Think Sandy Knows Me?

Sweet Sandy! My fellow Penn State fan! A woman after my own heart! She gave me an award that I will gladly accept with all my mouth. It involves chocolate people!

Here are the rules for accepting this delicious award:

1. You must eat a piece of chocolate in honor of accepting The Octamom Award.
2. You must eat yet another piece of chocolate when you put the award on your blog.
3. You must visit Debi B., who designed the award, and leave her a comment, because she deserves props for a chocolate award!!
4. Try to stop by those that were awarded...because they deserve love too!
5. Add or Subtract the rules at your leisure, except the parts about chocolate!
6. And if you are reading this post and you feel like you need a little chocolicious goodness in your life, right about now: feel free to award yourself the Octamom Award and eat a piece of chocolate!

So the question is who do I award? I have so many of you who deserve it! So here's the deal - if you are one of my 18 stalkers or if you frequent by blog and are too lazy to hit the follow me button then you may take a piece of chocolate and this award! But you have to leave a comment (and I will be checking!) and tell me what your favorite chocolate is - for me it's Lindt Milk Chocolate truffles (mailing address e-mailed on request!)

Have a wonderful day my friends! Take a minute today and do a little something for yourself. Just call it a Me Thursday (if it sounds like a holiday you're more likely to participate)!

Party Time! MomDot Day 2!

Can I just tell you how much fun I had yesterday? I added several people to my reader and I saw some really awesome pages! If you aren't popping around reading at least a few of the other participants in the MomDot Blog Party you are really missing out on meeting some wonderful and creative people!

Our question for Day 2 is brought to you by:

Sponsors: LaPlates and Lets Go Strolling and Natitys Design

VIP BLOGGERS: Parent Reviewers , Mom Most Traveled, Mommy Zabs, MomStart, HipposToes, Run DMT

And the question is:

Traditions, what are some of your favorite family traditions? What are some traditions you want to begin?

I love traditions. We have a few here at the Zoo and I am certain we will add more as the years pass. Some of my favorite Zoo traditions center on Christmas.

Christmas pajamas – You all got to see these yesterday in our family picture. My mother always makes the kids pj’s to wear on Christmas Eve. Unfortunately for me this is the last year that the three may be able to have matching pj’s. Tuck and Mo are getting a little older and will probably start to move to more “grown up” jammies.

The Cookie Bake – The weekend after Thanksgiving all dieters move away from my house. I will spend all of November storing up baking supplies little by little. Then the Saturday after Thanksgiving I go nuts. I bake all day long. Chocolate Chips, Peanut Butter, Peanut Butter Blossoms, Oatmeal Raisin, Oatmeal Scotchies, Chocolate Covered Pretzels, homemade Chocolate Covered Cherries, Double Delicious Bars, Oreo Truffles, and more that I would list if I was less fearful of keyboards across the blogosphere shorting out.

Then on Sunday the plating begins. We make trays for the fire houses and Daddy’s office and smaller bags for our mail lady and any other public servants the kids choose. Then we go as a family and deliver them. I may be off a little but I almost think the kids look forward to this more than they do to the presents.

The Magic Seed – This is by far my favorite!! Since we moved into our house three years ago, we have had a real tree. Daddy picks it out himself and brings it home from work the second week of December. Then we bring the tree stand up from the garage and let the kids “plant” the Magic Seed. It is actually a pistachio nut that one puts in the tree stand and the other waters. Then I put them in the tub.

While they are busy playing in the tub, Stephen and I set the tree up in the tree stand. Then while I do baths and jammies, Daddy puts on the lights. It is the highlight of the holiday season to watch their faces as they lay eyes on the tree for the first time.

That is just a few of the Christmas traditions here at Zoo Suburbia. I am tingly with anticipation that they are approaching quickly for this year again!

Want to pick up some more holiday traditions for your family? Pop over to MomDot and visit some of the other participants who will be sharing their traditions too! Make sure you share a little comment love - it's our version of chocolate (when we can't get our hands on the real stuff)!

Mom Tip Mini

Think twice before adding last minute exhibits to your zoo.

I love my daughter. I love her friend. I love my son and I love his friend. Having a friend sandwich when you don't HAVE to is not a good idea. Yesterday I had Tuck's friend (because I keep him two days a week). But being the kind and generous person I am, I knew that the girls were out of school today for Election Day. I'll let Mo have an all day playdate!! That will be so nice of me!

Brrrnnnttt. And on top of that I took them all to the park where we met up with the other friends. That's right Zoo fans! I single handedly took four children to the park on an absolutely gorgeous no school day (it was PACKED!!) and met up with one other adult and three more children. Do you have a mental picture yet?

Two adults. One seven year old. Three five year olds. Two three year olds and an eighteen month old. Four children who decided to adopt my friend and I since their parents were too busy talking on their cell phones and about a dozen children who seemed insistent on giving us heart attacks by climbing up the outside of the twenty foot high climbing structure.

I'm exhausted. My nerves are shot. And I still have to mop my floor and make dinner. Did I mention that Tuck's friend comes back tomorrow?

I'm taking Thursday off.

Wordless Wednesday

For all their ruckus sometimes, I still think Orangutan and Rhino will end up best of friends.

Mom Tip #48

Boys are completely different from girls.

Yeah I know. That is a “Well, Duh!!” moment but I have to explain myself because there are people out there who have not had the pleasure of having both genders in their family. Me, for example. I only have a sister. So I was not prepared for anything that came with raising a boy or living with a boy’s – shall we call them, quirks?

Boys could really care less about the potty. I think we have covered this in great length but it bears repeating. Munch has to “go potty” every time someone sets foot in the direction of the bathroom. Granted, she is not really doing anything when she is in there, but it counts, right? Not The Boy! He could care less. Tuck, go potty. “But I don’t wanna! (screaming, wailing gnashing of teeth)” And then he pees his pants while he is in mid-fit. What is that?

Boys have no concept of fashion and are not in any rush to get one. As long as they have pants and a shirt, all is right in the world. Shoes are optional. Colors are inconsequential. Socks only exist if you already sacrificed a few toes to the weather. He came out of his room is red shorts with blue pinstripes down the side and a lime green shirt with yellow and white surfboards which was of course backwards. His sandals were on the wrong feet and when I asked him to fix his clothes or at least change his shorts into something that might match a little I got, “But I like it like this.” There is no point in arguing.

Boys speak their own language. Tuck had a friend here the other day and they were out on the porch playing while I cleaned the kitchen. They were speaking to one another like they understood but I am at a loss for what they were saying. There were a lot of sound effects (fire engines, horns honking, back up alarms) and a language that I would be hard pressed to find a dictionary for. But they understood each other and played so nicely that I forgot where they were for a few minutes.

I will probably never win the potty fight. That will be something he just makes his mind up about one day. The fashion might have a fighting chance when girls enter the picture. But I do have a shot at the language barrier. I think they were teaching Munch a little the other day. I may actually have a translator in the works. I’ll let you know when she is preparing her dictionary.

Am I completely nuts?!

Neighbor is out of town this weekend. Neighbor has a 80 lb chocolate lab. Bentley didn't go out of town with Daddy. I've taken him into the Zoo. Did I mention that I am on cough syrup with codeine? Did I mention that Daddy has to go in to work early tomorrow and will be there late tomorrow night?

So the Zoo now has 1 Large Male Lion, 1 Orangutan, 1 S.M. Rhino, 1 P. Marmoset, 1 small security dog (Jack Russell terrier) and 1 large security dog (chocolate lab). Marmoset thinks Large Security Guard should double as a horse. S.M. Rhino thinks he makes a great pillow. Small Security Dog is incredibly jealous and has been sulking all night.

What have I done?

We interrupt this blog....

'Cause apparently I might be a little bit cool!

So Sissy over at My Kids Might be Martians rewarded me with the following...

So now I get to pass it on to 7 bloggers who have influenced me and who I greatly enjoy!

1. Mommy Cracked

2. The X Mom

3. Sleeping Mommy

4. Wiping up Snot

5. Mommy Confessions

Unfortunately I'm still growing my blogroll and since Sissy and the Martians are the ones who awarded me I hate to pass it back. She would be #1 on the list otherwise. Thank you to my faithful readers for tolerating my nonsense. I love you all!! (cue Oscar music....)