Year of the Mother - Part 9

No. I didn't forget...I started to get nervous as I reviewed the past months events...
Indy - soccer game?? Laina - hair clips?? Mac-??
So I decided to save myself on the last week of the month. I made a little picnic dinner and told my family to get off the couch and get in the car. We drove for 4 minutes to one of 2 lakes that we live near - its sad that we live amongst such beauty and rarely get out to appreciate it. But on Sunday we ran and jumped and played and ate...and I took pictures. LOTS of pictures - because it makes me happy. Really really really happy to take pictures.
When we were finished and getting in the car Laina said "See mom, now you have some pictures of YOUR kids" This is all part of my reverse-psychology parenting :) Most photographers kids groan and scream and cry when they pull out the camera...but not my attention-deprived children...no - no they pose and hog every second of camera time possible! Not that they don't make weird faces though...cause they do....which I let them, and then delete them.

Phew. That was a LOT of images...I'd just like to add that EVERYONE had a wonderful time and thank'd their mom for lighting a fire under their rears.

JOY Juice.

During a recent women's conference I listened to a speaker talk about "joy" juice. I loved the talk and found it to be a bit hilarious, but it has stuck with me. My joy juice meter was at an all time low this past week...in face it was negative and cracking in some parts. That has all changed.

I filled up my stores of joy juice and can happily say that they are back to overflowing.

I met up with my aunts and cousins and my mom and sister. I scarfed down some really good Chinese food and laughed with the women in my family. I wore pink (even when I didn't know I was supposed to! seriously guys...how badly out of touch am I?). I got my toes painted (and Laina and my husband noticed within 30 seconds of seeing me - were they really that bad?) I ate some Rubio's tacos and smiled at my baby. My husband put a big smile on his face and took the 3 oldest kids to a movie and to pizza and to a soccer game in the hot sun AND put them to bed before I got home.

I can last another 14 weeks of sleepless nights if need be (NOT saying that I'd LIKE to, just saying I could). I'm already planning the next "joy juice refill station" weekend :) It will be longer next time.

My sister and I should NOT be allowed to take a camera with us...we start to lose control of our actions - if there happens to be a good photo op (the crazier the dare the better...we had to wait for the salesperson to turn the other way so we could jump in and take a picture with his "wares").

This one was WAY clever eh?

Yeah...yeah...I know...gorgeous...whatever...could we spread the beauty genes out a little please?

My mom and her sisters...I love them ALL.

Now WHO thought this would be funny? Sure stick the small girl with the tall girl. (there's about a 15 year difference here :)

Surprise! You're 60.

You don't just wake up one day and think WOW! I'm 60.

NO - you have many years stacked up of sweat and hard work. Many many sleepless nights (sorry sleepless nights are kinda the thing of the moment around here)..and IF you're lucky ('cause that's all parenting is right? LUCK?) you have kids that love you and will throw you a SURPRISE birthday party.

I wish I could say that we were planning this for a long time - but that's not how we roll around here.

When I realized that my mom and dad were coming up to watch Indy's soccer game the day AFTER her 60th birthday (my goal is to use the numbers 60 as much as possible- I even have a picture with "60" in it:) I couldn't resist trying to grab as many siblings as possible and to form a plan with my dad (he's a really really really really good planner). So we grabbed some Brown Bag Burgers (the best on the face of the earth!) and surprised Gma Kathy. Of course it took awhile for the birthday girl to arrive and the kids were going crazy....so we colored pictures for Gma and practiced hiding and threw fat babies in the air.

(Remember the really really really good planner? He's planning for the day after Christmas here...)

Those are genuine smiles...it just doesn't get any better than that.

Happy 60th Birthday mom - we love you!

I Get Knocked Down...BUT I get up again

Aren't older brothers sooo cruel? They thought they were so funny when they found the afro.

I don't know where I'd be without Chumbawamba cheering me on...my only alternative yesterday was quoting William Ernest Henley "In the fell clutch of circumstance - I have not winced nor cried aloud" (only I DID cry...quite a few times) but today is a new day, and after hours of downloading (onto my husbands laptop :) he'll love it I'm sure - I can just hear him saying "Honey I'm so proud of you!") I'm connected with PS and my images once again :) (okay not ALL images...just the ones that were on my camera - waiting to be loved).

I'm finding "happy juice" this weekend in the form of my mother and sister and aunts and cousins...in the form of PF Chang's and Gammage Auditorium and Legally Blonde. I can't wait!

We interrupt this unusual bout of silence...

To report a complete system failure/meltdown of computer (and life - because aren't they connected??) I've been without a computer for almost a week and have been told it will be another 2 more weeks...I don't think I'll make it...I realize now how deep my computer addiction runs. Luckily my husband has graciously lent me his laptop (I'm waiting for him to start "renting" it to me).

On other random notes...I got to start my 3rd antibiotic in a month and now my day is filled with finding out all there is to know about hydrocele repair for McLaren (I'll leave everyone to their google search engines for that one ;).

The Holdsworths like to throw all the craziness into one big lump...thankfully the year is almost over, because there's not a whole lot of room left for anymore craziness!!

El' Gordita - 3 Months

Or just "El" for short. I feel guilty that I only get a few shots of this not-so-tiny girl every month. She changes daily and its hard to grab hold of these few, precious "happy" moments and hold on. I'm still sleep deprived, but I haven't given up on her yet - in fact she's taking what just might be her longest nap to date - going for 2 hours (okay she did wake up after 45 minutes, but a quick little binky helped her go back down). Still have hope every night, that it might be the night she goes for the gold. Here's to hope...in the meantime, here's what she's been up to..

*3 Month milestones:

-Smiles

-Talks, angelic-like...its like they come with these built-in self-preservation features like "I know I squirm and scratch in my crib all night long and make it impossible to get more than 4-5 hours of continuous sleep, so now I will make the MOST adorable angelic coos and sighs so that you will NOT throw me out the window." (not that I have ever thought that...okay maybe the other night around 4am...but only for a second)

-found her hands and holds them so sweetly and then tries to stuff both fists in her mouth and gnaw away on them noisely (as if she needs any more food?!)

-Hair control - a friend recommended some pommeade and water - works like a charm!

**Happy Birthday to my dear sweet mother...be happy that I'm too busy to track down pictures of you and post them everywhere!!

***If I ever get bored with photography, I think I'll head here...good inspiration (my favorite is the gold C3PO on page 4 - ignore the crude bumper sticker posts :)