Who Needs Sleep?

Pre-Pink Pajama Sleepover party last night. Ava, Sophia and I, waiting for the crowd of girls to arrive.

My Blog Post, In A Dress

The other day the kids and I were at Chili's having lunch with Melissa and her kids. Gavin and Colson were sitting by themselves at another table, building castles with coasters and salt shakers and then throwing sugar packet "bombs" at the other's castle, scoring points when they'd breach a wall. Ava and Sophia were at our table, drawing. Ava was asking Melissa and I what she should draw, we'd give her an idea and she'd draw it. After we'd given her some ideas like "Dancing vegetables",

"An elephant doing ballet",

and, "Melissa wearing a bathing suit and teaching a class",

Ava decided to draw one of her own ideas. She drew, "those wind up teeth",

and then things started to get really funny. I should mention that when we get all the kids together, Ava's favorite thing is to subtly tease Gavin, Melissa's oldest son (he's 12). Ava loves to try to get him to laugh by doing things that could be taken as slightly mean, but she does it with a cute little giggle. So she started drawing a picture, and she was giggling to herself the whole time. Finally she showed it to us:

She said, "It's me and Sophia and Zachary, and we're all happy. But Colson and Gavin are mad because they're wearing dresses!!!" She couldn't stop laughing while she said all that. Melissa and I were cracking up (how can you not? Look at Gavin and Cole, they have their hands on their hips and expressions on their faces like "Who the heck drew these stupid dresses on us???"), and Ava decided to take it over to show Colson and Gavin. They rolled their eyes at her, but she was giggling so hard I thought she was going to choke. She came back to our table and started drawing furiously again. She was whispering to Sophia, "This one is SO BAD!!" We made her show it to us, and it was this:

"It's Cole and Gavin getting married to each other!!" *tee hee hee hee hee hee!!!!* Melissa and I spit out our Diet Pepsi, we laughed so hard. Colson's dress with the puffed sleeve put it over the edge. Well, Ava ran it over and paraded it in front of Gavin and Cole. She was doubled over and could barely breathe at how funny she thought this picture was. She returned to our table, and grabbed the pad of paper. Next came this hysterical one: Gavin, who is in reality a huge football star, playing football in a dress:

Then we got Colson playing piano in a dress:

I have to give Gavin all the credit in the world. He was a great sport about it all. Colson is used to it, he barely blinked when Ava shoved these drawings in his face. He gets it at home all the time. But Gavin has probably never experienced someone drawing pictures of him in a dress before. And he took it like a man, just rolling his eyes and shaking his head.

Gavin started telling us all that he and his best friend wanted to be a banana and a gorilla, respectively, for Halloween, and go out in the neighborhood together as such. So Ava drew this picture of G and HF. When asked who HF was, she says, "His Friend!"

Then she said, "I'm going to draw Gavin as a banana in his dream world", (cause that's a normal thing to draw), and drew the next two pictures.

She was on a roll that day. It's so entertaining when my naturally introverted daughter feels comfortable enough to put it all out there, because she's wicked funny.

Please Call 1-800-EXORCISM

My 3 year old fairy goddaughter Sophia, daughter of my best friend Melissa, has been having a rough time the past few weeks. She been getting into trouble a lot, forgetting the rules and generally getting ahead of herself. Her brain is way too big for her age, and that's hard to deal with when you're a toddler.

Melissa's been punishing her more than usual lately, due to the increase in bad behavior. The other day Melissa asked Sophia, "Why do you think you've been getting into so much trouble recently??" Sophia sat for a moment and thought about it. Then she said very gravely, "Mom, I think I know why."

"I think that there's a monster in my belly, and he's been telling me to do bad things. I've been listening to him, instead of listening to God in my heart. I need to stop listening to the monster in my belly and listen to God in my heart more."

So now when Sophia starts to misbehave, Melissa asks her, "Sophia, who are you listening to?" and Sophia immediately changes her behavior. Today Sophia said to Melissa, "Mom, I missed you so much when I was listening to the monster in my belly..."

So let's all take a cue from Sophia and stop listening to the monsters in our bellies. I know her fairy godmother needs to learn that lesson, judging from all the empty Ho-Ho wrappers laying on the floor around me....

Monday Mornings With Zachary

Zachary and his best friend Luke Tabasso, the only child who doesn't irritate Zachary. Thank goodness for Luke, or Zachary might go through his whole childhood with only adult "friends".

This Place Is Fishy

The Mosley/Johnson/Tabasso Camden Aquarium field trip. These were our attempts at getting group photos of the kids.

Coming Soon To A Milk Carton Near You

Oh my good lord in heaven and all the saints covered in gravy, these kids are cute. As my mother would say, "Keep an even closer eye on those two, they're so cute kidnappers will surely grab them!" ('Cause you know, kidnappers are very choosy. Why hide out in a dirty shack with an ugly kid?)

Free Zachary

Zachary has been practicing his swimming all summer in order to take and pass his "yellow wristband" swim test. The yellow wristband will allow him to go into different areas of our local YMCA pool. Well, this past Monday Melissa brought her kids to the pool with us, and she gave Zachary some tips. He spent an hour practicing her tips, and finally came to tell me he was ready to take his test.



Melissa taught him how to take a breath while swimming, but he chose not to during his test. I asked him later if he thought he was going to run out of breath during that swim, and he said, "Yes I did, but I didn't want to stop. I wanted to make it". I've never seen him so proud as he was after he passed that test. He even jumped back in and completed it a second time. After he got his wristband he had to call everyone he knew to tell them. He's been saying all week, randomly, "Mom, can you even BELIEVE that I passed my swim test??!?!??!"

Luke took his test too, right behind Zachary.

Thomas and Joshua had taken their test the day before:

Monday Mornings With Zachary's First Guest Star

Today, Zachary steps aside to let my fairy goddaughter, Miss Sophia Audrey Gina Tabasso, have her first moment in the internet spotlight.



I keep rewinding to the part where she says "rhiiiiiiiine-bow!". Fantastical...

Apologies

And every so often Ava's soft side comes out. A couple of weeks ago I took Ava and Zach to meet Melissa and her kids at a McDonald's playland. Colson was in school at the time. When he got home that afternoon, and heard where Ava had gone, he expressed his displeasure at being excluded. The next week, I took Ava and Zach again, while Cole was at school. The next day Ava sent him this email:

(the subject was "i'm sooo sorry")

"sorry but the other day wene you were at school we went to see Sophea i'm so sorry obout that.

Your Sister Ava"

Fairies Are Real

When Sophia was born, and Melissa asked if I'd be her godmother, of course I said yes. When I thought about it afterwards though, I realized I couldn't wrap my brain around the thought of me as a godmother. Have you met me? Godmother material I ain't.

But then it hit me; a FAIRY Godmother is TOTALLY what I am! Appearing to her out of nowhere once in a while in times of trouble, bestowing words of wisdom and beautiful new dresses. Inviting her to parties to escape her wicked mother. Instructing her to never stay too long at the party.

And reminding her that even without a magic wand, she always has the power to change any situation for the better.




So yes, I am Sophia's Fairy Godmother. Please address me as such.