Bathtime for the Babies

The kids are at the age where they can finally take baths together. I'm not the one in the house that usually gives the baths, that's Christopher's special thing that he does with them (I know, I really did score in the husband department). Sometimes I feel guilty, for resting on the couch while I can hear the splashing, cleaning, and every couple of seconds- the discipline, going on in the upstairs bathroom. Sometimes I'll get up and do the dishes while they're up there soaking in suds, to kind of even it out? He cleans the kids, I clean the dishes? Sometimes? That way I'm not just sitting (even though I know its ok to be lazy sometimes) like a pile of unfolded laundry that's been dumped on the couch, and handing over all of the duties to the man.

Of course I'm going to say this (I get payed in dirty diapers to compliment my kids), but aren't my babies so cute? Charlie was trying to "brush" sisters hair with the comb. It was all giggles and aww's, until the hairdresser got a little rough with his client, and started banging on the tangles like a hammer hitting a nail. He is only 13 months old, after all, so we shouldn't expect him to find his chosen career path the first try anyways.

Someday, in their own eye rolling "seriously, mom?", kind of way, my kids will thank me for these pictures.

Flashback Friday: Week 28

I'm kind of cheating. These pictures aren't really from Valentines Day. But they are full of red lipstick and kiss marks, and that's what Valentines Day is all about right, for us romantics at least?


This picture was taken at a summer back yard party back in 2005, when Christopher and I were on the edge of engagement, and not yet sure of our adventurous future together.

Remember how back in school we'd make some kind of "mailbox", and deliver Valentines to all of our classmates? There would always be a mom that brought in cupcakes, and if we were lucky, our parents would get us a box of chocolates and a teddy bear, that would reassure us that they loved us, even though without those material and tasty things, we knew they loved us everyday anyways?

Then as we got a little bit older, it became about the boys that we liked. We could pay money to a fellow student sitting at a table in the hallway, and have a single rose delivered to our crush, best friend, or sweetheart, during 5th period. I never had anybody to send a rose to, and I never had a rose sent to me.

Until I met Christopher.

Christopher isn't the best when it comes to being romantic. Did anybody watch Modern Family the other day? I don't think I've laughed that hard at a show, ever. The couple that went on a role playing date to the bar- the husband... him and Christopher have a lot of awkward qualities in common. Christopher tries, in his own "I know I'm supposed to do something special on this day, because I've gotten in trouble by her in the past" kind of way, but its just never really worked out the way that he thinks it will when hes planning it out at the very last minute.

This Valentines Day, I don't expect anything from him. The Canon camera that I got a few weeks ago, I consider that my everything-present for the rest of the year. Valentines Day, Anniversary, Birthday, Mothers Day. I can't imagine him going out and buying me anything from a pink cardboard display stand, that would mean anything more than "I just threw away $10 on something that you really don't want". I've got a little something up my sleeve for him, nothing too special, nothing store bought, but its something that I think will show him that I love him. He'll smile, and say something like "aww, honey", and that will be that.

Wait- this wasn't really a flashback, was it? It was supposed to be, but... sorry guys, I guess I just really needed a place where I could ramble out some words and get to my point...

I love my husband. And until I met him, Valentines Day was nothing more than a day of emptiness, and guilt for eating my entire cardboard heart shaped box of self bought chocolates. And now- its a reason to put on red lipstick and leave kiss marks all over a handsome man's cheek. Valentines Day has turned into an excuse to slide open the zipper on my heart just a little bit more than I would on a normal given day, and let just a little bit more love in.

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Want to flashback with us? Post a picture, this weeks optional theme is Valentines Day, of you from way back when- your childhood, a year ago, last week. Write a little bit about your photo, grab our button from the bottom of our blog (waayyyy down past all of the posts) and center it somewhere in your post (or you can just link us the old fashioned text style way), and then add your link to the link list below. If you've got a minute, browse through some of the other flashbacks, we've got a great little community going, and seeing treasured photos and the stories that go with them is a great way to get to know somebody.

Next weeks theme, which is completely optional should you choose to flashback, is going to be pet themed. I was going to make it cat themed, but then realized that not everybody is a cat person, so then I was going to have it cat/dog themed, but... maybe you only like lizards? I don't know. So its pet themed, haha.

Can't wait to see what y'all come up with!!