Confusion

Maddie still gets her meals confused.  At mid-morning she'll ask, "Mommy, did we have dinner yet?" and in anticipation of dinner, she'll sometimes say, "I can't wait for breakfast!"  And she'll often ask, "Mommy, what comes next, dinner or lunch?"  It's darn cute, and keeps me in line, because I often forget she's only five!

Name that Food!

Angie:  "Mommy, can we have that yummy, squishy white stuff for breakfast?"

Me:  "Ummm, cream of wheat?"

Angie: "No, that stuff that's like tater tots, but it's not tater tots?"

Me (thinking, thinking, thinking):  "You mean hash browns? Like tater tots but in rectangles?"

Angie:  "No, I mean it's not white, it's brown and squishy and yummy and it comes in a can."

Me:  "Oh!  You mean corned beef hash!  That's  not like tater tots at all, you know."

Angie:  "Well it is hash."

Funny

Maddie and I were finishing up her reading lesson on the couch when Angie entered, having just finished up her Rosetta Stone lesson.

"Are we ready for lunch?" I asked.  They shouted their assent, and then Maddie died in my arms, something she does with some frequency. 

"Shall we have tuna fish tacos?" I asked, flopping dead Maddie around in my arms.  "I mean tuna on a soft taco, like a tuna wrap..." I explained.

"No," Angie said, "tacos don't tasted good as sandwiches."  I thought a moment, snuggling dead Maddie and trying to bring her back to life. 

"How about salad with tuna fish on top.  It tastes pretty good," I asked. 
"Yes!" Angie averred; Maddie didn't respond.  She was still dead.

"I also have a dead Maddie," I commented as I wiggled her limp form in my arms.

 "Why would I want to eat my dead sister?" Angie asked.  At which point, dead Maddie couldn't contain her laughter, and neither could I.

Directionally Challenged

It's a very good thing that  I have a hard time telling my right from my left.  The woman who leads my workout video starts out calling her left her right and her right her left (so as to be telling US who are mirroring her what we should be doing), which would be confusing enough.  But half way through the video, SHE gets confused and reverts back to her own left and right.  And then she gives up and says, "the other side"!  (But it really is a good video other than that!)

Glow-In-The-Dark Bandaid Wrappers

Maddie complained of a cut on her finger after lights out, so I got a bandaid, peeled open the wrapper and...wait, was that a blue glow?  I resealed the wrapper (as much as possible) and did it again (being thrifty and not wanting to open another bandaid), with the same result.  It glowed blue!  I promptly brought both bandage and wrapper to Maddie's bed, called Angie over and said, "Look!  It glows blue!"  We oohed over it two more times before Angie asked, "Why does it do that?"  "I don't know, but I'll look it up as soon as I go downstairs!"  I replied.  And here's why:  http://www.omg-facts.com/Science/Band-aids-Emit-A-Blue-Glow-When-Pulled-A/52572 .  Way cool.  Who knew?  Now I'm going to try it with Scotch tape!

Competition

Miguel and I are having a friendly little competition....  We're trying to get in shape.  We've already begun adding more fruits and veggies to our diets, and now we have to work on physical activity.  So, we've worked out a plan based on earning points for workouts completed, not based on weight loss or inches or anything like that.  We both have different goals, after all, so we wouldn't really be able to compare anything. 

My workout video is 30 minutes long.  Miguel can usually spare 15 minutes in the morning before work to get in some weight lifting and basic strength training.  So, we've decided that one complete workout earns you one point.  If you can get an additional 15 minutes in on that same day, you get another point.  The one with the most points by April 1st wins.

We don't know what the prize is yet, but we'll work on that.  As it is, I'm just eager to show him that I have more stick-to-itiveness than he does!  (I'm already a point ahead!)

Why I Love My Kindle

I got a Kindle for Christmas from my husband.  Using his usual strategy for purchasing electronics that he doesn't really understand, he bought the one in the middle, you know, not the cheapest, but not the most expensive.  It's actually a reasonably good strategy ;).  Anyhow, I've been using it for a couple of months now and I love it.

It's the paperwhite display model, which means that it glows in the dark so that I can read in bed, with the lights off, while my husband slumbers next to me in total oblivion to my late night reading habits.  The light can be adjusted so that it is barely a nuisance in a really dark room.

I also love that I'm getting to read some classics that I've never taken the time to sit down and read.  Why?  Because most of them are free!  After all, when your Kindle holds 1100 books, you can't seriously buy all of them.  Who has that kind of money?  So I'm being thrifty and finding the free ones and those that cost only a buck or two.

Additionally, you can download games designed just for the kindle.  I've downloaded several, and the kids love to play them. 

It can also handle children's books, and it's kind of cool to be able to take picture books with us on the go, though we've only done it once.  Those books are still a bit pricey!

But I love my Kindle!

It Just Keeps Coming...

It started with Miguel.  It was just a little annoying cough on Tuesday night.  He thought tea with honey would do the trick.  The next day he was feeling washed out.  When he came home from work, he went straight to sleep.  Then he napped on the sofa, the kids entertained by TV and duplo/lego blocks, while I went to work.  I came home to feed the kids, went back to work, then came home to put them to bed.  He stayed home from work the next day, sleeping most of it away.  And then Maddie became feverish and lethargic.  Angie and I played while Maddie and Miguel rested.  I cancelled all of my appointments for that evening; then Angie caught the fever.  I spent the night nursing three sick people, administering Tylenol and Motrin as needed and supplying plenty of ice water.  Friday saw Miguel recovering, but both children spent the day napping and listening to stories.  On Friday night, I felt it coming on.  At midnight I had my first sense of something wrong.  By Saturday morning, I was out for the count.  Miguel had luckily procured a prescription for Tamiflu, which he filled for me.  I began taking it right away and recovered much more quickly than everyone else.  Angie's fever lingered until the following week.  We continued to avoid friends and relatives for another week.  And just as we thought we were all well recovered, Angie came down with an ear infection.  At least that one wasn't contagious, but we did have to cancel a play date.  Now that her ear is feeling better, Maddie's vomiting.  She woke up this morning saying her belly hurt.  After using the bathroom with no relief, she vomited. Three times.  Then she felt better.  She's napping now and hopefully that is the end of it.  We sure could use a break around here!