The great "boob squish" of '09!

So, a couple of weeks ago, I decided it was time I had a complete physical, seeing as I hadn't even been to a doctor (other than gyno) in 3 years, hadn't had a physical in 4 years AND the real hum dinger, I won't have insurance, or different insurance starting in end of August. So, the time is now to get things done. Imagine my surprise when I was able to get right in for a physical. In the past, i remember having to call and wait WEEKS before you could even get in. Anywho, I waltzed right in one morning, had my blood work done and then went in to see the doc a week later. The news was all roses all the way around. Not only am I apparently totally healthy, I have PERFECT cholesterol. I mean, like 125 and 51, Niiiiice! I was pleased as punch. Who knew? Also, it said my thyroid was good AND my calcium. Surprise! Anyway, I mentioned that I AM of that age when I should get a mammo and I've never had one. So, he wrote me up an order to get one and I phoned in for an appointment time.






Today was the big day....the day of the squish. And how much do I love Simon Med and their adorable office with all its antique furniture and warm and fuzzy colors. They were so nice and pretty prompt as well. Oh, did I mention that in the waiting room after you change into your little "gown" (side note: Dear gynee doctors EVERYWHERE, please take a note and a lesson from Simon Med and get these gowns. For the first time in my life my bubbies were completely covered and I was safe and secure in my nakedness.) there was a TV and fresh baked cookies. Cute, I'm telling you, just cute. So, the time has come, my happy little technician came and retrieved me and my free swinging boobies for the smoosh. You all know the folklore around this procedure. Women would have you believe that it's the most painful, awful thing ever. Imagine my surprise and delight when the whole thing took a whopping 10 minutes and I felt nary a pinch. Seriously, WHAT is all the fuss about? I was waiting for some pain, and instead, I felt NOTHING! Ok, I won't lie...having a stranger have to manhandle my boobs, and lift them up (yes literally lift them) and smooth them on the machine was a tad bit embarrassing, but what can a girl with shriveled hooters do? I mean really, I've NEVER had what you'd like to call "perky" ta tas. They grew way to fast, so I've literally always had big, saggy girls. Then you add in the fact that I had gastric and lost so much weight, they became, as my friend Nancy likes to say of hers "oranges in tube socks", THEN I had 2 babies, so they grew,shrunk, grew, shrunk. What is left is just simply put, not a pretty picture. The tech took 4 whole pictures and then said, that's all I need. I said to her "does this mean that they look so clean and good that you only had to take four?" She smiled and said "well, I will say this, you're quite photogenic, and they look good." And I'll just have to agree. I caught a glimpse of my breasticle on the screen, and it looked perfectly perfect, no dark spots, light spots, just milk ducts and veins, or whatever it was I was looking at. Good for me and my bad self. So there you have it, a completely painless, excellent adventure in mammography. Ladies, you have nothing to fear, get out and get it done.






To celebrate my excellent boobies, I stopped off at Target and picked up some hats.


I went looking for a cute and stylish hat for myself. I'm stepping out of my comfort zone and trying to be "cool". While perusing the aisles, sans the kiddies, I came upon these little gems for each of them. They were on clearance for 2 bucks. Good times.

While Max looks adorable in a hat, he does NOT enjoy keeping it on. He immediately rips it off.

How freaking adorable is she in her little conductor hat? She looks like Strawberry Shortcake in it. Luckily, she enjoys herself a hat and wears it all around. Nearly as much as her shoes and her purses.

All in all, a good day, a good squish, a good hat!

Boobs and flatteners,

Allyson

When the "Y" became superfluous (look it up)

In my last post (a whole 10 minutes ago) I talked all about Max. Well, now it's Maggies turn. I'm sure you all recall miss Maggie. She's a bundle of sass and spunk. She likes all things girly, purses, dresses, hair, shoes, etc. But here is the thing. Something happened in the last month or two. She GREW up on me. One night she went to bed all sweet and childlike and then woke up the next morning all five years oldish. Herein lies the title.

Maggie has always been a bright little girl, but apparently she's smarter than I thought. I mean look at her sporting my glasses.....brilliance eminates off her. Anyway here is the story. Completely on her own she named her binky "nummy". I don't know where that came from. I called it a binky from literally her inception. NEVER did I use the word nummy. So, we had her nummy, and her sippy, which frankly is just that...a sippy. And we are Mommy and Daddy, or at least we were. I noticed one day last week, on the way to Jennys that Maggie kept asking for her "num". I was a little confused as to what she meant, until finally it dawned on me what she was asking for....her nummY. Then, I realized that she'd been calling us Mom and Dad for several days. The next day, when she asked for her num again, and THEN had the audacity to ask for her "sip" I knew something was amiss. Overnight the "Y" in her speech had become superfluous. She had deemed it unworthy of her mature self. My baby and her cute speech was gone, kaput. She can't be bothered with ridiculous things like sippy, nummy or :sniff sniff: Mommy. So, it's pretty comical when she insists on her sip. Really, your "SIP"? That just doesn't even make sense. The cup is a sippy, that is just what it is. Oh well, Maggie knows best I guess. I blame older cousins, it has to be their fault right?


Perhaps all my book reading, and in turn all of Maggies book reading has pushed her maturity. HA! However, it must be noted that she does generally insist on a book being in the bed with her each night, and now at naptime too. I don't know why, it's not as if she can look at them in the dark. Perhaps she believes in the osmosis method.

Just such a typical shot of Miss Sassafrass. She has things to do and can't be bothered with me and my pesky camera. And now, I must admit something shameful. As you may or may not know, Jere is wont to use salty language. And, lest you think I'm completely innocent, I'm not. I too swear, not anywhere near as much as Jere, but more than I should. And I'm in a total shame spiral to admit that Maggie picked up on that and has developed her own little potty mouth. Well ok, she has one word she prefers and it's tragic, and it's funny, but bad. It started like this...one day as I literally smashed the living crap out of my big toe, I let out a big DammmmmmmmmmmmIT! It was at that moment that I saw my little girls brilliant little mind wrap around that word. She looked at me and said "dammit?" And then promptly said.."you ok Mommy?" So, that was that, or so I thought. A week or so later we were driving down the road when Maggie began saying something over and over. At first all I was gathering was that something was "broken" and then when I listened closer I realized that she was saying "oh dammit, it's broken." Over and over and over...."dammit, it's broken Mommy." After I got over the intial surprise, I giggled to myself and then I promptly said, "no no Maggie, we don't say that word. We say DARN it." She said, "OH, darnit." Then promptly said, "dammit, it's broken." Ok, so fast forward some days, or a week, and now she's droppin it in front of Gramma Peg, or wherever. The final straw came one morning as Jere and I were each standing at the kitchen counter doing whatever morning things we do. And from under and behind us we hear..."Dammmmit, my shoe fall off." I won't lie, we each looked at eachother with wide eyes, then broke out into a fit of giggles. (sometimes I think we're 12 year olds mascarading as parents). Once we got ourselves under control, we had a strong and loving talking to to potty mouth Magoo. We explained that that was really a bad word and she really could NOT use it. We use darn it, or shoot, or anything else. Apparently that got through to her and made sense, because (knock on wood) she has not dropped her D bomb in at least a week. Needless to say, I have been very careful about what I say, and I've admonished, begged Jere to pull it together and stop the swearing. I mean really, how embarassing.

Overall she makes each day a hoot. She talks so much and HEARS everything!! She LOVES her "Baxie" (Max). Every morning when I go in to get her, she usually greets me with a big hello and then informs me she's happy, "are you happy?, Bax is happy, daddy happy?" She makes me leave the light off because it's "too bright." She watches "Rella" daily and no matter where she is in the house, as soon as Cinderella starts running outside after the step sisters have ripped her dress apart, she gets a very concerned look on her face and says "Oh Mommy, running, sad, rella is sad." It cracks me up every time. I'm fairly certain that the greatest time (or at least MY favorite time of children) is from 18 months to 4 years old. I love this time of discovery, excitement, and hilarity. I freaking adore and love this girl, even though she is obstinate and extremely opinionated, she's beautiful and funny and makes every day fun.

Sass and swears,

Allyson

While I was away...

Never fear my peeps, June has been survived, with great success, and I am NOW back. I know, I know, you've missed me terribly, haven't you. Haven't you? Well fine, at least admit that you've missed my cute kids. Ahh, that's better, just as I thought. I have any number of posts rolling around in my head, and don't be surprised if there are two or more per posting, just so I can get them done. Then again, don't be surprised if I'm just promising things that don't come to pass. I am one of good intentions, as you recall. Anyway....





It is utterly amazing to me how quickly time flies and how fast my sweet babies grow. In my blogging hiatus little Maximus has made some big changes.





Look who has FOUR BIG fatty teeth. That would be Maximus Prime. He's such a good little teether too. You'd never know he was getting said teeth, he's just chipper all the time. Speaking of, Max is set to get tubes in his ears next Friday, wish us luck.

Look who gets to sit in the cart like a big boy now. No more traipsing around in his carseat. This particular shot was taken on today's trip to Costco. However, his first bigboy cart sitting was courtesy of Auntie Jenny and another trip to Costco. I guess I just wasn't quite ready to admit that he was big enough for the move up. Won't be long until he's in the big boy carseat too. Have I also mentioned that he's up to a fatty 22 lbs. now? He is a hefty little tank, and I surely love him and all his chub.

Mr. Man has begun the scooching, crawling phase of life. In these pics, I was out in the family room and Max had been playing in my room. I began to hear a whimper and then a real irritated cry. When I came in, there he was, under my bed. He'd backward scooted himself right into a pickle of a spot. The good news is, he has since learned to move forward and he has a mean army crawl going for him. Won't be long now before he's everywhere and into everything.

He is also into eating big boy foods these days too. He loves himself some crackers, any variety is fine. He's good with pizza crust, cottage cheese, mac 'n cheese, oatmeal and baby food of any variety. What joy and rapture. Won't be long before I don't have to buy so much formula, which is a GOOD THING since they just freaking raised diaper prices by another three dollars a box. UGH!

What else can I say? I love that boy with all my heart, which inexplicably swells and grows more each day. I am so grateful he came to live with us and offers so much happiness and laughing and giggles, oh does he giggle. His laughter just makes my heart burst in a good way. Kids are the best!

Blog returns and army crawls,

Allyson

Now THAT'S a skill

So, as time has marched on and I've become busy with a second child, life, etc. One of my favorite past times has gone by the wayside....that would be checking in on Maggie before I go to bed. I'm pretty sure there was not ONE night in her first year that I didn't go in and look at her before I went to bed. But, as I said, life moves on, and somehow I stopped doing it on a regular basis. Well, a few weeks, for whatever reason I stopped by her room for a little peaky poo and this is what I found.







Seriously? That's just awesome relaxation skillz right there. I can only WISH to be able to sleep in such a manner. This girl takes her sleep very seriously, and she's really good at it. And at the risk of jinxing everything...Maggie has been sleeping until 7:30 or 8:00 for almost a week. It's been ever so delightful. Here's to hoping that this continues.

In other news....Jeres gaping wound hole is no longer gaping. It is down to a teensy little hole that no longer requires packing, merely a bandaid. He goes back to the doc one last time on Wed. to hear him say "looks great jere, ALL better." Hooray for healing. And a big hooray for Julie (his sister) and her willingness to practically move in for the last month and be here to pack the wound morning and night. Don't know what we would have done without her. Thanks Julie!!!

Final news...workshop one is officially over and it was a big success. The shows went off without a hitch and all were pleased. Our group was such a good bunch of kids, should be interesting to see how group two plays out. Not gonna lie, pretty darn pleased with how my numbers turned out this year. That's a nice feeling, as I don't always love my "outcome."

Well, guess I should meander off to bed, since I MUST get my booty to the gym for bootcamp at 5:30 a.m. I sort of ate like a crazy child this weekend, gotta work it off.

Tummy sleeping and clear sinuses,

Allyson

Differences

Just a quick little bit about how very different my children are when it comes to a camera. Well, I mean, they're VERY different in just about every way, but it really is evident when a camera appears. **disclaimer, all pictures below are not the best representation of my cute kids.** See, Maggie can be happy as a clam, singing, playing, smiling, happy, and then the SECOND I pull the camera out to capture said happy moments, she turns into a complete sour puss. She refuses to have her picture taken, or she pouts, or she just keeps attacking me and insisting on "seeing" what I've taken of her. She wants to see before I've even had a chance to take a picture. It's so frustrating, as I never get a good pic of say, her beautiful new Sunday dress, or her silly playing, or whatever. Mostly i have shot after serious or grumpy shot. UGH! Max on the other hand....he can be completely bawling and the moment I pull the camera out, he stops, he stares and then he smiles. It's a fascinating little phenomenan. I swear, I love this kid so much, because for all of Maggies grumpy, he counteracts it with a ton of happy. But overall they're both pretty close to perfect. ::smiles::


Coming in from church, I mentioned I wanted to take a pic, she threw down and said NO. So, sorry, none of you can truly take in the gorgeousness that is her new dress. A dress i got for FOUR DOLLARS AND FIFTY CENTS I might add. Thank you Target super clearance and serendipity.

An example of her wanting to "see" before i've even had a chance to take a pic.

Totally been bawling, I set him in the chair, took out the camera, and this was his first shot, he's calmed down and clearly thinking about what he's seeing.

Then, he busts out a smile. Seriously, I love this kid. I guess HE has to be my model cash cow, since Maggie refuses to oblige. Quick, get this kid an agent. hehe

Well, tonight is the big first performance of workshop one. Wish us luck. And with that, I MUST get the kids together and in the car and off to Jennys so i'm not late to dress rehearsal.

Grumps and smilers,

Allyson

It's June

Has it really been nearly a month? My apologies. I've been in a bit of a funk and just couldn't find it in me to write anything. Then JUNE started. And well, if you don't already know....June kicks my butt. I'm a director of the Musical Theatre Workshop at MCC. It's an awesome workshop, and I love it so much, it's just a lot of work. Basically, I'm completely consumed in this month. So, here are a few pics of the first day, which was a week ago Monday. This coming Friday and Saturday are our performances for workshop one and then we start again on Monday.




We've got a great bunch of kids this session and we're curiously ahead of schedule, which NEVER happens in workshop one. Should be a good show.

These two shots are of my small ensemble group. I love my group, they're really great and fun. I have 2 of my nephews in the group, how fun is that?

This is SueAnne giving directions to the kids. They're in their giant circle to do the warm up. I have video, but I still can't get any of my videos to upload on here. UGH!

So, in case I don't get back around to blogging for a few more weeks, I leave you with these pics of Maggie and this thought.....

Stay cool peeps! We'll be back soon.

Workshop and insanity,

Allyson