kristyk

Outbreak Girl

I went as my tshirt, cuz I'm cool like that! Mike drew the tattoo on my neck to match the picture. By the end of the night, it had worn off and left a big black mark. Mike's nieces kept asking me how I got the hickey... LOL!

Wondering why I look so happy? I was looking at Mike and I love him!

Halloween

This is such a bad picture I am embarrassed to post it. BUT, the batteries were going dead and I didn't get any pictures of the kids in their costumes. Every year, we go to my mother-in-law's for Halloween. All the family gets together for a huge enchilada dinner and we go trick or treating around her neighborhood. This year was special, as she turned 70 last week. Extended family and friends joined in the fun. Even Mike's brother from Chicago flew into town. These are some of the grandkids getting ready to go. I highlighted my kids (Echo was eating in the kitchen).

from left to right: Jon-Jon (fireman), Mica (dead punk rocker but morphed into Kelly Osborne ~ don't ask), Mia (head turned away, a pirate), Butterfly (witch), Mikal (head turned away, Bratz doll) and Bleu (Harry Potter).

Lensday: Spooky

Johnny, Halloween 2004

He really looks more sad than spooky... but I forced him to have his picture taken when all the other kids were running for candy. No fair!

Can you?

Can you see the difference in these two pictures? It took me a while, but it was 5:00 in the morning so I have an excuse! Thanks, around the way girl!

Happy Birthday!

Today is my little sister's birthday. Mattie, I love you so much and I couldn't be prouder of you! Hope you had a wonderful day...

mattie and kristy (me!) in our younger days

Wouldn't you know it... after searching forever for the perfect jacket to buy her, I picked out the one she already had. LOL...

and the winner is...

ME!

The War on Terror

Did you know that Ready.gov is number two on a yahoo search for 'terrorism propaganda'?

Last night, we were sitting around the campfire roasting marshmallows. A plane flew overhead with its blinking lights. One of my kids shouted 'UFO' and all of a sudden we had a pile of kids crying and screaming. Johnny kept saying 'Aliens... aliens' while he tried to scramble up into my lap. I laughed and told them it was just a plane. But Mikal Jade insisted it was a UFO. Michelle, Justin's fiance, asked her what that meant. She hesitated for a moment and then shouted "Aliens Erupting Terrorism." The kids started screaming again....

The Propaganda Remix Project

Photo Friday: Still Life

detail

We spent a large part of the afternoon at my brother-in-law's place. He has ten acres or so in the desert. Mike stuck a dollar bill in the thorns of a bush at the edge of the property and offered a ten dollar bill to the kid who could find it by following our tracks. That kept them busy for a while!

Fun on the trampoline

We went to Mike's brother's house this afternoon. He has our old trampoline. We don't have room for it at our new house, but the kids miss it a lot. Can you tell?

happy bleu

mia flips

butterfly

Overwhelmed

Last night, I disappointed myself. I lost my temper ~ something that I don't do often. It wasn't like this time. Last night I cried and talked and pleaded for a little cooperation. I might have cursed, too but I don't remember. I didn't scream, but I definitely raisied my voice!! It had been a long day. I can't even remember the morning... Who knows? After school, I had to go and count money for the fundraiser orders. The president is sick (pneumonia and strep throat) so I have been on my own most of the week. Getting five cranky kids to sit still in a little office while you count money and do paperwork is no easy task. Butterfly wanted to get home. I fixed the karaoke machine (finally!) and she wanted to sing. The principal came in to check on us and Butterfly threw a piece of her cereal (snack to keep them busy) on the floor. The principal told her that if she threw anything on the floor, she would have to pick it up. Butterfly reached into the bag, grabbed a handful of cereal and threw it AT THE PRINCIPAL. I was horrified. She knows better than that. The kids NEVER act like that! She went in time out right away and I apologized.

From there, we had just a few minutes before having to pick up the rest of the kids. I stopped at Sonic and got the kids each a slush. [side note: I love that Sonic has two for one drinks every afternoon!] I also got a grilled cheese sandwich for the four big kids that just got out of school. Already, that was $12. But instead of being thankful (how many times did my mom buy me a slush after school? NEVER) they started compaining about not getting a kids meal with a prize. Wah, wah, wah.

I picked up Mica and started to drive to get Mia. Nothing but complaining from the back. Mica and Butterfly pulled the covering from the ceiling down, poking big holes and tearing off fabric. Mikal was whining about having to drive around. We got Mia and had to go straight to her game alll the way across town. She had to be there early, so I stayed outside with the kids so that they could play while we waited. From the moment we got there until we got home, they bickered with each other and complained to me about how terrible their lives were. By the time we got home, I was fuming.

We sat down in the living room for a family meeting and I lectured them for twenty minutes. Mia and Mikal both started crying. Mica started glaring. Butterfly had already fallen asleep, but Johnny listened intently, nodding his head in agreement. Bleu had to leave and go to the bathroom. Lucky boy missed out!

I hate being upset with the kids, but I get so frustrated. I feel like I am the only one who does anything around the house. I never get a moment to myself. Even typing this post, I have had to stop at least five times. How am I supposed to keep my train of thought?

This morning, I finally got Butterfly and John to lay down quietly and watch tv. Echo was sleeping in his crib, so I got in the shower. THE SHOWER! A moment to myself. Clean hair for the first time in three days. Shaving! Oh, no. Wait. I didn't get to shave, because the phone rang. Mike ran out of gas and needed me to come right away. I got out of the shower, dressed, loaded the kids and drove to where he was. He jumped in and I gave him a ride to the gas station ~ a whole block and a half from where he was. A BLOCK AND A HALF. I just about lost it. Poor Mike. He thought that it would be nice to hang out for a bit, and he was trying so hard to be sweet. But I feel so overwhelmed by everything right now. As soon as I pulled away from his truck, I started sobbing.

We pulled up at the house and saw a helicpoter in the playground of the school. They must be having something special today. Normally, I would have taken the kids next door to check it out. The school is so great about including the families. But not today. Today, I will be lucky if I make it through without another breakdown.