Mommy Said No

Overheard from the backseat: Jack: "Ava...when I get my cast, I'm getting a red one with a blue stripe." Ava says, "Ooh! Just like me..only mine is pink and purple." Jack asks, "Ava, let me try that on." Ava shouts to the front of the car (which is a rental car because mine has been in for service all week), "Mom! Can I take off my cast?" Me: "No" and then Ava WHISPERS, "Mommy said I can't." Jack conspiratorially responds, "Maybe you should try." Ava then shouts, "Mom! Can I try?" Me: "No". Ava WHISPERS to Jack, "Mommy said no". Jack states, "Well, I will just have to get one too." Seriously?! How many more injuries do we need in this house?!

Ava's New Cast

As you probably are aware, Ava broke her arm 2 days ago and this morning, she had to go to Riley to get her cast put on. When we got there, the nurse said, "Whoa! She has almost destroyed her splint." Good thing they didn't make us wait a week as planned ;) The doctor was talking to Ava about her arm and said that her break wasn't that bad. She said that Ava would actually be able to have a removable cast "but after talking with her for 30 seconds, I can tell she needs a real cast." Ava told her that she "didn't need a cast" and that "I am all better...look! See! I can punch!" She then proceeds to jab at the doctor, fake hitting her and almost tackled her. Needless to say, Ava is on the reckless side; therefore, she has a real hard cast put on. She chose hot pink with a purple stripe. Definitely Ava...raucous princess Ava ;)

Ava's broken arm

Last night was a rough night for us, especially Ava. Ava was climbing out of the bathtub and I was holding her left hand. She slipped and fell hard on her right hand. Heard a pop and she was crying hard...I knew immediately that it was broken. Got Jack out of the tub, dressed both of them and ran out the door. Me? I had just gotten out of the shower before they took a bath so I had soaking wet hair, no makeup...really looked the fright.
Drove down to Riley Children's Hospital ER and she was taken in immediately. That was nice. By this time, she had stopped crying and seemed fine. She was back to talking to everyone and being friends with everyone. We were taken in a small room where the nurse came to see us. She was fabulous...I don't remember her name though. Ava had 8 x-rays taken even though it seemed like the doctor didn't think there was a break because she wasn't crying, they could touch her and manipulate her arm. I kept telling them that Ava is a TROOPER and that her pain thresh-hold is really high. The initial reading of the x-ray didn't reveal a break but then the radiologist spotted what they called a "buckle fracture". Apparently this is a very common type of break in children because of their softer bones. It basically means that one side of the bone buckles or bends without a break on the other side of the bone. It can also be called an incomplete fracture.
They ended up putting a splint on her arm under the orthopedist can see her and put a more substantial cast on her arm. Waiting to hear back from the Casting Clinic to get an appointment.
It was an awful night last night but Ava seems to be in good spirits this morning.


I want to again compliment Riley for their outstanding service. Everyone there was so terrific, from our checkin nurse (Jill Chatham) to our "personal nurse", the physicians Dr. Rose McGwere and Dr. Lindy. The supervising physician was wonderful too but I missed her name all together. They gave both Jack and Ava a stuffed toy to play with and keep, brought movies to watch and carolers came to brighten the entire wards' spirits. The entire staff really worked to keep people's spirits high and to make a bad situation as good as can be. Thanks to them!

What Time Out Looks Like at My House

My children are out of control...they seem to take turns getting in trouble at their respective schools. Today, Jack hops in the car and has "the look". I don't even need to ask because I know the answer, but I proceed to ask how his day was. "Did you get in trouble?" I ask. He says, "Yes" and rapidly changes the subject to everything but the issue. After 8 minutes of him gleefully telling me everything about his day, except what happened, I asked what he got a dart for. He responds, "I don't want to tell you because I will lie." I try not to laugh as I say, "Well then don't lie. It's always better to tell the truth." Apparently in gym class, they were doing stacking cups and he didn't stop. Really? That's all? What a relief.

Tonight we get home and Ava decides she is going to do her own thing. As a result, she gets a time out...check out what time out looks like at my house...look closely!

The City of Lights

My Thanksgiving Break was marvelous! Let me tell you about my adventure to the City of Lights-Paris!!! Not having been there before, I really had no idea what to expect. No idea what to wear...now if you GOOGLE dress in Paris, you pretty much get tons of suggestions, especially if you happen to be American...no tennis shoes, no jeans, no big puffy jackets, no work out clothes, no yoga pants...you know, everything that screams you are an American :) What to wear? Black and stylish shoes. This I can do...maybe....

Wednesday morning-have the day off of work to get my stuff together. Unfortunately, Ava is home sick vomiting, which means I can't get anything I need to get done completed before I leave. Oh well. Brian takes me to the airport with J and A in the backseat and they head off to merry Valpo for Thanksgiving break. Me? I board the plane on time, excited to be on my adventure. Until the captain comes on and says that they cannot land in Chicago and our landing time is in 2 1/2 hours. Now, from Indy, the flight to Chicago is 29 minutes...we are already boarded and sitting on the tarmac so pretty much we could be there in a half an hour. My connection is exactly one hour from the time I am scheduled to land in Ohare. 2 1/2 hours puts me way pass missing my connection and with it being a quick jaunt to Paris, no trip...then it hits me that Brian and friends are on the way north, I have no house key...good grief. Luckily for me, the captain negotiated with Houston to get us in the line up earlier and literally, he says, "We are cleared for take off, flight attendants take your seats," and we took off. Never experienced anything like it before...craziness! Anyway, we were late getting into Ohare and I had 13 minutes to get from Terminal C to Terminal E to catch my connection...this requires a shuttle bus ride and a mad dash through the terminal. Not proud to say it but I think I knocked some people over. But I made it...and so did my luggage (how is that for amazing!)...thank you United Airlines! It gets better...I am in a window seat with an empty seat next to me!!! YIPPEEEE!! I slept most of the way, laying down...as far as I was concerned, it could have been first class! Again, thank you United! Oh and one thing that I want to point out was while we were in our line up to land in ORD, it was incredible looking out at the sky. Everywhere I looked, there were literally dozens of lights from other planes. Since it was dark, I could see all of them. It was incredible the amount of air traffic. Anyways, I digress.

Land in Paris at 9 am their time, definitely tired, definitely hungry, definitely needing some coffee. Met some fabulous people at the airport (part of my EF tour group), including two new friends, Cindy and Lindsay, who made the weekend super fun. Anyways, they herd the folks from the red bus tour onto the bus and take us to the hotel, which was the Hotel Mancure out in La Defense (I don't speak French nor do translations very well so enjoy my commentary from here on out). It was a typical American business travelers' hotel. Nice. We get there, our rooms are not ready but we didn't expect them to be since it was early and literally, we changed clothes in the lobby to put on heavier clothes. Nothing screams American like Lobby Nudity :) Then we head out to explore the city. We joined up with the group who already arrived in on the flight in the wee morning hours and awaited the rest of our group to fly in. We converged on the Centre Georges Pompidou, which is a complex in the Beaubourg area of the 4th arrondissement of Paris, near Les Halles. It was designed in the style of high-tech architecture. This picture is of the Pomidou Center...it was very cool. While visiting this area, we wandered in and out of coffee shops, finding little tidbits to eat. I settled on a muffin that appeared to be mocha but turned out to be a rich bran muffin. It was quite good. Then we went to Starbucks. Yup, Starbucks. Starbucks in Paris is the same as the Starbucks in your neighhborhood. No surprises, which was nice ;) We walked the streeets in Beaubourg and witnessed a women's rights rally/protest. This was interesting merely for the street performance aspect. The people were all dressed in white and then slowly they would fall to the frigid concrete. Then people would come and draw chalk outlines around them. Very creepy but cool.

From here, we began our walk to L’église Saint-Eustache, a huge church in the same arrondissement in Paris. Seeing this enormous church looming before us was incredible...it had flying buttresses in case you were wondering. Absolutely stunning to see. At the base of the church was a statue by Henri de Miller. This is a picture of the statue.

We walked through the many covered sidewalks with the luxury shops. Of course, we didn't stop to look at any of the many amazing shoes I saw. There were some of the most exquisit shoes I have ever seen in those shops. Oh well...Onto the Louvre...if our tour guide were here telling the story, he would say, "Lords, ladles and gentlespoons, let us depart to the Louvre. " The Louvre was spectacular. Ginormous! It apparently used to be a palace where Napoleon resided (I may

be making that part up) and is built in a U-shape. It is massive. Structurally it is beautiful with a courtyard in the center. The courtyard has the glass pyramid that extends below into the building...(Da Vince code, anyone?) From the courtyard we could see the Eiffel Tower...all I kept thinking was how desperately I wanted to be THERE...the one thing I went to see. But I loved to see it from afar from the Louvre. Us ladles and gentlespoons had like 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours to wander through the museum, so off we head to see what? The Mona Lisa, or La Joconde. a 16th-century portrait painted by Leonardo da Vinci during the Italian Renaissance in Florence. She is listed under the title Portrait of Lisa Gherardini, or Lisa del Gioncondo, wife of Francesco del Giocondo. Her facial expression is frequently described as enigmatic, If you are not already aware, she is about 2.5 feet tall and 1.5 feet wide and the closest you can get to see her is about 7 feet away. She is roped off and covered with what appears to be bullet proof glass. Very cool to see her in person. Then a mad dash to the Venus de Milo, another iconic work of art. She is one of the most famous works of ancient Greek sculpture. Created some time between

130 and 100 BC, it is believed to depict Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty. It is a marble sculpture, slightly larger than life size at 6 ft 8 in high. We then wandered through Napoleon's apartment...the grandeur of his life, his home....the table where he dined sat 40! It was magnificant. Pure luxury. I would have loved to have spent more time at the Louvre-to really look at the works of art, check out in depth the Egyptian and Chinese antiquities, the other marble statues....maybe I will go back and spend a week at the Louvre!

After our visit there, we headed out to dinner. We ate at a small restaurant. It was yummy! We had salads with a breaded cheese wedge on top. We tried Kir, which is a wine with creme de chassis. I don't recall our main course. I was so tired at this point. This ended our lovely day number one in the City of Lights!

The next morning (day 2) we had a delicious breakfast of croissants, yogurt, fruit, coffee and juice.

This morning we headed off on our bus tour of Paris, which took us down the Champs Elysees. The Champs Elysees runs for 1.25 miles through the 8th arrondissement in northwestern Paris, from the Place de la Concorde in the east, with the Obelisk of Luxor (the Obelisk is 75 ft. tall and originally stood at the entrance to the Luxor Temple in Egypt; it was moved to the Place de la Concorde in 1833, where the guillotine used to stand), to the Place Charles de Gaulle in the west, location of the Arc de Triomphe. One of the principal tourist destinations in Paris, the lower part of the Champs-Élysées is bordered by greenery and by Grand Palais. Further to the west, the avenue is lined with cinemas, cafés and restaurants and luxury specialty shops. The Champs-Élysées ends at the Arc de Triomphe built by Napoleon Bonaparte to honour his victories. The Arc was designed by Jean Chalgrain in 1806 and is one of the most famous monuments in Paris. It honors those who fought and died for France in the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars, with the names of all French victories and generals inscribed on its inner and outer surfaces. Underneath its vault lies the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier from World War I. Women come daily to place flowers on the tomb.

Stopped for coffee (yummy coffee shop) and headed on over to the Eiffel Tower FINALLY!!!! Photo op in front of the tower...it was a blindingly sunny day. Gorgeous! Named for its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower was built as the entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair. The tower stands 1,063 ft. The tower has three levels for visitors. Tickets can be purchased to ascend, by stairs or lift, to the first and second levels. The walk to the first level is over 300 steps, as is the walk from the first to the second level. The third and highest level is accessible only by elevator.

We then headed the 12 or so miles to Versailles, the hunting lodge of Napoleon (even though he never stayed a night there). It is a royal chateau in Versailles, the Île-de-France region. It was magnificent. Just seeing the sheer splendor that they lived in so many years ago was breathtaking. The court of Versailles was the centre of political power in France from 1682, when Louis XIV moved from Paris, until the royal family was forced to return to the capital in October 1789 after the beginning of the French Revolution. Versailles is therefore famous not only as a building, but as a symbol of the system of absolute monarchy of the Ancien Régime. Apparently, we experienced a phenomenon that rarely occurs at Versailles...we walked right in. During other travel seasons, there can be wait times of several hours and then hundreds of people inside while you are trying to see everything. It was still pretty crowded inside but definitely not bad. There is the Hall of Mirrors, the central gallery of the Palace of Versailles and is one of the most famous rooms in the world. As the principal and most remarkable feature of King Louis XIV of France’s third building campaign of the Palace of Versailles (1678–1684), construction of the Hall of Mirrors began in 1678. The principal feature of this famous hall is the seventeen mirror-clad arches that reflect the seventeen arcaded windows that overlook the gardens. Each arch contains twenty-one mirrors with a total complement of 357 used in the decoration of the galerie des glaces.

The gardens seemed to go on forever-as far as the eye could see. There are meticulous manicured lawns, parterres of flowers, and sculptures and the fountains, which are located throughout the garden. Dating from the time of Louis XIV and still using much of the same network of hydraulics as was used during the Ancien Régime, the fountains contribute to making the gardens of Versailles unique. While we were there, we watched as the first winter snow of the year moved in...the looming gray clouds. As we were preparing to leave Versailles, snow began to lightly fall. It was so pretty. By this time, it was early evening and we headed back to the city, which took a bit of time because traffic was snarled due to the first snow. Guess things don't change no matter what country you are in :O

We had a free night in Paris so we all split off in different groups. I headed off with the group (Wayne, June, Lindsay, Mark...)who wanted to see the Champs Elysees and Arc de Triomphe at night. Plus due to the holiday season, there was a market with little shops, where we could shop, eat and just enjoy the atmosphere. It was truly an exciting part of the trip. Everyone was in high spirits. There was this hot chocolate that was to die for...it was like they melted a Hershey's bar into a cup with a little milk-rich and so yummy! The city was magnificent..just so beautiful and magical. I can understand why it is called the city of lights. Everywhere you look it seems as if it is twinkling. Plus on the hour for 5 minutes, the Eiffel Tower really does twinkle. So beautiful! On the Champs Ellysees, they had draped the tree lined streets with blue lights with blue running lights too. It looked as if it was raining. During our evening visit to

this part of the city, we literally walked from one end to the other. So you can see from the pictures that we saw the ferris wheel lit up and the Obelisk of Luxor. Then at the other end of the avenue is the Arc de Triomphe, again lit up at night. We got to ride the elevator to the top of the Arc and looked out. Did you know that there are 284 steps to the top and it is a circular staircase? I took the steps down and it is CRAZY! I got dizzy but it was definitely worth the experience ;-) Looking out from the top of the Arc and seeing the lights of the city and the twinkling Eiffel Tower will be an experience I will never forget!

Day 3 is our last day in Paris. We headed out to Montmarte. Montmartre is primarily known for the white-domed Basilica of the Sacré Cœur on its summit and as a nightclub district. The other, older, church on the hill is Saint Pierre de Montmartre, which claims to be the location at which the Jesuit order of priests was founded. Many artists had studios or worked around the community of Montmartre such as Salvador Dalí, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso and Vincent van Gogh. We did some serious shopping in this district with its

cute little shops and big art market. This rather disconcerting sculpture commemorates the author Marcel Aymé, who lived in this neighborhood until his death in 1967. One of his best-known stories was about a man who had the ability to pass through walls, until one night he got stuck; his ghost could still be heard crying out from within the wall.

We then headed back to the city for dinner at a "follies" restaurant. Bawdy and ridiculous...we had a terrific time! The food was delicious! We then had a private bus tour to see the city of lights and hit some main attractions we had missed. We did a boat ride down the Seine and saw Notre Dame. We also toured the Eiffel Tower at night. We went up to the first and second levels.

This was a trip of a lifetime, crammed into 3 days. Lots of laughter, a few tears, being overwhelmed....it was awesome! Truly awesome.

The Bloody Massacre

Picture this...it is 10:55 on a cold winter morning. I am sitting at my desk, tracking data points, when my phone rings-caller ID indicates it is coming from Jack's school. I pick it up to hear Jack's teacher say hello. My response, "Oh no, what did he do?" Long pause, than a giggle..."I am so glad you asked. Jack had a bloody massacre today." Me: "What?!" Apparently, Jack decided to be the ring leader of his group of 4 boys, encouraging them to use the stamp pad (not the stamp) to stamp all over his new jeans (I don't know about their clothes-I have only seen his), his hands, his face, his hair. Then when apparently, he hadn't covered enough ground, he paved a bloody red path through the carpet, covering about 5 sq. feet. Now, I know, you want to giggle....go ahead. Here's the worst part, when the custodian came in to deep the mess up, the classroom assistant suffered an asthma attack and had to go home. What was he thinking?!

Kati Perry Wanna Be?

Brian asked that I share a mini story from this morning. He said that he was getting Ava ready for "school" and as he was putting on her socks, she starts singing, "Put my socks on me in my skin tight jeans, be your teenage dream tonight." Kati Perry spends too much time with my kids, especially my little one :) What 3 year old can change the lyrics to a song and get it spot-on?! Crazy!

Watch the Teenage Dream video by Kati Perry on youtube here... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fj2HVYlD_4

Bad Reports = No Celebration at My House!

Why does it always seem like this time of year is a recipe for bad behavior? Between the pubescent attitudes at school and my own two kids, I have had it up to HERE. I need a vacation! Okay, so I know that I went to Paris for Thanksgiving but that was work! Sort of...anyways, both Jack and Ava came home today with "bad reports." Jack again got a "dart", which signifies bad behavior. Why? According to him, he yelled, "I gotta get out of here!" while in the bathroom at school. He said it was because it was too crowded and he said there were like 20 kids in there but the rule is only 3 are allowed in at once. 3 vs. 20...someone is definitely not doing their bathroom duty...and of course, Jack yells and gets in trouble. Oh! And he got a dart yesterday for arguing with his friend Logan in the bathroom. Now, if two boys kept getting in trouble together in the bathroom at the middle school, I might have some interesting and sarcastic comments to make but since they are in 1st grade, I think we are pretty safe. Similarly, Ava got in trouble today for manipulating the new little girl at Monica's to sneak baby dolls into nap time. Ava got caught, got snarky with Lauren and the rest is history. What is going on? Oy vey!

If anyone wants details on my Paris vacation, let me know! I would love to blog about the City of Lights ;)

An English teacher's nightmare

To follow up my post yesterday about Jack keeping his friend company, shortly after that conversation occurred, Ava started referencing her nether regions. Now up until yesterday, she referred to it as her "Betty". Not even going there as to where that came from but needless to say the terminology stuck. With Ava being a very grown up 3 year old, I thought it was time to teach her the proper term, so I told her and Jack that it is called a "vagina." Hopefully, if you are reading this, you are not shocked at my bluntness or realism when dealing with my kids. Anyway, today we get in the car from picking her up at Monica's and Ava asks me a question about her "Pa-tine-ah." (And no, I don't remember the question). Jack quickly chimes in and also calls it a "Pa-tine-ah." (Obviously, I am spelling it semi-phonetically so you get it). Guess there is some work needed on their pronounciation!

And talking about pronounciations, Jack asked me today if I knew what a "Trable clap" was. Of course, I did not. He says, 'You know, the musical note? It's kinda like a J." "Oh! A treble clef!"

Private?

I was giving Jack and Ava a bath tonight when I hear them having a discussion about his private area. I hear Ava ask, "Are you taking it off?" Jack replies, "No. I'm only scratching it." I admonish them that their areas are private and not up for discussion. I then tell Jack that he should be doing that not in the presence of others. He replies, "I'm keeping it company."

Ava's Interrogation #2 and Dynamite!

After picking up J and A this afternoon, we had to swing by the post office to pick up a package. Ava, of course, was charming Darlene, the worker there, and Jack was vying for her attention too. Ava was asking "What's yo name?" "How old are you?" "Is that (the package) for me?" "Do you like Christmas?" "Is that a Charlie Brown box?" "Can I have a sucker?" Jack chimes in, "Do you like your job?" like he is a human resources exec. Then he says, "My mom is 33 and my dad is 34." I joked that it is good that they don't know my weight. Darlene LOVED them and gave them treats. So then, as we are leaving the PO, they ask what is in the box. I said, "Hair bows". Ava shrieks, "I told you that was my box!!!!" Like 10 people were staring and giggling. Nice.
Hop in the car and are listening to Z99.5's MakeAWish-athon...they start playing Taio Cruz's Dynamite, a song that I love. There is no funnier sound than two little ones singing these lyrics...
I Throw My Hands Up In The Air Sometimes,
Saying Ay-Oh, Gotta Let go.
I wanna celebrate and live my life,
Saying Ay-Oh, Baby Let's Go.
Cause we gon rock this club,
We gon' go all night,
We gon' light it up,
Like it's dynamite.
Cause I told you once,
Now I told you twice,
We gon light it up,
Like it's dynamite.

Probably not appropriate but definitely funny!!!!

Do you want to watch the video? Here is a youtube link...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpGgBYeOgi0

What's a Del Fuego anyway?

Today I am going to rant for a minute or twelve about something totally off - topic. Most of you know I work at a middle school. Most of us can recall or vaguely recall middle school or junior high-that awful time when your face breaks out like a pizza parlor, glasses and braces suddenly enhance that awesome look and deodorant and other items become necessary for survival. Life during this time, frankly, sucks. I have blocked out this time in my life, mainly because I was a major nerd and it was not a pleasant time for me.

So today at work, I helped investigate a bullying incident. This was full-fledged bullying at its worst. This poor child (a boy as sweet as can be) has been harassed repeatedly, called names and teased pretty much everyday for at least the last 3 weeks that we could determine, although I venture to say it has lasted much longer than that. What are the kids doing? Calling the boy a "Del Fuego"...now, I can understand a bit of Spanish so the translation is From Fire. However, the person who started the name calling (which spread like wild fire) "made it up" and his translation was "hippo". We interrogated, oops, I mean interviewed, a dozen kids who all casually called this child the name and teased him about it. I am ROYALLY DISGUSTED with them. Who gave them the right to tear down this other child? Who told them it was okay to do this? So it is a stupid name....that name has caused indeterminant damage to the child. He went from all A's and B's to mainly F's, hates school, hates himself and god only knows what else. His mom is horrified, as she should be.

Lesson learned: the stuff kids said to me that hurt my feelings, I still carry with me today. I can recall vividly each barb that came my way and how it made me feel. This must stop.

Where did my little girl go?

Here's short commentary on my little princess (snort!) and her antics lately. Apparently, she is being raised by monkeys when I am not around. So yesterday, we are sitting on the floor playing the classic game Candy Land. Of course, Jack and Ava are both trouncing me. (That, I suppose is another story all together). Ava stands up and says, "Mommy, look at me." I turn my head and she 'talks' her butt at me and then farts. Gross! Today, after pulling her from the bath and towel drying her, she curls up into a little ball on the floor with her rear end facing what? Yes, that is correct. Me. So she proceeds to tootle her trumpet, so to speak, in my face. Where is this grossness coming from? Why did I deserve her bestowing this nastiness on me? Oh well, tomorrow is another day. Maybe she can horrify me in another heinous fashion. Enjoy today's edition of Ava's Antics ;)

Ava and O'Reilly Auto Parts.

I should really change the name of my blog to Ava's Antics...she is always into something or saying something. Oy vey!

Here is a super funny (at least I think it is funny) story about the night Brian took the kids to O'Reilly Auto Parts. Now, this night was the night I had Bunco with the girls and had to take the kiddies with me until Brian could pick them up. In a flash of inspiration (thanks Sydney!), I put both kids in their footie pj's, Jack wearing his Transformer boots, and Ava shoeless. I take them with me and Brian picks them up. He had to stop at O'Reilly's on the way home to buy a new gas cap. Apparently his old one is somewhere downtown Indy. He plops Ava on the counter at O'Reilly's. Ava, knowing no stranger, promptly asks the very gruff counter person, "What's your name?" (Ava saying it really comes out as "What's yo name?") Response: "Dave." Ava: "How old are you?" Dave grinning and probably thinking this is hilarious: "29". Ava: "My daddy's older than you." Before she could get his phone number, social security number and shoe size, Brian ushers them out of the store. Ava cracks me up...she always give everyone the third degree.

Maybe if you are lucky, I will share some more stories about Ava interrogating people in a future post. I will finish this off with a classic comment by Ava when wanting her way..."Say sure!"

My Little Trooper...Caution! Graphic pictures!

Picture this...8pm on Saturday. It looks like we might just get both kids into bed by 8, 8:30 tops. Ava hightails it into our bathroom to get her teeth brushed. An extremely loud THUD! sounds. Silence then an "Owie!" Ava starts screaming. Brian is quick to follow her. I am frozen. Ava has split open her head after running fullforce into the wall. Not her smartest move. However, after severely bleeding (head wounds tend to do that), a run to CVS,

a call to St. Vincents 338-KIDS line, a call to my parents and his parents (not in any particularorder), she is semi on the mend. She has already began to recap the incident. "I ran into the bathroom, hit the wall, split my head open...then I got my blanket and I am all better." Now we just have to monitor her all night and wake her up every 2 hours...not sure what is worse-the getting up part or the fact that she is going to be CRANKY tomorrow.

Jack and I are still recovering from the evening. Poor guy! He takes after me in that blood and gore are not our top picks. He went to bed lickety split!

Kaleidoscope?

Amazing Ava never ceases to well, amaze me! For a 3 year old, she is sharp and funny. Today, she earned a toy from the treasure box at Monica's. She was so excited, so proud! Everyone we came across for the next hour heard about her "new toy". Jack wants to play with her "new toy" and is quickly shot down. Daddy comes home from work and Ava rushes to tell him about her "new toy" only this time she goes for it. Yes...she gives it her all and says, "DADDY! Look at my sky-di-scope!" Didn't know she knew what her "new toy" was called but by golly, she did and she almost got it! Way to go Ava on good behavior and frankly, a really good vocabulary!

I Think I Love You

Ava, age 3, and I were reading on the couch and a trashy entertainment show, probably Entertainment Tonight (okay, so it is not trashy, unless you think it is, then it is) was on in the background. I start singing along to "I think I love you but what am I so afriad of..." (Partridge family guy? Maybe David Cassidy, pretty sure not Danny Bonaduce) Ava looks at me and asks what the song is called. I (not knowing the name) said, "I think it is 'I think I love you.'" She says, "I think I love you too but what is the name of the song?"

So if you are serious about knowing this song, which why wouldn't you, here they are...

"I Think I Love You"(As recorded by the Partridge Family/Bell)

TONY ROMEO

I was sleeping and right in the middle of a good dream

Like all at once I wake up from something that keeps knocking at my brain

Before I go insane I hold my pillow to my head

And spring up in my bed screaming out the words I dread

I think I love you

This morning I woke up with this feelingI didn't know how to deal with and so I just decided to myself

I'd hide it to myself and never talk about it

And did not go and shout it when you walked into the room

I think I love you

I think I love you so what am I so afraid of

I'm afraid that I'm not sure of a love there is no cure for

I think I love you isn't that what life is made of

Though it worries me to say that I never felt this way

I don't know what I'm up against

I don't know what it's all aboutI got so much to think about

Hey, I think I love you so what am I so afraid of

I'm afraid that I'm not sure of a love there is no cure for

I think I love you isn't that what life is made of

Though it worries me to say I never felt this way

Believe me you really don't have to worry

I only wanna make you happy and if you say "hey go away" I will

But I think better still I'd better stay around and love you

Do you think I have a case let me ask you to your face

Do you think you love me?

I think I love youI think I love you

(I think I love you)I think I love you

(I think I love you)I think I love you(I think I love you)

I think I love you(I think I love you).

(c) Copyright 1970 by Screen Gems-Columbia Music, Inc.- HIT PARADER, March 1971.

How to Apologize in 1st grade

My 6 year old, Jack, is in first grade. He has a friend, who was also in his kindergarten class, Logan, who he likes to get into heated discussions with. Well, apparently, Logan was bragging about having a thousand dollars in his classroom store account. Jack calls him a "liar" because he really only has $240 in his account. Logan calls him a "liar" back, the exchange continues, their teacher gets involved, and voila! The letter.

What am I doing?!

So I decided to try my hand again at having a blog. I like to write, I think I am pretty good at it, and I get told all the time that my kids are super funny. So instead of only sharing with my facebook friends, I am sharing with the world the funny stories that I have. Hopefully, you find them as funny as me :-)