Fly on the Wall: ___ There it is!

Posted on August 24, 2018 by Cathy O

Welcome to a Fly on the Wall group post. Today 6 bloggers are inviting you to catch a Fly on the Wall Post 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

Menopausal Mother

Never Ever Give Up Hope

Spatulas on Parade

My Brand of Crazy

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

Me, Mama O.
Daddy O.
Big Sister, age 8
Little Brother, age 6

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.

Happy Dad

Mama O. to Daddy O. on a Friday afternoon: Have you been drinking?

Daddy O.: No, why?

Mama O.: You just seem extra funny. I guess you’re happier on half days of work. (His company has summer hours, so he works 9 hour days and enjoys a half day most Fridays. It has been really nice – we’ve all been happier on Fridays!)

Our Kids

We had some extra quiet time around the house as our kids went with their grandparents for a mini-vacation this summer. During that time, Daddy O. remarked, “I guess we can’t get rid of all of our children” (referring to our fur baby, Sumo Kitty sat at the breakfast table with us).

Sumo Kitty – this is her typical annoyed expression

We were talking about face recognition capabilities. For my laptop, I explained that the camera scans for my face and then logs me in. Little Brother said, “Since Big Sister is a miniature version of Mom, I bet she could login to your computer.”

We tried it, and it didn’t work….yet.

Here is a picture of us together.

Mama O and Big Sister in the North Woods

Mama O. and her mini-me.

This summer we’ve been watching baking shows. Nailed It was definitely a favorite in our house. I think that’s why our kids are getting more adventurous. Case in point: Big Sister added bacon to her cereal. Who wouldn’t want bacon flavored Cheerios?

Anything is better with Bacon!

Historic Action Figures

Daddy O.: What are these?

Mama O.: They are Play Mobil figures my parents gave to the kids from their trip to Germany.

Playmobil figures from Germany. The writing in the book is in German, translates to Book of the Old Testament. The New Testament translated by Doctor Martin Luther.

Big Sister: My guy looks nothing like Martin Luther King Jr.

Mama O.: No, it’s Martin Luther, a famous German who translated the Bible from Latin (just keeping it high level).

Daddy O.: Who’s the other guy?

Mama O.: I think it’s Albrecht Duerer, a German painter.

Daddy O.: What?! I didn’t know they made historic, German action figures?

Mama O.: Pretty awesome, right?! LOL

My German major and one German Art of the Middle Ages class IS being put to good use.

Tip for the Outdoors

While camping and hiking, we remind kids of the saying for poison ivy, “Leaves of three, let it be.” The kid’s aunt chimed in, “Leaves of four, eat some more!”

Remembering Past Summers

Last summer we took an amazing family vacation to South Dakota. My scrapbooking hobby always runs behind, so I have been putting together some pages from last year. Since he saw some pictures from our trip, Little Brother asked me, “How long did we drive to South Dakota?”

I responded, “About 7 hours was the longest we were in the car.” And then he said, “That was painful.”

This is more of the summer grumpiness we experience with Little Brother every year. Last year, he said, “Adults almost always ruin my mood – especially you Mom.” I’m not going to lie, I can’t wait for back to school time!!

Lyrics from Another Time

Does anyone remember the song “Whoomp, there is is!”?

Our kids heard it and immediately thought that they were saying, “Poop, there it is!” Sigh…you have to love potty humor.

It’s no surprise that this is what Little Brother painted when we took some time to paint at our local pottery shop.

Poop Emoji bank (Little Brother), Pony (Big Sister), and Soap Dish (Mama O.)

Okay, that’s all for me and my crazy crew. Now be sure to check out those other fun Fly on the Wall blog posts!

Fly on the Wall: Smart Kids

Posted on February 16, 2018 by Cathy O

Welcome to a Fly on the Wall group post. Today 6 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.

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

Me, Mama O.
Daddy O.
Big Sister, age 8
Little Brother, age 6

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.

The first day back to school after the holidays and I ask the kids how their day was.

Big Sister: Good

Little Brother: Annoying!

I could tell Little Brother was grumpy and tired, so I said later, “Well, maybe you should go to bed early. Sometimes after a bad day, a good night’s rest will make you feel better.”

Little Brother replied, “I didn’t say I had a bad day. It was a miserable day.”

Okay then…

Just Between Siblings

I can’t remember the exact context, but I heard the kids talking:

Little Brother: Me thinking only of myself.

Big Sister: If you do that, then you can’t be a Jedi.

Daddy O. has them well-trained on Star Wars.

Two Cute One-liners from Smart Kids

Big Sister’s friend said, “Don’t yuck someone else’s yum.”

Little Brother declared (as he asked me to read him a story), “A story will make a good snuggle even better.”

Future Blogger?

Little Brother brought home some journal entries from his kindergarten class, and they really are great. It’s adorable to see what stands out in his mind and what he chooses to draw and share. I think he could be a future blogger.

I played with my little blue thing a ma bob this morning.

I accidentally kicked my heel yesterday.

Riveting, right?!

I went to the beer gardens.

YES, this is true. We DID take the kids to a beer garden in town. There IS a playground and slide there, so it IS family-friendly. No, this isn’t a weekly thing. Of course, he writes about this in kindergarten!!

Grandma’s Got a New Job

My mom recently retired, and her schedule has been quite full. I was telling Daddy O., “Grandma is working the polls.”

And then I realized that it could be interpreted as “poles.” We just cracked up.

Grandma will be working as part of the primary election staff just doesn’t have the same ring to it.

The BEST for Last!

Big Sister: Mom is smart. She is raising two kids.

Amen, sister!

Now go read those other fantastic blogs for a peek into some other homes:

Baking In A Tornado http://www.BakingInATornado.com

Menopausal Mother http://www.menopausalmom.com/

Never Ever Give Up Hope https://batteredhope.blogspot.com

Bookworm in the Kitchen http://www.bookwormkitchen.com/

Spatulas on Parade https://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com

Mini Fly on the Wall

Posted on September 23, 2017 by Cathy O

Hey there! My Fly on the Wall friends just posted yesterday, but I wasn’t organized to sign-up in advance to participate. After reading the group’s posts, I thought I would join in with my own post. Better late than never, right?

For more Fly on the Wall, hop on over to this writing challenge founder’s blog: Baking in a Tornado.

South Dakota Vacation

We ventured to South Dakota during summer, and had an awesome time! It was a great family destination for our 5 and 7 year old kids. Before we went, my 5 year old son asked, “Do they speak English in South Dakota?”

On our drive from Sioux Falls to Desmet, our kids decided to make a honking sound whenever they saw an animal. This continued throughout the entire week. Sigh. Fortunately, there are open fields for long stretches where you don’t see much at all, like this:

View of the prairie from the Ingalls Homestead in Desmet, SD.

The drive up to Desmet from Sioux Falls though beautiful, went through a quite rural part of the state. The population density is quite low in much of South Dakota, so I told Daddy O., “If we ever want to live off the grid, we can move out here!”

When driving past the many farms and lush green fields, my son observed, “I bet that farmer has 5 green thumbs.”

We could almost picture what it must have been like for the first settlers in the 1800’s who arrived here. The Ingalls Visitor Center consists of the Ingalls homestead, a sod house, shanty, church, barn and one-room classroom. We even rode on a covered wagon and learned about what life was like for the Ingalls family. We were struck by the extreme quiet of the land: no sounds of planes or cars zooming by on nearby roads, simply the sounds of the wind rushing through the prairie grasses. Beautiful.

Wildlife Watching

We were excited to see bison, but just saw a lot of cattle, especially on the eastern part of the state. My daughter explained, “The cows are all black, and the bison are chocolate colored.” Can you tell we like desserts?

See, they are chocolate colored! Bison at Custer State Park

We drove the wildlife loop road at Custer State Park, and having been in the car for at least an hour, our kids asked, “Can we watch a show (on our portable DVD player)?”

“No!” I said, “Nature is your show. Look out your window!” So many amazing views:

Top left: a baby burro paid us a visit on the Wildlife Loop, top right: view of the Cathedral Spires, Bottom left: Stockade Lake, bottom right: bison along the road out of Custer State Park

The Black Hills

When we arrived in Rapid City, I said, “Look, kids, the Black Hills. Aren’t they pretty?”

My son’s response, “They look gray.”

View of the Black (gray) Hills from Mt. Rushmore

In Rapid City, we enjoyed an awesome meal and beverages at Firehouse Brewery. We sat in a covered outdoor area (fortunately) and watched a major rain and hail storm come down. The food and beer were delicious – a welcome change from the fast food we had on the trip out to Rapid City. The company was nice too with everyone getting along, and I remarked to Daddy O., “This feels like a date night, except we have our kids along.” He replied, “It’s like our marriage is one long date-night.” Awh….

Hitting the Road

I have memories of my own family vacations as a kid, and we would wake up EARLY, maybe around 5am to get a jump on a day of long driving. I have not been able to replicate this timing for my family much to my dismay.

One morning after sleeping in, my daughter said, “Waking up early for me was unsuccessful.”

This happened on most days, and I just had to go with it. Oh well…

Best for Last

I was talking about the errands I ran during the week, talking about the things I picked up at a grocery store in a quick stop.

My son chimed in and said, “Wow, Mom, you work hard.”

“Yes, dear, why yes I do! Thank you!” He got a big hug for saying that!

Hope you all are hearing sweet things like that in your home too!

Have a great day all! Thanks for stopping by.

Now check out more Fly on the Wall posts, starting with Baking in a Tornado.

Fly on the Wall – Holiday Sentiments

Posted on December 23, 2016 by Cathy O

Welcome to a Fly on the Wall group post. Today 9 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.

I love this challenge so much that I even have my own page for it on my blog HERE.

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

Baking In A Tornado http://www.bakinginatornado.com/

Menopausal Mother http://www.menopausalmom.com/

Spatulas on Parade http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com/

Searching for Sanity http://singlemumplusone.blogspot.com

Never Ever Give Up Hope http://batteredhope.blogspot.com

Dinosaur Superhero Mommy http://dinoheromommy.com/

Southern Belle Charm http://www.southernbellecharm.com

A Little Piece of Peace http://little-piece-of-peace.blogspot.com

Thanksgiving Leftovers

My 5 and 7 year old kids had some silly thoughts on what to be thankful for on Thanksgiving. Here’s what they shared as we were driving to Grandma and Grandpa’s house:

Big sister: I’m thankful I’m not an ant, so I won’t get squished.

Little brother: I’m thankful I’m not a tree, then I won’t get cut down. (He was thinking of the evergreen trees that we cut down for our Christmas tree)

Little Brother: I’m thankful that God made candy.

Many of Little Brother’s religious ed classmates also were thankful for candy, though some did say things like, “family, friends, our house.”

Decorating our Home

Little brother: Do you know that this stocking is a sock for a giant?

The kids went crazy decorating the tree. They wanted to put ornaments on so quickly. I just listened as I was nearby:

Big sister: Let’s put the cross next to the angel.

Little brother: Yeah, it’s like God is watching over us.

It was too sweet! I guess he is learning something from church / religious ed besides being thankful for God making candy.

A New Rule

It was a frightfully frigid day with a high of five degrees, so I felt motivated (finally) to make something. We had shredded zucchini in the freezer, so I made zucchini bread. When it came time to eat it, I helped myself to the crust and an inside piece. Little Brother said, “No fair! You got two pieces.” I replied, “Yes, the baker gets two!”

Our Affordable Art Gallery

We have been coloring and painting (as usual), and I wanted to finally clean up our creations. Little Brother and I decided to hang up some of our favorites in an “art gallery” in our home. We have two display areas. Here they are:

I overheard Little Brother talking to Daddy O. about the gallery, and he said, “Yeah, I think we should charge 299 for some pictures.” Then he paused, “or maybe 199.” I am not sure if he meant $299 and $199 or $2.99 and $1.99. Either way, some of his priceless works are saved in a storage bin under his bed.

Santa, You are the Best

FINALLY after five and seven years, respectively, the kids are okay with visiting Santa this year. Here they were with him earlier this month:

Little brother and Big sister hanging with Santa

Big sister has been consistent in asking Santa and writing about what she wants: “I want a puppy that eats its own poop.”

Santa’s response, “We’ll try.”

Bless your heart Santa! This ACTUALLY is a real toy. See Target, FurReal Friends Pax, My Poopin’ Pup. The food that you can feed it is actually then pooped out, and I believe you then feed the same pellets to the dog. Sigh.

She has been so consistent in asking for this toy, writing a letter to Santa over the weekend and asking for the same thing. I told her today that I emailed her letter to Santa, since it wouldn’t reach the North Pole in time via the postal service.

Santa’s response was cute –

“I see you’d like a special friend for Christmas. Now one thing about a puppy, real, or even pretend, is that flying in my sleigh can be a bit scary for them….. Now you know I will try my best for you, but I will have to check with your family if that’s ok. Will you check too? “

Santa, you are the best!!

I hope Santa is good to you and yours this holiday too! Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

Fly on the Wall – Getting Older!

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Cathy O

Welcome to a Fly on the Wall group post. Today 10 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 the links at the end of this post for a peek into some other homes.

As I re-read my quotes for this month’s Fly Post, I see a similar theme of everyone getting older, and not just my kids, me too! My 6 year old thinks I will age very quickly…read on for the gory details of what I have been hearing lately.

Observations of my 6 year old

So we have this sign hanging up in our kitchen:

Big sister (looking at the sign): Did you know it doesn’t have a period. And it would go on and on.

Me: So you’d read it really fast like that?

Big sister: yeah.

Me: Should it have a period or exclamation point?

Big sister: a period.

Me: You are too funny! You’ve really learned a lot in kindergarten. You’ve had some great teachers!

On Growing Up

On Little Brother’s last day of daycare, the owner said, “I knew this day would come.” It also coincided with Big Sister’s last day of Kindergarten. There were tears for my four and six year old “babies” who are not really babies anymore! You can read more about my thoughts on that here.

Another sign of Little Brother growing up is that I don’t always get my daily snuggles at breakfast. Big sister commented one morning: Morning snuggle is fading.

Sigh…so it is! But I’ll gladly take it when I can get it.

Making Envelopes?

Both kids: Watch me make an envelope
Me: Licking paper does not make an envelope. (Oh well, it kept them busy…and I guess there are worse things that they could be licking besides paper.)

Licking paper

Showing off his envelope

Aging Quickly

Me to Big sister: We are similar. We have similar personalities. We look alike.
Big sister: but my hair is longer.
Me: And I will always look older.
Big sister: Maybe When I’m 7, you’ll probably have white hair! (She turns 7 this November! Fortunately I don’t have gray hairs yet!)

The Summer Struggle is Real

Me to kids: Don’t let mom’s car be a garbage dump!

I wrote “You Might be Home with your Kids for Summer If…” with the garbage dump as one of the main signs.

Randomness

I made a great overnight crockpot breakfast casserole recently, and it received mixed reviews.

Little Brother on my egg casserole: I don’t want any yuck-a-role / gross-a-role
Big sister: No, it’s yum-a-role!

Little Brother: It’s not sea weed, it’s lake weed! (on swimming and catching a lot of sea weed while camping).

Here they are before fishing (so excited!).