Pickles and Apples

My precious friend, Summer, (aka Mai's mommy) has been taking Carter with her to the Science Spectrum on Fridays while I am at work. What an amazing friend. Honestly. You have GOT to go to her blog (Pickles and Apples) and check out these pictures. My heart is all warm and mushy! I love you, Sum!

The Perfect Afternoon

It is Friday afternoon, and we had staff development this morning. My principal gave us the afternoon to "work independently" and for me that translated into "come home and hang with my boys." We got to all go get a hamburger for lunch together and now I am loving the beautiful weather and the time to just be a family. What a fabulous day! Here are a few random stories and pictures from the week.


Carter has recently decided that Toonces does not get held or carried enough and has decided to rectify that situation. This poor cat is approximately 11 human years old and is less than thrilled to be toted around, but you try to tell Carter that!

I took Carter to get his hair cut this week, which is always hilarious. He sits in the chair giggling "it tickles. it tickles. it tickles." while onlookers giggle with him. I thought that he looked so cute after the haircut that I got out the camera and told him to smile. I would say "SMI-ILE" and he would repeat me without actually smiling. I finally said "Watch me. Smile like this." and gave him the biggest grin that I could muster. This is his interpretation of my smile. . .

Apparently, when I smile really big my eyes get all squinty. Every time for the rest of the day that I would tell him to smile like mommy he would close his eyes and do this dorky little smile. Ahhh. To see yourself through the eyes of a child!


Here is a better smile! Ain't he the cutest?

Boogers are not a snack.

It is so good to be home and back with my boys today! Mike leaves tomorrow for Nashville, and I am already looking forward to the end of the week when we will get to be together as a family again!

Carter has recently discovered that his finger fits perfectly in his nose and is fascinated with his boogers. This morning while we were getting him dressed for church he was digging in his nose despite my protests. He calmly looks at me and says "I will eat this booger." I was at a loss for words when Mike jumped in and saved the day by telling him "Son, boogers are not a snack. Boogers are for tissues and trash. Crackers are a snack." Beautifully said.

So we get in the car after church and Carter again starts digging for gold. I looked back at him and gave him the eye. He then proceeded to say "That's right. Boogers are not a snack. Boogers for trash. Crackers for snack. That's right." I am hoping that it sinks in!

Bittersweet

I am leaving town tomorrow afternoon to head to Austin for the Texas Middle School Conference. I am really looking forward to it and I know that I will have tons of fun with the people that I am traveling with, but I always miss my boys like crazy when we are apart! So, here's to a quick few days! See you guys Saturday!

Heritage

My "Auntie Chris" has been in town this week, and we have had so much fun hanging out with her. She is my Godmother and has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. She is my mom's dearest friend and was the one who led my mom to the Lord when they were younger. It has been a sweet time for me to reflect on my spiritual heritage. Thank you, Christine, for investing in my mom, who in turn invested in me, so that I can now invest in my children. What a beautiful legacy you have begun.

Geronimo

We went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner tonight because we had a gift card, and it was delicious! There was an enormous painting of an Indian chief next to our table and Carter was absolutely mesmerized by it! We were sitting in a booth and he laid down with his head in my lap staring intently at the Indian throughout the entire meal. He kept saying "I touch it?" and when I would say "Go ahead." he would tell me, "No, is scary." But even though it was pronounced scary he never took his eyes off it! Part of me was concerned that Geronimo cast some kind of toddler spell on him but as soon as we got in the car he was back to his chatterbox self. Whew- close call.

Why Not?

Carter's new question any time I tell him no is "why not?" He says it so sweetly that I find that I almost look forward to answering him. Here was our conversation in the bath tub tonight:

Carter: "Mommy, I take blue wash cloth for night night, OK?"
Mommy: "No, we better leave it in the tub."
Carter: "No, Tarter take it to big bed for night night."
Mommy: "I think we should leave it here. Wash cloths are not for night night."
Carter: "Why not?"
Mommy: "It is wet and will make you cold."
Carter: "OK. See you morrow wash cloth."

Ahhhh.

This has been a crazy busy week for us, and moments like this bring the sweetest sense of calm over me. Tonight as I rocked him and breathed in the sweet smell of his hair and treasured the heaviness of him in my arms and read "Pat the Bunny" three times just because he wanted me to, I could not help but feel thankful for the precious moments of quiet that I get to spend with this beautiful child. God is so good.

Commando

We have been slowly working on potty training with the wild man! He loves to wear his big boy undee-wear, but he wets in them pretty quickly. So, Summer recommended going "commando" and that is exactly what we did yesterday morning. Carter spent all Saturday morning with a bare bottom and did a great job with the potty, despite the fact that I was a nervous wreck! We played play dough naked, colored pictures naked, watched "Blues Blues" naked, you get the picture. I got the camera out and he happily pointed his bottom at me and said "CHEESE!" He'll kill me for this one day, but there really is nothing cuter than a nakey little bottom!

Here are a few more cute pictures from the week.

I have been "tagged."

My buddy, Rachel, tagged me on her blog. So now I am supposed to tell you all 7 random facts about myself and then "tag" seven more people. Here we go:

1. I have never had a traffic ticket of any kind (knock on wood).

2. I once gave a wedgie to a Chinese woman that I did not know in a public library.

3. I have major texture issues with food and milk. I don't like chunks in foods that I think should be creamy (peanut butter, yogurt, salsa, etc). The weird thing about this is my exception to the rule for tapioca pudding. I also only like skim milk, with the exception being egg nog. Weird, I know.

4. I was born with a large hair producing mole that covered my entire back. It was surgically removed when I was little.

5. When I was pregnant with Carter I had a small problem with losing consciousness in public places (hairdresser, dentist, my car, etc.)- the first time this ever happened, I passed out and urinated in the chair of a principal at a school that I was visiting.

6. I really enjoy baking.

7. My very favorite smell is the way that it smells right after a big thunderstorm. I love rain.

Your turn:

Mark, my brother and also the weirdest guy that I know!
Summer, my precious girlfriend who just "gets" me!
Brooke, perhaps the most entertaining gal that I know.
Pinky, my new blogging buddy!
Jennifer, the sister in law of a friend, and an absolutely beautiful soul.
Linley, who is an inspiration to me in so many ways.
Eli, who probably will not respond because she is so busy but I love her anyway.

Things a Person Should Never Do Before 8 am

1. Cook broccoli.

Mike volunteered to bring a vegetable to church for a funeral yesterday and decided to steam broccoli at 6:30 in the morning. I felt like the stench of steamed broccoli slapped me in the face as I got out of the shower. I have decided that the smell of broccoli is tolerable if you are in the mood for chicken but wretched if you are in the mood for oatmeal.

2. Try to cover the smell of broccoli with Lysol.

Ode to Toonces

My sweet and crazy friend, Brooke, has been begging for another post dedicated to the best cat on earth, Toonces! Brooke, this is for you!


Mike and I inherited Toonces when we first started dating and she was a kitten. The poor cat endured a year of living with Mike and his Cowboy Band roomies. She has had her whiskers trimmed, tape on her feet, and endured countless other cat frustrations. When we got married and she moved in with us, her life drastically improved. Then, along came Carter and he rocked her little world. I have posted these before, but they make me laugh every time. I always feel compelled to say that no babies were harmed in the taking of these pictures.





Now the two of them are inseperable. Carter plays with her daily and puts her in "time out" when she does not do what he wants her to do. Tonight he kept blowing on her fur and saying "Tarter blow down Toonces house" (inspired from the story of the three pigs).

I never thought that I would be a "crazy cat lady," but I guess I am. She is such a sweet girl and such a precious part of our family.

So, in honor of this cat that I feel such affection for, I thought that it was only appropriate to post a video tribute to her namesake. Enjoy!

Thank you, Danny.

My loving big brother, Danny, called me at work today to tell me that this commercial from the Super Bowl made him think of me:

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1707987_1707995_1709527,00.html

Replace the Doritos with peppermints, and that is very close to what is going on in the Lewis house! Thanks, Dan!

Seven

It was almost like I tempted fate by posting that we had not caught a mouse in a while. Our seventh victim was dead in the trap when we came home from the Super Bowl last night. The hunt continues.

Disturbing

We have not caught a mouse in almost a week now, but we have left the traps out because I still have that creepy feeling that things are living in my house that should not be living in my house. This particular trap was baited with a peppermint that had been coated in peanut butter (this was obviously Mike's idea). Let me highlight some of the things that disturb me about what you see below:


1. There is not even a trace of peanut butter left on that mint.
2. It must have taken an incredible amount of time for a mouse to lick all of the red stripes off of that mint.
3. The stupid trap never even sprang.
4. The mouse must have taken the mint off the trap and then put it back. Why would it return the mint to the trap? What kind of animal am I dealing with here?

I think I am going to start sleeping with one eye open. And I don't know if I can ever eat a peppermint again without having a vivid image of a little mouse holding a mint in his little mouse hands leisurely licking the stripes off while reading his little mouse magazine before carefully returning the mint to its blood stained home. The irony of the word "victory" on the trap is not lost on me!


On a completely unrelated note, I had to share these pictures of our little daredevil. Please note the enormous smudge in both pictures. Carter loves to hold the camera up to his forehead and walk up to people saying "Say cheese." He must have been holding the camera before posing! I am just waiting for our first trip to the emergency room!

One more reason to love being a mommy.

Some of the things out of Carter's mouth absolutely melt my heart. For instance, when he wants me to hold him he says "Mommy, I need you" with his arms stretched up to me. I would happily drop anything to scoop him up and snuggle with him when he says that. I love it. So, his new thing is "Mommy, hold me like a baby." He wants to lay his head over one arm and his legs over the other and then he just looks up into my eyes exactly like he used to when he was tiny. I have no idea where he got this, and I don't care. I love it. I have been so aware of how "grown up" he has been lately- his speech is really starting to be clear and detailed, and then the introduction of big boy undee-wear almost made me cry, so this slight "regression" absolutely blesses my heart. I feel like the little old lady in the book Love You Forever when she rocks her adult son. I just want to put Carter in a bottle and keep him this sweet forever!