I confess: We're too busy for soccer

As much as it pains me (and more so Adam) to admit, we weren't able to let the boys do spring soccer this year. I know sports are important for many reasons, but we just can't fit it into our schedules with the less than ideal practice times we'd have, and the fact that Adam will have to do a lot more traveling for work in the coming months.



Aidan really started to become a more confident player last season. Sad to lose that momentum.


I feel even worse about it since this time Logan was actually looking forward to playing. He loved soccer when he first started playing, but much to Adam's dismay, got disinterested and refused to play in the fall. Honestly, it worked out much better for us anyway since we didn't have to juggle multiple practice nights or competing weekend game times. But just as soon as he decided to give it another try, we pulled the rug out from under him.

But the reality is that I can't do Logan's practice every Monday from 6:15-7:15 AND Aidan's practice every Wednesday from 5-6pm. Just getting to Aidan's 5pm practice last season was a mad dash since the bus doesn't even come until sometimes closer to 4:30. And I work 8 hours a day outside the home. And Adam has soccer and I have Zumba on Mondays already.

On top of that, it's enough of a struggle for Aidan to get his ~90min of homework done at home on a normal night, and still have time to eat a normal meal (aka not cereal) and bathe and go to bed at 8/8:30. We would have to sacrifice a normal dinner and quality homework time TWO days a week (not to mention Lorelai's bedtime on Mondays) for several months.

I guess we've lucked out with previous seasons getting good practice times (last year their practices were back-to-back on the same day, which was the most ideal), and the lighter homework load was a big factor. But the biggest wrench this time is Adam's travel schedule. If he's not there on a regular basis to share that burden (especially with allowing one of us to be home to put Lorelai to bed like normal), I don't see how it logistically makes sense. I'm not superwoman, apparently unlike all of the other parents who have multiple kids in multiple different extracurricular activities. Seriously, what's the secret?? How do you make it work?

While I'm sure we could probably push back bedtime if we had to, or come up with more creative meal ideas, the thought of living with this schedule flat out overwhelms me. I like our routine and I like things to be less complicated, not a logistical nightmare. I'm sure it's mostly selfish on my part, but I don't see how adding stress to my (our) situation will result in anyone being happy.



Fortunately, there was relatively little fuss from the boys when we broke the news to them. Aidan enjoys playing, but said he's okay missing a season (we'll re-evaluate in the fall and keep our fingers crossed for a better schedule!). As for Logan, he was a little sad, but said that as long as we take him bowling on the weekend, he would be okay. Deal, kiddo.

Linking up with Heather and Megan:

Wise Words Wednesday: Happiness is an attitude

"Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same." ~Francesca Reigler 





We've got a serious case of the grumps in our house between the two boys. At least for Aidan, the novelty of school has worn off now that he's experiencing frustrations with his homework and has realized that third grade is tougher than second grade. And Logan...well, he doesn't hate school yet, but doesn't love it either. I guess he likes it ok, but I think his brother's attitude has rubbed off on him recently. Logan really doesn't like homework either, because it gets in the way of his play time after school (an adjustment, for sure).

At the end of the day when I tuck Aidan and Logan into bed, I have a quiet chat with each of them about their day. The first thing I ask is what the best thing was about their day. These days, Aidan in particular is hard-pressed to think of something (anything!) positive. His moodiness isn't a new thing, but school has pretty much always been a positive thing for him, so I really hate to see this shift in his attitude (especially so early into the school year).

I've had countless talks with both boys about how they can't possibly have a day where NOTHING good happens, so I refuse to hear those words. Even if it's something as small as "lunch was yummy" or "I didn't get in trouble," there is always something to be thankful for and a bright side to everything. Basically, at the end of the day, I pretty much require them to think of one happy thing, or one thing they're thankful for and focus on that.

I tell them that it's okay to be upset or in a bad mood sometimes—well all have those days, but being in a bad mood all the time isn't good for them, and it isn't good for the people around them.

As parents, we hate to see our children unhappy and we want to do anything we can to change it. But I'm struggling with the fact that there's only so much I can do to actually make them happy. It has to come from inside them, and all I can do is model a positive attitude and convince them that the bright side of things is a much better place to be.

"Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn't learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn't learn a little, at least we didn't get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn't die; so, let us all be thankful." ~Buddha


Completely unedited pictures Adam took of our post-storm sunset last week. Even if nothing else good happened that day, this sunset was a little bit of happiness to focus on instead. If only Aidan and Logan could think this way... (and if only we'd seen a rainbow, I might have had an even better metaphor )

A mess-making fool

On Saturday night after Aidan and Logan went to bed, some fool dumped out their stuffed animal baskets all over the floor in their room.

It looked like a much neater mess in the dark, like they were all trying to escape...

Who in the world would do such a thing? Well, ME, of course! After I pranked the boys on April Fools day last year with jello instead of juice in their cups, I had to follow up with something this year. Unfortunately, it was even more lame than last year. Fortunately, they got a kick out of it...after I clued them in on what was going on.

Yet again, they totally forgot that it was April Fools day, so they were absolutely confused when they woke up, especially since they had just cleaned up their room before bed (all part of my master plan). I heard them get up and come in our room, but since Adam and were still in bed trying to sleep, they tried to solve the mystery on their own. I heard them identify footprints near their door, and inspect the rest of the house for more mess.

When I got up, they were eager to let me know they had nothing to do with the mess in their room, and they told me all about the clues they found. Love that they weren't going to take the blame for that one! When I asked them if they remembered what day it was, it finally dawned on them that they got "April Fooled" by me again.

They laughed about it until they realized how unfair it would be for them to clean up a mess they didn't make. Ha! Don't worry, I cleaned it all up.

BTW, coming up with a relatively simple April Fools prank that didn't involve making a mess or scaring the crap out of my kids was really tough! I didn't want anything mean-spirited, too elaborate, or too messy (I'm not cleaning up water, shaving cream or food off the floors!), so my options were pretty limited. If anyone has any suggestions, I'd love to hear them :)

The brains, they are rotting

Not sure why Santa finally gave in and gave Aidan a 3DS after holding strong for 2 straight years. And now? He's obsessed. Logan's obsessed. Rotting brains.

Exhibit A


Exhibit B



And with all of the video game hoopla, Adam had to get in on the action and get back out his PSP. Of course the boys drop everything to watch. Daddy's so cool.

Exhibit C

Like father, like son

Not pictured: Exhibits D-Z of one or both of the boys playing their video games or watching Adam play his. If it's not the playstation, it's angry birds on the phone. Sigh. Boys will be boys?

We do have rules that the boys have been really good with so far: obey the time limits we set (usually no more than 30 minutes); no fighting over it or because of it; schoolwork comes first; they don't get to keep them in their rooms; and we do either one show OR video game, not both.

All in all, I guess it could be worse. Aidan is still way into books and had Big Nate and the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series right up there on his Christmas list along with the DS. As long as he reads just as much as he plays video games, his brain won't rot too much, right?

On that note, I think we need to make a date with the library. :)

Oh poop!

My apologies in advance for poop talk, but I've got a baby and two boys. It's inevitable, right? What I didn't think was inevitable was all of the clogged potties we'd have to deal with. How is it possible for a 4-year-old to clog the potty more than a grown man?? Seriously, dude has been clogging the potty like a champ since he was like 2 1/2! So last night, Logan does it again for the bazillioth time. I was in the middle of dinner so I didn't get to it right away. Plus, I like to leave these things to Adam, who wasn’t home yet (you're welcome honey). Turns out, Aidan either didn't remember or didn't care that it was clogged, so he dumped on Logan's dump. Just awesome. I didn't even realize this until Adam gets home and that's the first thing they tell him. Like they're proud of their grossness. Wow, the things I have to look forward to, right? Adam took care of it like a pro and only got a little bit of poop water on his pants. GAG.

I also never thought I'd have to deal with baby poop up the back and all the way down to the toes. I'm not exaggerating when I say that it was literally down to her toes, pooling in the bottom of her footed sleeper. I got Lorelai out of the exersaucer the other day because I saw poop up her back. Not a new thing because no diaper is a match for her massive blowouts, but what I didn't realize—until I saw the look of dread on Adam's face—was that it had blown out the bottom too, and my arm was soaked in poo. I should probably buy stock in oxiclean, as much as we use it!

That's the scoop on poop at our house! Because I’m sure you were just dying to know…