An interesting thought

I know that people are hard on the internet; in my opinion, they're too hard.  I've seen plenty of scandalizing headlines telling me that my kids are going to be "stupid" because they have access to it; but I disagree, my kids are surely going to be geniuses (internet or no internet)!  I remember when computers first appeared on the scene, we had this class called "Computers."  (The school board "think tank" that overexerted themselves coming up with such a clever class title surely should be commended for their thinking outside of the box skills.)  "Computers" was all about turning on the computer, typing a sentence on the computer and my personal favorite, playing Oregon Trail until your whole frontier party got wiped out trying to ford the river.  This was long before the internet had been 'created' by Al Gore and the rest of Congress and internet access on the "Zach Morris cell phone" was clearly not an option.

So, now that we have access at our fingertips, do my parents believe that I'm "stupider" than I would have been had it not been 'created.'  Hell no!  Maybe, but they're not going to tell me that!  Honestly, I have learned a lot from the internet, I'm a great proponent of using it as an educational tool, which is clearly evident from my recent Google searches: 

• Why do hardwood floors creak?
• What is the difference between a city and a town?
• Why do mosquito bites itch?
• Why are the Boston Red Sox and the Yankees rivals?
• Why did the Browns move to Las Vegas?
• Why is there a Canadian baseball team in the American League?
• What determines eye color?
• Drinking games.
• Bob Ross.
• Al Gore invented the internet

And that list goes, on and on.  But my point is, before the internet, I would have had to traipse over to the Library and search by the card catalogue and let’s face it, The Dewey Decimal System is pretty much the most archaic thing going.  Sorry, Mr. Dewey (update to my Google search list: Dewey Decimal System), but it’s kinda true.  So, to every quasi upright citizen who wants to challenge the IQ consequences of the over Google-ing of the American youth, I say, get over it!  I Google and my kids are definitely going to Google and that’s quite all right with me.

I heart

the White Noise ap.  When Beebs is almost ready to drift off and I don't want to disturb him by turning on the vacuum, I use the next best thing, the White Noise ap.  It's $1.99, worth every penny and I highly recommend it to anyone trying to sooth a colicky baby. 

Happy Father's Day!

Success!  A picture where everyone is looking at the camera!

I heart

My niece.  She is fiercely independent and beautiful.  She can light up a room and always makes me laugh.  When she missed her dance recital (or what would have looked like a choreographed number from My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding) because she was sick, she didn't even throw a fit, like I did when I was her age.    I think being an Aunt is awesome-sauce because of her!

Some lucky kids

When I was growing up, I knew my father was special.  He was the type of guy who would (and still does) do anything for his kids.  He learned some great things from him.  Here are the top ten lessons I learned from my Dad:

1. Live in the moment, don't worry so much.
2. You can fix a bike chain with an ax.
3. If you can help others you should do so; it benefits your soul.
4. Loyalty is everything.
5. Don't mess with my kids.  I may be laid back, but I won't tolerate anything happening to my kids.
6. If you have a good sense of humor, you have a lot.
7. Be kind.
8. Be informed.
9. You can walk and read at the same time.
10. Why do in one day what you can do in two.

Thanks for everything you do for me, my kids and my family.  I love you and Happy Father's Day!

Where my girls at?

Actually, my girls are below.  I highly recommend that you check their blogs out, besides being intelligent, beautiful women they also have a point of view and interesting things to say.

Please say hi to Jaime.

Me, Jill and Jaime at a game.  Not pictured: Danny's upper torso.

And show some love to Katie.

Girl has some fierce eyebrows!

I heart

summer fun, which most definitely includes busting out almost 30 different sticks of thick chalk and adorning the driveway with some priceless baby scribble.

The tie breaker

I have always thought that my brother, sister and I resemble one another; but my children, not so much.  I tell Jim all the time that when we walk by, people must think that Wub is Jim's kid from a previous relationship and Beebs is our kid together.


It is amazing how different they are; and I don't just mean physically, I mean literally from the moment I could feel them moving, they had distinct personalities.  For example, Wub would gracefully and ever so gently glide his way around, Arden literally forward rolled down and stayed there.  Cullen had nice little lulls in activity, Arden was nonstop all day (and night) long.  Arden likes to eat, Cullen doesn't.  Arden cries, Cullen never cried.  And the list goes on and on.

Most people say that Cullen looks like Jim and Arden looks like me, so henceforth our 3rd child (and no, I'm not making any announcements, Megan, so cool it!) shall lovingly be called, "Mommy's little tie breaker" (personalized onesies will be accepted).  Although there would be no actual "winning" involved because a baby is a blessing no matter what he or she looks like, I could foresee this turning into a friendly competition of sorts between me and Jim (but really just me).  I realize it's incredibly narcissistic to want a little clone and I admit that I do have slightly more than a pinch of narcissism, but if we're being honest, who doesn't?


So, until baby #3 makes an appearance, Jim and I are even.  All tied up; and it's kind of perfect that way.


Random thought: what if baby #3 is a hybrid of some sort?  Like brown hair with blue eyes.  Or blond hair with brown eyes.  Jim and I really need to go to an arcade and play the "what would your hypothetical children look like" game in order to determine the best odds, because, in my opinion, that's just about as scientific as it's going to get.

The Bumblebee Cafe

I always have these ideas for what random treasures crap around our house could potentially be.  I know what you're thinking, how very "Hoarders" of me, but trust me, I'm not day dreaming about the diorama I'm going to create using the 30 gazillion soda lids or 73 blillion "pizza box tables" that keep the cheese from sticking to the cardboard.  No, I just always have ideas that for whatever reason (laziness) never actually happen.


But this time, I was determined to make it happen.  So without further ado, I give you the grand opening of the Bumblebee Cafe, est. 2011.

****

It may be is one of those projects where a child's imagination will be beneficial and the dripping glue, bubbled construction paper and slivers of box peeking through will be overlooked for the awesomeness that comes from pretending this is our very own restaurant.  And I love that.

**** Yes, I realize that this looks like a TV set, but that's what I get for slapping this together in 2 hours, including drying time.

I heart

Leisure reading.  And by that I mean, plopping down on the couch with a delciously pristine hardcover and not looking up for 74 pages.  That happened and it was awesome.