Well, I hadn't figured out how I was going to post my announcement before another post-worthy announcement came along. As often happens in our family, we have to start our story with "see, what had happened was..."
When Moose and I were in Pisa last month, I saw a cute toddler-sized t-shirt at one of the souvenir stands. The thought occurred to me that someday we'll have grandchildren and it'd be really cool if we bought things for them while we're in Europe...starting with a red t-shirt (suitable for a boy or girl) with a picture of Snoopy and Woodstock trying to straighten the leaning tower with Italian and American writing on it. After debating it the first two days I was there, I could not shake the feeling that I needed to get a t-shirt. I knew I'd regret it if I didn't. My thought was that the first grandchild could wear it and pass it along to the others. I planned to post a picture of the shirt on here but accidentally included it in the package I sent to the boys. I've been waiting for Drew to take a pic of the shirt and email it to me so I could include it in my Pisa post and photos.
But apparently I had my ESPN turned on because Drew's girlfriend Ciera is pregnant. She's due late February/early March, so I decided to call the baby Love Bug until/if we find out which variety of grandbaby we're getting. They tried to say I jinxed them by buying that t-shirt, but after doing the math, they were already pregnant when I bought the shirt. Ha! Finally something that can't be blamed on me! LOL
And tonight I got a text from Ryan. Here's how the convo went down:
Ryan: mom
me: Yes?
Ryan: wanna hear something funny?
me: Yep
Ryan: drew's gonna be an uncle
Yes, we are expecting TWO grandbabies in the spring.
My boys have always referred to themselves as 'the first two punks'; after seeing all the adorable girl clothing and shoes (and accessories) in the stores, here's hoping one of those mini-punks is a punkette.
I had formulated a blog post in my head that consisted of writing to Love Bug to proclaim my love and excitement over his/her existence. But now I have another love bug to write to/about but I don't have an appropriate nickname for him/her. We used to call the boys Thing 1 and Thing 2 (from the Dr. Seuss books), and Moose suggested calling the babies Thing 1 and 2 after their dads, but since Thing 2 is having Grand Thing 1, and Thing 1 is having Grand Thing 2, I think that'd be too confusing.
But what has been decided are our grandparent names. He's Papa Moose and I'm GeeGee. Or should I spell it GG? Or GiGi? Anyway, there you have it. Our babies are having babies. And although their circumstances aren't ideal, we are very excited about these precious gifts.
I swiped this off my friend Lori's blog...you can find her blog here. Yes, we use the same template. Great minds, you know. LOL
T-Mobile Mom to Mom Quiz: "
A couple of the questions were difficult to answer because I would've done two of the choices but could only mark one of them. It was also hard since I didn't send my kids to school and never dealt with a few of the hypothetical situations. Fun nonetheless.
Hmmph. At 2:36 this morning, my "baby" turned 19.
He can eat with utensils, wipe his own butt, wash his own laundry, clean a house, add and subtract, read, manage a checking account, knows how to carry on a conversation appropriately with an elderly adult, change a baby's diaper, and appreciates cute kids and puppies and the joy their innocence brings to the world. He lives true to himself while being a loyal friend and wannabe commedian who knows how to enjoy life. He'll be a great husband, father, uncle, and world contributor.
Mission accomplished. Where did the time go?
The love I have for my kids is practically indescribable. It can’t be summed up in a paragraph, no matter how many flowery adjectives and cool metaphors are used. And while my kids are the same gender, they are totally different from one another. I love one for his sense of order; the other for his ‘live and let live’ attitude while always being true to himself. I love one’s level of self-discipline; the other’s ability to go with the flow and not get bent out of shape when things start getting chaotic (he didn't get that from me).
They each hold philosophies and exhibit behavior that I both agree and disagree with, but it never affects my love for them. I love them simply because I took part in their creation. They could never do anything to make me not love them; yet if they only did things I approve of wouldn’t make me love them more. I love them because they are mine. And it’s a love unlike any other.
Father's Day Attack at the Moose Lodge
The attack began around 12:45 pm; that's when Moose walked through the kitchen door from the garage. As he put the bags of groceries on the counter, he noticed something was out of place. The sight of a single can of shaving cream on a piece of paper in the living room doorway floor caught his eye. He leaned slightly forward to read the sign. There were 3 lines.
"Pappy, Happy Father's Day. I'm apologizing in advance."
Then without any warning, the boys launched their vicious attack (OK, well it wasn't really vicious, but I'm going for effect here). The two young padawons pounced on him at almost the same time. Warrior cries could be heard throughout the house as they descended into the kitchen, gel shaving cream was flying toward its intended target faster than a speeding bullet. There was yelling (of the girly sounding variety) as their startled father realized he was being ambushed. Shrieks of laughter and excitement could be heard from the living room as Tasha watched from a safe distance. The chocolate lab grabbed her favorite tennis ball and stood nearby in case one of the humans wanted to play with her when the war was over.
The stunned Moose just stood there in disbelief. He'd just been creamed--menthol style. His favorite orange Tennessee Volunteers shirt was now covered in white shaving cream. So were his glasses. And his arms...and head. Suddenly the noise became muffled. Shaving cream was in his ears and it was impairing his hearing. The boys continued to "honor" and celebrate their father as they dressed him in a new mummy-like wrap.
The kitchen floor was squeaky clean under the fallen shaving cream areas. The men each retreated to a bathroom to shower. All of them still had shaving cream in their ears after the shower & had to go back to get the rest out. It was a father's day to be remembered.
*My sources tell me retaliation will be swift and unexpected. Check back for updates.
my never-ending battle
My 411
- Eva M.
- After struggling to fit into the proverbial round hole, I figured it was more honest to embrace the natural facets of my personality: passion for God and people, off-the-wall logic and a twisted sense of humor.
I'm an Air Force wife and former homeschool mom who writes about people and relationships, my faith, and my family. I love my crazy, beautiful, mosaic life...and coffee.