this week...

I spent two hours of my morning trying to reach Blue Cross Blue Shield,
mad as a copperhead and frustrated.
I fought with an automated system that took me to option one, no matter if I pressed 6, 3, 9 or screamed every bad word I have ever heard into the speaker.
I found an alternate number online, but after sitting on hold for an hour and 17 minutes, I hung up.
I pounded at the keyboard and sent an email-- that I will not get a response to, I am sure.

My house is a mess, despite how clean it was just a few days ago.

Lance went to the doctor this morning and hopefully he will be fixed soon.
He took the rest of the day off, which is a good thing.
I was going to embarrass him and be that wife, if he did anything different.

I am hormonal, and started the day as hot as a fire ant bathed in gasoline,
but have taken my emotions full circle today.

And finally, hours later, I can stop and smell the roses (or weeds).

***
Last Saturday I had to work.
Our friend Kaleb and his girlfriend came down from Austin to watch the game.
Unfortunately I didn't get out of the office until 1:00, so I missed her.

I took a nap when I got home because I had (what would become) a crazy night ahead.
When I woke up, the house was empty.

I found Lance, Kaleb and Maddox outside at the ice cream truck but Beckham was MIA.
Lance was sure that Beckham was in bed with me...
I was sure that he was not.

After a little bit of a frantic search, we found my poor bitty snug between his bed and his tiny couch that was wiggled in by the wall, drenched in sweat and sound asleep.

Lance and Kaleb did their best to watch college football, but Maddox and Beckham did their best to bring the attention back to their non-stop 2 man show.

We laughed when Maddox ran in with his excited face, voice a little higher than normal, outstretched arms and yelled, "Come outside and see what God made in our backyard!!"  Because Beckham, in true turd fashion, never made a mention or cracked a tiny smile, he just grabbed his pretend lawn mower and barreled through Maddox's perfect creation!

I had reserved my sister a few months ago for that evening, as it was my friend Raine's (my old nursing partner from Night Clinic) bachelorette party and my friend Mandy's (my first best friend-- and pal of almost 25 years) 30th birthday celebration in North Side.

I'll spare you the gory details (and by "you", I mean "me") but I somehow went from this:

To hot, heaving, and unaware; all before midnight.
And eventually sleeping on my neighbors couch because Lance wouldn't wake to answer the door.

He woke up around 4:00 and felt terrible for not hearing us...
Coincidentally, my next day could also be described as "feeling terrible".

Lance went to work and mandatory-mom-duty reminds me why I am not able to drink more than *a* drink...
ever.
And why opportunities like this should mostly be passed up--
except once in a decade, when 2 situations of celebration collide.

That evening Lance played his best game yet.

And the next morning Maddox made his bed by himself, without being asked, for the first time ever!

We met my Aunt Monica for lunch Monday afternoon, at Lance's store. We then popped over to Roanoke to the candy story so she could buy Big Red with real sugar!
A treat she can't get back home.

Tuesday, we met up with her again-- as well as my brother's crew too-- for dinner, before she flew out.

Wednesday, I worked in the office from 1-5.
Lance called with hives and was miserable.
He had started taking some supplements from Advocare and we thought it was probably them.
He stopped them and started Benadryl but it continued to get worse.

Thursday, I had my yearly check up.
Somehow I left without my phone-- and showed up to my appointment at the wrong time.
An hour late, to be exact.
Mom had driven an hour to meet me there, so although I felt horrible for writing down the wrong time, I was very thankful they still saw me.

That night, Lance's rash quadrupled and started looking infectious... yet was still localized to his upper trunk, neck and face.
Today he went to the doctor.

They still are not real sure why or even what it is-- but think it has turned infectious.
They took a culture and $200...
gave him a shot, and 2 prescriptions...
They told him not to go to work until he has been on the antibiotic for 48 hours.
He is miserable.

He looks miserable.

Lord, I hope it is not contagious!

We spent today lounging, with the windows open, filling our bellies full of Italian grilled cheeses and Tomato Basil soup.

I threw in my towel to Blue Cross Blue Shield.
And to cleaning...
and to laundry...
and maybe even to parenting, today too.

I put down my axe,
and chose to be happy.

Finally.

Happy.

And tonight we are eating hot chocolate chip cookies, cold milk, and watching Home Alone!

What a turn around.

Beckham is two

Beckham turns 2 and a half this month.
...which means I am almost 29 and a half!
Slow your roll.

B has a very mild case of croup right now.
Not even enough to really "bark" but just have the 'sound' at night--
and be whiney all day.
(which makes me crazy)

God knows what he is doing.

I would have sold my soul for Beckham to be a girl...
I thought that I needed a girl...
I wanted bows and glitter and rhinestones and lace...
And a cute little bob haircut with big brown eyes...
I dreamt of the relationship we would have as adults...
and I pretended that we would skip all the stages in between.

But whining to me, is like nails on a chalkboard--
and I am thankful that my kids stay mostly well--
because I am not a great mom to a snotty nose, sack of tears-- who takes the word "hey" 3 octaves too high and 4 seconds too long, anytime Maddox touches anything that he might want to touch within a 24 hour period.
I am handing out time outs and spankings like its Halloween candy...
sick or not,
this is not for me.

For that reason alone, I was obviously meant to be a boy mom.

With that said, I really enjoy parenting Beckham overall.
Unfortunately, I think I have let life over-run my blog sometimes, and I don't think that I document Beckham's stages as well as I did Maddox's.
So I will try and catch up.

I love 2.
It might be my favorite, honestly.
So far, the even ages have been my favorites for both of my boys, actually.

Beckham is sweet, and adoring, and observant, and heedful.
He is silly and funny and happy and kind.
He worships Maddox and will tell you that he is his best friend.
He is not far from me, ever... and tells me he loves me a million times a day... with kisses and hugs and snuggles.
Beckham loves to battle with Lance, and when he says, "Go Power Rangers!", you know its on.  He is also the loudest voice yelling from the fence when Lance plays softball.

He is very cautious of others.
And while Maddox rarely met a stranger, Beckham approaches everyone with caution.

Beckham is stubborn, independent, specific, strategic, and particular.
While I can dress Maddox any way that I want, with only the occasional polite request to wear his character shirts-- there are days that Beckham will demand a Mouse shirt, cry, yell and strip his clothes off over and over and over until we are both spent or I cave.
He is the same with his shoes.
And his hats.
And the cup he drinks out of...
or plate he eats from.

While Maddox still seeks approval with everything he does, before he does it--
Beckham does it, without caring if you approve, and refuses help from anyone.

He may look like an Erwin, but he is engineer minded like my dad.
He is constantly looking into how something works, how he can take it apart, and rarely ever just sits.

B still refuses to poop in the toilet and I no longer even talk about it.
About every 2 or 3 days he will ask for a diaper, hide and do his business.
I change him, tell him that he's big enough to go poop in the potty and tell him we will try again next time.
He sleeps in underwear and hasn't had an accident either way in a very long time...
I'm letting him control this, until he realizes that he's only controlling himself.

He loves to help.
His favorite "chore" is to set the table and put ice in the cups.
We eat on plastic plates with plastic cups most nights, so B can be involved.

He talks so well.
His favorite word right now is 'actually'.
"Do you want some water Beckham?" ..."no momma.  Well, actually I do."

He loves to run and jump and play rough.

He is still obsessed with Mickey Mouse, and all of Mickey's pals too-- He loves "ho ho" (Jake the Pirate)
and loves all critters that are above his age, like "Mec-a" (Captain America), Batman, Pida-man, Power Rangers and Star Wars, --like his bubba.

He still falls perfectly into my 90/10 diagnosis that I gave him a while back... 90% of the time, he is the easiest, quietest, most observant child.  Independently playing and tending to himself.
...and 10% of the time moody, demanding, and ready to set the world on fire.

He knows his colors-- but don't ask him because he'll most likely tell you green or blue.
However, if you sit and listen to him, you can hear him separating his blocks by color-- and correctly identifying colors in his books.
He can also count to ten.
Not because I asked him to... but because he thought I ate a fruit snack and I started counting them, "one", he angrily followed, "two", I said, "three" and he kept the pattern all the way to ten.

He is brilliant because he is determined...
however, he writes his own book-- in his own time...
and there is not a thing that I can do to change that.

Beckham is so much like Lance, with has a sense of humor beyond his years.
Stubborn, slightly annoying...
yet easy to love.

Beckham is two.
And 100% boy.

I love him to the moon and back!

October

Last week we were on the go, the entire week.
...but what's new?

Wednesday I went in for training for a little side gig at work.
I also started an Advocare 10 day cleanse that day.

It is so funny how a change of pace, even if it is going to a job-- and choking down a rotten applesauce flavored fiber drink, by myself-- can feel refreshing.
I am doing it again tomorrow-- (the job, not the drink) and may make it a weekly thing for a little cash for Christmas.

I met Lance and the boys for $1 tacos at Fuzzy's afterward...

and mom and Al happened to be in the area and came by too.

We went to Sams-- and Lance let the boys get money out of their piggy banks and buy themselves whatever they wanted.

They both chose books, but were most impressed with their very own receipts.

They each saved a little cash to take to Wal-Mart...

that I have anxiously awaited its arrival,

because it is almost walking distance from our little neighborhood

and had opened that day--
and yes I took a picture...

and they each bought another little something too.

Thursday I woke up during the night with a crick from hell in my neck!

I called mom and she met me to watch the boys for an hour or so

and I was able to get in with a chiropractor in Boyd.

I had never been and was scared to death.

He didn't hurt me--

but I am not sure that it helped all that much either.
He was nice, however, and left me a little broker than I went in.

From there, we went to my friend Jennifer's house to eat and play with her baby Madden and our pal Chaney.

They have a massive backyard with a play center better than most city parks, and the boys loved it!

Friday I had to go back to FTW for my yearly evaluation.

(it was my 8 year anniversary at my job) and to get the boys their flu mists.

Thankfully, my mom was able to go with me and sit with the boys in the car while I did my evaluation and she treated us to lunch, got the boys each another character shirt afterward, and we visited my Meme.

Friday we went to visitation for our friend's mother
and Saturday morning, we both missed Maddox's game for the funeral.
Thankfully mom was able to meet me in Boyd that morning and get him to his game, and powdered donuts cured his sadness of leaving us behind.

My mom came to my rescue almost everyday...

My heart already broke for our friend, losing his mom--
not just because I needed mine so much this week...
but because I know that no matter how old you are-- or if you're married yourself-- or how far you live-- or how irritated you can get...
sometimes you just need your mom.
Some (like me) more than others...
And he lost a big piece of his heart.

After the funeral, we went back to his house and made a campfire and told old stories.
The kids played, we laughed, and it was some of the most fun that I have had in a while.
I think it was good for our friend too.
And we all promised to do more of that.

Monday night, Maddox had a make-up soccer game instead of practice.
Our friend Luke brought Lance's friend Joey from HS to watch.

We went to eat at Fred's afterward and our friends Jake and Blaine happened to walk in.
It was a fun surprise...
but it killed our diets!
(the loaded fries, not the company!)

Today I took the boys to the park and there were 3 dads there with their kids.
First of all, I was dressed a little pitiful...
I had to sit Maddox in timeout for being the rowdy 5 year old in a sea of 3 and unders...
And it kind of made me laugh that I was the outcast-- as MEN were running the park today!

We went down to the pond and then we came home.

Where I half-jokingly answered a question on our community FB page about knowing where a house was for rent...
and I said that I was no help there but I would sell them mine--
and now have 2 separate prospective buyers coming to look at our house this weekend!!

We have no where to go--
but I guess we will fry that fish when the pan gets hot!

In the mean time, I will clean--
and pray--
And kiss the faces off of these two.