roxy part deux

at 7:37 a.m. this morning, i heard the clanging of your dad's spoon in his cereal bowl.

at 7:38 a.m. this morning i heard the sounding of alarms inside my head as i realized i had NOT moved Roxy last night.

how is it even possible that less than 24 hours after this excursion began, i was already forgetting and failing? seriously. i blame it on this death bug situation i have had going on. in order to remedy the situation and get my head back full of christmas cheer, i finally made a drs apt this morning. i'm working with a little sinus and respiratory infection, it seems. they were kind enough to give me a steroid shot and an antibiotic and i am just certain i am on my way back to wellness. in fact, i felt so fantastic this evening i loaded all three of you up, by myself and took you to see christmas light with uncle tim.

this new found spring in my step and clearer headedness could not have come a moment too soon because in that flurry this morning, i had to frantically text message your father to have him move Roxy. the really beautiful thing about your dad is that he is kind enough to oblige most of my requests and today was no different. however, the thing about your mother, is that she thinks he doesn't do it quite like he should have. it's a character flaw in me and most women, but i am smart enough to be appreciative of his effort and he is nice enough to continue to do things for me despite this flaw.

and so this morning when we came down to the kitchen, this is where Roxy was:

hanging from a chandelier in the kitchen. yep. that's right. with all due respect for any of our readers out there, this is about the most predictable place for the elf to end up. not even 10 feet from his original resting place. *sigh* i know right now, your dad is reading it, saying to himself "where the hell did you want me to put it?" followed by, "then do it yourself!" both statements are equally true, but i thought this might be a nice opportunity for ol' daddy and i to square off. i propose we each take turns placing the elf in an effort to come up with the most creative and eventful journey for miss thang'-- i mean, Mr. Roxy.

so what do you say, rothy? its my turn tonight, of course. this gives you the chance to do some thinking and plotting. circling your prey like you do for days upon end when searching for the perfect vehicle.

don't get me wrong, honey, he looked pretty happy up there, but i think you can do better. 

*waaa-ink*

this is your challenge if you choose to accept it, if not, be riddled in shame during our reindeer elf games!

rockin' roxy roth

we started putting up christmas decorations this weekend and its a slow process. i wish i had the enthusiasm for christmas decorating that your ya ya does, but i just don't. i get about half way through and its like a glitter and evergreen bomb has exploded in the house and i don't know what to! and to top it off, that pre-lit tree we bought a few years ago only lights up in the top and bottom sections. ugh. i don't mean to sound ba-hum-bug but i wish, like santa, it was as simply as laying a finger aside my nose and it would all be done. i am going to muscle through it, for you, because that's what mom's do! my mom was the best at celebrating everything! she loved the decorating part!

one thing i am enjoying is our elf on the shelf! this is the first year you have gotten into it and we read the book last night. you were asked to name your elf and you came up with Roxy. Roxy Roth. but Roxy is NOT a girl, no, no.

Roxy is a boy elf.

i am pretty sure that we just invented a drag queen elf and like visions of sugar plums dancing in my head, i lay in bed last night and dreamed of all the wonderful things we could do with ol' Roxy. the make up! the costume changes! the lip syncing! the strobe lights! now where did i leave my bedazzler?

Roxy started on the living room sconce last night and upon his return from the north pole this morning we found him on the pot filler! (good thing i remembered to move him!) i think its a nice use for the very expensive, pot filler that i HAD to have and seldom utilize. *sigh* (insert no comments, rothy!)

i thought it would be fun to chronicle the Rockin' adventures of Roxy Roth this month, so i will do my best to keep you abreast of his travels. he's a cheeky old broad, so who knows where this queen will end up or just what he'll be wearing! 

jack was happy to find the toy nativity scene that grandma bought him last year. we talked about all the guys (wisemen) and assorted characters and how they fit into the big picture. he was happy to note that baby Jesus was in fact, wearing the exact same thing that baby eleanor sleeps in at night! amazing how long swaddling has been in fashion! i do believe he is paying attention at preschool and chapel, as he was quite familiar with the whole story. :) 

in other happy news, daddy finally found the box in the attic that contained all the baby headbands and bows! oh happy day! and poor baby eleanor! she doesn't know what she's in for. i love the saying "the bigger the bow, the better the momma!" your aunt jackie got me a darling shirt that said that and the back says "go big or go home!" i love it!

i found this bow, one of my all time favorites, that miss burgandy bought for vivian when she was born. the best part of this bow, is its sheer mass! the first time uncle tim saw vivian in it he said "she looks like she has a damn shower puff attached to her head!" indeed, she does, and isn't it freaking cute?

"my name is Loofa, i live on the second floor. . ."

(i can't take credit for that bit of hilariousness, that one came from the legendary scott rupe-a-loop!)

lately we have been engaging in our monthly school of rock, and this month we have been studying the musical stylings of queen. jack thought freddy mercury kicked a lot of ass because of his mustache, and i couldn't agree more. plus, it kinda takes away from that hideous british grill of his. anyways, jack fancy's "we will rock you" and vivian prefers "another one bites the dust." both excellent choices, but mine will always be "somebody to love!" we've really been rocking out this week but after today, we are going to take the christmas music plunge. the funny scary thing about bug's choice in songs, is that, i am pretty certain its going to be her battle cry/anthem. she seems to revel in the "and another one gone and another one gone, hey, i'm gonna get you too, another one bites the dust." oooooh man, she frightens me.

you kids are crazy! 

i'm off to bed, still fighting this damn black lung you have given me. i have all but lost my voice today, which i think your dad secretly likes. first i am going to have to move Roxy and makes sure he stays outta my louboutins! 

so thankful

it's a couple of days after thanksgiving and i have spent the better part of these last few days in bed. it is a lovely thing to have the three of you in my life but let's face it, you are carrier monkeys, bringing home whatever germ or contagion you come across. this one started with vivian two weeks ago, spread to jack last week, then the poor baby and by wednesday of this week i was starting to feel its effects. the bitch of all of this is that right about the time you all are feeling good again, regaining your energy, momma is zapped. i have spent countless nights up taking some ones temperature, dosing out tylenol, rocking, checking humidifiers and worrying. now you are all bouncing off the walls with your new found zest and health and i am miserable. i am, however, thankful this has fallen during daddy's thanksgiving break and he has been taking the day shift while i struggle through the night. baby eleanor also happens to be going through a growth spurt and is waking up every three hours to nurse, which couldn't be any less perfectly timed.

such is my life and although i am feeling under the weather and melancholy about it all, i am very thankful for this life. and to keep in the spirit i thought i would make you all a little list of the things i am thankful for today, november 26, 2011.

i am thankful for. . .

• your father. he's a boy, so by nature, he is a little gross at times, but i am pretty sure i've got the best guy out there. he let's me sleep in, takes care of the three of you and ENJOYS it, he does laundry, he loves all of us. he is an amazing provider and above all, your dad makes me laugh every single day. our feuds are few and far between, fortunately, and when they do happen its usually over something ridiculously silly. he would do anything for us and that is evident to everyone. i was blessed to have the three of you, but never have i been so lucky as the day that i found him. 
• my parents. i hope, when the time comes, and you are adults that you will like me as much as i like my parents. don't get me wrong, its been a long road to get here and there were certainly times i thought they were out to get me, but now that i have you all, i know they have always had my best interest at heart. they spent the month of october with us and we had a ball. its an amazing gift to come to the place where you see your parents as real people. i now know so much more about them, their hopes, their dreams, their pasts and its shed some light on who they are. they love the three of you so much! they drove all the way from springfield the weekend of moving just to see you for 24 hours! can you believe that!? and mom cried today when she left and vivian said to her in the sweetest voice, "i will miss you, grandma." and we do, already.
• my brother. i know i have talked about it before in this blog, but i can't think of a bigger gift my parents could have given me than my ornery little brother. he's been helping me out and taking jack to swimming lessons, its "guy time" and jack really loves it. lately, uncle tim has you all convinced he works for willy wonka making chocolate every day. i am worried for the day that bubble is burst! 
• i am thankful to live in a country with so many freedoms and so many people willing to protect that freedom. the land of the free and the home of the brave, it really doesn't get much better than that.
• i am thankful for a kind and loving God that forgives me, shapes me and encourages me to do better, to be better. 
• i am thankful for being blessed with so many amazing friends! there have been times in my life that friends have come and gone but in this moment in time, the stars are aligned and i have the coolest, most thoughtful and wonderful friends. i am thankful for one very special renewed friendship in particular this year with the good dr kinder. after all this time, she is still the quirky, hilarious, silly girl i met so many years ago. i am also thankful, that i have had the wisdom to know when to walk away from friendships that were no longer working. (let that be another lesson, "you've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away, and know when to run!") 
• i am thankful for my mini van. damn it. i never thought i would say those words but it sure makes life with three car seats easier!
• i am thankful for my sweet, sweet dog, neko, despite the deafening snoring. 
• i am thankful for two amazing bosses, that i am lucky enough to call my friends. 
• i am thankful for a roof over our head, electricity in this house and that despite how pissed your dad gets about the pool, he hasn't turned it into a basketball court. . . yet! 
• i am so, so thankful for my bathtub.
• i am thankful for gel manicures, hair color, sweat pants, great fitting jeans, a massive musical library, my iphone, this computer, girls night out, family night in, halloween, dressing up, car payment shoes, family heirloom jewelry, marble counter tops, my mom's sugar cookies, ashland avenue, finally a decent drivers license picture, an amazing babysitter, a job that allows me to be creative, great wines, good food, that my hair is finally growing back in post-baby, a dreadmill that works, bearcat victories, our dinner club, this community, my godmother and my children's godmother and so many other things, i could list all night long.
• i am especially thankful that this old body, once consider infertile was able to sustain three pregnancies. i will never forget the disappointment before we were able to get pregnant with jack the first time and the joy that came when we found out we were finally having a baby! and then with miss vivian, how my chances weren't good, there was one lone egg and it didn't look like it would be big enough to fertilize. imagine our surprise when it did fertilize and there were TWO babies! i was sad for a second about the loss of the other one, but vivian's star was just too bright to share the light with anyone else! and sweet baby eleanor! someday this statement will gross you out, but it was on this very night one year ago you came into existence. we thought it was physically impossible to get pregnant on our own and although a third child had crossed our mind, we weren't planning for it. i can honestly say, i have NEVER been so surprised in my life as they day i found out you were coming! you have been the single best surprise of my life and have really completed our family. 

i have so very many things to be thankful and grateful for. i honestly count my blessings every day and pinch myself that of all the people God could have picked, He chose me to have this life. i appreciate it so much and am thankful every day. 

Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough.
-- Oprah Winfrey 

baby jack

when you first came into this world, we had all sorts of sweet rituals. i had all the time in the world to devote to just you, baby jack. we snuggled in the mornings, skyped grandma over breakfast, rocked all afternoon while watching crappy tv, you took a bath in the evenings and then at night you would nurse until you fell asleep and we listened to music. just me and you.

i made a special playlist for you and it became a routine for you and you would fall asleep by the fourth or fifth song. i had decided long ago i wanted music to be a part of your life and its still a really fun thing that we do together. we dance in the kitchen all of the time and now, on your fourth birthday, we are singing in the car together. how this day has come so quickly, i do not know. it seems like just yesterday we sang by the light of the moon, with your in your little blue fleece swaddle and your heavy eyelids.

you have become so much more than i could have ever dreamed and with each changing phase it gets better, you get better, YOU become so much more. you are such a happy fun kid. charming. silly. all boy. i am forever grateful that God gave you to me to look after and protect. you have made me a better person; a more sentimental, gentler person.

i love the random things you say to me when you wake up and how fresh and new the world is through your eyes. you can't fall asleep with out an extra hug and a kiss. you love cars, trucks and trains. you hate getting your hair cut and for your hands to be dirty. you are learning to write your name and doing pretty well with the J. you and vivian are playing better together and you look at eleanor like she is a special toy we made just for you. you have the best laugh, a most magical giggle, that i find extremely contagious.

you are everything i could ever want in a son!

you are 43 4/4 inches tall and 42 pounds on your 4th birthday! what a big boy you are becoming!

i love you!~ i love you more!~ i love you the MOST!

Dragon tales and the "water is wide"
Pirate's sail and lost boys fly
Fish bite moonbeams every night
And I love you

Godspeed, little man
Sweet dreams, little man
Oh my love will fly to you each night on angels wings
Godspeed
Sweet dreams

The rocket racer's all tuckered out
Superman's in pajamas on the couch
Goodnight moon, will find the mouse
And I love you

Godspeed, little man
Sweet dreams, little man
Oh my love will fly to you each night on angels wings
Godspeed
Sweet dreams

God bless mommy and match box cars
God bless dad and thanks for the stars
God hears "Amen," wherever we are
And I love you

Godspeed, little man
Sweet dreams, little man
Oh my love will fly to you each night on angels wings
Godspeed
Godspeed
Godspeed
Sweet dreams

Godspeed, Dixie Chicks


(this is the song you always fell asleep to and i always cry to!)

tales from the crypt

the older i've become the more i have learned about my family. some of their habits or behavior are quite curious; and some down right puzzling. for instance, many years ago, when my grandmother nancy was still living on her own, i asked her for some old pictures of her growing up. she took me to the front bedroom of her little house and there sat a dresser. i opened the top drawer and it was overflowing with still images of her past. the most interesting of those photos were the ones of her and her sisters when they were teens and in their early twenties.

in these photos, they would be decked out to the nines, wearing fur coats, fabulous shoes and not a hair out of place. the strangest thing about the bulk of these photos i found, was that they were all taken in the filmore cemetery.

WEIRD.

they were all smiles, resting gently on top of some ones tombstone. they looked happy, very happy! oddly enough, as grandma and i were going through these photos, i never thought to ask her why there were a dozen or more taken in that cemetery. perhaps if one of my aunts reads this blog posting, they will be able to provide some answers!

nonetheless, in honor of my grandma and the spooktacular back drop for halloween, i took thing one and thing two to the gloriously beautiful mount mora cemetery in full costume for a photo shoot. it was a beautiful day and we actually had a really good time, noting the elaborate stones and attention to detail from the past. i think perhaps, we will continue on this barker girl tradition and do it every year for halloween!

miss you grandma! send me some answers!