this MAY be lengthy...

Let's flashback to a late November day last year when the temps rose above 60 and my family and I spent the day outside getting ready for Christmas... It was a PERFECT day UNTIL we go to lock the car doors and notice our car keys are MIA. We semi recall Madison (then a sweet 19 month old) playing with them. We looked EVERYWHERE and to this day CANNOT find them. We both swear she threw them in the sewer....

OK, back to present day: Tuesday Jason took Mad to DMV and I had 30 minutes of silence before I needed to head out to get Anthony from school. Oh those 30 minutes were so nice and QUIET! :) I go to grab my keys and low and behold they were not there. I called Jason to see where he put them as he is NOTORIOUS for moving MY stuff. He swore he did not touch them.

I frantically begin a search for the keys. NOTHING! I call Jason and direct him to pick Anthony up as there is NO way I will be there on time at this point... Again I asked him if he touched my keys, and AGAIN he said NO! Madison heard us and she piped up from the back seat and informed Jason that "da keys in da front yard. In da fwowers" NICE....

Jason and Madison head to preschool and I head out front. STILL no keys. Jason has no way to get both kids home as his car only has ONE car seat, so I begin having a MAJOR panic attack (hyperventilating and all) in the front yard.... Just call me ridiculous....

I decide to ask my neighbor to give me a ride and of course she is NOT home! :( Neither is the other neighbor! I begin calling friends and NO ONE is home!!! Finally, I decide to call the friend who is known for NEVER answering the phone :)!! She must have heard how distraught I was on her voicemail because she called me right back!! She was my knight in shining mini van! She reunited mother and child.... Dramatic I KNOW, but we all know by now, I am a wee bit dramatic ;)

So home we arrive and the hunt continues... Finally, the keys are found.... In the TRASH! Madison threw them away!!! AHHHHH!!! Thank GOD I saw them as I was tying the bag up to go out...

Lesson learned? ALWAYS put my keys up and NEVER leave them where my little clepto can get them! lol

Too baby? Too Scary? NOPE, Just RIGHT!

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays!! I LOVE it! It is so much FUN!!! My kids are really starting to "get" the holidays and they have as much fun as me celebrating them! I have been looking for some fun Halloween DVDs to share with the kids, but some have just been too scary or too babyish... I have been on the quest to find a fun movie to watch with the kids so that we can get PUMPED for this Halloween...

NCircle Entertainment sent me a World World Halloween DVD and let's just say I LOVE it (as do the kids) First, Word World: O.M.G! I heart this show! The animation is adorable and I LOVE how they stress Phonics! Anthony has been so into making words the past few months and Word World is a great show to foster this word building curiosity!!

The DVD, Word World: A Kooky Spooky Halloween, is a great addition to your holiday movies! It has 2 episodes and a FUN music video! The movie has been available since August 25, 2009 and has a suggested retail price of $6.99! It is EDUCATIONAL, fun and has just the right amount of spookiness for young children. Madison loves putting blankets over her head and pretending to be the ghost, aka sleepwalking pig... :)

I would HIGHLY recommend Word World: A Kooky Spooky Halloween! This awesome preschool DVD can be found at Toys R Us, Amazon, or www.NCircleEntertainment.com I am sure your kids will love Word World just as much as mine!! :)

Wordless Wednesday

My Sneaky Reader....

For more WW: Momspective, Five Minutes For Mom, 7 Clown Circus, Ordinary and Awesome, MomDot, Wordless Wednesday , , Life @ 30, Three Peas in a Pod, & Conversations with Moms

A year? Already?!?!?

One year ago today, I dove into the world of blog... I had opened my blog quite some time before, but never wrote a word... It was too much: scary, daunting, intimidating, public... Honestly though, I think its one of the best things I have done in a while.

Playing House started out with a few friends who dropped in and a place for me to document the fleeting moments of my life.... Yet, it has grown into so much more! I love this little nook I have carved out in this massive computer world... I love all the people I have grown to know... I love sitting down to write.... I love it all!

I thank all of you for stopping by and checking in on the crazy world of me! Casa de Staci is crazy, but its a good crazy! I look forward to the next year in the world of blog! :)

Top Ten

Things I Have Learned About Being a Parent of the Two and Over Crowd

10. You will not own anything nice for at least 15 years....

9. Sticky fingerprints show up in the most random of places

8. You become a pro plunger user...

7. Window coverings make fabulous capes even after spending hours draping them just so....

6. You will never again be woken up by an alarm, instead the troops will barge in declaring its a "brand new day" before the sun even rises

5. It takes at least two bottles of soap to degrease a little girl whom loves to lather on her "wotion" aka VASELINE!

4. Public urination is not a crime when you are under the age of 5

3. That lone missing crayon? Don't worry they WILL find it, when you least expect it!!!

2. A room can be DESTROYED in 2.5 seconds and takes a least an hour to fix said disaster area

and the number one thing I learned since becoming a parent:

1. While there are days that seem to never end, the years are going by in a blink of an eye!!!

MIA

That's been me.... I have been super busy and just can't seem to get organized... Yesterday, I hosted Pokeno, so you know what that means... I scrubbed, cleaned, and decluttered (ok just do NOT open any closet and we are all good). I *think* I am finally caught up on my housework. Maintenance will be key to my survival :) Now, I just need to get into some sort of routine...

The days are over WAY too fast. After preschool drop offs / pickups, the gym, and the kids' activities there is NO time for anything else. My house was (thanks girls for getting my butt in gear) a nightmare, laundry is way backed up, and well dinner has been a joke! Let's just say I am a wee bit floundering....

My goal this weekend is to figure out a new routine to go with this whole new chapter...

So all you super moms... How do you fit it all in? Share with me you secrets :)

Wordless Wednesday

For more WW: Momspective, Five Minutes For Mom, 7 Clown Circus, Ordinary and Awesome, MomDot, Wordless Wednesday , , Life @ 30, Three Peas in a Pod, & Conversations with Moms

Random Thoughts Tuesday

• Yesterday we went to A Day Out With Thomas and had a BLAST! We all had so much fun!!!! If you have train enthusiasts, I would HIGHLY recommend!!

• Hand print / Finger print crafts ALWAYS make me smile!!! Seriously, there is NOTHING better!!

• I *heart* being told I am a genius by my children MULTIPLE times a day for doing the smallest of things!

• Will Madison EVER potty train? Some days she wants to others she REFUSES? What to do? Today is a good day, maybe this will really be it?!?!

• Why can I NOT get get "People Are Strange" by The Doors out of my head?!? I have been hear Jim Morrison in my head ALL day long.....

Friend Makin Monday

I have always wanted to participate in FMM, but never seem to make it! Amber is hosting this week and FINALLY I am joining in! This week's topic is your favorite TV shows! Perfect topic since all the TV is making its way back....

My Faves in no particular order:

Who died?

Jenny as the new Queen B? LOVE IT!

Who did he marry?

This island is really starting to annoy me! :)

I must know what happened to the baby! This show makes me cry EVERY week!

From my shelf to yours....

Reading is a HUGE part of who I am.... As a child, I would constantly have a book in my hand! I drove my mother CRAZY bringing books to the dinner table.... I would get lost in the stories and once I started reading, I could not put the book down! This love of the written word had continued with me through out my life and I still ALWAYS have a book close by!

The love of reading is something that I hope my children acquire! Story time is one of my family's favorite times of the day.... Anthony and Madison will scour the bookshelves selecting the prefect stories each night! We all snuggle into bed and read and read.... I LOVE it and so do they! Needless to say, I was thrilled when HarperCollins Publishers sent me three wonderful books to share with my family and with you!

*****

As a child I can remember reading and LOVING all the Frog and Toad books by Arnold Lobel…. They were some of my favorites, so I was so excited when HarperCollins Publishers sent me a copy of the newly released The Frogs and Toads All Sang.

Arnold Lobel’s daughter, Adrianne Lobel, discovered three handmade books by her father! She had them carefully scanned and colored them in just as her father would have and his previously unpublished works came to life!

I was so excited to share Frog and Toad with my kids and I was not disappointed. They loved the silly songs and beautiful illustrations as much as I did! The Frogs and Toads All Sang was released May 26, 2009…. Check it out; I don’t think you’ll be disappointed!

*****

Charles Dickens’ The Christmas Carol is a MUST during the holidays…. This classic has been “done” so many times; some very well and some not so great…. I was intrigued by this rendition and could not wait to read it… The illustrations… OMG beautiful! I honestly have never seen a classic come to life like this! Brett Helquist did a fantastic job! The pictures are gorgeous! This version of Dickens’ classic is awesome and I am thrilled to have it! We will be reading it for many many Christmases! This book will be available September 22, 2009. It would make a fantastic addition to your Christmas readings!

*****

Goldilicious, Victoria Kann, was right up Madison’s alley! She just loved it! The story was fun, silly, and exciting! It was a super addition to Pinkalicious and Purplicious! The story is all about a young child’s imaginative adventures! We love it and it will be at the top of our reading stack for quite some time I am sure! This book has been available since June of 2009 and I am sure it has been entertaining many!

Fun Firsts Fridays

Last Saturday the kids and I spent the day with my second family! All through college, I babysat for this family. They have four girls and the youngest was 9 months when I started watching them, now she is in 6th grade! Oh how old feel!! This family means the world to me and I miss them tremendously! I need to make it a point to see them more!!!

It was such a fun day and was filled with laughs! We spent a few hours at a local farm picking berries and apples…. Let me set the scene:

A Picking We Will Go

Two adults (me and Mo), three tween – teens (Erin, Kylen & McKenna), and my two munchkins all set out to pick. But wait, Erin has gouged her foot with a bottle and cannot walk, so we pull her in a rickety wagon through the fields over the mountains and rocky terrain and she crawls through the rows filling her basket. Madison is eating as she picks and more is going in her mouth than in her basket! Life is good…. Hot, but good.

What a peaceful and idyllic day…. Right? WRONG!

The apple orchard is “around the bend” aka up a steep, treacherous, rocky mountain and remember its HOT. Mo pulls I push Erin in the rickety wagon to the orchard as the other four run ahead…. Mo and I are DYING!

Finally we make it… we rest as the pickers pick some awesome apples…. Once we had our fill Mo designates Kylen and McKenna the wagon pusher and puller and after mucho protests they agreed…. We piled Erin high with our berry baskets and headed along….

That’s when it happened! The girls lost control, the wagon went in a rut, and TIPPED! Out spilled the injured SCREAMING Erin and all of our berries! I tried not to laugh as we salvaged what we could of our hard work and re piled Erin and the bruised berries into the wagon….

We go about five more feet and… you guessed it…. The wagon tips AGAIN! Erin is FREAKING now and I am so laughing! Usually it’s MY kids creating a scenes…. I am sure we were the entertainment of many!



Let’s just say we made it back eventually all in one piece... Well almost all of us. The wagon? Let’s just say he is in a better place now…. With a broken handle and two wheels missing tires…


All in all it was an experience and one I can’t wait to have again! We had a great day!!

The moment has arrived....

Today one of my dreams have come true... I was able to volunteer in Anthony's class today and it was AWESOME! We played, we crafted, we learned about space, we ran, we snacked, and I read stories. OMG call me crazy, but these are the moments of motherhood that I have always dreamed about!

My goal has been to be that mom... You know the type:

• class mom
• team mom
• PTA mom
• library mom
• the mom that bakes
• the volunteer mom
• the field trip mom
• the overachiever mom
• yes, the annoying mom that wears all the hats

Will I be perfect as most of "those moms" are? No freakin way! I am sure disasters and debacles will follow and it will all probably blow up in my face, BUT I will enjoy every second of it! Over achiever I am not, (more like half a$$ed) but my intentions are good and fun will be had! And that my friends, is all that matters!!

So, I want to be "that" mom (in a good way) and today the moment arrived! Oh how I was in my glory! SO. MUCH. FUN!

Oh what a day!

What a fantastic day today was! I still cannot believe that Anthony is 4! Four just sounds… so… so… MATURE! Lol!!! Really, how do they grow so fast?!?

Anthony’s special day was GREAT! We made his favorite, pancakes and the opened gifts! His expressions were so funny! I think Madison enjoyed it as much as he did! After the gifts we were off! We hit up a local family owned Chuckie Cheese type place (Only it has so much cool stuff and is 10,000 times cleaner!!!) and we all had a blast! The kids dug the indoor playground and we all had fun playing the games!!!

We came home and made Anthony’s cupcakes for school and then went out to dinner to celebrate! My son beamed the ENTIRE time! He was so pumped when the restaurant sang to him! I think it was the highlight of his year!!!

We came home, rode bikes, took a nice hot bubbly tubby, and had a story marathon! Our favorite way to end a day!

The only problem we encountered was, Anthony thought all his friends were coming for his party today! :) Sadly, that is not until the first weekend in October because of Jason’s schedule and I did not want to bombard everyone with invites just as the school year started! So his birthday will come again in just under a month… lol!

All in all it was a perfect day!!

Happy Birthday Anthony!

He was so excited when he woke up and saw his door decorated! (After he realized that he did NOT miss his birthday!)

Look at Madison waiting so patient like a BIG girl!

Me and my baby!

(Not a great shot of me though)