Far from perfect and perfectly fine with that

Our toy closet is a disaster.  Like you can't even walk in there to get something half the time.  About 10 days out of the month I get the kids' clean clothes in the morning out of a basket instead of their closet because they haven't been hung up yet.  I have no idea how working moms or single moms do it.  This IS my full-time job and I have the help of a partner some of the time and I still don't have it all together.  Maybe because I don't worry or stress and I'm content with things being done as opposed to being perfect. 

I think if your marriage is intact and you pay attention to its needs, the kids are happy and loved, your house is maintained and you are a good role model with responsibility, the rest is gravy.  Right?  Even though I yell at my kids, am always a few days behind in laundry, and turn on the tv too often I still feel like I'm doing my job just fine.  Perfection is not my goal.  Niether is being Superwoman or Supermom.  Mainly because the headdress looks completely ridiculous on me.

SEE??

I believe in...

I believe in my first intuition

I believe in kid-free vacations

I believe in family story time

I believe in waiting 'til October 1 to put up Fall decorations

I believe in Chris

I believe in my children's teachers

I believe that true friendships never die

I believe that some friendships must

I believe that homemade is always better

I believe in blogging

I believe your sibling is a gift

I believe kids can learn a lot from television

I believe that cake for breakfast on your birthday is special

I believe kids need to sometimes have the freedom of choice

I believe in consequences for poor ones

I believe Starbucks saves my sanity

I believe that missing your spouse regularly is good for your marriage

I believe in the family I am creating.

What do you believe in?

~ What the Hell Wednesday ~

If you're a woman and you wear above a size 10 you probably own a pair of Spanx (or two or three).  You know, these:

Clearly this biotch didn't get the message that you're not allowed to wear them if you're this tiny OR put your stelletos on until after your dress is on.  Anyway, this is what I'm talking about.  I call them sucker-inners and that's basically what they do.  They smooth out what isn't naturally smooth anymore.  I know, that's a lovely visual but c'mon.  It's just a fact of life for some of us.  I can do better than painting a picture for you with words.  How's this:

What the hell?

They are supposed to go on under your clothes, not as your clothes.  Isn't it something that no one stopped her before she started working that day to tell her to go home and finish getting dressed?  I mean, what the hell?  That's just mean.

*Thanks, Melissa, for passing this picture along for WTHW!

 

Gave birth to the blog 2 years ago, let's celebrate!

On October 5, 2009, I posted this:

First post on my first blog - I figured I'd start out small and easy. Kinda like that girl to the right, there. Small and easy. Check back, I'll try and keep you up on the daily nothings of the Peters household. Here we go!

Since then I've posted 678 more blog posts.  It's crazy to think that in nearly 2 years I've sat down at least 4 or 5 times a week and written something that you have read.  Well, ok, you haven't read them all but even if you've read a handful it still trips me out.  For reals, I expect my mom to be my only reader and as you know, I'm thrilled to know that in fact she is not the only one.  YOU are, too, and I love that.

SO!  In celebration of this little blog's two year anniversary we're doing a GIVEAWAY!  With some blog giveaways you have to do 5 different things just to qualify and enter.  This one is so easy.  Ready?  You have to "like" my Peters Party of 5 facebook page.  You have to "like" our giveaway boutique's facebook page, Misty's Cans and More.  That's it.  (You can click on both those purple links to get to the appropriate page, click like, and you're done!)

Wanna see the goods? 

Isn't it so cute?  You can use this festive Fall decorated can as a vase, you can fill it with kitchen goodies and give it as a housewarming or a thank you gift, you can put your favorite recipe inside and give it to your child's teacher, the possibilites are endless, really.  *Check out all her other great creations on her Etsy page by clicking here!*

The giveaway will end and a winner will be chosen on the two year anniversary, Wednesday, October 5. 

Remember, all you have to do is "like" Peters Party of 5 and "like" Misty's Cans and More. 

Thanks for reading and checking in and for the feedback you provide.  I'm proud to be a member of the Mommy Club and to be able to share my stories and in return hear about yours.

Please be sure to "like" both pages to enter and pass this along to your friends. 

xoxo

Hungry Like the Wolf!

I'm dying to blog about the last few days but Lauren is literally crawling on me as I type this.  I'll post this and then get back on later tonight when the crawlers are asleeeeeeeep.

Why I got dressed this morning

The only reason I got dressed before 10am this morning was because of this.

They took nearly 20 pillows from around the house and piled them on the landing.  It was called Pillowland.

I was in the kitchen doing important things, like making brownies, when I heard quite a commotion.  They were jumping from 7 steps up into this pile.  I figured I should get dressed so when I had to load a bleeding child into the car to take them to the ER I wasn't still in my pajamas. 

Luckily no one was injured and the most painful thing of the existence of Pillowland was their mean mommy making them put every pillow back where it belonged when they were all finished jumping.

Ah, Sundays.

And I think to myself...

The gift of cool may be backfiring

I hate to do back-to-back posts about the same thing but this needs to be addressed.

This is how Lauren spends about 1/3 of her days now.

She's just a melty, sobby mess.  She wants a popsicle at 7:15am, she wants to chew gum like Drew, she doesn't want me to put the sharp knives away when emptying the dishwasher because she wants to do it, she doesn't want me to brush my hair, she wants to tie my shoes for me, and on and on and on. 

This is not my first rodeo.  I'm not really at a loss or exhausted or fed up.  Yet.  But it is getting kind of old.  But get this:  Chris said this morning, "Why don't you and Lauren run to the bank and Old Navy and then we'll pick up the kids together and go to Costco after school - all of us."  I said, "Taking Lauren to the bank and Old Navy ain't what it used to be.  She throws a fit everywhere we go now."  Then he said these words:  "I don't what you're doing because she doesn't behave that way with me."

It's a good thing there were no cacti around.

The thing is, Chris is awesome.  He's 100% their dad and although he works crazy hours at the firehouse and runs a full-time business, when he is home he is daddy to the max.  He does spend time with them alone and with each alone individually.  I have no clever retort about how he doesn't see that behavior because he's not with them or whatever.  That's not the case. 

Honestly?  I think keeping my cool during tantrums may be one of the things that perpetuates them a bit.  Chris isn't as gifted as I (keeping your cool during a tantrum in a crowded store is a gift) and he loses his cool a little bit. Lauren doesn't like that so she stops.  I keep my cool and she keeps on.  Hmmmmmm.

No matter what the deal is with her not throwing such fits with daddy, he should know better than to state it that way.  I will speak to him about that.  Or maybe I'll have William speak to him about it.  William has heard the, "Watch what you say and how you say it" lecture a bajillion times.  In the meantime, I'm going to work on losing my cool and see how that works out.  I'll keep you posted.

Jerzday!

I've confessed my like for Jersey Shore in other posts.  I totally blame my fascination on my B.A. in Sociology.  I'm just interested in... the way others live.  Yep, that's it.  It's like research, that's all.  Every Thursday at 10pm I have school.  

Don't judge.

Thanks to Amanda for thinking of me when she saw this picture.

 

~ What the Hell Wednesday ~

This shirt is sold at Nordstrom and StarbucksStore.com for $85.  EIGHTY FIVE DOLLARS.

What the hell?  I've got three artists here who can make this for free.  Hit me up if for some stupid reason you want to wear a shirt with coffee spilled on it on purpose.  I'll only charge you $10. 

You can read about this shirt here if you're interested.

Lauren was off-the-hook

Or is it off-the-chain?  Well, whatever the kids are saying these days, that's what she was this morning.

It's funny how kids teach us so much.  They think we are here to teach them when in fact the same is true of them - they are here to teach us as well.  I have learned a lot of lessons from my kids, too many to list actually.  I must say that probably my most valuable lesson came today, though.  Lauren unknowingly taught it to me while we were shopping at Target.  Ready?  Here it is:  Idiot kids don't always come from idiot parents. 

I am not an idiot parent.  I am the parent who disciplines.  I am the parent who expects manners.  I am the parent who is consistently consistent with everything.  I am the parent who reprimands and even spanks in public.  Yet, I am the parent who had the screaming kid today at Target.  I am the parent whose daughter took off her shoes and threw them down the aisle.  I am the parent who had to pick up an entire display of Tupperware that her kid knocked over.  I am the parent who is NOT an idiot yet seemed to have the idiot kid today.  It just doesn't make sense.  Right?  Oh, wait.  That lesson.  Yes, it does make sense.  Idiot kids don't always come from idiot parents.

Lauren is 2.  She's the baby of the family and she's treated as such, not to anyone's benefit however.  We're kind of finding this out.  For the last two and a half years if she's wanted something we've said, "Just give it to her so she'll stop whining."  I would have rather been run over by a bus than have said those words to or about Drew or William.  Honestly I think that with the fighting and arguing and noise in this house, I just want Lauren to shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.  Just stoppppppppppp.  Just be quiet.  Therefore, give the child what she wants so she'll not create more noise.  It's horrible and I'm embarrassed to admit it but I'm pretty sure that's the truth.  She's not been completely without lessons and expectations but she's been babied waaaay more than the other two ever were.  I'm wondering, naturally, if this contributes to behavior like today.  She just becomes this wild, primal being who does whatever the hell she feels like doing.  Is this that baby acting like an unruly idiot or is this her being 2 or is it a bit of both?  I can't control the 2 part but I can control the other.  I need to stop babying the baby so much.  

Back to Target:  While she was screaming, I called Chris to come get her.  I had shit to do today and leaving a carriage full of stuff wasn't one of them.  Thankfully he was able to come get her so I could continue shopping.  She was LIVID to be leaving and I literally plopped her in her car seat and closed the door.  Chris was in charge from that point on.  Apparently she screamed all the way home and then as he turned into our cul-de-sac she fell asleep.  She went from screaming to sleeping in two breaths.  By the time I got home she was fast asleep in her crib and here we are over an hour later and she's still asleep.  This is reassuring to me because it makes me think that maybe it's not her being the idiot kid and it's not her being 2.  Maybe she's getting sick.  YES!  Sick!  Maybe she's sick.  That would be awesome.  Whew.

So, in conclusion:  I finished my shopping list in peace, Chris is awesome for dropping his work to come get her, I'm hoping she wakes with a fever so I can be sure she's not the idiot kid, and, most importantly, I learned my lesson.  

Thanks, Lauren.  I love you so much, my baby sunshine.  But you better knock that shit off.    

I kind of suck at my job

I kind of suck at my job.  Not totally suck, just kind of suck.  The kids are fed and clothed and clean and happy (and so is Chris) but I kind of do the bare minimum most times to keep it that way.  I'm not going to lie, they are fed but rarely is it a hot, completely homemade yummy meal.  They are clothed but it's often out of a basket of clean clothes that have yet to be put away.  Considering I don't have to leave my house to work you'd think I could totally keep up on it all and it'd be all together, right?  I'd think so.  But it just doesn't seem to be that way and I'm not sure why.  Maybe I need to try harder or work harder.  Actually, as good as Chris is, he kinda called me out on it.  That was my wake up call.  So, I'm going to start cooking .  My poor family.  I'm also going to hang up and put away clean clothes everyday.  Everyday, do you hear me?  I swear it.  I keep a clean and picked up house so thankfully that's not something I need to change.  I think the whole cooking and hanging up clothes everyday thing is enough to throw me for a loop.  What's funny is that I think most people think that's what stay-at-home moms DO as their job.  It's part of it.  I'd like to say I just focus my time more on what really matters while I'm home raising my kids.  BLOGGING.

What's for dinner at your house?

If you click on the picture he'll dance for you!



Rated G is not for everyone

As you know, I'm quite particular about many things.  I don't think that the money dance should be done at weddings (sorry if this offends you!), I don't think a ginormous goody bag is necessary for the children who attend your child's birthday celebration, and I don't think that you need to separate your whites from your colors unless there is a new pair of jeans in the load from Banana Republic which inevitably will turn your whole wardrobe a drab gray.  I mean, why make more work for yourself?  Anyway, another thing I'm particular about is kids at the movies.  I mean little kids.  Like 8 month olds.  Really? 

I took the big kids to see The Lion King tonight.  It was in 3D and aside from the stampede part it was fabulous for them.  They loved it.  William kept reaching out in a Stevie Wonder kinda way with his 3D glasses on to touch the leaves or the water or the lion's fur as it went by in front of his face.  That was so cute.  The thing I had to work on was ignoring the INFANTS who were making noise.  Just because a movie is rated G, my friends, doesn't mean that your baby needs to go see it.  And I totally get that if the baby doesn't come with you than you may not get to go to the movies.  I get it - but SORRY.  That's kind of how it may have to be for a very short period of time in your life.  Not only do the INFANTS disturb others but it's gotta be really loud and scary for them, don't you think?

Anyway, it was a great time for us and we had popcorn for dinner which you can never go wrong with.  We quoted the movie all the way home and Drew just went to sleep listening to the soundtrack I've had for nearly 20 years now. 

The Lion King is only out in theaters for 2 weeks.  Take your kids before it's gone!  But I'll speak for the person sitting next to you - for God's sweet sake, leave your babies at home!

Hakuna Matata

Another E.R. visit. Ugh, lame.

I have become the Girl with the Medical Issues.  2 kidney stones since February, emergency gall bladder surgery, taking a Lupus drug for an unknown connective tissue disease which wracks my body but has no name.  I'll be 36 years old in a few weeks.  That's crazy to have all that at this age.


I decided this summer that this school year my full-time job (other than wife and mommy and Keeper of the House) is to work out.  That's it.  Just work out.  Not lose 30 pounds, not be a size whatever by Christmas - just to work out.  So far, so good.  There is no reason why, even if I remain heavier than I'd like, that I can't be more healthy and more fit. 


For 5 days now I've had what I thought was kidney pain and a horrible headache.  Last night after the kids went to bed I decided to go to the ER (per the suggestion of the Kaiser nurse lady on the phone).  I just knew it was a kidney stone and was, after 5 days, pissed and irritated and uncomfortable.  Long story short - I got there at 7:55pm.  I was seen at 11:15pm and I was discharged at 12:20am.  4 and a half hours in the ER and after a few tests were done you know what my diagnosis is?  A PULLED MUSCLE.  A freaking pulled muscle.  Right on the side of my back, low where my kidney is.  I was relieved but embarrassed.  I sat there that whole time for them to tell me it was a pulled muscle.  That may be why after working out yesterday morning it seemed to flare up.  It's all kind of making sense.  Ugh, lame. 

This situation has made me realize that because of the issues I've had the last few months that I kinda freak when I have a new symptom.  I'm gonna be one of those.  Like the lady I listened to cry and wimper and look around to see who was watching her before she'd continue on last night in the ER for THREE AND A HALF HOURS. 

  

In this home we...

We also do yelling, laughing, crying, whining, snuggling, disciplining, learning, and playing.  Oh, and bitching.

What do you do?

Thoughts

I was listening to NPR on the way to a doctor's appointment this morning.  The topic was the unemployment rate in the state of California (11%!) and ways in which that can be changed and prevented from happening again, as well as the consequences of such a high unemployment rate on every citizen in the state.  The apathy of the people who think they aren't affected is a huge factor in changes being so slow in coming.  After about 5 minutes of listening to it I changed it to a different station and found myself rocking out to Neyo and Pitbull.  And, my friends, there inlies the problem.   

~~~~~~~~~~~~

I take a class at the gym 4 nights a week.  3 are cardio/lifting classes, one is Zumba.  There is a girl in there who attends almost every single class I do.  She is super tall and fit and thin but mostly super tall.  She just looks... giantly tall.  Last night, for the first time, I stood next to her as we were putting our weights away.  We're the same height.  I think because she's thin she appears taller and I think because not a whole lotta women are nearly 6 feet it just struck me.  Do people think I am giantly tall?  I'm certainly helping myself to appear shorter with my girth but... do they? 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I had an eye appointment this morning.  I've worn glasses since I was a sophomore in high school.  I just can't see far away.  I'm a squinter without my glasses.  With each pregnancy, though, my eye sight became better.  Then better, then better.  The optomotrist told me that if I had two more babies I'd probably be 20/20.  Well, since I'm 2.5 years out from my last pregnancy my eyes are getting worse again, and by worse I just mean to how they were before babies.  Weird.  But!  I get to go pick out new glasses.  I may change up my look a little.  Or maybe not.  I'm kinda chicken and not a fan of change.  We'll see.  I also told him that my eyes are really red and bothersome in the morning or even after a long nap.  He said it's caused by dryness and it's likely that for some reason all of a sudden I may be sleeping with my eyes open a little bit.  CREEP EEEE.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

William had a great birthday yesterday and I want to thank all of those who love him who reached out to him or even to me.  Last night when I put him to bed I told him all the mushy stuff I feel about him and how I'm so happy he had a great birthday.  He said, "Mommy, I promise I'll never unlove you."  I've never heard more awesome words.

~ What the Hell Wednesday ~

I feel two ways about this:

1.  What the hell is wrong with you people?  Don't go on TV and gripe.  It was an honest mistake and one that they will be correcting.  It's unfortunate but it certainly wasn't meant to cause you any added grief.  The fact that you went on tv to call them out on it rather than just deal with it internally with the appropriate organization is kinda shitty. 

2.  What the hell is wrong with you people?  Couldn't you have hired someone to triple check all the names before they were literally engraved in stone?  My maiden name is L'Herault.  I lived for 26 years with my name being misspelled and mispronounced.  I am sensitive to that and feel badly for the family of this man.  It shows disrespect when a name is misspelled, I think.  It wasn't intentional, but still.  You needed that memorial to be perfect, as they said. 

What do you think?

Finally of age

Today's birthday wasn't about cake for breakfast or opening presents.  It was about this:

Just another reason I think he's pretty damn cool.

For WoWo

Your Birth Day

Your 1st birthday

Your 2nd birthday

Your 3rd birthday

Your 4th birthday

Your 5th birthday

I knew the moment you were born that you were meant to be mine and I think more importantly, I was meant to be yours.  I also knew that our third child had to be a girl so that you'd remain my one and only baby boy.  Being smart and perceptive and emotional and sensitive is a hard combination for you sometimes but we're learning how to navigate through that with as little frustration as possible.  You have taught me patience and humor in situations I previously would have found neither.  I say it often but it's the absolute truth -  I could not love you any more if I tried. 

Happy 5th birthday to my baby boy. 

No such thing as wasted time for me

Today as you browse blogs, pin on Pinterest, check facebook, sit outside while the kids play, catch up on crappy tv on the DVR once the kids go to bed, remember this:

This is my new mantra so that I will feel less guilty about the laundry that sits clean in a basket on the stairs for a few days and about my book which sits and gathers dust on my bedroom end table.

My own app!

Do you see what I see?  No, not a bunch of stupid apps for 4 year olds.  I'm talking about the Party of 5 app.  Well, it's not really an app but kind of.  If you ever look at the blog from your smart phone, you can click on "Add to Home Screen" and you magically will get what I like to think of as my own app on your phone!  Then you can just click on it and check in whenever you're sitting at karate, waiting for school to get out, or at a doctor's appointment.  I am assuming, of course, you live the life of hurry-up-and-wait-for-your-kids that I live.

F - I - V - E!

Today was supposed to be William's due date.  In January of 2006 my doctor told me my second baby was to be due on September 11.  I said, "I don't like that date.  Let's say my due date is the 12th."  She said, "You can say whatever you want but your baby is due on September 11th."  He was 2 days late and was born on September 13th, which makes Tuesday his 5th birthday. 

We celebrated his birthday yesterday with some of our family, our close friends, and some of William's classmates (and teachers!).  We had a pirate waterslide party and it was loads of fun.  And it was hot.  But mostly it was FUN!

I didn't use my camera much or capture many individual pictures of our guests but here are a couple of the pictures of the day.  *Thanks to Misty for taking some of these!*

This ain't your mama's slip-n-slide.

You could feel the friendship and love!

Homemade pirate cupcakes.  They were yummy.  All 72 of them!

Drew decorated and made a sign for the bathroom door for our guests.

Singing time.

5!

Sidenote:

Peters Party of 4 at William's 1st birthday.  Ahhh, seems like yesterday.

I LOVE that Lauren wore to William's 5th birthday the same dress that Drew wore to William's 1st birthday. 

  William is looking forward to Tuesday so that he can have cake for breakfast, he can bring sharing to school, and we can go to the library after school to get his library card.  I'm looking forward to it for all of those reasons, too.  Mostly the cake for breakfast part.  It'll be a happy day.

I'm so proud of that little boy.

 

Sad, Happy

Sad:  He got my artistic ability.

Happy:  I'm totally skinny in this picture.

Sad:  She had to get her flu shot this morning.

Happy:  She cried for Drew during and after to come comfort her.

Sad:  This cool kid is turning 5 on Tuesday.

Happy:  He's excited to turn 5 so he can finally get his own library card.

Duran Duran, Finally Finally

Do you know who Susan is?  If not, click here to read. 

Ok, you're back?  Good.

We loved 3 bands.  Like, LOVED 3 bands.  New Kids on the Block, U2 and Duran Duran.  Every single one of their songs defines an event and a time in our lives.  We can name the year it came out, the grade we were in, and a memory of something we were doing while it played.  That goes for every song each of the bands ever sang.  I'm not kidding. 

In 1989 we saw New Kids in concert.  It was their Christmas show and it was totally rad.  In 1992 we saw U2 and had nearly front row seats.  Public Enemy and Bjork opened and it was killer, for reals.  Poor Duran Duran, they never had the chance to have US, Susan and Ashley, attend one of their concerts. 

UNTIL NOW, that is!  HOLLA!

Susan is FLYING here from St. Louis so that we can go to this concert together. It's at a winery in the bay area, a somewhat intimate setting.  Mom has bought the tickets for us for my 36th birthday and we're totally gonna rock that upscale venue like we're 16 again. 

1985, 4th grade, swimming in Susan's backyard with the radio in the livingroom turned up all the way.

See?

 

~ What the Hell Wednesday ~

It's no secret that I love me some Starbucks.  I usually get a grande iced skinny caramel macchiato which is 140 calories.  I'm ok with that.  Now that the Fall items are being sold again (holla!) I've been getting for the last two days a tall nonfat pumpkin spice latte.  I thought I should look to be sure it's not any more calories than my previous drink.  Damned if it isn't 200 calories.  That's for the smallest size, nonfat milk, and no whipped cream.  There is nothing I can do to make it less calories.  And that sucks.  What the hell?  I don't want to have to do Zumba and Muscle Blast 4 nights a week just to support my Fall Starbucks habit.  Ugh.

Wanna see how many calories you're pounding in your favorite drink?  Click here to see.

You are the ketchup to my french fries

It's terribly nauseating to hear people tell about how much they love their spouse or how great their life is.  You either don't believe them completely or think it's a bit braggy so they should just shut their pie hole.  I get it.

I definitely put up with him and his nonsense but really, he puts up with me, allows me to make the majority of the decisions, and works very hard so that I can stay home and be with the kids.  I know I complain about that in 80% of my posts but it's honestly all I've ever wanted to do.  

He's a true gem, that guy of mine. 

Real men drink lattes.