CrAzY Working Mom: June 2011

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Summer Sunburns, Rain, and Funny Stuff.

Little Emily made friends with a turtle at the Memphis Zoo.

For those of you wondering, my back is much better! The pain has been replaced by an itch that of course cannot be scratched. The majority of the burn was right in the middle of my back, you know that one place you cannot reach?! Of course when I enlist one of the kids to aid in scratching they can never seem to hit that one spot that really itches. My skin is also peeling, so that makes it more itchy and uncomfortable! Thankfully, though it is healing and I appreciate all of the sweet thoughts and comments during my healing. I have the greatest friends and family ever!

Meanwhile, summer is rolling along quite nicely. Since I have moved the office back home, I am spending lots of time with the kiddos. Some days this is great and some days it makes me want to pull my hair out...and not just the gray hair that it's causing me! I was told by my 2.5 year old yesterday that I was "annoying her...sewiously"! The same one who asked me as some thunderstorms rolled through the area if we needed to get our life jackets on. I wondered if maybe we had prayed a little too hard for rain and perhaps our she was channeled in with ole Noah and he had given her some sort of forewarning about the coming weather! The rain was much needed and we did have to cancel our plans to go to the water park. But we were thankful for a little drink for our trees who were steadily dropping leaves. Although the yard seemed to grow a foot over night, I am sure it needed it too...even though it just seems to make for more work! Hope your week is progressing nicely. Happy Hump Day everyone!

Summer Family Outdoor Health and Safety Gear

I have the pleasure of returning to KARZ 42 for Arkansas Matters tomorrow, Thursday, June 30 in the 7:00 hour. This is a listing of the items that will be featured on the show. Readers of CrAzY Working Mom are getting a sneak peak. Tune in tomorrow (or set your DVRs) to catch the segment.

Safety Turtle - The Safety Turtle Wireless Wristband Alarm is an ingenious combination of wireless signal-outfitted wristband and a wireless base station receiver that sounds an alarm the instant a child falls or ventures into water. The base station can be positioned anywhere between pool/waterside and 200 feet away.

Since we have an above ground pool, the child immersion alarm was something that really piqued my interest. My 2 year old has climbed the ladder to the pool before, but never gotten in without supervision. I think as parents, we always think that our children are always well protected and supervised but the truth is that drowning is one of the top 5 accidental deaths in the US.

There is also a pet immersion alarm. There are breeds of dogs that cannot swim. Bassett Hounds and English Bulldogs, dogs with short legs aren't built for swimming and generally have a hard time doing so. If they were to fall into deep water, they might not be able to get out. By putting the safety turtle on their collar, it could potentially save their life.

The turtle has to be completely submerged in water, so it will not alarm if it gets wet from rain, sprinkling systems, or the likes. For more information on this system, you can click the link at the top. This item retails from $235 (depending on model desired).

ThermaCELL Outdoor Insect-Repellent Lantern - The best option for repelling mosquitoes and other insects in any outdoor setting. The Patio Lantern is both a powerful insect repellent device and a functional and portable, long-lasting outdoor LED lantern, with both functions being usable separately or together. Providing a 15x15 ft mosquito-free zone, it is 98% effective (tested and used by the Department of Defense and the United States Army), making it the most effective insect repellent device on the market. It is also non-toxic, safe and non-intrusive, being DEET-free, silent, portable and odor free. Weighs only 13 ounces.

Since my husband is an avid hunter, he introduced me to the ThermaCELL line of products including the Mosquito Repelling Appliance and the Outdoor Lantern. This product is very effective and repels 98% of black flies, mosquitoes, and no-see-ums. There is no hot wax, open flames, or greasy, stinky DEET based products to apply to your body. The great thing about this repellent is that it doubles as a lantern and that you can use each function together or separately! It is battery operated and has low and high illumination settings. It is a great product and available at most retailers. This product is only 13 ounces and retails for $31.99.

Sport-Brella
At the park, beach, pool or campsite, the SKLZ Sport-Brella gives you instant protection from the sun, rain, and wind with its domed shape, side flaps and 125 SPF. Its umbrella action open mechanism allows it to be set up in just three seconds and fits the whole family. Includes top wind vents, side zippered windows for efficient airflow and additional visibility, internal pockets for gear and valuables, convenient carry bag and tethers/ground stakes for use when necessary for additional stability. Retails for $69.99.

This is an awesome product! It is easily transported with the carry bag. Although it's longer than your typical camping chair, it carries just as easily. You can fit two collapsible camping chairs and a small table under this umbrella. It can be used at sporting events as well as camping. The stakes are awesome if using on a windy day. We also like the zippered windows so that you can let air flow through on those hot summer days.

The Sport-Brella Chair - This is the ultimate chair for any outdoor setting. It is a portable fold-up sport chair, but unlike other fold-out sport chairs, it has an attached 360 degree swivel umbrella which can be moved from one side of the chair to the other and can be swiveled at 3 different points at the push of a button to offer complete coverage from the sun and wind at any conceivable angle. The umbrella opens out to 46 inches wide and has a UPF 50+ lining for maximum sun protection. The Sport-Brella Chair also has a built-in cup holder, bottle opener and item pouch. Folds down instantly and fits into a compact carry bag. $39.99

This chair is the bomb-diggity!!! It is pretty stinkin' awesome! The only thing I regret about this chair is that we just finished up our baseball season. I can guarantee that next year this chair will be at the ball fields every time I am! Not only is the chair easily transported in a carry bag, has lots of pouches, cup holders, and the likes, but it also has an extra lumbar support in the back. This spoke volumes to me!! I find those camping type chairs to be generally not so comfortable, but this chair is somewhat over sized and the lumbar support is very comfortable. There is also a low-profile beach type chair with the same features.

Peekaru Ozone - Parents can take their baby out in the sunshine without worrying about sun damage or having to apply chemical sunscreens. The Peekaru Ozone is a uniquely breathable and lightweight baby carrier sun cover that attaches securely over any soft baby carrier, keeping baby shaded and cool. Can also be attached to any standard car seat or stroller. The super soft, moisture-wicking fabric blocks 95% of the sun's UVA and UVB rays while keeping baby cool and comfortable. Fits babies from birth through two years with an adjustable bottom that easily and securely cinches up for use with small babies, and lets out to accommodate babies' legs as they grow. $44.95.

Since I no longer have a baby, this is not much of an issue with me these days. I do have a toddler, however and she's been known to fall asleep in all sorts of crazy times and positions so this could potentially be handy should she fall asleep on the beach or at the pool and we aren't able to apply sunscreens on her.

The AquaJogger Junior - A fantastic in-water device that allows kids to learn to swim, play water games and have fitness fun. The Aquajogger Junior is worn like a belt and comfortably suspends the child wearing it at shoulder level in deep water allowing her/him to breathe normally and move freely while performing a wide variety of water activities. Contoured to fit a child's body, and both fully adjustible and secure, the Aquajogger Junior is easy to use and comfortable. Also available for older children are in-water exercise tools, like dumbbells and leg weights. Includes a Splash Club Handbook featuring water games, swimming tips, and safety information. For ages 3 and up. $24.95.

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

T-Ball 2011 is in the history books!

Tyler has finished his first year of baseball. T-ball was a blast for the entire family. He had an awesome coach who worked hard with the boys to help them learn the fundamentals of the game as well as how to bat, catch, etc. Tyler really enjoyed himself this season on Team Simmons First. He received a medal and a trophy at the end of the season. He was very proud. He has already scoped out a place on his wall where he wants to put a shelf for all of his trophies. He insists there will be many more baseball trophies!

Proud father and son after the last game.

I think we also have a future baseball player on our hands! Little Emily didn't hesitate to scoop up Tyler's glove and play a little ball herself after the boys finished playing.

She played so well she thought she deserved a medal and trophy!

Needless to say we were a sad bunch as we left the ball fields for the last time this season. Tyler asked, "Mom so it will be a whole 'nother school year until next summer when I get to play ball again?" I replied with a sad heart myself, "Yes it will son, yes it will". Until then we've got lots of practice time and of course tons of pictures to reminisce on.

This is one serious ball player!!

He had great cheerleaders (his sisters!)

He's outta there! Go Tyler!!!

Running the bases!

Needless to say, we cannot wait until next year!!!

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Ouch!

Yup, this is my back. Yup, it is severely sun burned. Yup, it reeeeeeaaaly hurts! I know, I know...I should have used sunscreen. The truth is, I DID! Only I sprayed it on my shoulders (and the top of my back, you see where the red line starts on top?) I was out cleaning the pool and had on a different swimsuit than I usually wear. It comes down farther on my back. There were parts of my back that were exposed to the sun that hadn't seen daylight in a while, so long story short, I am in a lot of pain! I am grateful for my family who have diligently rubbed silvadene cream and aloe vera with litacane gel on my back and placed vinegar soaked brown paper bags every few hours. I am one dye tablet away from being an easter egg, but believe me it sure helps take out the sting. Just call me Tisha the Pickle. Hopefully in a few days it will feel much better. Please keep me (and my wonderful family) in your prayers. I am so thankful that I have a loving, caring husband who is willing to take such good care of me, and a sister who went out to get the cream when she couldn't get her stubborn sister to go to the doctor. I do feel like a big goof for letting this happen. In the coming days, I know the discomfort will go from pain to itch, and hopefully there will be no permanent damage. So, how are you spending YOUR summer?

Cars 2 - Have You Seen It?

A lot of my Facebook friends have posted that they are going today to see CARS 2 (In Disney Digital 3D™ and IMAX® 3D). We will probably go one day this week. Every time my kids see a trailer or commercial for Cars 2 merchandise, they start asking when we are going to see it. I was watching "After The Catch" on Discovery the other night and found out that Captain Sig from Deadliest Catch voices the character of a crab boat.

Star racecar Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) and the incomparable tow truck Mater (voice of Larry the Cable Guy) take their friendship to exciting new places in “Cars 2” when they head overseas to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world’s fastest car. But the road to the championship is filled with plenty of potholes, detours and hilarious surprises when Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage. Mater finds himself torn between assisting Lightning McQueen in the high-profile race and towing the line in a top-secret mission orchestrated by master British super spy Finn McMissile (voice of Michael Caine) and the stunning rookie field spy Holley Shiftwell (voice of Emily Mortimer). Mater’s action-packed journey leads him on an explosive chase through the streets of Japan and Europe, trailed by his friends and watched by the whole world. The fast-paced fun includes a colorful new all-car cast, complete with menacing villains and international racing competitors.

Here is a clip from V12 TV to keep you entertained until you can go see the movie!

So, have you seen it yet? Do you have plans to see it in 3D or will you wait for the DVD? Look for our review later on the movie! We can't wait to see it!!!

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Summer Fun

I am still taking your ideas for summer fun ideas. Don't forget there is a $25 Wal-Mart gift card going out to someone for just leaving a comment on this post.

So far we've enjoyed some fun things including a quick trip to the Memphis Zoo (as mentioned in the previous post), a free magic show at the park sponsored by the Searcy Public Library. The kids really enjoyed this event and the best part about it was that it was FREE! This week we will be attending another magic show as well as Kids Summer Show at Searcy Cinema 8 where they will be showing Ramona and Beezus. You can see the schedule for the remainder of the summer by clicking this link. Admission is only $2, coke and popcorn is a buck! That's a deal you just can't beat. Doors open at 11 on Wednesday and Thursday. We also visited Splash Zone in Jacksonville. It was loads of fun for the kids. Admission is only $4 and if you have children over 48" tall who want to ride the big slides, you pay $1 extra.

Don't forget to head over to the contest post and leave a comment for your chance to win $25!

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Red Faced at the Zoo, But Not From the Heat!!!

Over the weekend we took a short road trip with the kiddos and some great friends to the Memphis Zoo. The weather was a bit overcast, so the skies were cloudy a big part of the day and thankfully there was a slight breeze during most of the day. The Memphis Zoo is very enjoyable and our family loves to visit. Each child has their own "favorite" animal. We discovered during our last trip to the circus that little Emily has a love for elephants. When we got to the elephants, one was washing himself by filling his trunk and spraying himself. He would also slap the water with his trunk to get himself wet. This was very comical to Emily. She declared, "Mommy, I just want to stay here and watch the elephants all day." It was the sweetest thing. Of course Shelby loves Zebras and Tyler likes Monkeys. I think he has a close relation to them. ;)

The highlight of the day, however took place on the playground as we were wrapping up the afternoon. The kiddos were all playing and one of the older children came to me and said that I needed to go check on Emily. When I arrived at the top of the playground equipment I found Emily sitting down with her pants and panties around her ankles!! The child needed to potty, so she just dropped her drawers and sat down and peed on the very top of the jungle gym between the slides. Needless to say, I was slightly red faced when we left...and not from the heat!

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Homecoming

I made it home yesterday after a bit of a frightful flight. (Try saying that five times real fast...GO!) There were storms around Arkansas so we did a little diverting or so the pilot said, it sure didn't seem like it to me! It was a very bumpy ride toward the last thirty minutes of the flight and the landing was a nightmare. Usually I don't get too panicky on flights, but on this one, I did my share of praying! I tried to keep calm by reading, but it was so bumpy that I couldn't even do that without feeling nauseated! Thankfully we made it home safe and sound.

I practically RAN to the front of the airport where my babies were waiting on me! They had made cute little signs saying "Mom" so I would know they were there for me. It was adorable. Tyler was in his baseball uniform because he had a ball game, unfortunately due to the storms the game was canceled. So, we ended up having a night to ourselves to catch up.

I sat in the back with the kids on the way home and I am telling ya, Shelby talked almost the entire 45 minute drive back home. It was good to catch up with them and they asked about the Statue of Liberty and New York City. I showed them the pictures I had taken and they were excited about it as well. All in all it was a good ride home and great to be back with my babies.

When I got home, Brien was home from work and had brought me flowers. He is so sweet and thoughtful. Nobody felt like cooking so at dinner, we went out and let someone else do the cooking and cleaning. I was thrown right back into my Mommy Hat for sure. Tyler and Shelby were the first ones to fight. Once it was resolved, Tyler made his way down to Emily and got her stirred up. Do you see a common denominator here? Needless to say it was good to be back home. ;)

The Cell Phone Meme

It has been ages since I've done an actual "meme" (rhymes with cream in case ya didn't know) - used to describe a concept that spreads via the Internet. While catching up on some unread blogs in my google reader, I came across The Cell Phone Meme from the Queen herself: Mimi, The Queen of Bloggingham Castle (where there is a dungeon for those bloggers who do not complete memes!!!). I thought I would give this meme an attempt, so here goes:

1. How important is a cell phone in UR life?
Ummm...VERY! I would say it rates right up there with food, maybe higher!

2. R U addicted to UR cell phone?
Yes, I would say that is quite possible...and I am sure that my friends and family would agree.

3. R U a texter, an emailer, or a photo sender?
...all of the above, but you left out, video sender and facebook updater

4. In the normal course of a day, about how many times do U touch UR cell phone?
I dont' think I can count that high.

5. R U guilty of distracted driving?
I have three children, what do you think?!

6. What is the 1 app never invented that needs to be made for UR cell phone?
One that cleans house, does laundry, and cooks dinner!

7. What annoys U the most about cell phones these days?
When people are talking on them when they should be doing other things like driving, paying at the grocery store, etc.

Monday, June 13, 2011

Leavin' on a jet plane

Today I will be traveling (via Southwest Airlines) from Baltimore, Maryland to Little Rock, Arkansas where I will meet my family at the airport and head back to Searcy for a T-Ball game. I have had such an enjoyable experience spending some quality time with Becca. It's been refreshing to have some time with my "Mommy" hat put to rest. With that being said, I miss my children and my husband terribly! I can't wait to see them later on today. This picture was taken on the plane ride from Little Rock to Baltimore. Hopefully we'll have clear skies and a smooth ride from here to there.

The previous two posts have been about my vacation to Baltimore as well as our trek to New York City. It was my first time in "The Big Apple" so it was quite a fun trip for me.

I am also still looking for submissions for fun/inexpensive ideas for the kiddos and I to do this summer. If you're interested in winning a prize, check out THIS POST on the details. Winner will be chosen at random.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Vacation Continues

Although I cannot consider myself a city girl just yet, I have officially made my first journey to The Big Apple. I was definitely a small town country girl caught up in the hustle and bustle in the city! While it was nice to visit, I can honestly say without a shadow of a doubt that I would not want to live there. I cannot imagine having to navigate through that place on a daily basis.

We did the typical touristy things: Visited the Empire State Building, Took a Water Tour to see The Statue of Liberty, Saw A Broadway Show, and had a NYC Hot Dog and slice of Pizza. I must say that I was very glad to have visited the city so nice they named it twice with my "bestie" of 21 years. She's been living in Maryland for 10 years now, so she's become quite the city girl herself. She's an amazing navigator and hails a mean taxi cab!

I had a fabulous time but unfortunately the camera I took was malfunctioning. I took a few pictures and when I went back to review, they weren't on the card. I assume that either the camera was malfunctioning or the memory card was not accepting the images. Either way, the only images I captured to share with you of my visit are the ones I snapped with my Iphone. Fortunately it captured some great shots.

We waited in line at the TKTS discount ticket booth. Fortunately we got there and only waited an hour in the (record!) heat. It was pretty miserable, but in Times Square there is always entertainment! The beautiful bride you see pictured here was more than blushing, she was glowing in the heat! She was beautiful and took a moment to pose with her groom atop the stairs in the center of Times Square. They were marvelously happy and she was positively breath taking in that beautiful gown. Although I didn't know who they were, it made me smile to see them enjoy their special day.

We waited in the ticket line a little over an hour to get discounted tickets to see the Broadway show, Rock of Ages, an arena-rock love story told through the mind-blowing, face-melting hits of JOURNEY, NIGHT RANGER, STYX, REO SPEEDWAGON, PAT BENATAR, TWISTED SISTER, POISON, ASIA, WHITESNAKE and many more. In 1987 on the Sunset Strip, a small town girl met a big city rocker and in LA’s most famous rock club, they fell in love to the greatest songs of the 80s. It was an awesomely good time about dreaming big, playing loud and partying on! Becca and I both enjoyed it.

Before the show, we had dinner at Bubba Gumps Shrimp Company. It was recommended by a Facebook friend and am I ever glad she did! It was awesome food and our waiter was great fun and even hit us with some fun Forrest Gump Trivia. We did great on most of it, but failed the one about which movies featured both Tom Hanks and Gary Sinise. There were three. Can YOU name them? Becca and I both had Lt. Dan’s Drunken Shrimp: Large Chargrilled Shrimp and Andouille Sausage with Mashed Potatoes and Bourbon Sauce! It was scrumptious! There was a great photo opportunity while waiting to be seated, of course I couldn't pass up! Ya love my shoes?

"That's all I hafta say about that!"

Taken atop the Empire State Building

On Friday we did the Empire State Building. is a 102-story landmark in New York City, United States, at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It is 1,250 ft (381 meters) tall. Its name is derived from the nickname for New York, the Empire State. It stood as the world's tallest building for 40 years, from its completion in 1931 until construction of the World Trade Center's North Tower was completed in 1972. Following the destruction of the World Trade Center in 2001, the Empire State Building once again became the tallest building in New York City. Although the views were breathtaking, it was a lot of waiting in many lines only to get to the top and be in mass chaos! If you got close enough to the edge to take a photo, it wasn't long before you were smashed or pushed enough you just wanted to get the heck outta there.

Of course we stopped for lunch and had a hot dog from a street vendor in New York City. It was delish! We went from there to have a fresh slice of NYC pie (pizza!) . We chose a hole in the wall place, I don't even remember the name, but I am fairly sure that it was close to the Empire State Building. Being a plumber's wife, I can tell you that they are in desperate need of one in this building, as evident in this photo. I knew I should have brought my husband with me on vacation. He could have made back all of the money I have spent on the trip thus far! ;)

Me and Lady Liberty!

We ended our NYC trip by touring the city via The Hudson River. We sailed down the Hudson, cruised around the Battery, up the East River, and under the Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Williamsburg Bridges. It was a fabulous time, and of course, the piece de resistance: Lady Liberty!!! I have to admit this was my favorite part of the whole trip! I had been looking forward to catching a glimpse of her on the Empire State Building, but seeing her up close on the water tour was simply breath taking!! She was definitely worth the wait in the hot sun to get tickets, and then on the boat to come back from the previous tour! I snapped a few photos while on the water, and I will share some of them here with you. Please pardon the quality, as I said before they are phone quality photos.

I really loved the bridges!

Reconstruction of the World Trade Center!

So beautiful! Her shoe size: 879!

We had a great time and made it back to Baltimore all in once piece and have enjoyed our day back here. We had lunch at the Cheesecake factory. I won't bore you with photos of my lunch and dessert, but suffice it to say it was magnificent!

Thursday, June 09, 2011

Welcome to Bawlmer, Hon!

I made it to Baltimore!! I am enjoying some bestie time with my B/F of 21 years, Becca. You might recall me mentioning previously that my wonderful hubby got me a trip to visit her for Christmas last year. I didn't want to visit in the Arctic temperatures and forty feet of snow (okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little bit there but I'm from Arkansas, so one foot to us is like forty feet to you Northerners!) We shot for early June so that we could go out and about and do fun things without having to be miserably hot. Wow, were we horribly wrong about that one!! Maryland (along with Arkansas) is having record breaking temperatures, with heat indexes well over 100. Insane! Today we are traveling via bus to New York City where the temperature will be 100°! YES, I SAID ONE HUNDRED DEGREES!!! Thankfully tomorrow it will only be 80, but I think that is due to rain, so I'm not sure what tomorrow will hold. But we will be seeing a Broadway show, so that will (hopefully) be air conditioned and maybe we can cool down a bit. Anyhow, I am VERY MUCH looking forward to the NYC visit. I've never been. We are spending the night there and staying in a hotel on Times Square! Whoo hoo!!! Small town girl visits big city, tomorrow's headlines. ;)

Hon Town Store in Baltimore.

So, anyhow back to my Baltimore visit. Yesterday, Becca and I had a low key morning. She did some work from home while I watched television and kicked back. We met up with a friend of hers for dinner, but first we did a little bit of boutique style shopping which included Hon Town. It is an awesomely fabulous retro-style shop. In preperation for Baltimore's Famous "Hon Fest", Becca and I tried some retro-styles. What is Hon Fest, you ask...well, I did and this is what I found: Although nowadays the city is extremely culturally diverse, the lasting image of Baltimoreans seems to be the "Hon" culture exemplified most markedly by the longer established families and residents of the Highlandtown, Canton, Locust Point, Hampden and Pigtown neighborhoods. Between the 1950s and 1970s, it was common to see working class local women dressing in bright, printed dresses with out-dated glasses and beehive hairdos. Men were often dressed casually, but with a general factory or dock worker look, as many in town did indeed have such jobs.

The name of the culture comes from the often parodied Baltimore accent and slang. "Hon" (pronounced /ˈhʌn/,[dubious – discuss] an abbreviation of "Honey") was a common informal name for someone else. Baltimore’s accent exemplifies a dialectal continuum between Tidewater American English, a southern American dialect, and Delaware Valley American English, a common coastal dialect, loosely possessing the vowel shifts of the former and general pronunciation of the latter. For instance, "Baltimore" is pronounced "Baldimore" or even "Balmer," and "Maryland" becomes "Murland," "Murlan," or "Merlin." Other common pronunciations include "ool," "amblance," "wooder," "warsh," "sharr or shaow," "dug," "couwny," "tew," and "zinc" (oil, ambulance, water, wash, shower, dog, county, two, and sink respectively). There is also a popular summertime phrase, "goin' downy ayshin" (going down to the ocean, usually referring to Ocean City, MD).

Now that you are schoold in Bawlmerese, here are a couple of photos we snapped in the store. Whaddya think, Hon?!

Becca with a pink haired Bee Hive

It's me, Hon!

After a bit of shopping we had dinner at Mr Rain's Fun House located at The American Visionary Art Museum that boasts a very culturally diverse menu pleasing not only to the eyes, but to the pallete as well! My entree of choice (after much deliberation) was the Veal Loin Chop with Polenta cakes and bayby patty pans in a demi glace. When it arrived, it was so beautiful, I almost didn't want to eat it, however that passed very quickly. The chop was cooked to perfection and full of flavor. The Polenta cakes and bayby patty pans were bursting with flavor, and I left out of there a happy woman! Of course I had to pose for a picture on the way out. No, this is not Lady Gaga in case you were wondering. Just one of many statues you will find at the American Visionary Art Museum.

Veal Loin Chop from Mr Rain's Fun House

Outside the AVM

We are slated to leave for NYC in a bit. I will not be taking my lap top with me there, so I am signing off for a couple of days. Look for lots of pictures to in the days (or weeks, you never can tell with me anymore!) to come. I hope you are all enjoying this ~~miserably~~ wonderfully HOT summer thus far.

Sunday, June 05, 2011

My kid ran half naked through JC Penney...NOT KIDDING!!!

I can't believe it's taken me three days to blog about this!!! The kids and I went to run errands on Thursday. We had to go to the bank, post office, pick up dry cleaning, etc. These things are normally easy, quick things when it's just me. However, having three children you have to buckle, unbuckle, etc. makes it a bit more difficult. Thankfully, our dry cleaners have a drive through and so does the bank. We only had to go in at a couple of places. We also had to make a trip to Wal-Mart and JC Penney. I had to buy the kiddos some new clothes. They all needed shorts. With these 100° + temperatures, capris just won't cut it with the girls.

As we were going through Wal-Mart, I found myself repeating over and over again, "leave her alone, stop kicking him, quit it, be nice". I think that next time we have an outing, I will put that on a loop and just let it continuously play for them for I surely sounded like a broken record to those poor souls shopping around me. :(

To say that they got me frustrated in Wal-Mart is a serious understatement. Against my better judgment we went on to JC Penney. Hind sight says I should have just gone home and waited another day for clothes shopping. I will just tell you that this is how our shopping trip ended. We were in the dressing room letting Emily try on some shorts. She is at that in between size. Most things she has to have a 3T, but when it comes to shorts, some 24 months or 2Ts fit her. I had one of each size, or so I thought, when we went in there. As it turns out I had two 3Ts. I sent Shelby right outside the fitting room where the Toddler section was to grab another pair - the 2Ts that would hopefully fit her since the 3Ts were falling off her. When she was gone for a while, and the rack was right outside the dressing room, I should have just gotten Emily dressed and taken both of the younger kids out with me. But, I didn't...

I told my five year old son, Tyler to watch Emily so that I could step out and grab the shorts. He was playing Angry Birds on my phone. Apparently someone called my phone, so he thought he needed to leave the dressing room and come find me. Instead of finding me, he was walking around in another section - the baby section and guess who was running around the store in her panties and t-shirt?! Yup, two year old Emily had escaped!!!

It was at this point in time that as a "mommy blogger" I was thinking, this is great blogging material...you can't make this stuff up and anyone with children will appreciate this, but right now I sure wish I was reading this on someone else's blog and it was not happening to me!!! I chased her down and hung up on the person who had called (sorry Aunt G.) and corralled up the children back into the dressing room!! I got Emily dressed and we left with the few items that we had previously chosen.

As we checked out in the front of the store, I had all three children sitting on the floor by the check out line and the cashier commented on how well behaved my children were. HAH! I'll bet the ladies back in the toddler section would beg to differ, I know I sure do!

CrAzY Working Mom

Search This Blog

Mail Me:

My Daily Reads

Dieting Resources