Grin and Bear It!

As of last night, we have a new guest at our house!

The TOOTH FAIRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hayden lost his first tooth last night. He's seven years old and just now losing it! The permanent tooth had already broken through and I coached him through wiggling the baby tooth until it was almost ready to break free! Finally, as he was brushing his teeth, it turned sideways and I pulled it out for him! Now Hallie has been walking around trying to figure out how to get her teeth to come out...she's never to be outdone!

I've never been bothered by teeth...they're quite fascinating, in fact. So, I was glad the tooth fell out when I was around, instead of at school or somewhere else.

The fairy delivered three gold dollar coins to Hayden under his pillow and he couldn't have been more excited! "You've got to be kidding me!", he said! "Gold coins! Three of 'em! This is awesome!" It was nothing but smiles for quite some time after that! Toothless, mind you, but smiles!

Speaking of teeth...I'll be starting a new journey next week at a local dentist office and I'm too exicted about the new adventure this will most surely become! The office staff are great folks, the doctors are both outstanding and I'll be achieving one of my goals...learning something new and challenging! So, wish me luck...and here's hoping the tooth fairy is as awesome to your kids as she was to mine! ;)

Learnin' from kids - Part II

I thoroughly enjoy nights like tonight.

After supper, it was decided that ice cream was in order. So, it's off to Sonic for some frozen treats.

On the way home we were canvassing some lesser travelled roads and telling the kids that they were haunted. You know the drill: going over a bridge you turn the lights off and tell them that you might hear screams, etc. So, once we'd moved on, the discussion turned into the fact that ghosts weren't real. Hallie inquired about aliens.

Hallie: "What about aliens, Hayden? Are they real?"

Hayden: "Yeah, they're real. But, they only live on Uranus."

..............An established silence before the two grown-ups in the car started snickering...............

Hayden: "What are you laughing at? They do live on Uranus!! ALIENS LIVE ON URANUS!!!!"

.............Laughing louder...............

Hayden: "It's the seventh planet."

I swear...he never amazes me at how smart he is. I had to go through the helpful sentence (My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas) before I knew it was the seventh planet! But, that's not saying much, is it? After all, he did stump me with that Blasobian bit last year.

I still can't believe we were both reduced to laughter by something so juvenile.

I mean, geez...it's not like someone pooted.

Looking For Something Stronger Than Calgon?

Then pick up this one! Well, maybe it won't take you away....in fact, it might just immerse you directly in it!

If you are a mom, you've gotta read this one! I picked up my copy at BAM. It's available online there and through Amazon as well. It's derived from truemomconfessions.com and it's a keeper! If you're familiar with the website, then you'll be getting approximately the same thing only in book form. It's an eye opening look into the world of motherhood and what moms feel. The website offers women the opportunity to divulge their deepest, darkest secrets regarding motherhood anonomously! There is no worry of backlash from other readers. Or, like on mommy boards, the sad "looks" and demeaning lectures on why you are or aren't breast feeding. It's an all too true look at what real moms think, feel and say (or don't say)! If you're a mom, you will identify with more than one of the quotes found in this book! And if you're not a mom, then at least you'll have stepped away learning something about the "joys of motherhood"! I read this one out of the deck today and I'm eager to hear your thoughts on it!

Learnin' from kids...it's great, ain't it!?

It goes without saying that my children are smart. I can only hope they keep up the good work throughout their educational careers. I'd like to bestow upon you a few things they've taught me recently:

Math ain't my strong suit however Southern dialect seems to be, huh?! The kids and I have this routine where we try to put how much we love each other into words. For instance, Hallie will say, "Mommy? I love you all the way to the North Pole!" (Melts my heart every time.) Hayden has learned infinity - the theory that numbers go on and on and on...and on. So, he'll throw that one out there: "Mommy? I love you infinity!" (My little number cruncher...I'm so proud!)

So, Hayden comes home from school and hits me with this:

"Mommy? Did you know there is a number bigger than infinity?

(I'm instantly nervous - like he just asked me how to solve a word problem or something!)

"No there's not! Infinity is the biggest number...even I know that!", I reply.

"Yes there is!", he answers back.

"Okay, fine! What is it?", I ask.

"Blasobian."

(Pronounced Blah-so-bee-in)

"Where'd you hear that?" I question.

"I just learned it." he informs me.

So...I think I'm right in this equation (pun intended) but I feel it necessary to confirm my correctness over a six year old. Give me a break! We're talking about math here...I'm uneasy around numbers!

So, later that night as they're all tucked away safely in bed, I ask their daddy if there is a number bigger than infinity known as blasobian. His dead serious response -

"Jenn? Are you letting Hayden trick you with math again?"

The answer - Yes.

Finally, Hallie threw one out the other day that had us all laughing. Every morning as Hallie and I are headed to school we see our neighbor, John, out walking Molly and Roxy - his two dogs - and we always wave at him. Hallie loves it when he waves back. (It's the little things, right?) Anyway, she asked me the other day why John wasn't going to work. My answer was that John was retired. She didn't question it. Simply went along.

Later in the week, her daddy had to carry her to school one morning and she asked him,

"Daddy? What's retired mean?"

(Keep in mind daddy knows nothing about how she heard the word.)

He responded, "It's someone that doesn't have to work."

"Oooohhhhhh. John and Bev are retired."

This morning...she asked me if Courtnee's daddy was retired. (Courtnee is their friend in the cul-de-sac who comes with a set of great parents.)

I said, "No. What makes you ask that?"

"Well, he doesn't go to work, so he's retired like John and Bev." she responded.

(Courtnee's daddy - Chris - works from home.) I should have told her he's only retired on Friday's when you can most often find him on the golf course!

It's funnier coming out of her mouth, but I'm hopeful the humor translates.

More pictures of the puppies!

Well...back by popular demand - more puppy pictures! There's several here! The pup with the white streak on his head has been named (appropriately so) Harry Potter! Feel free to change her name is you decide to take her. They're a week old now and still haven't opened their eyes or ears. They are grunting a lot more and requiring more food from Jacee (also pictured below)

and she's been a great mommy. The kids adore them. Not sure how that seperation is going to go when the time comes. Oh well...

Hallie holding the one we call Harry Potter!

The one we call Harry, again!

No name for this one yet, but look at that face....precious, right?

Here they are - one big happy bunch! They spend most of their day like this.

Aren't they adorable!

And their mama - Jacee!

Raisin' little boys...it's never dull!

It's not often that I'm late to the punch...but it does happen. My saving grace here is that I never proclaimed that I'd have the latest and greatest movie news on this here blog! Have you seen the Disney movie with McDreamy, Enchanted? No? Go get it. We purchased it through the wonderful Dish on Demand tonight and I must give it two enthusiastic thumbs up! It's a great family movie! We curled up on the couch to watch this one and it got warm reviews all around. However, my little man's response got me grinnin'. I was gushing about how good the movie was (don't get all excited just to be let down about it...it is a kid sort of movie...so you should expect that when you watch it) and Hayden says, "Well, it wasn't that great." Me: "Why didn't you like it?" Hayden: "It was just too....I don't know - sweet." A part of me hopes he always thinks this way. Women will sink their claws into a sensitive man. I gotta get him out of that! ;)

Happy Birthday, Hayden!

My little man is six years old! May 23, 2002 he made me the happiest person on Earth by making me a mommy! It's the greatest job I've ever had and I couldn't have asked for a better little guy to be mommy to.

As I approached the hospital around 6AM that morning, I was eerily calm. It was as if this was the job I had been waiting for all my life. My labor was mild, didn't last very long and the end result was more than I ever could have hoped for. I can't remember what it was like before I was called mommy...but I'm sure it was boring!

Hayden is my thinker. He's articulate and precise with every move he makes. He wants nothing more than to please others so that they're proud of him and that's exactly what I am! I thank God each day for allowing me the privelege of being mother to such an amazing little guy.

My mom tells me how lucky my kids are to have me as their mommy and my husband for their daddy. In some ways, she's right and I know that.

Truth be told, I'm the lucky one....by far!

Snakes, Snails and Puppy Dog Tails!

The following is an email I received from Hayden's teacher yesterday:

"Today during PE Hayden was running behind someone and a rock flew up. Hayden says that it went into his mouth and he swallowed it. I told him that it would come out later when he sat down on the toilet. Hayden was worried but seems to be fine now. He is playing and doing math centers. I am not sure what he swallowed. I wanted you to know what happened at PE. Please send a reply so that I know you read this email."

When I stopped laughing, I composed myself enough to email her back and let her know that she had made my day with this story! I'm reminded of a day (way back when today's fashions were first in style) and I was playing outside in my neighbors yard. Yeah, we used to play outside all day long. You weren't allowed in the house unless you were eating or sleeping. Nevertheless, I happened upon a patch of wild mushrooms in the yard and joked with my friends about eating them. I didn't...but for some bizarre reason unbeknownst to myself, I went back to the house and announced that I had consumed the wild mushrooms in the yard. Sigh...perhaps it was a cry for attention; perhaps I was just bored and wanted to see how much she would believe. Regardless, I'm sorry I did it. No sooner did the words leave my mouth, my mom was administering Ipecac syrup by the spoonfuls and I was in misery in no time!

If she weren’t so concerned about the possibly poisonous mushrooms that I didn’t eat, she might could have been concerned about the eating disorder I could have developed from it all…but I guess she was smarter than that, huh? I learned my lesson…I never lied about eating potentially poisonous mushrooms again…ever!

Potty Business!

My schedule lately has been work and T-ball. It is what it is.

Today, our game was to take place at my old stomping grounds at 5:30pm (we won 22 - 15, if you're intererested). Just so you're aware, it's a modern day scheduling marvel that I get each of my children from opposite sides of town and end up in the desired location by 5:30pm on any day...let alone a game day. My workday doesn't end until 5pm, so I'm still not sure how I do it. I guess I'm glad neither of my kids get carsick. That could certainly throw a wrench into my schedule.

I managed to get back to work by 4:15pm with my son in tow and we immediately stopped in the restroom to change into his uniform. As he was wrapping up his utilization of the facilities, a co-worker of mine and fellow BamaMom came in to do the same. He happened to be in her stall. "Her stall?" you might be asking yourself. Allow me to clarify: she breastfeeds her baby girl. She uses the large (handicap) stall because there is a chair available to her to make it a more comfortable situation. As soon as I saw her coming, I set Hayden's wheels in motion. We can set the clocks at work by Lauren and her breastfeeding schedule, so I knew she was ready to get going.

So, I got him dressed (mostly) and told him to put his cleats on and head for my desk when he was done. He nodded in compliance and off I went to get some paperwork done before I had to book it to daycare and the ball field. He appeared shortly afterward. But, not before he got an important lesson in the ladies room. Lauren had taken her seat in the 'big stall' and the rhythmic hum of her breast pump began to fill the tiled lavatory. Of course Hayden's curiosity was sparked. He proceeded to hit the floor and stick his head up under the stall! He's a very inquisitive little guy...so he's not alarmed by much luckily. He asked her what she was doing, and her response: "Well, I'm making supper for my little girl."

His response: "In the bathroom?"

He's witty too.....

It's the littlest things....

The afternoons during T-ball season can be quite a whirlwind. Today was no different. I picked him up, got home and sent the two of them outside to play while I got dinner ready. I'm a huge advocate of outside. I think the fresh air, sunshine and room to run and scream does them (and me) a lot of good. I'm actually able to get a load of laundry done in the midst of their playing and I'm constantly reminding them that they better be glad the sun is still out....otherwise they wouldn't be able to play out there anyway.

While I was filling my kitchen sink with dishwater, I heard a disturbing sound from the outdoors. It wasn't terror, mind you, just disturbing. Anytime they're outdoors, it opens my mind up to endless possibilities as to what may or may not be happening. Is it the dog jumping all over them; bike crash, maybe; sibling antics, perhaps? The guessing is the beauty of it all, I'm sure. No, the noise turned out to be Hallie. I went to the laundry room and peeked out into the driveway...and this is what I saw:

I'm so proud that they remembered to put a helmet on her that I can't be mad!

Here's to the littlest things!

Out of the Mouths of Babes!

I'm always amazed at the mind of my little man. He always thinks of others. He's always worried that someone around him or associated with him won't be happy. He has a heart of gold. Tonight was no different. We had finished up dinner and he was getting his snacks ready for tomorrow. As he was buried up to his elbows in the pantry, he spun around quickly to inform me of this: Hayden: "Mommy, I'm going to take three snacks so that I have one to give to someone that doesn't have a snack at my school." Me: "I think that's just about the nicest thing I've ever heard. You just might be the sweetest thing! I'm very proud of you for that." Hayden: "Thanks...can I take four?" I laughed out loud. I wondered if I was snowed into believing there was some pitiful kid with no snack at all sitting among the many snackers in his class. Or perhaps his plan is to break the bank by feeding the many hungry five year olds at WPES. I have to keep reminding myself, he's still your typical male...whether he's mine or not! Either way...his heart was in the right place.

Screw the kids....PARENTS say the darnedest things!

I guess maybe I should start a "Stupid Thing Of The Day Said During T-Ball" section for my blog. It happens so often, I'd never be short on stories...that's for sure! Allow me to set the stage for you: Game is in progress. Parents and grandparents alike adorn the ever so slight excuse for "bleachers". Smaller, stickier, louder siblings of those on the field are circling the legs of their respective parental unit. Nachos with cheese are hitting the ground faster than the clovers being picked in the outfield. It's a typical 5:30 game. Yesiree...we're in full swing (no pun intended) of T-Ball season now. Directly to my right sits...well, we'll call her "Mom O' the Year" who is clearly entertaining some visitors of the grandparent age and thereby ignoring her youngest child....who is where....you guessed it, UNDERNEATH THE BLEACHERS! Maybe I'm too much of a hard ass...but I just can't stand it. This child is like an accident waiting to happen ALL THE TIME! If your child is accident prone wouldn't you want to pay extra attention? Sigh...I digress. On to the actual transpiration of events. Long story short, something happens to the child. Who knows what it was...someone took his toy, someone stomped his toe, he wanted something that he was told (God forbid it) no to. It doesn't really matter at this point. So, after several agonizing moments of the blood curdling, glass shattering scream, the paternal parental unit steps in to "save the day". He fails, by the way. So, he makes an executive decision to head toward the house. He says to "Mom O' the Year": I'm going to take him home. (Sighs of relief all around were most assuredly audible.) "Mom O' the Year's" response: Whhhhhhyyyyyyyy? Can't you just make him behave? I don't want mama to have to take us home. I'm speechless.

Just another peeve, perhaps.

I'm riddled with them...peeves, I mean.

• I can't stand lipstick on a cup.
• I hate when someone uses my chapstick and covers it in their lipstick.
• I hate panty lines.

You've heard them all before from me. I stumbled across a new one this evening. It was a wonderful Spring afternoon perfect for T-ball practice. It's a new year; a new team. That means new folks to get to know. That's new parents...new styles of parenting...new little siblings tagging along to the games.

I came across something this evening at practice that absolutely drives me crazy. There happened to be a sibling of one of the players climbing the HUGE pile of red dirt adjacent to the field. It was cute...in a "Joe Dirt" kind of way. ;) He was jumping, playing, throwing, sliding...you name it, he was doing it. The problem, however, came as mama was trying to get "Jr." to listen to her as she told him to "git down" and "git over here" followed by "don't make me have to spank you". She didn't appear to want to exert the energy necessary to make the child mind, so she summons dad over (away from assisting the team in practice) to take care of the child on the dirt mound. What?!!! I'm dumbstruck by this. One of your kids is on the field practicing. Your significant other is putting themselves out there to assist the coaches and little guys in practice. All you have to do is entertain the young one for approx. one hour. That's it! After that, you can dump them both on your partner. What's so hard about that?

Does this drive anyone else crazy?

Blog Buffet - indulge yourself!

February 2008 is just about over...how quickly time flies, huh? I thought I'd recap a couple of interesting things that were thrown at me today...just in time to call February D-O-N-E!

• I came upon this little ditty from one of my favorite blogs, List of the Day. Quite ironic that it goes hand in hand with my blog from yesterday!

• My little boy came downstairs this morning - bright eyed & bushy tailed - and told me, as I lay in the bed lookin' ruff, I'm sure that I was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen! Then he held my arm and told me it was warm. He said it reminded him of pancakes. I'm so happy to be the best looking, most like pancake mom he's ever seen!

• "Wham! 30" happens in my pod at work everyday at 4:30pm. I was astonished to discover today that two charming, yet sheltered, individuals were not aware of who Wham! actually was. I'll save you the script of adjectives I used to describe their tortured selves and tell you that they left with a better understanding! "Wham! 30" Forever, baby! Whoo-hooo!

• My husband is into plants, as you may have read before. He's in the process of getting his tomatoes ready to go in the ground. No, it's not time yet...but he's growing his from seed. He's been catching some flak from some folks for doing it this way. He mentioned that he was going to grow them from seed just to spite the naysayers. "Like you", he said. I reminded him that I never said he couldn't grow them. I just don't understand the purpose in doing it this way. Tomato plants are very inexpensive at the nursery and your odds are better that they'll be a hearty, stable plant once placed in the ground. His response: "That's like going to the mall to get a baby! You don't have the same attachment or love for the plant!" I had nothing else to say. Here's to voluminous production of acidic fruits in our garden and yours this year!

What's a degree?

A conversation over dinner this evening:

Hayden: "Daddy, why are you in college?"

Daddy: "Well, I'm trying to get my degree."

Hayden: "What's a degree?" (It's always the easy questions for him. I get questions like, "What makes a rock hard?")

Daddy: "A degree is something you get after you finish school that makes you an expert in that subject. Like, if you're going to be a teacher or a lawyer, you become an expert in that by learning all you can about it."

Hayden: "What are you going to expert in?"

Daddy: "Finance and Business."

Hayden: "Hmmmm....okay."

About five minutes later:

Hayden: "I'm gonna expert in superhero."

I love his ambition!

Reasoning...from a 5 year old!

So, most of you are aware of the new 'lady friend' in my little boy's life. Her name is Gabrielle and, from what I hear, she's "all that and a bag of chips!" Still not having met this little chickie, I'm understandably skiddish. I mean, what are her intentions, exactly? Shouldn't this be discussed?

I'm kidding....partly. So, after the inaugural drawing came home introducing Miss Gabby to me, I was surprised to find out that the following week he was comtemplating a "break-up". HE'S FIVE!!!!!!!!!! I arrived to pick him up from school and the teacher tells him to "think about it before he makes any rash decisions." "What's she talking about?", I asked. "Oh, nothing.", he replied. "I'm just thinking about breaking up with Gabrielle.", he finished.

Turns out, after much poking and prodding, that his reasoning happened to be because she cheers for the wrong team. That's right...apparently, she's an Alabama fan. At our household, we pull for the Auburn Tigers (WAR EAGLE!!!!) and he saw this as reason enough that it just wasn't going to work out. He actually told the teachers at his school that his "family won't put up with that!" How hilarious is that? How's that for die hard?

Needless to say, he decided to give her another shot when she converted for him. I just might like this girl after all ;) I had to laugh at this...and I did - out loud, in fact. If only all life's decisions were that simple, huh?

Co-sleeping...it ain't for everyone!

Hayden as a wee little man!

(Definitely an alternative to co-sleeping!)

In the blogosperic world we live in today, it's easy to find a chat room, message board or blog telling you all about how to raise happy healthy humans. My advice (not that anyone has asked) is to do your own thing. You were raised by someone...you are guaranteed to have picked something up from it. The hard part is deciphering the good from the bad and going from there. I bring up Co-sleeping because it's something foreign to me. I don't do this. I never have. I can count on one hand the number of times my son has ever been in the bed with me to sleep - and he was sick all three times. Now, that's not talking about the very young infancy age when he was in the same room right next to the bed and might as well have been in it with me. Those teenie babies need to be near you...heck, they've been inside you for nine months. You can't expect them to let go immediately. But, then your second one will come along - like my little princess - and letting go is exactly what they'll do. From the day she came home from the hospital, she slept in her own bed...for eight hours or more each night. I'm not making that up. She was independent from the moment my water broke. I struggle with issues like this, as we all do. I feel guilty sometimes when my kids (one or both at he same time) come all the way down the 17 stairs in the middle of the night for whatever reason (bad dream, wet bed or daddy's loud snoring) and I march them right back up to get in their own bed. I feel very guilty. I want so badly to throw them in the bed with me and cuddle next to them and hear their little hearts beating. But, the independent/determined side of me wins almost every time. I want them to be independent. I want them to be strong. I want them to be self-sufficient. I expect too much from them, I fear. Now, don't get me wrong. It's not like I can't go back to sleep once they're tucked safely back to sleep. I'm out once I'm back in the bed. It's afterwards...the next morning. I think to myself, "Would it have been so bad to let them crash for just one evening?" "What's it going to hurt to let them fight over who sleeps next to me...so close I can smell their lotion?" Nothing, that's what. It wouldn't hurt one thing. I can speak from both sides of this, I think. I was a co-sleeper with my mom for a long time. I was probably 10 or older before I started taking ownership of my own bed. Different circumstances, however. It was just she and I. No one else to consider, really. If I examine how it all affected me, I must say it was minimal. I am a very independent person...not because my mom didn't let me sleep in her bed, but because of the many other qualities, morals and values that she instilled in me. What it all boils down to, I think, is that there are different choices for different folks. For those that choose to co-sleep with one or more of their kids, they will most likely have to deal with separation issues later in life. For me - one that chooses not to - I'll have to deal with the troubling issue of "maybe if I had let them crash with me, they'd be closer to me." I'm curious about your opinions on this...don't take it as controversial. I'm just interested to know. There's certainly no worry of a right or wrong opinion here. Tell me your thoughts!

What was I thinking?

Why is it that going out to eat can be so traumatic for me? If it's just me, the kids and my husband, no problems. I never have issues that I can't deal with. But, throw someone else and their child in the mix and all hell is probably going to break loose!

Not all kids, mind you, but certain ones. Why do I keep agreeing to go eat with them? And it's not the kids fault. It's the parents. (Note: If the adults you're dining with are disciplining your child more than you, you should probably pay more attention.) What makes you think anyone wants to continue the evening if your kid screams bloody murder because they can't hold the "buzzer" while we wait for our table? What makes you think that my idea of a perfect evening hasn't been ruined when I have to tell your kid, not once but three times, to put their ass in the seat and stop acting like their on an episode of Romper Room? What makes you think that I don't want to call it a night after bread and appetizers when I'm stuck sitting next to my kids and your child because you "don't mind if they sit over there"? Are you completely ignorant? Never mind...I should answer my own question.

My history with restaurants is mostly pleasant. I tend to pick them apart when I arrive. No one is safe - least of all, management. I will go through the operations with a fine tooth comb. I should be a health inspector/mystery shopper. I've been reduced to cleaning the bathroom in an Olive Garden before. Don't worry; I'm not embarrassed by it. If it had been up to par when I walked in, I wouldn't have had to do it. That's just my take. Yep, owning and managing my very own restaurant would make me as giddy as a school girl. Not only am I certain that I could do it, but I'm positive that I'd do it with skill, poise and professionalism. If nothing else, you could feel comfy about eating off the bathroom floor...if you wanted to. I base my standards on what I expect. But, I digress.

As for the company with which I have chosen to dine with recently, it may have been a mistake. I can no longer take the ridiculous behavior that comes with this particular human being's parents. They take every opportunity with others as a "break" from their child...a child that is starving for attention. It is this child that makes me realize how special child care providers really are. I always knew that particular profession wouldn't suit me...but never has it been more evident than when I'm exposed to this little ankle biter. Then there comes the awkward situation when the "Dad" talks about how sorry "Mom" is at the whole parenting thing and the only reason they aren't having anymore (Hallelujah!) is because he already feels like he has two kids with Mom and child. (While I totally agree with his statement, still awkward for the rest of us.)

Perhaps it's pity that makes me agree to this once in a blue moon. But, when I can't make it through dinner without downing several Blue Moons, I think it's time to reconsider present company.

Who's That Girl?

My son comes home with a plethora of information in his backpack everyday of the week! I'm overwhelmed each afternoon with junk information, lunch money requests, vocabulary words, drawings, lunchroom menus and weekly agendas. It demands a good portion of my time to pilfer through it all and determine what gets my attention and what goes into the trash file! The drawings always get my attention. From carefully crafted silhouettes of Spider-Man and Super-Man to rockets and football fields...my fridge looks like a mini Louvre (of sorts) and that's fine by me! When else will I have the joy of covering my Frigidaire?

I might have known this one was on its way...the illustrious "girlfriend" picture. So, her name is Gabrielle. I've never met her - not sure I want to, to be perfectly honest. He proceeded to tell me that she gave him a hug when they parted this afternoon. With tears streaming down my face, I expressed interest in this "special friend" - don't give me any grief...it's been a crazy day today! I'll do my best to adjust and accept this new little philly into my world...for as long as she's here, anyway.

I wanna be cool!

Every night as the kids go down for the night, I lay their clothes out for the following day. I've developed this as a habit, not only from my mom as I was growing up, but out of necessity for the morning routine. They're climbing into bed and I'm placing their clothes strategically at the foot of the bed. It really speeds things up in the morning and it helps stave off arguements about who wants to wear what when we should be heading out the door.

Tonight, as I was performing the ritual, I laid out Hayden's jeans. I checked with the "weather man" for the next day's forecast and chose a long sleeved shirt to accompany those jeans. I approached the head of the bed for a kiss and hug and he stopped me short.

Hayden: "What shirt did you get for me?"

Me: "Your red one with the sports balls on it."

Hayden: "Well, can you please let me wear a cool shirt?"

Me: "A cool shirt? I thought that one was cool. What's wrong with that one?"

Hayden: "Nothing, I just really wanted to wear a cool one."

Me: "Well, which one is cool?"

Hayden: "Well, is my Bains Gap one clean? It's a cool one."

He was referring to a shirt he has with 'GAP' on the front. Already he's enamored by the brand name items and he's only five years old. The funny thing is, he called it his 'Bains Gap' shirt. 'Bains Gap' is the name of a road near our house. We take this road often because it's a quick shot to Anniston over the old Ft. McClellan. My little man is more aware of his surroundings than I take notice, huh?