What happens when you let your kids play with body crayons...

Is these lovely self portraits.  

Moments to create...

Much soap and elbow grease to erase!  

Charley Anne has turned 2...

and would have loved to celebrate with you!

The party here was loads of fun

Even without the bright shine of sun!

We munched on lots of fruity treats

The new bouncy toy was really neat!

Wagon rides and aloha tunes

The party ended way too soon!

We could have hula'ed the whole day through

Maybe next year that's what we'll do!

Pineapple cupcakes, jello squares

Flower lei's floating through the air!

Browse our images and you will see

The day we celebrated with glee!

Happy 2nd Birthday Charley Cupcake!

We love you!!!

Mommy, Daddy and Eva

Peace at last...

after a day the tidy bowl man claimed for his own... suffice it to say I had to order replacement parts for Charley's BROKEN crib... etc...etc... and the list goes on, I headed out for a date with myself this evening. I am THE BEST DATE EVER. I took myself to get a wax, eat dinner, do a bit of shopping at Trader Joe's (I'm addicted to shopping there. It's TOTALLY okay to spend money on great food, cuz we'll eat it!), window shop in downtown and READ the entire time I ate my dinner.
I needed some peace and I got it.
Screw you tidy bowl man!
luv,
tiffers
p.s. tami, you are the only loser left on my list. i got emails from the other losers. i suppose i could email you, but then you would win and I WANT TO WIN. LOL MISS YA! oops, i forgot. angi is STILL a loser too. geez, the whole move to turkey and not having ANY of her stuff could possibly be why i haven't heard from her. HMMMMM. i need a phone number.... :-)

I don't wanna grow up...

My conversation with Eva the other day while driving home.

Eva: "Mommy, if I eat a lot, does it mean I'll grow up to be a adult?"
Me: "Um, yes honey. If you eat good food, you'll grow up healthy and strong."
Eva: "I don't want to eat any more food. I'll just drink water so I can stay a little kid."
Me: "Well, why don't you want to grow up?"
Eva: "I want to stay a kid so I can have lots of fun, cuz kids have more fun that adults."

Um. So what do I say to that? Gee, Eva. You're right. Stay little FOREVER! Please?


My conversations with Charley.

Charley: "I want cracker."
Me: "Not right now Charley, we're getting ready for dinner."
Charley: "I want cracker."
Me: "No, Charley. Mommy is making dinner."
Charley throws crackers on the floor and begins throwing all the magnets off the fridge, then decides that she needs to be held while I am preparing dinner and attempting to get Charles and Eva to help me out. HA. I am not holding her and now she is screaming, pulling on my pants and...
Charley: "I want mommy. I want mommy. MOMMY. MOMMY. MOMMY."
By now her face is bright red and splotchy, huge tears are spilling off her cheeks and I feel like a goober.

Ah, motherhood. Joy personified.

Other conversations with Charley consist of my asking questions of any type and Charley responding as follows...

"No."

OH, how I love age 2.

With love from the scullery maid/chauffeur/seamstress/personal shopper/short order cook/etcetera, etcetera, etcetera...
Tiff

or we could use the tom tom...

So, tonight I sang to Evie, as requested. We keep a missal and catholic hymn book in her room, which she loves to pick random songs from for me to sing. This is especially lovely when I have no idea how the song goes and my sight reading is quite horrific after years away from formal singing groups. Tonight, however, we picked a song familiar from mass and my butchering wasn't too bad. When I finished, she asked me why we sang "Christ be our light..." and so, of course, I attempted to explain that the song was telling us that Christ in our life was a light to help us to find our right path/way in the world. So my sweet little Evie looks at me and says, quite matter of factly...
"or we could use the Tom-Tom."
Enough said.

Out of the mouths of 5 year olds.
Which reminds of the time my niece Haley asked, after grace at the dinner table, why we say Amen instead of Agirls.

I LOVE CHILDREN!!
Tiff

Blessed...

My midgets with Derby, our former cat. (LONG story.)

are we. After months of agonizing and a lot of little prayers sent to St. Anthony (finder of lost things,) my Kindermusik stuff has reappeared! It seems that in the sadness and chaos that ensued after the loss of the baby, we left it at Our Lady of Fatima School. They kindly stored it until I happened to remember that is where I left it! I certainly hope this means our tide has turned. I do mostly feel like my karma has lived with the Tidy Bowl man since we got here. I am officially requesting prayers that we somehow manage to get more scholarship money for Eva to go to Our Lady of Fatima Parish School. Right now, it's just out of our reach, but we are hopeful and positive that things WILL work out. I realized when it became out of our reach, that it was even more important to our family than I thought, for reasons that are very personal, but very deep and spiritual for me.

On another note. I am a blog loser. Still can't seem to get on a good pic downloading/blog posting schedule. I'll download and post pics this weekend. I am, however, hyper organized first thing in the morning and have taken to setting out the breakfast for the girls, making the bed, doing laundry and straightening the kitchen and making airline reservations, all before 7 am. What the HELL is wrong with me? I should be sleeping. Jeepers.
Speaking of jeepers... JODI, call me back you loser.
And speaking of losers... angi, annie, and tami... CALL ME. I don't even have Angi's phone number. Jeez. like she moved to turkey or something.
AND... one more thing. my great pal Ali and her family are awaiting news/orders for her husband Paul to rejoin the USMC, so say a prayer that they get good news and of course, end up here! (I already have their house picked out. It's on my street.)

FINALLY, if someone knows where I can get an adjustable dress form for children, PLEASE let me know. I might actually get some sewing done if I had one.

Off to figure out WHY on earth Charley is playing in her roon 3 hours after I put her to bed. Oh, did I mention she was sick yesterday? Fever, rash, vomiting. Ah, the joys of mommyhood. I did, however, REALLY secretly enjoy all the cuddles I got. I'm sure that makes me a cruddy mom, but I'll take extra baby snuggles any way I can get 'em.

Love to all,
Tiff

Eva is only 5 once...

and I should enjoy it. Before I can blink, she'll be 6, then 10, then 25, then... i can't even think about it!
After yet ANOTHER night of power struggles, angry words, punishments and overall aggravation over dinner, I am reevaluating my plan of attack. See, here is my problem. I'm viewing this dinner ISSUE as something I must attack. Well, the dinner I make is for my child, one of the people I love most in the world, not for my enemy, for the love of pete. So attacking it is probably the wrong way of thinking.
Eva is the world's SLOWEST eater. Yes, Sam, she may even have Ivy beat. She automatically finds something wrong with her dinner every night, takes forever to eat it, nibbling off itty bitty bird bites at a time, then alternately chewing and storing them in her cheek like a hamster, all the while fidgeting, talking, going to the bathroom, asking a million questions and essentially turning dinner in the Mac household into a marathon that sucks the ENTIRE evening dry. Interspersed are complaints of tiredness, questions about what privilege she will lose if she doesn't eat, temper tantrums if we try to make her eat and questions about why Charley always finishes first. BECAUSE she ACTUALLY EATS HER FOOD.
So, here's my plan. My child will not starve. I will serve her dinner and give her 25 minutes to eat it. IF she finishes, great. IF NOT, fine too. She won't get any snacks or such later on. 25 minutes. I will not nag, I will not help, I will not yell, I will not bribe. 25 minutes. That's it. Because I want to enjoy 5. and 6 and 1o and 25.
You heard it here. I wrote it so I can't change my mind.
and here is what i want to say to my daughters every night for the rest of their lives.

' "The LORD bless you and keep you;

the LORD make his face shine upon you
and be gracious to you;

the LORD turn his face toward you
and give you peace." '

I have my peace. My family.
Talk about lucky.
Tiff

television sucks my brain dry...

Actually, I think it's my kids that do that, so that by the end of the day, all the energy I have left is the ability to use my right index finger for channel flipping and my left hand for drinking a glass of wine or eating chocolate or some other evil little snack that will go straight to my... whatever. So it all starts innocently. I'm tired, so I figure I'll watch a little boob tube while I fold laundry, clean up my room or just SIT for one minute. Well, one minute bleeds into the next and the next and the next, until I find myself watching discovery health about 8 foot tall people or 2 foot tall people or people who are 2 foot tall and give birth or babies born without stuff or with extra stuff. Well you get the point. Or I could end up cheering those crazy people who think American Gladiators is a worthwhile life goal or the lucky people on deal or no deal who ALWAYS manage to screw up a good thing. The point is...
I'm wasting too much time glued to the idiot box. Just about every day, I check the blogs of my friends. I'm always amazed that Lucia and Michelle (the busiest human working mom on the planet) manage to post almost daily. I think I've figured out why. Either they are doing illegal drugs, they've cloned themselves OR the real reason... they don't tune in to tune out at night! I used to only turn on the TV for my fave shows. Well, this stupid writer's strike left me adrift and show-less. SO, I spend my time now surfing for replacements, which leads to the discovery health thing, which leads a lot of freaking out about getting pregnant again or searching the internet to see if I'm really a dwarf or have some strange and rare condition that will cause me to turn blue and grow a third eye... to WASTED time!
What, you ask, do I wish to do with this time? Sew, read, take a bath, talk to my hubby, talk to my friends, POST on this blog! Anything.
Well, what to do? I SUPPOSE, I'll just turn the damn thing off. I might need moral support. I might need medication. Or I might just really enjoy the quiet.
TV... is evil.
(Unless it's showing Desperate Housewives or Lost or Survivor.) Crap, this is going to be hard.
HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tiff
p.s. Happy Valentine's Day. I did manage to turn off the boob tube long enough to make THOSE dresses.

Fighting fire with...

GARTH BROOKS!
As most of you are aware, we had a heck of a fire season here. Along with many others, we were evacuated when the fires began threatening our homes. The Horno Fire came within a few miles of us and was a frightening site for several days. Leaving our home in the middle of night, fire on the horizon, smoke in the air and ashes raining from the sky, was one of the most frightening and sad events in my life. As a military family, I believe our possessions hold even more value to our hearts than the average family. We don't have a home base, a structure to call our own, so we make each place we land our home. We do so with the physical reminders of our unique lives and our travels and homes over the U.S. and the world. While I am the first one to purge the unnecessary from my home, I am also the champion of the sentimental. I've left behind family, friends, beloved pets, the homes I brought my babies to for the first time, the church I married in, the beloved island that brought me the best 3 years of my life. In each sentimental object, I find a memory. Whether it be love, laughter, sorrow, joy, or any other emotion, the memories triggered are the tapestry of our life.
When the evacuation became a reality, I frantically darted in and out of the rooms of this home, desperately trying to decide what really mattered to me. Was it pictures? The teddy bear my mother painted when pregnant with me? The crucifixes given to my children for their baptism? My baby book? Grandma Eva's artwork? Books that changed my life? The teddy bear I slept with until the fur was gone and the stuffing has fallen out? Letters from old friends?
As we departed our home for what could be the last time, backlit by the orange haze on the ridgeline behind our homes, it felt as thought I left behind parts of the soul of my family. Had we brought the most important things? I'm sure some of you are scoffing at this internal debate, thinking, "it's only stuff! The most important thing is that you were safe!" And, you know what? You're right. That was the most important thing. But the second most important thing to me is the place I wake up to each day and lay my head to rest each night.
It's the place I raise my children, love my husband and cherish my friends. And without all that stuff, I didn't know how I would make a home, remember the days past and create a haven for the days of the future. I still don't know, but what I do know is that God was watching over so many of us during that dismal week. We were safe, our homes were saved and life moved on. God was watching and the firefighters were channeling his power to find the strength and perseverance to keep fighting til victory was theirs. And theirs it was.
So where, you ask, does Garth Brooks fit into all this?
With one hell of a benefit concert (actually 5 of them in 3 days!) with all proceeds benefiting the Fire Intervention Relief Effort. Click here to donate or read about it...
http://www.rrmtf.org/2008firerelief/default.aspx
Thanks to my MOST fabulous Uncle Ted and Aunt Deb, we were lucky enough to see this amazing tribute and benefit. And I took a picture just before the concert of all of us. It's another memory to add to add to my tapestry, something else I'd grab just before the next fire, flood, hurricane, typhoon, earthquake...

Thanks for the memories, all of you. I hope they forever live in my mind, my house, my boxes, on my walls and in each of you.
And a huge thanks to Aunt Deb, Uncle Ted & Becca for making this new place feel so much like home with your love, your open arms, your laughter and just being you. We love you all so much.
Sentimentally!
Tiff

Straight Stitches!

Eva's first sewing stitches!

Look at those straight lines!

So proud!

I was learning how to sew straight stitches with my Mom today. First my Mom showed me, then I did it by myself. First, I'm going to hand sew, then I'm going to sew with my sewing machine I got for Christmas from Aunt Sammy & co.
Good Bye,
Eva

MUSICAL MAYHEM...

ensued today at my Kindermusik Demo class. HOLY macaroni, the tidy bowl man leapt out of the damn toilet and grabbed my damn karma. UGH. It goes like so...
I finally get my contract with MCCS done to teach the community center.
My 20% doesn't get me much advertising, so I paper the ENTIRE housing area with fliers (1000 homes or so.)
I get not ONE measly phone call or email. UGH.
I forge ahead with my demo class because I am stubborn.
Last night, after 4 hours of searching, my Kindermusik instruments are NOWHERE to be found.
Well, can you say OH SHIT?
So, after a sleepless night, I forge ahead with the bloody demo.
At 10 am, as the 20 or so people are settling in (out of 1000 freaking families), I realize that this room I am in is an acoustical NIGHTMARE and every teeny, tiny, itty bitty sound anyone makes is amplified by like an INFINITE number of decibels. For the love of pete.
SO the chaos reigned, checkered by a few teachable moments and about 2 quiet minutes of You are My Sunshine. That was quite possibly the LONGEST 40 minutes of my teaching career. Which really stinks because I don't think the parents had any idea how a real class goes. Since a real class is usually only slightly definingly loud. and this was SO LOUD. Think Metallica concert.
Oh, happy day.
On a happier (really) note... an old friendship is on the mend. yay!

Musically deaf now,
tiff

Bad, Bad Blogger!

Ok, so here it is in a nutshell. The holidays & household projects kicked my butt, so blogging got shoved under the keyboard for a while. BUT, I'm back. I'll spare you the gory details of the last few months and let the pictures tell our story... (up to Turkey day, Christmas deserves it's own post!) Love & Happy New Year to all...


Charley analyzing her gymnastics class while
showing off her adorably fat little belly and legs!

Giving Thanks for our MANY blessings at Eva's Turkey Day Celebration

Hangin' with Uncle Ted, the ultimate 'Skins fan!

Turkey Day Fun at Aunt Deb & Uncle Ted's
Rebecca is the BEST cousin!

Charley declaring her Green Bay Packer love
to get in good with Aunt Deb, the ultimate Green
Bay FREAK!

Birthday Madness!!! Disco Days was our theme, slabs of ice cream cake our big dream!

Clan Mac Carving Madness!!

A sweet kitty and magical Pumpkin Fairy
(yes I made those costumes. YEAH, man!)

That's my clan with me dressed as California Barbie. LOL

Charley really trick or treatin'! My little chocoholic.

Tag, I'm it.

Okay, so thanks to Aimee & Michelle, here are 7 things you never wanted to know about me.

1. I have terrible stage fright and still don't believe other people really want to hear me sing.

2. I have a compulsion to write my own greeting cards and party invites. It tends to sound a lot like Dr. Seuss after a bottle of wine.

3. Unless I live within 30 miles of you, your present/card will be late, regardless of the type of holiday or whether or not I knew about it way in advance.

4. Seasons are essential for my happiness. Lately, I've taken to likening cloudy cool days to winter and I get really peeved when the sun does come out!

5. I secretly want to nominate myself for what not to wear so I can get a new wardrobe.

6. You all know this already: I am WAY too organized and OCD. However, my time management skills TOTALLY stink. So I'm organized, but always late. UGH.

7. I am an extremely loyal friend who tends to get crapped on because I'll stand up to a rude macy's clerk, but won't stand up for myself with friends because I don't like confrontation with people I care about.

AND...a bonus #8
I secretly wish (about 50%) of the time that I'd stayed in the Marine Corps. I guess it's true what they say, Once a Marine, Always a Marine.

AND, Angie, TAG YOU'RE IT. (This might be the closest we ever get to talking, since my timing for calling stinks and you probably can't find the phone, what with all the paraphanalia from your hundred kids covering your house.)

Semper Fi!
Love to all,
Tiff

A weekend without...

organizing, picture hanging, cleaning, purging, rearranging, shopping or ANYTHING ELSE move-in related. A month or so ago, I signed myself up for a Pampered Chef party, so the 4 days preceeding this momentous event were spent in a whirlwind of activity as I attempted to clear out the chaos and make my home look presentable. Needless to say, I have never been so happy to be at week's end. The party was a success, the food was great, my house is FINALLY almost done and I spent my weekend socializing, attending a winefest with the spousal unit, attending a birthday/welcome home party, sitting around a firepit with new friends AND best of all... sitting on my BUTT!!

The Mac Chicks just bustin' out of the egg!
The look on Eva's face as Charley nails her one to get ahead
pretty much sums up my life these days.


So, you ask, what is new with the clan mac? Where, oh where to begin. Amidst the chaos of settling in, many new adventures have come our way. Evie has settled in to her new school, wishing she could attend every day. Her teachers are amazing. They are so clearly enamored of these sweet children and their obvious joy in their work is inspiring. I've been inspired to look for new ways to make my home and our life more adventurous for my mini macs. I hope this only leads to tons of fun & lots of field trips for our clan.

Speaking of, we took one last week to my childhood home of Santa Ana. Just a short 35 minutes north of here lies the elementary school where I learned my ABC's, the church where I took my first communion, the home whose address I still remember. What a sweet adventure it turned out to be.

Me & My gals at my elementary school!

Eva in my childhood church

Eva's 1st trip to Chuck E. Cheese

I won mother of the year for that treat!

Evie is back into gymnastics & loving every minute. Last week, she also informed me she would like to take up tennis and disco dancing. Move over, John Travolta, Evie Mac is on her way! In the midst of these discussions regarding new interests, she also decided that a DISCO party is the way to ring in year #5. I am SO excited! You know I'm trying to figure out how to make a disco ball cake. Any ideas?
Every day, she is bursting with excitement to work on letters, numbers and aw, crap, worksheets.
Many of you know I feel like worksheets are the bane of american education, but my little sponge loves the accomplishment of completion & being right!! She discovered a packet from last school year and zipped through all 20 or so of the sheets in like a day. oy, i am in for it. It is so invigorating to see her so curious and ready to absorb everything around her. She is VERY interested in learning to read, so we are planning to focus more time on that goal very soon. Although, I'm not sure how I'll communicate with other adults if I can't spell stuff "over" her head.

Oh, and Charley. What can I say about Charley? That child is a trip. Half the time her hair is stuck to her face with her boogers. The other half, she looks like a little oompa loompa with her water spout hair, curls over her ears, teetering around the house on her fat little tree stump legs. Her newest form of communication is the point, yell and grunt.
Never mind that she knows like 50 gazillion signs and can actually say quite a few words, including bellybutton (sounds like beh bah.) I think she just likes to yell. And you should see her get really mad. I love it when she makes this super mad face in the mirror, yells at herself, then grinds her little face into the mirror while baring her teeth. I have got to get this on video. It is SO funny I can't even take her seriously when she does it. As a matter of fact, she is so crazy, I don't think I'll ever take her seriously. Guess she takes after me, huh?
Enjoy the pics!
Love to all!
Tiff & co.
p.s. yes, we were evacuated. it stunk. watching the hillside behind my house burn was a BIT nerve-wracking. I thank God every day since that we were blessed enough to be able to return home. Thanks for all the well wishes and prayers!

My Mom...

Nana with her munchkins
THIS is your legacy. Be proud! We are!

is the BEST mom. Today is her birthday, so I celebrate her with...

an ODE.



when i was very tiny

you wiped my hiney.



when i grew grew to your knees

you made me eat my peas.



when i reached your hip

you wouldn't take my lip!



when i reached your waist

you taught me to cook, post haste.



when i reached your rib

you taught me to be glib!



when i reached your shoulder

you wished i would never get older.



when i looked you in the eye

you taught me to reach for the sky!



now i'm so much older

a mother now myself.

i spend my days with little me's

making them eat their peas.

and everytime i look in their eyes,

it makes me heave a sigh.

to know the love you feel for me

and how hard it was to set me free.



you sang to me when i was small

you heard me sing as i grew tall.



you tucked me in and cracked the door

3 fingers open, not one bit more.



each night when my babes go to sleep

i pray the lord their souls to keep

i pray to thank him for MY mother

truly, she is unlike any other.

the blessings of your love run deep

i have them forever to keep.



i love you mom.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

PICS!!!

Ivy so grown up!

Eva modeling her improvised bikini

the clan mac and wetherill chicks carrying on the lewis tradition of swimming til you are pruned, even if it's dark!

kisses for aunt sammy!

swimming with papa (never without the bink, even in the pool!)

tickling the funnies with Nana

Good times & Great Friends!

Distance never dulls the love of a good friend :-)

Papa & JoJo puzzling out the pieces