I Want Him Out!!!

Sophie informed me this morning, after I reminded her about him when she blindly smacked Noah on the head, that Charlie the Elf must go immediately (see post from a couple days ago). Apparently, she's sick and tired of this silly little elf watching her every move and wants to know why he insists on living with us. I tried to sit her down and read the story again to explain exactly why he is here with us, but she was not having it. She didn't want to hear the story, didn't want to make peace with Charlie, and was adamant that his stay was short-lived. Evidently, this may be a clear example of overkill on Mommy's part....and it's not even December yet.

Faster, Sophie, Faster!!

Here's Noah putting his big sister to work. He was absolutely loving it as she pushed him around the whole house at full speed!!

Reading is Fun!!

I was introduced to the cutest book by a co-worker of mine. It's called "The Elf on the Shelf" and Sophie and I read it for the first time this evening. It comes complete with a little elf that watches over Sophie and Noah and reports back to Santa whether or not they have been naughty or nice. The book has beautiful illustrations and Sophie was really wowed by each page. She ended up naming the little elf Charlie and he is most definitely going to be watching over Noah and Sophie, making sure they are being good to each other, and more importantly, to Mommy and Daddy! It was so cute this evening because each time she'd walk by him, she'd look at him out of the corner of her eye as he sat on the shelf, totally aware he was watching her....I am hopeful it will work!! I am sooo not above using this little elf as leverage!

A couple of recent pics of the kids:

Look Mommy! I like to read too! Well, I actually like chewing on books more!

Mission: Accomplished!

Black Friday was quite a success for us. I honestly did not get much sleep the night before because I was pretty excited and anxious! That and trying to go to bed at 9pm just doesn't work for me. We hit several stores and even decided to battle Toys R Us this year. Excluding this visit, the rest of the morning went really smooth! First, my sister threw a mini tantrum because Tim and I made her wait in line at Toys R Us with no cart and about 5 huge boxes to take care of....two to hold and the rest to kick with her feet as the line moved forward. All this while Tim and I were running around grabbing things and trying to figure out the lines, since the checkout lines seemed to wrap around the whole store. After Michelle stood in line for what felt like forever (to her anyway, in real time it was only about 10 minutes, if that!), Tim finds out she is in the wrong line. Apparently, there is a line specifically for electronics and then another for checking out all other items. It was such chaos in the store. Clerks were yelling all the things they already sold out of. I was scolded because I apparently crossed some invisible out of bounds line? Some of the employees were so overwhelmed by nagging shoppers, I heard one of them say, "You know what lady, I have no idea what line this is."

Needless to say, we might keep this store off the list for next year unless they have something major. And thankfully, Michelle bounced back quickly and forgave us. I was about ready to kick her out of the car when she asked me for Advil after the first store! Luckily for me, she's a pro and the rest of morning was a terrific success!

Here's Tim checking out the sales for the following morning. Does he not know Comp USA is NOT on our list?

Don't I Look Pretty?

Sophie cooperated this weekend while I gave her a haircut. It is becoming more and more evident that her hair requires a professional and not her impatient mommy. This is most definitely the LAST haircut I ever give her because people can easily tell when I mess up! She was a little shocked at how much I took off, but she adjusted like a champ and loves it now!

Alarm Set for 4 a.m.!!!

Ok, so maybe I am a little crazy for participating in what is known as "Black Friday." I remember the first time I woke up at 4 am to catch some doorbusters. Of course, I was ill-prepared because I thought the whole idea was silly and I was even a little embarrassed about taking part. We reluctantly went with my sister and some friends and, naturally, I was too cool to do such a thing. That was until I experienced some weird shopping euphoria from all the frenzy! Come to find out, if you decide to participate in this sporting event (and it is a sporting event), it is essential you are equipped with a solid plan, back-up plan, exit strategies, and most definitely make sure your teammates are fully aware of their role (you are only as strong as your weakest link, people).

Granted, I didn't become such a huge fan of waking up at 4 am until I actually became a parent and was often wide awake to see this hour on the clock. Now, the idea of going shopping this early is not such a big deal....especially when I can score some serious bargains. However, I really need to learn to shop more for others rather than myself!!

Now I must turn in and mentally prepare for tomorrow morning's event. Happy shopping!

Happy Thanksgiving

We should all be thankful for

those people who rekindle the inner spirit.
-- Albert Schweitzer

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget
that the highest appreciation is not to utter words,
but to live by them.
-- John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Just a regular Tuesday night!

This is a typical night in the Youngberg household with Sophie and Noah. I'd like to say Sophie is on a sugar high, but nope, this is just another normal night of fun!

WE WIN!!!

Sophie's Favorite Art Project

Sophie is so proud of this art project she did in school, she made me take a picture of her.....and how could I say no?

Another angle....isn't she just so talented?

My Afternoon

projectile vomit
on the new carpet
and all over me
my poor baby
he is ok

no dinner is good
"i'll just eat bread"
she says
as she wears her sundress in the cold
because mommy chose not to battle
for today anyway

house is a mess
pick up the toys
mop the floor
clean the kids
clean them again
scrub them down

can't seem to get ahead
dinner at 8 for mommy
tired
exhausted
skipped the gym
not good
but yet again
i believe
tomorrow will be better

Why Bother?

Every once in a while I have evening meetings at school, which usually means I'm running around like a crazy woman. I did a brief presentation, answered questions, and collaborated with other staff afterwards. I knew this afternoon would be busy...I pretty much rushed home, fed the kids, got Noah ready for bed, and then headed back to work. I couldn't believe how smooth things were feeling when I walked out the door. I managed to take care of the kids and get all of it done without having to change into a totally new outfit for the evening! Woo hoo! That's an accomplishment!

I finish my portion of the meeting, go to sit down, cross my legs and happen to look down. Staring me in the face is the most offensive spit-up resting on the cuff of my pants. How did freakin' baby food end up on the cuff of my pants??? I seriously could not focus the rest of the night because I was obsessively, yet discreetly, inspecting the rest of my outfit. Why do I bother? Why?

Party!!

We ventured out in what felt like a monsoon for Kitana and Nalani's birthday party. It was nice to catch up with family and it would have been even nicer if I had actually taken a few pictures of the birthday girls! My excuse is they were running around too much having fun. Oh well! Enjoy the other pics!Let's eat! I'm ready for some cake!

Noah with Auntie Paz and Auntie Terri.

Sophie with Auntie Paz.

For some reason, Sophie and Noah were beyond fascinated with this broken banister. I swear they spent half the night playing in and around it!

Dominic's Baptism

We had a fairly busy weekend with Noah getting his pictures done, cousin Dominic's christening, and cousins' Nalani and Kitana's birthday party. Thank goodness I have the day off tomorrow to recover!Here's a picture of Dominic with his grandma Paula. Such a cutie....look at his hair!

Noah and Dominic....literally moments after this picture was taken, Noah gave Dominic a nice poke in the ear. Dominic and he are only three weeks apart, but Noah seems to look like a giant next to him!

I Can't Keep Up!

If Noah is not in cupboards pulling everything out, he's breaking things. Once again, after Uncle Tony was nice enough to fix the door on our coffee table, Noah decided to rip the door on the other side of the coffee table completely off! I don't know if it's even worth repairing anymore! Since we got new carpet, we have conveniently left it out on the back patio in hopes that it might vanish into thin air. I just looked this afternoon and no such luck....it's still sitting there, missing door and all. Needless to say, if we're ever visiting your home....hide everything!

How Much???

I bought $20 gift-wrapping paper from a kid down the street. We were doing our part in supporting our neighborhood elementary school. Not even kidding, $20 for two rolls (you would think they're embedded with diamonds....at least some CZ, come on now). Sophie finds it in my closet while I'm taking a shower and starts playing with the rolls and galloping down the hallway like she's riding a horse. And of course, Tim does not intervene (and he even knows how much those puppies cost!). I do my best to remain calm as I snatch them out of Sophie's hands... what's left of them anyway. Now I have totally creased and crumpled wrapping paper, which I have absolutely no shame using this Christmas.

Come to find out, the stinkin' kid who sold us the wrapping paper ended up being the top seller in school. The little salesman of the year is walking away with a $550 giftcard to Best Buy! I hardly remember getting incentives like that when I was selling candy bars out of a stupid cardboard case!

I Loves Me Some Spaghetti!

Noah enjoying one of his favorite dinners! Oh, who am I kidding? Anything edible seems to be Noah's favorite!

No Fun Being Sick

I can't remember the last time I've been bedridden because I felt so sick. This morning, after a disastrous night of sleep (poor Noah was not having a good night), I could barely move my neck and the pain was quickly moving throughout the rest of my body. Well, with the lack of sleep and what seems like the flu coming down, I decided to just stay home from work. My babysitter showed up so I don't have to be near the kids, so I'm able to rest in bed. Let's just say I have barely been able to move without my body hurting. It hurts enough to type on my laptop, but I'm doing it anyway! I should relish this time since this is probably the first time since I've had kids that I've had the opportunity to actually "be sick" and rest. But no....can't do it....I need something to do to pass the time.

What's worse than being bedridden? Being bedridden without TV. I'm dying here!!! We hooked everything up in our bedroom yesterday and we can't seem to get the satellite receiver to work again. Ugghhh! Tim called Dish Network and the best they can do is have somebody out by Wednesday. Are you kidding? What else am I supposed to do? I can't read, for God's sake, that would just hurt my brain! I need some mindless TV (The Hills, The View, a little Y&R are just what the doctor ordered) to get me through this!

Wrestlemania

Here we go.....Sophie vs. Noah. Although Sophie has Noah in size, one must not count out Noah's tenacity and quickness.

Noah is going for the hair!

Ummmm.....don't know the wrestling terminology on this move.

Sophie is done, but Noah still seems to want a piece of her!

Daylight Savings What???

We were in the car today and Tim decided to explain the concept of Daylight Savings Time to Sophie. Of course, he did not go into detail, rather decided to highlight the most important part of "falling back." The conversation went something like this:

Daddy: OK, Sophie. It's Daylight Savings Time this weekend, which means we fall back, which means YOU WILL SLEEP AN EXTRA HOUR TONIGHT.

Sophie: Huh?

D: You get to sleep an extra hour tonight because of Daylight Savings Time (this time spoken much more demanding and adding emphasis).

S: NOOOOO! I don't want that! I don't like that story Daddy!

Taking Bets on the First Spill

We had new carpet installed yesterday. We are so excited; it feels like a new house. We are trying to institute new rules with both Sophie and Noah, but we know it's only a matter of time before an "accident" happens! I'm thinking about having everyone revert back to a sippy cup (Tim and myself included), just so we can keep the carpet clean for as long as possible! Anyway, it's nice to finally have everything, for the most part, back in its place. The night before everything was installed, we had all the bedrooms emptied out, so we went camping in the living room as a family for the night. After that experience, I can say quite confidently that it will be a long time before we take the kids camping!!!