Don't ask a "SAHM" what she does all day...

because this might happen! This is funny...

A man came home from work and found his 5 children outside, still in their pajamas, playing in the mud, with empty food boxes and wrappers strewn around garden,

 The door of his wife's car was open, as was the front door to the house and no
sign of the dog, walking in the door, he found ...an even bigger mess. A lamp had been knocked over, the throw rug was against one wall, In the front room the TV was on loudly with the cartoon channel, the family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing. In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled on the counter, the fridge door was open wide, dog food was spilled on the floor, a broken glass lay under the table, and a small pile of sand was spread by the back door. He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles of clothes, looking for his wife. He was worried she might be ill, or that something serious had happened. He was met with a small trickle of water as it made its way out the bathroom door. As he peered inside he found wet towels, scummy soap and more toys strewn over the floor. Miles of toilet paper lay in a heap and toothpaste had been smeared over the mirror and walls. As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still curled up in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel... She looked up at him, smiled and asked how his day went. He looked at her bewildered and asked, 'What happened here today?' She again smiled and answered, 'You know every day when you come home from work and you ask me what in the world do I do all day?...
''Yes," was his incredulous reply..
She answered, 'Well, today I didn't do it.'

Addicted to Someecards

I am totally addicted to someecards...they are hilarious and so true. I often send them to Christy, Janel and mom for a laugh. I don't have anything to really share right now so I thought I would share some of my favorite someecards....

Happy Thanksgiving!

As this holiday rolls in again, I hope that you all have a lot to be thankful for. We do!! Our entire family has health, a roof over our heads and food to eat. Not to mention the amazing family and friends that share their love and time with us! Thankful for many, many blessings!

Dane's turkey from school and what he is thankful for:

Just in case you can't read it, it says "Dear God, I am thankful for my mom, my dad and Kale." I was pretty impressed that he was thankful for the 3 of us instead of his John Deere tractor!

And not to be outdone by his big brother, our little man of few real words spoke "turkey" as well:

Happy Thanksgiving!

What I Want You To Know (Round 2)

Kale,
You, little man, have completed our family of 4. You've given Dane a lifelong best friend and I am so thankful that we were easily blessed with our 2nd child. You have a funny little personality and put the M-O-N-K-E-Y in monkey. You climb on EVERYTHING. My day is typically spent peeling you off of whatever piece of furniture you are climbing on. You are surprisingly talented in your climbing skills...you've only fallen a couple times. You seem to be just as much of a wild child as your brother, never sitting still for long. You do, however, sit still to watch Curious George.

You are saying more and more words with each day and although many of them sound the same, I know you know what you're saying. You still babble. A lot. And it sounds like you're really carrying on a conversation. You currently love trains (choo choo's), puppies, trucks, books, coloring, playing outside and doing anything Dane does (or at least trying to). You get very frustrated if you cannot accomplish something and you scream to let us know how frustrated you are. You love to go down slides and are getting better on the swings. You say "hi" and "bye" to everyone and wave at them too. You are a pretty friendly little guy but I am starting to see some issues with sharing which is leading to pushing and hitting. Thankfully after going through the same thing with Dane, we know it is a phase and we will get through it with you just like we did your brother.

You have an insatiable curiosity and you get into. Everything. All. The. Time. It's just fun for you to dump baskets of toys or pull books off the shelves or empty my drawer of pots & pans or anything else you can get your little hands on. Outside of pulling you off of every piece of furniture, picking up after you is my biggest job. You are a lover. You give the best hugs and give them often. You wrap those little arms around my neck and hold on tight. For a long time. I love it and hope you continue to do that for a very long time. You love to eat. And you're messy, messy, messy. We often find food stuck to your butt or sitting in your high chair when we take you out which still baffles me...how does it get under there when you're sitting in it??

You love to dance and bust a move whenever there is music playing. Doesn't matter where we are or what we're doing, you're dancing. I hope you continue to have that same excitement for a long time to come.

You and Dane are so completely different now that I am excited to watch you grow into your own little person. Everyday I feel more and more blessed to me your mom. Having 2 is definitely more of a juggling act than 1, but I wouldn't change one thing about it. I look so forward to seeing what type of little boy, adolescent, teenager and man you become...it's going to be a fun ride!

What I Want You To Know...

I have been really bad about including letters to the boys on this blog. As stated several times, this is a journal for our family. I don't keep baby books or anything else so I need to step up my game so that I make sure to share all that I want the boys to know one day when they look back on this blog.

Dane,
As you approach the way too smart age of 4, I want you to know that you've made all my dreams come true. You were the first to bless this family and I couldn't be more proud of the little boy that you've become. That's not to say that being your mom doesn't come with some challenges...you are what your Dad lovingly refers to as a "Polk" which means that you are stubborn and strong willed. Stubborn and strong willed can be good...it means you know how to hold your ground and get what you want. However, stubborn can be very difficult especially when you're 3 and getting what you want seems to be all that matters to you. It also means that you and I butt heads on lots of things because we're so much alike. No matter what, I love you more that you will ever know. And I will always have your back. Even when you make bad decisions, we will be here for you....of course telling you that you screwed up but here nonetheless.

You are an amazing brother to Kale. Yes, you still like to wrestle with him and are often too rough but you have definitely learned that he's not a punching bag. I believe he will be bigger than you so you probably should start to curb beating him up...I think you're going to get it back tenfold. You have the biggest heart and really do have compassion for your baby brother. You're also very protective of him. Like last week, Kale got scolded and you were the first by his side to wipe his tears, give him a hug and tell him that it would be ok. You also looked crossways at your Dad and said "you don't talk to my brudder like dat." That obviously wasn't well received but it made me smile to know that you are so protective. And that you love Kale.

Currently your favorite things are John Deere tractors, your John Deere tee shirt and your John Deere socks. You also love your smiling dinosaur, Curious George, school, playing outside, Disney World, fireworks and watching the big diggers excavating the property next door. You say monstruction for construction and instruction. You call weeping willows "drippy trees" and you still pronounce the "L" as a "W".

You are a funny, funny little guy. The things that come out of your mouth often have your Dad and I laughing hysterically. You also say the absolute sweetest things...on Saturday when you were in the city with Dad and Kale you told him that you were having the "best day ever...with my Daddy, who I love." This is thankfully not an unusual thing...you often surprise me by saying something really sweet and completely unprovoked.

You are a little boy who has endless energy, endless giggles and endless excitement over new things. I now fully understand why people talk about seeing things through "the eyes of a child". Your imagination is wild...last week you told me that you "plowed the whole field and that you were going to plant the corn tomorrow." You promptly followed up that statement with "is it supposed to rain?" You know exactly what buttons to push to make Kale scream and you delight in picking at him. I think that will likely never end...and I think that is how it should be between brothers. You keep me on my toes and I love that I get to spend every day with you.

Settling In

We have spent the last couple weeks just settling into our new home. We were fortunate enough to have the Zehrings and my mom come visit us again this past weekend. Mom was nice enough to send the four of us out on Saturday evening and she stayed back with the kiddos. Not much else to report...

Dance party with the Zehrings:

Enjoying our new back yard:

Kale's subsequent tantrum over not knowing how to drive the tractor:

Our awesome view of the excavation happening next door:

An Election to Remember

As I sit hear thinking of the next 4 years and what I would like to see for my family, especially my boys, I am sending up prayers that we see big change. I know (as do all of you) that sometimes my big mouth gets me in trouble and that I sometimes react on emotion without thinking of who I may offend with my statements. I know that many of you "liked" my facebook status about moving out of the country when our current commander in chief was re-elected, but I also know that many of you thought it was an uncalled for, ridiculous statement. Obviously, the comment was made tongue in cheek and I didn't expect anyone to take it as anything other than a joke. However, I also know how passionate people were about this specific election and how much they disagreed with my statement.

It was 100% not meant to offend. I am, first and foremost, a patriot and a lover of this great nation. I continue to see rights taken away and that frightens me. I do believe that our government is WAY TOO INVOLVED in our lives and I think they need to take a step back and realize their job is to lead, not to take over. I know that many of the policies likely going into effect in the next 4 years are not what I believe to be morally "right" and I feel that the USA will suffer greatly from an even bigger separation of church and state. But I hold onto the hope that I am wrong in my thinking and that Obama comes out with the desire to truly change what is wrong with our country. I am grateful to live in a country that I am free to speak my mind and I hope that continues...

Am I sorry for what I said? No. Am I sorry I offended people? Yes. Am I sorry that it could have been misconstrued as me being an ungrateful, unpatriotic American? Absolutely.

I believe that Novelist Karen Kingsbury said it best:
Good Morning, Friends ... A few thoughts on yesterday's election ... First, thank you to all of you who voted. The response here was amazing, and so it was across the country.

THOUGHTS: Here is what I believe ... the problem and solution i

s never in a president or earthly leader. Not now, and not back through history. Our citizenship is in heaven.

WE NEED GOD: All of us need the Lord. We need hope and redemption and purpose in our lives. We need a Savior. But now more than ever - in our imperfection - we need to show the love of God to our nation and this world ... we need to share His truth.

RESPECT: People in this country have spoken, and now we must all honor that choice and one another with love and respect. That's what makes us Christians and Americans.

SOLUTION: As the morality and faith in this nation slides, a very great need for God is arising. Please, friends, let's be part of the solution.

LOVE: Today, smile more, hug often, pray continually. God is in control whoever leads this nation. He has a plan for those who love Him.

PRAY: I commit to prayer for President Obama and our leaders, as well as our fellow citizens and neighbors. We must love much, greater than ever before. And we must stand for what is right. Only in this way will they know we are Christians.

THANKS to those SERVING: A special thanks to the men and women serving our country, and to those of you who watched them leave through your front door. We appreciate your sacrifice, and we pray for their safe return.

God is in Control. Always. 

"For we know that God works all things to the good for those who love Him." All things. (Romans 8:28)

Parent Teacher Conferences

Dane's parent teacher conferences were last evening. He received an absolutely glowing report from his teacher and the only thing she suggested we work on is sitting cross legged because he struggles with crossing his legs for circle time. And he's wiggly which she said would likely get better with age. I mean he is a 3 year old boy...aren't they all wiggly? She did send home a spider that Dane had made and it came with a little description of the spider straight from Dane's mouth. I have to admit, he's hilarious and this spider description is a perfect "Daneism"....

Just in case you can't read it, here is what Dane had to say about his little 8 legged friend:

"I want blues. I need all the different colors like the rainbow (referring to the beads). It has a blue butt. A white face."

His teacher was laughing as she gave it to me and she said that he cracks her up during every class. The other day he told Cameron "Daddy, you're my bro." And he constantly refers to Kale as a little stinker or stinker butt. And the tone that he uses sounds like an adult. He has gotten very protective of Kale when we're not around. When I dropped him off at our friend's house to go to the conference, Dane told me that he would take care of Kale because he is the big brother and that is what big brothers do. It warms my heart that they play together now. And they love each other. A lot. I hope and pray they always do.

Disney Part 3

This is the last of the my Disney posts. Can you believe it's taken me a month to post about 4 days at Disney?? I am really pushing my brain to remember our last full day at Disney. I know we went to the Magic Kingdom. I know it was dreary and cloudy and there were NO LINES on any ride. There were empty boats on the small world ride. Crazy and super awesome all at the same time...

Dane conquered "Splash Mountain" twice! He just made the height limit. Once with me and once with Cameron...here is the 50 foot drop! He looks excited, right?

Dane with the Sword & the Stone

Dane & Daddy in front of the castle

Mommy & Kale on small world

Kale tried to pull the sword out with his teeth...can you spot our little Waldo in this picture?

The Carousel...a favorite of the boys

thumbs up from the big man

Dane & Pirate Goofy

And our little hippy, getting his first haircut at the barber shop on Main at Magic Kingdom!

Cameron: "rip the bandaid off, Jen." then to the stylist: "go ahead and use the clippers." 

Kale did awesome...sat very still!

Dane got his haircut as well and asked for a Jake & the Neverland Pirates hairdo.

My first haircut Mickey ears!

All done! Dane complete with the Jake spike!

Ta Da!! We love Disney!

Cameron and I actually took advantage of the amazing Disney babysitters on our last night there and went to a great dinner at the Grand Floridian resort. Farewell Disney...until next year with Jeff, Christy and Barrett!