Thursday, November 29, 2012

Oh Tannenbaum 2012

I am behind in many areas of my life, but one area I am not behind on is ... Christmas decorating!  And that's only because Jon took off Monday and Tuesday to help us get caught up around the house after Thanksgiving vacation.

Christmas trees are kinda a big deal around here.  We take them very seriously.  Well, except for last year when I was still in a newborn-induced stupor and was content to settle on the first tree we came across at the first tree lot we drove by on a very dark and freezing evening...  This year I was determined to make up for it.

I convinced Hubs that we needed a Pennsylvania tree.  And one that we actually got in Pennsylvania ourselves.  I'm tired of paying an arm and a leg for a quality fir without any of the experience of hunting it down.  It's like the difference between a zoo and a safari folks.  This year, we went to a safari!

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Julia was still sick and slept on Uncle Micah through the whole event.
It was planned weeks in advance that we would help Marmie and Poppa (and the Uncles) pick out their trees the day after Thanksgiving.  We were still unsure about ours but left the option open.  We decided on Kohl's Stony Hill Tree Farm in Milton, PA.  I'd never been there myself, but we had heard good things.  And we knew we needed something good to impress Miss Kylee, who was tagging along for her first real Christmas tree hunting experience. 

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Seeking out that perfect triangle ...
I don't know about Miss Kylee, but I was impressed myself.  From the big red barn with a Christmas store, tree stand collection and free hot chocolate, to the tree carts and measuring sticks, everything was provided for.  We decided right then and there we'd be bringing a tree home that day.

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Free rides up the hill! (That saw is not in as dangerous a position as it appears.)
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Measuring stick - I think this is the first year we didn't underestimate the tree's height.
But I think my favorite part of the farm was the views.  All of them.

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It was a perfect tree-picking day.  A not too cold (but not too hot), beautifully sunny day.  Amongst our clan we had 4 trees to find.  Of course, Jon and I picked ours first, because he's very decisive and I'm willing to go with whatever he says.

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It's a good thing I took these pictures because after we got home and put up the tree, Hubby was convinced we had grabbed the wrong one, since it was so sparse at the top.  Well, apparently the one we picked really was sparse on top.
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Jude almost looks brutish in this picture...
It took the rest of the group a little longer to decide on their trees, which makes so much sense if you know how I am about decisions.  I get it from my parents ... and my brothers do too.
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The deliberation.
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After we all finally decided on our trees, had them shaken and wrapped, and loaded them on the car, we returned to Marmie and Poppa's to help them decorate. It helped set the mood for our own adventures a few days later.

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You may have noticed that we don't have any ornaments on the bottom portion of our tree, and you may have assumed this is because we had some wondering hands in this house. And you would be partially correct. But the main reason there are no ornaments at the bottom is because no one hung them there. Jon did the majority of the decorating and Jack and Jude thought it was so cool to stand on the stool (or couch) to hang up the high ornaments that no one volunteered to decorate the unexciting branches at ground level.
 
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And I've decided to just keep it that way, especially since Julia is really tapping into her exploratory self these days and is into EVERYTHING!

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And I'll be honest, she is the most difficult of my three to say "no" too.  How can I resist those sweet eyes and wild locks of hair?  Well, unless she's about to take a swim in the toilet, I can be very firm then.  Other than that, it's a good thing she doesn't ask for much at this point. I'm sure we would have all gone with the first tree she pointed towards!

Monday, November 26, 2012

Thanksgiving 2012

This time of year always moves a bit fast for me.  One minute we're raking up leaves, reading about the first Thanksgiving and mentioning that, again, we're thankful for "the swings."  The next, we're picking out a Christmas tree, putting up lights and agonizing over the gifting list (because in this little family we don't even attempt to do Christmas shopping unless we first have a list of ideas).  I need some transitions.  Maybe a special musical tone?  Or how about that giant page-turning number they do in Winnie the Pooh?  Or maybe a perfectly timed snowfall to replace all the crunchy leaves?

Oh wait, that sorta happened.


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Snowflakes in Central Pennsylvania!

But shall I rewind a bit to the day before Thanksgiving?  The day I was attempting to pack everything up, clean the car and entertain the kiddos.  What a horrible day. 

It never fails, the last few hours before we head out on a trip are just horrific.  I can't remember all the details precisely.  Just that my computer totally, for real died right in the middle of an important project.  And that Jude spilled his entire cup of juice all over the recently-mopped floor.  And after I mopped and dried it once it was still sticky and I ended up having to mop it again. And that Jack volunteered to water all the plants and it was too late by the time I realized he was watering an artificial orchid and water was streaming down the stand and puddling all over the modem and wireless transmitter.  And the number of times Julia unpacked the suitcase I was trying to pack. 

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She loves Nonnie and Poppie's kitty-cat!
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Speaking of the Lil Miss, she was whiny and clingy the entire day, which makes cleaning and packing a bit of a challenge.  I knew what it meant.  All of last week Jack was dealing with a croupy cough, we've been running vaporizers, hanging out in the steamy bathroom and slathering on the Vicks hoping it would all be cleared up by Thanksgiving.  Of course, in the back of all our minds is the real question: Who's next?

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Playing at Great Uncle Pete's house.
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One of her brighter moments on Thanksgiving day.
Turns out it was Julia.  Poor, little "Swee-Pie."  She woke up the day we left with a cough and a longing for perpetual Mommy snuggles.  By the time we reached Jon's parents' house she was running a fever and didn't want to go to sleep in her bed.  So she spent the night in ours ... and kept us awake for the better part of it.  The same thing happened the following night too.  Anytime I tried to lay her down, or lay down with her, she started crying. Which meant I needed to keep her upright.  Which meant I needed to stay upright.  Which meant two very uncomfortable nights of sleep.  It reminded me of her earliest days at home, which I had all but forgotten about. 

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In between those two sleepless nights was a trip to New Jersey to celebrate Thanksgiving with my mother-in-law's family and have dinner with 50+ other guests.  Julia was a trooper, a miserable one, but she hung in there throughout the long, long day.  There were a few moments when she rallied and let someone else entertain her for a little ...

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Like her first-cousin-once-removed Lizzy.
... but for the most part she stuck close by me.  And chose to finally give in to a nap on my shoulder just as we were lining up to eat.  Here's to yet another Thanksgiving dinner eaten with one hand!

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We don't see much of this kid when the big cousins are around!
It was good to see the extended family again, many whom we haven't seen in over a year.  And a huge thanks goes to Unce Pete and Aunt Linda for organizing and hosting the event!  I love how much my husband's relatives love family and the great lengths they'll go to so that we can all keep up.  They are a special group!

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Thanksgiving Day group shot
Photo Credit: Nonnie
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Papa and Nana with their 10 great-grandkids!
We were a tired clan leaving New Jersey that night.  Julia quickly fell asleep, we could hear her rattled breathing from the front seat.  The boys decided to stay awake as long as possible and didn't begin to drift off until we were almost home.  I'm not sure if we ever caught up on sleep the rest of the weekend.  We went Christmas tree hunting on Friday, Jon and his Dad went to the shooting range on Saturday, I actually got a little shopping in as well, and then we stayed up late playing games. 

On Sunday, 2/3 of my children slept through church and then we went to Uncle Micah's house for food, football and chatting.  By the time we got back to Jon's parents' house, ate dinner and packed the car it was another late evening.  We prefer to travel at night when we can, because it's easier when the kids sleep.  But by 8:30 I was the one nodding off while my boys were still going strong in the backseat.

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A little feverish but still working up a smile!
Photo Credit: Aunt Juliann
The good news is Julia appears to be much better.  She slept through the night again which gave me a much-needed long stretch of sleep.  Of course, now I'm the one with the stuffy nose and sore throat.  And I'm just waiting for Jude to show signs as well.

But at the end of the day we're still thankful, thankful for our health.  Thankful that this is the first time a few of us have been sick in a long time (and that it's just a cold).  Thankful for friends and family.  And so thankful for the opportunity to see them all this past week!

And also very thankful to be back home, in our own beds, and anticipating another full night of catching up on sleep!

Saturday, November 17, 2012

What you fankle for?

The Handsome Coastie was in California all week and so, since it's been a month since my parents have seen the kids (and they've grown and changed so much since then, of course), Marmie and Poppa decided to make the trip down.  It was a typical Marmie and Poppa visit.  My mom cooked all the meals, finished my pile of laundry to be ironed, and gave the kids tubbies every night.  Meanwhile Poppa took the boys on bike rides, built train tracks and he and the kids dusted my floors.

Other than a visit to the mall to "attempt" some Christmas shopping and an evening at Homestead Gardens to "ooo and awe" over their Christmas displays (and say "no touching" every 5 seconds), we pretty much hung out at home and enjoyed the quiet fall evenings.

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Well, except for that time a bird flew in the house.  I don't know what it is about my house that attracts birds but this seems to be happening a lot.  This one was a bit more curious and actually headed upstairs and inspected a number of my plants.  It took some work but we were finally able to chase him out the front door.  So we were telling Uncle Jared the story when he came for dinner the next night.  As he's about to leave we jokingly tell him he needs to duck out as quickly as possible so no birds fly in the open door.  Of course, he opens the door and our old friend is back in a flash.  This time we were better prepared and had all the lights off and doorways blocked in record time.  He found his way out yet again but not without first pooping on my couch.  Ew.

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I handed her the doll three times to get a picture ...
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.... and she threw Baby Stella off the couch every time.  Such a lover!
The break was certainly nice, so what I'm thankful for most this week was a visit from Marmie and Poppa.  And while we're on the subject, might as well bring up our dear "Thankful Tree" or as Jude says "Fankle Tree."

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A few of our friends have done a tree and I saw it on Pinterest last year.  We've been reviewing the "Fruit of the Spirit" over the last few weeks in our house and this month was the perfect time to segway into a lesson on gratitude. Fun fact, did you know thankfulness is not a Fruit of the Spirit? Neither is obedience. I tell ya, I was a tad put out when I realized we wouldn't be hitting that one anytime soon. I digress.

Jack and I just went out and gathered a few branches after the storm the other week and shoved them in a pot.  I printed off a few leaf shapes onto cardstock that we use as stencils.  I also had a stack, and I mean STACK, of paper that the boys have painted and colored on but was hesitant to throw out.  I figured this was an excellent use for it.  So rather than toss them out for good we've been using these sheets to make our leaves.

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Jack has enjoyed practicing his hole punching and string cutting skills.  He kinds likes to cut string every free chance he gets, we're on a bit of a scissor high these days.
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In theory, we would all sit down at dinner each night and say one thing we are thankful for, take turns writing it on a leaf and then make a ceremony of hanging each leaf on the tree. In reality, we often forget to do it. Actually, unbeknownst to me, Jon moved the Thankful Tree outside to make more room when we had guests last week. And then we accidentally left it out there. In the rain. So our tree is a bit worse for the wear and our leaves are slightly washed out.
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I must confess, I use this time of thanksgiving to my advantage. I'll try to encourage future good behavior by stating I'm thankful for "Good listeners at the grocery store" or "Boys who cleaned their plates at dinner!" I think Jack is starting to get it though. His interpretation of "things I'm thankful for" is more like "things I really like." And his timing is a little off. For instance, one time he mentioned he was thankful for school (he hasn't gone to school in 6 months). And he often mentions he's thankful for the pool on a hot summer day. But at the end of the day, I think it's starting to sink in.
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Jude on the other hand, has no idea what's going on. But he sure likes to talk about it. He'll say, "Jack, what you fankle for, Jack? What you fankle for?" And I'll say, "Jude, what are you thankful for?" And he'll say, "I fankle for, I fankle for... ahh, hahahaha!" By the time I get an answer from him it is ALWAYS: the swing. Jude is thankful for the swing every day of his little life.
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I will say, the funny thing about these character training lessons is how much they end up being for my benefit. One evening we were having a particularly bad dinner hour. Jon was working late, Julia was screaming, the boys were throwing food ... and Jack chose that moment to ask me what I was thankful for. What I really wanted to say was "Nothing, I'm not feeling very thankful right now!" But I knew if I did, he'd probably turn around and say the same thing to me the next day. Because he always follows my lead. And so I'm learning, in this act of cultivating an attitude of gratitude, that there is always something to be thankful for. Like so many other character traits, gratitude is not a feeling, it's a choice. And this has been the perfect season to really focus on those things, big and little, for which we're grateful. And it certainly doesn't hurt to hear my 4 year old, at the most random moments, yell "THANK YOU Mommy, THANK YOU for this delicious dinner!!" Oh yes, it's clicking!

This is me angry

My computer crashed earlier this week and while we're working on getting it up and running I've kinda been in limbo. I wrote up a blog on our back-up laptop but couldn't get Photobucket to load my pictures. So I tried again this morning on my husband's laptop and the same thing happened. So I thought I'd go back to uploading pictures through blogger. That was a disaster. After spending too much time trying to fix and flip pictures in blogger, it somehow ate half my post. And then conveniently saved my half-eaten post thereby erasing all my work competely. Dear Blogger, sometimes I loathe you. Today is one of those days. No more blogging today. Happy weekend to you!

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Phabilous Weekend

Finally, our friends Phil and Abi (hitherto referred to as the collective "Phabi") made a much anticipated, oft-rescheduled visit over the holiday weekend.  Phil and Jon are life-long friends.  The three of us grew up in the same church, although (sorry Phil) I'd place him in the same boys-that-didn't-talk-to-church-girls category as Jon back then.  Phil ended up joining the Air Force, marrying his high school sweetie and setting off for exotic locations like New Jersey and Japan.  Meanwhile Jon and I were forging new territory in our own relationship.  To make a long story short, our families are intertwined in so many ways it was impossible for Abi and I to not strike up a friendship.  It doesn't hurt that she's also the sister of our beloved "Miss Kylie."  We've been planning this visit for some time, but our plans were continually getting foiled.  So we were quite giddy to see them actually end up on our doorstep Friday night. 

Oh yeah, Phabi has an offspring of the most delicious variety.  You may remember her from our beach vacation, a cutey blonde my boys referred to as "The Little Guy."  Well they've since discovered a slightly more appropriate nickname for Raegan and referred to her, for the entire weekend, as "Little Rae."  It's darling I tell ya.

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I'd like to tell you the kiddos hit it off but poor Rae is an only child (at least for the next 3 weeks or so) and quite a doll.  I'm not sure she knew how to handle my boistorous, yelling, non-sharing, shoving brood.  And while she was quite a sweetie to my baby girl, even Julia turned against her one evening when they were both trying to watch a movie on the laptop - a tiny slapping, pushing fest ensued entirely on the side of my child.  Which has made it clear to me that I must be raising a pack of bullies.  Anyway, dear Raegan, I'm so sorry for my children's appalling behavior, I'm sure your new little brother will be nothing like that.

Anyway, I was completely off my game this week and used my camera all of 3 seconds.  I'm now kicking myself for not being more diligent in my memory-making records.  But between all the eating, child-minding, fun-having and weird stomach bug thing I have had going on now for ohhh 5 days??? ... I just plain forgot to bring my camera most places.  I'll have to appease you with some Instagram shots.

After a late night of catching up, we were off the next morning for the National Aquarium in Baltimore.  This is our third trip there since July.  Since we knew we had several guests coming in that wanted to visit, we decided to go ahead and get a yearly membership this summer.  For our family, a membership actually costs slightly less than two visits so we've more than made up for it.  And we still have lots of opportunities for more trips. 

We really enjoy the National Aquarium.  They're currently under construction and we miss the sting rays, but all the other exhibits never disappoint.  Jon's favorite is the dolphin "show."  Although it's not considered a show anymore.  Instead, the exhibit is always open and all throughout the day they'll do "presentations."  But hey, if a dolphin is turning 360s several feet out of the water, or splashing the audience with his tail, then I'd say it's a show.

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This was the first time Julia was actually into the fish, as in pounding on the glass, squealing with happiness everytime one swam by.
My favorite stop is the jellyfish room.  It's dark, peaceful, majestic, and I always lose my kids.  Okay, so the final reason isn't a good reason to like it.  But other than that it's a favorite.  Plus I find they're the easiest creatures to capture on camera.

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We thoroughly exhausted the kiddos, who promptly fell asleep on the drive home.  Three snoozing in the backseat is a very rare occurence, so naturally I captured it for all eternity.

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The highlight of our weekend was our Double Date Night.  Uncle Jared and Miss Kylie graciously offered to babysit all four kids so we parents could hit the town.  We decided on dinner and a movie.  This was our first visit to The Chop House at Town Center, Annapolis and it was well worth the wait.  We opted for the Happy Hour menu and were so glad we did.  I'll take sharing several plates, tapas style, with good friends over one lonesome meal any day! My favorite, by far, was the the Bacon Wrapped Chorizo Stuffed Dates (my mouth waters just thinking about them), Abi loved the Tempura Asparagus with Lemon Garlic Aoili, and our men had the highest compliments for the
Smoked Samon and Tuna Tartare. 

We ate at the very parental hour of 5 o'clock.  While there were only a few people there when we arrived, the place was quickly filling up by the end of our meal.  And since we stuck to Happy Hour specials, we walked out of their with full bellies AND still full wallets.  Not a bad deal and one I'd certainly do again.

One of the reasons we dined early was to make it to the movie theater in time.  We had purchased tickets to see Skyfall at IMAX the night before, to ensure we would have seats during opening weekend.  We even got there about 20 minutes early.  You can tell we don't do movies very much because that was just not early enough.  The only seats available were in the first three rows.  IMAX, third row ... let's just say, after a 2 hour and 40 minute movie, my neck was a bit sore by the time we walked out of there.  Another reason we wanted to choose our seats was to avoid sitting next to an extremely young crowd.  Ironically, I think we were some of the youngest folks there for that showing.  And no obnoxious teenager could compete with the lady seated behind our right shoulders that would cackle at the oddest moments throughout the movie.  I digress.

We arrived home to a clean house, four kids fast asleep, and reports from our sitters that they were all well-behaved and excellent eaters.  And although Julia did put up a bit of a fight for Uncle Jared at bedtime, I would call the evening an overall success!

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Sunday was Annapolis.  The weather was gorgeous this weekend and Sunday was perfect walk-around-town day.  We visited the Famer's Market, looked at sailboats, petted dogs, did a little Christmas shopping and grabbed some lunch.

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The boys got toy rescue helicopters ... they lasted all of 2 hours.
We're in the final weeks of crab season here in Maryland so we stopped and picked up 3 dozen on our way home to steam for dinner. 

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Ooooo dinner.  London Broil, steamed crabs, salad, and a delicious squash and apple bake by Abi.  All followed by homemade ice cream for dessert.  I do so love crab.  I do not love how much work it is to eat one. Nor do I enjoy dismantling my dinner.  Or seeing it alive too soon before it makes it to my plate.  Or hearing it meet it's death as it cooks.  *shudder*  But I rallied enough to give Julia her first Maryland Blue Crab experience.  She was really only interested in banging the mallet on the table anyway...

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Phil and Kylee had to leave that evening to be back at work on Monday.  Abi and Rae stayed for one more night so Abi and I could could get some thrifting done the next morning.  We parted ways outside of Goodwill with promises to see each other again soon.  Because the nice thing about being a part of intertwined families is the guarantee of a future meeting.  Holidays are just around the weekend.  And Rae's baby brother will soon be needing a proper introduction!!

Thursday, November 8, 2012

A glimpse of the future


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Jack: "Moooooom, look.  I'm playing in the future." (bathtub = future)

Jude: *giggling, hops in*

Jack: "Mooommm, Jude's in my future.  Get Jude out of my future!"

Mom: "Sorry bud, he's always going to be in your future."

Jude: "I in Jack's future!  I in Jack's future!"

Jack: *throws Jude out of future*

Jude: "Mommy, Jack won't let me in his future!"

Jack: "I don't want Jude in my future!"

Mom: "Jack, what exactly is a 'future'?"

Jack: "You know, it's where you fight!"

Mom: "Okay Jude, stay away from Jack's future."

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Absentee Voter

Today is election day (as if you didn't know already).  You can hardly hop on Facebook or Twitter without getting pummeled with election and political information.  I've been looking forward to this day for a while now because, quite honestly, I'm just so tired of it all.  I'm tired of the campaigning, the speeches, the debates.  I'm tired of all the Facebook posts, signs and oodles of mail asking for a donation.  It's just all getting so old.

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But I'll confess, my passion was reignited today.  Reading all the tweets about the loonnnng poll lines.  Seeing pictures of my friends' "I voted" stickers.  And just plain knowing we've reached the end ... has me excited.  And grateful.  So my leaf on our Thankful Tree today, nestled amongst all the "I'm thankful for treats" and "I'm thankful for Mommy pushing me on the swing" and "I'm thankful for iced tea" leafs, is this one:

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Because at the end of the day, no matter which direction the election goes or even who is running, I at least have a say.  And people have fought very hard, and many have died, for that privilege.  And that's a right I never want to take lightly.  Which why I'm sitting here and watching election coverage on the news, despite the fact that my political husband isn't even home AND I have a new Emma DVD staring me down, begging to be watched.  Because I want to be present, I want to be a part and more than all that I don't want to be ambivalent.

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That said, I didn't vote today ... I actually voted last week.  In the middle of the hurricane.  I made sure my husband ran our ballots out to the mailman, in the pelting rain, just as soon as I heard his engine revving up the street.  Because as hard as I'm trying to be present in this election, I'm technically an absentee voter, compliments of the military.  

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This probably an advantage for me. I'd much prefer to cast my vote in Pennsylvania than any other state.  And hearing from many of my friends who stood in line to vote today with their little ones in tow ... I'm thankful I didn't have to draw up that courage.  Even so, I felt a little left out.  It must be so satisfying to pull that lever, or whatever it is you guys do (since I have never been able to personally vote in an election). I mean, I don't even know if my ballot made it to our polling center.  A receipt would be nice.  Or even better, an "I voted" sticker so that everyone else around me would know I care too.  But alas, the most political thing I've done all day is turn on the news after the kids went to bed.

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Instead we went to Target.  Because the boys needed some soap and, since my small children have not yet grasped the conept of Daylight Savings Time, Mama needed some Starbucks.  And after that, well let's just say it's never difficult to come up with reasons to go to Target: A Berenstein Bear book here, a $5 Emma DVD there, and some Echinacea to build us up for holiday travels ... you know how it is.  And potty breaks.  Geesh, potty breaks are kicking my rear this week.  I never considered how having two potty-trained youngsters would impact my errand-running.  And I can only imagine what that will look like once Julia gets older.  Forget making everyone go before we walk out the door, it doesn't matter.  One of them always has to use the restroom once we reach somewhere.  And since going potty is contagious, well it's inevitable we'll all end up cramming into the stall wherever it is we end up.

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Speaking of cramming into restroom stalls, did you ever notice how high the toilets are in public restrooms?  Or the lack of stools?  Neither did I, until I had kids.  Who can't reach the toilet.  At least not unless I lift them up, which is pretty tricky while also holding a 13 month old.  And I'm sure you've noticed how dirty the floors are in public restrooms... *sigh* I cringe.

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So funny story, or maybe not.  Jude decided he needed to go potty in Target today.  I mean, really had to go.  Like holding himself and jumping up and down had to go.  So picture the store as a large square.  The bathrooms are in the upper left corner and we ... were all the way in the bottom right corner.  As far away from Pottytown as possible.  So I tossed him into the basket, Jack jumped on the back of the cart and held on tight, and I told them all we were going to "zoom" through the store if Jude could just hold it for 2 minutes longer.  And zoom we did.

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Until Jack decicded he wanted to get off the cart.  Without warning.  Just stepped off the back and didn't move.  Well, he moved once the cart rammed into him and plowed him over.  And threw Jude into the back.  And gave Julia whiplash and knocked my coveted cuppa Starbucks right out of my hands and all over my baby girl.  Who started screaming (whether from hot coffee or whiplash I'm still not sure.)  Which all caused a red-shirted associate to ask "Is everything okay?"  And I assure her all is fine while I'm wiping up coffee and clutching my daughter.

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We pushed forward towards the restroom, Jack walking, me holding Julia and pushing the cart at a much slower pace, and Jude still holding his pee-pees.  And I concede that I must look like an utter fool.  Perhaps it's a good thing I didn't get an "I voted" sticker today.

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Regardless, tomorrow morning we'll (hopefully) know who will be president next year.  Despite my absentee status I have been present in this election.  And maybe after tomorrow we can go back to all the fun stuff that gets posted on social media.  Like pictures of dinner, snarky ecards and stories about little boys that have to go potty in Target.  I can't wait.
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