Halloween Eve

Put together Taco Night with pumpkin carving and scary movie watching, you have a Morrison Halloween Eve!! Very spooky, I know! With five little people, we have to take what we can get. There is no more going to big people Halloween parties, unless our single friends plan them a month in advance, which never happens. Matt and I will get a call an hour before the party asking if we can make it. We both just look at each other like, yeah right, be right over!! We prefer to be with the kiddos anyway. It is funny how things change. It is more fun for us to make sure our children are having a good time than it is for us to go out and have to pay $6 for a beer!! If we both have a drink, that is the same price as a pack of diapers! Besides, look how cute Addy is as little Jason! Pumpkin carving done, I call Addysen into the kitchen to see what I have made of her pumpkin. She opted to stay in our bedroom and not participate because she thought the pumpkin "goop" was slimy and disgusting! She enters the kitchen and immediately begins to cry! Addy is yelling at me for what I have done to her pumpkin. Then, she says she wanted to scoop the goop, and wants to know why I am so mean!! "I wanted a happy jack pumpkin, not what Mommy did!" she says in between sobs! I was feeling like I was such a nice Mom for helping her out, unbeknownst to me, I was just being a complete idiot! Pumpkin carved and already lit, not much I could un-do! So, I just left the kitchen. The other pumpkins look great, and the girls had a fun time. Now, Matt and I have the mind-numbing task of getting the five of them ready for trick-or-treating tomorrow! Last year did not go too well as far as the boys were concerned, so we are crossing our fingers for a different outcome this year!

Funny Stuff

I know that this is not a picture of any of our kiddos, but it is funny! Honestly, I don't have anything new taken of the family, so this is substituting! I was sitting with the boys this morning and we were watching Dora. They seemed really tuned in. Each time Dora would ask a question, they would answer her. Although, they always answer her with an emphatic, "NO!", it is an answer just the same. "C'mon, everyone, can you help Boots reach his hat??" asks Dora, and the boys reply, "NO!" Then, Dora, still being so polite, thanks them even though my children have done nothing to help! "No!", is their general reply to everything they hear on the t.v. Dora, Diego, Mickey Mouse, whomever it is, is going to be hard pressed to get my boys to clap when needed or to get them to jump up and down, or to even get them to shout in order to help out with the predicament. My guys don't just sit and watch an obscene amount of t.v., but they are allowed to watch some. I like the twenty minutes Max & Ruby gives me to clean up the kitchen, or fold some laundry. The last thing I want to do is spend all of their nap time cleaning! It took me a while to learn to not feel guilty for cleaning while they were awake. It used to make me feel as if I wasn't spending enough time with them. Now, I see it as a way for me to have a little more time to myself when they are sleeping if I already have the dishes done or the floors swept. Also, when Mom is not constantly hovering over them, they play rather nicely together. I can often times find them in their room playing and not even watching t.v. Today, that is where they were. I found them both hanging on either side of the outside of their crib, yelling "Boo!" to each other. Have I mentioned that they are a couple of monkeys??

Party Time

I am trying to teach my littlest people when party time actually is. Our boys feel that the entire day should be one continuous party! Nap time has become such a joke to our boys that it is now taking up to an hour for them to settle down and fall asleep. Garhett seems to be the butt of his Brothers' jokes unfortunately. B-man throws Garhetts blanket and his kitty out of the crib at least 40 times in an ten minute period. While Brenden is tormenting his Brother, poor Garhett is screaming, and I mean SCREAMING!!! I sometimes feel as if my throat is hurting just listening to the sound that little boy can make. I do feel for him, so I end up going in and out the room over and over and over.... After a while, I am so over Brenden and his cute smile! I am convinced by the way, that smile kids have is what has saved their butts many times from being in major trouble! They instinctively know when they hear a certain tone from their parents to start smiling and look as innocent as possible. My girls have done that to me many times, and now my little guys are doing it! So, when I go in their room to give Garhett his things back, Brenden seems to be pretending like he is sleeping. He will sometimes have his blanket pulled over his head, because obviously he thinks I have no brain and won't be able to find him. I pull the covers back and there he is looking at me with those bright blue eyes and a grin from ear to ear!! All I can do is say, "Please leave your Brother alone, sweetheart!" As soon as I shut the door, I am instantly mad at myself. Sweetheart?? He is being a turd, and that is all I can muster up? It is not easy to do what my brain knows it should when my heart is so in love with these little monsters!! I am working on that, and as long as my boys are not aware of the fact that they can take advantage of their Mother in this capacity, I might still have a fighting chance!

Long Weekends

First I would like to thank my husband for holding down the fort while I was out of commission over the weekend. I actually was not even home during most of our daughters' Halloween party! Matt and my sister were able to pull off the party without a hitch! I know that there were a few details we didn't get to, but none of the girls noticed. There were plenty of other things going on to distract them. While I was "hanging" out with my parents, I did get a couple of phone calls regarding how to put curlers in and how to do make-up! I also received calls with food and game questions. I was impressed with how calm and reassuring he was. I had expected more of a panicked tone, especially with having ten girls arriving any moment! Apryl and Lexy's friends always seem to really like their Father. They think he is funny and weird, that is what I was told by one of the girls. When I did finally get to come home, there was only about an hour left for the party, and I was pretty tired. It was nice to see everything that I had envisioned was there. My sister made the "bloody popcorn" and Mattie played the body parts game, which surprised me how much the kids loved it! I kept hearing them say how gross everything felt or how disgusting it smelled, and yes, Spam does smell awful!! In the end, they were laughing and screaming at the same time. Everything seemed to go well, I am thinking that I may leave during the next party also just for the hell of it! Then we have Sunday! If you are also a Bronco fan, you know exactly what I mean!! WTF! There really aren't any words that can accurately describe the disappointment that comes with a loss the the RAIDERS, then to have them shove our faces in a loss like yesterday's makes one want to cry! :( Broncos fans, we can all sit and say what we think should have been done, or what we feel should be done in future games, but when my Grandmother could go out on the field and provide better pass protection, you know we are in some serious trouble!! I won't even bring up our running game, which my Grandfather couldn't do any worse holding onto a ball...(cough) Maroney.

Time Well Spent

Today, after school, I took the kiddos over to Grandma's house. The kids always like going over because it is a change of scenery and my oldest two get out of doing their chores! It is also a bit of a break for me. My Mom made pizzas from scratch for everyone! She says to me, "do you guys wanna stay for dinner?" I said, "if I don't have to cook, then YES!!" I don't know a mother of five who would turn down a night to have someone else do the cooking! That would be like asking me if it is alright for someone to clean my toilets! Well....Duh! Grandma's house also comes with toys included. Brenden and Garhett like to dump the toys out and sit in the buckets. They both played an interesting version of catch with Grandpa. They basically throw whatever it is they might be holding to Grandpa whether or not he is paying attention. Grandpa caught on quickly. He made sure to always have an eye on at least one boy. We usually have to really watch Brenden since he could quite possibly take some one's head off with that arm of his! They are both very fast, and they reload quickly. When the "catcher" is looking for the object they have failed to catch, the boys already have something else in hand to launch! Boy, I swear I have seen my life flash before my eyes a few times while trying to play catch with them! It is also beneficial to me to visit, because I get some much needed adult inter-action. I was talking so much, that I was excited when my Grandparents showed up so that I could retell my stories. I think it could be a good idea to have a 1-800 line for Mother's who need people to chat with throughout the day when no one else is available. I can only bug Matt at work so many times!!

Share and Share Alike!

Nothing in our home is sacred any longer. If there happens to be something that someone really likes or an object that is valuable in any way, then it needs to be put WAY out of reach. Sometimes certain things have to be hidden, because if the little guys catch a glimpse of that shiny item, they will do whatever it takes to grab it! When Apryl sat down with that caramel apple in hand I wondered what she was thinking. She had to know that the radar little people are born with was going crazy in their little heads, trying to figure out where the food was. I can just imagine what the boys were thinking when the wind picked up that applelicious scent and wafted it past their noses! The hairs on the back of their necks must have stood up, "food!!!" Well, that is how I imagine it anyway, since they didn't leave her side until we had to drag them both away. Then comes the taking turns thing...and poor Apryl wondering if she will ever have another bite. While she did manage to take another bite or two, it was Garhett who had the caramel apple in hand when I looked in the back of the car!

100 Miles a Minute

Like usual, not the best picture of everyone together, but they are kinda hard to coordinate. We are making memories, and that is the most important part of all the things we set out to do together. It feels like life sometimes becomes what is in control of everyone, instead of us being in control of our lives. Our family calendar is jammed packed with things to do. It becomes overwhelming! I am so glad that Apryl is done with softball, I know that may not sound like a Mommy sort of thing to say, but it's the truth. She played well, and I cheered like any Mom does, it was just too much trying to juggle fall softball with school activities and family things. Her very first game she missed part of Addy's birthday along with the parade. I don't want to be responsible for taking my kiddos away from the things that make them my kiddos. There will always be another game to go to, there won't always be another birthday! Last week took a toll on all of us. We were running from here to there most of the week. We had parent/teacher conferences, which by the way went really well. Nothing better than listening to other people rave about your children! Everyone knows how good I am at raving about them! Then, Lexy had two sleep-overs, Apryl's softball games, and grocery store runs, normal stuff! I know that everyone who has kids does these things, my point is that saying no once in a while is probably an okay idea. That is a concept I am choosing to use more liberally as my kids get older. There is nothing wrong with admitting that their Dad and I just simply can't get everything done that they would like. It becomes exhausting to try and juggle five little schedules along with the things that need to be done on an every day basis. I know other Mother's know that feeling. It is that time when everything is a bother and you get frustrated and want to cry. Then, later we get to feel guilty for not doing enough, or for saying something we didn't mean. By the time I talk to my older two, and let them know I am sorry or that I am just tired, they have already forgotten what it is I am talking about! Our family is very big on "family time", I just want to make sure it is spent together because we want to, not because we are stuck in the car together!

Grandma's Glasses??

No, these aren't actually Grandma's glasses, but they should be! Garhett is so funny trying to put these star shaped glasses on. It did however, only take a minute or so for him to break them in half. I'm hoping it was just his way of sharing a pair of glasses with his brother. Things don't really last that long in our house anyway. If one child has something the other wants, there is a good possibility that it will be broken during the scuffle. Then, nobody wants what they were originally arguing over. They are all pretty good about moving on, and finding something else to fight about. Lately, when Addy has been upset with me, she has taken to threatening me. She told me last week that she was going to run away! She says to me, "you are going to cry, because you will have loss me!" I didn't start to cry, and instead I started to laugh, which only made her more mad! She was yelling at me from down the hallway, "stop laughing!" Then, she would say, "now start crying!" I asked her where she was going and she said stomped her foot and said, "to Grandma's house!" I am still wondering where she heard about running away. She is the first of our kiddos to threaten me with running away, it makes me a little scared for the future, I can only imagine what the other little people are going to come up with!

Why No??

Lately I have been noticing a growing trend at our house. We have older kiddos that have learned the art of negotiation. They usually end up in a disagreement with their Father over just about everything they ask him. He is like the Nazi of the word "NO!" Boy, does he love to answer their questions with a firm "no" even before they have fully finished asking! I do laugh sometimes because he is so funny! Apryl and Alexys both look at him like he is from another planet some days! I have been wondering that myself for a while now! He has to be doing this manner of answering questions because he knows that inevitably, they will be asking him "why?" anyway! Which is true. He seems to be excited by the challenge that they present him in trying to find a viable reason why they can't have what they desire. Lexy, will ask for celery for dessert, and Matt says, "No, celery is not a dessert!" There I am thinking are you nuts, she can eat celery for breakfast if she wants! I always like when the girls ask to play in the rain because that is fun for me also, but along comes Dad with a pretty emphatic, "No!" Now, I am in agreement when there is lightning, or the weather is just too bad, we shouldn't be running around in the middle of it. I have never offered my children metal rods to play with during a sever storm! I think every once in a while I can see him smiling after his answer is given out. He feels satisfied in knowing that a rebuttal is not too far off, especially from his ten year old. Apryl only feeds my hubby's inner lawyer. I have told him so many times that he should have gone to law school. Mathew argues to the death! He will pull a point of of thin air, which is possibly total fiction and use it in his argument! Sometimes he starts arguing the same point the girls are trying to make and they end up agreeing with him not knowing how it happened. They will look at me with these bewildered looks, and I just shake my head! I think often times they leave the room wondering what the hell just happened! It is usually Alexys who comes back a little later and asks, "so I can't have celery for dessert??" Like I said, it's the fun of the pending debate that fuels their Father! He is very protective of his troops, and cares so much for their well-being, that much is true. He just likes to mess with their little heads also.

Pumpkin Pickin'

I am back again, I missed a few days because I was not feeling well. Before I came down with whatever this virus is, we did manage to have a pretty good Saturday. Matt and I, along with a few others, took the kiddos to a nearby pumpkin patch. We had told Addy a few weeks ago that we would be going, and she had been excited ever since! It was finally pumpkin patch day, and she even had a pumpkin patch shirt! It turned out temperature wise to be pretty nice, we just had to deal with the wind. Apryl and Alexys went for the largest pumpkins they could find, while both boys and Addy went for the smallest. Addy has practically adopted her pumpkin. She is calling it her baby pumpkin. She is sleeping with it at night, and toting it around with her everywhere. I will hear her say, "come on sonny!" Not sure about the name, but she likes it! I don't know if we will be able to actually carve the pumpkin she picked since she is so attached, it might hurt her feelings. The boys on the other hand, were not as easily impressed. They both held a pumpkin for about a minute, and when they realized the pumpkins broke when they threw them hard enough, that is what they did! If they could pick up a pumpkin it was only to throw it at another. I was lucky to get any pictures at all! They didn't seem too fond of all the walking either. We did get to stop by the petting area, and Garhett fed a calf some hay. That was really sweet, both boys love to be around the animals. It was cute to hear them doing their animal sounds when they saw animals they recognized. It was a good time, and I even snagged a bit of hay for the boys' costumes!

Watching a Show

I don't know about any of you, but I have always watched television while sitting a laundry basket. Honest! Many people have stopped by our house and witnessed me sitting in a laundry basket watching Dr. Phil or Ghost Hunters. Okay, maybe not! These baskets are a favorite of both of the boys. They rank among the top when it comes to toys that aren't really meant to be toys! On that list would include, paper towel and toilet paper rolls, buckets, Tupperware, pots and pans, oh, and rocks! It is funny how many things they guys can find do to with the baskets. They have used them turned over in order to reach things that are put up high for a reason. They have pushed each other around the house, and also tried to push Addy. They also like to fill them up with a bunch of toys. All of these things happen after they have dumped the laundry OUT, clean or not! Seeing a laundry basket filled with a cute little boy, I know that somewhere there is laundry on the floor. Usually they throw out the clothes as they move, that way they are able to cover the entire house. Thank goodness we have a gate that keeps them away from the stairs, I figure it would only be a matter of time before they tried to push each other down. I assume Brenden would be the one in the basket!

Paranormal Activity!

Lately we have been noticing some very weird disturbances happening at the house. We will see blobs of blue running up and down the hallway, they also seem to think they can run through doors! Each time, one of the boys runs with a blanket on his head, I am almost certain it will end up with someone being hurt. As soon as they run past the couch I cringe, I just wait to hear the sound of the linen closet being hit by a little guys head. I have even worn their blanket on my own head just so I could get a feel of what they are seeing, and I was not able to see ANYTHING! I think the boys are completely using the "force" when they decide to run amok with basically a blind fold on their heads. They both try to walk with their arms out in front, but that never works. Inevitably, one or both end up bouncing of a couch or walking head first into the wall! It is the worst when they run full speed into each other! Little boy bodies falling everywhere! A few tears are most often shed, but never enough to get them to stop. Now, I have decided to give my heart a rest and instead of stressing about the blind sprints around the living room, I put funny things on their heads, and I get out my camera. There will be a day when the hospital wants proof of the story I give them. When I look at these pictures, I can totally hear the laughter from underneath the blankets! The older the boys get, the more daring they become. I just hope my house can hold up to them!

Look at Me!

Matt and I took the little people to the costume shop and as always I brought my camera. I think Addy is wearing a mouse face, she tried on so many I can't remember which mask this was. I love that for now, being silly is fun for the kiddos. I'm not sure at exactly what age acting crazy is more embarrassing for kids rather than fun. Maybe it is an individual thing, because I know being a little silly is how I get through my day! I can remember Alexys wearing a pair of swim goggles that had the Little Mermaid on them, everywhere we went for quite a while. The goggles were practically the same size as her head! People did double takes when they would first see her. She just looked back at them and smiled as if there was nothing strange with what she was wearing. Matt has been the parent that is not as comfortable with the kids going out in public in things that are not everyday wear. For me, I see it as one less thing to have to fight with them about. Also, I think it is kind of cute. I love to see Addy in her princess dresses and with a crown on her head. I think it is cute when the boys come traipsing down the hallway with Matt's work shoes or his cleats on. Usually they are only wearing a diaper at the same time. They obviously aren't shy and don't care what people think--yet. Our boys were running down the sidewalk just this afternoon with a t-shirt and no pants, and it did not seem to bother them a bit!

The Dudes' B-day!!

Our Lexy turned eight last week as most of you know! She had a great day, and night for that matter. She woke up to find a brand new outfit sitting out on her dresser, which she screamed, "oh my God!! Mom did you put that there?" Then, we went for pizza after school, where Brenden and Garhett made a big enough mess for quintuplets! Pizza was followed by the jumpy place--thank you Addy for the name! All in all, I think she had a pretty good day. Alexys is our more outgoing and fiery child. She has a passion for everything she comes in contact with. She can be very dramatic at times as well as ultra sensitive. She would probably shoot me if she knew I titled this "the Dude". That nickname started a long time ago, and it was just a sentence she messed up. It came out so funny, that we haven't been able to forget, and now she is occasionally called "the Dude". It is weird that even though we know how much is bugs her, we still have to bring it up. I hate to admit it, but it makes me laugh! We also bring up the Titanic a lot. Use your imagination people, that is all I can say...legally! ;) I know some of you know what I am talking about. Anyway, it was a great day for everyone who was fortunate enough to be with us. I am certain that our Lexy will be giving us stories for years to come.

Two of a Kind?

If you can look past the mess on the floor, (remember we live here) those are our identical twin boys. Now, when I used to think about twins that were identical, I just assumed that meant they were exactly alike. Well, having had almost two years getting to know my OWN set of adorable twins I can assure you that while they may have been born with the same DNA, they have very unique differences. There are a lot of things they both like, they love to drink milk and they really like animals, they also love Mickey Mouse, but each day something comes up and it helps create more individuality for our boys. From the day we brought them home, Matt and I have made it a point not to label them as "the twins". We wanted to make certain that each boy was allowed to be whom he chose to be, and to like what he wants. There are occasions when it is fun to show them off as twins, and they guys get an incredible amount of attention just because they are twins without Mom and Dad forcing the issue. A simple errand can take 45 minutes because people want to ask a bunch of questions about them: "how much did they weigh?", "are they identical?", "how long did you carry them?", you get the picture. Then, there are the people that know twins and just have to tell me everything they know about them! My boys are such an amazement to me, and I know the excitement others feel when they are curious about them. The excitement changes each day as the boys grow and learn new things. Garhett loves to read books and Brenden will sit for about three seconds then try to rip the book in half. Brenden likes to play catch with his Dad for hours and Garhett would rather build something with his blocks. Brenden is so far the more adventurous brother, and he is more of a risk taker. I have been calling Garhett the observer lately. He seems to watch what his brother is doing before deciding if he will try it himself. Even with all the differences, they are connected more than any of our other kiddos. When one is upset or hurt, the other will race to his side and even try to console him. Just today Garhett hurt himself and Brenden did not leave him until he stopped crying, Brenden kept saying "oh-no!" There was real concern on his little face. They are so awesome, and I think Matt and I are pretty lucky to have this experience.

October 1st Already?!?

Today was such a beautiful day, the little people and I went for a walk this morning. They are fun to go on a walk with because everything they see is SOO neat! Addy points out every bird she sees, "did you see that birdie Mommy?" She also likes to show me the airplanes, the moon, even our neighbors trash cans. She will say, "what is this doing here?" when we have to maneuver around a trash can. The boys like to run down the sidewalk and throw rocks into the street when they think I am not looking. Our neighbors are very accommodating when they see the little ones on the loose. They have yet to get upset when the boys run around in their driveway or roll around on their lawn! It seems to be especially neat for the boys when they make our neighbor's dogs bark. They both laugh and yell back at the dogs. Now some of the leaves are starting to fall and they like to pick up every leaf they can find and show it to me. "See, see!" they both say. It is nice to still be able to go out in shorts and sandals, because not too long from now, it will be taking us twenty minutes to bundle them up before we can go outside. It always takes so long to get them warmly dressed so they can come back in thirty seconds later! It will be worth it just so I can see them playing in the snow. They will be like my own little snowmen!