Fly on the Wall: Making Merry

Posted on December 20, 2019 by Cathy O

Welcome to a Fly on the Wall group post. Today 5 bloggers are inviting you to catch a glimpse of what you’d see if you were a fly on the wall in our homes. Come on in and buzz around my house.

Buzz around, see what you think, then click on these links for a peek into some other homes:

Baking In A Tornado

Never Ever Give Up Hope

Menopausal Mother

Spatulas on Parade

Here’s who you’ll be hearing from in my house:

Me, Mama O.
Daddy O.
Big Sister, age 10
Little Brother, age 8

Since I have been writing these blog posts since 2014, I have my own Fly Post Page. Check it out if you want to hear more craziness from my house.

Around our House

Me (as I was cleaning for our kids’ joint birthday party): Maybe we should have people over more often. It really makes me clean our house.

Big Sister: I call 10 zero teen.

Little Brother (not wanting to do chores): What am I, your slave?!

During breakfast, Big Sister came up with this:

Get Happiness. It’s out there somewhere. It’s not in a store.

Profound, right?

As I was talking about plans and what I needed Daddy O. to do, he asked me to stop lecturing him. I replied, “I’m not lecturing. I’m talking in a loud voice….a stern, loud voice…oh wait…”

Where are my Kids?

It was a Saturday, and we were in the middle of a busy day. I had just taken the kids grocery shopping and was now home unpacking groceries. I started getting some things ready for lunch, but I noticed that I had no idea where the kids went. Being the louder of the two adults in our house, I tend to call for my kids across the house. I even stuck my head out the door and yelled their names. No answer. Not. A. Peep.

I was getting kind of worried, so I decided to look for them, continuing to call their names. I finally found them in the basement and made them come upstairs for lunch.

I explained to them, “When someone is yelling your name, you need to answer. I was getting worried that you ran off or something. It’s not nice to make your mom worry.”

Very calmly, Little Brother chimed in, “Well, when I grow up and have kids, if I don’t like them, then I would just let them go.”

“What?!” I laughed…”You would just let your kids run away! That’s crazy. I guess Daddy and I will be babysitting a lot, so you don’t lose your kids then.”

Making Merry

I had the chance to learn how to make my own wreath with my sister in law. I loved getting crafty with her that morning. We made really large wreaths with wire frames. I was able to use boughs that we had cut down from our frasier fir tree that our kids named Timber. My sister in law used spruce that park rangers provided.

Here were the beautiful end results:

The wreath I made had the burlap bow. It was too big to fit on our mantel, so I moved our outdoor wreath indoors.

Christmas Quotes

During breakfast, Big Sister moved our countdown to Christmas calendar, and started singing, “There are 12 days till Christmas, and I don’t have a true love.”

I replied, “Well, your family can be your true love.” Her answer, “Icky.”

I found some random handwritten notes from Little Brother in a box of scrap paper:

Notes: never eat a gingerbread ornament

For the record, both kids have taken a bite out of old gingerbread ornaments. I hope this note will serve as a reminder for them.

Another note said:

What is the saddest day for a child?

The day after Christmas.

The Spirit of Giving

This is the first year my kids had specific gift ideas for family members, so Daddy O. and I took separate shopping trips with each kid. I was so impressed with Little Brother as we bought gifts for a friend’s birthday, two kids in need from our schools, Daddy O. and Big Sister.

During our shopping, he said once, “Mom, this is on my Christmas list, ” but did not whine for it. He carefully helped me find gifts for each person on our list. We even took time to compare prices. He was so patient and well behaved. I was so proud!

After our trip, we rushed home and brought the gifts upstairs to wrap in his bedroom (just in case Daddy O. and Big Sister would be getting home before the gifts were wrapped).

Little Brother admitted, “I like wrapping gifts.”

Later Big Sister came home and had to sneak Little Brother’s gift upstairs for us to wrap.

“I can’t wait to see his face when he opens it,” she told me.

The spirit of giving was alive and well that day!

The next morning, Little Brother asked me if we could let Big Sister open her gift before Christmas. I told him that she can wait.

It’s so sweet to see these kids think of each other. They really love this time of year. Little Brother even wore this one morning for breakfast.

Why not wear a Santa hat to breakfast?

Wishing you all much merriment and cheer this time of year!

Fly on the Wall: Fireflies and Summer Rules

Posted on August 23, 2019 by Cathy O

Welcome to a Fly on the Wall group post. Today 5 bloggers are inviting you to catch a glimpse of what you’d see if you were a fly on the wall in our homes. Come on in and buzz around my house.

Buzz around, see what you think, then click on these links for a peek into some other homes:

Baking In A Tornado

Never Ever Give Up Hope

Menopausal Mother

Spatulas on Parade

Here’s who you’ll be hearing from in my house:

Me, Mama O.
Daddy O.
Big Sister, age 9
Little Brother, age 7

Since I have been writing these blog posts since 2014, I have my own Fly Post Page. Check it out if you want to hear more craziness from my house.

Summer Conversations

We were in a hotel room for a family gathering and settling in for the night.

Big Sister: Why are there bumps on the ceiling?

Little Brother: It’s a horrible paint job.

Actually it was just the ceiling’s drywall.

Later, as the kids are still not asleep, Little Brother says to me, “If I had a retainer, I’d want one with teeth. Your retainer makes your teeth look rotten.”

While driving in the car, Little Brother said, “When I grow up, I would want my house to have a yard that attracts wildlife.”

Me: What does that mean?

Little Brother: I wouldn’t cut the grass. Well, maybe not until it got really long.

I don’t know – maybe he wants a herd of goats to cut the grass for him. That might not be a bad idea.

No Such Thing as a BFF

I’ve organized several play dates over summer for my kids, and I’ve asked Little Brother if he wants to see his BFF. He always says, “I don’t have a BFF, just a BF. There really aren’t BFFs since you can’t be best friends with someone when you are a baby.”

Well, then!

A New Kind of Burp

Yes, our meal times and snacks are full of manners. Big Sister made a weird noise, and I told her, “Wow, that sounded like a bark burp.”

Apparently it was a sneeze and a burp that happened at the same time.

Watching Fireflies

When Big Sister was younger, she would tell fireflies to “light up your butts.”

That expression has stuck in our family. We were watching fireflies in our backyard from Little Brother’s bedroom window one night. Here’s how the conversation went:

Little Brother: I like watching fireflies from my room. It’s relaxing.

Me: Are the fireflies going away now? Maybe they’re running out of butt juice.

Little Brother: Butt juice is diarrhea.

And we both laugh!!

Daddy O.: You two and your potty humor!

Rules for Summer

Daddy O: There should be a limit on how many times a week you eat ice cream.

Really?! There were some evenings that I wanted to just eat ice cream for dinner!

Big Sister and Little Brother: We have a “one stuffed animal” per summer rule. You buy us one stuffed animal from the zoo.

I have to admit that I let this one happen. My kids are still little and love stuffed animals, so I bought little brother a Red Panda and Big Sister an otter. And then they had to draw a picture of red panda together. Little Brother made an animal research book about red panda too. Their stuffed animals became educational somehow!! Look at these cuties:

Later in summer, Little Brother saved up money to buy a harbor seal. He reads with that guy too.

Little Brother and another reading pal.

Summer Classics

It wouldn’t be summer without hearing these sayings EVERY DAY:

Little Brother: Mom, I’m bored.

Little Brother: There’s nothing to do.

Little Brother / Big Sister: Can I have technology time?

Me: Why don’t you do a chore?

Me: Stop fighting.

Me: Go to your room.

Me: No more screen time.

Me: Is it time for school to start yet?

And that’s a wrap on this Fly on the Wall blog post! Now shoo, and check out the other fun bloggers!

Road Trip to Madison with Kids

Posted on July 23, 2019 by Cathy O

Ah, Madison! When isn’t it a fun road trip to visit Madison with kids?!

Whenever I return to Madison, it feels a bit like coming home.

Daddy O. and I called Madison home because we both went to college at UW-Madison. We first met on campus and actually lived in apartment buildings next to one another. That’s the beginning of our love story in a nutshell.

Anyway, it is lovely to return to Madison as a couple and with our kids.

Most recently, we went as a family. I spent time with the kids at the Madison Children’s Museum. It’s definitely one of our all time favorite museums that we’ve been to countless times through the years.

Now that our kids are getting older, they tend to gravitate to different exhibits, but still enjoy checking it out (yay)!

A few pictures from our visit to the Madison Children’s Museum

We love the rooftop garden with views of the state capitol (see top left image for a picture of my kids on the play structure on the roof).

I love the art space, where kids can create from a variety of up cycled materials. They made a raft and a sling shot with popsicle sticks and LOTS of glue. At another station, daughter painted on the windows. There are so many cool things to check out in the art area and throughout the entire museum.

It was our first time discovering this giant fish and a pretend play lake area.

We also checked out the Urb Garden this time, located right off of the lowest level.

Every time we go there, my kids pose with the animals near the front door. This time they chose to hug and make a goofy face by the penguin.

Colorful penguin near the entrance of the Madison Children’s Museum

After playing and eating our packed lunch at the museum, we decided it was time for Babcock ice cream at Memorial Union.

We all picked a different flavor: chocolate, cookies and cream, chocolate peanut butter (my favorite), and mocha chocolate chip (pretty good).

And it wouldn’t be a visit to the terrace without a picture in the giant chair.

Big Sister and Little Brother – so hard to get a nice picture. Mama and Daddy O. at the Terrace.

As you can see, even at ages seven and nine, we don’t always manage to have both kids smiling at the same time.

Daddy O. and I are pros though, even making a W with our feet!

Madison is such a lovely city, and we sure had a great visit as a family. We may be grooming our kids to be future Badgers….just maybe.

#onWisconsin

#SilentSunday You Know It’s Summer When…

Image

Water bottles everywhere Go Mama O.

12 Days of Christmas – Sweet Memories

Posted on January 5, 2019 by Cathy O

We took down our Christmas tree today. I didn’t realize until today that it lasted all 12 days of Christmas.

Our real Fraser Fir was nick named Mr. FFR (fluffy, Fraser) by my kids, and yes, we name our trees. It’s a thing…maybe just our thing? Anyway, Mr. FFR really lasted a long time. Sure the needles were falling, but he really looked full and beautiful adorned with lights and ornaments until the very end.

Just look:

Our tree in 2018

Every Christmas Tree Tells a Story

I couldn’t help but feel a little sentimental taking down the tree with so many stories behind the decorations on our tree year after year. Our grandparents and parents gave us so many beautiful ornaments from little on, and some of them have become our daughter’s favorites. My dad handmade wooden sled ornaments years ago. My mom made both the angel that tops our tree and the tree skirt at the bottom.

Big Sumo Kitty loves sitting on the tree skirt my mom made.

Ornaments remind me of places we’ve lived or traveled – two more recent ones from the Grand Canyon and South Dakota.

There’s ornaments from Germany and Austria to remember my high school foreign exchange program and my semester abroad in Vienna. There’s a hang gliding Santa that my best friend gave me because I went paragliding in Switzerland.

One plastic orb holds freeze dried flowers from my wedding bouquet.

Another high heel ornament reminds me of our favorite girls’ nights with my sister, cousin and aunt.

Each one of us have ornaments from the year we were born – mine and Daddy O’s looking a little more well-loved than our kids’ numerous baby ornaments.

This tree is our life as a family. It’s adorned with a whole lot of love through many years.

And then there’s the ornaments and gifts that our kids have made. Each year more ornament crafts make their way from backpacks and onto our tree. Today, I have to confess, that some of the ones in bad shape (sticker, foam type) went in the garbage! Many, however, are part of our annual holiday decor.

Most recent craft – top left: hand print trees, reindeer painting (2018, Little Brother), reindeer flower pot (2017 Big Sister), hand print tree (Little Brother), ribbon tree (2017 Big Sister).

While most of these projects were made at school, I remember Big Sister making the reindeer flower pot craft in our basement inside of a patio furniture box that transformed into a “workshop / fort” for our her. She had glue, paint, pipe cleaners and the flower pots all assembled in her work station down there. In the end, she gave me, Daddy O. and her brother each a reindeer flower pot. They turned out adorable, and we were proud of her for putting so much effort into these gifts.

The hand prints are getting bigger through the years, and I can’t help but wonder when they’ll stop doing these hand print crafts. At seven and nine, my kiddos are growing up for sure, but still firmly believe in the magic of Christmas. Big Sister wrote a letter to Santa for our elf Fred to deliver to him. Elf on the Shelf proved to be an amazing way to motivate the kids to get out of bed in the month of December. It was really fun and very sweet.

Here was a new event that Big Sister created at grandma and grandpa’s house this year:

Big Sister’s first concert for family

What will next year hold for our family? How much longer will these sweet traditions last? I can’t predict for sure.

And while some traditions fade away (and I ~~may~~ will be a little sad), I hope we’ll find a way to make new family traditions. Until that day comes, I’m just going to soak up and savor all of the sweetness and joy that this parenting gig can hold.

This is what I found on the back of Little Brother’s hand print craft:

A sweet note just for me

go mama o

balancing kids, life and work on the go

Category Archives: Motherhood