Ten Things I Know...

TO BE TRUE ABOUT YOU

Angel

1. Your screams have the capability to shatter glass.
2. You are as protective as a new mommy of your brother and sisters.

3. I could dump you in the middle of 50 strangers, and within 5 minutes they'd be your lifelong friends.

4. You're eager to please.

5. Your ability to rationalize touchy situations is an ability we work on on a minute-by-minute basis.
6. Your ability to impress the boys, on the other hand, would lead one to believe that you've been "playing the field" for many years. 7. You could care less if the formation of your letters are correct or if your crayon marks stray outside the lines.
8. You give me daily glimpses into your teenage years when you spin around on one foot, flip your hair over your shoulder, and huff off, angry at a consequence I've handed out.

9. Just looking into those big, brown eyes that appear between blinks, is enough to relieve the stress you cause me!
10. You are generous with your professions of love for me and with your compliments on my mothering.

You are my Angel--

And I love you as BIG as the universe!

A Dilema of My Own

(Disclaimer--This post contains a politcal undertone that may be offensive to some parties. It is not my intent to upset or offend...just have fun!)

I never dreamed that I would live through a time when our country was experienceing such major dilemna's.

The stock market dropping by the hundreds on a daily basis.

A possible future president that has minimal experience and a value system as stinky as a half-empty milk sippy cup that has been misplaced under a bed for 2 weeks.

A large sector of the American people who want to bring down the family value system like a building being detonated from below.

Houses lost to repossession at a rate comparable to the wing-flutter-per-second of a hummingbird.

And the list goes on and on.

And while all of these dilemma's are happening in the world, I, too, am facing a dilemma of my own.

Not nearly as frightening as the dilemma that our country and its' inhabitants are experiencing, but a dilemma none-the-less.

You see, I am receiving love notes by the hundreds! I have some admirers that are quick to express their love in writing.

Don't fret. The dilemna is not that my husband is not aware. He is the recipient of an equal amount of love notes.

My dilemna is this...What on earth am I supposed to DO with all of these love notes?

Have you ever tried to throw something away with the words, "I love you" staring back at you, written across the paper in your child's 5-year-old handwriting? If you haven't, let me be the first to tell you, IT'S A DILEMNA.

"What an uncaring, cold individual you are, throwing away your children's love notes," is what you may be thinking at this moment in time. And I can identify with your concern, but please hear me out, mathematically speaking.

My husband and I happily receive at least 5 notes a day per child. Mutliply that by 2, since there are 2 of us, and you get 10 notes per day. Then multiply that by 4, because we have 4 children and you get 40 love notes in a day.

It doesn't sound ALL that bad until you multiply that by 365 days in a year and you get 14,600 love notes in a year. Now that my friends is substantial.

For more reasons than one.

Environmentalists would most likely tell you that our family should be putting forth more of an effort to perserve our forests, by cutting down on the love notes circulating our family. They would probably suggest a white board, or something along those lines. (Who am I kidding. They would probably be bothered that the fumes from the pens are permeating our ozone layer, thus destroying it.)

I'm actually really not that concerned with what the environmentalists are thinking. The Type-A in me is much more concerned about how to file and save the above mentioned love notes.

Do I file them alphabetically under each child's name?

Do I file them in a file under, "Love Notes?"

Do I buy a 456th plastic bin and print out a computer label with the words, "Love Notes from Kids," and a clip art of a little piece of paper that I downloaded from the internet?

Are you relating yet to my dilemna?

If I only I could get the main line to the inexperienced presidential candidate who seems to have an answer for everything. I'm sure he could come up with a solution to my dilemna.

And if he couldn't find the solution, I'm sure he could find someone to blame for my problem!

They're Much Too Young

I'm pretty sure it shouldn't be happening until at least junior high school. My just barely five year olds are much too young to be engaging in such conversation.

I must push the pause button...awareness and dialogue about the opposite sex is happening much to quickly in the Kamahi family! Especially for my Angel.
I'm convinced that she wakes up each morning much more excited about seeing the boys in her class than learning her ABC's. She concerns herself with her clothes and her hair, not to be stylish or comfortable, but rather to impress her boys. On more than one occasion, she has informed me that, "Mom, Joe (name changed for anonymity) is really going to love my outfit today. I think he'll like my hair, too!"


Just last week, after asking her what she learned in school that day, she replied straight-faced, "Mom...new report. Joe is not my boyfriend anymore, John is! There is nothing you can do about it." Those were the exact words that spilled from her mouth.



And what I wanted to do was wipe up those spilled words, wring them out over the sink, and turn on the garbage disposal. She's much to young to be having such thoughts! Even I wasn't that boy crazy when I was a child. For goodness sake, I was a one-boy-girl. At five years old in kindergarten, my heart belonged to Jeremy Buegey and only Jeremy Buegey. Why can't Angel choose one and stick with him? (IF she's gonna pick someone at all!)



Bella's complete lack of interest in the opposite sex is more proof that Angel stole all the hormones! Running around, playing, and instigating anyone who is willing to be instigated is much more up Bella's alley. She's even perfected the instigation of Angel's relationships by deliberately and precisely, pushing Angel in front of the boys that make her ga-ga!
While Isaac is all boy and prefers to be rough-housing somewhere with other boys, he still makes time to ogle at a girl. The same girl he has had eye's for since preschool--Little Miss Kathy. (name also changed for anonymity) On more than one occasion, I have heard the tune float up from the back seat of the car.
"Two little love birds, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love. Then comes marriage. Then comes the baby in the baby carriage."

He knows not what he is singing, for the word he spells would surely cause him to blush if he pronounced it.


I'm still holding out hope that because there are three the same age, they will keep each other in check. If they continue to tell-all at the rate they tell-all now, I will know every little detail in each of their lives...down to the time and consistency of their bowel movements!

Oops, I Did it Again!

It was going to be small this year. Ten kids at the most, fifteen if I was feeling ambitious! I said that after last years party if you'll remember back a year.

I don't know how it happens. Each year the party gets bigger rather than smaller.

I always realize this after it's too late.

I started to realize it was growing by leaps and bounds after recruiting my mom and sister-in-law to help decorate 35 clown ice cream cones.

Or was it after making and sending out 35 invitations!
I knew for sure it had grown when the guests started arriving, quickly filling every square inch of my backyard!

And when the passage-way through the back patio required a detour due to the large amount of birthday gifts, I knew the party had grown!!!

And when the living room began to look like this,

I nearly hyperventhilated!

I didn't have nearly enough bins to house all of the gifts. And some of the gifts were so large, a bin wouldn't be sufficient!

The gift stress wasn't even close to the stress that the Taco Man put me through! The man who was going to feed my guests and arrive at my house at 3:30 pm so my guests could start eating at 4:30pm...yah...that Taco Man....well he arrived over an hour late! Which delayed eating time from 4:30pm to after 5:15pm.

Does he not know that doing that to a mother who is plagued with a Type-A, In Control personality ranks right up there with having your fingernails removed one-by-one with a pair of pliers?

Oh yah...That's exactly how badly it hurt!

It was nothing that our Guest of Honor couldn't fix. Penelope the Clown came in and saved the day. Like a Night in Shining Armor trotting in on his horse, she swooped in in her mini-van and delighted the children with her magnificent face painting! The kids could have cared less that their tummies were growling!!!

Chaos, clutter, and confusion didn't hold anyone back from having a good time! Even I was still smiling at the end! A bit exhausted, but still smiling!

It's a really great thing that this whole birthday thing only happens once a year. It gives me a whole 365 days to recoup and decide to do it again the following year!

Career Change

It was 5 years ago today that I accepted the new position.

No application.

No resume.

No interview.

No experience necessary.

I was handed the job without any questions asked.

I've held the position longer than I have any other job.

Longer than my 4 1/2 year long waitressing job at the burger joint that paid my way through college.

Longer than my teaching career that lasted less than 3 years!

There are days when I dream of retiring! Days when I would love to do nothing more than walk in the door, hand in my resignation letter, and walk out the same door to a quieter, more peaceful place...

...Like a deserted island!

A deserted island free of organized sports.A deserted island free of class parties.

A deserted island free of science experiments.A deserted island free of three 5 year old monsters and an even BIGGER 3 year old monster!
But when I applied for this job a little over 5 years ago, I knew there would NEVER be a retirement offered.

No 401k

No paid vacations.

And even worse, no days off!

But five years ago today, on September 25, 2003,at 1:24 pm, 1:25 pm, and 1:26 pm I gladly accepted the best job ever!

Though all of the monetary aspects of this job seem dismal, the emotional perks are out of this world.

I wouldn't trade my job as "Mom," to Angel, Isaac, Bella, or Annie for anything in this world.

Happy Birthday Angel, Isaac, & Bella!

I sure love you!

"Dear God...

Please help Mommy to be happy tomorrow."

That was the prayer that Annie prayed just before dozing off to dreamland.

And Isaac's prayer? His was right along those same lines.

"Dear God, Please help Mommy to not yell."

I hate to admit it, but I had one of those evenings. Or was it afternoon? Or has it been one of those weeks?

I sincerely thought that the kids going back to school was going to solve all of our problems. I pictured picking up three mentally and physically exhausted children from school each day. Children who would be ready to come home, have a snack, rest awhile, do some homework, eat dinner, bathe, read a bedtime story, and then, hit the pillow.

Boy was I wrong.

It is my assumption that my children are well-behaved at school, mind their manners, and even act as if they love each other in the classroom.

It is the only logical assumption. It is the only reason that would explain why they are ready to let it all out upon arrival to our car parked just 100 yards away in the school parking lot. They've spent six hours putting on this show and they can't handle it any longer when that bell rings.

I'm telling you, my kids go to war the minute we climb into the car. They fight about who is sitting in which seat. They fight about how long it is taking each one to get buckled in. You name it--they will fight about it!

And the fighting only continues at home. And my temper only shortens, hence the prayers of my darling children!

If their prayers aren't answered quick, they're going to have to visit Mommy in the insane asylum!