Puss In Boots Birthday Party

Oh M Ba Gee Gee! Izzy went to the most rocking birthdy party this past weekend.

I seriously didn't want to leave.

We got the most adorable movie ticketesque invitation to a party at Edwards Theater and Izzy was super excited.

Of course I missed the RSVP date and had to make a semifrantic phone call, begging for them to take pity on us.

Which they graciously did.

When we arrived it took about two seconds for me to realize this wasn't the normal cake-and-ice-cream type of party.

This was a party. A party. A PARTY!

There was a greeting table with a hat, cape and mask for each child. Plus an envelope filled with tokens for each kid to use at the arcade.

And an official Edwards employee was walking around taking concession orders. Anything they wanted. Including lunch in addition to the usual movie goodies.

And then they got a tour of the behind the scenes goings on of the theater. They got to see the entire second floor where they store the film and other stuff the public doesn't get to see.

And all of this even before the movie started. The private viewing of Puss in Boot in 3D. What a fun idea.

When I came to pick her up, I had to ride the elevator up and the setup there was awesomesauce.

There was a three foot cake of Puss in Boots that I would have bet was a statue. It was that real and well done.

As we thanked our host, she handed Isabelle a box with a custom key chain with her name on it. Inside was a huge assortment of pencils, tattoos, stickers and other knickknacks.

Can I get a party like this for my next birthday?

Puhhhleeeeeeaase??!!?!?

Jealous Much?

It's Izzzzzzyyyyy time.

How any of you missed the stories of this precocious little girl? I have one for you.

I was standing at Izzy's school when Izzy's friend's Dad approached me and said, "I have to tell you what McKinley said this morning."

Immediately my heart sunk. I have been here before peeps. I have been here before.

He said as he was trying to get them out the door, he handed McKinley her boots that are identical to a pair that Isabelle owns and loves to wear. McKinley got a worried look on her sweet face and said, "Ummm I guess I can wear those today."

He replied, "Can't you wear those everyday?"

"Well Izzy said we can only wear them together sometimes because it makes us look like twins and if we do it too often people will start to be jealous."

My mouth dropped open. Good thing he was laughing.

I swear I don't know where she gets this stuff.

The only other thing I was thinking but couldn't bring myself to say was I am sure. 100% sure.

Beyond 100% sure.

That it NEVER occurred to Izzy to limit how often she wears the boots. If I know that little girl than I know that thought never crossed her mind.

That's not how she rolls.

She rolls out in pink boots everyday.

Go Back in time and tell yourself Happy Halloween from us

I know Halloween was like four days ago. But bear with me. I do things late peeps. That's how I roll.

Does it seem to anyone else that kids these days wear their Halloween costumes like 15 times before the big day? I can't even keep up with it. So I gave up.

We pretty much wore whatever was most closely at hand. We seriously left our accessories all over town. And switched costumes frequently with the interchangeable "dress up" clothes.

Thank goodness for little girls.

One of the highlights of our year was Boo at the Zoo. I helped organize a booth for the Montessori school, so the whole family headed down with me one night. And I only got one picture. Sad day in the Burke house. Cambri and Mia aren't even featured. But it gets so crazy down there, you can't even move. I hate that feeling.

And I got to enjoy the annual Leaf parade at Izzy's school. How often do I get to watch  my baby walk around with a paper pate in front of her face? Not very often because Chuck doesn't even let us buy paper and glass doesn't have the same effect.

Isn't she cute? Hair messy? Or course.

But still cute. 

And since I seem to being recapping the month without really intending to, I better go all the way back. Two of my nieces and one of my nephews had a birthday in October. We made cards to mail to Denver because we didn't get to see Braxton. I think that's only the second birthday we have ever missed and it was so sad. 



But Jade and Mia's birthdays followed shortly. And I didn't get one photo of the wonderful party. But it was super fun. And I made the invitation.

Overall, a fun time in the Burke house. Fun times. 

Bad Month

If I have any readers left, then I need to apologize! I had a bad month!

Not only because I am a bad mom or had a horrible blogging month.

I had a bad month. Period.

Chase's 14-year-old cousin lost his battle with lymphoma. Watching two parents bury their baby changes you in a way that you will never recover from. The injustice of a fallen world is enough to take your breath away. It was a heart wrenching experience for us and we weren't burying our oldest child.

Luckily our children were well behaved on the way down to Salt Lake City. Yeah Cambri watched a movie through the sleeve of her coat. But she did it quietly. You can do anything in our house if you do it quietly.

The funeral on the other hand was another story. Here is a small selection of the hundred of photos Izzy took on my phone while she waited with Grandma and Cambri out in the hall.

Izzy was the good one. It was Cambri who had to go because she was insistent on running up and down our row, screaming "I win, I lose. I win, I lose." She means "I win, you lose" but her understanding of correctly used pronouns escapes her limited knowledge of the English language at this point.

Izzy eventually had to join her because her distraught crying was distracting other people who were grieving. I love the empathy that my five-year-old has. It's a quality I hope she never loses.

Austin was a sweet soul who will be missed. Will you pray for his family? They are starting a very difficult "new chapter" and they need all the help they can get.



Bad Moms Unite

Hi! My name is Katie and I'm a mom.

Not always a good one. Sometimes I have off moments.

Off days.

And yes, off months.

This has been one of those months.

So I guess you could say that I'm a bad mom.

When people set off to have kids, very few, if any, say, "Wow, I really want to be a bad mom. I hope my kids fall apart in my care and hate me for the rest of my life."

I know I didn't. But I'm feeling pretty bad right now.

On Monday, Cambri poured rubbing alcohol directly into her eyes. They swelled shut and the screaming ensued.

I kept my cool. Everytime she opened her eyes between screams, I literally unleashed a glass full of water onto her eyes (as well as hair, face and clothes etc. etc.)

And then I called poison control and they reassured me that my child wouldn't face a lifetime of blindness because her mother's careless mistake of leaving an upopened bottle on the counter of the bathroom.

But I had to put her in the shower for 15 mintues and keep a cool washcloth on her eyes for an hour.

Restraining a two year old for an HOUR is a difficult task. But I managed.

But her eyes were a puffy red for the next two days.

The very next day, Izzy drug Cam Cam across the carpet and rug burned her stomach and both elbows. It's kind of healed in this picture. It wasn't pretty. 



Seriously, my poor baby loos beat up. Luckily the black eye she got in the shower a couple of weeks back had healed before any of this.

But here, my friends, is the worst of the worse. The cream of the crop.

At the end of this horrific week, Cam Cam wrapped the blind cord around her neck and jumped. It wasn't pretty.

As you can see. 

I'm suprised that my kids still love.

We Love SSIISSSIIIEEESSS

Wow that picture is crappy. But the moment was so sweet, I had to share!

On with the story :)

Sisters are so much fun. I love it! But I'm not going to lie, it can be a ton of work.

Especially when you feel like no one is listening and you are constantly wondering if you are here only for your own entertainment.

Because it doesn't matter what you say, these little girls seem to do what they want.

So tonight, I kinda had it when I put the girls to bed and they actually started fighting over who got to pray first.

This isn't a proud moment but I just got up and walked out. I scrapped the whole idea. 

A few minutes later when I walked by, I heard Izzy praying with Cambri. And I was so touched that I feel a little guilty about giving up so easily.

Izzy had taken my spot and was walking through it with Cambri repeating after her.

Until I heard, "God, Mommy is mean. Can you work on that?" And all I heard from Cam is "Mommy mean. Work."

SSSIIIIGGGGHHH

But honestly peeps, I need moments like this. I need to "see" God working on this planet.

Because I never know when the moment is going to hit.

When I'm going to flashback to the hospital room where I last spoke to my mom while she was conscious.

The scared look she had on her face because the stroke had ruined her ability to understand what was going on around her.

And that look is the last memory I have of my mom alive.

When it's going to hit me that my youngest daughter will have no memories of my mother and the ones that Izzy has have already started to fade.

When I realize that I'm going to live the majority of my life without her.

So you see peeps, it's really the small things that keep me going. These things give me hope to a greater place.



SPAN Idaho (with love)

Did you know that you can make a difference in someone's life? You can save the one. Literally. It's the little things peeps.

Sometimes it feels hard but with a little compassion, we can change an outcome. When Paula and I heard that Idaho's Suicide Pervention Action Network was having an awareness walk, we thought it would a great opportunity to pass the message on to our kids. That you can be a vital component in giving someone hope.

And it really was. Except for the loud people participating.

Oh wait, that was our kids. 

As you can tell, my photo documenation of the event is lacking. I could have tried harder.

But I can say that I honestly felt a lot of hope as we walked around Community Part. A lot of people, along with city council members and, most importantly, people who have been directly affected by suicide showed up. People that honestly wanted to "save the one."

At the end of the walk, survivors lit a candle for their lost ones. The ones that can no longer be saved but are in a better place.

So let's challege each other peeps. What can we do to inspire hope today?

Epileptic Defect Dolphin Thrashes Around

Oh M Ba Gee Gee. I had good intentions.

And of course, that is never a good way to start a story. You, my astute reader, surely picked up on that.

I planned a really fun night for me and the girls. A mommy-daughter date of sorts. Dinner and a movie.

The whole thing started out rocky because Izzy bailed on me to go hang out with her cousin. I adjusted and rescheduled. I'm flexible like that.

So the next day, we got up and went to lunch. When that portion of our day ended with Cambri eating popcorn off the floor, I should have gone home.

The girls did not even attempt to be good during lunch. There was fighting, crawling under and OVER the table, demanding spoons when forks had already been provided and just behaving poorly in general. And yet, I thought that it would be a good idea to continue on with the planned activities.

Hello, Katie, have you met your children or do you need to be checked into BHC ASAP?

Onward with the story.

We arrived at the movie after making a quick pit stop at the store. I told the girls to keep the treats on the DL because bringing in your own stuff is sort of frowned on. I may have glossed over that it is really is a socially acceptable form of shoplifting.

But Izzy caught on and asked me with her big blue eyes, "If it's against the rules Mommy, then why are we doing it?"

Schooled by a five year old.

So we left the goodies in the car. Except for the diet coke. I mean, I'm only human and I'm addicted.

After purchasing our tickets and escorting the newly potty trained two year old to the restroom, we went to the try to find seats.

But only after Izzy stops the floor sweeper and told him that we snuck in.

You see, it was rather early in the day and the lady who sold us tickets also ripped them off as no one was at the door. And this was unacceptable to the child who gets a big thrill out of handing the tickets to the usher.

So of course, this employee gives me the stare down. And I tried to laugh it off, but it came across as very awkward. Naturally.

But we worked through that and went to sit down. At the very top of the theater. Which wasn't bad in the beginning but by the FOURTH bathroom trip, I was over it.

As we were waiting for the movie to start, I pulled out my beverage. And this started the frantic screaming of how I was breaking the rules. And trust me when I say, the theater was packed and everyone turned around to try and catch a glimpse of the freak show.

I was already exasperated and the movie hadn't even begun. I should have left right then.

But I didn't.

The thing about Cam Cam at the movies is she is very hit or miss. We have been to several movies this summer and I would say 60% of the time, she was ok. I mean most of these movies were part of the kid series at the cheap theater.

And when your kid wanders down to the front and tries to touch the screen, you don't feel so bad when the rest of the audience only paid $.50 to be there.

Like I said, Ok most of the time.

This was NOT one of those times. Like the title depicts, if I had not seen the trailers, I would assume that this movie was about a rabid animal that was taking over the world one awkward looking child at a time based on how much of it I saw.

Potty break after potty break. Mind you, no activity happened during any of these trips. Just Cambri wanting to run around like a demon baby.

So finally I tell her no more. She could pee her pants for all I cared.

And then Izzy had to go. And for the FIRST time in her entire life, she needed me to go with her. Even though we were in the theater directly across from the bathrooms.

I don't know what was more distracting as we walked out this time. Cambri stopping at some random dude's seat to share his popcorn or Izzy's extremely bright light shoes going off at every step.

We finally get back to our seats. And I start to smell something.

Cambri pooped her pants.

I am not even joking.

I grabbed her and ran to the bathroom. As we walk in the door, I am stripping off her pants and I just threw the underwear away.

And it took every ounce of positive energy I had not to drop Cambri right in after it.

She seriously thought this whole thing was hysterical.

We get into a stall and I assess the damage. I'm going to need paper towels and lots of them. Oh, but Edwards in their bout to save the environment one crappy paper towel at a time, only has hand dryers.

So I attempt to take toilet paper and clean the mess up. It wasn't working, I needed water.

It was ooohhhh so tempting to just scoop up some toilet water but of course I couldn't do that. Even to my demon baby.

But the more she moved, the bigger the mess was. So I grabbed the smelly baby, flipped her over so her stinky butt was like 6 inches away from my face and headed to the sink.

Cambri was laughing so hard at this point, hanging upside down, that she couldn't even breathe.

Oh M Ba Gee Gee. I was beside myself at this point.

But when I got done, I was calmed. Until I got back in the theater, I found Izzy running up and down the stairs calling out for me. Her Twinkle Toe Skechers are enough to send an epileptic directly into seizure mode after one step. And she was literally moving up and down, lighting up the entire place.

If you are even a recreational reader of this blog, you know that Izzy doesn't need me vey often. Or at all. EVER.

I gave up. I sat down and almost started crying.

But life goes on. Even in this crazy house.

In fact, right now, I am sitting here on the couch, eating a cupcake, laughing my booty off at the season premiere of Kendra. Her neighbors covered her house in foreclosure notices. So funny!

I'm barely even remembering my tragic movie experience.

For now.



Kindeygarten Up Close & Personal

The above picture was Izzy last year on her first day of preschool.

This picture is her on her fist day of kindergarten.

These pictures are a reflection of why I'm freaking out. My baby doesn't need me anymore. Well she needs me to provide electrcity and the internet but other than that...

I was so proud when I dropped her off because she was so excited and vibrant. I knew that even though it would be a 7 hour school day, she would excel. As I watched her walk around and greet her classmates, I was very proud. She displayed no fear, trepidation or any other fancy word you want me to spit out at you.

I want to be like that. So that means I have something to learn from her. Which I think is a good feeling for any parent. When you realize a life that you have molded has the ability to teach you something.

Her baby sister does need her still. She sat outside for about an hour waiting for Izzy to "mere."

A.k.a. Baby talk for come here.

Cambri also started dance class on Izzy's first day of school. This experience was something I wasn't used to.

She cried the ENTIRE time.

I watched her through a two way mirror and it was an incredibly painful experience. I wanted to go in and scoop her up but refrained because I want her to realize it would be ok.

But I did text Chasey my excitement that someone still needed me. I mean I am human.

And Cambri cried for me! Yay!

But she's is still going back next week.

Guess Who's Growin' Up?

My little baby turned two and all of a sudden, she is big and her own little person. She can even use the potty! Diapers are over for me! This is the bestest thing ever.

And this little grown up wanted her ears pierced.

So we headed to Claire's. And I gave her ample warning that this was gonna hurt. Her big sister even tried to talk her out of it.

But she was determined. She kept trying to shove earrings in her lobes in an attempt to perform an at-home-with-no-proper-sterilization procedure.

But she got over it very quickly. And now she walks around showing everyone her "ears pierced."

Which is a fancy word for earrings. 

We Heart Country Life

Country life has agreed with us. Actually living with another adult kind of agrees with me. I'm getting kinda addicted to my dad because it's so nice to have some help while the hubby is on the road.

But we have been picking berries.

And making jam with Grandma Great.

And taking long walks as a family. Through the country streets. Things move at a simpler pace out in the sticks.

But best of all, we are learning to ride. Dogs.

That part isn't going as well. 

Boise- More Like Girlse

My sister lives in IL and I don't hardly ever get to see her. So when she said she was heading to Boise for a wedding and wanted us to meet her there, I said "Hells Yeah!"

And I got to babysit this little bundle for the first few days. Along with his big sister. Just in case any of you are wondering. Four kids are A LOT of work.

And being that it was the week before Izzy turned five, I booked a surprise party at Build-A-Bear. Let me tell you, it was a good time. If you can, you should have a birthday party at Build-A-Bear because it is super fun. Even if you are turning 25. It's that fun. They really go all out to make sure everyone is having a good time. Even when your "party" is only three girls and a baby.

 

But when my sister got back on the same day that my hubby flew in. And she volunteered to watch the kids so we could go out.

Oh M Ba Gee Gee we had a good time. I seriously forgot how much fun it is to get out and enjoy my cute hubby without grubby hands attached to dreadlocks demanding your every ounce of attention.

It was kind of addicting. I didn't want to go home at the end of the night.

So we went to the movies.

And we made out the whole time. Super fun.

And while we know ground planking is lame, we couldn't help it.

And being that it was my little niece Marley who officially renamed it Girlse. Only fair right? It's been Boise for far too long according to this little princess.

And seriously I was joking about the making out at the movies. I mean we were practically grandparents compared to the other patrons at the 10:15 showing of Crazy, Stupid Love. I don't even remember the movie because I was half asleep due to old age.

Life is good.