Car talk: Oh, the things kids say!

It's no secret that kids, especially young ones, can get restless when they're forced to ride in a car for hours at a time. Mine, ages five and just-turned-three, are certainly no exceptions. Fortunately—for them, at least!—they've come up with several statements and questions to help pass the time. Here are their ten favorites. How many have you heard?

Ten Things My Kids Said During Our Four-Day Car Trip:

Image courtesy of Marja Flick-Buijs, rgbstock.com

1. Are we there yet? (This one is pretty standard among kids. I think it comes pre-programmed.)

2. How much longer? (A variation of number one, this question requires more than a one-word response from Mom and Dad and therefore ranks as Slightly More Annoying on the annoyance scale.)

3. How many more Little Einstein's is it? (My kids love this show, which is roughly a half-hour long, so instead of saying that we need to drive for eight more hours, we'll say, "It's only sixteen more Little Einsteins." Somehow, this sounds better to the kids. Whatever works...)

4. I feel poop coming out. (Said—often—by my just-starting-to-get-the-hang-of-potty training three-year-old immediately after we had strapped her into her car seat. Most of the time it was a false alarm.)

5. I have to pee. (Usually said as we're pulling away from a rest area.)

6. I don't wanna go home! (Apparently, my three -year-old really loved her vacation—a lot! She was like the Energizer Bunny in her repetition of this one. She kept going and going and going...)

7. I want French fries! (I think this one is also pretty universal. My kids only have fast food when we're on vacation, so we heard this a lot during our trip.)

8. I wanna get out. (Uttered by the kids every half-hour or so. I could have set my watch by them—unfortunately.)

9. I'm cold. (The three-year-old. We turned off the air-conditioning.)

10. I'm hot. (The five-year-old. We turned on the air-conditioning. NOTE: Numbers nine and ten were always said at the same time.)


So there you have them—a few of the many sentences my kids uttered in order to drive us crazy pass the time. Is it any wonder we only take long car trips once a year? ☺


Happy Thursday!

So very rich



Image courtesy of Kevin Tuck, rgbstock.com


Home is a nice place today—and not just because I've been cleaning it in anticipation of visitors later this week.

When I woke up this morning, life seemed bright, brighter than it's seemed in a long time, and when I walked around the house opening doors and windows to let in the early morning breeze, I was reminded of how lucky I am to live here—to have this place to sleep and eat and dream, this safe building in which to raise my kids and watch them grow (too quickly) into adults.

There have been times I've wished for wealth and a mansion, but this morning's blessed peacefulness reminds me yet again that I'm already very rich.

Sunday inspiration

Happy Sunday, everyone!

I hope you enjoy this week's inspiration. These guys are amazing!



Check out The Piano Guys'  Web site to read about why the group decided to work with this song by One Direction. (You can find the lyrics here.)

Saying thank you isn't enough

I'm finally back!

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It was a difficult few weeks, but I'm happy to say that everything turned out much, much better than I could have expected. I don't have enough words for how grateful I am for your comments, thoughts, e-mails, and prayers. It meant so much to know that others cared and were thinking of me, and I know it was that—and faith—that made the situation easier to get through. Thank you so much.

I'm happy to be back on my blog, and I'm looking forward to posting again—it's been a while! However, for a couple of reasons, I'm going to be easing my way back to daily blogging. As some of you probably know, my son will be starting kindergarten in the fall. He'll be attending all day, every day, which of course is something this mom isn't really ready to think about, much less deal with! (I'll probably cry for days.) I had wanted to spend the summer doing fun things with him and his little sister, but several situations and events prevented me from doing as much with them as I would have liked. There's a little over a month left until school starts, so my plan is to spend more time doing things with the kids, which will, sadly, leave me with a little less time for blogging.

I'm also participating in Camp NaNoWriMo this month. I'm using it to jump-start my memoir project, which I've put on the back burner for far too long. I'll spend part of the month transcribing interview notes and conducting more interviews (and then transcribing those as well). Once I see what I have to work with, I hope to get a good start on putting it all together. This project has been pretty daunting, but I'm hoping that Camp NaNo will help give me the momentum I need.

So although I may not post every day this month—(or maybe I will; who knows what the weeks will hold?)—I still plan on posting several times a week. I love blogging—it's one of my favorite outlets—and I love connecting with other people through their blogs. I'm looking forward to catching up with all of you!

Regardless of what happens with my posting this month, I'll be back full force once life settles down a little in the fall. Thank you for being patient with me and for everything you did these past several weeks. I appreciate it all more than I can say.

(And it definitely feels good to be writing again!)

Can't find the words

I've been trying all morning to think of ways to word this post so it won't make me cry, but I've given up on that.

I need to take a little time away from my blog. Something is happening in my life that's really difficult for me, and I'm having a lot of trouble just trying to take care of the kids and get through the day. I want to write because writing usually helps me deal with things, but this time I'm discovering it's too hard to find words. And even though I know that you would all be nothing but caring and supportive, the situation is just too hard to talk about right now.

I hope you can be patient with me. I don't know when I'll be back. Maybe next week, maybe tomorrow. Maybe I'll be able to post again later today. I just don't know. But I would appreciate good thoughts and prayers if you have any to spare. They're needed.

I'll be back as soon as I can. Thank you for understanding.

Just like Arnold, I'm back!



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rgbstock.com

"You can find your way across this country using burger joints the way a navigator uses stars.”

American journalist Charles Kuralt reportedly said this, and I have to agree. I don't care if I never see the inside of another fast-food restaurant.

Still, those places are a treat for the kids, and I'm happy to make them happy when we're all crowded together in a vehicle for two days. After what seemed like the longest car trip ever, we arrived home safely late Saturday night. And each of us had never been so happy to see our own beds.

There's something about going on vacation that really makes you appreciate what you have at home.

What do I have at home? So many good things, like love and laughter and comfort and familiarity. Right now I also have mounds of laundry, but that's a story for another day.

I'm glad to be back here at the blog. I've missed it and you. ☺

Gone fishin'



On the road again...
Photo by Kim Newberg, courtesy of Public Domain Pictures

By some miracle, I managed to finish packing, and hubby, the kids, the dog, and I are now on our way to see my parents.

Okay, that's not entirely true. I'm actually writing this post at 1:46 a.m. as I wait for my ninth of eleven loads of laundry to dry. I'm surrounded by half-packed suitcases and a long list of things I still need to do. But no matter. I'm optimistic that my first sentence will be true by the time you read this post. ☺

I'm also writing to let you know that I probably won't be posting during my vacation. I'll be staying with my parents, who have neither a working computer nor Internet access, and I don't own a laptop (yet. Every time my husband asks me what I want for Mother's Day, Christmas, my birthday, whatever, I always mention a laptop. Someday...)

Anyway, I'm going to try to get in a trip or two to the library, and if I do, I'll definitely post here and visit your blogs. I'm not sure how likely it is that I'll get to a computer, but I will try. (I can't stay unplugged for long!) So I hope you can forgive my two-week absence here and at your blogs. I'm looking forward to catching up when I get back!

Happy Sunday! See you soon. ☺