Snippets of a conversation with Sydni in efforts to reassure her of safety at bedtime last night:
Sydni: "Mommy, are you really strong?"
Mommy: "Yes, Sydni, I am really strong."
Sydni: "Is Daddy stronger?"
Mommy: "Yes, Daddy is even stronger than me! But do you know who is the strongest?"
Sydni: "God!"
Mommy: "You're right!"
Sydni: "God is strong all the way to the sky!"
Mommy: "Even farther! He's stronger than everyone on the earth put all together!"
Sydni: (long thoughtful pause...) "God is strong all the way to heaven!"
Mommy: "Even farther than that!"
Sydni: (another long thoughtful pause...) "God is strong all the way to Africa!"
Mommy: (laughing) "Yes, Sydni, He's strong all the way to Africa...and farther!"
*I think it's so awesome that God can remind us, even through our kids' eyes, how infinitely strong and powerful He really is. I'm glad His strength protects me too!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
How strong?
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
The Law of Chocolate Attraction
It's the law of chocolate attraction; for every adorable outfit, there is an equally proportioned chocolatety mess to wreck it.
*Note: this is the same outfit previously potentially ruined in our last chocolate escapade.*
So you ask, "How did she get so messy?"
Yes, that's a family-sized bottle of Hershey's chocolate syrup being used as a little artistic TV snack for Naomi.
And yes, I did get it all out with the steam cleaner. But I had to take the pictures to save myself from anger. Good thing I did because after I stripped her and washed her up, she ran upstairs and decorated her legs with markers (sigh).
Monday, August 4, 2008
Chick-Fil-A Party Animals
I love Chick-Fil-A! They are the best fast food option around and honestly, the only fast food option that actually stays down!
I went to meet the girls after school one day by the pool. Tori, Kayli and her friend Monique ran up to the car excitedly and they were trying to communicate something to me. It was difficult to understand because they were all talking at once and they were eating something at the same time. Between the ramblings of a large cow, free food and their munching, I was able to figure out that a brave (or well-paid) Chick-Fil-A employee had clambered into a cow suit for the last hour of carpool time at the school. There he or she stood, outside in the searing July heat, waving to cars, hugging released and excited kids and handing out free chicken strips. You couldn't have paid me enough!
I went to meet the girls after school one day by the pool. Tori, Kayli and her friend Monique ran up to the car excitedly and they were trying to communicate something to me. It was difficult to understand because they were all talking at once and they were eating something at the same time. Between the ramblings of a large cow, free food and their munching, I was able to figure out that a brave (or well-paid) Chick-Fil-A employee had clambered into a cow suit for the last hour of carpool time at the school. There he or she stood, outside in the searing July heat, waving to cars, hugging released and excited kids and handing out free chicken strips. You couldn't have paid me enough!
The girls had brought with them an invitation to the restaurant's "kids week" events. They were especially interested in a party they were hosting later that week featuring the well-known and widely-adored Webkinz giveaway! The girls were beside themselves to think that they could actually win a Webkinz just by going to this party. Each one had themselves convinced that they would be the lucky winner. Tori was guessing which ones would be given away, Monique was counting the ones she already had and making room for more, and Kayli was already picking out name possibilities. After all, how many kids in Garner could really convince their parents to take them to a Chick-Fil-A Webkinz giveaway?!
A whole lot. I've never seen so many exuberant children packed into that tiny Chick-Fil-A! Thank goodness I lured the girls inside when we got there as the party was just beginning. We fell right into the 5-kid-long face painting line just in time because as I stood there with Naomi in her stroller piled with the already-adopted Webkinz of the 4 girls, picking out which exotic look Sydni wanted for her face, dozens (with no exaggeration) of children piled in line behind us! Of course, the older girls were immediately filling out the forms to register for the five Webkinz drawings that would take place over the course of the evening. We were in for a night of fun!
After 3 butterflies and 1 penguin were painted, we turned to go to the outdoor activities only to find that the line now reached from one end of the store to the sidewalk outside. Outside was much more refreshing and had a little more space. There were about 6 mock-carnival activities (beanbag toss, soccer ball kick, baseball throw, etc) but since no Webkinz prizes were involved, neither were the older three girls. And then it happened - the first announcement of the Webkinz winner! The excitement drained from each face as the winner's name was announced. Sadly, we played another round of toss the beanbag.
The girls began enjoying themselves a little more when the DJ started to play some kids dance songs. Kayli and Tori got right up and jived with the few confident people brave enough to dance. They cut the music after a while and alas - the next winner! This time they gave away 2 Webkinz; neither one went to my girls! I thought it would be a good time to grab some food so we burrowed through the crowd again to the lines at the registers.
I have to say that if it weren't for the incredibly fast and most obliging employees at Chick-Fil-A that night, I would not have carried so much as a French Fry out of that place. No one could move and I was getting claustrophobic. I opted for the only system that worked: I ordered and they delivered. We sat at a table outside and everything went very well as we ate and watched the people dance. The fourth winner was called at 7 after we finished eating. Again, no luck. So, I made a collective decision and called it a night. They would have had to wait around for another half hour with nothing else to do just to hear that last name (out of hundreds of names). Also, although I was impressed with Naomi's patience in the stroller up until now, I was not willing to take any more of a chance on her for that last half hour.
The girls shared in their disappointment about not getting a Webkinz but yet they agreed that the night was enjoyable in other ways. They loved their new looks and we have pictures to prove it. I just wonder what would have happened if one of them won a Webkinz? Collective contentment or deeper disappointment? I guess we'll never know.
A whole lot. I've never seen so many exuberant children packed into that tiny Chick-Fil-A! Thank goodness I lured the girls inside when we got there as the party was just beginning. We fell right into the 5-kid-long face painting line just in time because as I stood there with Naomi in her stroller piled with the already-adopted Webkinz of the 4 girls, picking out which exotic look Sydni wanted for her face, dozens (with no exaggeration) of children piled in line behind us! Of course, the older girls were immediately filling out the forms to register for the five Webkinz drawings that would take place over the course of the evening. We were in for a night of fun!
After 3 butterflies and 1 penguin were painted, we turned to go to the outdoor activities only to find that the line now reached from one end of the store to the sidewalk outside. Outside was much more refreshing and had a little more space. There were about 6 mock-carnival activities (beanbag toss, soccer ball kick, baseball throw, etc) but since no Webkinz prizes were involved, neither were the older three girls. And then it happened - the first announcement of the Webkinz winner! The excitement drained from each face as the winner's name was announced. Sadly, we played another round of toss the beanbag.
The girls began enjoying themselves a little more when the DJ started to play some kids dance songs. Kayli and Tori got right up and jived with the few confident people brave enough to dance. They cut the music after a while and alas - the next winner! This time they gave away 2 Webkinz; neither one went to my girls! I thought it would be a good time to grab some food so we burrowed through the crowd again to the lines at the registers.
I have to say that if it weren't for the incredibly fast and most obliging employees at Chick-Fil-A that night, I would not have carried so much as a French Fry out of that place. No one could move and I was getting claustrophobic. I opted for the only system that worked: I ordered and they delivered. We sat at a table outside and everything went very well as we ate and watched the people dance. The fourth winner was called at 7 after we finished eating. Again, no luck. So, I made a collective decision and called it a night. They would have had to wait around for another half hour with nothing else to do just to hear that last name (out of hundreds of names). Also, although I was impressed with Naomi's patience in the stroller up until now, I was not willing to take any more of a chance on her for that last half hour.
The girls shared in their disappointment about not getting a Webkinz but yet they agreed that the night was enjoyable in other ways. They loved their new looks and we have pictures to prove it. I just wonder what would have happened if one of them won a Webkinz? Collective contentment or deeper disappointment? I guess we'll never know.
The Hamilton Princesses
Naomi Faith on July 2, 2008
Kayli Joy & Naomi Faith
Tori Grace & Naomi Faith
Sydni Hope & Naomi Faith
Sydni Hope & Naomi Faith
Sunday, August 3, 2008
"Fun" in the Sun
It all started with the long, cumbersome expedition of picking up a new but used bedroom set for Kayli. After making several silly assumptions, we realized we should really never again assume anything, even basic previously established facts, when picking up used furniture on a hot, hot, hot day in July with four daughters and two vehicles.
Assumption #1: When picking up furniture, we will be able to retrieve all items from a nice lady's storage unit in a timely and somewhat effortlessly manner. (She neglected to tell us that the queen bed, mattress, dresser and nightstand were located with in a unit which was inside and upstairs and through a winding maze of hallways.)
Assumption #2: Taking furniture out of storage should be easy because after all, "It's all in the front of the unit..." (except for the mattress which was, you guessed it, in the very, very back behind every last box she owned. I guess the responsibility to move and replace every item in the unit in efforts to retrieve the mattress was just a bonus for buying the furniture at such a great deal. And yes, this was all accomplished while also attempting to entertain our girls. I guess our superhuman strength and talent are no longer a secret!)
Assumption #3: When placing furniture in the back of a sinfully large SUV, it will fit! (Well, at least the main pieces fit and we just ended up tying the mattress to the top! Note: The idiocracy of this assumption should be solely absorbed by me (Teresa); no part therein should be attributed to my more-realistic and better half.
Assumption #4: After hoisting an impossibly heavy queen mattress and box spring to the top of a sinfully large SUV, an industrial-grade ratcheting belt should hold it steady until we arrive home safely. (We only had to stop once but the bad news was that the mattress slid off and we had to muster enough strength to hoist it on top once again. And when I say "we" I mean "Bryan." I guess only one of us has superhuman strength!)
Assumption #5: Our children will be the epitome of patience and appreciation while we perform our parental duties of provision. (This was entirely accurate. We have awesome, fun-loving, make-the-best-out-of-it girls who looked after each other during this whole process with the most minimal of correction. This day made me proud of them.)
As a reward for us all, we stopped by Cook Out for some shakes on the way home. Naomi shared the remainder of her sister's chocolate chip shake and basically dressed herself with it for the last 10 minutes of the ride home. (Bryan was thrilled as she was riding in his car which he just had washed the day before.) While she finished donning the remaining chocolate chips, we swung her car door open and left her buckled in the now brownish, gooey seat so we could get the new furniture out of the SUV.
Naomi was as happy as a puppy playing in the mud, and that is sure what she looked like when she was done. We approached her carefully, in case she felt like sharing, and I unbuckled her seat from the car. Bryan took one side and I took the other side and we carried her, still buckled in the seat and grinning ear to ear, over to the hose outside. I didn't realize how easily the chocolate would come off such a messy seat and girl with the jet control on the hose nozzle. She was so excited about being sprayed that we just had to hook up the pool too. And this is how we ended our grand adventure.
Assumption #1: When picking up furniture, we will be able to retrieve all items from a nice lady's storage unit in a timely and somewhat effortlessly manner. (She neglected to tell us that the queen bed, mattress, dresser and nightstand were located with in a unit which was inside and upstairs and through a winding maze of hallways.)
Assumption #2: Taking furniture out of storage should be easy because after all, "It's all in the front of the unit..." (except for the mattress which was, you guessed it, in the very, very back behind every last box she owned. I guess the responsibility to move and replace every item in the unit in efforts to retrieve the mattress was just a bonus for buying the furniture at such a great deal. And yes, this was all accomplished while also attempting to entertain our girls. I guess our superhuman strength and talent are no longer a secret!)
Assumption #3: When placing furniture in the back of a sinfully large SUV, it will fit! (Well, at least the main pieces fit and we just ended up tying the mattress to the top! Note: The idiocracy of this assumption should be solely absorbed by me (Teresa); no part therein should be attributed to my more-realistic and better half
Assumption #4: After hoisting an impossibly heavy queen mattress and box spring to the top of a sinfully large SUV, an industrial-grade ratcheting belt should hold it steady until we arrive home safely. (We only had to stop once but the bad news was that the mattress slid off and we had to muster enough strength to hoist it on top once again. And when I say "we" I mean "Bryan." I guess only one of us has superhuman strength!)
Assumption #5: Our children will be the epitome of patience and appreciation while we perform our parental duties of provision. (This was entirely accurate. We have awesome, fun-loving, make-the-best-out-of-it girls who looked after each other during this whole process with the most minimal of correction. This day made me proud of them.)
As a reward for us all, we stopped by Cook Out for some shakes on the way home. Naomi shared the remainder of her sister's chocolate chip shake and basically dressed herself with it for the last 10 minutes of the ride home. (Bryan was thrilled as she was riding in his car which he just had washed the day before.) While she finished donning the remaining chocolate chips, we swung her car door open and left her buckled in the now brownish, gooey seat so we could get the new furniture out of the SUV.
Naomi was as happy as a puppy playing in the mud, and that is sure what she looked like when she was done. We approached her carefully, in case she felt like sharing, and I unbuckled her seat from the car. Bryan took one side and I took the other side and we carried her, still buckled in the seat and grinning ear to ear, over to the hose outside. I didn't realize how easily the chocolate would come off such a messy seat and girl with the jet control on the hose nozzle. She was so excited about being sprayed that we just had to hook up the pool too. And this is how we ended our grand adventure.
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