CLEAN MOUNTAINS

Only those who have lived among the Swiss would appreciate the humor in this hilarious video I pirated from Liz.  I just had to have a clip of it for my own

FIGURING OUT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS

CHANCE: "So, Texas is a country and it has 50 states in it, right?  Do all the states in Texas have to know how to sing "The Eyes of Texas"?"

THE GOOD, THE BAD

Pretty much most of school is B-A-D right now.  All of it.  Who needs stinkin school anyways.  

BUT.....the GOOD was, "my art teacher told me that I did a really good job at weaving."  I'd have to agree.

THIS IS PRETTY MUCH PURE AWESOMENESS

New Bikes can make anything possible like 6 foot drops that were once intimidating. 

First Week of the New Year

 My New Years Resolution: CONTENT.  Not "Contentment" which is also on the list, but to produce weekly usable content for the blog.  This leads to New Years Resolution #2: Find time. It's gotta be out there somewhere.  Put the 2 together and we have a blog up and running again. 

This week marks Brooks at 16 months old.  Boy does time fly.  Each month that passes he grows more cute and more loveable.  Right now he and I are amidst a very strong love affair.  Basically it just boils down to the fact that I am the best person to be with at all moments.  Dada, who used to be #1 (remember), has now unfortunately for him taken a back seat.  Or maybe it's not so unfortunate for him at 1 a.m. when Daddy just doesn't do the trick.  Everyday there is a new word out of his mouth.  My favorite right now are "uh-oh", "more", "f-f-f-f-f-f-f" for our new frog pets, "bubbles" for taking a bath, and "no".  Good thing for us, he really only says no if you ask him to.  Or the way he calls himself "Buh-fa" and says "I do" with the most profound Texas accent.  And how could I forget the infamous "Da-doo" for Thank You, which he does say at the most appropriate times.  He even brings me things he shouldn't have and says "da-doo". 

Yesterday the stomach bug hit.  Brooks was a happy camper all day until we went out to the bus stop to get Chance and the river opened and for the next couple hours, I got to experience the insides of Brooks's stomach.  In the middle of vomiting, I asked Chance to hurry and get him a bowl.  He brings it to Brooks who is sitting there in my lap in utter misery, and he graciously looks at Chance and mumbles "da-doo".  How could I not be in love?

BAD, VERY BAD

Apparently Brooks has been really bad lately and I didn't even know it.  Good thing I stumbled upon this note to set me straight.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Please mom, can I play hickey from school today?"

The Elf and the Baby That Knows

If only Brooks could speak, he'd tell poor little Chance all the secrets, including the fact that yes, mom does move that Elf.  I keep wondering to myself when Chance is going to put two and two together.  I keep waiting for the day for him to come home from school and have some kid spoil the fun.  But in the meantime, the parental lying and deception continue.  Again I find myself up against another moral dilemma that Christmas brings: tell your kid not to lie.......and then keep the magic of Santa and his Elf going at all costs. 

So you see, the morning of December 1, there was an Elf on our mantle.  He appeared there over night holding a piece of paper, written by Santa, explaining that we've been chosen to house this elf until Christmas Eve.  The Elf was to watch over the happenings of the house and report back.......Naughty or Nice.  Apparently the threat is not enough to stop the constant infractions that occur between Chance and Brooks.  Somehow the Elf swinging from the chandelier gets overlooked in a moment of panic when your little brother has taken your prized eraser shaped like a stapler and torn it in half. 

So the Elf is a bit mischievous, he takes things that are not his, he eats food and leaves behind crumbs.  And most importantly, he moves when no one is looking.  Sometimes he hides in very hard to find places, but Brooks is always around when I move him and so when Chance goes looking, somehow Brooks always knows where he is, screaming and pointing UUF, UUF, UUF!!!!  And every time Chance has no clue, exclaiming, "Brooks!!! You are such a good finder". 

And so the magic continues, if only Brooks could tell.

Eleven

My humor has changed since living abroad, and I find this totally hilarous on this fine Wednesday morning.

RUDOLF and OLIVE

Chance: "Mom, can you please tell me the names of all the reindeer, I only know two."

Me: "Which 2 do you know?"

Chance: "I only know Rudolf and Olive."

Me: "Olive?"

Chance: "Ya mom, you know: All-of the other reindeer."