Meet Grace!

Camping At The Beach

Assateague is so beautiful!

 

After a red wine sunset and a night cap of crab hunting (see the videos below), we settled in for smores and a bit of music.

 

As soon as the boys were settled in, we remained in our seats by the fire to get some quiet time alone. But as soon as we started getting comfortable we were interrupted by two small horses that rummaged through our marshmallows that we inadvertently left on the table.  They quickly knew they were being bad and we moved everything edible back to the van.

 

And then, "Mom, we have to pee!"

 

So Brian took the boys to the bath house and I am left here in the dark to listen to the waves crashing and the pitter patter of hoofs and faint whinnying.

 

I don't know if I can describe the feeling of the dark sky and the sand that I am digging my feet into: cool and breezy, eerie and calm; like when you are beginning to dream and can't quite close your eyes and so you begin to dream with your eyes open taking in the darkness as images start to emerge from the shadows, yet you are unafraid.

 

In the distance I hear a horse puff air through his nostrils and then release like a balloon.  The boys have finally giggled themselves to sleep.  Brian and I stare up at the endless night sky.  First one wish and then another as the stars streak across the black moonless sky.  The Milky Way stretches across directly above us.  Looking like a stream of hazy clouds that never disperse.  It creates a rainbow of starlight that consumes your thoughts as you suddenly feel weightless on the verge of walking straight out into space.  If you fully let go you can almost feel yourself floating through the sky as you loose your vertical axis to the earth.

 

Alas I am fading into the darkness and urge Brian to follow me to our tent. I should pause here to say that this tent is a monster.  Bigger than an average garage, and the wind is relentlessly trying to pick us up and take us to Oz.  All night long I toss and turn.  I am too light of a sleeper to get any rest in a tent especially one that sounds like it is going to take off any moment.

 

In between dreams and reality I dose in and out every once in a while I hear hoofs that seem too close. Although I know the horses are harmless I cant help but imagine one of them sniffing our tent by my head, or the kids that are a zillion miles away on the other side of the tent.  My restlessness is compounded by the fact that my arm keeps going numb and I am awaken by this feeling that I have lost my arm in some horrible farm accident.

 

The night has ended and dawn has arrived in all of its glory.  Seaguls greet us and the morning sun starts to peak above the horizon.  It's 6am...I've only slept 5 hours if you can count that as sleep.  Xavier is in his morning cheerful mood and I hear Cedrick tell him to stop doing whatever annoying behavior he has already started at this early hour.  Then I hear Ced chime in with his favorite funny word "poop".

 

I don't want to seem like I am picking on Xavier but his new medication turns him into the boy who never stops talking.  Although mostly his intentions are harmless it does not decrease the irritation that he can create.  Brian and I are very patient with him.  And most of the time his behavior is good with just a few hic-ups, but this new medication makes him relentless.  I mean that it makes this normally bright and inquisitive child simply nuts- or rather it makes us exhausted to have even a simple conversation with him.  So today, we have decided that he does not need the medication, that is unless he has melt-down after melt-down. 

 

This morning, however, he seems "better".  Not in the least upset, or talkative, but he is awake.  Brian makes our breakfast of cream of wheat and we all share the one wooden spoon that we brought, and then pack up our chairs to greet the ocean this morning. 

 

My feet in the cold sand, and Brian's feet towards mine, I am trying to get comfortable.  My back is sore, and my one and only sweatshirt is covered with chocolate and marshmallows.   While the boys dig in the sand and move towards getting into the water (which is inevitable)....Brian and I decide that we both need a few more winks before starting the day.  Brian curls his legs under his sweatshirt, and pulls his hoodie up and tries to forget how cold he is, closes his eyes and dozes into a peaceful sleep......while I try to keep my teeth from chattering, and get comfortable enough in a fold-up chair to sleep....

 

I blink as the sun rises higher in the sky and I hear Cedrick say that the water is refreshing.  I look to my right and see a few other people laying in the sand, some are doing YOGA.  I think to myself that would be a great idea if I weren't so damn tired to begin with.  Finally I break the sand keeping my feet warm and get up to take my morning stroll on the beach.  I am greeted by two horses, probably husband and wife.  They are standing still trying to warm themselves in the sun that is starting to warm the earth slowly. 

 

I could have reached out and touched them, although that is forbidden on the island.  Horses are unpredictable, and as beautiful as they are standing inches from me, I do not want to chance being bitten by these horses.   I take a few pictures, and mozie back towards our campsite.  We return to a tent that has finally bit the dust (literally).  We pack, and get ourselves ready for a day at the beach.

 

As the tide recedes and the sand begins to grow towards the water, Cedrick and I get brave enough to take the plunge into the 65degree water.  Cold but refreshing.  Cedrick's teeth are chattering as he holds onto me with claw like daggers.  Finally after a few waves we ride gently back to the shore, where Brian is holding his man-hood against the freezing cold splashing waves.  Xavier decides greet me in the waves, and he bobs up and down while constantly spitting out salt water that is beyond his threshold of "dealing" with it.  After a few larger than anticipated waves, he coughs and returns to shore.  I stay just long enough to feel a crab on my toe, and then gather the wits to find my way back to our umbrella.

 

I take a quick shower, and then we are headed home.  It has been a delightful two days with just the four of us, as a family. 

 

 

 

 

Jennifer's Birthday Present (NYC-Griswald style)

Here are the pictures from our weekend journey to NYC. We did almost all of this in under 24 hours. Being that it is only about 3 hours from home, we will have to do this again! Only next time, we are taking the train...and next time we are going to wear something that's a bit fancier to fit in....and next time I want to go to China Town.

His Name Is Roger!

This morning Cedeick decided that it was a good idea to help Daddy cook breakfast. First he made orange rolls (the best cinnamon roll on the planet) and then they moved on to the eggs. Chef Cedrick was moving along helping Chef Daddy when like always he moved on to the next step a bit too early.

 "Daddy, I want to cook my own egg. I want to crack it. I'm going to pick this one....his name is Roger. I'm going to cook Roger!  Because he will be delicious!"

 "OK you cook Roger.....but wait.....oh you already did. OK just don't crack anymore."

"Mommy, Roger is cooking...see?"

I just laughed and said.....as long as you feel comfortable naming your food and then eating it, that's fine with me.

Bon apetit!

while riding the bus

I will write more about this later, but for now........I will never take the bus from Baltimore to New York City ever again!!!!!!!!!

I was in charge of my life five minutes ago

About a year ago I was sitting in my pj's thinking that I was in heaven. I had just returned from the adventure of my life, quit my day job, and was feeling pretty full of myself. Little did I know that I was entering another form if stress that I had been relatively removed from for about three years.......motherhood.

Now I'm not saying that while working a full time job I was not a mother, but I was not up e all the time and I certainly wasn't with the kids all day long. So the point is that it has been a year now, and although I had full intentions of being a millionaire by now, I was really not prepared for the job I had bestowed upon myself. Now, instead of just one job where I sat on my ass all day long and pushed a big plastic mouse around for 8 hours, I am tackling four jobs, and really only getting paid for two.....and I so making barely enough to keep gas in my shuttle bus.

 Am I complaining? Sounds like it, doesn't it? I guess you coulday that I am re-evaluating the situation. Truth is that I really hate working. I don't like getting up in the morning. I don't like having a boss. I don't like having to rush all over the city dropping off kids, driving "sitting" in traffic, and than sit still for 8 hours and then come home to do laundry, dishes, homework, and whatever other exraciricular activity the kids are involved in that day. So, why do I bitch? It's because I just feel like I am so much less organized than ever before because i have to deal with children all day long and solve the most bizarre problems.

For instance..... Today my day started very much like the day before. I am woken up several times in the morning to make sure that Brian gets to work on time, and then that we remembered to take the trash out because I hear the trash trucks. Next Cedrick comes in to snuggle and command me to feed him breakfast, and then Xavier comes in to talk way louder than is necessary and inform me that it is time to get up and he wants to watch tv downstairs. I take a really fast shower so that there is not enough time for either child to severely burn down the house or break anything- I hope.

Then I remember that I am watching my friends newborn for a few hours.....this will be very interesting. Everything goes rather well until I have baby in arms and both boys are (you won't believe this) fighting over who is supposed to be dusting and who is going to vacuum the living room. As with all situations Xavier has to talk louder and louder and Cedrick just gives him a knuckle sandwhich and bursts into tears. I have decided that there is no job inthe world that could ever compare to the HR nightmares you may encounter while managing a two boys ages 6&8. Like I said, nothing compares, and while I pride myself in the fact that I try really hard not to go overboard in reacting to this chaos, sometimes I just honestly do not know where to start. So in a quick knee-jerk reaction, I swiftly kicked Xavier in the butt because my hands were full and he was so loud that the baby was starting to cry, and I was not really trying to hit him hard, but then again, I wasn't trying to be gentle.  Dare I say that I was really not gentle.....in fact, my foot was sort of stinging, and Xavier was in tears.,,,,shit...I just finally crossed that line.....

"I'm sorry buddy, I didn't mean to kick you that hard....can you please let your brother finish dusting?"

"No...that wasn't a good enough sorry....and that really hurt!  Say your sorry for real!"

Um....are you kidding me....I know that it hurt but what the hell?  Am I really suppose to apologize in such a way that makes it seem like I am some evil parent that regularly beats the hell out of their kids?  Apparently so....

"I'm really sorry, sweetie....I really didn't mean to hurt you."

"Now, you sound like the kids at school, say you'll never do it again!!!!!!! SAY IT!!!!"

Ok, now I am about 2 seconds away from beating the shit out of him for real....are you kidding me?

He stares at me, and he is sooo mad that his face is crunched up and his eyes are glaring at me....I am actually quite surprised at the intense emotion he is displaying......

"Xavier, I am sorry.....I am really sorry, but I don't know why you think I can never spank you again!  I am your mother and I hold every right to spank you for acting like that!"

" But, you didn't spank me...you kicked me, and that's mean!" 

(Meanwhile Cedrick is humming sweetly and dusting and spraying away. Wiping off the tables and skipping around the room....and the baby is struggling to keep his bottle in his mouth because the poor woman holding him is having a very loud and extremely strange conversation with a very loud 8 year old boy!)

"OKAY!  I WILL NEVER KICK YOU IN THE BUTT AGAIN!  Now, can you please stop wiping this table, and move over to the entertainment center?"

Honestly, all I wanted was a little help around the house.....why does everything have to be so damn complicated?  It just does.  Because everything in my life while dealing with children, sisters, husbands, other children, play dates, church functions, baseball games, checkbook, groceries, decorating, cleaning, and brushing teeth has to be so utterly, unbelievably, inconceivably complicated!!!!!!!!!!