I'm Not As Young As I Once Was....

Yes, yet another title stolen from a song. However, it is fitting for how I am feeling tonight, at 8:30pm after returning from the UGA/GA Tech game in Athens.

First let me say that we had a GREAT time. Time spent with adults only is so sacred these days. It was nice to just be Jennifer and Eric and not Mama and Daddy. We had a great dinner at one of my favorite places (California Dreaming) after the game and we got to watch a SEC game for free! With that said, today was indeed a learning experience

Lessons learned from Athens:

I do not like drinks in plastic cups. Anything that costs 5.00 and is in a rolo cup just isn't my thing anymore. The drink really didn't taste that good and for 5.00 I can get a nice pumpkin latte at Starbucks. The positive part of that story is that when we stopped at a bar to have a drink on the way to the game I was carded by the nice 15 year old bartender. This made me a little happy inside. Look, when you are 31 years old, 20lbs overweight, and greying in the temples, you take it where you can get it ok?

If you are a cute 21 year old college student OR a 50 year old woman and intend on drinking until you puke....here is a helpful hint-- wear underwear and dress accordingly. Yes I know this should go without saying but the 21 year old girl who wore a skirt without underwear and then rolled around the sidewalk missed that memo. The 50 year old had the underwear part down, but her skirt was a wee bit short and a wee bit tight so when she fell down she exposed everything anyway. I'm all for having a good time, but maybe planning ahead in the wardrobe department would enhance the time of us passersby....Just a thought.

I love football, but I do not love the old redneck that always sits behind me at every SEC game I attend. He always says the same thing--it usually sounds like #($))(#* $#$#O*$ Mark Richt (or insert other coach here) should be fired, that #$E(* #$()#$* SOB!!! I always sit in front of that guy....always. Why are you asking for his job this week when last week you were wanting to somehow father his children? It's always about having the coach's head on a platter with those guys, and they always sit next to me at any sporting event I attend.

If it is the 4th quarter and your team is losing, keep your seat until the end of the game. This was a rule of ours in college. You stayed at the game until the band played the Tennessee Waltz. Why call yourself a fan, pay 5 million dollars for a ticket, another small fortune in parking and food just to get up and leave when the going gets tough?

I'm not as fun as I once was.....I know this probably goes without saying to those of you who knew me BC (before children) and AC (after children) but it was glaringly obvious to me today. I had to be super cheery nice to the wife of Eric's guest but she was OUT. OF. CONTROL. It wasn't just the forty PBRs that she tried to get us to drink after she poked a hole in the side of the can or the makeout session with her husband during the middle of the game, but also the chain smoking of camel lights on the way to the game that made me realize that I'm pretty boring these days. I'm not complaining, but it was an eye opener. I. am. not. cool. and best of all, I am happily not cool.

One last thing, I'm from Tennessee....I didn't drink moonshine when I lived in Tennessee and I'm sure as heck not going to drink it now. I don't care if it does taste like cinnamon and has fresh "spices" in it. It's kind of a rule of mine....if it comes in a mason jar, I probably don't want any.....but thanks for asking!!!

Floors Night Night Indeed

About a month ago I was mopping the foyer and Kylie came running down the hall and fell down on the wet floor. She is now afraid of the Swiffer and wet floors. We are always exasperated with her when we clean because she stands on the carpet crying and yelling "All done floor, floor night night (night night means all done in Kyliese). Anyhow, last night I was cleaning the floors and tripped over my pants leg. All 5052lbs on me landed backwards on the hardwood floor. For the first ten minutes I just stayed down and screamed in agony. Eric tried to help me up but I felt it was best to just stay still in case I was internally bleeding or had a brain injury. Luckily it was just a bruised tailbone and cracked pride.

Kylie was right to be afraid of the wet floors. Maybe I should take more advice from her!!

Dad

I miss my dad. I don't really talk about him much because quite honestly, it is just too hard. My dad wasn't the Mr. Cleaver type, probably more a cross between Al Bundy and Fred Sanford. He was hilarious. I've never met anyone who could match his wit and his humor. We are coming up on the third anniversary of his death. In some ways, instead of it getting easier, it gets a little harder.

When dad died, I was a single girl. Eric and I were in smushy mushy love and I grieved for my dad, but I was soooo in loooooove at the same time. I think in some ways that muted my grief for a while. Then along came Kylie, and that brought us so much happiness, and then along came Logan, and then....well I guess life slowed down and I realized my kids would never know him. They would never know that humor that had an edge to it. He would never call them on Christmas Eve and pretend to be Santa Claus as he had to my other nieces and nephews. They would never know the man that shaped so much of who I am.

In some ways, his memory lives on through them. I can see that same humor in Kylie. In Logan, I can see physical parts of him. So he is here.....but I would love to have just one more day with him. I would love for my kids to sit on his lap or for him to make them laugh. Tonight, I just miss my dad.

Sorry to be such a Debbie Downer tonight....I'll be much more cheerful tomorrow--I promise!

A lot of something about nothing....

I could write the same blog and fill in the blank _________ is sick but everything is good! Still Logan (sick child of the week) but he is doing much much better. He has a recheck on Wednesday then we can get out and about again.

Really not a lot to report. We are not going home to TN for the holidays. I'm actually relieved. I would love to see family and friends but packing up the little Hyundai and taking two kids to TN just makes me want to take a looooong nap. So I'm hosting Thanksgiving (everyone bring your insurance cards in case we have to go to the ER for food poisoning) and Christmas we'll spend with Eric's mom and at the house. We'll wait til Spring to head to the hills.

Logan has found his voice. He coos and smiles at everyone. That kid is so sweet. He has his daddy's personality. Never really cries, just hangs out. He is a Johnson through and through. Kylie, or mini-Jenny as Eric calls her, is talking more and more everyday. I checked on her while she was napping the other day and she raised her head and said , "MAMA I'm NIGHT NIGHT!!!" Well excuse me all over the place little girl. That's my daughter though. She had a playmate this morning and I was pleasantly surprised that she was played well with her.

What else what else.....Oh, I ripped this off from someone else but here is my top 20 list of what I'm thankful for this Thanksgiving...no particular order:

1. Eric and the kids of course!
2. Being able to stay home and watch K and L grow up.
3. Mint Chocolate Chip Baileys with Coffee (yes it's #3 get over it)
4. Books--I've started reading again and forgotten how much I love it.
5. Selena, my best friend in the world
6. My family growing closer the last three years (this should go before Baileys but that's a lot of backspace delete ok?)
7. Gummy smiles from Logan
8. Thank you Mommys from Kylie
9. Winter clothes, cause I got some baby weight to lose.
10. Honeybaked Ham for making my turkey
11. Lori for being my sister and surrogate mother.
12. Playgroups for helping mommy keep her sanity.
13. Not turning into Britney Spears when I decided to be a SAHM
14. Not turning into Martha Stewart when I decided to be a SAHM
15. How I Met Your Mother and the Office (best shows on television)
16. Keith Olbermann, thanks for the Bush laughs, but our affair is over.
17. Thick hair so I will not look like Telly Savalis as my hair falls out.
18. Thick hair so I can hold off on the hair color for a few more months
19. Wool socks
20. Nap time, blessed nap time.

Happy Birthdays Are Over!!

Well, we made it through the Two State Kylie Johnson 2nd Birthday Bonanza. I just counted and looks like we are all home and accounted for so that's a good thing. Kylie enjoyed both her parties. Last night we took her to Chuck E Cheese in Conyers. It was just a little family party but Kylie had a great time with her Grandma and Aunts and Uncle. We even got to see Amanda. Anita is feeding my reading habit so I ended the evening with three new novels. Yay! Kylie now has Elmo Live and is in love. Logan is quite enchanted with him too. It was a lot of work to throw two parties and I'll never do it again. With that said, the happy smiles and thank you mommy at the end of the night made it all worth it.

Looks like our boy will have some of the respiratory issues that his sister struggled with in her early months. Logan has fought a cold for almost a month now. I took him (AGAIN) to the doctor this weekend and he has an ear infection. Our pediatrician has decided to keep him on breathing treatments through the winter. He is wheezing too. "Luckily" we knew the signs so we were able to get him on treatments much sooner than Kylie. With Kylie, we spent two months with a prescription for cough medicine before our old pediatrician finally figured out the problem. I'll admit we were a little bummed at first about Logan but when everything is put in perspective, it could be SO much worse. Kylie is so healthy and such a happy girl now and we have caught Logan's RAD and the ped is being aggressive so all is good.

More Pictures from Halloween

Halloween Pics

Long Weekend

Sorry it's been a while since I posted. We went to TN for Halloween/Kylie and Emmett's joint party. Kylie had a great time trick or treating with her cousins. She was so tired at the end of the night that she made Eric hold her and she would just hold out her bucket and say Treat. It was cute. I wish we could spend more time with my family. It seems like every time we go up we see everyone for ten minutes and then we are back on the road to Atlanta.

The birthday party was fun. The kids had a great time running around the indoor soccer fields in their Halloween costumes and although this mommy was very stressed, Kylie enjoyed it and that's all that matters.

Logan now has croup. The doctor said that sometimes happens after a prolonged upper respiratory infection. He sounds much better today but I think we will stay indoors a couple of more days just to make sure he is well. I'm thinking I may have to stay home more during the winter months.
Here are some updated pictures of the kiddie poos.