you must have been

Andrew has reached level 14 of angry birds. My four... excuse me... five year old needs a new hobby.

Like cleaning his room. Or doing the laundry. Or maybe eradicating the dust bunnies.

Actually, he's pretty good at all the above. He's an excellent sock sorter, way above average at sighting the dust bunnies and cleans up his messes with a thoroughness that I should try to mimic.

So, needless to say, plenty of hobbies.

In other news, Andrew has officially registered for kindergarten. Which is impossible, because it was only last year that I was gripping his one tiny baby finger around mine, wondering for the third time how in the heck someone so perfectly beautiful could come from me.

A lot of things could be described as beautiful, but until you see your very own eyes, staring into yours from a vestige of something so whole and pure that you know you'll never experience again.... well, nothing really measures up to that.

Not even tap.

Moving on, Andrew is totally not old enough to be a kindergarten-er.

For at least another 4 months.

I was just gonna go with a container of pansies, but your way's good too

Here's to finishing one thing at a time.

So seriously harder than it sounds.

And.... I'm talking about my garden. Which hasn't really reached the point of being able to be called anything beyond 'green shoots stuck in the ground at random', but it is coming along.

If only this could've happened without me digging up half of my front yard. But, some things can't be helped when you're a sad combination of visual learner/impulsive.

And hence my next thing of awesome.

One of my clearest memories of my mom is her planting things. And then digging up those things and planting them somewhere else. Her moving sprinklers with a thoroughness and attention to detail that I never really got.

Well, ladies and gentlemen, I get it. And for the record, sorry to my mom for not getting it before.

I don't know if it's the same thing she felt, when she went plant shopping or plant planning or when she actually got the darn things in the ground, but there is something so very..... refreshing is such a small way of putting it, but I can't think of a better word right now. I got my elder box bush in the front corner, framed in the back by strawberries. And then my lettuce rows. Which are gonna be bordered by the nastiriums, which will further be bordered by the lavender bushes, which will border the halfway dug-out walkway.

Why I decided to do this all in the front yard.... the short answer is a book told me to. The long answer is I got excited. Very excited.

I'm really not the sort of person who should ever need caffeine.

Right now, we're at the point where the excitement has ridden out and what we're left with is sore shoulders, first name greeting with the mailman and way too many people seeing my work 'in process.'

I can't wait to get my thyme in though. With some chick and hens in between.

Yum, right?

no quiero

I've gotten through another weekend of work.

Enough said about that.

Exciting news about Ben. The kid needs tubes in his ears, with the idea that once his ears are unclogged, he will start distinguishing the difference between 'book' and 'bike' and 'door' and 'drum' and be able to start communicating in more than just consonant sounds. And pointing. Lots of pointing.

According to his doctor, once the tubes are in, Ben should be out of speech therapy in 2-3 months tops. I am beyond relieved, especially since it seemed the more we've tried, the less progress Ben has been making with his word acquisition. He passed his hearing test, because the kid can hear sounds. Turns out, he just can't hear very clearly. Here's the kicker though. Because my baby is only 3 and prone to the wiggles, he will be under sedation. In the OR.

Outside of being buried alive, circular preschool songs, and the occasional flashback to childhood gas station trips, the one thing that can turn my blood cold is surgery. Yeah, I know. RN talking. But, I wouldn't work in an OR if they paid me to.

Do you know how low they keep the temperature in those places? I'd freeze to death within the first week.

Anyway.... the idea of my baby going under so the nice doctors can stick tubes down his eustachians have me a bit squeamish. But, I'm trying something new for me. I've decided I'm not going to think about it. Most of my problems in life seem to result after periods of extended thought. I think I need to start making changes and do research and that's when I end up doing crazy things like pulling up the front yard sod or impersonating a Spanish interpreter.

Although, for the record, sod is completely overrated. Especially in front yards.

The point is, if I let myself think too much about it, I'm going end up with a pile of books on hearing disorders, staying up all hours researching tube placement procedures on the internet, which is just gonna lead to me strong arming myself into the operation room to 'observe', which is just gonna make me that much more crazy for having witnessed.

Let's assume it's safe to say I need any sanity I have left at this point. Although, really, what's the point of sanity if all it gets you is a seat in the waiting room?